The Butler Road Race is in transition.

The runners don't care. They just keep on running.

The 42nd annual Butler Road Race takes place at 9 a.m. Saturday. The 5-mile and 2-kilometer races will begin and end at Diamond Park in downtown Butler, per its tradition.

“Last time I checked, with the race more than a week out, we had 360 signed up,” race director Mike Blessel said. “That's ahead of our usual pace.

“We always anticipate 120 to 150 runners registering the day of the race. We're figuring on more than 500 runners taking part.”

BRR president Mike Franko said a lot of runners “wait to see what the weather is like that day, how they're feeling ... They just choose to wait and that's fine.

“The registrations so far are pretty much an even split between the 5-mile and the 2K.”

This will be Blessel's 37th Butler Road Race and the 35th for Franko. It will be the last for both.

While Butler Health System will remain the BRR's primary sponsor, the Butler YMCA will take over operation of the race next year.

“It's been a source of pride for us,” Franko said. “We will always be available for input and advice, if needed.”

YMCA representatives have been attending recent BRR meetings and will be on hand Saturday to observe and assist in the race proceedings.

“We've developed a great relationship with the YMCA and this will be a smooth transition,” Blessel said. “The change will be a non-issue for the runners. They probably won't notice much difference.”

Saturday's race will be the last one to generate scholarships for Butler County high school cross country runners. The BRR has generated $410,050 in scholarship money to 780 recipients over the past 24 years.

This year's race will benefit 2018 cross country graduates.

Beginning next year, the Butler Road Race will help fund the YMCA's Strong Kids Campaign, which provides financial assistance to children and families in such need.

“I have mixed emotions since this is the last race I'll be doing,” Blessel said.”So many of us on the board have been committed to doing this for each other and we've developed a strong bond for each other as a result.

“I'm going to miss not having this race as the big reason to get together with those people.”

Blessel said 150 volunteer T-shirts are printed each year as it takes that much help to pull off a smooth race day.

“We have a checklist of 80 items that have to be taken care of and we just check them off one by one,” Franko said. “Sanctioning, police presence, timing, medical, water ... you can go on and on.”

Franko noted that Greg Sloan, a former BRR director, had designed the race T-shirts in years past. He called upon Sloan to design the final BRR T-shirt for the current organizers this year.

“He was tickled to death that we thought of him to do that,” Franko said.

Timing chips used by the runners Saturday will be on the race number on their shirts, not inserted in the shoe as in years past.

“Just one less thing the runners will have to worry about,” Blessel said. “Technology will continue to make it a little easier to put together a race like this from year to year.”

Tammy Slusser, a 10-time BRR champion from Monroeville, has registered to run Saturday. A number of other key figures in past Butler Road Races will likely compete as well.

Last year's 2K winners were Cranberry Township's Andrew Mascio and West Sunbury's Krista Snyder. The 5-mile winners were former Mars resident Nick Edinger and Leah Anne Wurfel of Slippery Rock.

A pair of Butler graduates hold the BRR's 2K records: Gary Garman at 6 minutes, 11 seconds in 2000 and Danica Snyder at 7:18 in 2011.

The men's 5-mile record of 24:32 was set by Ellwood City's Jake Walker in 2008. Nicole Blaesser of Oxford, Pa., near West Chester, set the women's record of 29:04 in 2009.