Author Archives: drachtungbaby

Fill the Pack 5k and MLK 5k Double Dip – Lexington /Columbia, SC – 1/18/25

Fille the Pack start line

So I’m pretty sure the last time I double dipped, I swore I was done. Two races, one morning. It’s stressful and exhausting. But when I see the stars align for a DD opportunity, I get a wicked case of FOMO and I guess I can’t help myself. As per the usual, porch IPAs may also have been involved. 

This double looked to be an easy one. Seven thirty start for the Fill the Pack 5k and 9 am for MLK. A quick google maps look showed a 22-minute drive between race sites. As someone who has pulled off a triple dip twice and a 30-minute double, this should be a piece of cake.

Plus, these were going to be two good races. I’ve done the MLK probably ten times and it’s always well done with cool awards. It used to be on Strictly’s old Palmetto Grand Prix and brought out all the beasts. It still usually has some decent competition, and the course is conducive to some fast times. I had no idea about Fill the Pack, but it was being held on the legendary Stomp the Swamp course at River Bluff, which is brutally hard but features a cool start/finish in the high school football stadium.

Waking up on race morning, I had my usual moment of Why the hell do I do this to myself??, made even worse by the fact it was 40ish degrees and raining. Awesome. But I had to do at least Fill the pack for two reasons. One, Tracy was coming out for a pro bono Jedi photo shoot and despite my questionable looks, I can’t help but be an attention whore. Two, the Visser. The dude (Michael Visser) has been all over social media in search of his first sub-20, and I couldn’t help but get caught up in his enthusiasm, since that was basically me in 2010. I told him “Come follow me to a sub 20”. I couldn’t let him down, right? Yeah, we’ll get to that. 

I showed up an hour early and the race already had a decent crowd. It is apparently being used by F3 as their local running championship, so some pretty fast looking dudes out there. I don’t understand F3’s lack of racing, but they will show out when they actually put on a bib. I always have to look out for unknown superfit millennial soccer dads with this group. Branham is already there blowing up the bathroom and adjusting his nose strip when I arrive. I’ve made up some of the gap between us, but he is still kicking my ass since my Achilles betrayed me in ’23. Wesley also shows up a couple of minutes later. I used to be able to beat him too, but recently he’s been giving me a smackdown more often than not.  And then there’s the Visser, who I apparently completely misjudged since he’s dressed like an elite in a singlet and arm warmers and is super lean. I only found one potential double dipper in Margie Shelburg. With her average 5k of around 50 minutes, this would be a tough double, but she swore she would do it, even if it meant an HYC style late start at MLK.

Thankfully for the doublers, we started right on time, and the weather wasn’t too terrible. Kind of a light mist, low 40s. Definitely different from the mid-August swelter of Stomp the Swamp. The start is a diagonal across the football field and wow, everyone is hauling ass immediately. It should be known this course will destroy you if you go out too fast. It’s mostly uphill for the first half, with a part they call the “calf crusher”, a huge hill in the middle of campus that you go up and come right back down. But first you have to climb out of the sports complex, and that’s no joke either. Branham has a good lead on me only a quarter mile in, and apparently Visser will not be “following me to a sub 20” because he’s already out of sight. We hit the calf crusher, and it certainly is aptly named. I manage to catch Trey McCain and we basically climb it together, both chasing Wes, who is about 10 meters ahead.

The Visser

I feel decent in the early going and decide that I must be killing it since the pace feels fast.  We kick out into a parking lot after the calf crusher and the 6:15 mile of my mind is actually 6:41. WTF?? I guess the hills are taking a greater toll than I thought. I try to kick it up a notch but even the parking lot and the connector to the upper entrance of campus is uphill. Around 1.5 you enter a forest paved trail area that is pretty steep in some sections. Yeah, this isn’t helping my pace. Finally, I hit the top of the course in the forest and start plummeting down. I’m afraid of slipping and ripping something in another sharp turn as we enter into another parking lot (site of Silent H’s most recent injury). I didn’t think it was possible, but mile 2 is even slower at 6:57. Jeez this more like the 21-minute pace group than a sub 20. But at least the rest is almost completely downhill. I crank it up a notch and manage to pass a younger guy in a yellow shirt, then set my sights on Wes. Unfortunately for me, Wes is not having it and I’m having trouble closing the gap. We hit the sports complex again and counselor Sawyer is still holding me off. But I’ve been known to channel my inner Rocket Sanders and pull off some epic blue shoeings on the astroturf of the River Bluff football field. Just ask Code Brown and the Yerg. As soon as my feet hit the soft turf, I start throwing down. But that is when the running gods paid me back for Blue shoeing and turkeying. No sooner is my kick in motion when I hear it. Footsteps. Oh no, no one passes me, right? Pace gets amped again but all I see is a yellow blur as the guy I passed whips by me like I’m standing still.  DAMMIT. As it turns out he and three other young dudes up ahead join forces and whip Wes’ ass too. Both of us brutally Gen Z’d. I end up with my tail between my legs, crossing the line in 20:21. 6:09 last mile and a 5:39 kick, and I still get a beat down. Oh well, still good enough for 1st in AG, though no overall points since I was 12th. Visser absolutely crushed a 19:20, a huge PR and probably good for a sub 19 on a flat course. Thankfully he decided not to follow the chunky old man.

 

Blue shoed. From Jedi Runner Photography

In the overall, Patrick Timmerman took the win in 17:42, with top F3 John Mouzakis second in 18:58. Rowan Anders was 3rd in 19:17. The women’s race was won by Leah Austin in 21:22. Twelve year old CRCer Cooper “Honey Badger “ Robbins took 2nd in 25:16. Fellow CRCer Shenequa Coles took 3rd in 26:36. Branham took home male masters in 19:58 while Geraldine Schnupp was the women’s winner in 27:34.  Highlights of the age groupers included Mark Bedenbaugh and Mark Gallagher winning the 60-64 men. Pam Griffin won the 55-59 women, while Patrick McElderry and Kenny Culbertson went 1-2 in the 50-54 men. Double dipper Margie was 3rd in the 65-69 women. Full results here: https://www.strictlyrunning.com/json/Index_JS_C4.asp?uYear=2025&uRaceId=4520&uEvent=5k

 

MLK start

After a failed attempt to recruit Wes for the double, I jumped in the car to head to MLK. The twenty-ish minute drive was just enough to get my legs super stiff. It didn’t help I was cold, wet and was wallowing in my shame from the football field. If I hadn’t forked out the cash already, I probably would’ve bailed. I get there with over half an hour to spare, which is a good thing, because my colon decides to wake up a la the True to the Poo incident on the Palmetto trail. It’s still freezing and now I’m doing bathroom intervals to add to my misery.  Brady had told me the registrations were pretty similar for these races, but the terrible weather has apparently driven quite a few away from MLK. CRC hardcore regulars were out there though, with Jimmy and Hunter Jarvis, Tanner Lybrand, Shannon Godby, Ashley Graham, Pete Poore, Ponomarev, Kirkwood, Shawanna, Artis Love, Ivery Baldwin, Joyce Welch, Lynda Leonardi, Jenny Nance, Michele Edmundson, Stephanie Mosher, Darci and Pippa Kenagy, Asheigh and Lauren Carpenter, Marcus Cunningham, Gretchen Lambert, Bridgette Honor, Jerry Rich and Marcus Cunningham. Margie made it there in time too, with 4 minutes to spare! Pete has done this race over 30 times and is probably an honorary member of Alpha Phi Alpha, the fraternity that puts this race on. 

The course for MLK is certainly easier than FTP.  The first mile is a pancake flat loop around MLK park and into 5 points. Mile two is the tough one, a climb into Shandon on Blossom and King, a la the old Get to the Green course. After the turn around on Heyward, the last mile is mostly flat and downhill, save for a little bump at the end on Lee Street. 

