Ran the Miles for Meridian 5K This Morning

I'm not what you would call an early morning person by any stretch of the imagination, but as a runner I am resigned to the fact that the overwhelming majority of races are held at that time.  So this morning I got up about 6:30 and got ready for a Saturday morning race at the Tioga Town Center a few miles west of Gainesville.  I had been participating in the Run for Haven 10K event centered around the St. Patrick's Day holiday in March...and happily staged at 4 in the afternoon...but Haven Hospice pulled out last year and Meridian Behavioral Healthcare stepped in as the organization behind it while limiting it to 5K...and changing the time to 8:30 am.  Oh well, a tradition is a tradition and I thought this morning would be a good opportunity to keep a mid-March race in Tioga going for me, so I overcame my drowsiness and went out there to run the Miles for Meridian 5K...
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There were plenty of entrants, from all backgrounds and of all shapes and sizes and genders and age groups.  The organizers were extremely courteous as were the businesses that provided food and drink for the participants.  The race began and ended just behind the stage at the Tioga Town Center, where there are several stores including a number of restaurants.  The run itself went up and down streets in the residential community of Tioga...more or less a level surface if you're careful to watch out for the nearly invisible slow-bumps.  I ran a slow pace throughout and finished at 31:14...not very fast but gratifying in that at no point in the run did I have that gagging and coughing issue that had been plaguing my runs recently.  Upon crossing the finishing line one volunteer handed me some water and another a cute little participation medal.  The weather was perfect: about 67 degrees, 54% humidity, and no precipitation. I'm wondering whether they will post this race's results...I always like to place a link to them here on the blog.  And I'm wondering about the older runners and where I stood in relation to them.  I'll give 'em a couple more days and if they haven't posted the results I guess I'll email to ask why they haven't...

As for the food and drink provided, it was much scantier than what was available at previous Run for Haven events.  A nearby taco restaurant offered free tacos, a deli gave out free coffee, a biscuit eatery had, naturally, biscuits...and another place gave out beer...yes, beer at a little past 9 in the morning: no thanks!  But seriously, those things weren't why I went out there...the event organizers can above all demonstrate their respect for the paid entrants by getting down to the business of promptly recording and posting the results...

A few days later: here's a link to the results: [start2finish management]…