This weekend here in the Quad Cities, on the shores of the Mississippi River, we have a large multifaceted event celebrating local native Leon Bismark “Bix” Beiderbecke. Bix, a jazz cornetist, pianist, and composer, was one of the most influential jazz soloists of the 1920’s.
For the curious, here’s some of his music:
One of the major events celebrating Bix and his legacy is called the Bix 7, a seven-mile marathon that many of the KONE Spares team and family members have participated in over the years. Founded by John Hudetz from Bettendorf (one of the four “quad cities”), he was a marathon runner who wanted to bring some of the excitement from the Boston Marathon to us here on the banks of the Mississippi. It started in 1975 with a total of 84 runners, but now the number of participants run in the tens-of-thousands.
For anyone who likes to run marathons, or who love classic jazz music, this is the event for you. If you can’t make it this weekend, put it in your calendar for next year.