Dodson's Terri Cole earns 'Cape & Tiara'

The night before Dodson's Terri Cole was to participate in the 35th Annual Montana Women's Run in Billings, she attended the event's Kick-off dinner, both of which she has attended each year since 2006. It would be a short time later at the dinner – with a few of her family in attendance – which she would start weeping like a baby (something she said she does often.)

"I started crying, because, you know, that's me," she said. "I can cry at a Kodak commercial on TV."

The tears Cole shed at the event were those of happiness when she was honored as the runner-up of the Cape and Tiara Award at this year's Montana Women's Run kick-off dinner. She said during the dinner a person who inspires others to live a healthy lifestyle and who embodies the spirit of the run is picked for the Cape and Tiara Award recipient.

"It usually goes to a woman from Billings," Cole said of the award. But Cole thought something was a little fishy when she arrived at the banquet after her daughters – Shannon Merchen and Colleen Luke – and her son, Matt Cole, who was also to attending the function with his wife, Hiedi, and their two sons, Conner and Cooper.

"Men almost never attend," she added. "I couldn't figure out why they were coming."

Though a bit peculiar, Cole said she thought nothing more of the males in attendance and went about enjoying the meal. At a point in the night when the Cape and Tiara was to be awarded, Cole said she sat and listened to the spiel.

"They announced that the voting was so close that they were going to have a runner-up as well," she said. "They said something about 'this woman runs down a lonely road three times a week' and something about 'she's 73' and they kept on going and said 'a mother of 11 kids' and I thought 'what!'."

Cole said that once she put all the information together, and realized she was being talked about, she turned around and looked at her children, each of them laughing at the surprised look on her face.

"I was named the runner-up," said Cole, "runner" being the keyword.

Cole takes to the streets of Dodson three times per week and jogs south for three miles...an activity she started "a long" time ago. Cole said she started vigorously exercising about 40 years ago and starting running about halfway through that 40.

Aside from being named runner-up for the honor on Friday night, Cole still had the race on Saturday to look forward to. Cole was one of the over 8,000 women to run in the race – which has donated over a million dollars to Billings charities since 1994 –and did so in the 2-mile race for runners ages 70-to-74. It was 22:16.58 minutes later that Cole crossed the finish line, taking second place in her age range, just two minutes off first place finisher Mary Peet.

"I even beat my daughter this year," said Cole. "Shannon and I ran and the rest of the girls walked. That isn't my best time, but I wasn't able to do much exercising this winter. I think my fastest time was around 19 minutes."

For her running efforts, Cole added her eighth gold medal to her ever-growing collection from the Women's run. As the runner-up in the Cape and Tiara, Cole received two-nights at the Clock and Tower Inn, a dinner for two at a fancy restaurant, a $50 gift card for gas and a $30 City Brew gift card.

"I thought that was pretty good," Cole admitted.

Cole said that daughters Shannon, Colleen and Kelly Radtke – AKA Bubba – joined forces and nominated their mother for the Cape and Tiara Award, unbeknownst to the eventual runner-up, and sent a letter explaining why they felt their mother should be honored."

"I had to get up and give a speech and I don't even remember what I said, I was so stunned," Cole recalls. "I could not believe they did that. They said 'Mom, you deserve every bit of it,' I didn't think I deserved it, but it is very wonderful and humbling."

Cole said she and her husband, Wink, are blessed to have such wonderful children – 11 in total, from age 33 to 53.

"They all turned out pretty darn wonderful," she said (without crying.)