200 turn out for Shamrock Shuffle 5K, 15K
The ninth annual Shamrock Shuffle 5K and 15K was held March 15 on the Junction and Breakwater Trail in Rehoboth attracting 199 participants, which was exactly 24 hours after the rain-soaked St. Patrick’s Day 5K took place in Denton, Md., bringing out 204 participants.
“For the weather not being ideal, we had two decent turnouts this weekend in Denton and Rehoboth,” commented Enos Benbow of the Striders Team. The race looped the parking lot and then headed north toward Lewes for the out-and-back 3.11- and 9.33-mile courses on the trail. Cape runner Ryan Wilson of Rehoboth Beach won the 5K event in 18:46, while Bridget Danner of Rehoboth Beach won the female championship in 21:16. Nick Barkley of Dover won the 15K in 56:50, while Sarah Rusk of Wilmington won the 15K for females in 1:00:56.
Race note - Two special guests turned up at Saturday’s event in Denton, as Mark Petchey of Harrington and Amy Reed of Milford took part in the run. Petchey, better known as Petch, wore No. 7 and Reed, who won her age group in 30:48, wore No. 97. They are better known on the radio as “Petch & Amy in the Morning" from 97.7. Congratulations to both.
Dumpster diving
To make a long story short and not put the blame on anyone but myself, the race money bag from the Shamrock Shuffle ended up on the trailer desk and then in a box that would be later used for trash at the post-race bash. Following the event, I emptied all trash at a dumpster behind Logomotive, the quality supplier of the Striders T-shirts.
So now I am home and the blue zipped bag is not in the usual hiding spot, and for the next three hours I remove everything from the Striders van and trailer and come up empty. I go back to the race site and spend 20 minutes walking the parking lot - nothing. I stop by Logomotive and even though it’s nearly dark I quickly skim through the dumpster, but again come up empty. I send a message to my team for any help they can provide and I decided to take my wife’s advice and sleep on it a night and start looking again in the morning.
Monday came and still no luck, so I contacted my friend Amy Norgate at Tanger for possible cameras to review behind the outlets - no luck. I contacted my friend Tony Mendez from Delaware State Police and we got the ball rolling on reporting a theft at a special event.
Following practice on Monday, I sat and talked with my two assistants Gilbert and Liz and I kept saying to them, “This does not make sense, and runners are some of the nicest, honest people in the world that will take the shirt off their back for you.” I decided that if it was not in the van or trailer, and not at the site of the event, there was only one place it could be.
So there I was back at Logomotive with Billy laughing at me as he handed me a three-step stool and told me to have fun. I removed just about every box from the dumpster, which was not a pleasant experience, and at the bottom corner of the can under all the Striders banana peels was the blue money bag still zipped up and looking back at me, calling me a “bozo."
It was a good risk management lesson to learn, as procedures will change in the future when registration closes, and unfortunately the whole 30-hour experience took five years of my life with it. How much was in the bag? Well, let’s just say it was much more than a dollar!
Spring track & field
The Cape track teams are in full swing and will begin competition next week as Beacon and Mariner play host to Georgetown and Millsboro beginning at 4 p.m. at the Cape Henlopen Track & Field Stadium. The high school teams are away against Sussex Central beginning at 3:30 p.m. in Georgetown.
“To have a quad meet as our first one is going to be an eye-opener for many of our young kids,” said assistant coach Gilbert Maull. “Over 300 track athletes should be competing in 13 different events over three hours. It should be a fun time.”
The Beacon and Mariner teams invite the community to come out and support the athletes, and if anyone would like to volunteer in the meet, please contact coach Tim Bamforth at 302-542-4536 or tim@seashorestrider.com.
Upcoming races
Saturday, March 21, 4th Run with the Hawks 5K, St. Georges High School, 10 a.m., www.seashorestriders.com
Saturday, March 28, 2nd IRXC 5K Run/Walk, Indian River High School, Dagsboro, 9 a.m., www.seashorestriders.com
Sunday, March 29, 20th April Fools Prediction Challenge, Fishing Pier, Cape Henlopen State Park, Lewes, 10 a.m., www.seashorestriders.com
Saturday, April 4, Bunny Palooza 10K & 5K, Bethany Beach, 8:30 a.m., www.races2run.com
Saturday, April 11, 2nd Kim Miller 5K Boobs & Brew Charity Event by 16 Mile Brewing Company, Georgetown, 9 a.m., www.seashorestriders.com
Sunday, April 12, 3rd Oy Vey 5K Run & Walk, Glade Road, Rehoboth Beach, 9 a.m., www.seashorestriders.com
