Annual Capital Striders Dinner

The Capital Striders put on an annual dinner to celebrate those who have participated in the running community as well as enjoy some socializing with your fellow runners.

We invite you to join us to celebrate our club's successes. We will recap the year with some great success stories, and great food, review upcoming board member elections, and hear from a fantastic speaker.

FRIDAY, MARCH 22, 2024

2024 Event Schedule:

6:00 - 6:30 pm | Social Hour - all attendees will receive TWO free drinks on the Capital Striders!
6:30 - 8:30 pm | Dinner, Strider Presentation, Speakers
Where: Destination Grille - Johnston
Price: $60 for non-members, and $50 for members

Dinner Choices

Pasta buffet!

REGISTRATION IS OPEN - register

Keynote Speaker: Lisa Uhl

Lisa Uhl (née Koll) began her running career in Fort Dodge, Iowa. Competing in high school, Lisa was an Iowa All-State athlete and was recruited to the University of Iowa State. As a Cyclone, Lisa's success became legendary. Lisa claimed her first NCAA title in the 10,000-meters as a sophomore, also setting the NCAA Record at 32:11.13. She went on to win the NCAA Indoor 5K title the following year. In 2010, Lisa continued her domination with a double-win at the NCAA Outdoor T&F Championships in both the 10,000-meter and 5,000-meter races, one of only four athletes to ever do so up to that point. She had also broken the NCAA 10,000-meter record again during that season, setting the new record at 31:18.07, a record that still stands today. At the end of her 2010 track season, Uhl won the Honda Sports Award as the nation's best collegiate female track and field athlete of the year, and was nominated as one of three athletes for the Female Collegiate Sports Person of the Year (all sports).

Post-collegiately, Lisa pursued a professional running career with the Nike team, the Bowerman Track Club. In 2012, Lisa qualified for the London Olympics where she finished 13th in a time of 31:12.80, making her the 18th fastest American at this distance of all time. She also qualified for the Olympic Marathon Trials in 2014 running 2:40:51 at the Chicago Marathon.

After retiring from professional running, Lisa pursued a career in the veterinary field and works at the Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine. She married fellow Iowa State runner Kiel Uhl in 2011, and they now have two children (Graham, 4; Eleanor, 1) and live in Ames, Iowa.

Annual picnic

Every year we have a picnic to celebrate the beginning of the summer.

Capital Striders Annual Picnic 2024:

Where: Waterworks Park - Des Moines, IA

Date: July 15, 2024

Time: 6:00PM

Come join us for a potluck at Waterworks! We will start at 6:00PM with a group run, and while everyone is running we will fire up the grill! Please feel free to bring a side to share. We will also be recognizing our 2024 scholarship winners at this event! We will have yard games and will be having a raffle!

New Year's Day Run & Potluck 2025

The Striders start the new year off right with our traditional January 1st mid-morning run followed by (the most important part) a feast of goodies brought by the members.

We meet at 10:00 a.m. at the Lions Park shelter house in Urbandale (just south of the High School), with the potluck lunch beginning at 11:00 a.m. Runners have their choice of distance, from 3 to 6 miles, and the routes wind through the streets of Urbandale. However, small groups break off and often do less or more than the mapped route. This is an un-timed and casual fun run – no racing on this day, at least officially.

We ask attendees to bring kid-sized mittens, gloves, scarves, stocking hats, boots, etc. to donate to The Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Iowa. They distribute our donations to those in need.

So please bring new (or gently used) children’s winter clothing for donation. Yes, cash and checks will also be accepted.

Members bring all sorts of great dishes for the pot luck. There’s usually a good mix of lunch and breakfast items and if you go away hungry, it’s your own fault. The Striders provide beverages and your table service – all else is brought by members.

Hook up with old friends or make a few new ones. Consider joining us next New Year’s Day for exercise, fun, friends, and food.