February 2011

I went to a 5K run with a friend of mine for the first time.  As we were leaving, it occurred to me that there are a lot of runners out there who love to be outside, enjoying nature and each other.  Our parks department in Jonestown was doing a good job, but there were things that I thought might bring more interest to our parks - exercise equipment, more nature trails, places to sit and picnic, trail markers, -- well, you get the idea.  Our parks department has talented and creative people, but the budget just didn't allow for too many embellishments.



That year, the City was going to be having an event in Jones Brothers Park in September - an event that needed, well, something.  I thought that by adding a 5K to the venue, we might bring more varied interest to Jonestown, and then people could see what a great setting we have and what a nice park Jones Brothers Park is!  It's ideal for any range of events - from picnics, to family reunions, to weddings.  There was so much potential there, but not so much budget.



I decided to approach the City with the idea of a 5K.  It was a little bit rough at first, but the Council liked the idea, the Parks Board REALLY liked the idea and many of my friends, co-workers and neighbors came on board to help see the event to fruition.  Our first year was a success!  We raised over $2k to put towards exercise equipment for the Loop Trail on the northeast end of the park.  



2012

Our 2nd year was rolling along really well, until torrential thunder storms rolled in during the month of September.  Despite nature's efforts, we still had 35 runners show up the day of the race to run (even though it was pouring down rain that morning!) and a window opened up in the sky about 15 minutes before the gun went off (well, it was an airhorn, but gun sounds better).  So last year, we still had what I considered a very successful year with combined proceeds providing us with just under $2k.  In all, over the past 2 years, we've donated over $4K to the Parks Development Fund and were able to purchase the exercise equipment (with some help from the city).  The equipment has been installed and is currently being enjoyed by many who've already told me how much they like it!



 

2013

Our third year proved to be a successful repeat of the preceding years with new faces, LOTS more local support and an abundance of volunteers.  People in Jonestown really like the idea of an annual, local event and they LOVE the trails.  2013 saw the addition of the upper and lower loop trails on the NE end of the Jones Brothers Park and 3 more picnic areas around the adult exercise stations.  In 2013, the Lakeside Challege 5K featured a new element:  the SMALL FRY RUN - an abbreviated version of our 5k but for those aspiring runners 11 & under.  The SFR is a near miler (to the end of the park and back), followed by crafts, games, candy and fun for the kids while the adults ran the 5K.  In 2014, we will continue the SFR since it was such a hit in its inaugural year.

 

 

2014

Our fourth year was amazing!  We never ceased to be surprised by the number of new people here in the community that now want to be a part of the event, AND the number of returning volunteers and runners!  Another thing that is awesome is the number of "mature" runners!  Last year, our Fossil Award winner was 73!  I think that's brilliant!  Last year, we also topped the magical mark of 100, with 110 participants in the race and 35 volunteers on race day!  There were other neighbors who showed up who weren't official volunteers, but who were recruited for various tasks and that all just jumped in willingly to help!  The Lakeside Challenge 5K has truly become a community event that people look forward to each year now!

 

 

2015

THE LAKE HAS RETURNED!!!  I remember the first year of our event -- looking at the dry river bed and announcing to the crowd, "Maybe we'll have a lake for the 2nd Annual Lakeside Challenge 5k!"  Didn't happen.  Another year went by - no lake; then another.  Things were looking grim and although i knew in my heart that the lake would return eventually, I just didn't know when that would be.  Well, looks like the 5th time is a charm for us!  So we're REALLY looking forward to our 5th annual run. The course hasn't changed -- it's still a CHALLENGE!  But that's the way we like it here - we live in the hills, we run in the hills, we belong to the hills...and to the lake.  

 

Karissa Kornegay,  5K  Committee Chair