Kids get on track for the O.C. Marathon

NEWPORT BEACH — Shelby Perez didn’t need to come to running practice that morning. The Eastbluff Elementary School sixth-grader had already completed 42 miles on the track — nearly twice the amount required. Moreover, it had rained the night before, and a cold wind still tore around the field at Corona del Mar High School.

Shelby, though, opted to tough it out on Wednesday. A little more than a week remained before the Orange County Marathon, in which she planned to run five kilometers, and she wasn’t about to risk getting out of shape.

“It’s better to at least run a little than not to run at all,” said Shelby, 12, pocketing her hands and waiting to warm herself up with a jog around the track.

Last year, Eastbluff parent Diane Daruty launched a running program at the school, sending teams to the Orange County Marathon and the Spirit Run in Newport Beach. A year later, the program — recently dubbed “Fast Feet” — has nearly doubled in size. In January, 119 students ran three days a week after school; now, enrollment is up to 180.

And while 32 students earned medals for running the distance in this year’s marathon, Daruty has a set goal for next month: 100 finishers.

“They know that it’s real,” Daruty said about the program’s popularity. “They know you don’t get it [the medal] unless you do all the work.”

On Wednesday, around three dozen children gathered on the chilly track to get in their laps for the day. As Daruty and other parents stood on the sidelines and timed each runner, a pair of adults in training for the Orange County Marathon — Mary Moore and Juan Ramirez — ran alongside the students to pace them.

Many members of the Eastbluff team had run in the marathon and Spirit Run this year, though a few of the younger ones were new to the fold. The school organizes six training groups with different parents in charge; both kindergarteners and first-graders have their own squads.

A number of returning students said their goal was to break their personal time records. Fourth-grader Caden Gruber, 9, finished five kilometers in 22 minutes and 44 seconds at a recent meet and was pushing himself to go faster next month. He had a promising start, anyway: On Wednesday, he led all his classmates with 52 miles completed in practice.

Fourth-grader Wes Robins, 9, adjusted his diet to train for the big race, abstaining from junk food and packing in green beans and brown rice. With one marathon under his belt, he expected to glide to the finish this time.

“It’ll probably be easier,” he said.