Seashore Striders Summer Series raises $20,000

Seashore Striders present Lee Ann Waltz a check for $3,000 from the Race for the Ribbon 5K. Shown are (l-r) Monique Bamforth, Amy Kuhlman, Lee Ann Waltz, Tim Bamforth and Jackie Quigley. DAVE FREDERICK PHOTOS

Tim Bamforth

August 21, 2020

Kai Maull wins the Penn Relays long jump title as a standout athlete at Cape Henlopen High School.

This past week, the Seashore Striders donated a $3,000 check from Race for the Ribbon proceeds to Lee Ann Waltz to help with expenses as she continues to go through her battle with cancer. Lee Ann will undergo a stem cell transplant and will be away until sometime in October. Another $742 from the Ribbon 5K went to the American Cancer Society.

The Beebe Heroes 5K led the way this summer, raising $7,400 for Beebe Healthcare, while the Millsboro Fire Company raised $2,300 from the Dam Mill 5K for a restoration project within the company. The Father’s Day 5K raised $1,000, which will go to the Seashore Striders Youth Cross Country Team and the Cape Henlopen Educational Foundation.

The Jungle Jim’s 5K raised $900 for the Children’s Beach House, while the Masser 5-Miler raised $2,230 – $1,000 to Indoor Track DE, $500 to Sussex Fields and $730 to Seashore Striders Youth Cross Country. The Run for JJ 5K donated $100 to the JJ Stein Foundation, while the Beach Paper 5K will donate proceeds of $1,000 to the family of Jack McPike, who recently flew to Germany for cancer treatment.

The Seashore 5-Miler donated $250 to the Sussex Family YMCA, while the Run for the Paws 5K raised $1,000 for the Brandywine Valley SPCA.

A total of $20,022 was donated from the Seashore Striders Summer Virtual Series to these various charities, families and organizations. Not a bad summer for 10 virtual events. Thank you to all the runners and sponsors that supported the events.

Race update

The 11th annual Sundance 5K & 1-Mile Walk will be held virtually from anywhere you wish and from Sunday, Aug. 30 to Saturday, Sept. 5, led by Roxy Castillo. The sixth annual Rehoboth Beach Fire Fightin’ 5K will be held virtually from Thursday, Aug. 28 to Monday, Aug. 31, led by Amanda Peters. The seventh annual Run, White & Blue 5K will be held virtually from Thursday, Sept. 10 to Sunday, Sept. 13, led by Janelle Boyer.

The 30th annual Last Blast Prediction 5K will give runners two options to participate. The virtual event will run three days, from Saturday to Monday, Sept. 5 to 7, while the live event will be on Sept. 5 at Grove Park in Rehoboth Beach. Final details are being worked out and the event will open for both registrations Monday, Aug. 24, to the first 200 runners to sign up for live and unlimited for virtual. Participants can take part in either or both events. A race discount will be offered for both events.

Second master’s

This fall as I continue to work on my second master’s degree, this one in coaching and sport sciences, I will undergo an internship under new Cape Henlopen Athletic Director Kevin Smith. My goal is to complete the project of raising funds to hang the 14 state championship signs that were won by boys’ state championship teams around the stadium. The girls’ signs are already displayed and look great, as well as a new outdoor record board and indoor/outdoor state championship board already on display in the entrance tunnel to Legends Stadium. I will be reaching out to the family members of all the boys who were on state championship teams, so stay tuned. If interested in making a donation to the project, contact me at tim@seashorestrider.com.

Kai Maull

Kai Maull, the all-time best jumper to wear a Cape uniform and one of the top three jumpers of all time in Delaware, was interviewed by Indoor Track Delaware Secretary Greg Wilson, a former Rehoboth Beach Patrol guard from the glory days of the ’80s. Greg is putting together the Kai Maull story and how his jumping career took off in just his last two years of high school. Maull won everything one could win while in high school including conference championships, state championships, national championships, and even a Penn Relays Championship, too. Maull set school records and state records, and took his jumping self to Clemson University, where he was an NCAA All-American for the Tigers.

Maull graduated from Clemson in 2003 with a degree in business management and is currently working as a business teacher at William Penn High School, where he is the head track & field coach.

Maull is coming onboard with the organization Indoor Track Delaware to assist with social promotion and marketing of the project. To learn more about the project, go to www.indoortrackde.com.

Indoor Track Delaware

Speaking of Indoor Track Delaware, the board approved doing two Zoom outreach calls next week to reach out to all Delaware high school coaches and give them an opportunity to ask questions about the project, as well as some opportunity to do outreach on their own to their network of athletes, families and friends. The coaches forum will be at 8 p.m., Tuesday, Aug. 25. The goal is to get as many coaches in the state on the call as possible.

The second call is to get together some of the high-profile Delaware track alumni to introduce the project to Delaware athletes who have won state and/or national championships, or have competed in the U.S. Nationals, Olympics Trials or even the Olympic Games. This call will be at 8 p.m., Monday, Aug. 24. To request the Zoom link, email me at tim@seashorestrider.com.