Columbus County - Farmers Market Fun Run 5k - May 8, 2010

OK, I really liked the winged farmer's boot logo.

North Carolina food festivals are great opportunities to find new county races. (See, for example, the North Carolina Watermelon Festival 5k in Murfreesboro (Hertford County) or the North Carolina Blueberry Festival 5k in Burgaw (Pender County).) And farmers' markets, too! The second Saturday in May is the opening day for the Columbus County Farmers Market in Whiteville, NC, and they added to the festivities this year with the Farmers Market Fun Run & Walk 5k.

They really put on a very nice inaugural event in Whiteville. The focus was on keeping the event simple and low-cost so that lots of Columbus County residents and visitors could take part. The organizer gets big props for setting up what was effectively a "free" race -- there was no entry fee or registration charge, you just filled out their online form giving your name, age and e-mail address, and they e-mailed us all the race-morning information a few days ahead of the run. The only charge was if you wanted one of the Farmers' Market Fun Run t-shirts, which were very nice cotton with a big logo on the front and the sponsors on the back -- a bargain at $5!

The staging area for the race was the parking lot Columbus County Social Services building just north of downtown Whiteville. This provided lots of space for the pre-race activities, and it was right next door to the farmers' market that was the focal point of the morning's festivities. Check-in for pre-registered runners and race-day registration were both hopping along, and there were plenty of extra t-shirts for the runners that wanted one.

The first event of the day was the kids' half-mile run, which consisted of three laps around the Columbus County Agricultural Extension building across the street, and there were some very excited kids to be doing their run, especially since they all got a medal as they crossed the finish line. Kids love bling.

After the kids were done, the three-milers lined up for our own lap around the ag building, and then we were off onto highway 701 for a quick trip into town. The Whiteville area of Columbus County is very flat, so the only hill each way was the overpass over highway 74, which wasn't bad when it comes to hills. Then we turned into a very nice residential area, where fortunately there was lots of shade on the runners' side of the street to give us a break from the steady sun in the highway area. (It wasn't an overly hot day, but when there was no shade, the sun did wear you down.) Helpful volunteers manned a couple of much-appreciated water stations, and a photographer from the Whiteville newspaper cycled along with the runners to get lots of pictures. (The picture-to-runner ratio was very high for this race.)

We finished the loop through the residential area and then we were headed back north on 701 and back over the overpass, and I was really feeling very good. The small downhill on the overpass helped me try to squeeze a little bit more into my pace, and I was really churning as I made the last couple of turns to the finish line. I was very pleased to get my best 5k time of the year and surprised to get 2nd in my age group! Another nice surprise was that the standard post-race fare of water and bananas had been supplemented with some excellent, fresh strawberries from the farmers' market.

The race awards were handed out as part of the farmers' market opening festivities, which were attended by local and state dignitaries, a Cub Scout troop for raising the flags, the North Carolina Strawberry Queen and Princess, and a choir from a local elementary school. One Columbus County commissioner drove home the point of both the race and the farmers' market when he talked about the county's poor ranking in some health indices and how both getting more exercise and eating more fruits and vegetables (preferably locally-grown from our own farmers) would help the health of the overall county. Good points.

Hopefully, having the race be low-cost increased the size of the field that showed up, even if the majority of the participants were walkers. The race organizer announced that they had more than 100 folks take place, a great turnout for a small inaugural race, and that the 3-mile participants ranged in age from 8 to 78! Congrats to all them as well! Great showing for a great inaugural race!

Sampson County - Strollin', Trottin' and Walking for Walker 5k - April 17, 2010

This morning I did a quick drive down I-40 to Sampson County to take part in a Relay for Life event, the 5th annual Strollin', Trottin' and Walking for Walker 5k in Clinton, North Carolina. This event is in honor of Walker "Mr. B" Bellamy, who directed the Clinton Recreation Department and the Clinton-Sampson Recreation Department for over 30 years. (That's him behind the "W" and pictured below.) According to race director Judi Nicholson, the current Clinton Director of Parks and Recreation, if you give "Mr. B" long enough, he will tell you how he built Royal Lane Park himself over the years! The first Walking for Walker event was held to show support for Mr. B in his battle against cancer and to raise money for the Clinton Relay for Life event held in June. As Mr. B continues his fight, this event goes on to keep up the support and to celebrate his service to the people of Clinton and Sampson County.

Royal Lane Park is a hub of fitness and exercise in Clinton. When I arrived before the race, there were several folks out on the quarter-mile walking track getting their morning exercise done (and they were still doing laps when we were headed out). Soccer practices and games were going on all over the park, and the softball fields only looked temporarily empty. The volunteers at the check-in couldn't have been any nicer, and I was quickly bibbed and presented with a great optic-yellow "5th annual Walking for Walker" t-shirt. Since the message of the event was celebratory and not competitive, there weren't any chips to distribute, but they had set up a big digital clock to display finish times. In addition to the 5k, there was also a quarter-mile walk and a mile fun run. About 60 people took part in the overall festivities.