With the gun in race 2, I am feeling rough in the early going but start to loosen up on the back half of the park loop. I’m definitely the ugliest in a three-person pack with Shannon and Ashley. I get a flashback to 1995 chasing girls in five points. Ashley surges ahead and Shannon falls back a bit as we make the turn into Blossom.  Mile 1 in 6:15. Hunter has already exited the zip code and Tanner has put a pretty big gap on us three. My legs are a little cashed, but my lungs feel better since they were already blown out at FTP. Despite my Sasquatchean physique, I’m better at hills than most, so I throw down the hammer on Blossom and break free.  The Blossom/King hill combo is pretty brutal, so I mail in the next quarter mile to recover. Rounding the turn on Woodrow back to home feels good, so I try to at least stay in sight of Tanner. Mile 2 – 6:36. The last mile feels decent cardio wise, but my legs are begging me to stop. Thankfully, it’s all flat on Woodrow/Wheat and King on the way home. I’m running all alone but I’m still deathly afraid of getting a repeat of the last race. Apparently, Mr. Yellow shirt, Andre Smith, lives rent-free in my head now. Cresting the last hill on Lee st, it’s one long fall down a mountain to the finish. I can see the clock and it’s still in the 19s but it’s going to be close.  One last blast and I manage to cross in 19:50. Whew! Very happy with the time for the second half of a double. Good enough for 3rd behind Hunter and Tanner, and 1st old man (Masters).

 

In the overall, Hunter Jarvis cruised to another win in 16:10. Tanner got 2nd in 19:10. Ashley managed to hold off Shannon for the top two spots in the women’s field, with Hannah Hilal 3rd. Shawanna scored 1st female masters while Kirkwood won among the men. 

Age group honor roll: Pippa Kenagy and Lauren Carpenter took top 2 in the 11-20. Artis Love was 2nd in the 21-30 men. Sellers Valimohamed (nee Williamson) returned to racing with 1st in the 21-30 women. Ivery Baldwin was 3rdin the 41-50 men.  Shawanna White, Merritt McNeely, and Ashleigh Carpenter won the 41-50 among the women.  Joyce Welch and Lynda Leonardi took top 2 in the 51-60 women. Legends Jerry Rich, Alex Ponomarev and Pete Poore swept the 70+.

Shandon Turkey Trot and Burn 5k – Columbia, SC – 11/29/24

Gobbles the Turkey. I stared at this costume monstrosity for a long time on Amazon in 2019 before pulling the trigger. It included an oversized tail, faux beer-belly like turkey gut, giant wings and a hideous head cap with hanging gobbler. To say it was ugly is a vast understatement. But a dare from Erin and my dedication to duty as part-time GRIT endurance spokesmodel was too great to resist. The Shandon Turkey Trot and Burn unofficial mascot was born.

 

45 bucks well spent

The Trot and Burn actually is the resurrection of the original Shandon Turkey Trot, which had been a Columbia running fixture for more than 30 years. It used to feature a 8k race and 4k walk/run and featured a psychologically brutal course, since it was 2 loops. But the race started getting overshadowed by the ton of other Thanksgiving races and it started to die off. Fortunately, GRIT moved the event to Black Friday in 2019 and the race has been regaining momentum ever since.  The first year had 300ish runners and this year it was just short of 800. Clearly it was all because of my spokesmodeling.

The original promo from 2019

 

My original thought with the turkey costume in 2019 was just to phone in an easy run, but as it turns out, I have nothing less than 100 percent to give once that bib gets pinned on. The turkey costume is also deceptively run friendly, as it essentially comes down to running in a slightly heavy dress. The legs come out one hole – just hike it up and blast out the speed. The only real pain is the constantly flapping beer belly and the constricting head piece. Somehow, I churned out a 19:06 in the thing back in 2021, which I can’t even do in regular clothes now. In recent years Rob has joined me as an anorexic Santa. I’ve managed to beat him in years past, but just barely, leading to multiple epic holiday costume showdowns on the last drag on Woodrow St. 

 

2021

Fast forward to this year, and things are looking rough for a good turkey time. The Richmond marathon was great but wrecked me for at least a half a week. I could barely walk. Of course, I couldn’t miss the Sleigh Bell Trot on Monday so I had to do that. And there was the 10 miles at Randy’s Thanksgiving Day long run the day before, coupled with an overly aggressive front yard wiffle baseball game at my parents’ house for Thanksgiving. Needless to say, I was feeling less than confident about churning out another fast 5k. But apparently perpetually abusing my body is my favorite thing to do, so let’s go.

I warmed up a little with the world’s skinniest Santa, but the main concern is MAKING SURE I DON’T HAVE TO POOP. I mean that’s always a problem, but figuring out the portapotty logistics in a giant turkey outfit is less than ideal. Luckily my colon appeared to be cooperating.

Start line from JP photography

At the start line, this thing is huge. I couldn’t even see the back of the pack, but I think it had to be diverted into the Shandon Presbyterian parking lot. There were definitely some fast people in this race but I made sure to toe the line for maximum picture exposure. I take my egomania very seriously. The start was a total stampede, and I may or may have not have almost clotheslined Ashley Holman with my wing flapping. This course is a series of Shandon rectangles and is mostly flat, but the Woodrow start is an absolute racetrack. No elevation change and straight as an arrow for a half mile.  I feel like I’m going pretty hard, but I’ll be damned if Shannon and Rob/Santa aren’t leaving me for dead right off the bat. I try and settle in a rhythm. Drew and Tracy are at the first turn on Heyward, so more grandiose picture posing ensues. Rounding the corner, we fly down a long decline on Heyward before rising up near Sims street. Mile one in 6:29. Looks like a sub 20 may not be in the cards today. Pretty soon I catch up with Ed Aufuldish and try and surge past. But Fast Eddie is not having it.  I try and hang on his coattails while the course turns on to Ott, Duncan and then the turnaround on Bonham right near the old Dry Run (R.I.P.) finish line. Turning back home on Wilmot is a relief because I am definitely sucking wind at this point. It doesn’t help my gobbler keeps rising up and blocking my mouth. Kristin Wallace is on hand to take some pics of his absolutely beautiful scene, with my turkey dress showing my white ass legs and my face half covered. Oh, the sacrifices I make for my performance art.

Kristin Wallace’s pic

Mile 2 is in 6:33so it’s going to take an epic kick to pull off the sub 20. But I dream at night of epic kicks, so here goes. Ed is telling me he’s not in 5k shape, and he is post-marathon too, so I manage to slide past him as we turn back on to Heyward. I can see crystal meth Santa ahead but there is no way I can catch him. Ed is still right on my tail too. Turning onto Woodrow for the half mile finish, I make one half-hearted wing flap for Tracy’s video then push in all the kick chips. Near Hand middle, I can just about make out the clock and it’s going to be close for that 19:59. I see Shannon just ahead and I almost think about sparing her the turkey trample, but it’s already too late for that. I catch her about 50 meters out and blast towards the line like it’s the Olympic 100 meter final. BAM. 19:52 by my Garmin. Full on HYC style collapse in the finish chute. I’ll take it.  Good enough for 2nd in AG behind Ozempic Santa.

Poetry in motion, JP photography

Swag is awesome as usual with Turkey trophies for all the overall/age group winners, plus the all-important group competition with COLUMBIA RUNNING CLUB taking first place (over 50 entrants) ! We got a box of pretzels and a giant turkey pretzel as well from Philly pretzel factory. Epic carb load! 

Stuffing the turkey (photo Deana Rennick)

In the men’s overall Mark Kushinka crushed the field with a 16:14 with Liam Jones and Daniel Brown 2nd and 3rd.  Fort Mill’s Angeline Kravitz took the women’s win but our own Ashley Holman was 2nd . Beth Walker was 3rd.

Masters: The men’s division was a trio of grandmasters beasts with Robert McBee, Herbert Krabel and Jeff Brandenburg. These guys are all 57 and over and still killing it.  Shannon threw down a mean kick and broke 20 to take the women’s masters win, solidifying her 3rd place ranking in the state. Erin Abby and Barbara Brandenburg were 2nd and 3rd.

Age group honor roll women: Lilly Holman won the 11-14. Michaela Willoughby won the 25-29. Sara McFall was 1stin the 35-39 and Korinne Collins was 3rd with a new 5k PR! Amy Magee was 1st and Megan Duffy was 3rd in the 40-44.  Stephanie Fischer, Shenequa Coles and Angie Thames swept the 50-54. Joyce Welch and Lynda Leonardi were 1-2 in the 55-59. Melody Kreiling and Lisa Powell went 1-2 in the 60-64, while Carol Wallace and Beverly Breuer did the same in the 65-69. Kathy Paget won the 75-79.

