One of the many traditions at Blanchet is that of the Brave 5k. While it is usually run at Lower Woodland, this year’s race required a few changes for the safety of the student body, as well as teachers and parents.

This year, the 5k was dedicated to Marcia Flood, the mother of two BBHS cross country alumni, Emma and Adam Flood. She was instrumental in the cross country program both at BBHS and at St. John parish.

Due to the Pandemic, it was decided that this year, the run would be virtual. This was achieved by students completing their runs independently, with students having a week to submit proof of their runs, via Google Classroom. It was also pushed back nearly two weeks due to the smoke from the California wildfires.

An upside to the different conditions was that it allowed for more time for t-shirts to be distributed, as well as allowing for nearly three times as many students to participate in this year’s 5k, as there was not a set date for the race.

“It was all individual.,” said  junior Will Hunt. “We did it on Strava, so we could track it, but we did it separately to be safe, but usually it’s like a race.”

“It would be neat if more runs or races were structured this way,” said August Pelfrey.  

He liked the freeform nature of this year’s race. Others had the same thought.