Just before race time, Mr. B made his grand entrance to the applause of the attendees. Today's race was Mr. B's first outing since his last sickness, so he was obviously glad to be out, and it was easy to see that the folks there -- friends, family and former co-workers -- were happy that Mr. B was able to attend this year's run. The organizers welcomed everyone and announced that this was the largest crowd they had had in the five Walking for Walker events. After a last-minute course review by Judi Nicholson, who organized the race and ran it herself, we were off for an initial lap around the walking track and then off to the rest of the course.

The course itself made great use of the Royal Lane Park property. There is a mulched walking trail that loops all the soccer fields and a playground, and that was the first mile. Fortunately for us visitors, the course itself was very well marked -- so well that it was pretty much impossible to get off-course. Next, we did another lap around the track while the fun mile runners and walkers got lined up for their event. Then we turned off the track again, passed a softball field, and were into the Royal Lane nature trail, a nice rolling walking trail where each rock, root and stump had been carefully marked with fluorescent paint to make sure they didn't present any danger to the trail users.

After another brief stretch on the park road, we were in for what Judi Nicholson called the "diabolical dropoff," an out-and-back on a more rural dirt trail that included a sudden descent of about six feet (also very well-marked). Before I got to the dropoff, though, I was delighted with a sudden rush of at least five deer through the woods and across the run route directly ahead of myself and another runner. Thank goodness I wasn't any faster or I would have gotten stampeded! But they were very impressive in their speed and the ease of their running -- I wish I had been moving that easily!

After a quick loop and a trip back up the dropoff, we had one more trip down the nature trail and one more pass around the mulch walking trail, we were back on the track for a quick sprint to the finish line. All the runners and walkers in both events were recognized with a Mr. B victory medal, and I was delighted with a surprise 1st-place age group finish! (OK, it wasn't a very big race, only about 15 runners and walkers.)

As the 5k runners and walkers finished, so did some of the slower mile walkers from the fun run event. Mr. B obviously brings out folks of all ages and abilities who enjoy celebrating his service and character, and having wonderful spring weather for the events didn't hurt, either.

The post-race festivities included a "Mr. B" look-alike contest for men, women and canines, and an encouragement to keep spreading the word about the Walking for Walker events, so that it can get bigger each year -- 100 runners and walkers is the goal for next year (an aid station and some post-race fluids will be needed for that big a crowd, though). Here's hoping that Mr. B and the wonderful folks who organize the Clinton Relay for Life events will be "Walking for Walker" for many more years to come! Like they say at the race, "no matter how you get there, if you finish you're a winner!"

Over 40% There!

Combined, Chad and I have now run races in 41 different North Carolina counties, so we're more than two-fifths of the way to the goal! Hopefully, with a little favorable scheduling and some good knees, we can knock out a few more before 2010 is out!

Complete: Alamance, Avery, Brunswick, Buncombe, Cabarrus, Carteret, Chatham, Chowan, Craven, Cumberland, Dare, Davidson, Durham, Edgecombe, Forsyth, Gaston, Granville, Greene, Guilford, Harnett, Hertford, Hoke, Iredell, Jackson, Johnston, Mecklenburg, Montgomery, Lincoln, Nash, New Hanover, Onslow, Orange, Pender, Randolph, Robeson, Rockingham, Rowan, Rutherford, Stanly, Swain, Wake

Still to go: Alexander, Alleghany, Anson, Ashe, Beaufort, Bertie, Bladen, Burke, Caldwell, Camden, Caswell, Catawba, Cherokee, Clay, Cleveland, Columbus, Currituck, Davie, Duplin, Franklin, Gates, Graham, Halifax, Haywood, Henderson, Hyde, Jones, Lee, Lenoir, Macon, Madison, Martin, McDowell, Mitchell, Moore, Northampton, Pamlico, Pasquotank, Perquimans, Person, Pitt, Polk, Richmond, Sampson, Scotland, Stokes, Surry, Transylvania, Tyrrell, Union, Vance, Warren, Washington, Watauga, Wayne, Wilkes, Wilson, Yadkin, Yancey

(Looks like I mis-counted in my end-of-2009 update! :-)

Craven County - Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point Half-Marathon - March 27, 2010

North Carolina is one of the most military-friendly states, and military bases are a great source of local events and new county races, as we've found out with the Army Birthday Ten-Miler at Fort Bragg in Cumberland County (and also the Hoke All-American Trail 5k in Hoke County). So, when we heard about the half-marathon at the Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) in Cherry Point, North Carolina, it was a natural to include in the countdown.

