Bringing dairy farmers, runners together

SAUK CENTRE, Minn. — Mitchell Reitsma never considered himself a runner, but Aug. 1, he proved himself wrong when he joined eight other members of his family to participate in the second annual Stearns County Fair Milk Run 5K.

“It’s a nice way to get family together and do something,” Reitsma said. “Last year, I had four family members that did it, and they said it was a good thing.”

Reitsma ran with his father, Paul; his sisters, Katie, Elaine and Christine; and his nieces and nephews, Aaron, Elaine, Addie and Carter.

All race participants received a cow T-shirt, a coupon for a free shake at the Stearns County American Dairy Association stand and a swag bag with other dairy-related promotional items. Dairy princesses were handing out white and chocolate milk to racers as they finished and live calves were present for participants to take pictures with. Those tied directly to a working dairy farm were able to register for the race for free.

Reitsma farms with his brother, Joe, and their father and mother, Carolyn. They milk 290 cows with four robots near Sauk Centre.

“(The race) was a nice way to support the dairy community and get the non-dairy community together in a way to promote dairy,” Reitsma said.

A group of women involved in the Stearns County dairy community including Kate McAndrews, Lisa Reeck, Sarah Kuechle, Hannah Molitor and Lisa Wuertz came up with the idea for the race in 2025 and plans to make the race an annual event. She and her husband, Peter, milk 60 cows near Spring Hill.

“We were really happy how everything went,” Wuertz said. “It was neat to see so many people that wanted their picture taken with the heifers and were asking questions of the handlers and the dairy princesses.”

The second annual Stearns County Fair Milk Run 5K had 144 racers finish, and of that, 43 were dairy farmers and their immediate family members, Wuertz said.

“It was fun to see the same faces as last (year) and to see some new faces as well,” she said. “We had super serious runners to people who just walked. We had racers from 2 to 84, so it definitely is for all abilities and ages.”

Wuertz collaborated with several agriculture organizations in Stearns County to sponsor the event. These organizations include the University of Minnesota Extension, Stearns County Dairy Advisory Committee, the Stearns County Farm Bureau, Midwest Dairy, Minnesota Dairy Initiative and the Stearns County American Dairy Association.

“Our main goal is to expose non-farmers to the dairy farming community,” Wuertz said. “This event is a way to get consumers to directly interact with dairy farming by having dairy farmers, milk, dairy princesses and the heifers on hand.”

New to this year’s event was the kids’ 1K Fun Run event, which registered 35 youth. All those participants received a Passport to Adventures in Agriculture, an event immediately following the race where fairgoers can visit the Agriculture Building to talk to other industry professionals in vendor booths and get their passport stamped to receive a prize.

Dairy farmer Daisha Welle participated in the race as well, pushing her two children, Paisley and Tate, in a stroller.

“It’s fun to get together with local dairy farmers and get a workout in at the same time,” Welle said. “It is also a great promotion for dairy, to show others that milk can be so beneficial post-workout.”

She and her husband, Travis, milk 90 cows near Greenwald.

“Everyone was so encouraging to each other during the race, which makes it more fun and less pressure for those looking to enjoy a rice walk,” Welle said. “The kids and I are hoping to continue this race for years to come.”