Age group honor roll men: Finn Jaworek was tops in the 1-10. Parker Roof was 2nd in the 20-24. Regan Freeman and David Chen were 1-2 in the 25-29.  Wesley Sawyer and Jonathan McFall were 2nd and 3rd in the 35-39.  Yerg, the turkey and Michael Beets won the 45-49.  Ed Aufuldish, Frank Seier and Randy Hrechko swept the 55-59. Phil Smith and Jeff Radenbaugh went 1-3 in the 60-64. Jerry Rich and Leeds Barroll were 1-2 in the 70-74. Alex Ponomarev and Richard Wright were 2-3 in the 75-79. Jesse Smarr was 3rd in the 80 plus!

 

Notable finishers: 

Eric Gilfus, Joey and Gabby Swearingen, Antjuan Seawright, Patrick Hall, The Outlaw family, The Fischer family, Ashleigh Carpenter, Merritt McNeely, Bertha woehl, The Homeyer family, Kana Rahman, Missy Caughman, Michael Beaudet, Lynn Ann Sawyer, Penny Leitner, Roy and Riana Shelley, Pam Griffin, Jessalyn Smith, Teresa Harrington, April Joyner, Melinda Waldrop, Gretchen Lambert, Pete Poore, Heather Hawn, Dawn Fellers, Cassidy Carter, Nicole Charlton, Kelly Hynes, Ron Hagell, Tee Coker, Stevie Dee Dukes, Heather Herndon, Kristin and Poppy Laughlin, Margie Shelburg, Amy Hildreth, Simon Krabel, Michelle Edmundson, Kerry Stubbs. Sorry to those I missed!

Collages by Tracy Tisdale, editor in chief, CRC NEWSLETTER , pics from facebook and JP photography where indicated

Nightmare in Elmwood 5k – Columbia, SC – 10/26/24

The Nightmare in Elmwood 5k is one of the newer races on tour, first held in 2022, but it’s already one of my favorites. I mean, you don’t have to twist my arm to do race cosplay, and this one actually encourages it. Add in a unique course, GRIT endurance direction and a lot of neighborhood support and there’s no surprise why this event is already popular.

My biggest concern, like trying to find a good pair of blue shoes, is the unique balancing act of finding a cool costume that is also at least somewhat “runnable”. The fact is most runnable costumes are fairly lame and the coolest ones are terrible for trying to throw down a decent 5k. I mean, I love costumes, but I also love CRC points. And with my insane age group, I ‘m going to need to need at least a sub-21. I was seriously thinking about a more timely Beetlejuice ensemble, but I’ve come to realize that if I want to run fast, it’s going to have to be in a dress. And Beetlejuice is full on striped suit with pants, like HYC post race.  Oh sure, they may call them tunics, kilts or robes. But let’s be real, any fast costumes have dresses.  Also, ventilation is key. Halloween always seems to end up in some fourth or fifth conjuring of summer that never seems to end in this town. I have pics of my poor 3-year-old ready to have heat stroke because daddy thought he looked so cute as a (pre Mandalorian) baby Yoda.  So, I once again surrendered my man card and went in search of the coolest (literal and metaphorical) dress I could find.

Fortunately, I enlisted some help from another fellow cosplayer, your newsletter editor Mrs. Tisdale, and came across Halloweencostumes.com. For what they lack in name creativity, they certainly make up for in terms of selection. And they had an awesome William Wallace Braveheart costume. Sure, a 1995 movie that probably no one under 40 has seen isn’t exactly timely, but I’ve been stuck in the mid-90s for the past three decades anyway.

I thought I got a good deal on the costume, but it turns out the model online was also sporting about 30 bucks of accessories like the sword, wig and blue face paint. Oh well, I had already committed so I shelled out the cash. Trying on everything at home showed me it was an awesome costume, and definitely runnable. The con was that the wig, which also could double for any 1980s hair band ensemble, was insanely itchy and hot. But alas, I must suffer for my art.

On race morning, I was nervous about putting on the blue makeup, so I skipped any double dipping. Fortunately, my wife is understanding of my overall bizarreness, so she gave me a brief tutorial of using sponge wedges to apply the blue face paint. That morning I gained a new appreciation for what women go through, as I desperately tried not to ruin my blue foundation with wig hair flyaways. I kept having to flamboyantly flip my hair back and I decided that my man card may need to be permanently revoked.  Though this may have already happened thanks to my Downton Abbey/Bridgerton obsession, so I guess it was all good.

I showed up to the race an hour early and one of the parking lots was already full. Dang, this was getting to be a big event. Lots of Halloweening out there, so I figured I had minimal chance of winning the costume contest. My extensive experience has shown that cute kids win everytime, with hot girls a close second.  Dead last are middle aged man-children with wigs and makeup. JP photography was there along with freelancer Sean Rayford so hopefully I’d get lots of pics at least. My ego needs feeding somehow. 

I warmed up some on the course, having done the whole thing on Friday. The race goes to benefit the Elmwood Neighborhood Association, so the homeowners go all out on the decorations, especially since there’s a prize for the best one. Seriously, I’ve never seen a community so into an event. Yerg, who was not in costume, ran some with me, so I knew masters was already out of the picture. The course has an insane drop and tough climb in the beginning and the end, though a lot of the middle is fairly flat. The route takes you through Elmwood then does an out and back to Finlay Park before returning to the finish.

 

With the start, I made sure to pose for Julie, because I just have to be an attention whore. We headed out on Bryan street before turning right on Park and then plummeted down the hill. It’s pretty steep, and I kept thinking Julia Ghering in her Michael Myers mask might end up on the concrete. That would be a weird ER trip for sure. After reaching the bottom, you head right back up on Lincoln. At this point I had broken free from the pack, but Yerg, Regan, and Shannon were kicking my ass. Dr. Kushinka had already destroyed the field out in front. I always set my sights on “first costume” in this race and there was some dude in a Bob Ross outfit with a dress shirt, artist’s palette, brushes and jeans that was right by my side. Poor Bob had already sweated through his shirt like he had jumped in a lake. We were together through the top of the hill when I felt a loosening of my kilt/dress and the whole shoulder wrap fell off. OMG, I’m going to have to stop. THERE ARE ONLY UNDIES DOWN THERE. I don’t need any more moments like the green velour leprechaun incident, which make gray sweatpants seem modest. Fortunately, I was able to yank the strap up, reach around and tuck it in my belt with only a few seconds of jogging mid-race. Never have I been more grateful for switching out the cheap fabric costume belt with a real leather one. 

The short break actually helped a little, so I kicked it back into 5k mode and caught up with Bob Ross. One mile mark was in 6:40ish near the Elmwood Cemetery. We then hit the Vista Greenway which is mostly flat. Bob , whose real name is Bruce, asks me what my real 5k time is. His is apparently 19:50ish, so I felt like I could probably take him, especially with his jeans. Though he did look 20 something so you never know. I was able to pass him near the turnaround in Finlay Park and we headed back home. The way back was cool since you got to see everyone else in the field. Lots of cool costumes. Heading back into Elmwood, I was getting slightly faster but the hair band mop on my head was absolutely cooking my brain. I climbed the first hill and saw Rayford taking pics. One of Sean’s photos was on the front of the New York Times for Hurricane Helene a few weeks ago, so I did my best William Wallace charge in his direction. I’m sure a random cosplay dude in a costume 5k in Columbia is also NYT cover worthy. I fell down the cliff again to Confederate Avenue and steeled myself for the brutal Park St climb. It’s short but it is insanely steep. I powered up Park and could see Yerg, Shannon, Parker Roof and Regan ahead. I saw Parker stop to walk for a second and I started trying to throw down a kick. Sadly, I only had fumes left. Regan and Shannon also seemed to get Parker running again, so I realized I wasn’t going to have enough room to catch them. One last turn onto Bryan street and I could see the 20s on the clock already. I mounted a weak kick, but made sure to pose for Julie again at the finish. Time was 20:41, so not too shabby, especially given that course and the near wardrobe malfunction. I’ll take it!

In the overall men, Kushinka crushed the field in 17:10, with Benjamin Laprise 2nd and Robert McBee 3rd. Shelby Gurley was top female, with Shannon Godby 2nd and Avery Farr 3rd. Male Masters was won by the Yerg, while Ronda Sanders was tops among the masters women.

