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Runners preparing for Bix-7 with high temperatures expected

The annual Quad Cities race is expected to have hot weather soaring into the 90s. Runners are training to perform safely in the high temps.

DAVENPORT, Iowa — With Bix-7 just around the corner, runners are training for the big race.

On July 20, a few runners were still going up and down the track, which starts at the base of the Brady Street hill in downtown Davenport.

Three high school friends — Dylan, Sam, and Matt — were training together in the late afternoon for the 7-mile run.

"I'm in the Army National Guard, so I've had to run significantly for the past six years," Dylan DeGama said. "Running's not my favorite thing. I hate running," he said with an amused grin, "but it just feels like a necessary hurdle."

For Sam Nowachek, Bix is a family tradition. 

"My dad ran a bunch before his hip was replaced, but my uncle, I think he's done 40 or something like that," he said.

For the trio, the race is an important hill to climb every year. 

"If I wasn't running it, I was down here every year since I've been born pretty much," Nowachek said. "It's just kind of what you do — I don't even think twice about it, really."

However, some rough heat could make this year's race a struggle, as temperatures are expected to go into the 90s. Organizers are making sure they're ready.

"There will be a lot of water to drink, water to run through," Joan Kranovich from Visit Quad Cities' Sports QC division said. "We're planning for the 90-degree heat — I'm hoping it'll change over the course of this week."

"Did a marathon earlier this year and couldn't finish because I wasn't properly hydrated — so I'll probably focus on that this time around," DeGama said.

The race kicks off on July 29, starting at 8 AM.

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