Bellin Run Legend John DesJardins to continue 50 year streak of participation

GREEN BAY – Bellin Run Legend John DesJardins plans to make his return to the course this year to participate in his 50th consecutive Bellin Run.

According to DesJardins, the Bellin Run is one of the most important events in Green Bay, not just for himself, but for the local community.

“Well, it’s a happening event for Green Bay. It’s been around for 50 years. You’ve got world-class runners there and it’s just such an iconic event,” said Des Jardins. “From the very beginning, it was just a little road race, and then it got to be really huge. Running has lost a little bit of the popularity it once had, so the numbers have subsided. In its heyday, I believe they got up to about 18,000 runners or so, and now it’s down to about 8,000 — which is still a very good number. Overall, I think it’s not quite as popular as it used to be, but is still such a big event for the local community,” said DesJardins.

DesJardins is one of just 20 Bellin Run Legends who have competed in the event each year since the inaugural race in 1977.

“It’s something that I look forward to each year and it’s been a great achievement in my life. It’s a big milestone for me to continue. I don’t run anymore because I’ve run so much that I needed to get two hips and a knee replacement. I do powerwalk now. The inspiration for that is that I love being outside, hearing the birds, running into all kinds of weather, whether it be 20 below or steaming hot. I just look forward to being outside and enjoying the scenery and relaxing to the rhythm of powerwalking. That’s how I get my heart rate up,” said DesJardins.

Although running has not always been the most popular sport — often being the athletic activity most people avoid the most — DesJardins said he has been an avid runner since he was in high school.

“I was down in Atlanta and I was going to school at Emory University and I had picked up running while I was in high school. Some of my classmates were avid runners and I thought, ‘Yeah, I could give that a shot and pick it up again,’ and it just became a good way to get away from the struggles of school and whatever stresses I had in my life. I was able to meditate while I was running about all kinds of things and get away from the hubbub of the day where no one could get a hold of you,” said DesJardins.

Though his training regimen has changed over the years, DesJardins said that he has been dedicated to keeping his body in shape.

“I work out in a gym three times a week. I like to maintain my muscles. I’m not a bodybuilder and never have been, but I just want to have good muscle tone. That supplements my powerwalking. I walk every day. I walk as far as six miles and if I’m hurting a little bit I’ll tone it down to about three miles,” said DesJardins.

Through his 50 years of participation in the Bellin Run, DesJardins said he has several years that stick out to him in his memory.

“The trial was very important. It was a serious trial for racketeering. There were a lot of threats and dangers regarding the case. The police had issued a bulletproof vest for me and they put in a special alarm system in my house. The trial happened in 1988 and it started in February and I thought there would be no issue with the Bellin Run. When the judge asked me how long I thought the trial would take, I thought it might take about two months. Well, it ended up taking about five and a half months,” said Des Jardins.

“As the trial got longer and longer the judge wanted to move things along, so he started running the trial on Saturdays, so I had to make one of my best arguments to the judge about how important the Bellin Run was to me and how devastating it would be if I had to miss it. I had to add a little extra juice to my argument by saying that if I had to miss the Bellin Run I would be so depressed I don’t know if I could continue on with the trial. The judge took mercy on me and granted my request. When it ended, the guy got convicted on about 80 counts and faced a hefty prison sentence.”

Shortly after that tumultuous year, DesJardins said he had another prominent Bellin Run memory.

“The run I think about the most is the year I call the ‘blast furnace race’. They used to start the race much later in the day. It was very humid and the temperature had to be in the high 80s or 90s. The first leg of the race was fine, but once we hit the turn at Green Isle Park, it hit me like a blast furnace. I used to work in Green Bay at a place where I had to go in front of blast furnaces all the time because my job was to cut iron and bring it to the hammer men. I had experienced that enough times and that race was just like that,” said DesJardins.

Thankfully, DesJardins said his training had prepared him to face the brutal conditions that year.

“There were sirens going all over the place where people were dropping on the course. I loved running in the heat and in the cold. I would run at noon on the hottest days and — I don’t know if it was smart — but I ran that whole race without a drink. I could never do that now, and that was probably foolish on my part, but somehow by the grace of God I got through that race,” said DesJardins.

“When I got to the finish, it was like a natural disaster had occurred. They had tents set up and people laying on cots all over the place being treated for heat exhaustion. That was crazy.”

As he gears up to face his 50th Bellin Run on June 13, DesJardins said he has some advice for those looking to jump into the world of running.

“My advice is start out slow and take it easy. Enjoy the moment. A lot of people think, ‘Oh, I don’t like the feeling of running.’ Well, that’s a natural reaction to something you haven’t done very much. Take it slow and easy and if you have to walk for a while then walk, but keep up the regimen,” said DesJardins.