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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

The Boulevard Race takes over the University District with ‘the most fun you’ll ever have over 4 miles’

Racers cross the finish line for the second Boulevard Race in the University District on Sunday in Spokane.  (Elena Perry/The Spokesman-Review)

Many think of a Sunday morning as a time of relaxation associated with sleeping in, attending religious service, readying yourself for the work week ahead or any other ways one may observe the “day of rest.”

That’s not the case for over 3,000 people this Sunday, who instead opted to run the Boulevard Race’s 4-mile course through downtown Spokane, some in as fast as 17 minutes.

Beginning and ending near the southern edge of Gonzaga’s campus and looping through the University District, the course was flanked by sponsors handing out swag and blowing bubbles and foam, several DJs blasting high-energy music and distributing treats to the racers.

“It’s a race that has all the elements that make you even forget that you’re doing a 4 -mile race,” said race director Jon Neill. “We started off the year billing it as the most fun you’ll ever have over 4 miles.”

The race fit that bill for 9-year-old Henry Leadingfox, who described it in one word: “fun.”

The budding baseball player enjoyed training for and running the race with his dad, Aaron Leadingfox. The Leadingfox duo were compelled to enter the race because of its beneficiary, Community Cancer Fund.

“I got two people at work whose family members are going through cancer so I just wanted to donate for their cause and keep me healthy, too,” the elder Leadingfox said.

Community Cancer Fund raises money for cancer patients and their families, donating to fund treatment, lodging, counseling and other support services.

The Boulevard Race is one of three events that generate funding for the organization, local to the Inland Northwest. The Showcase golf tournament in Coeur d’Alene, Boulevard Race and CCF Classic Gonzaga basketball game last year raised a collective $6 million for the fund, said Neill, also executive director of Community Cancer Fund.

“People really began to understand what it is that we’re trying to do,” Neill said. “Create a fantastic community event that everyone can participate in, from families with strollers all the way up to fantastically fast runners, and then along the way, just make sure that we all come together for this great cause.”

In its second year, this year’s race had more than 1,000 more entrants than its inaugural run. Neill intends to continue holding the race annually, much to the joy of brothers Davis, 11, and Cruz Barbour, 9, who ran the race both years. Davis plans to reuse the safety pins that secure his race bib to his shirt every year he runs Boulevard as a tradition.

The two beat their times from last year, employing the strategy that running is a mental game as much as a physical one.

“Whenever I thought it was kind of hard, I would just think ‘I did this last year, I ran a mile a couple days ago, I can do this. I can do this.’ ” Davis said. “I kind of got excited towards the end, so then thinking in my own head kept me away from thinking about that.”

In his fifth year running cross country, Cruz enjoys the competition of the race.

“What I was thinking the whole time was, once you see the finish line, run as fast as you can,” Cruz said.

“He just took off,” Davis said.

Surrounded by other red-faced racers doubled over, panting and chugging Powerade at the finish line on Sunday, the brothers felt a sense of accomplishment and victory in their performance. Though their legs ached and their hair clung to their sweat-drenched foreheads, they already were excited for the next Boulevard race and entering Bloomsday next year.

“I don’t really like (running), but I do like the feeling of after running. You feel so happy and it just feels good after,” Davis said. “Even though you’re kind of sore, you feel good.”