Fortunately for this trip, our friends Gary and Rachel were along. We all got snowed out of the Myrtle Beach half-marathon back in February, so this was a chance to catch up with another flat spring half-marathon. And boy, was MCAS Cherry Point flat! I tried mapping the route so that I could see the elevation, but when I clicked the button, it said, "what elevation?" Of course, being that flat and that close to the ocean, there was a lot of wind pretty much non-stop all around the course.
But race morning was clear and cool, so at least the showers that sprinkled their way through the previous day would not be an issue. We had been pre-cleared through the base checkpoint, so after only a few wrong turns we found the race staging area and were able to check in and then ride the bus about a half-mile down the road to the actual starting area. Paul Kelly, noted handbike athlete from Beaufort who I've seen at other races around the state, was also there as part of the field.

One of the many Marines that was taking part in the half-marathon (it's part of a bigger Grand Prix series) sang a great rendition of the national anthem, and then we were ushered onto the road for the start. The first mile or so was just to get warmed up a little bit and get my muscles moving again. Although it was a beautiful morning, the second mile was straight into the rising sun, and without my sunglasses, I was pretty much watching just the road a little ahead of me rather than enjoying all the folks around me, including the firemen who were spectating at the fire station we passed.

An early treat was an out-and-back loop around a beautiful marina that enabled us to see where all the runners were lined up -- Gary was running just behind the leaders, in about sixth, and Rachel was further back, having gone back for a dropped glove in the first mile. The break from looking into the sun was much appreciated, as we got to check out the water and the boats and the lakefront cabin that greeted us. Then we made a turn onto a dirt road called Rifle Range Road, and there was no temptation to wander off the road once we saw the warning signs about how it was a live range and an impact area!

A couple of turns and we passed back by the parking and finish areas, but we were only halfway done with the race, so we wouldn't be seeing the finish line again for a while. The second half of the race was through the developed part of the base, although there wasn't much to see among the warehouses and supply buildings we passed. (Unfortunately, even though we were running next to live runways, we didn't get to see or hear many of the Marine jets while we were on base.) Conditions, though, had warmed up a bit and I tucked my gloves inside my waistband since I didn't think I would need them again. There were some very enthusiastic volunteers out there as well, cheering us along and providing plenty of water, Sport Beans, and gels to the runners.

There was one more out-and-back section, about three miles in all, where we went just outside the base and looped around a Havelock city park. Gary was already through it all, but I got to encourage Rachel as she was on her way back in. The park had a few spectators cheering on the racers, but the majority of folks appeared to be there for an Easter egg hunt later in the day (the "Welcome to Havelock" sign was full of colored plastic eggs). There was also some music playing in the park, which was very nice to hear after running in quiet for so long.

Making the turn back to base was good because it was the last three miles of the race but bad because 1) now we were running into a strong headwind the rest of the way and 2) the last two aid stations had run out of water. I knew I would be OK since I had hydrated well on race morning, but it would have been great to have a little something to drink the last three miles. The headwind also encouraged me to get my gloves back out and put them on to keep my hands somewhat warmer. I did get to encourage the last few runners as they entered the out-and-back. Very helpful course monitors guided me across the last intersection, and then we were onto side streets and a greenway to the finish line. Seemed like the headwind never let up, but finally I made the last turn and could see the finish line about half a mile ahead -- on one of the few uphills of the base! Still, I kept plodding along and finally reached the finish line, having ripped off a 10:16 for the last full mile -- proof that I can get a second wind when I can see the finish!

My finish time was a respectable 2:27:17, good enough for 9th in my age group (out of 10). (There were 167 finishers overall.) Rachel also ran very well, and Gary won his age group with a new PR of 1:29 and change! (Now that Gary's in my age group, he pushes me down out of the prize places.) The post-race party had plenty of fruit and snacks and fluids, and the various trophies and cups they had for the age group and overall winners were very impressive! Each runner got a nice long-sleeved cotton t-shirt, and the finishers all received half-marathon medals with a back sticker identifying the race. It was great to see Gary get his trophy and cheer some of the other winners, but we were very glad to get back in the cars out of the wind when that was done. After we had cleaned up and gotten some warmer clothes on, we did go back for pictures in front of the jet set up at the base entrance to commemorate the trip. It was a lot of fun doing the MCAS Cherry Point Half-Marathon, and we thank the Marines and the race staff for letting us run with them! Oorah!

