Get Your Rear in Gear gains universal media coverage
Photo source: WoodleyWonderworks on Flicker
The sixth annual Twin Cities Get Your Rear in Gear Run/Walk held in Edina on May 16 received coverage by each of the Minneapolis/St. Paul television news providers. This is the first time that the race has been covered extensively by all major news outlets in the city. Coverage included spots on KARE-11 News First Edition, both before and after the race, a featured Motivation Monday segment with fitness expert Chris Freytag, and race day coverage on the KARE-11 5pm News. WCCO-TV provided extensive coverage including three pre-race segments inside a giant inflatable colon, pre-race coverage on WCCO This Morning and WCCO News at Noon, and a Sunday night race wrap up on their 10pm newscast. KSTP-TV ran a story online as well as pre-race promos, and Fox 9 included photos from the event as well as post race statistics on their Fox at 10 news broadcast.
This widespread news coverage marks progress for the Colon Cancer Coalition. The goal of the non-profit organization is to raise awareness of colon cancer by presenting Get Your Rear in Gear 5K Run/Walk events around the country. The race was founded in the Twin Cities in 2005, but has grown to include over 30 more locations across the country. The races draw tens of thousands of participants each year, which gives the Coalition the opportunity to educate participants in person about the importance of screening procedures, and to help build a supportive community for those who have been affected by the disease. But in addition to these large gatherings, awareness advances are made when news agencies cover the Get Your Rear in Gear events. Television news segments remind Americans of the importance of routine screening procedures and bring uncomfortable terms such as “colon” and “colonoscopy” out of hiding and into peoples’ homes. During a live interview from the Twin Cities race, WCCO Radio interviewed Coalition President Kristin Tabor who explained that people’s uneasiness with these terms become a barrier to proper screening. And without proper screening, colon cancer will remain the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States. “We want to do for colon cancer, the same thing that happened for breast cancer,” she says, referring to the fact that twenty years ago terms associated with that disease were considered taboo.
More information about Get Your Rear in Gear events can be found at GetYourRearinGear.com. The website also provides helpful links, information about colon cancer treatment and support services and interviews with fitness and medical experts about staying healthy and preventing disease.
