62. Crawdaddy Dash, 2011

You really can’t beat an opportunity like this. The Rosewood Crawfish Festival took place about two blocks from our apartment, and admission was included with registration for this 5K race. You can get more information at the Crawdaddy Dash official site.

Cara has been doing most of the research lately, but I’m surprised at how many events we’ve found in Columbia. The town still isn’t as runner-friendly as Charleston, but the running community is much larger here than I had given it credit for.

About the Course

The race started at 10am, with the award ceremony at 11am. It was a pretty spartan window, but not unreasonable considering that the festival started live music at noon. Runners gathered in the Publix parking lot, stretching and chatting until we were led to the Starting Line.

It was a nice little 5K route, taking us through neighborhoods and around a soccer field. There was a nice, loud horn at the beginning and an organized finish. The timing chip was the new kind that sticks to the back of your race number. You just pull off the bottom tab at the Finish Line and toss it into a bucket.

They only read chips at the Finish Line, so I listed that as my Start Time, with my Chip Time coming from my Garmin. Here are our results.

• Brian – Start Time: 24:27, Chip Time: 24:22
• Cara – Start Time: 30:16

Soccer Jerks who Ignore Emails

Our course took us around a soccer field with a game in progress. There was a long line of SUV’s waiting to make a left turn into the field, with people reacting in a variety of ways. Some were merely annoyed, while others were visibly upset. It seemed like a weird timing conflict until I spoke to the race organizers later.

The YMCA was made aware of the race and road closings far in advance, and parents received emails repeatedly for a month-and-a-half to warn them about the road being closed and which games would be affected. They were advised to come early to those game. Lots of people simply ignored those warnings.

I’m glad there were plenty of race volunteers available to prevent some some self-important idiot from trying to drive through a gap in our line. At the very least, this could slow down some runners. At worst, it could kill somebody. That may seem like an excessive concern, but I’ve seen people try some pretty stupid things when they’re in a hurry. And they never blame themselves when there’s an accident.

Example: As I left the field and went back into the neighborhood, I saw a lady in a big SUV trying to turn onto our street and head to the field. A volunteer stopped her and told her to turn around. Of course she wouldn’t listen to him. She seemed to think that if she repeated the same sentence loud enough and often enough, we would all just magically disappear. “He has a game! But he has a game!”

The Finish and the Festival

Over all, this was a good one. Nice course, well organized, and plenty of bananas and water at the end. It was small enough to comfortably include dogs and baby strollers, and everyone seemed to have a good time. Plus, we all got bracelets for a festival which provided live music from noon to 8pm. Not bad at all, especially since we only live two blocks away!

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