- Video shows the annual St. Patrick's Day 5k at the Park at River Walk. Runners were encouraged to wear green to celebrate the holiday bright and early in Bakersfield.
- Race Director and professor Jeff Moffit says the race is a fundraiser for CSUB's Kinesiology department that supports scholarships or other campus needs for students.
- This year's race winner with a time around 16:20 was Alejandro Cuevas, a Kinesiology student at CSUB.
- Ultimately, Jeff says the race is a way to offer a healthy community event for all. Bringing people together is "Really the important thing that we do," he says.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
The St. Patrick’s Day festivities kicked off bright and early in Bakersfield for the annual 5k.
“That is really the important thing that we do,” Jeff Moffit says.
Jeff Moffit is the race director and a faculty member at CSUB in the Kinesiology department.
He says for around ten years, the importance of the race is to encourage community members to be together…
“And so these are opportunities for us to support physical activity because we know that physical activity is the most effective modality for improving health and wellness,” Moffit said.
It isn’t just good for your health–runners say it’s a fun St. Patrick’s Day tradition.
“I’ve done this most of the years,” Kam Butler said.
Butler says the race kicks off the festive celebrations and costumes.
“It’s just fun– I like dressing up," Butler said. "I always add something different each year, a little bit more green.”
The race is a fundraiser for CSUB’s Kinesiology department. Jeff says the money goes into a wellness fund that they use for scholarships or other campus needs.
“Anything we do on-campus for students and support different things general monies,” Moffit said.
Among the Kinesiology students is Alejandro Cuevas, this year’s race winner with a time of around 16 minutes and 20 seconds.
“I grew up in Bakersfield so I know this route pretty well. It feels really nice," Cuevas said. "The community is full of great, amazing people. Everyone’s pretty interesting in their own way.”
“So it's a special day. All we need is a rainbow and a leprechaun and we have it all,” Moffit said.
Runners say the race is a great way to get together with their community and enjoy a little St. Patrick’s Day fun while supporting local university students.
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