Vancouver native has been participating in Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series events since 2011
BELLEVUE, Wash. (August 24, 2022) – Thousands of runners are scheduled to participate in the St. Jude Rock ‘n’ Roll® Running Series Washington on Saturday and Sunday, September 3-4, 2022 as the Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series makes its return to the Pacific Northwest. For one runner in particular, the race will be serving as quite the milestone.
Leah Reid, 44, of Vancouver, British Columbia will be taking on her 100th Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series event when she toes the starting line on Sunday for the half marathon. Since her first race with the series in 2011, Reid has been drawn by the ability to explore destinations she had never visited all while having a great time and being active.
“After doing my first [Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series events], I was hooked. I needed to do more of these,” said Reid. “What better way was there to see cities I hadn’t been to before? I just started doing more and I felt comfortable that I would get a consistently good experience.”
Not only has Reid found an opportunity to be active and to go out and explore, but she also has found a community by participating in the Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series.
“One of the biggest things I’ve gotten from running and from the Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series, in particular, is I have met so many people along this journey,” said Reid. “There is quite a community of runners and they’ve become very good friends that I never would have met if not for this. When I go to these races now, it’s a reason to see my friends and it’s more than just the race. It became a very social thing for me. I have friends in Vancouver that I will go for runs with, but now I have friends all over the U.S. that I plan to go to races with.”
An avid runner for the last 15 years, Reid turned to the sport as a way to decompress from the grind of her career as a CPA. She never guessed that a simple desire to be more active would lead to all of this.
“Getting into running started with a 5K clinic and it just grew from there. I fell in love with it and started doing races locally,” said Reid. “I remember reading about the Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series in a running magazine and it just sounded really fun. I love music and the atmosphere around it seemed like my kind of race.”
When looking back at her first race in Arizona in 2011, she isn’t surprised to be hitting her 100th race just because of how good of a time she had.
“It was everything I had wanted it to be and more,” said Reid. “I loved the music, and it made the race fly by. It was a great way to explore and see an area that I had never been to before. I wanted to do all of them that I could and see all the cities I had never been to and now here we are. I continue to come back to these races for the courses, the cities, and the people. I just really like the opportunity to see everyone I know, run a fun race, and explore a city that I may have never been to.”
With the 100-race milestone soon to be in her rearview mirror, Reid isn’t sure if she’ll be hitting the 150 or 200-race milestone, but she is excited to see how her running journey continues.
“In some ways, it feels like I’ve been doing them forever and, in some ways, this has just gone so fast,” said Reid. “When I sat back and counted all the races, I couldn’t believe it. If you told me I was going to run 100 of these after my first one, I would’ve said ‘Yes, definitely.’ It was such a great experience. It’s been a great journey and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. We’ll have to see what life brings for me for if I pursue 150 or 200 races.”
Bellevue, Wash. is set to host the St. Jude Rock ‘n’ Roll® Running Series Washington on Saturday and Sunday, September 3-4, 2022 as the Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series makes its return to the Pacific Northwest. Race weekend kicks off on Friday, September 2 with the Health & Fitness Expo at the Hyatt Regency Bellevue. The St. Jude Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series Washington event weekend will feature 5K and KiDS ROCK races on Saturday along with a half marathon on Sunday. Following Sunday’s half marathon will be Encore Entertainment presented by Amazon Music featuring Nevermind. Participants that want to register for St. Jude Rock ‘n’ Roll Washington can do so onsite by visiting the Health & Fitness Expo.
For more information about the 2022 St. Jude Rock ‘n’ Roll® Running Series Washington, visit www.runrocknroll.com/washington.
