In accordance with the Capital Striders Club by-laws, we officially announce the 2023 Board of Directors election. Our 2023 Annual Meeting will be held on Friday, March 24. Voting for this year’s election will be by electronic ballot on April 3-9. You must be a current Capital Striders member to vote and your membership number will be required.
There are three open positions on the Board of Directors - and we offer up our sincere appreciation to Dave Caris and Rachael Baethke for their service to the club as they leave their official roles on the Board. The third open position is a previously-vacated role.
We also have four current Board members (Steve Bobenhouse, Susanne Kennedy, Mike Tiedens, and Lindsey Andrews) who are up for re-election.
We asked our new candidates a few questions to help you learn a little about each of them. (Candidates are listed in no particular order.) Here are their answers:
Sandra Kromminga
What area(s) of the club would you focus on as a Board Member?
I would like to focus on growing the membership of Capital Striders. I’d also like to focus on social functions. I want to focus on growing the membership of Capital Striders, as I have been coming to Capital Strider runs with my dad since I was in high school, and I know that over the past several years membership levels have gone up and down. I’d specifically like to focus on growing the membership of younger runners in our community, especially those runners who’ve just graduated from college. I have not seen a lot of “younger” runners at most of the strider’s runs, and I think that having those younger runs can be very beneficial to the club. I believe that once we have a few more committed younger runners, that’ll allow us to continue growing. I’d also like to focus on the social functions of the club. I personally love getting together with other runners to hear about how their running is going, but I’ve also found that I am able to connect with runners on many different levels. It is very easy to get to know someone through running but being able to connect with each other outside of running will greatly strengthen our club, because we get to know each other on a running level as well as a more personal level.
What special skills or experience would you bring to the Board?
I am currently a practicing attorney in Des Moines. I graduated from Drake Law School in May of 2022. I think that being an attorney makes me a great candidate to be on this board as I am excellent at communicating, very organized, and very practical in how I approach things. I am also very eager to get involved in the Des Moines community. In addition, I am used to working in a collaborative environment, and I think that this is a great and very valuable skill for any board member to have.
How have you been involved with the Capital Striders in the past?
The most that I have been involved in Capital Striders in the past is attending training runs. I have not volunteered for races or attended many Strider’s events, however, now that I am out of school I am hoping to put more into the club.
Tell us about yourself - work, family, running experience, civic activities - anything you would like people to know.
I have been running since the age of 12. My sister and I wanted to join middle school cross county, so the summer before my dad suggested that we both start running so that we’d be in good shape by the time that practice came around. My dad, John, had already been running for several years so he graciously agreed to show us the basics of running. The first few runs did not go well! My sister and I had both never run before, we had little discipline, and we really just had no idea what we were getting into. However, those summer training runs really paid off, and we were both decent runners in middle school. By the time we both got to high school we were varsity hopefuls! During our freshman and sophomore years, we began winning and placing in the top 10 of our races. By sophomore year I was on varsity, and Sarah was the first alternate. I ran at state my sophomore year, where we won state as Johnston Dragons. We continued to place well the final few years of our high school career. In college, I did not plan to continue my running career as I was planning to attend the University of Iowa. However, once I got to Iowa I continued to run, and eventually found the Iowa Track and Field Club. My times with the track club were some of my best times in college, and that club made my college experience one to remember. I left college being in the best shape of my life, and with strong friendships and lasting memories. Once I left college I continued to run with my sister and my dad, and with the Striders. I’ve made many new friends attending Strider’s runs throughout the years. Other than running, I love spending time with my friends and family. I also enjoy reading in my free time, and baking. I currently live in West Des Moines with my boyfriend Mark, and our greyhound Owen.
What is your biggest motivation to get out the door for a run, on the days you just don’t want to?
My biggest motivation for getting out the door on days that I don’t want to run is the feeling that I have after a run. I have never finished a run and thought, “wow, I wish I hadn’t done that!” Even if my body is tired after a run, the run didn’t go well, the weather was horrible, or it was dark outside, I have never once regretted going for a run. That’s what keeps me coming back.
