Race #10 – Springmaid Road Race – Fort Mill, SC – 11/15/08


We traveled south of the border (the South Carolina border that is) for the Springmaid Road Race. It started out as kind of a rainy day, which seems to be a recent trend, but there was no rain and a pleasant temperature of about 65 at race time. The 5k and 10k races started at the same spot at the same time. The first mile of the 5k route was mostly downhill, which was nice, but of course you gotta get back up to the same elevation eventually so the 2nd and 3rd miles took care of that with some big hills.

For Linda and I, it was our 10th race in the ten weeks that we have been running. There are certain things that remain the same from race to race but every race seems to have some unique elements of its own and we’ve enjoyed every one of them.
 
There was a professional photographer at the race named Steve Mills and he has posted several hundred photos (much better than the ones I took) on his site. He told me that you can download any that you like for free and if you want larger prints just contact him and he’ll supply them at a very reasonable cost…
There was one disappointing thing about this race: It’s the first one we’ve been to that only gave an award for 1st place in each age group — nothing at all for 2nd or 3rd. Linda and I were fortunate enough to both get 1st place in our age group (55-59 Male & Female) so we can’t complain, BUT if we had been 2nd or 3rd I think we would have been a little bummed about it. Also, instead of something to remember the race by (a medal, trophy, etc.) the prize was a $20 store credit at a local running store. We stopped by the store and used the credit on the way home since it’s not too close to home, and we got some nice stuff with our $40 credit but we would have probably been happier with a medal.
Race Rating:
  • 6 — 4/6 Number of Participants (4 for less than 100; 6 for 100 or more)
  • 7 — 1-10 Awards (Quality of medals, trophies, etc.) (1 to 10)
  • 6 — 1-10 Awards Presentation (PA system, stating winning times, etc.) (1 to 10)
  • 5 — 1-10 Food for Race Participants (1 to 10)
  • 6 — 1-10 T-Shirts (1 to 10 with 5 being average)
  • 4 — 4/6 Race part of “Run for Your Life Grand Prix Series” (6=Yes and 4=No)
  • 6 — 4/6 Online Registration (6=Yes and 4=No)
  • 4 — 4/6 Chip Timing (6=Yes and 4=No)
  • 3 — 3/7 Certified Course (by USA Track & Field) (7=Yes and 3=No)
  • 5 — 1-10 Course (1 to 10 with 5 being average)
  • 7 — 1-10 Parking (1 to 10 with 5 being average)
  • 6 — 1-10 Entertainment (1 to 10 with 5 being average)
  • 7 — 3/7 Age Groups (7 if 5-year groups; 3 if 10-year groups)
  • 7 — 1-10 Bathroom Facilities
  • 9 — 1-10 Other (added 9 points for the great photography by Steve Mills)
TOTAL – 88

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