Shouldering responsibility to do their part in helping those in need, the Wellington Rotary Club is hosting a Ruck March and Food Drive on Sunday, Nov. 10 at 9 a.m. at Village Park on Pierson Road.
Participants can compete or simply stroll over a 5K or 2K course wearing backpacks — known in military parlance as “rucks” — filled with nonperishable food items, explained retired U.S. Army Col. George Kinoshita. After runners and walkers cross the finish line, they’ll empty their rucks into collection bins for the Village of Wellington’s annual holiday food drive.
“This is a completely unique event,” Kinoshita said. “You’ll not see this combination anywhere else in the country.”
The event will combine timed and competitive races for veteran “ruckers” and team competitions, plus a “fun ruck” that requires no registration.
“Just show up with your backpack and do a friendly walk,” said Kinoshita, who heads the Rotary committee that has been working for months to organize the event.
People who do not wish to ruck around the park but do want to donate will be able to do so at a drive-through drop-off point, Kinoshita added.
Food trucks and hydration stations will be available, and a live band or DJ will provide entertainment. And statistically, the first weekend in November is one of the nicest of the year weatherwise, noted Rotarian Marc Strich, who is assisting Kinoshita. “Ruck races are a big thing in a lot of places,” said Strich, who managed the Mall at Wellington Green until his retirement. “We’re expecting ruckers from across the country.”
Kinoshita, who served in the military police and the Army Criminal Investigation Division, said the event also will feature strong patriotic and military themes, since it is occurring on the birthday of the U.S. Marine Corps and over Veterans Day weekend.
“We’ll have a Marine Corps celebration on the mobile stage,” he said. “This event will really resonate with the veterans’ community, and particularly with Marines.”
It was Kinoshita’s military experience that inspired him to ask his fellow Rotarians to support the creation of the event.
“In the Army, we take our rucksacks and fill them with our equipment — helmets, canteens and so on, and we go off on a ruck march,” he said. “It’s not only a physical challenge; it’s a teambuilder.”
This led to merging the concept with the community food drive.
“So, instead of carrying equipment,” he said, “why not put food in it to donate to a food drive and make it an event?”
However, the same spirit of physical challenge and teambuilding will be just as important.
Individual competition in the timed 5K and 2K will be broken down into 10 categories, each based on gender and age ranging from 12-and-under to 60-70-plus. Age and gender also will be a factor in how much weight will be carried in a rucker’s pack, anywhere from 8 to 15 pounds.
There are 10 categories for four-person mixed teams — five for each distance — that can be made up of friends, business associates or even family members. Trophies will be awarded.
The cost is $28 per person, which is “ridiculously low” compared to other ruck races around the country, Kinoshita said. Team signup is $500.
The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office will provide security and traffic control.
Members of the Wellington High School Interact Club will be on hand to help as needed. Interact clubs bring together young people ages 12-18 to “develop leadership skills while discovering the power of Service Above Self,” according to the Rotary web site.
While the Wellington Rotary Club is providing money and manpower to get the event off the starting line, experienced village staff members have been supplying input on how to coordinate such a large event.
“It took their involvement to work out the logistics. Having their expertise has truly helped,” Strich said.
He added that the club hopes to break even on the project. Any profits after expenses will go toward the club’s veterans’ outreach and youth programs.
“Our goal is to make this an annual event,” Strich said. “And to highlight Wellington as a destination.”
To sign up for the race, visit www.runsignup.com, click “Find a Race” and search for Wellington.
