The Springdale 5k in Camden has been a staple of the Blue Shoes calendar since 2009, when it used to be held on the horse track, in the evening, in August. Although the post-race beer and party were on point, the 95-degree weather and ankle-deep grass definitely left something to be desired. Luckily, Erin Roof and GRIT revamped the race about a decade ago and changed it to the neighborhood near the horse track, switched it to morning, and delayed it to September. While the morning is less beer friendly, she made up for it with a full-service waffle station. It is a sight to behold. There is a slight possibility that you may not have burned off waffle-level calories in a 5k, but I like to remain blissfully ignorant of that.
With the fall race season about to kick in, this weekend’s tour provided three races, which would hopefully spread the field out for trophy opportunities. The church one in Lexington looked promising for a possible holy grail overall win, but do they have waffles??? I don’t think so. In addition to breakfast bliss, Springdale also offers giant horsehead trophies, which are second only to the Stomp the Swamp (R.I.P.) gator head for pure awesomeness.
Camden is only 25 minutes from my house, so I showed up my customary hour early. They have a mobile home like bathroom set up instead of portapotties, perfect for my also customary colonic destruction. Craft and Draft Friday happy hour will always exact its toll. One of my issues with this race is misjudging the finish, so I did a quick mile out and back to make some visual markers to know where I was. FYI, 1912 Forest Drive is almost exactly a mile from the finish arch.
Strolling up to the start line, I started to get a little nervous. Yes, there were a fair number of teenagers there. But no Jarvis, no Branham, no Striggles…. could this be another holy grail? I’m still holding on to my embarrassing non-tour 2023 Veteran’s Day 5k lean-at-the-tape at full Mach 5 blue shoe kick to beat a 19 year old girl as my last win. Shame is not a burden with which I deal.
I started thinking about strategy. It’s actually very simple. One half downhill and flat, one half uphill. You want to go hard in the first 1.5 miles, but you have to leave plenty in the tank for that climb. It’s not super steep, just unrelenting.
At the start, all the kids blast out way too fast and it takes most of a quarter mile before they drop off. A half mile in, and I’m freefalling down the course. The kid at the very front, who went out in like 5 flat pace, suddenly stops and I think he’s done. One of the neighborhood dogs comes tearing out and starts losing its mind barking, which I guess gives him enough adrenaline to get him going again. And I’ll be damned if he isn’t hauling ass again. Luckily the dog chills out a bit and gives us all a WTF ARE ALL THESE HUMANS COMING FROM look. One human I’m concerned about is a dude with some gray and a myrtle beach marathon singlet. I’m chasing kids, but I can’t be complacent about unknown fast dads. He’s just to my side, so I throw down a burst to try and break a fellow old man’s spirit. Mile 1 comes through in 6:15, which is probably ideal for my race plan. Fast enough to be near the front but not fast enough to destroy me.
I spend the flat area at the hill bottom trying to psych myself up for the pain that will ensue. The front runner guy is blasting the field, and I can barely see him. I guess the holy grail will remain elusive. There is one other kid about 20 meters ahead, so I set my sights on taking him down. The hill starts and it is not fun. That nice shady breeze in the first half suddenly gets replaced by a wet blanket of warmth and humidity. While it might not be a flattering fashion choice with my frighteningly white body, at least my singlet is letting in some ventilation. Mile 2 in 6:35, so I guess I got a little too scared of the hill. Gotta pick it up to break 20 and catch this kid in front of me. But oof it is getting tough. I’m still fighting off a year of Achilles-based trash fitness and probably some IPA pounds, so this is not fun. But I am ever so slowly reeling in the kid. The hill just keeps going, and each corner seems like the end. Finally, there’s a flat stretch and I can see one of those free library boxes that signifies the last turn. I start throwing down hard and pretty soon I’m right on this dude’s tail. He’s probably 120 lbs. tops but I am going to pass him like a runaway 18-wheeler. But then it happens. Just as I creep up on his side, he throws down an epic kick of his own and leaves me in the dust. Nooooooo! But there’s nothing I can do. The old man is getting beat at his own game. To make matters worse, I can also tell I am going to just miss 20 minutes. I cross in 20:03, 3rd overall. Not my best, but I can’t say I left much on the course. It did help that the kid, 15-year-old Jake Rust, scored a PR and was super happy with it. Good job, Jake. The old man gives you props…and I’m coming for you next time.
In the overall, 16-year-old Ben Rabon took the win, fighting off a dog in the process. Jake was 2nd and the Albino Sasquatch 3rd. Eleven-year-old Skyler Spilker won the female overall with Sarah Carroway and Jennfer Carruth also on the podium.
John Campolongo, Roy Shelley and Whitney Keen won male masters, while Ronda Sanders, Melody Kreiling and Zaiton Abubakar won on the women’s side. Melody was also the overall age graded time at 76%!
Age group women: Hayden Hall own the 11-14. Noa Miller took the 30-34. Catherine Sostak was 3rd in the 40-44. Kritin Wallace won the 45-49 with dog in tow. Caroline Keen and Clara Beaudet went 2-3 in the 50-54. Bertha Woehl was 3rd int eh 55-59 while Colleen Towery won the 60-64. Beverly Breuer and Mary Cassidy were 1st and 3rd in the 65-69
Age group men: Eric Gilfus won the 35-39. Whitney Keen and Anthony Godfrey took the top 2 in the 50-54. Clay Ham, Joe Roof and Phil Smith swept the 60-65. George Cassidy was champ of the 70-74, while Richard Wright won the 75+ . Bill Iskrzak was 3rd in the 75+ in his first race back after injury. Good to see you back, Bill!
Other notable finishers: Patrick Hall, Marty Wentzel, Drew Dickerson, Michael Beaudet, Teresa Shelton, Deanna Rennick, Pete Poore, Nicki Charlton, Traci Smith and Jennifer Norris.
Tour de Blue Shoes 