GREEN BAY (NBC26) — Thousands of runners took to the streets of Green Bay for a marathon that was cut short when heavy rain and dangerous conditions forced organizers to cancel the race mid-event.
The course, which is generally flat and begins at Cormier Road, takes runners past Lambeau Field and more than 10 live musicians. Despite the challenging conditions, many participants said they pushed through and still found meaning in the experience.
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Tom Vomastic was among the runners caught in the downpour.
"It started to actually downpour around mile 22 for me. I heard that it was shelter in place. The race was basically over, going to be canceled... In those kind of conditions, you could get hypothermia," Vomastic said.
Christian Andis said the weather made for a tough but memorable day.
"Oh yeah, this is a tough race, the rain, but it was amazing, very, very glad," Andis said.
For Thomas Bork, the race was about more than just finishing.
"Just to be with family and my mother-in-law did it. She's in her eighties and my wife did it. My autistic son did the 5K with us," Bork said.
Susan Kautzer, who ran as a pacer, reached a personal milestone at the event.
"Now I've achieved my goal of running a half marathon in all 50 states, so now if it's got a good medal, a really good shirt. I just love it," Kautzer said.
Runner Brooke Villalpando set a personal record despite the conditions.
"It was a PR for me. So I ran my fastest half marathon. This is my 4th one, and my goal was to hit 2 hours, and I hit 2 hours and 25 seconds," Villalpando said.
The event partners with a variety of nonprofits, including Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin, the race's official charity partner. Erika Kundinger, a volunteer program specialist with the organization, said the turnout made a real difference.
"We went through, I think, 6 boxes of bananas and then quite a few flats of sandwiches," Kundinger said.
"I always love giving back to the community because we are one of the sole beneficiaries of the race today, I just wanted to come out and to support," Kundinger said.
This was the second year that EPIC hosted the marathon in cooperation with Race Day Events.
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