If there's one thing that's more difficult than actually running 26.2 miles, it's being responsible for all the legwork that goes into organizing a marathon. Especially in a city where most transportation is motorized. But Karen Raymer, like her man Elvis, doesn't get "all shook up" that easily. She was the first woman elected president of the Mid-America Running Association in 1994. She has muscled through tough climbs, including the Pike's Peak Half-Marathon, and she makes the Elvis Memorial Run in Memphis an annual pilgrimage. But when she's not at the starting line, she's behind the scenes of Kansas City's biggest and most popular races. As the director for the Kansas City Marathon, she has battled through loss of sponsorships. When the race ran four-tenths of a mile short in 2005, she personally called the organizers of the Boston Marathon to make sure the Kansas City participants who were shooting to qualify for the East Coast race weren't faulted for the designer's mistake. She's also in charge of the metro's most popular race, the Trolley Run. But she's not all business all the time. She's known for her sparkly, homemade outfits that step up the flair of whatever race she's running. Right now, that's the Los Angeles Marathon — an event she'll be running to celebrate her 60th birthday.
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