“(I) basically came to support her,” Long said.

More than 120 members of the MSU community also joined Long and Triantaflos at the race, which was sponsored by the Residence Halls Association, or RHA.

After a small turnout of about 20 runners at last year’s race, RHA President Chelsea Satkowiak said she and other event organizers focused specifically on setting up the race to coincide with homecoming events.

“Unfortunately, last year when we hosted the race, we were unable to get a day that was during Homecoming Week,” she said.

Satkowiak said interest and participation in the event far outpaced last year’s numbers because of the pre-Homecoming Week date.

“This year, we got an early start with the planning, and we got this Sunday (for the race),” she said. “(It’s) really exciting.”

Participants trekked 3.1 miles across campus, winding past the Auditorium and Bessey Hall out to Kellogg Center before turning around and running back to finish at the rock on Farm Lane. All proceeds from the event will go toward Ele’s Place, 1145 W. Oakland Ave., in Lansing, a nonprofit organization that offers support and assistance for grieving children and their families.

A well-balanced combination of MSU alumni, current Spartans and East Lansing community members also boosted the morale of organizers, Satkowiak said.

“I think so far we have a good mixture of both (students and alumni),” she said. “There has been a lot of people in the community that have registered as well, but there’s been a lot of students.”

Athletic training freshman Megan Kuhn said she was looking forward to competing against her fellow Spartans during the race.

“It’s a lot more fun when you’re running with a lot of people versus running alone,” she said.
Kuhn wasn’t worried about her time given the weather and said she was “just out here to run.”