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Quad City Times Bix 7: Why you should run or watch

It will be a very busy weekend downtown as crews get ready for the Quad City Times Bix7.

DAVENPORT, Iowa--- It will be a very busy weekend downtown as crews get ready for the Quad City Times Bix7.

We had Breakfast With Assistant Race Director Rick McGrath Thursday, July 25 on Good Morning Quad Cities. More than 12,500 runners participated in the event in 2018. Even so, that was a 24% drop in race registrations from the year before, according to the 2019 race guide. If you haven't run the race, McGrath says the experience is like one, you've never had before.

"If running's not your bag, come out and cheer on everybody," McGrath said Thursday morning. "Watching that many people go by, that an experience that is amazing."

The race starts at 8 a.m. Saturday, July 27 at the base of the Brady Street hill. For more information on how to register, click here. This is also the last Bix 7 under the leadership of Ed Froehlich, race director for the past 40 years. Froehlich became director in 1980 leading all but the first five Bix races. Participants will also be awarded a 45th anniversary medal.

Besides the race, there are so many people preparing for it, including downtown business owners. Jennifer Kakert owns The Key, inside the Union Arcade building. Her restaurant opened in October, so this is the first year she's been able to take advantage of the traffic from The Bix.

"We were impacted a little bit by the coldness of the winter," Kakert said Thursday morning. "Then, we were impacted by the flood. We were not directly impacted. We did not have any damage, but River Drive being closed mean people weren't coming Downtown as much, so we saw a decline in revenues, so we are excited for people to know that we're here."

The business is located on Brady Street, just south of 3rd Street. Kakert plans on opening at 7 a.m. Saturday.

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