Bob Schul Invitational

Long time Milton-Union coach Ken Beard wanted to hold a unique cross country event to honor Bob Schul and his accomplishments, but he wanted to make sure that he had Bob's blessing before he did.  He wrote a letter to Bob in 1970 noting his desire, and Bob wrote back stating his support for the event - paving the way for the first annual Bob Schul Invitational in 1971.

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On October 5, 1971 the First Annual Bob Schul Invitational was held, with Rob Wogoman of Arcanum winning the A-AA Race in 10:52.2 for the two-mile course, and Rick Callison of Piqua winning the AAA race in 10:24.5.

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Originally, the course was 2-miles, and held in the West Milton Park along the banks of the Stillwater River.  The course included multiple loops and "Boy Scout Hill", and very steep incline in the middle of the race.  The course moved to the Lowry Farm in 1981 and extended to 5k in 1982 when the OHSAA changed the cross country distance to 5k.

 

The course at Lowry Farm has changed over the years due to expansion of the school, but it generally has started in an open field before winding its way through woods to finish inside the Milton-Union track facilities.

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The meet has been held every year since 1971 and has had many state champions win the race, and even had one Olympic Bronze Medalist in the 800 Meters (Clayton Murphy, Tri-Village) only finish second!

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The meet was most recently held on August 24, 2024 - the 54th annual event, and was dedicated to Bob, as he passed away in June, 2024.  The race had 1,400+ High School Boys and Girls and 700+ Middle School Boys and Girls race over six races. 

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