CINCINNATI — Two thousand runners will hit the streets of Cincinnati on Saturday morning for the Hudepohl 14K Brewery Run, an Oktoberfest race that organizers see as a dress rehearsal for the city’s other famous races.

“We’re going to see how it all works,” said John Cappella, whose organization PigWorks puts together the Hudepohl every fall and the Flying Pig every spring. “How we can still effectively get people through a course and make sure there’s a level of social distancing.”

It’ll be among the first large-scale, in-person races held in Cincinnati since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced PigWorks to modify or cancel its largest events in 2020.

The novel coronavirus is still a threat — a serious one. But Cappella said PigWorks hopes the Hudepohl will be an opportunity to hold an in-person race that protects its runners and accommodates social distancing concerns.

Runners will have 30 minutes to start, rather than the usual 10, to ensure they can space themselves out and not run closer to other participants than they’re comfortable doing. Participation was capped at 2,000 runners.

“(The race) will bring a lot of joy,” he said. “Bring a lot of relief, probably, as well, but I think just fun. That's what we've been known for at all of our events."

Frank DeJulius, whose business Fleet Feet Cincinnati caters to many of the runners who will hit the street on Saturday, said he’s excited to see the fall running season resume.

“We're lucky and feel honored that people want to come into our stores, get some advice, get some new gear, and get moving,” he said. “I firmly believe that the worst is behind us. The best is yet to come."

Millions of Americans say they won’t get their COVID-19 shot despite rising case numbers and pleas from loved ones, health care workers and politicians. How can they be convinced?

We asked psychologist Dr. Stuart Bassman, who said personal relationships with strong foundations of trust and compassion are the best bet to change someone's mind.

Bassman said it’s important to be understanding and patient about vaccine-hesitant friends’ fears, and to understand how they arrived at their position.

He said many turn to social media to seek out information confirming their existing emotional beliefs, which might be tinged with anxiety over how quickly the vaccine was developed and approved.

Therefore, it’s important to meet them on an emotional level. Facts and scientific evidence don’t mean much if you can’t compassionately address their feelings about the vaccine, which has been safely administered to hundreds of millions of people.

“Say to a family member, ‘I know this is scary and frightening for you,’” Bassman said. “‘I know you’re afraid.’”

It’s also important to be patient, he added. Relationships take time. Empathy, even for a position you might find frustrating or hard to understand, is a must.

“Instead of trying to get the person to change, you can’t do that,” he said. “What you can do is imagine that you’re with them in their fear.”