by Heather Cable

These days, you can’t get much for 5 bucks. A cup of fancy coffee, a movie rental, a gallon of gas…or a delightful 5k at the Baptist Church in Smithfield. I last ran this family friendly race in 2012, and it was easy to convince Lindsey Madison and Ron Peck to join me this year. The modest entry fee, the prospect of running early to beat the heat, the tantalizing assortment of prizes, and the promise of a post-race breakfast at Early Bird were all powerful selling points.

Clearly, most Central Maine Striders appreciate a bargain (what other club offers a year-long family membership for only $20?), and so I was not surprised to see several other members at the venue. Camp Manitou was also well represented with counselors and what seemed like dozens of young campers in the field of about 50 runners. The out-and-back course along the shores of North Pond seemed like a walk in the park compared to my most recent 5k, but it could have been the nostalgia for simpler times that propelled me through to the finish.

​The Striders cleaned up, winning many of the age group awards, and proudly claimed several loon-themed items, including a pillow, mug, and towel, as well as maple syrup and homemade jam. The race lived up to my memory as one of Maine racing’s “hidden gems,” an all-around great way to spend a Saturday morning in July with friends!

Despite the miserable weather at this year's Mount Washington Road race, a moment was captured by the official race photographer that warmed the hearts of many runners across New England.  In the days following the race, the photo shown above from Joe Viger seemed to go viral across various social media and traditional media channels.

Although Joe originally didn't know who the runners in the photo were, Laura Chadwick (wife of Chris Chadwick and mother to John McGinty) recognized the photo as being her son helping Ron Paquette up the mountain.

From Joe Viger's Facebook post:

The photo was shared by many media outlets, including this segment on WMUR in Manchester, NH.

Even the Boston Globe ran an article about the photo that included an interview with John and Ron.

Unfortunately, the Boston Globe article is behind a paywall and due to copyright laws, we can't reproduce the story here.  However, here's an excerpt:​

The Central Maine Striders are proud to have had Ron Paquette representing us in the Mount Washington Road Race for so many years, and for John McGinty to run for us for the last five years.  We hope they both make several more trips up the "one hill".

For some bonus content, check out this video interview (recently unearthed by Julie Millard) that Central Maine Strider Erzsie Nagy did with Ron Paquette when they were a Lawrence High School student back in 2012:

 Big thanks to Strider Lindsey Madison, who is coordinating the club's participation in organizing this event.  If you are interesting in volunteering, please reach out to Lindsey at lmadison13@gmail.com.

This event is part of Humane Society Waterville Area's Woofstock and following the race there will be the Canine Carnival at 12:30 and Music Festival at 4pm.

 Date:     June 10th
 Time:    Race Registration 9:30 - 10:20 am
               Race starts at 10:30 am
 Location: HSWA, 100 Webb Rd Waterville, ME

 $15 for CMS members, $20 for general public
More Information about Woofstock-2023: 
https://hswa.org/event/woofstock-2023/

In 2021 I competed in my first TUCARD, Maine’s most Terrifically (& Unnecessarily) Complicated Adventure Race and Duathalon.  You can read that race report HERE if you want to understand the next few paragraphs of this write up. Or better yet, google the TUCARD website.

In 2022, the organizers changed things up.  This year participants were given starting and ending points, and a list of coordinates that MIGHT be waypoints on race day.  This was a bonus for me, as I’m largely unfamiliar with the Old Town area and being able to scout the actual locations was extremely helpful. The night before race day we were given our final instructions- in order to know which locations were official waypoints, we could go to the point furthest from the start to visit ‘The Oracle’ who would provide the correct list of waypoints.  Option two was to skip The Oracle and just visit as many points as possible with the hope of hitting the right ones- this could be a big time saver or a wild goose chase.  The third option was to go to a point that was the furthest from the start in the opposite direction and get a ‘Golden Ticket’ which would allow you to skip all other waypoints.  The Golden Ticket would require wading through a mucky wetland, but could get you across the finish line first.  At this point in my narrative you may be thinking that this explanation makes no sense-  I will refer you back to the race name…

In the 2021 TUCARD I earned the award title ‘Lost Puppy’, as the racer that covered the most distance.  In honor of my difficulties with Time and Relative Distance in Space during that race, I donned my TARDIS dress for this race (see photo).  The race went smoothly for me- I chose The Oracle option, and was happy to see that I was well prepared to hit the correct waypoints. My primary transport was an old mountain bike, but I also ran some stretches of rough single track and paddled across the Stillwater River. 

Finish time in the TUCARD requires a complicated formula based on racing surface and mode of transport.  In the end I was 18th across the finish line, but ranked 17th overall (out of 21, a mix of teams and individuals). This year I also earned the title of Puppy Dog- the racer who had the most fun-  thanks to running the whole thing in the TARDIS dress.  

I believe that I am the only Central Maine Strider to enter this race- it's a ton of fun and I encourage you to check it out when you are planning your 2023 racing season!

​

To kick off the summer racing season, the Central Maine Striders will be hosting a pizza party following the first Quarry Road trail race of the summer.  Stick around after the 3k race on June 20th for some pizza and socializing.  If the weather isn't accommodating for eating pizza outside, we reserve the right to cancel or reschedule for another date. 

We've recently purchased a limited number of custom Central Maine Striders socks.  As discussed at recent club meetings, these socks will be given to any Central Maine Strider member who volunteers at an event.  The member must be representing the Striders at the event they volunteer for.  Examples of qualifying events include the Ironman 70.3 Maine, high school track meets (if and only if they are there as a Strider, and not just as a parent or coach), Quarry Road Summer Race Series, Fall Classic 10k, etc.  If you aren't sure if whether your volunteer duties qualify you for a pair of socks, please contact us.  Also, the socks will be limited to one pair per membership.  We only have 25 pairs of crew socks and 25 pairs of ankle socks.