Age Group honor roll (female): Jordan Seeger was 2nd in the 20-24. Michaela Willoughby and Julia Ghering were 2-3 in the 25-29. Mary Kate Korpita won the 30-34. Ashleigh Carpenter was 3rd in the 40-44, while Kristin Wallace and Sarah Soltau were 2-3 in the 45-49. Welcome back, Sarah! Stevie Dee took 2nd in the 50-54, while Lynda Leonardi and Pam Griffin went 1-3 in the 55-59. Brigitte Smith was tops in the 75+

Age Group honor roll (men):  Parker was 2nd in the 20-24. Regan Freeman and Bruce Edmonds were 2-3 in the 25-29. William Wallace was 1st in the 45-49. Drew Dickerson was 3rd in the 50-54, while Roy Shelley and Joey Swearingen were 1-2 in the 55-59. Clay Ham and Eliere Tolan were 1-3 in the 60-64. Jerry Rich was champ and Pete Poore 3rd in the 70-74. Ron Hagell and Richard Wright claimed the top 2 in the 75+

Other notable finishers: Antjuan Seawright, Korinne Collins, Karen Kryzanowski, Eme Crawford, Michael and Clara Beaudet, Missy Caughman, Leighton McClendon, Marcus Cunningham, Wendy Homyer, Makenzie Wilt, Sara Wilcox, Kana Rahman, Kara Clyburn, Melinda Waldrop, Gretchen Lambert, Hou-Yin Chang, Nikki Charlton, Michelle Edmondson, Jennifer Glass, Lynn Kramer, Kerry Stubbs, Heather Hawn, Shiela Bolin, Margie Shelburg, Rachel Trott, Susan Weaver, Kristin and Poppy Loughlin.

The costume contest was basically prizes for everyone, though true to my prediction the kids (toy story) and the Fia group (Inside Out) were probably the top choices. I did get a bag of Cromer’s popcorn to soothe my ego though!

 

https://runsignup.com/Race/Results/131775#resultSetId-504483;perpage:5000

Pikes Peak Ascent (13.3 miles) – Manitou Springs, Colorado – 9/21/24

This one was a long time coming. 

Sometime in the summer of 2022 I found myself on my screened-in porch, my favorite place at home and origin of most of my questionable racing decisions. My college roommate, Jarod, messaged me out of the blue and asked if I had any interest in running the Pikes Peak Ascent with him. I had considered running Pikes Peak in the past when asked by Uncle Ricky and the Harbison trail runners but made a sound decision then that this was probably not a good idea. However, Jarod contacted me 2 high gravity IPAs deep, the exact point where reason goes out the window. I WAS IN. A few months later I was at the computer at the exact moment the registration came open and “luckily” snagged a spot.

Unfortunately, it was only a few weeks after that when I decided to blast out a 5k start a little too aggressively on an already tight Achilles. One little twinge and the whole of 2023 became a dumpster fire of healing attempts and too-early comebacks. Ultimately, I ended up in physical therapy in late summer and, as I turns out, an insanely uphill 13.3 miler was not part of my PT’s treatment plan. Sadly, I had to text Jarod the bad news and let him know I was definitely coming next year. He ran it in 2023 and crushed it with a 4:15.

Now some of you may think, 4:15 for a half marathon? Isn’t that really slow? Yes , yes it is. But most of us are used to half marathons on pavement, with a relatively flat course, and at sea level. The Pikes Peak Ascent is none of these. Well, there are 1.5 miles of asphalt at the beginning. But otherwise, this is a relentless climb from the already high Manitou Springs (6,320 feet) to the Pikes Peak finish at 14,050 feet (just below the summit of 14,115).  7,815 feet of elevation gain per their website. As a flatlander I had no grasp of these numbers. It sounded like a lot though.

 

By the spring of 2024 my Achilles (thanks to Vertex PT and tincture of time ) had mostly recovered. I was able to defer my entry for Pikes from last year, so I started to think about training. But I didn’t. Hill running is the majority of my training already, and I typically do a half marathon or more every Sunday morning. HOW MUCH HARDER CAN IT BE? We will get to that. I did get roped into the Richmond Marathon in November (when Joyce caught me on the IPA porch), so at least I had been doing longer long runs on Sundays. Suddenly, September was upon us, and I was hit with that all too common feeling of “What did I get myself into??”.

 

Thankfully, Jarod was OK with me coming a few days early and crashing at his house in Colorado Springs. Having tolerated the tornado of mess that was 1994-1997 Alex, this was quite gracious. My first real pang of fear for this race came when I went up the stairs in Jarod’s house (elevation 7000 feet). Damn, I’m already out of breath here, much less 14000 feet. Ruh roh.  Jarod agreed to help me out with getting at least some altitude acclimation in. Ideally, you probably need at least two to four weeks, but who has time for that? I had two days. We drove up to the Crags trail on the other side of Pikes Peak at about 10000 feet. It was about 5 miles, mostly up for 2.5 of that. Yikes, this altitude stuff was no joke. We had planned to jog some of it, but my flatlander ass was huffing and puffing like I was 400 pounds. I power walked it and got really worried for Saturday.  Friday was mostly a rest day and we did the official shake out three miler in Manitou Springs and picked up our packets.

The weather had looked dicey several days out, but we were lucky the impending storm front moving in was slower than they thought, so our weather was great on Saturday morning.  In the 50s at the base and 30s at the summit. The Ascent is the first part of the race weekend, with about 1500-1800 people racing to the top on Saturday. The marathon is held Sunday, where you do the Ascent and then run all the way back down to Manitou Springs. There are some people who even double dip both races, which, especially in hindsight, is completely and utterly insane. 

Wave 8 start

 

The race starts in 16 waves stratified by the time you submitted to qualify for the race. I think I put in my Boston time. The qualification standards are not high, they just want to know you (hopefully) won’t die. I got put in the 4thwave but wisely chose to start with Jarod in Wave 8. 

 

My God what have I done?
Jarod slightly more excited than me.

The start was in my element. On the roads of Manitou Springs, lots of energy and just a cool funky little town. I thought I was just cruising, but Jarod said I was already going too fast, at least for him. The incline started immediately. I managed to run the first 1.5 miles on pavement but was already breathing hard by the time we got to the Barr trailhead, where the race really begins. The course follows the Barr trail the whole way. The first stretch is known as the “W”s , named for the shape of all the switchbacks, and features a lovely 13 percent average grade. Here I was forced to walk for the first time, and I assure you it was not my last. I probably did the walksies about 80-90 percent from then on. I did my best to power hike it. It gets pretty congested on the trail, but it’s not like I had enough speed to really pass most people. There was a lot of leap frogging going on. After the initial lung punch of the “W”s, you hit the No Name Creek aid station (4.48 miles). I was feeling pretty good at this point. Plenty of energy and nothing hurting. I felt a little less anxiety. It helped that the grade then got a little less steep after that, and (GASP) I was actually able to run some. I mean it was still 8 percent grade but walk/running seemed to work. I was making pretty good time, and I recall seeing I was at 1 hour 32 minutes at an aid station just past 6 miles. Oh man, I am going to crush this. Going to be low 3 hours for sure. I decided to take one of my 2 GUs at this point. I had only bought some GU at the expo the day before when Jarod was incredulous that I hadn’t brought any fuel. Espresso Love GU has quite a bit of caffeine, so I bounded ahead and tried to run whenever I could. There were even some downhill (perish the thought!) sections that I sprinted out. Barr Camp is one of the biggest aid stations at 7.79 miles. My elegant nutrition plan featured a handful of grapes in addition to my water and Skratch sport drink, which I had been chugging nonstop.

I was still feeling pretty good at Barr, which is at 10,200 feet, but things started getting a little rough after that. There’s some flat to downhill for a bit right after the camp, but then sh!t got real, real quick. The grade gets cranked up to 13 percent, and you can forget about running that, especially at that elevation. The trees start getting a little sparser, and you can even make out the peak from time to time, which seems impossibly high.  The grade here is just relentless, and I can feel those 14-15 minute miles getting a lot slower. After what seemed like an eternity, I walked into A-frame, the last major aid station at 11,950 feet.

