Mini Marathon racers to run for a cure

The IU Mini Marathon will attract runners from across southern Indiana this Saturday to support the fight against cancer.

The race will begin at 8 a.m. in the parking lot of the IU Athletics complex at 17th Street and Fee Lane. There is also a 5K that will begin at 8:10 a.m.

The early registration fee is $30 for the mini-marathon and $20 for the 5K. Participants can also register late from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday at the Harry Gladstein Fieldhouse and the day of the race: $35 for the mini and $25 for the 5K.

Race-day registration will last from 6:15 to 7:45 a.m. To register for the mini-marathon or for more information, go online to www.iumini.com.

The event will raise money for the Bill Z. Littlefield Scholarship for Survivors, which sponsors one student’s attendance at one of IU’s eight campuses. The scholarship is set to be a full, four-year one, which funds tuition, books and room and board.

“We have an endowment with the IU Foundation, and we take all the interest from the donations in order to form a scholarship to give out to an adolescent cancer survivor,” said alumnus Matt Berman, chief financial officer for IU’s Circle of Life.

This year, IU Circle of Life awarded its first scholarship to cancer survivor and freshman Lucas W. Conner from Greensburg, Ind., who survived testicular cancer as a teenager.

The idea for this race originated in 2004 with Kevin R. MacCauley, then a sophomore in the Kelley School of Business. During his fall semester, MacCauley had a scare with a benign cyst above his left ear, according to the IU Mini Maration Web site.

The incident caused him so much emotional distress that MacCauley was inspired to create a student organization that could raise money for those with cancer in need of assistance. Within a few years, MacCauley assembled an executive council that created the state’s first collegiate-held mini marathon.

This year’s mini-marathon will be primarily located on the streets in and around IU’s campus, as opposed to last year’s race, which took the runners away from the heart of the campus.

“The course is designed to eliminate neighborhoods and intersections that could potentially cause aggravation to our runners as well as people in the community who were not involved in the event,” said junior Sean MacCauley, IU Circle of Life CEO.

The 13.1-mile race takes place in the spring this year, while last year had two races: one in fall and one in spring.

“Springtime at IU is awesome with Little 500 and all,” said Nathan Rollings, IU Circle of Life’s chief operating officer. “We figure we can get more people involved.”