Last Gasp 5K - Dothan, AL

Stephen, Caroline and Kappy ran in the Last Gasp 5K in Dothan, Alabama today. We thought it would be an easy victory for Stephen as last year's fastest times were in the 20 minute range. The main reason we went to the race was to see if Stephen could run a race in the 16's before 2011 ended. That was one of his goals this year. One of the Cairo runners who often runs in the local races was there. He found Stephen shortly after we got out of the car to register and told him there was a high school kid who runs in the high 16's who had entered the race. The kid's name was Sean Kent. That sounded like good news for helping Stephen get into the 16's.

The race started and the lead runners were quickly out of sight with Stephen in 4th place. The next time I saw him was at the 4400 meter mark. Stephen was in 2nd place about 15 meters behind Sean Kent. As the two runners passed me Stephen said "Dad, I have to pee." I told him "Later!" The two runners sped past me and toward a short (but rather steep) hill. Unlike a lot of runners, Stephen loves to see a steep hill coming. He seems to have really figured out how to power up the hills. Today's race was proof of Stephen's burgeoning hill running prowess. When the two runners reached the hill, Stephen picked up his pace and ran past the lead runner. He ended up winning the race by 10 or 15 meters. He was a little disappointed to see his race time of 17:40. We were told that the course they ran on is traditionally a difficult course. It would be a good one to train on. You can view all of the race results at the Dothan Runners Club site.   For a more objective article on the race you can also read Herb Wills' blog. 

Caroline and Kappy were also in the race. Kappy told us the whole trip over to Dothan that she didn't want to run. When she saw all the people signing up to run she changed her mind. Jacob ran with her. Aim signed Caroline up as a "walker" against her will thinking she might end up with a medal. Aim was right. Caroline finished 3rd overall.

Enjoy the pictures: