SEQUIM — Hansi Hals swam 9 miles and ran 207; Annette Nesse bicycled 300 miles; Margaret Roggow, 97, water-walked across the Sequim Aquatic Recreation Center pool and played lots of pinochle.
Then there were the two men battling to keep their beards.
All of this activity, and more, was under the umbrella of the Spring Fling, a new fundraiser for the Dungeness River Audubon Center that wrapped up with a root-beer-float party Saturday afternoon at the center in Railroad Bridge Park at 2151 W. Hendrickson Road, just west of Sequim.
The idea of this first-ever event, said co-coordinator Hals, was to “come out, do what you like to do,” and gather pledges for miles traveled between May 10 and June 10.
About 85 Sequim and Port Angeles cyclists, hikers, birders, swimmers and runners participated, raising a little over $19,000 for the River Center, Spring Fling organizer Julie Jackson said.
Bearded Biker
One Fling category was fraught with suspense: Titled the Bearded Biker Challenge, it was a competition between River Center director Bob Boekelheide and education coordinator Powell Jones.
Each man strove to raise more money than the other, between May 1 and June 19, in order to keep his beard. The man who came in second would have to lose his.
Boekelheide hadn’t shaved for 36 years; Jones has been bearded for 11 years.
After hailing teams such as the Life Is Good hikers who raised more than $500, the Swift Swallows who identified 295 bird species and the Freedom Farm youth who rode more than 400 miles on horseback, Hals tore open the envelope containing the Bearded Biker Challenge denouement.
Boekelheide gasped and Jones gaped at the close finish: the men had raised $2,790 and $2,764, respectively, so Boekelheide is the one who gets to stay bearded.
Though a small crowd had gathered for this climax, Jones said he wasn’t quite ready to shave in front of everybody. He promised, however, to stand close to his razor by the end of Saturday.
This inaugural Spring Fling was a resounding success, said Hals, in that it propelled people outdoors to keep both their bodies and the River Center in good health.
Nesse, who works with her in the Jamestown S’Klallam tribe’s planning department, vowed to bicycle to work — from Sequim to Blyn on the Olympic Discovery Trail — and “came in smiling every day,” Hals said.
Mary Mira, who organized the dozen preteens and teens from the Freedom Farm, an equestrian center east of Port Angeles, said the Fling took the youngsters beyond mere fundraising.
Raise awareness
“What it did more than anything was raise awareness that they could do something they love” — ride horses — “and help the community,” Mira said.
Hals added that Jackson, the River Center champion who came up with the idea for the fling, gave her a good reason to swim and run more than she might have this spring.
“I felt flung by Julie,” Hals added, smiling.
The Dungeness River Audubon Center offers education programs for children and teens, a summer day camp and many bird walks and other events for adults. It is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday.
For more information, visit www.DungenessRiver Center.org or phone 360-681-4076.
________
Sequim-Dungeness Valley reporter Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-681-2391 or at diane.urbani@peninsuladaily news.com.
