Ross County — The race is months away, but now is the time to invest in the the “Buck 50” relay race across Ross County. The local event of the Drug Free Clubs of America will happen April 11-12th, 2025, with the intent of helping high school students to “justify their choice to stay drug-free.”
Dave Huggins, race director, spoke to the Ross County Commissioners recently. He said the Buck Fifty is nine years old, and it was time to chat with the commissioners about it for the first time. The organization also wants to to build a storage building, and they asked for a parcel of county land.
Huggins said the Buck 50 is named after the 150-mile relay race on hills and valleys that loops through three-quarters of Ross County, on public and park trails as well as public roads, assisted and protected by volunteers and law enforcement.
The race has 10 runners on each team, with each one running three times over the entire relay race for about about 15 miles. They pay a deposit and then a final payment to fund the race, all of which goes to the Drug Free Clubs. Teams are all ages from all over, including out-of-state. Huggins said that even at 2 in the morning under the lights, everyone gets excited.
Huggins shared data on the success of the effort, pointing out that more than 15,000 9th through 12th graders among 15 schools in Ross, Pike, Vinton, and Jackson counties participate.
The students take an initial drug test to prove they are drug-free, then are subject to random testing to help their pledge – which currently shows that 95% of participants are drug-free. The students also take a survey on drug use and pressure, and the answers have improved greatly since their first year of 2016. The local Drug Free Clubs of America chapters are called M.A.D.E., “My Attitude Determines Everything.”
Higgins’ handout to the commissioners October 15th showed that the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services estimates that every dollar invested in drug prevention saves $7.40 in treatment and criminal system costs. Thus, the $885,000 total invested by the Ross County Drug Free Clubs of America has saved $6,500,000.
Huggins said the Buck 50 would also like to stop renting storage space, and instead build on county land on the corner of Anderson Station Road and Veterans Parkway.
Hear him in his own words in the below video interview. The Buck 50 has a website and Facebook page, as well as X / Twitter and Instagram accounts.
