The Springdale 5k has been a mainstay on the Blue Shoes calendar since its inception in 2009. It started out an evening race (Springdale at Sunset 5k) in late August, run entirely on the grass horse track used for the Colonial Cup. Apparently, the original directors neglected to understand that August evenings in the Midlands are exceedingly unpleasant for running , and oh yeah, no one mows the grass in the horse racing off season. I high-stepped through ankle-length grass and about died in 95-degree heat in that first race. For those interested, there is a video on YouTube. My Sasquatch ass lumbers through around the 23-minute mark, desperately blue shoeing Chad Long with a race face for the ages.
Fortunately, Erin took over this race several years later and moved it a few weeks later, on the roads and in the morning. While lacking the uniqueness factor of the horse track, it was a hell of a lot easier to run. Easier, but not easy though. It runs through a neighborhood called Kirkover HILLS, so this should be your first red flag. The course is a simple loop but basically drops you down for a mile and a half, and then climbs you right back up. I will say the way back up is more gradual, but it’s pretty relentless. Definitely not a course you want to blast out hard in the beginning. At least there’s a waffle bar at the finish and golden horse trophies to ease your pain. This course is tough but generally plays to my negative split favor. Especially in 2021 when the top 3 dudes blew through a turn and left me behind to win the overall. Hey, I take holy grails any way I can get them. Just don’t ask Eric Masaitis or Steve Greer about it. Too soon.
So, this is race number 4 on the Blue Shoes comeback trail. It’s been a fat boy summer, so while the quad is mostly better, the food baby is still gestating. I’ve managed to drop my times from 21:22 to 20:08 in the last few weeks, so maybe there’s hope. I knew this race was not going to be fast with the course, so I was aiming to maybe make the masters podium. I show up an hour early and I am in full Debbie Downer mode. The second faux fall we were having gave way to third summer and it’s already 70 degrees at 7 am. Fabulous. Also, Friday night IPAs and whatever the hell I had for dinner are wreaking a category 5 colonic hurricane. I did my mile warmup trot and had thoroughly convinced myself this was going to be a disaster. Wah wah.
But as I made my way to the start, there were no elite guys to be found. A few kids and some young frat bro looking dudes, but no Jarvis types. Damn, I wish I wasn’t injured and fat. Shannon and Shawanna are on hand to battle it out for the women’s race. TONS of CRCers out there. The CRC team, captained by Margie Shelburg, stood at 41 at last check. We already had the team win in the bag, despite a valiant effort from the huge Clyburn family, who had over 30 runners.
The start of this race is pretty nuts. It’s flat down Knights Hill rd before turning right on Carter Street for a plunge down a mountain. Frat dudes take an early lead with Shawanna close behind. Shannon passes me and a bunch of young guys. There is one dude with a touch of grey in his hair and I latch on to him and Lady Godby. I’m pretty terrible at downhills and the early going of races in general, so this is rough for me. I start picking up Debbie Downer vibes and keep thinking about how we’re all going to have to make up this ground on the way back. We finally turn right off of Carter Street and mile 1 comes back in 6:21. Yikes. It is downhill, but now I’m afraid I’ve overcooked it. I’m still running in a pretty big pack at this time. I can still make out the leader ahead, but I’m probably sitting probably 8-10th place, which definitely opens the door for some rogue 40 year old to steal my old man glory. Mile 2 is largely at the bottom of the hill and I’m just trying to keep pace with everyone else. We pass the fateful turn of 2021 and here we go up the hill again. It’s clear to me a lot of these guys didn’t know the course because all of a sudden, the pack is dropping like flies. I pull up even with Masterish guy and he latches on me like a caboose. To be fair, my chunky boy physique is great to draft off of. Mile 2 is 6:42, so an expected slowdown. I don’t feel terrible though, and it feels good to be making ground against the field. My pre-race slog jog was a half mile out-and-back from the finish, so pretty soon I can see the turnaround point of the warmup. I start ramping up the pace, but then I realized I was wrong. I was well over a half mile out. Oh well, I already pushed the chips in, so here goes. I start flailing away and my good feeling from mile 2 goes out the window. But there is a masters dude on my tail and I can’t let him take me down. Jennfer Ward and Betsy Long are leading a cheering section and taking pics, so I of course have to momentarily pose for them. I manage to catch Shawanna, Shannon and some guy in a football jersey in the span of about 100 meters, but I can’t shake the feeling that masters guy is lurking just behind me. Suddenly I realize I’m also holding down 3rd with number 2 just up ahead. I try to crank it up another notch, but the heart and lungs aren’t having it. Finally, I see the horse crossing sign and the little library, my signs that we’re at the last turn. I blast out whatever I have into my kick, hoping my pics won’t be too horrible. Crossed the line in 20:28 and hit the grass immediately. Totally gassed. But hey, I will take a 3rd place and an overall podium any day.
