The late Dirk Kempthorne had a storied political career, as a mayor, U.S. senator, governor and Cabinet secretary, but most of the time I encountered him in real life, he was outside, along the Anacostia River, wearing running gear.

That’s because I’ve long been among the not-so-fast but consistent runners in the American Council of Life Insurers Capital Challenge, an annual 3-mile run for folks in the legislative, executive and judicial branches of the government, along with the members of the press who cover them. Kempthorne, an Idaho Republican who died on April 24, was president of the ACLI after leaving government service, from 2010 to 2018, and he was a fixture at the race, which is among the quirkiest gatherings on the Washington calendar.

The Capital Challenge is held toward the end of D.C.’s winter and spring social schedule. No white or black tie. No watered-down cocktails washing down dried-out finger foods in a stuffy hotel interior. Sub in people in sweaty technical shirts, with bottled water and bananas waiting for them after the finish line.

It’s outside, in Anacostia National Park, across the water from Capitol Hill, a flat, out-and-back route, with team names that showcase a sometimes not-obvious Washington weird. Some of my favorites over the years: “We’ve got the Runs,” “Wait Wait Don’t Pass Me” and “Select Committee on Weaponization of Feet.” The port-a-potties are dotted with inside jokes: “VA (please move to back of line)”; “Superdelegates”; “Republicans Not Running for President.” The vibe is proud, nerdy wonkiness.

Port-a-potties at the 2014 ACLI Capital Challenge. (Jason Dick/CQ Roll Call)

That’s not to say people who run it aren’t competitive or talented. Last year, Jack Butler of National Review was the overall fastest competitor, clocking in at 15:45. But there is also room for people like myself, who ran the same race at 33:32, good for 458th out of 528 overall. All the funds raised for the race go to Junior Achievement USA.

As the head of ACLI, Kempthorne was there for race highs and low. He got to hang out with his buddies from the Capitol, meet special guest runners like Olympian Meb Keflezighi and likely fretted with the rest of us when Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., looked like he had collapsed on the course and was medivac’d via helicopter. (It was a hot day. Tillis told Roll Call later on he didn’t hydrate properly and ill-advisedly ate sushi the night before.)

Again: The race is not just for the swift. It’s for slow runners with questionable arches like myself, and senators who eat sushi.

With this year’s race scheduled for May 6, I’ll be thinking of Kempthorne. Maybe that’s an oddball legacy for someone who was mayor of Boise, served a Senate term, two terms as governor and was secretary of the Interior, but it’s a nice reminder that there is more to life in Washington than budget hearings, fancy dinners and the fundraising circuit.

There is also a plodder’s valiant attempt to crack the top 400 of the Capital Challenge, burning off enough calories to justify the post-race pastry and spending a little time together where no one’s gaming out how long the Homeland Security Department will be shut down.