BETTENDORF, Iowa, The Quad-City Times Bix 7 will be the place to be in more ways than one this July. The 7 mile road race will again welcome professional fields for both men and women while continuing to salute local stars. Details were “rolled out” by Bix 7 officials today at the Isle of Capri Casino Hotel in Bettendorf. The 37th Bix 7, a Midwest summer tradition, will be held Saturday, July 30, 2011.
Bix 7 is 7 in 2011
Besides the return of international fields, race officials will be saluting the top men and women who prove to be the fastest in the Quad City Area. Both awards are sponsored by Davenport-based Internet retailer VictoryStore.com. The top male finisher will receive the Gregg Newell Award, named after the late Davenport runner who was the first and only Quad City resident to win the race in 1979.Also, this year the fastest female will receive the Eloise Caldwell Award. Named for Davenport resident Eloise Caldwell, she was a nationally ranked Masters runner, one of only two women in the first Bix 7 in 1975, and a Bix Masters champion during four of the first six years the race was held. She and her husband Phil are also long-time volunteers for the race committee.
Finally, officials with the Des Moines Register’s Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI) have announced that this year’s event will conclude in Davenport on the day of the race. Bix 7 Race Director Ed Froehlich, in his 32nd year guiding the event, feels the ingredients are there for another memorable last full weekend in July.
“The Bix 7 has deep roots in our community and the running community at large,” said Froehlich, who was recognized this past December with the Allan Steinfeld Award from USA Track & Field for lifetime achievement in men’s long distance running. “We are always humbled when great athletes from here and around the world continue putting Davenport, Iowa on their July calendars.
“Our great sponsors have made it possible to welcome world class fields,” Froehlich continued. “But, it’s people like Gregg Newell, Eloise Caldwell and Nancy Kapheim along with our many volunteers that placed, and help keep, the Bix 7 among the elite of running events in the United States. I can’t wait for people to run, walk and ride our way this July.”
