This week we are spotlighting the Butler Road Race since it is the last year with the current leadership.
In 2018, the race that travels around downtown Butler will be taken over by the YMCA and there will be some changes. Such changes will be how the money will be spent and new contact information.
Since 2017 is the last year of the Butler Road Race with Director Mike Franko, we wanted to look back at the race’s beginnings. According to Franko, the event began as an event to help celebrate Butler’s bicentennial and had 169 finishers. In 2016, over 400 people finished in the 5-mile race alone.
And how did the current leadership get started? Mike Franko said when the previous race leader was stepping down 18 years ago, he had a lot of encouragement from friends to take it over.
“I prayed about it,” Franko said. “I said, ‘Lord, what do you think about this?’ and he said ‘You’ve got a great committee and a great program with the scholarships.”
Mike decided to turn toward volunteers to move forwards with the race.
The 42nd annual Butler Road Race will be taking place on Saturday, June 24, 2017. Find out more online at www.Butlerroadrace.org.
Tomorrow, we’ll look at the records the Butler Road Race has set.
Written By: Tracey Morgan for the Butler Radio Network
