Dr. Art Mollen, who was the subject of Arizona Jewish Life’s October 2012 cover story, created the Phoenix 10K in 1976 with the goal of providing a community event that celebrated fitness and physical well-being. This year’s 40th anniversary event drew more than 5,000 runners on Nov. 1 at Cityscape in downtown Phoenix.
Dr. Mollen, 70, started running 45 years ago as a senior in medical school and still runs today, albeit at a slower pace.
He had never been a runner and would at most run 100 yards; nor had he dreamed of starting a marathon, but that all changed when he read an article by Dr. Dave Worthen about running the Boston Marathon. Dr. Mollen called Dr. Worthen and was in San Diego by the following weekend to run with his group, which was the catalyst for Dr. Mollen’s decision to start the Arizona Marathon Society (AMF).
It all started with a handful of Dr. Mollen’s patients, who met every Sunday at Doubletree Road and Tatum Boulevard. The group ran at a slow pace because it was about getting beginners started in healthy habits. Over a period of a year and a half, the group continued to meet every Sunday and grew to more than 400 people.
With the increase of runners, Dr. Mollen decided the AMS should sponsor a run, and the first Phoenix 10K was born in 1976. It was held down 40th Street and Camelback Road on the picturesque canals by the North Bank Restaurant.
The North Bank Restaurant, owned then by Bill Levine, became the run’s first major sponsor. Levine enlisted an Olympic gold medalist marathon runner from the 1976 Olympics to help promote the race.
Also persuaded to attend was Jesse Owens, an Olympic gold medalist who set three world records and won four gold medals at the 1936 Olympics in Germany, and who happened to be living in Phoenix. Dr. Mollen says, “I remember at the first press conference, Jesse Owens, who was a sprinter, of course, said ‘anyone who runs more than 100 yards is crazy.’ ” Owens was inducted posthumously into the Arizona Runners Hall of Fame created by Dr. Mollen as part of the 3TV Phoenix 10K in 2011.
The first race was expected to have 500 participants. More than 1,500 runners showed up! From that point on the iconic Phoenix 10K & Half Marathon took the lead in the Arizona running community and never looked back.
For Dr. Mollen, the race was about the running community and his patients. He would meet with patients three times a week to run up to four miles with his patients. Nurses would be on hand to take blood pressure, monitor the patients and treat them for high blood pressure and cholesterol. Dr. Mollen decided to add a revolutionary cardiac division to the annual Phoenix run. This meant patients who had recently had a heart attack, heart surgery, or bypass would recover by training to run with the goal of participating in the run. Today training cardiac patients to exercise is called Cardiac Rehabilitation and is widely practiced, but back in the 1970s the common treatment for cardiac patients was complete bed rest for three weeks. Everyone thought it was crazy to train patients who had just had a heart attack to run. But Dr. Mollen was encouraged by Honolulu cardiologist Dr. Jack Scaff, and Toronto cardiologist Dr. Terrence Kavanaugh, both of whom had a cardiac rehabilitation program.
The first five years of the run the number of participants jumped from 1,500 to over 5,500.
In 1981, Levine sold the North Bank Restaurant, and the AMS event became the New Times 10K sponsored by the Phoenix New Times. Longtime runner and race volunteer Harvey Beller became executive director.
By 1986, 15,000 runners ran through Park Central Mall and down Central Avenue. “Soon, the New Times 10K began to compete against running events that were popping up throughout the year, but no flashy race will ever beat out the history of the Phoenix 10K,” says Beller. The Phoenix 10K has become a generational event. Runners from the first race still run in the 3TV Phoenix 10K today, and their children and their grandchildren also run.
The Phoenix 10K runs in the Mollen family. Family members who have run include Dr. Mollen’s wife Paige; his children Brad, Jenny Biggs, Samantha and Chase; his son-in-law Jason Biggs; and his older sisters from out of state. His cousin Dr. Martin Mollen ran for the first several years, and his four children have run the race.
To further support the community, the event has raised funds for various nonprofit organizations throughout the Valley over the past 40 years. Formerly known as the New Times 10K, the now 3TV Phoenix 10K offers several events including a half marathon to accommodate people of all ages and fitness levels.
