Race #121 - Marti Estes 5k - Mooresville, NC - 04/09/11

This week at the last moment Linda and I decided to run the Marti Estes 5k in Mooresville. Our friend Michele Hoheiser, who was 1st overall female last year, said it was a lot of fun so we decided to meet up and run it.

Marti Estes was an avid runner, kindergarten teacher, committed Christian, and faithful member of First Presbyterian Church in Mooresville. Marti passed away prematurely in 2005 and the church holds this fundraising race in her honor each year. This year's race had 624 registered runners and walkers and raised $22,500 for three charities in Mooresville. The race began at First Presbyterian Church and after winding its way through town ended at the First Baptist Church several blocks away.

The race was enjoyable but the start was a mess, with lots of younger kids lining up at the start and flailing around for the first half mile or so of the race. It amazes me how most kids seldom run in a straight line. I don't really mind, but it can get a little dangerous out there. I was behind one grownup who was tripped up in the mayhem and took a hard fall to the pavement. Luckily he wasn't hurt badly and was able to continue in the race, but I talked to him briefly after the race and one of his knees was a mess. I kind of enjoy getting out there and mixing it up with the young'uns, but it was a relief to finally get past the pandemonium.

When we came to a clear area I could count the runners ahead of me and I was in about 15th place at a half mile or so into the race. For a while I tried counting people as they passed me or I passed them just so I'd know where I was at in the race, but I lost the count and decided not to worry about it. It was a pleasant surprise at the end of the race when I found out I had finished in fifth place overall, which is the highest I've ever finished in a race. I finished fifth in two other races, but those were both much smaller races with maybe 100 runners, whereas this race had 515 finishers Okay, there were quite a few walkers; nevertheless, it was fun to finish that far up in the pack.

Click Here for Race Results

Race Rating:

8 - 1-10  Website (Information, results, registration, photo links, etc.)
6 - 1-10  Awards (Quality of medals, trophies, etc.) (1 to 10)
7 - 1-10  Awards Presentation (PA system, winning times, etc.) (1 to 10)
6 - 1-10  Food for Race Participants (1 to 10)
5 - 1-10  T-Shirts (1 to 10 with 5 being average)
4 - 4/6   Part of Race Series (Grand Prix, etc.) (6=Yes and 4=No)
0 - 0/5   Professional Photography (5=Yes and 0=No)
4 - 4/6   Chip Timing (6=Yes and 4=No)
7 - 3/7   Certified Course (by USA Track & Field) (7=Yes and 3=No)
7 - 1-10  Course (1 to 10 with 5 being average)
4 - 1-10  Parking (1 to 10 with 5 being average)
8 - 1-10  Entertainment (1 to 10 with 5 being average)
10 - 0-10  Age Groups (10 if 5-year groups; 0 if 10-year groups)
0 - 0/5   Indoor Shelter from Elements (0 if none; 5 if provided)
4 - 1-10  Bathroom Facilities
0-10  Other

TOTAL - 80

Race Stats:

1st Overall Male:  Joshua Readling (18:04)
1st Overall Female:  Shelley Rainey (21:32)

My Stats:

Time:  20:56
Pace: 6:46
Age Group:  1 of 9
Overall:  5 of 515 (top 1%)

Comments

  1. michele hoheiserApril 11, 2011 at 8:30 AM

    Thanks to you and Linda for coming out to the race for supporting great causes in Mooresville! Congrats on your time and placement!

    ReplyDelete
  2. bobApril 23, 2011 at 6:20 AM

    Hey, really great blog post… I've enjoyed reading through your blog because of the great style and energy you put into each post. I actually run AceHealth.org, a blog of my personal research and experiences. If you're interested, I would love to have you on as a guest blogger. Please send me an e-mail: bob.mauer65(at)gmail(dot)com, and I can give you more information. Looking forward to hearing from you.

    ReplyDelete
  3. graceApril 23, 2011 at 6:21 AM

    hi there!

    i am amazed that you really do this.hope to be your friend.kindly check me gracepomberry(at)gmail(dot)com.

    thanks

    ReplyDelete
  4. Marti Estes 5k - Race DirectorMay 18, 2011 at 7:14 AM

    Richard - Thanks for your blog post. I am the race director for the Marti Estes 5k. I stumbled upon your blog post on Google and thought I'd respond. As we plan for the race in 2012, I'm going to see that we spend more time on our race start process. We want everyone to have a great experience from start to finish. Congratulations on your great finish and thanks for helping us raise $22,500 for local charities.

    Sincerely,
    Thomas McMillan

    ReplyDelete

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