The Lucky Leprechaun 5k was established in 2018 to help promote the Irish Fest in Camden. While I am always somewhat reluctant to leave the confines of the Columbia metropolitan area, this race promised free green beer at the finish line, a pancake-flat course and the ever-present swag /awards of a GRIT event.  Add to this it was being held ON MY BIRTHDAY, and I was in. Camden is barely a half hour from the casa del Blue Shoes, so really not much of a trip anyway. Erin then made the group (of mostly Camden and Elgin runners) sing Happy Birthday to me at the award ceremony, andpresented me with a giant birthday cookie cake. I’m sure 90 percent of the 2018 registrants wondered a) who the hell is this guy? and b) why is he such an insufferable egomaniac? Legitimate questions, both.  What I didn’t know is that the ego stroking was only a ploy in Erin’s long game to find someone ridiculous enough and attention-whorish enough to serve as the race mascot, Lucky Leprechaun himself. So, forever indebted to the 2018 birthday celebration, I was that person. Except for an ill-timed college friend’s wedding in 2022, I’ve been the leprechaun ever since. 

And let me tell you, the suit is hideous. Decked out in green velour, gold/green vest and striped socks, this thing is not attractive. It also has to be dry cleaned, which may or may not have occurred in 6 years, as well as stuffed in a closet 364 days a year. It’s pretty gross. But it definitely will get your attention, especially when you’re already 6’3” and probably 7 feet with the insane looking jaunty stovepipe hat. 

However, it is not completely race unfriendly. The green velour pants are definitely light and airy, so much so that the 2019 photos are probably not suitable for viewing by children. My best time is a 19:03 in 2021, but after a year of a gimpy Achilles, I couldn’t touch that in regular racewear in 2024. My time last year was 20:03 at the beginning of my injury woes, so that was a more realistic goal.

I tried to arrive early for the race, but sometimes the race day colon is a fickle mistress, so I was a little late. The place was packed, so there was definitely  an uptick in registrations, even with the competition at the Spurs Up Sprint in Columbia and the Myrtle Beach Marathon. I haven’t raced since Dam to Dam a few weeks ago and everything was tight. This would be interesting. My warmup included a rogue visit to an unofficial portapotty and getting verbally lambasted by a teen volunteer for running off course. I was like, dude do you think the race started 30 minutes early and I’m leading the entire field by a half mile in this outfit? But hey, I admire the dedication to duty. Weatherwas nice but a little humid.

At the start, there was a huge CRC contingent, officially 31 of us by the group list on runsignup. Sarah and Eric Allers even came in from Rock Hill. Competition looked pretty stiff, with a couple of young dudes and Chris Branham signing up last second to scrounge points. Do we have a threat to Jarvis’ supremacy on the overall Tour? Shannon Godby was back to defend her 2023 title on the women’s side. 

My goal in this race was to not get hurt, start easy-ish and negative split. With the gun, I’m still tight and race pace feels brutal. Everyone is passing me and there’s a small part of me that tells me I could just mail this one in, especially with the suiton. But every time that thought gets overridden by the insanely, maniacally competitive primitive race brain that supersedes all logic. The course is a pretty much a rectangle. While fairly flat, the first half is a gradual uphill and the second half the same grade downhill. If you make it to the turnaround in decent shape, you can crush the last mile plus. 

After being reassured my Achilles wouldn’t snap, I focused on trying to catch up with everyone that blew me away at the start. Sarah was leading a pack of young girls, which was cool to see her still inspiring the younger generation. She also made sure to trash talk me as I pulled alongside and told me to smack her husband in the rear if I could catch him. I’m pretty sure Eric would administer a leprechaun assault and battery if I tried that. Mile 1 was like 6:40ish, so I definitely needed to pick it up to have a chance at 20. I managed to pull up to Mr. Allers and Shannon a little over a mile in, and I was starting to feel the effect of the pace uptick and the heat of a couple layers of velour. Just ahead of them was this kid, and just as I started to pass him, he cut me off. Oh, he probably didn’t see me. A few dozen meters later, same thing. OH IT’S ON NOW, BUDDY. I pull a 2010 Marcus Lattimore maneuver and blow by this dude with the agility of, well, a 7 foot almost 49 year old leprechaun with a bad foot. Nothing like asserting your dominance against a pesky 8th grader. 

I can see the pace car way ahead, and finally, finally it turns to the right. Every year it just seems longer. Rounding the turn is awesome, because suddenly your treadmill is on negative 1 percent instead of the opposite. Mile 2 is 6:30ish , so it’s going to take a miracle to get a sub 20. Plus, what felt like moderate humidity and 50ish degrees now feels like mid-August in the suit. I’m kind of dying but at least I now have my significant gravitational advantage on my side. I start to ramp it up a bit, but there isn’t much gas in the tank. Also, I’m surprised to see an a) an unknown female leading the women’s race and b) she is matching my kick step for step. I’m making zero progress. We finally crash back onto the main drag of Camden, Dekalb street,and I am toast. I can see the finish turn just ahead but mystery girl is thoroughly kicking my ass. I think I can maybe throw down a headless chicken pass at the end, but it’s just not happening. She whups my tail and finishes a few seconds before I blast through in 20:11. Good enough for 11th place (10th male) and a solitary TDC overall point. I’ll take it. 

The race finish area featured pint glasses and big golden trophies for the overall and masters, as well as St Patty’s Day donuts from Mondo donuts. And did we mention beer? There was also beer. Maybe not my high gravity snooty IPAs, but a Mich Ultra will do at 8:30 in the morning. I can also say the donut was on point, since I ate it like a rabid raccoon in the car on the way home. Awesome race as always!

Overall: Sixteen-year-old Benjamin Rabon got the win in 18:15, with Chris Branham 2nd in 18:45 and Benjamin Laprise 3rd  in18:49.  In the women’s race, hats off to Molly Williams for holding off the Leprechaun for the win in 20:08. Shannon Godby crushed a 20:34 for 2nd and Sarah Allers was 3rd in 21:33. Shannon scored a 81 percent age grade while Sarah posted a near world class level 89 percent. Wow.

The timing company took masters runners out of the overall, so unofficially, the male masters podium was Jeff Brandenburg (19:01 and also an 81 percent age grade), the leprechaun, and Eric Allers. Female masters winners were Barbara Brandenburg, Jennifer McLeod and Kristin Wallace. 

Age group honor roll (female): Hayden Hall was 3rd in the 11-14. Julia Ghering was the champ of the 25-29, with Michaela Willoughby 2nd. Toni Jumper was 2nd in the 40-44. Bertha Woehl was 2nd in the 55-59. Melody Kreiling and Colleen Towery were 1-2 in the 60-64. Mary Cassidy was 2nd in the 65-69.

Age group honor roll (male): Regan Freeman won the 25-27. Patrick Hall was 3rd in the 45-49. Eric Allers was 1st in the 50-54, while Frank Seier was tops in the 55-59. Tony Yarborough and Phil Smith were 1-3 in the 60-64. George Cassidy and Pete Poore went 1-2 in the 70-74. Ron Hagell was 2nd in the 75-79. 

Other notable finishers: Michael Beaudet, Clara Beaudet, Drew Dickerson, Margie Shelburg, Stevie Dee Dukes, Son Nguyen, Teresa Shelton. Pam Griffin, Nikki Charlton, Cassidy Carter, Tammy Carter, Dianne Steadman, Maria Pray, Sherry Blizzard. Sorry if I missed anyone.

https://runsignup.com/Race/Results/53235#resultSetId-440185;perpage:100