History of the 5/3rd River Bank Run: When Frank Cashman from the Grand Rapids Track Club approached Marty Allen, then Marketing Director for Old Kent Bank, in the mid 1970s about initiating a local road race, Allen was intrigued. Cashman worked out what he felt was the perfect distance, a 25K that started and finished in downtown Grand Rapids and Allen pledged the funding. In 1978, just over 1,000 runners took to the streets on the second Saturday of May for the first annual Old Kent River Bank Run. In 2001, Old Kent Bank merged with 5/3rd Bank, and the race was renamed to showcase its new owner and called the 5/3rd River Bank Run.
This year, we decided to put together a 5K Team for the 5/3rd River Bank Run. There were 9 employees from Brickley DeLong that ran the 5/3rd 5K and one ambitious employee who ran the 5/3rd 25K (Patrick Mutchler).
Andrea, Anne, Paul, Sharon, Ed, Ann, Chris and Kirk
Sharon and Ann
Anne and Ann
Mark and his wife Jennifer with Ronald McDonald
Ann, Anne, Chris, and Sharon