It was a cold Saturday morning, but the below-freezing temps did not deter the athletes of Greenville’s Green Valley Road Race from coming out in full force.
On February 8th, Trailblazer Park found itself crowded with 346 racers all excited to take part in the 43rd rendition of the race. The 5 mile started first at 8am, with the 10 starting shortly after at 8:15, and both were difficult routes. Steep downhills were followed by steeper inclines, and the runners found themselves challenged by whichever event they chose.
Railroad was represented by Emma Allison, and we chased her around the course to cheer her on. Though temperatures seemed to rise as the races progressed, it could have been due to the warm car we dodged in and out of… a lot of the athletes did not share our intuition that the temperature was climbing. Admittedly, it did proceed to snow later that day, so we were probably wrong.
Though many disliked the cold, Railroad Coach Hayden Cox claimed it was actually great running weather, as cooler temperatures lend more towards PR’s than extreme heat. His intuition proved correct, as Emma cruised past her expected pace by 16 sec/mile, finishing as runner-up with a time of 33:39.40!
Other athletes shared in the parade of PR’s; Price St. Clair, who had run a 1:01:22.4 in last year’s 10 mile race, finished in just 57:33.90 this year! Brian Skoglind was the men’s 10 mile champion with a time of 56:58.15, and Victoria Hammersmith won the women's race, clocking in at 1:02:42.63. William Stutts placed first in the men’s 5 mile with a time of 25:55.53. In the women’s 5 mile, Shelby Varamillo stood atop the podium after running a fast 32:17.58.
Before cooling down, Emma completed some hill sprints to round-out her workout. Hayden noted how important it is to make sure runners get practice with all intensities; the short sprints nicely complemented the longer 5 mile distance. After the awards, the team proceeded to Tandem Creperie for a celebratory breakfast—work hard play hard!
Congrats to all the runners who competed in the event and a thanks to the Greenville Track Club for hosting. Now, after some proper recovery, Railroad is looking to continue full steam ahead in preparation for more upcoming races #AllAboard