STARKVILLE — While the ice and snow of last week may have melted, the Starkville Frostbite runs are still on tap for this weekend.
The half-marathon will begin downtown at 9 a.m. Saturday, with 10K and 5K races starting a few minutes later, a press release from race organizers said.
Brad Jones has been co-coordinator for the Starkville Frostbite for nine years, since taking it over from OCH Regional Medical Center. The race itself, he said, is going on its 39th year.
“We’re a home-grown race,” Jones said. “… We’re very proud of being a family friendly race. We feel like we have an option for everybody, whether you’re a hardcore runner that wants to test your half-marathon skills … all the way down to if you’re a novice runner – we have a 5K that you can walk or jog.”
The course, Jones said, starts at the Main Street-Lafayette Street intersection before winding through the city’s historic district. The 10K and half-marathon will also take racers through the Mississippi State University campus and half-marathon runners will go through South Farm. The 13.1-mile distance for the half-marathon has been formally certified, Jones said.
He said the race has grown significantly every year, aside from during the pandemic. On Tuesday morning, he said 900 runners had signed up for the Frostbite, and race organizers are expecting up to 1,000, which will blow previous races “out of the water.”
Every year, a portion of the Frostbite’s proceeds goes to charity. In the past, the race has benefitted the Boys and Girls Club, the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, the Starkville Fire and Police departments, and more, Jones said.
This year, the Starkville Frostbite will benefit the Catch a Dream Foundation for the second straight year. Catch a Dream is a nonprofit that gives children with physician-certified life threatening medical conditions once-in-a-lifetime hunting and fishing experiences.
CEO Marty Brunson told The Dispatch that last year’s Starkville Frostbite funded wishes for two children, each of which cost about $4,500.
“It’s not just about the hunting or the fishing,” Brunson said. “It’s about a full family experience, and giving to this child and that entire family what one of our children once called, and I’ll directly quote him, ‘a vacation from being sick.’”
He said the nonprofit does not get any funding from grants or federal or state funding. Instead, Catch a Dream depends on donations, including those from fundraisers like the Starkville Frostbite.
“Fundraisers like the Starkville Frostbite and many other grassroots endeavors around the country literally help us make this happen,” Brunson said.
Online race registration is open until 9 p.m. Thursday. Registered runners can pick up their race packets at Chick-fil-A Starkville from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Friday.
On-site registration will also be available Saturday starting at 7:30 a.m. on Main Street. For more information or to register, visit www.frostbitehalf.com.
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