In the overall, 21-year-olds Jordan Greenblatt (19:25) and Coleman Bland (20:19) finished 1st and 2nd. Shannon Godby and Shawanna White were tops on the women’s podium, with Sarah Carroway 3rd. Top male masters were John Campolongo, Nathan McKinney and Whitney Keen. Women’s masters winners included Nikki Barthelemy, Ronda Sanders and Rita Hipp.
Ladies’ age group honor roll: Hayden Hall won the 15-19, while Jennifer Carruth won the 30-34. Jennifer Thomas won the 35-39 , with Amanda Smyrl 3rd. Ashley Carpenter was champ of the 40-44. Amanda Holland was 3rd in the 45-49. Shenequa Coles and Angie Thames were first and third in the 50-54. Colleen Towery, Lisa Powell and Torill Nelson won the 60-64. Melody Kreling, Beverly Breuer and Lisa Smarr swept the 65-69. Helene Lipe was champion of the 70-74.
Men’s age group honor roll: Antjuan Seawright and Nic Collins were 1-2 in the 40-44. Michael Smyrl, Drew Dickerson and Michael Beaudet swept the 50-54. Tony Yarborough, Clay Ham and Joe Roof claimed the 60-64. Lorand Batten was 2nd in the 65-69. George Cassidy and Pete Poore were 1-2 in the 70-74. Alex Ponomarev was 3rd in the 75+.
Notable Finishers: Cotton Carroway, Clara Beaudet, Paul Laymon, Lance Towery, Mary Cassidy, Teresa Shelton, Deana Rennick, Hou-Yin Chang, Rich Wright, Nicki Charlton, Traci Smith, Heather Herndon, Jennifer Reeves, Jamie Zug, Karen Vidra-Zug, Ron Lipe and Margie Shelburg.
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.
The Springdale 5k is a race now in its 10th year, put on to benefit the New Day Transitional shelter via the United Way of Kershaw County. These days it’s a fairly standard road race, though it was originally an evening 5k completely on the horse racetrack, where you could see the whole race the entire time from the grandstand. This was a great concept, except
that a) it was held in August when it was usually 90+ degrees and humid, and b) there was ankle length grass almost the whole route. This led to some absolutely brutal conditions and ridiculously slow times. But at least they had beer at the first one in 2010.
The race has now evolved to a more traditional morning race on the roads next to the horse track. Erin Roof and her Grit Endurance company has taken over the race in the past couple of years, so she has included her penchant for awesome awards and post-race refreshments. Overall, masters and age groupers all get horseshoe trophies and there are waffles to be had at the finish line.
The course is definitely one you want to know before running it. It lures you in with a mile plus of downhill and flat, just begging you to go out really hard. What’s waiting for you at the mile 2 mark is a long slog up that same incline you plummeted down at the start, sucking the very life from your soul. Or probably something less dramatic if you’re not maniacally competitive – I wouldn’t know.
Although I signed up for this race months ago, I was definitely not feeling it this week. Kiawah training has started and the miles have started ramping up again, leaving me chronically beat down. Faux fall ended and second summer started with 90 degree temps coming back. I finished the summer tennis season with a long match on Tuesday where I tweaked my knee a bit. Then I had to start wearing glasses (which I haven’t done in 20 years) for a couple of weeks before they can set me up for cataract surgery. My wife tells me I act like I’m 20 years old but I swear my body thinks I’m 65. At least.
But hey, can’t waste a perfectly good race registration, right? Knees and eyes be damned. Surveying the competition for this one, I’m relieved not to have another showdown with Yerg, Ed or the Code. Whitney Keen is there but he’s a complete wildcard, running anywhere from low 19 to 21 minutes. He says he’s not in good shape, but, since he’s also in the mental health field, he may be using jedi mind tricks. Plex always comes out for this one and it looks like Camden coach Mark Chickering has brought out some of his high school kids to challenge the old men. CRC overall leader and brand new dad Joseph Kiprotich was there as well. Heather Costello is the only potential female winner I see. Erin’s reputation with the Columbia Running Club is legendary, so lots of CRCers out there. Steve Greer and Naomi Rabon are sporting their new jerseys. TDC legendary veterans Alex Ponomarev, Arnold Floyd, Rocky Soderberg, and Leeds Barroll were on hand. President Roy Shelley, Newsletter editor /JEDI runner photog Tracy Tisdale, Lisa Smarr, Jim Williams, Caroline Keen, Gabe and Ruth Barahona, GoPro guy Will Rowan, Tom and Lisa Hart, Betsy and Chad Long, Hou Yin Chang, Brie /Sabine/Quentin McGrievy, Jennifer and Jason Norris and John “Chap” Houser were representing as well.