Still posing early on

It’s only a 5k from the finish from here. I distinctly remembered Dean Schuster asking me how fast he thought he ran the last 5k of the Ascent. I knew it was brutal, so I threw out a ridiculously slow number for him ( a 19–20-minute 5ker) , 45 minutes. He said an hour and a half. Um, what?? He posted some video of him huffing and puffing above the tree line on Facebook as proof. Surely it couldn’t be that bad. But I had to admit I was feeling a little lightheaded and beat down by this point. I took the GU right before A frame and grabbed another handful of grapes.  In my oxygen-deprived haze, I had a bizarre moment where suddenly I turned around and saw Jarod, then saw someone in an inflatable Trex costume cheering me on. I was really confused. Jarod had been slowly gaining on me for the last few miles. I stopped to get a selfie with Trex but then had to take a few seconds to not feel so passy-outty. Jarod appeared to have the intent to run with me to the finish, but I told him I was going to have to take it slow. As if the blistering 28-minute pace from Barr to A wasn’t slow enough. I was able to come back to Earth after a few deep breaths after A frame and suddenly I was above the tree line. It’s an absolutely incredible sight, just miles of perfect alpine scenery with snowcapped mountains and ice blue lakes. The trail leveled out for a bit to allow me a little Rocky Mountain high, and the GU kicked in, so I caught a second (oxygen deprived) wind. I even tried to trot a little, but I caught a case of the faintsies, so I figured that was a bad idea. There’s a timing station two miles from the finish and that seems so close. I still have a hard time seeing the peak, and there is just a huge wall of rock going upward for what seems like forever. Every time I look up it’s bad, because a) it seems a lot longer than 2 miles and b) the sudden upward gaze wants to make me feel all woozy. From then on, I just went to full zombie mode. One foot in front of the other, follow the people in front of me. A stocky dude in a blue shirt and a tiny woman from Nebraska and I had been together for the last several miles, and now we we’re locked into a brotherhood of pain in the death march to the finish. The last mile has another marker, and I swear I was hallucinating the kazoo band playing Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire”. But I did see them in a YouTube video, so I guess I was at least semi-lucid. The final mile is just soul crushing. The course has super steep switchbacks with even some rock scrambling at points. You can start to hear the finish line from a long way off, but you look up and you can see the conga line of oxygen deprived zombies still going up forever. They call these the “16 golden stairs” but it seems more like the route to hell than heaven. At one point I went over a crest and expected the finish line to be there. I almost cried when I saw 3-4 more “golden stairs” to go. Finally, I rounded the last turn and there was a straight path to the finish line. I thought maybe I’d run and do some triumphant pose, but I slumped to the finish like an episode of the Walking Dead and kept walking so I wouldn’t pass out. Jarod and the race photog caught the moment of beauty below:

 

I finished in 4:29 with a blazing 20:10 per mile pace. Rocked a 52nd in age group. I had plans of touring the summit house but I was completely wrecked. I changed into some warm clothes and I could barely lift my shirt over my head. I started to come back to life with some coke, but I was too weak to eat a cheeseburger we got at the summit cafeteria. If big boy can’t eat a cheeseburger than something is definitely not right. We ended up riding down on the first bus available, which takes about an hour with all the twists and turns.

The grade is so steep that you have to switch buses halfway down so the brakes don’t overheat. The second bus driver must have a side job in Nascar because we were getting thrown all over the back of the bus. One of Jarod’s friends almost had to puke out the window,  which I was scared of causing a Stand By Me blueberry pie style vomiting incident since we were all a little queasy from the altitude. The after-race party in Manitou Springs was great with a free beer and pizza.

 

Would I do it again? My answer at the finish was HELL NO. But then again, there are always afternoon IPAs on my back porch.

Results: https://www.brooksee.com/ppa/results?#

Springdale 5k – Camden, SC – 9/7/24

 

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.

https://runsignup.com/Race/Results/77754#resultSetId-485147;perpage:5000

Sweat it Out 5k – Columbia, SC – 6/1/24

I still consider it a newer race, but the Sweat it Out 5k has somehow been around since 2015 and is now in its 9th year. It has been a regular on the Blue Shoes and Tour de Columbia calendar, initially directed by fellow Sunday run slog jogger Shannon Godby and then taken over by Erin and GRIT endurance a few years later. True to form for an Erin Roof race, this event has featured some of the best swag, including the iconic Ernest Lee painting awards, which currently decorate my office and act as my Zoom/Teams background. I know my coworkers are impressed. The race proceeds go to benefit the National Foundation of Ectodermal Dysplasia, a group of disorders that includes hypohydrosis, or the inability to sweat. Nick, the son of race director Jamie Duke, has the condition, and it’s been cool to see the toddler at the first race now grow to a preteen.

 

Tragically, the year of the wonky Achilles wrecked my Sweat it Out streak in 2023, but given that I’m back at least at 85-90 percent, I wasn’t going to miss this year. At our first meeting of the year, the CRC board decided to bump up this event to cherished double points status, so it was sure to be a stud fest. I usually don’t look to have a fast time at this race with the heat, so I did a quick check of the forecast on Monday to see how miserable it would be. But wait… hold the phone, what is this?? 55 degrees?  That’s incredible for June in this famously hot town.

 

Sure enough, I show up at 6 am for the 7 am start and it is actually COLD. People had jackets on and everything. 54 degrees by my car thermometer. At packet pickup, fellow GRIT spokesmodel Sarah suggested this year’s event be called “Shiver it Out”. She wasn’t wrong. The early start always throws a wrench into my pre-race colonic song and dance. It’s often a three act play but you can never rule out an encore performance. We would see. I did a couple miles with H, McElderry and Yerg to warm up, and by the time I get back there are beasts everywhere. Somehow, I managed 2nd overall in 2019 with a 20:20 something time. I might not be in the top 20 with that time this year. Jarvis and David Williams were sure to podium on the men’s side, but there were also masters studs OJ and Dimery.  Joy Miller and Ivanka were picks to win among the women, but JLy, Ashley, Shannon, Sellers and Lindsey were also there to throw down some good times. Also, there were a whole slew of singlet wearing fast looking old dudes that were giving me the jitters. Damn you rando superfit dads.

Ten minutes before the start, I realize someone has indeed been cheering for the colon to come back on stage. DAMMIT. The line was a little long at the portapotties but it was moving. Thankfully Erin gave us an extra 5 minutes to poop. The start line is just ridiculous. I love to be grandiose and toe the line at most local 5ks but my fat ass was going to get run over if I did that for this race. I backed up probably 5 rows just to be sure. Reportedly there were 50ish CRC members on hand, and I don’t debate that number based on who I could see. Based on my start line selfie, I can see Mike Shrum, Eric and Sarah Allers, Jonathan McFall, Dimery, David Williams, Silent H, Brett Martin, Sellers, Rob THE YERG Yerger, Lindsey, Kirkwood , Patrick McElderry, Clay Ham, Sophie Homeyer, Dr. Ghering, Patrick Hall and Levi Beck. 

 

The start was as predicted, a total blast out of the gates with all the fast people. I got passed by a ton of people given my usual negative split plan. There’s nothing I hate more than going too hard early and dying a thousand deaths in the last mile. But with the cool weather and feeling like I’m getting left in the dust, I probably amped it up more than usual. This course is virtually flat, with the only real hill coming an agonizing 2.5 miles in. I focused on keeping a steady pace and hanging on to Jly and Sellers, both known for going out blazing fast.  Jordan makes sure Jen knows I’m right there and mocks the decidedly minimal amount of blue in my shoes. “WHITE SHOES!” I hit mile in 6:10 and there are still a ton of people ahead of me. Damn this is a competitive race this year. We are almost done with the second out and back loop before I finally catch Jly. The YERG is crushing it up ahead, so I try and stay in striking distance. I can tell that maybe, just maybe, the blue shoe mojo is coming back because I don’t feel abjectly awful at this point. It also probably helps that it feels like October. The third loop is the last and it’s a direct out and back trip on Saye Cut Rd. I was glad just to make it to Saye Cut before Hunter left it, but it isn’t long before he and a whole host of SC’s finest road racers come into view headed back.

The YERG

Saye cut ends at a cone and I turn around like a runaway bus, also trying not to tweak anything in the process. Right on my tail I see Bobby Bartley , Ashley Holman and JLy. I’m starting to hurt a bit now, but I have YERG in my sights. I think I’ve got him but damned if he isn’t slowing down. We turn back on the Galway to head straight back to the start, and I can see the infamous hill looming ahead. Garmin chirps back at 6:13 so staying pretty even. I almost draw even with Rob at the hill, but he is even better at hill climbing than I am, having done a ton of mountain ultras. In front of Meadowfield, I know there is less than a half mile to go. I have Yerg just ahead, but there’s also a red singlet wearing guy (later ID’d as Bruno Alcalde) with some gray in his hair just ahead of him. Damn masters is brutal in this town. Yerg starts to ramp it up and he draws even with Bruno and then slowly edges ahead. I feel like death, but if there’s a finish line to be seen I know I can always find another gear. The trick is knowing not to push in all the chips too early. As we clear Meadowfield, I can see the finishing arch in the distance. HERE WE GO. Time for the Blue, or perhaps white, shoe kick. Full throttleup commences and I weave through Bruno and Yerg and out into the open. And oh man, it hurts. Full karate chop hands, giant head bobbing all over the place, and form going all to hell. Mile 3 alert pops up but I am in full tunnel vision by this point. For some reason I feel compelled to lunge at the line like it’s an Olympic sprint and I have to full on HYC style collapse in the finish area. That is the sacrifice to make all of 16th place. 19:19 by chip and consolation 2nd in age group since OJ got on the masters podium. While my chicken man award may be smaller this year, I’m pretty psyched for my fastest time since spring of last year. Plus, I got a GRIT gift at the award ceremony. I wasn’t sure who she was describing until she mentioned “giant ego” and then I knew it was me. Yep, just like the Carly Simon song.