Rowan County - Winter Flight 8k - February 21, 2010

Wow, what a difference a month makes! The 27th annual Winter Flight 8k, a long-running event organized by the Salisbury Rowan Runners club, was originally scheduled for last month, but one of the January snowstorms postponed it to today. (Also appropriate for a race with a director named David Freeze.) And today turned out to be one of those wonderful, 60-degree days in a North Carolina February, so the postponement caused by the snowstorm turned out to yield probably a 40-degree increase in race-day temperature!

The wonderful weather at Catawba College (home of the Indians) in historic Salisbury brought out a great big race crowd. The race was also the RRCA North Carolina 8k championship, so that helped bring out the runners. Goodman Gymnasium provided a great location for check-in while the little kids did the half-mile Kids' Run on the track in Shuford Stadium. Finally we were called into the street for a playing of the national anthem and an invocation -- then we were off!

The Winter Flight 8k is a challenging race. There are a lot of significant uphills, and it seems like there are some downhills missing to make it all even. The start was moderately uphill, and after a brief downhill, there was a long, climbing mile along Statesville Boulevard before we got a short respite. After a quick gulp of water just after the 2-mile mark, there was another climbing mile; this one had a soundtrack provided by a bog just off the road that must have been filled with some waking bullfrogs checking their voices.

While we were out ascending every hill in Rowan County, they had a Fun Run mile back at the finish area. I don't know what the mile route was, but the mile winners got trophies just as nice as the 8k winner trophies later on.

Fortunately for the 8k runners, the fourth mile was majority downhill, and we got to see some of the fauna of the Salisbury backroads when we passed a group of chickens hanging out on the side of the road as we passed by. However, there was one big hill left to go once we came back into historic Salisbury, but when we made the right-hand turn at the top of the hill, we were back on the Catawba campus and it was mostly downhill to the finish. So of course our paces picked up a little bit as we skirted some parking areas and made the turn onto the Shuford Stadium track for almost a full lap to the finish line. A stadium announcer recognized most of the runners as they hurried down the last straightaway, and some very efficient race volunteers pulled our bib tags to prepare the results for this chip-less race. (I also got a finishing index card showing my official finish place of 197.)

Although the post-race refreshments were set up back in Goodman Gymnasium, the weather was so nice back at the stadium that no one was really leaving, and finally they had to make some announcements over the PA system to let folks know about the food. When we finally moseyed from the stadium over to the gym, we found excellent Biscuitville biscuits, bananas, bagels and Cheerwine waiting for us. The hand-compiled results were ready before too long and a whole tableful of Winter Flight trophies were handed out to the winners, including the winner of the men's 70+ age group, who ran a very impressive under-39:00 time on a very challenging course! All in all, 250 runners were listed in the final results.

I had a great time at the Winter Flight 8k, and I am glad for the warmer weather! Congrats to all the runners and to the organizers for a great event!

Another county collector

Our friend Lesley, who is also a runner, is working on her own collection of all 100 North Carolina counties by traveling and visiting all of them -- and blogging about it -- in her North Carolina Odyssey Project.

2009 Year in Review

Well, we've pretty much exhausted all of our planned opportunities to collect counties in 2009, so let's take a look to see how we progressed this year:

Marriages: 1
Chad's new (or extended) counties in 2009 (4): Swain, Carteret, Harnett, Randolph
Brad's new (or extended) counties in 2009 (14): Swain, Robeson, Hoke, Cumberland, Davidson, Pender, Carteret, Hertford, Alamance, Jackson, Avery, Dare, Harnett, Randolph

Chad's total counties: 28
Brad's total counties: 29
Combined total counties: 39

So what did we enjoy this year? Getting to run several races together was a lot of fun, as we did at Swain County's Tsali Frosty Foot Fest, Carteret County's Historic Beaufort 10k Road Race and Harnett County's Raven Rock Rumble 10-Mile Trail Run. Randolph County's Run to Victory half-marathon was fun, but cold! Hopefully we can hit more counties together in 2010.

Chad got to run with his new wife at the Historic Beaufort 10k Road Race in Carteret County, with his parents spectating and lots of Raleigh friends around to keep him company. Brad had a surprising age-group win at the Hoke 5k All-American Trail Run in Hoke County. Brad also had a blast at the early-morning Fort Bragg Army Birthday 10-Miler in Cumberland County and enjoyed the small-town atmosphere at the North Carolina Watermelon Festival 5k in Hertford County.

We literally crossed the whole state in the tour bus this year, from Swain County in the mountains to Dare County on the ocean. Thanks to all our running friends for joining us on this quixotic quest this year, and we hope y'all will come run with us around the state in 2010! With some favorable scheduling, good weather and healthy knees, we will look forward to seeing some more of this beautiful state in the year ahead! Happy New Year, and Happy Running!