By DAVID A. MANN
David.Mann@newsandtribune.com
JEFFERSONVILLE — Get your running shoes laced up and your stretches done; oh and grab something green, because this isn’t your average jog.
Organizers in downtown Jeffersonville are getting set for The Shamrock, a 2-mile run down Chestnut Street, between Spring Street and Main Street. The run is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Tuesday.
According to race director Fred Geswein, the event is a sort of follow-up to Louisville’s bygone Leprechaun Run, a St. Patrick’s Day tradition that dissolved a few years ago.
“So many people missed it,” he said.
And so, Geswein, a Jeffersonville resident, decided that Southern Indiana could fill the void.
The Shamrock is only in its second year. Last year, about 200 people participated in the event, but Geswein expects that total to rise to about 300 this year, noting that already more than 130 have signed up.
Participants have until 6 p.m. that night to registered for the event.
“[Chestnut Street] is flat, it’s fast,” he said, “just about anybody can walk 2 miles.”
The first 100 men and 100 women to finish will receive a medal.
And it’s not just a run. A post-run party scheduled at 300 Spring will feature a DJ, a bar and door prizes donated by local businesses. A photographer will take pictures during the run, which will be displayed on screens during the after-party.
The $20 entry fee also buys runners a green beer or soda.
Geswein said even those who don’t participant in the run are welcome to show up at 300 Spring and buy drinks.
Money raised will first go toward covering the cost of the event. Anything left over will be split between the Purdue University School of Pharmacy type-one diabetes education program for Clark, Floyd and Harrison counties and Jeffersonville’s RiverStage, a floating entertainment venue on the Ohio River that’s administered by the Jeffersonville Parks and Recreation Department.
