“Gatorade! Gatorade! Gatorade!”

Five year old Jake Sokolove calls out to the marathoners flying by. In his outstretched had is a paper cup, emblazoned by Pepsi and filled by Gatorade. Red Gatorade to be exact.

An over-enthusiastic runner grabs the cup, spilling most of it onto Jake’s arm. Red Gatorade now decorates his MSU coat. He doesn’t mind though. “They lost!” he says, referencing the MSU/OSU game.

He quickly runs to the Gatorade table, grabs another cup, and returns to the race trail, completely dedicated to his role in the marathon hydration service: “Gatorade! Gatorade! Gatorade!”

Jake had just completed the Big House 5 K a couple weeks before, running the entire thing. Impressive, for a five year old! He seems to be taking after his dad, one of the volunteer coordinators at the “Aid 6” running station.

Located approximately 8.5 miles into the marathon, just after the bridge over the Grand River, Aid 6 was one of my favorite places on the course. Jake Sokolove was one of my favorite people.

Race on, kid!