by : Steve Tichenor
Another Spring Lake 5 in the books. The sun peeked out this morning and temperatures were in the mid 60’s making for ideal conditions for the 41st running today. It wasn’t a great race for me. It seemed a few years back a 9 minute mile was a given. But the last couple of years I’ve been heading north of 10 minutes. It’s all good. It’s less about breaking personal records and more about enjoying a great event.
And a great event it is. The race started in 1977 with about 500 runners. Since then it has blossomed into the best running event in Jersey. Taking place the Saturday before Memorial Day, it marks the beginning of the summer running season. It’s a flat and fast course with beautiful views of the ocean and the town of Spring Lake. It has quickly grown to one of the country’s largest races with over 12,000 runners. It has also become an amazing charitable event. Friends of the Spring Lake 5, Inc. has donated over $1,800,000 to local charities, volunteer organizations, town initiatives and Spring Lake Recreation.
My wife, an avid runner has been running this race for 20 years. Myself, a not so avid runner, started 5 years ago and for me this race has become a perfect way to kickoff the summer. It’s great bumping into old friends and there are numerous post race gatherings throughout the area, including a big post-race party at one of our sponsors, Bar Anticipation.
There is a short window to sign up for the race and it involves getting up very early to register online. You can find out the details here. http://springlake5.org
Just remember, your chance may be gone by the end of registration day. If you’re a runner in the Tri State area and have not run this race, put it on your bucket list, you won’t be disappointed.
