Last year, Ray Underhill’s widow, Kerry Overman, gave a share of the proceeds from the foot race in memoriam of her husband to Gavin Teets, a young Wilmington boy fighting a brain tumor. In the spirit of helping those in need, Teets used the money to buy Christmas presents for all of the children on his hospital floor.
“We thought that was a really neat thing,” Overman said. “That’s our whole goal with this run. … [The community] held us up when we were going through a hard time and we would like to do that now for others.”
Hundreds will race around the paths of Brunswick Nature Park Feb. 21 for the seventh annual Run For Ray, a trail run that honors the life of the well-loved professional skateboarder, web designer and father, while raising money for chordoma research and to support families impacted by cancer.
Event organizer Kelly Barnes said the race welcomes all ages and ability levels by offering a 3-mile, 9-mile and 18-mile course. The event’s youngest participant in years past was 6 years old, she said. The inclusive nature of the run mirrors the spirit of the skateboarding community.
“I think skateboarders are open to anybody, they never shut people down,” she said. “Everybody feels comfortable out there. … You feel like you’re part of the group when you’re there.”
Barnes said the race’s natural setting also pays homage to skateboarding’s laid-back, grassroots vibe. The course is hilly and technical in spots, but she said participants love the scenic paths, even in years when rain turned the dirt trail into mud.
“You just might want to wear different shoes if it’s a little bit muddy, you might want a little more traction,” she said.
The unique concept of a trail run emerged when Underhill’s friends John Morgan, Bobby Brandon and Jim Mincher were searching for a way to help Underhill’s family pay medical expenses after he succumbed to a chordoma brain tumor in 2008. The event drew 80 participants in its first year and has grown every year since. Barnes said once people experience the event, they tend to return year after year.
The awards are one motivating factor, she said. Top finishers receive a replica of Underhill’s skateboard deck designed by skateboard company Powell-Peralta and all finishers receive a medal and a T-shirt.
But perhaps the main reason the race grows every year is its namesake.
“[Ray] was a friend to everyone,” Overman said. “He never complained, he just wanted to keep life as normal as possible in such an abnormal situation.”
Underhill moved to Wilmington with his family after a successful career as a professional skateboarder. He began working as an art director for Eastern Skateboard Supply and continued skating with his children.
In 2006 he was diagnosed with a chordoma brain tumor, a rare cancer that has no known cure.
“He was very active with the kids in school until he got sick,” Overman said. “It really took a lot out of him . . . but [he] never lost that spirit and continued to work even through his chemotherapy and radiation.”
He died two years later. Overman said both the skateboarding and local Wilmington communities rallied to provide financial and moral support for the family in various ways, including the Run for Ray. Now, the race benefits others through the Ray Underhill Foundation. The foundation gives a portion of the proceeds to chordoma research and the other part to a family affected by cancer.
To register, visit runforray.com
email [email protected]
