The Monster Runner Award

The Monster Runner Award is designed to celebrate the runners in our community who excel in race finishes, overcome personal challenges, run personal bests, contribute to a better life for those around them, and go far beyond their comfort zone to find something special within.

If it’s the month of March, it’s of course time to put on the green and celebrate St. Patrick’s Day traditions - and for runners in the Eugene/Springfield area, it’s time to run the Lucky Clover. Winning her age group (female, 45-49) for the second straight year in the 10K at the Lucky Clover, this month’s Monster Runner is Sharon Rogers. A year older at 47, Sharon covered the 6.2 mile course 34 seconds faster this year than last, with her 48:17 clocking. Her top placing however, isn’t Sharon’s only claim to fame at this unique event – for the second consecutive year, Sharon claimed the prize for singing the best Irish tune at the awards ceremony, to a rousing round of applause. While performing her winning number, she probably had some luck of the Irish (her family is Irish and Finnish), while she also drew on her musical training – Sharon happens to be a music teacher (grades K-5) at three elementary schools in Eugene.

Sharon was raised in Michigan, but followed some friends to the Eugene area in her early 20’s and has been here ever since. Living to the west of Eugene in the small community of Noti, Sharon has miles of back country and logging roads to run on daily as a form of stress relief and to pursue the physical changes she’s undergone since she started running again at the age of 40 after a layoff of nearly two decades. In an effort to lose weight, lower her blood pressure and become healthier overall, Sharon resumed running and has improved every year since. She now competes in many local events and boasts a marathon PR of 3:48, established last year at the Eugene Marathon. She’s aiming for a 3:40 finish in the 2008 event and has her sights set on completing a 50K later this year.

If Sharon’s name and face are familiar, you might recognize her from one of her many performance ventures. She performs with Accordions Anonymous, Sweet River and KEF (specializing in Balkan music), to name a few. With students, Sharon notes, she hopes to teach them how to enjoy music, listen to music attentively, and listen to each other to achieve balance as a life-skill that carries over beyond the musical realm. And not surprisingly, Sharon’s main instructional philosophy combines both of her primary passions (music and running) through a methodology that integrates whole body movement with music skills. Through her running and her teaching both, Sharon’s a great example of what we can accomplish when we seek meaningful change in our lives. From the solitude and quiet of the trails she runs, to the chorus of voices and instruments in the classroom, Sharon reminds us of the importance of “listening for the balance.”