Karate, anyone?

 

In the overall, Hunter Jarvis correctly navigated the course this week en route to a win in 16:14. From the way he looked on Saye Cut, it was like a jog in the park for him. David Williams was second in 16:35 and new Columbian Shawn Wiler was 3rd in 16:39. 

Joy Miller took home a big win in the women’s race, clocking 17:57 before hopping in the car to Sumter to double dip another win an hour or so later. Ivanka Tolan kicked my tail en route to second place in 19:08, with Ashley Holman claiming third in 19:52.

 

Masters on both sides was nuts: Dimery, Orinthal Striggles and Aaron Schaffner claimed the male podium, with Jason and OJ going sub 17. On the women’s side, Shannon Godby was the champion with Marian Nanney 2nd and Sarah Allers 3rd. Sarah, OJ and Ivanka were the top age graded athletes, all hovering right at 85 percent. Incredible. Shannon, Joy, Dimery and Robert McBee also crossed the 80 percent age grade, representing national class level competition. Not too shabby for a local 5k!

 

Age group honor roll (female): Lilly Holman was 2nd in the 11-14. Hannah Williams won the 15-19. Sellers was 3rd in an insanely competitive 25-29. Lindsey Hendren won the 30-34. Jennifer Lybrand, Kara Stevens and Sara McFall took top 3 in the 35-39. Shenequa Coles, Stephanie Dukes and Angie Thames swept the 50-54.  Lynda Leonardi won the 55-59. Colleen Towery was champ of the 60-64. Diane Freeman and Margie Shelburg won the 65-69.

 

Age group honor roll (male): Graham McLaughlin was 2nd in the 20-24. Josh Odell was tops in the 25-29 with Regan Freeman 2nd. Levi Beck won the 30-34. Mike Shrum, Johnathan McFall and Wesley Sawyer claimed the podium in the 35-39. Bruno Alcalde, Bobby Bartley and Brett Martin (new PR!) took top 3 in the 40-44. Brad Batchelder won the 45-49 over the epic Blue Shoes/YERG battle. Patrick McElderry, Johnathan Kirkwood and Eric Allers swept the 50-54. Robert McBee, Roy Shelley and Silent H won the 55-59, while Clay Ham, Eliere Tolan and Phil Smith did the same in the 60-64. Pete O’Boyle won the 65-69 while Jerry Rich and Leeds Barroll went 1-3 in the 70-74. Richard Wright and Ken Lowden claimed the 75+.

 

Other notable finishers: Kerry Stubbs, Maria Pray, Clara Beaudet, Harry Strick, Pete Poore, Hou Yin Chang, Nicole Charlton, Gretchen Lambert, Traci Smith, Deanna Rennick, Melinda Waldrop, Wendy Homeyer, Teresa Shelton, Missy Caughman, Sophia Homeyer, Tug Quarles, Leighton McLendon, Son Nguyen, John Richards, Michael Beaudet, Michaela Willoughby, Drew Dickerson, Patrick Hall and Julia Ghering. 

 

Crawdaddy Dash 5k – Columbia, SC – 5/4/24

It’s been several years since the Rosewood Crawdaddy Dash happened, and I was sure it was no more, but I was super happy to see Erin and GRIT revive it. I was at the inaugural race, which was probably 2011-ish.  The Crawfish festival which hosts the race used to bring in 1990s alt rock vets like Everclear and Better then Ezra, so definitely right up my alley. Later, Hunter Gatherer built their Hangar outpost, and no one has to twist my arm for a post-race beer. 2014 report below:

Rosewood Crawdaddy Dash 5k – Columbia, SC – 5/3/2014

 

The course has a bit of a tough climb to start, but few races end with virtually 2 miles of downhill and flatness. I thought I was excited about the race, but few can match the enthusiasm of Regan Freeman. I did a half mile warm up with him and dude was AMPED. I was jealous of his crawdaddy hat though. I can always get behind a good costume. In fact, Crawdaddy was being held on the same day as the May the Fourth race, enabling me to do a rare cosplay double, Obi-Wan and Crawdaddy boxer guy. Luckily the two races were 90 minutes apart, so an easy ride over. I didn’t quite have to drive like a maniac, but somehow, I weaved through USC graduation traffic from Saluda Shoals and made it to Hunter Gatherer by about 9 am. There might have been an entitled violation of a police barrier since I drove up from the back. I’ll never tell.

It felt better to not have long pants and a robe on, but it was still pretty miserable outside. Legs got super tight on the ride over too, so that was also fun. There was a nice crowd on hand and tons of CRCers, plus quite a few double dippers. Not sure of all of them, but Chris, Melody, Nicki, Brett, Stevie, HYC , Ivery and Roy made the trip from Saluda Shoals. Thankfully there were plenty of portapotties, because I’m always afraid of another infamous “true to the poo” incident from one of my other double dips.  Again, zero time goal here, just get to the finish line.

At the start, I try to position myself for maximum pic exposure on the front line, but I get passed almost immediately by about 20 people. Fantastic. As advertised, the first mile is a complete struggle bus on this course, though the initial 800 meters is the toughest. I try and maintain a decent pace, but my Jedi jaunt has apparently destroyed my life force. It feels like everybody and their mom is ahead of me and I just have nothing. I pace pretty evenly with Kara Stevens and clock in a tick under 7 minutes as we turn onto Rosewood. For reference I like 6:15 out of the gates, but that’s all I have today. What’s nice is knowing there are no more hills. I turn onto Ott and we all start the long gradual slog down to Owens field. The Ott St decline has been a favorite of mine for all virtual races, including the 2020 palmetto 200 and the 2021 virtual sweat it out with Yerg when he couldn’t make it in person. It’s really long and you can stride out the whole way down. Mile 2 in 6:39 so I’m at least near my 10k pace by now. Sellers Williamson, Brendan Holman and Seth Lapic are in sight but I’m kind of on my own at this point. Ashley is off Montgomery st taking pics, so I make sure to do some posing with what little oxygen I have left. I try and push it in mile 3 to at least get under 21. I manage to catch Sellers and I see Brendan, Seth and Yerg as I take a right on Jim Hamilton Blvd. I am very relieved to feel no wind on this stretch, because it can be brutal when it’s in your face. Luckily the only thing holding me back is 195 lbs of poor conditioning. But, hell, might as well blast out whatever you have. I start tracking down Brendan and suddenly he catches a case of the walksies. I scream at him and he sees the truly frightening sight of a pale ass tan lined sasquatch barreling his way. He takes off again in a startle but the walksie bug hits again a little while later and I manage to pass him about 200 meters from the finish.  Seth is up ahead. He may be weakened by a blazing 3:03 London Marathon two weeks ago, but still better than me today. I am just toast by the finish, beautifully captured by my finish line photo, which looks like a cross between a stroke or a bad taco bell experience. Just hideous, as always. Finish time of 20:44. 9th overall.  To clarify how brutal the masters competition is in Columbia, this was only good for 5th masters and technically 4th in my 45-49 age group. Luckily, the top three 45-49 people got taken up by masters overall and I got a “consolation” 1st in AG on the podium. But hey, I’ll take even a fake number one. 

Overall winners in this race included the ageless Orinthal Striggles, churning out a 17:03 at age 48. Steven Hicks finally broke through in a big way with a very sub 18 in 17:41 for second across the line. He opted to take first masters, so official 2nd was Cole Andrew in 17:49 with 3rd going to Regan in a nice 18:56. Ivanka Tolan took the overall women’s race in 19:59 , with Sellers 2nd  in 21:28and Kara 3rd in 21:46 for a CRC sweep. Male masters included Chris Branham in 2nd, with a nice 19:09 in the second leg of a double dip, and Rob THE YERG Yerger in 3rd. Female masters winners were Marian Nanney in 1st with Melody Kreiling taking an impressive 2ns at age 64.

