May 5, 2024, was the 30th annual Great Train Race. At peak participation, 3500 children competed in the Mile and Caboose runs. From the founding race director,
How it all started
By Debi Bernardes
In 1994, the founder and first president of the Fredericksburg Area Running Club, John Robbins, encouraged me to become a member. As a young mother, coach, and competitive runner, I was looking for something to challenge myself with that year, other than just running races. I wanted to contribute to the sport that had given me so much confidence, strength, and new friends.
In 1995, the Leukemia Society asked me to become a coach for a team of runners in the Fredericksburg region to help them train for their first marathon through their Team in Training program. These runners had to train for a marathon and raise at least $3,000 before they could show up at the starting line of their race.
After that first meeting with these energized people, I knew that their biggest challenge would be the fundraising, not the actual training for the marathon.
I lay in bed that night, attempting to sleep while my brain worked at high speed. I knew that I wanted to help them with their fundraising in a different way. I knew that putting on another race in the area would not raise the money needed to help these people, as at the time, the average race size was about 200-300 runners, and the expenses of running a race are always a surprise for the organization who thinks that they will make a lot of money. Large races happen, but not in a small community.
I remembered how cool it was for me to cross the finish line of my first marathon (and my first 10k), getting a shirt and finishers medal, and that it had created such a memory of accomplishment that I thought, ‘why shouldn’t kids have that experience?’ Why couldn’t they have all the adults cheer them along a race course, scream at them as they came across a finish line, or applaud them as they went up on stage in front of their peers to win an award?
Terry McLaughlin, the YMCA Special Events Director at the time, and John Robbins had already started including kids in their Organ Donor Awareness race with a one-mile kids’ run (held at the Butler Road YMCA). I didn’t want to put on a 5k; I wanted the kids to be center stage.
Then, in seconds, I knew where we could hold the course. Visibility would be essential for the kids/parents, and the name just popped into my head as I thought about the train station on Caroline Street.
Thus, the Great Train Race was conceived. Since every train has a caboose, that, too, was added to the event for those too young to run a mile. I could envision a train coming through town around the starting time (it’s happened a few times), and I could see all the families lined up along the road.
That morning, I looked at what little research I could find regarding youth-only road races (remember, the internet was still in its infancy). I knew that we would most likely be the country’s first youth-only road race (I was able to verify that in later years).
Once I started putting on paper all the things that would be necessary for the race, I approached my friend Ruth Olson to help me with this endeavor. She helped me organize it and secured our first sponsor through Drew Wine and Communication Specialists. Then, we had Dr. Coker Orthodontics as our first Caboose Run sponsor. I couldn’t have done that first race without the help of my fellow running friends and our sponsors.
I then went to the next Fredericksburg Area Running Club Board meeting and explained what I wanted to accomplish. While they applauded my enthusiasm, they told me I was unrealistic in getting the race ready in two months, but they still agreed as a club to back me up. They didn’t know that when someone puts a challenge in front of me and attempts to tell me I can’t do it….well, the challenge was accepted.
I decided to hold the race on the first Sunday in May because it historically has had some of the best weather at that time of year (and I needed to help the Team In Training as their race was a few weeks later), and from there it was a sprint to get information out to all the schools, the Free Lance-Star, print up flyers, get the account set up for registration, T-shirts designed/printed (Steve Schwartz from Graphics Designs), and course approved by Officer James Shellhorse of the Fredericksburg Police Department.
Finding volunteers for this event was probably one of the easiest jobs I’ve ever had, and what was amazing is that I kept some of these people helping out every year after that. It was to the point that my life on race day was fun, but I’m getting ahead of myself as that first year was a nightmare behind the scenes.
On race day, we already had around 200 kids pre-registered for the event (I was glad I ordered extra shirts afterward). We had four heats set up that morning, at 20 minutes apart. One was for the younger kids (I believe ten and under), and one was for the 11 to 18-year-olds, also broken by sex. I wanted the girls to only race against other girls and the boys only against other boys. We also allowed parents to run with their younger kids (under 8) for their sense of safety.
We started to get a massive influx of parents signing up their kids on race morning. In the meantime, our computer person, Don Baxtor, was sitting in the back of a van near the finish line at the City Dock, and we couldn’t get the new registrations into the computer fast enough before the races started. Processing results while entering names was a nightmare. I must thank Don for that morning as he and Ruth sat side by side, getting the work done inside that hot van. By the time we finished that morning, we had over 400 kids crossing our finish line (including the inaugural Caboose Run).
I could and couldn’t believe what a huge success that race was that year. Although we did have to spend a lot of time dissecting all the mistakes made, it was with the aid of the board members of FARC (Matt Boyd, Kevin Breen, John Robbins, and Vic Culp) that we were able to fine-tune the race into the well run event year after year. At our highest point, we had nearly 3,000 participants in the mile and 500 in the Caboose Run. We instituted the School Participation Award to help donate money to the PE programs, and we started the Vic Culp Scholarship program for graduating high school runners, with additional help from the sponsorship of the Free Lance-Star, Communication Specialist, Hilldrup Moving and Storage, and various other throughout the years.
We have seen some of the best runners in the region start this race as children, become collegiate runners, then become adult elite runners, and now become coaches themselves. My goal of inspiring young kids to become running adults has probably been the most rewarding aspect of this event I created.
——
I thank Debi for her involvement in this race over the years.
Race Directors have come and gone. They include Debi, Tom Marchegiano, Karen Gerry, Joe Nicotera, Jim Thull, Jennifer Taylor and Brian Pessolano.
Over the 30 years, the course had the same basic layout, starting on Caroline Street and finishing near the City Dock and the Caboose Run, beginning at the top of the hill.
The initial start was near Princess Elizabeth Street. To relieve stress on the Caroline Street residents, we slid the start to the train station, which added a couple of extra blocks at the turnaround.
We’ve had flood years, a COVID cancelation, and an adjusted course to get back to running after COVID.
We added the George Dashington half-mile in the 20th year.
The city has been a great supporter of this race. Most cities won’t close downtown streets for four hours on a Sunday morning. Let the kids run and have fun.