I strolled up to the line with pretty low expectations and half-blind, because I wasn’t sure if my cheap glasses were going to stand up to the sweat and fury of a Blue Shoes 5k. I had one contact in my good eye and cataract eye was naked. Awesomely there was an armadillo mascot at the start, so I got a quick selfie, which of course is blurry BECAUSE I COULDN’T SEE. Oh, the tragedy.
Erin announces the start from a police megaphone and it was time to #GETGRITTY. And everybody is killing it off the blocks. I swear I was in maybe 20th place a quarter mile in as we make a right turn and start plummeting down Carter street. The knee is holding up OK but I am afraid to give it too much gas right away, plus, gotta save some for that last mile. Whitney is not leaving me for dead right away, so either he’s being conservative or true to his word about being off his training. Steve Greer is also keeping pace in the first mile and I’m concerned about some additional masters competition since he’s still new to the sport. There’s a long way down to Battleship rd and then it starts to level out a bit. My knee likes flats and uphills way better so I settle into a decent pace. I hit mile 1 at 6:20 with Whitney and Steve still right there. Heather Costello is also nearby battling it out with a girl I don’t recognize. She is shouting out encouragement to Heather. Darrell and I sometimes do this too, but usually there’s F bombs and taunting involved. I suddenly pass everyone in this mini pack just after the mile 1 mark, not sure if I sped up or the rest slowed down. All of a sudden something is about to cross in front of me and I wonder if I’m having a cataract hallucination, but turns out it is actually what I thought it was: a guy on horseback. Only in Camden. At the next turn, Jennifer Ward is out taking pics so I try not to look too bad, though I know this is probably a waste of time. There is no ugly like Blue Shoes racing ugly.
Mile 2 is mostly flat but things start to ramp up near the end. Split in 6:23 or so. I’m OK with this, should get me under 20 easily. Yeaaah, but mile 3 is an absolute beast. Basically unrelenting slow incline. Nothing really steep though. There’s a lot of curves in the road and I keep telling myself the next one is the home stretch. But wait, did that kid up ahead just look back?? THERE”S BLOOD IN THE WATER. Other than giving the Code or any of my masters compatriots a beat down, there’s few things I like better than shaming a cross country kid. I mean, I can’t imagine the shame when you’re a lean fit 16 year old and some pasty ass chunky middle aged guy comes sidling up against you. But sure enough, here comes the albino bus pulling up to the station and there’s nothing he can do about a blind old man with a gimp knee blowing past him. Time to launch into a kick. But damn, where is the $%^ home stretch? So many faux finish turns. Finally I can smell waffles and hear some noise so I must be getting close. One more turn and I see the clock. Dang this is slower than I thought. I crank it up to 11 through the Knights hill road intersection and onto the gravel driveway at 1000 percent effort just to squeak under 20. 19:57 officially. 6th overall, first masters. I thought maybe the course was long but it is a legit 3.12 by Garmin, certified too. Had a 6:33 last split despite all the masters vs. high school xc battling.
In the overall, cross country kid Cameron Hoffman edged THE LIGHTNING Ryan Plexico for the win, with Pasha Ellisor 3rd. Amy Faulkenberry was the one running with Heather and she pulled out the win among the women with a 21:02. Sarah Hannon and Kat Clark were 2nd and 3rd. Female masters went to Heather in 21:33 while Naomi Rabon christened her CRC jersey with a 2nd place. Third went to Belinda Moon. Whitney Keen and Steve Greer took 2nd and 3rd in male masters.
Female age group honor roll: Ruth Barahona was 1st in the 11-14. Brie McGrievy won the 40-44. Caroline Keen and Tracy Tisdale battled it out for 1-2 in the 45-49. Lisa Hart was 2nd in the 50-54. Lisa Smarr was 3rd in the 55-59. Helene Lipe won the 60-64. Judy Meisner ran 26:50 at age 67 and won the overall age grade at 75.5%. Wow.
Male age group honor roll: Gabriel Barahona took 1st in the 11-14 boys in 23:18. Joseph Kiprotich took 1st in the 30-34. Chad Long was 2nd in the 45-49. Roy Shelley, Joey Swearingen and Mark Chickering won the 50-54. Jim Williams and new CRC member Phil Smith went 1-3 in the 55-59. Ron Lipe was 2nd in the 60-64. Leeds Barroll won the 65-69. Alex Ponomarev and Arnold Floyd took the top 2 spots in the 70+.
Tour de Blue Shoes 