Did you run through the puddles or around them? As dawn broke on the morning of 9 December, a thin sheet of snowy slush covered the highlands of Brewster as Boston and parts north and west were receiving their first real snowfall of the season. At the entrance to Great Island, a puddle almost swallowed my Honda Civic but I was lucky enough to have brought along a pair of oars. As stage I of the race completed, that being the difficult task of actually finding your way to the starting line, 66 brave runners lined up under cloudy, lightly rainy skies with chilly temperatures in the mid-30's. Tights, mittens, and hats replaced the shorts and singlets of just a week earlier. Once under way, the field strung out along the causeway connecting the island to the mainland amid a cutting northeasterly breeze. Leading the way through the mud and puddles, CCAC webmaster Geof Newton finished in 28:28 while for the women, Cathy Klim repeated her exact time of 33:11 from the previous week at Harry's, but this time for an outright win. Jon Piers achieved his sub-30 goal as he just edged Adam Polakowski with a time of 29:51 to Adam's 29:53. Mike Naughton just missed his second sub-30 as he finished 4th in 9 seconds over. Mike Herlihy brought in 5th place and again duplicated his previous week's time with a 30:10 finish. While most struggled with the wind and cold conditions, it was obvious who enjoyed this weather as long-time trail runner Bob Eckerson took advantage of the cross-country section of the course and took 1:15 from his previous week's 5 mile time. Also feeling comfortable, George Gomes ran a solid 4 minutes faster than last week. On the women's side, Jane Lovelette entered the Filly competition un-contested and removed 45 seconds from the previous week. Maura Mulligan, Kathleen Thomas, Judy Stacy, and Janet Jordan followed Cathy Klim in to round out the top 5. We were pleased to welcome Maura, Sharon Taylor, John Beach, and Jim Collins to their inaugural Grand Prix races. Also on hand, Wes Chadbourne led the Wes Chadbourne Running Club (WCRC) to a rollicking finish.
Brought to us under the auspices of Bob Brewster and Maj Turi Brown, this year's race was honorably held under the capable hands of Bill Ferguson and Larry Belliveau in their absence. The course wanders down off the island on to the causeway along Nantucket Sound, then returns to the island and the cover of trees with periodic glimpses of large houses and a green, cold ocean. Chilly gulls occasionally lifted out of the cover of tufts of grass or trees. After covering the first 4 miles on black top broken here and there by small puddles and the occasional street-crossing puddle, the course turns down a winding, muddy, root and stone covered dirt road towards the island light house. With a turn around the light house and down the access road, one can see the beach club, and the finish, before returning to the rolling hills of the road. A sharp left and right bring you back to the starting line and the finish with tights or legs covered in spots of mud and a trail of water and mud up your back. If you ran straight through the puddles sending waves of water to your left and right and up the legs of your competitors, good for you! If you slowed and ran around the puddles, you must redeem yourself in the coming snow and ice of the Winter Grand Prix.
After the race, the soggy and muddy relaxed in front of a blazing fire (and a space heater or two) at the island beach club. Chili, rice, and several bean concoctions were on hand along with the experimental sweets of Kimberly Creel, Janet Jordan, et al. As everyone warmed themselves, the sun broke through the clouds, the high-speed (well, at least a little faster than the other two) ferry buzzed in to Hyannis Harbor and the Patriots kicked off for another go. A little later in the day, a full rainbow appeared against a cloud-darkened sky as the sun settled down in the west.
The Grand Prix series continues every weekend (except 6 January) until the end of January at various locations
across the Cape. Cost is $5 for club members and $10 for non-members. All are invited to attend but only club
members are eligible for points and awards to be presented at the annual club banquet in February. For more
information, visit the CCAC at http://www.capecodathleticclub.org/.