Sweet Swag

I’m running in the Autumn Rock-n-Run 5k in Casselberry, FL this Saturday sponsored by the Track Shack and Florida Hospital so today I made the drive downtown to pick up my race packet.

The Track Shack has been a running institution in Orlando for decades. It really is a cool shop. If you ever visit you should make the drive up from the theme parks and check it out.

The packet pickup was quick and well organized as usual. I had a few minutes to browse the racks, but managed to keep my wallet in my pocket this time. (If you recall, last time I couldn’t resist a 20% off sale and took home a new pair of ASICS).

The swag was typical for a 5k around here. A handful of coupons, race fliers, samples of power bars and crackers, and of course a tech T. The T-shirt is pretty cool and may even see some wear when I’m not running.

This race is also my entry in the second DoppelLaufer Virtual 5k. If you haven’t been following along, you can see a list of the entrants here.

There are 14 racers this go round with race PR’s ranging from sub 20 to more than 40 minutes. The action will take place over the next three weekends, so watching the standings change will be like announcing a horse race in slow motion. If we designed the handicap system well it should be a photo finish.

You can follow along with the pre- and post-race taunting here.

My prediction, you ask?

johnnysocko:  The fastest among us, jsock, will have the best time outright but will fall frustratingly short of victory in the handicap adjusted standings.

dwm082:  Don will be dq’d for forgetting to post his results in the thread.  It will have been so long since he posted anything, that he will forget where it is.

JimDo64:  Jim will make the classic error of wearing a new pair of shoes at his race, will succumb to a blister, and limp across the finish line.

middleagedrunner will ignore the advice of her doctor, enter her race, shin splints and all, but will exercise caution and finish well over her current PR.

Maryalicia will race without her James Bond stroller, but racked with guilt, will return to the start to pick up her little girl and carry her the 3.1 miles to the finish.

thingmabobby will try to run the race barefoot and like Jim, will end up limping across the finish line on blistered feet.

SurfingVol will develop a run in his stockings, er . . . I mean "Zensah Sleeve," and the uneven compression will be too much of a distraction for him to be any threat on the race course.

WiGuy performed so well in his last race after fueling up with chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream that he logically decided to repeat the ritual. Following the same logic he will eat twice as much ice cream under the mistaken belief that it will mean twice the speed.

Squeakygirl and Papakeith will become so competitive at the starting line because of their little side bet, that they resort to tripping and hair pulling to slow each other down costing them both any chance of victory.

vcackerman – will miss his race in favor of a Hawkeyes tailgating party.

FaithUpHigh will have a camping flashback, get spooked by imagined spiders and snakes, and end up hopping and shrieking her way down the race course.

BowieLinda – Mysterious Linda was quiet as a church mouse throughout much of the DoppelLaufer taunting but will turn out to be the silent threat on the race course that everyone should have been worrying about. She will be a contender, but her downfall will result from throngs of paparazzi blinding her with flashbulbs, trying to get pictures of BowieDavid’s wife’s hot feet.  The result of an anonymous tip tweeted by JimDoGump.

Shona – in a last minute re-entry, Shona will enter a new 5k, but will accidently pack her climbing shoes instead of her running shoes for the race.

and the winner will of course be: