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2018 MLK Day 5K Drum 1
The Jackson-Olin High School drumline provides some beats for runners and walkers in the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, Alabama, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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Runners pass by the Jackson-Olin High School drumline during the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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The Ramsay High School drumline plays some beats for runners and walkers participating in the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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The Fairfield High Preparatory School drumline prepares to launch into some beats just prior to the start of the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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The Fairfield High Preparatory School drumline prepares to launch into some beats just prior to the start of the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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Runners prepare for the start of the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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Herman Mannings III, at left, and Chip Owens, organizers of the MLK Day 5K Drum Run, take a selfie in front of the starting line just prior to the beginning of the race in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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Runners take off at the start of the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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Runners take off at the start of the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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Runners and walkers take off at the start of the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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A member of the Litchfield Middle School drumline from Gadsden, Alabama, plays some beats to entertain runners and walkers in the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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Runners make their way along Richard Arrington Jr. Boulevard during the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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A Freestyle All-Stars drumline from Center Point, Alabama, entertains runners and walkers participating in the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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A Freestyle All-Stars drumline from Center Point, Alabama, entertains runners and walkers participating in the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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A Freestyle All-Stars drumline from Center Point, Alabama, entertains runners and walkers participating in the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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Bass players in a Freestyle All-Stars drumline from Center Point, Alabama, play some beats to entertain runners and walkers in the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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Runners pass by the Ramsay High School drumline on Fourth Avenue North as they participate in the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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The Ramsay High School drumline entertains runners and walkers participating in the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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The Ramsay High School drumline entertains runners and walkers as they participate in the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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Calvin Jones and the rest of the Jackson-Olin High School drumline entertain runners and walkers in the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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The Jackson-Olin High School drumline entertains runners and walkers in the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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Runners make their way along 19th Street as the participate in the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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A runner makes his way along 19th Street as he participates in the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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Darrell Webb, 38, of Bessemer, Alabama, poses for a photo in Kelly Ingram Park with his medal after completing the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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The first three finishers in the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, Alabama, pose for a photo after the race on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018. They are, from left, third-place finisher, Michael Brown of Vestavia Hills, second-place finisher Fred Kosgei of Birmingham and Geoffrey Tum of Birmingham.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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Herman Mannings III, founder of the MLK Day 5K Drum Run in Birmingham, Alabama, hands out an award to Ann Thomas of Mountain Brook, Alabama, who was the first-place female finisher in the race with a time of 19 minutes, 30 seconds, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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A Freestyle All-Stars drumline from Center Point, Alabama, performs during a showcase after the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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The Jackson-Olin High School drumline performs during a showcase after the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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The Jackson-Olin High School drumline performs during a showcase after the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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The Litchfield Middle School drumline from Gadsden, Alabama, performs during a showcase after the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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The Jackson-Olin High School drumline performs during a showcase after the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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Four drumlines perform during a showcase after the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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The Litchfield Middle School drumline from Gadsden, Alabama, plays along the course of the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham, on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018.
About 200 runners and walkers braved below-freezing temperature this morning to take part in the 2018 MLK Day 5K Drum Run in downtown Birmingham.
Five drumlines gave the dedicated runners plenty of groovy beats to keep them entertained and motivated as they made their way through the Civil Rights District, historic Fourth Avenue District, Theater District, Loft District and Central Business District on the 3.1-mile route.
Participating were drumlines from Fairfield Preparatory High School, Jackson-Olin High School, Ramsay High School, Litchfield Middle School in Gadsden and the Freestyle All-Stars from Center Point.
Geoffrey Tum, a 32-year-old native of Kenya now living in Birmingham, won the 5K for the second year in a row, with a time of 16 minutes, 55 seconds. Ann Thomas, 34, of Mountain Brook was the top female runner, with a time of 19 minutes, 30 seconds.
More than 300 people pre-registered for the race, said Herman Mannings III, one of the founders of the event. The weather may have deterred some people from showing up.
“It was a little cold, but it’s all good,” Mannings said.
Seven organizations still were approved to receive money from the event, he said. If runners and walkers named themselves as being on one of those organizations’ teams, the group got $5 out of that runner’s registration fee, he said.
Beneficiary organizations this year were the A.G. Gaston Boys and Girls Club, Alpha Kappy Alpha sorority, Black People Run, Bike & Swim, Growing Kings Inc. (a mentoring group), Team Red, White & Blue (a veterans’ organization), Black Girls Run! Birmingham (fighting obesity), and Living Legends.
Anita Westberry of Homewood said she braved the cold because she wanted to honor the memory of Martin Luther King Jr. and help the Growing Kings mentoring group. This was her first time to run this particular 5K and only her second 5K ever, she said. She finished in about 37 minutes, which is faster than she anticipated, she said.
One man who ran in the race dressed in a full Spiderman costume. His name is, appropriately, Darrell Webb. The 38-year-old from Bessemer said his son and daughter typically come to races to support him, but he let them stay home this morning because of the cold weather.
After today’s race, four of the drumlines met at the finish line at Kelly Ingram Park for a drumline showcase.
Mannings and his fellow organizer, Chip Owens, are putting on the Atlanta version of the MLK Day 5K Drum Run in Atlanta on Monday. They started the race there in 2012. Last year’s run in Atlanta drew about 2,900 people, Mannings said.
For more information about the Birmingham MLK Day 5K Drum Run, visit mlkday5kbham.com.
