Mike Crivello’s Cameras. The longtime Brookfield business is, as its delightfully catchy jingle reminds us, home to a little “extra something” (a.k.a. service and quality). But on Wednesday, November 24, beginning at 10:30 a.m., the cozy camera shop will be home to a little extra “extra something.” Yes, it will be the site of a solo 5k race, run by employee and photographer Troy Freund.

“It’ll be tight, especially when I go back behind the counter” Freund laughs. “Making those little transitions will slow me down a bit, but I’ve got some good straightaways, so I should be able to get my speed back up again. For a few seconds, anyway.”

Freund, who’s been with Mike Crivello’s since 2011 and handles its social media, says the idea to run between 150 and 200 laps inside the camera shop is a natural extension of his everyday running routines.

“I am a runner, but I usually run on trails, specifically down along the river and stuff like that,” he says. “Less than a month ago, I did my own self-described Milwaukee River Greenway Ultra run. I went out there intending to run for 12 hours to see how many miles I could get. I ended up doing 11 hours and got 39 miles. And so recently I was thinking about my next running goal. What would be something to work towards, to train for?

“And I’m always thinking about what I can do for Mike Crivello’s,” Freund adds. “What can I do to make people enjoy our presence online and continue to support this funny, weird little local business?”

More than just a personal challenge, Freund’s run will be in service of saving YOU, the happy Mike Crivello’s customer, a little bit of cash. If Freund runs the 5k in less than 35 minutes, folks will get a 5% discount on “most” used camera gear. If he runs it in less than 30 minutes, a 10% used-gear discount will go into effect. The discount will last for a week, beginning on Black Friday, November 26. (“Management reserves right to NOT discount certain items,” a disclaimer warns.)

“We’re also inviting people to guess and see who can get the closest to the actual time I do it in,” Freund says. “We’ll give them something too, what the heck.”

So what does the rest of the Mike Crivello’s staff think of the in-store stunt? According to Freund, they’re not exactly surprised.

“I think they find a lot of the things I do sort of amusing and weird. They’re like, ‘Okay, as long as he’s not causing any problems,'” Freund says. “Last year during the pandemic, because people weren’t able to come into the store as much, we tried to get a lot more active in our YouTube presence. And that resulted in me doing videos featuring really bad magic tricks, and doing videos featuring a cardboard robot talking about cameras. So me coming up with odd ideas for the store isn’t necessarily new at this point.”

Freund’s 5k will be streamed on Mike Crivello’s social media. Per that brilliant jingle, the stream will be “reflecting our lives through photography.” Stay tuned.

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Matt Wild weighs between 140 and 145 pounds. He lives on Milwaukee's east side.