 

Female Age group honors: Michaela Willoughby was 2nd in the 25-29. Shelley Rivers was champ of the 40-44. Kristin Wllace and Deanna Rennick won 1st and 3rd in the 45-49. Stevie Dee Dukes, Missy Caughman and Melinda Waldrop swept the 50-54. Kelly Danias was 2nd in the 55-59. Teresa Harrington won the 60-64. Margie Shelburg was 2nd in the  65-69. 

 

Male age  group honors: Christopher Houck won 1st in the 30-34 with Ian Loughlin 2nd. Seth Lapic and Antjuan Seawright took the top 2 in the 35-39. Brendan Holman and Brett Martin went 1-2 in the 40-44.  With all the studs in the overall and masters, I won the 45-49 by a mere 10 minutes. That has to be a record. Ivery Baldwin, Drew Dickerson and Todd Derrick won the 50-54. Roy Shelley, Eliere Tolan and Leighton McClendon swept the 55-59. Clay Ham was 1st and Phil Smith 3rd in the 60-64. Leeds Barroll won the 70-74, while Richard Wright and Ron Hagell took the 75+.

 

Other notable finishers: Son Nguyen, Nicole Charlton, Maria Pray, Traci Smith, Kathryn Houck, Kristin Loughlin, and Gretchen Lambert.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

True to the Brew 10k – Pomaria to Peak, SC – 3/29/24

The True to the Brew race is one of two events put on by Palmetto Conservation Foundation to help promote the Palmetto trail. It was founded in 2018 and features one of the few point-to-point courses on the Tour. More importantly, it involves the nexus of a few of my favorite things – running, beer, breakfast sandwiches and 80s music. If only I could find a suitable costume to wear for this one, then it would be complete. Hmm.

On top of the race itself, packet pickup is at Craft and Draft with a free beer of your choice by showing your bib. Not a hard arm twist to get me to C&D for free beer on a Friday night during March Madness. I apologize in advance for my sudden highly vocal and unexplained Yale Bulldogs fandom. It was probably the double IPAs talking. Good turnout on Friday with a strong CRC carb loading contingent.

However, I was a little nervous about this race on multiple fronts. One, I had Covid two weeks ago for the first time and it legit kicked my ass. Randy said he had trouble running for a couple of months afterward, so I was scared what effect it might have on me. Two, my fitness is still garbage in comparison to the glory of 2022. A year’s worth of Achilles problems and eating like I’m still doing 40 miles a week may be to blame. Third, this is a 10k, really closer to 6.5 miles. I haven’t raced anything longer than a 5k in months.  Lastly, the weather looked terrible and who knew what slop I might encounter. I packed my car like I was going away on a weekend camping trip with multiple layers, towels, etc.  Fortunately, this is a trail race in name only. The path is completely flat and straight, with only a very brief underpass section providing any incline. I actually wore my old vapors instead of trail shoes.

On race morning, it appeared the race gods had smiled upon us, in that the projected rain was completely out of the picture. A little on the warmish side, but all in all not too bad. There was a potential disaster though, as the portapotties for the race did not show up. Fortunately, Wilson’s grocery let us all destroy their toilets, and GRIT first husband Joe Roof was buying TP like it was March 2020, so that helped. I got there early enough to avoid the lines anyway and said a little colonic prayer the poopsies would not return. 

I did a couple of solo slog jog miles and generally felt like I usually do, as in why do I do this to myself every week. I had no clear plan, just try to run comfortably hard and see what happens. The race was sold out again so there was a big crowd on hand. A good CRC group, though there were three otherpotential trophy hunts in play that Saturday. Lots of F3/FiA and some trail/ultra types. Dr. Kushinka and Jen Davis were the obvious choices for the win, though I figured I might be able to place in masters. A few fit graybeards were at the start, making me a little nervous. We would see.

With the start, I did my awkward don’t eff up your Achilles lurch forward and still managed to feel a twinge. Awesome. I felt like I was getting smoked by half the field off the bat, so I had to swallow my pride and wait until my heel decided to calm down. Luckily everything smoothed out in the first half mile and I was able to take back a couple of spots. I could see Kushinka was already trashing the field with maybe one follower. Jen was up ahead with maybe 4-5 dudes in her vicinity. I went through mile 1 in 6:47 which felt like a good sustainable pace. We went over a couple of bridges that were definitely a little dicey with all the recent rain, and possibly due to my completely tractionless road racers I decided to wear. Nice choice, dude. I decided to mitigate a potential disaster by engaging my inner Joyce Welch and taking tiny steps on all the wooden bridges. A sasquatch taking ballet steps surely wasn’t pretty but it got the job done. Mile 2 came back around the same in 6:54 and I now had my sights on a shirtless gray-haired dude. Surely masters because of the gray and definitely in better shape if he was going sans shirt. But I’m an expert in modifying Selwyn’s famous phrase to “FAT AND FAST”.  I may have a shirted dad bod ready to chafe at a moment’s notice, but I was ready to kick some superfit middle aged ass. And hey, I was shocked at how good I was feeling. No apparent post-COVID problems, and I felt strong. I made a surge and passed the silver fox, who even gave me a “good job”.  LET’S GO. Or not. I was just going to hold on to this pace as long as I can. Way too afraid to start kicking it in. There’s still a pic of me online from the 2010 Dam Run doing a full “surrender cobra” after bonking out a 10k by going too hard, too early. Never again. 

Context: I was going for sub-40.

Mile 3 in another 6:47 and I was cruising. Hope Station Rd (the first paved road crossing) is a good landmark in this race, and signals roughly the halfway mark. My tennis buddy Jay Cleary was out supporting his wife Pillaur and graciously indulged my camera mugging at this 5k point. 

The rest of the race I was essentially solo. I could see Jen and one other dude in the distance on the straightaways, but no way I was catching them. Miles came through in almost perfect high 6:40 splits. The underpass section at just over 5 miles gave me a little punch in the lungs, but you can almost feel the finish by then. I tried to muster a bit of a kick near the finish but by then I was pretty much toast. Did manage a 6:24 kicker on the bridge and crossed in 43:22 / 6:49 pace. Garmin distance was 6.37, so a little long as always. Fifth overall, fourth male, and most importantly, first masters! Very happy with the result.

Finish line was awesome as usual with breakfast sandwiches and Craft and Draft beer, along with a 360-degree photo booth experience (Picture This 360 photos) that enabled me to bask in my attention whoredom.  Camelbak was a surprise sponsor this year and gave out hydration packs to the first overall and masters winners, along with a palmetto trail mug. Awesome!

Overall: Marc Kushinka cruised to the overall win in 36:47, about 4 minutes clear of the field. Kyle Logue and Benjamin Laprise were 2nd and 3rd. Jen Davis was top female and third across the line, eight minutes faster than her nearest competitor. Darby Samargo and Jessica Weems were 2nd and 3rd.  In masters, Marian Nanney, Melody Kreiling and Heather Hugg took the female podium. Male masters was topped by an albino sasquatch, James Lefever and Craig Wiltshire.

Age group honor roll (female): Shannon Livezey captured 1st female 25-29. Meredith Frye was 1st in the 30-34. Olesya Gelfond and Marjorie Cleary were 1-2 in the 35-39.Fiona Martin was 3rd in the 40-44. Kristin Wallace and Brie McGrievy went 1-2 in the 45-49. Pillaure Cleary and Sara Wilcox were top 2 in the 50-54. Bertha Woehl was 2nd in the 55-59. Colleen Towery won the 60-64. Margie Shelburg was 3rd in the 65-69. 

Age group honor roll (men): Hudson white won the 30-34. Jimi Adams was a close 4th in the 45-49. Frank Seier and Joe Roof were 2nd and 4th in the 55-59. Harry Strick was 4th in the 65-69. Charlie Palmieri and Ed McCall went 1-2 in the 75+.

