ShoreTurtle – Running in and around New Jersey

Narberth 5 mile Run – Naberth, PA

The run benefited Cystic Fibrosis. There were around 500 participants. I arrived an hour early. The forecast called for thundershowers, though it didn’t rain hard. A friend of a friend runs the race. The course winds through Narberth which is a picturesque small town in the shadow of Philadelphia. Families cheered in front of their houses and kids banged on pots and pans and blew whistles. The course was windy and hilly. It seemed harder than Manayunk, but I suspect that I was prepared mentally for the hills then. The Narberth course took me by surprise. Afterwards my friend mentioned that he and his friends had driven around town setting up the course to make it as hard as possible. It occurred to me that he might have mentioned this to me prior to the race! Worse, we were running on an easier course that was created when the race was certified. I finished (39:52) with an 8 minute pace which was in the range that I was shooting for. It was a good race. Notably, there was 72 year old and 85 year old finishers.

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Ocean County Observer 5km Run – Lakewood, NJ

This was the first race of 2005. There were 270 participants. It was a beautiful Spring day. The course started in the parking lot of the Lakewood Blue Claws stadium and ended on the field. I arrived early and did recon on the course. It was relatively flat. Since I had been training indoors on the treadmill and indoor track for the last 4-5 months, I wasn’t sure how I would feel. The two weeks prior to the race I mixed in the treadmill will some outdoor runs. I’ve determined that the indoor track at the gym is shorter than advertised. The upside is that I always feel speedy while running on it. The downside, obviously, is that the truth is that I haven’t been running as fast as I had thought. My goal was 23 minutes. My first two miles were slower than expected and I was already tired by the second mile marker. I picked up the speed and pushed myself harder. The course went onto the baseball field in right field and went around the outfield to home plate. Surprisingly in the home stretch I saw that I was in reach of my 23 minute goal. I made a mad dash sprint past some senior citizens, which gave me a sense of superiority. I crossed the line right at 23 minutes. It was a 5K personal best since my return to running. My PRs from running 10 years ago will probably stand for awhile. After the race, runners had free admission to the baseball game. I stuck around for a couple of innings, drank some beer, sat in the sun and reflected on good outing.

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Special Olympics Polar Bear Plunge – Point Pleasant, NJ

Click here for more photos.

This was a non-running event. There were an estimated 3000 spectators and over 2700 participants. There were close to $600,000 raised in donations for the Special Olympics!

I arrived early and turned in my donations. Thanks to the generous support of my family, friends and coworkers I was able to raise $435 dollars.

Air temperature was 32 degrees, but it was very sunny. Water temperature was 38 degrees. The weather conditions were very similar to my Plunge in December (32 degrees air and 39 degrees ocean), though this time there was not a 5 mile running race beforehand. There was snow on most of the beach, but shoreline was clear.

I positioned myself towards the back of the group to avoid being trampled. It was so loud that it took me a few moments to realize that the Plunge had started. I put down my camera and ran towards to water. I went in to my waist and dove under. The water was so cold that it took my breath away and I forgot most of the things that my contributors had requested that I do such as communicate with whales, recite lines from the Princess Bride movie, make bubbles, etc. I did my best to fulfill their requests.

As I made my way out of the water, I had the thought that it would not take long for my legs to stop working. Once on the beach it took a couple of minute to get to my clothes, have my picture taken and put my clothes back on. There was a hot lunch buffet which I ate with my gloves on while sitting next to a heater. The hot-dogs, hamburgers and hot chocolate warmed me up…

Overall, I am very happy that I took part in the Plunge. I am very appreciative of everyone’s support and generosity.

And I am thinking of doing it again next year!

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