On April 16, more than 30,000 runners and walkers across the country will partake in the seventh annual edition of Pat Tillman's Run. The run, in honor of Pat Tillman's #42 jersey during his career with the Arizona State Sun Devils, will be 4.2 miles long. In Tempe, the run will end on the 42-yard line of ASU's Sun Devil Stadium.
The event will take place all over the country as well. The Arizona State University Alumni Association has worked to set up Shadow Runs all over the country close to or on April 16th in cities including Los Angeles, Denver, Austin, Portland, Chicago and Washington D.C. The event has gained much popularity on the national level since it began in 2004 with 6,000 participants, and this year upwards of 30,000 people nationwide will participate in Pat Tillman's Run.
This event honors the life of Pat Tillman, who played linebacker at ASU from 1994-1997 (while also maintaining an impressive 3.87 grade-point average) before playing three seasons with the Arizona Cardinals. Tillman bravely left the NFL in 2002 following the September 11th, 2001 attacks to serve his country by joining the U.S. Army. He served several tours in combat before he unfortunately died in the mountains of Afghanistan as a result of friendly fire in 2004.
On April 16th, Tillman's incredible life will be remembered as people all over the country join together in honoring one of the bravest and most selfless football players of all time. A $35 discount per runner/walker is currently being offered to anyone who is interested in signing up, and the offer will stand through February 28th. Visit www.patsrun.com to register.