The Beach to Beacon 10k was yesterday, and it bears an uncanny resemblance to the Yarmouth Clam Festival Classic a few weeks ago. In Yarmouth, I ran the same time both years on the five mile course, averaging a 5:52 pace. This year at the Beach to Beacon, I ran within 1/10 of a second of last year’s time, averaging about 5:47 on the 10k course. Not only that, but I finished in the exact same position last year as I did this year, which strikes me as rather odd despite running the same time. That did not happen in Yarmouth. They have an elite starting position for the people with numbers under 100, and I was 90th both years. It is too bad they don’t give me a prividged start; my finishing position seems to warrant one!
I spoke with Randy Judkins after the race. He did not drop a ball the entire race. He seeded himself around the 9 minute per mile pole at the start line, and averaged about 9 and a half minute pace. Everybody gave him plenty of room, even at the crowded starting line. Miraculously, his arms did not get fatigued during the race at all, although his quads couldn’t say the same after running up and down those hills without any assistance balancing with his arms.
I had one teammate who was not able to finish. She was concentrating on a rival, and went through the 3 mile marker in 19 minutes, which was quite a bit faster than she should have. By mile 4 she started having problems, but rather than just getting sore and tired and backing off, she decided to push through to heat exhaustion. I was standing near the finish with her husband, and as different teammates and other folks we knew came by we got updates from each. “She fell down around mile five but got up and is still going.” “She was staggering for a while.” “She is walking with another teammate trying to get her bearings.” “She’s been taken in an ambulance.” She did not really remember exactly what was going on when I talked to her a few hours after the race; she apparently walked up to the flagpole at Fort Williams (near the finish line) and then her husband got her over to the medical tent where she got an IV. She was well hydrated and well fed; I guess she just really didn’t want to lose to that cross town rival.
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