March 14, 2010 Moe’s Half Marathon a success despite lower numbers Time to kick back and enjoy a little free time after the race from last Sunday. The ARA-Moe’s Better Half Marathon and “Speak Up For Kids” CASA 5K turned out to be a nice success; and the efforts of the race organizers paid off well for the runners in the races. The weather held off with the rain, until everything from running the race to putting everything away and packing up the equipment and moving out was done before a few sprinkles began to fall. The weather did have an effect on the number of runners that actually showed up to run the race. With over 300 runners pre-registered, there were only 250 runners that were timed for finishing the race. Approximately 50 runners turned out to be no-shows for the run. The number of runners in the 5K race was actually down a little also, from those that actually signed up to run but did not show. It sort of made my comments about runners enjoying running in the rain last week seem to be a stretch. Comments from runners and from e-mails that I have received this past week have all been very favorable about how much they enjoyed the course, the volunteers and the organization of the race. This always makes the amount of time and effort that goes into putting on a race seem worthwhile. It is once again a big “Thank You” to the volunteers that make the race a success; from direction people to aid station people, course monitors and food preparation tables set up. CASA had a large number of volunteers; as well, the Kiwanis Club and the GAP store employees had great groups of volunteers that were available for often spur-of-the-moment tasks. Special thanks go to the race organizers that put in much of the work: Linda and David Alexander, Mike and Tricia Schneider from CASA and Jim Moyle from ARA. They are the driving force behind the run. There were other key people that made the run happen. Tanger staff was there at 5:00 a.m. to help with getting material out and setting up roadblocks for traffic control that always proves to be a valuable help. RunFAR Racing Services and RaceWorks drove down from Austin about 5:30 a.m.; they were responsible for setting up the finish line and coning off the area to set up the technology aspect of the race. Some of the stores near the finish area even opened up a little early to see if the runners wanted to shop while waiting for the announcement of the awards. Tanger Outlet Center really goes all out to make an event a success here in San Marcos. Area runners that finished the half marathon distance included Leah Whitworth (2:22:13); Leah York (2:26:39); Stacy Mitchum (2:17:20); Precious Hernandez (2:38:55); Theresa Flores (2:45:25) and April Harris (2:50:36). Other runners included Rebekah Welvaert (2:42:08); Charles Welvaert (2:11:22) and Laura Mason (2:29:56). Reenie Smith (2:04:34) took first place in the women’s 55-59 age group, followed by Gina Eben in second place in 2:08:15 and Teresa Medina in third place with a 2:27:37 time. Running in the half also were Casimiro Chavez (1:52:12), Eric Rindahl (1:44:24) and Mochas & Javas owner Kevin Carswell, who provided coffee for the early volunteers and then turned in a 1:49:57 time in the race. The runners from the area in the timed portion of the “Speak Up For Kids” CASA 5K were small in number, as many of the local runners chose to enter the fun run and were not recorded on the finish results. In the female 15-19 age category, Jordan Carswell turned in a first-place time of 28:15, with Laura Artiles in second place with a 28:15 time also. The only other runner listing a San Marcos address was Alan Atchison, who took third place in the male 50-59 age group with a 24:58 time. Everything considered, the race was a good event for the runners, as many of the first-time entrants mentioned that they would be back next year. The runners liked the shirts this year as well, with some of the past participants saying they wanted to add another commemorative coffee mug from the half marathon to their collection. Dr. Maurice Johnson - better known around San Marcos as “Moe” - is a professor in the Department of Health, P.E., Recreation and Dance at Texas State University - San Marcos. Moe has been a fixture in the San Marcos running community - both as a runner and race organizer - since way back when Moby Dick was a minnow. His column on running and fitness appears each Sunday in the Sports section of the San Marcos Daily Record. • Recent “Running With Moe” Columns • Home • About the Club • Current News • Club Runs • Places To Run • TX Running Clubs • Running Links • Useful Stuff Upcoming Races • Race Results • Country Roads 10K & Kids Run • ARA-Moe’s Better Half Marathon • “Running With Moe” Contact Us!