Other notable finishers: James Reap, Ken Walker, Jeff Curran, Mary Kate Korpita, Kana Rahman, Korinne Collins, Lisa Powell, Michael Beaudet, Teresa Shelton, Missy Caughman, Teresa Harrington, Gretchen Lambert, Deanna Rennick. Nicki Charlton, Zach Charlton, Pam Griffin, Bridgette Honor, Maria Pray, Kara Blaisure, Margie Shelburg and Pete Poore.

https://runsignup.com/Race/Results/53330#resultSetId-444396;perpage:10

Jp photos , collages from Tracy Tisdale, crc newsletter

Lucky Leprechaun 5k – Camden, SC – 3/2/24

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

Shandon Turkey Trot and Burn – Columbia, SC – 11/24/23

So anyone following my racing (because I know there are legions of you), knows that 2023 has been an unmitigated dumpster fire for me, pretty much from the get go. A tweaked achilles in January led to me trying to run through it, which of course led to it getting worse. The coup de grace was fittingly a fun run in my neighborhood, which I ran like it was an Olympic final, and left my heel just wrecked. I took 6 weeks off and the pain came right back.

Finally I was encouraged/shamed to go to physical therapy by Joyce and Mara. Who needs PT when your legs are Hulk like due to carrying around a dad bod doing 19 minute 5ks for a decade? Apparently I did. Eight weeks later I did all my exercises, got my butt kicked at Vertex by Dr. Chhoun and came out on the other side. The Achilles, while not back to absolutely 100 percent, is close enough. The comeback has been pretty brutal but I’ve been able to dip below 20 a couple of times since.

But the most crucial victory from PT Is enabling me to get back to the serious business of running in ridiculous costumes. The absolute pinnacle of this race cosplay is of course the Shandon Turkey Trot and Burn. All my other costumes are pretty easy to run in, but this outfit, “GOBBLES THE TURKEY” from Party City, is an absolute monstrosity. Constricting turkey head hat, giant wings and trailing tail, and above all a turkey gut like someone’s beer swilling alcoholic uncle. Just hideous. But also, insane-looking enough to maximize my apparent insatiable need for attention. Always have to be the main character.

I got to the race even earlier than my standard hour, and sans suit, because 1) Driving in this thing would probably lead to getting pulled over for presumed intoxication/psychosis and 2) Portapotty pooping would be a logistical nightmare. After packet pickup and detonation of the facilities, I did a warm up with the Yerg. He dresses as my holiday counterpart Santa Claus, if Santa went beardless and had gastric bypass surgery. I’m sure the visual was interesting, and perhaps prophetic.

Start (credit: jp photography)

I get to the start and this event has obviously gotten insanely popular. Erin says there’s over 700 registered. Pretty impressive for a race on its deathbed a few years ago. Lots of fast people out there. I figure Kushinka will take it but there’s a couple of speedy kids and the Allerses brought their friend from Fort Mill (Josh Odell) who tore up the Mt Moriah course. The ladies’ field had Christa and Ashley, as well as grandmasters machine Shannon Godby. Jessa sadly did not want to risk getting a repeat turkey beatdown. 

The course is pretty much an out and back Shandon rectangle with some rolling hills. Fairly flat. I ran 19:09 last year in the suit but would be happy to get low 20s this year with my epically disastrous 2023. With the gun, everyone takes off and blasts down the opening stretch of Woodrow. I’ve been doing less races and mostly slow mileage slog jogs, so this pace feels brutal. Regan, Yerg and Brandenburg are just killing it, and even Kirkwood is leaving me in the dust. I can feel the turkey hat constricting around my neck and my heels kicking the tail and wonder why the hell I do this to myself. But with the turn on Heyward, I start to get my wind back. Roy Shelley and I run the second half mile in a CRC past/present presidential tandem. First mile was in 6:33, a shade over 20 minute pace (6:26).

 

At some point, I catch up to Sarah Allers who tells me to go chase her husband, but he has a pretty substantial lead. Yerg and Shannon are pretty far ahead too. I basically maintain pace in mile 2 as we hit the turnaround on Bonham near the old Dry Run 5k course and come back on Wilmot. At some point I feel like I actually have some gas in the tank and start slowly pushing the pedal down, and manage to catch up to Eric, who offers some “words of encouragement” that may be unprintable. Mile 2 in an identical 6:33. With the turn back onto Heyward, I can see Shannon and Rob up ahead. I thought they were uncatchable, but now I feel like they’re slowly getting reeled back in. Some fit looking unknown masters dude, which I thought I passed, is keeping up with me, perhaps not taking too kindly to being upstaged by a dad bod in a turkey suit. I start launching into the Blue shoe kick as we approach Woodrow again, gliding by Shannon and pulling up alongside emaciated Santa, aka the YERG. Yerg is definitely getting back into shape, and he surges forward when he sees the brown gut enter his peripheral vision. The Woodrow straightaway is super flat but also painfully long. I can see the finish and I’m afraid I pushed in the chips too early because I’m sucking wind like there’s no tomorrow. Yerg and I are blasting side by side in the home stretch, making for an absolutely absurd scene. We hit a pack of spectators near Hand Middle, screaming at me “HEY, THANKSGIVING COMES BEFORE CHRISTMAS!!!” With that, I take a few more steps into the pain cave and pass Santa Yerg. Fit masters dude apparently slipped in front while we were distracted and had another gear to avoid getting double costumed. I can make out the 19s on the clock as we pass Blossom street and give it one last blast, crossing the line in 19:50ish.  A far cry from last year, but I’ll still take a sub 20 any day of the week.   Good enough for 1st in AG, as the masters dudes were too strong this year. I was consoled with my golden turkey trophy, second place in the costume contest (behind Clara Nance’s epic cloth turkey) and a free post-race beer at Backstreets. Not too shabby.

Ashley kicking all the guys asses (jp photography)

In the overall, David Olds from Massachusetts edged Dr. Kuskinka for 1st place with Josh Odell taking third, all well under 17 minutes. Among the ladies, Christa took 1st in 19:35, with Ashley 2nd and Eli Roth 3rd. Masters female winners were Shannon Godby, Devanise Vitti and Sarah Allers, who broke 21 minutes and scored a 91.5% world class age grade! Male masters saw Jeff Brandenburg take 2ndbetween two out-of -staters Wesley Gurley and Stephen Harvey (aka not THAT Steve Harvey, and aka fit masters dude from above).

Age Group honor roll (WOMEN):  Dorothy Hutchins and Lilly Holman took top 2 in the 11-14. Lauren Holliday won the 20-24 while Veronica Watson took the 30-34. Kara Stevens won the 35-39

Age group honor roll (MEN): James Holliday took the 15-19, Regan Freeman was tops in the 25-29. Yerg was 2nd in the 45-49 with Michael Beets 3rd. Eric Aller and Kirkwood were 1-2 in the 50-54. Roy Shelley, Frank Seier and Winston Holliday swept the 55-59. Dave Hale pushed the run to 2nd in the 60-64. Pete O’Boyle and Tommy Outlaw were top 2 in the 65-69. George Cassidy, Jerry Rich, and Alex Ponomarev swept the 70-74 podium while Ron Hagell, Richard Wright and Ken Lowden did the same in the 75-79. CRC legend Jesse Smarr won 2ndin the 80+ at age 86! Kristin Wallace was 2nd in the 25-29 with Shelby Taylor 3rd. Tracy Tisdale was champ of the 50-54. Barb Brandenburg and Kimberly Holliday took the top 2 in the 55-59 while Melody Kreiling and Lisa Powell did the same in the 60-64. Carol Wallace, Beverly Breur and Mary Cassidy swept a super competitive 65-69. Lynn Grimes and Sharon Sherbourne were 1-2 in the 70-74.

Other notable finishers: Antjuan Seawright, Joey Swearingen, Eric Gilfus, John Holliday, Emmet Maas, Thomas Outlaw, Sophia Homeyer, Michael Beaudet, Missy Caughman, Clara Beaudet, Jennifer Glass, Patrick Hall, Scarlett and Sara Hutchins, Stevie Dee Dukes, Gretchen Lambert, Jessalyn Smith, Louis Krause, Teresa Harrington, Cheryl Outlaw, Nicole Charlton, Rusty Painter, Melinda Waldrop, Teresa Shelton, Traci Brock , Wendy Homeyer, Pam Griffin, Pete Pore, Deanna Rennick, Gabby Swearingen, Kelly Hynes, Tee Coker, Maria Pray, Bertha Woehl, Shiela Bolin, Heather Hawn, Kerry Stubbs, Margie Shelburg, Lisa Smarr and Paul Laymon.

https://runsignup.com/Race/Results/81020#resultSetId-426728;perpage:100