Old or Young, Healthy or Disabled, They Came to Compete for a Serious Purpose

Minutes before the starting gun for the five-kilometer race in Irvine on Saturday morning, a college professor signaled to a cluster of students waiting for the signal.

“Go, economics!” said Prof. Michael Olds.

It was an unusual battle cry for a five-kilometer run, but the run was unusual in several aspects.

The scene was the 5- and 10-kilometer Orange Coast College Tribute Run at William Mason Regional Park. It was co-sponsored by the community college’s student government, Associated Students, and the campus chapter of Students Against Driving Drunk.

The goal of the two runs was to raise money for two scholarships at the Costa Mesa-based community college: one in the name of SADD, the other a perpetual scholarship in the name of Debbie Slemmons, a 20-year-old Orange Coast volleyball star who was one of three people killed in 1984 by a driver subsequently convicted of drunk driving and vehicular manslaughter.

The serious purposes of the two runs were referred to often by students, faculty and others there. But in the process, there also was fun: A band played, pancake breakfasts were served to the runners and Olds gave exhortations to runners in the name of economics.

Running and economics, Olds said, figured into an equation.

“We’ve been studying why some people make more money in life. Well, many people make more money in life because they’re healthy and they live longer. And running is healthy.”

Olds said 125 of his economics students, part of an overall crowd of about 950, took part in the two runs.

The two scholarships will net a total of about $7,000 from the runners’ entry fees, said Barbara Newbern, special programs coordinator for Associated Students at Orange Coast.

The runners included Debbie Slemmons’ father, Ron Slemmons, 46, of Mission Viejo.

“I think this is great that the students are doing this,” he said. “If we’re going to stop drunk driving, it’s going to be with making awareness at a young age. The courts are certainly worthless.”

Formed Chapter at College

Valerie Aivazian of Newport Beach, president of Orange Coast’s Students Against Driving Drunk, said she helped form the chapter after doing some research for a college speech assignment.

“I was researching the laws on drunken driving, and I learned about how SADD was formed back East,” she said.

“It was about a month after Debbie Slemmons had been killed, and I thought this was something our campus needed. At young ages, students really believe they are immortal. They need to know the dangers of driving drunk.

“We don’t knock drinking, but we tell students that if they drink, stay at a place until you get sober or have a designated (sober) driver.”

Avoiding Responsibility

Added Jill Comfort, SADD chapter vice president: “Too many people aren’t taking responsibility for their actions.”

As runners made it back to the finish line inside the park, the mostly college-age crowd cheered democratically. But the biggest cheer was for the clear favorite, Christy Crandall, 23, of Santa Ana, an Orange Coast student majoring in health.

With a determined smile, Crandall, who is disabled, made the entire five-kilometer course on crutches. She won the disabled-runner category and a sustained ovation.

Olds, not without pride, noted that he completed the 10-kilometer run in a not-too-shabby 43 minutes.

“I’m 46, and if I can do this at my age, I’m going to demand that my students do at least as well,” he said with a grin.