5K By The Bay

Sandwich, MA, November 25, 2007

A Crisp Day By The Bay

Put on as a fundraiser and a merit badge activity by local Junior Girl Scout Troop 1129, this low-key race capped the Thanksgiving weekend road racing calendar on Cape Cod. A moderate wind and chilly temperatures foreshadowed the coming of winter but a bright, sunny day made for a pleasant journey along Cape Cod Bay. Beginning at Hemispheres Restaurant, the race course winds through a summer neighborhood down to the beach, crosses a 3 foot wide, 1000' long boardwalk without railings (watch your step here or you'll be adding a swim!), up through some more summer homes, on to Route 6A and back to the restaurant. The signup 'gift' was a pair of socks decorated by troop 1129 and everyone went home with an award, a shirt with the back "hand-decorated" by the Junior Girl Scouts. Home-baked refreshments were plentiful and included hot soup and hot hot-chocolate but most opted for the plates of cookies and the poppie-seed muffins. Leading the charge for the day were Geof Newton, posting the only sub-20 minute outing of the day in 17:50, and Polly Papsadore of East Sandwich who led the women in 22:11. Race staff beat out runners as only 10 toed the line after a serious few days of turkey trots throughout the area. On-course entertainment (and course direction) was provided by the Junior Girl Scouts and The Cheerleaders won bragging rights for the year, securing the most votes of the oxygen starved runners. While the 5K By The Bay races are done for 2007, look for two Street N' Beach runs to close out the year on December 22nd (jingle bells provided) and December 29th. Run details can be found on the Cape Cod Athletic Club race calendar at http://www.capecodathleticclub.org/.