Chuck snyder
What area(s) of the club would you focus on as a Board Member?
Ideally I would like to help with training runs and would be glad to help in partnering with local running stores and with communication efforts. Trail running is my favorite activity and would like to help incorporate more group trail running opportunities.
What special skills or experience would you bring to the Board?
I have a master in communication and strategic leadership. I produced graduate work on increasing trail usage through partnering with local running stores and using social media in Northwest Florida. In addition, I have lived in several places and participated in running clubs and groups in Pensacola, FL, Bellingham, WA and Dublin Ireland. I have been a middle and front of the pack runner and believe I can bring an understanding of the differing motivations of the club participant.
How have you been involved with the Capital Striders in the past?
I moved here in August of 2022 and joined the Capital Striders immediately. I participated in the group trail runs in September and have been running with the Saturday morning group this year.
Tell us about yourself - work, family, running experience, civic activities - anything you would like people to know.
I am employed by Unitypoint Health Des Moines as a fundraising researcher, a job I have been doing for various organizations for 27 years. I help the organizations find and connect with individuals and organizations with the capacity and inclination to make a major philanthropic gift. I moved here in August from Dublin, Ireland where I worked for a university and enjoyed hill and fell running.
I have a diverse blended family household of 7. My wife enjoys walking and the family is active but I am the only runner in the house. We are all very happy with Des Moines and the running community played a large factor in my choice to move to the city. We are looking forward to many years of living in DSM.
I have been a runner since the age of 7, running my first 10K after I started running with my father, himself started running to lose weight. I ran my first 2 marathons at 13 and 14 years old and ran track and cross county for my high school and university. After college I built my family and moved around the US but always centered my recreation around trail and wilderness running. I fell in love with trail running after seeing the Western States 100 profiled on the Wide World of Sports. I have been lucky enough to run on all the major mountain ranges in the US and have a goal of running in every state in the US.
I am a firm believer in the minimalist shoe movement and that strength work makes the runner. I am not a fan of racing although I would like to run a sub 3 hour marathon before I give up racing altogether.
I am currently on the board of my professional organization and have done a lot of work over the years to advance the field of fundraising research. I look forward to the opportunity to do the same for the running community.
What is your biggest motivation to get out the door for a run, on the days you just don’t want to?
On the day’s I just don’t want to run, I don’t. I spent 9 years with a coach and 5 years doing 2 to 3-a-day workouts and now run when I want to. I enjoy running and working out. I enjoy cycling, kayaking, hiking, weightlifting and many other physical activities. To reach a goal, I focus on important workouts and purposeful workouts. This helps me prevent burnout.
This said, recently there have been Saturdays where the weather, lack of sleep or body aches nag me to stay in bed and the knowledge that I get to run with a group (cap striders at the cafe) have motivated me to get up, dressed and out. I also find running fast is much easier with a group. Alone I often settle into a slow pace when the schedule calls for something faster. These are times when the group can spur me both out the door and to up the pace.
Lindsey BURTON
What area(s) of the club would you focus on as a Board Member?
I’m pretty open on the areas and happy to help on anything! Currently I think I could assist with the following- Membership, equipment, newsletter/social media, merchandise, volunteer coordination, training runs.
What special skills or experience would you bring to the Board?
I may not be the most outgoing individual but I like to encourage others in the running community! When it comes to events or committees, I like to help out where I can and I consider myself an organized individual.
How have you been involved with the Capital Striders in the past?
I think I originally became aware of Capital Striders when I was college and Brad recruited the cross country team to help with the DSM marathon water stop. I have run several of the races throughout the years. Last year I attended many of the training runs.
Tell us about yourself - work, family, running experience, civic activities - anything you would like people to know.
I have run throughout high school and college. My husband and I have lived in Des Moines for about 5 years now. We have two young Vizslas. Over the past year and a half, I’ve started to get into trail and ultra running - I have some big plans for 2023!
What is your biggest motivation to get out the door for a run, on the days you just don’t want to?
I would say that I’m a goal oriented person. My race plans for this year have been a big motivation for when I don’t want to go out and I usually have a good change in attitude as soon as I get going too.