By Kathleen Quandt

Staff Intern

County Executive L. Brooks Patterson has launched The Brooksie Way Half Marathon and 5K Race/Walk that will begin at Oakland University and end at historic Meadow Brook Hall Oct. 5, 2008.

According to thebrooksieway.com, the race is to “enhance the quality of life for residents of Oakland County by promoting healthy, active lifestyles.”

The event has joined “Count Your Steps,” a nonprofit organization that, according to the website, “encourages children and adults to engage in more physical exercise through fun activities.”

Proceeds from the event are reinvested to support fitness activities in Oakland County. Funds will go to health related programs and activities such as the Oakland County Count Your Steps Program.

The Crim Fitness Foundation is co-sponsoring the race with Oakland County.

Steve Huber, marketing and communication supervisor of the Oakland County Department of Economic Development and Community Affairs, believes that the co-sponsorship will provide one the best race experiences available.

“The Crim folks have the organizational structure to help put on a world-class race right now ­— from the course layout to making sure there are enough water stations for the runners, to obtaining sponsors and state-of-the-art timing,” Huber said.

The course begins at OU, runs through Rochester, Rochester Hills, parts of the Paint Creek and Clinton River Trails, and concludes at the historic Meadow Brook Hall.

“The course incorporates some of the most beautiful parts of Oakland County,” Huber said. “Athletes who have already run the course say it’s among the most challenging and beautiful courses they have ever seen.”

The race is open to anyone who wants to enter.

“Serious and casual runners, teams representing their businesses [and] anyone invited is encouraged to participate by either running or walking either course — the half marathon or the 5K,” Huber said.

There will also be a division for disabled athletes in the half marathon race.

Huber said Meadow Brook Hall and OU add something special to the race.

“First, the OU campus is beautiful and to end the race at Meadow Brook Hall adds a signature moment to a special race,” Huber said. “There are not many road races that will have such a stunning conclusion.”

The event is named in honor Patterson’s son, Brooks (aka “Brooksie”) Stuart Patterson, who was killed in a snowmobile accident in 2007 at the age of 28.

Brooks, who was married and the father of three children, died just days after his father’s State of the County address in which plans were announced for a county-sponsored half marathon as part of a wellness initiative for county residents.

“Brooks Stuart Patterson’s lasting legacy is the exuberance with which he lived his life, the passion he had for family and friends and his dreams for the future,” the website states.

“That’s why we named the race in his memory, ‘The Brooksie Way.'”