Familiar foes battle in Turkey Trot
It鈥檚 nice to know my old muscles and joints can still cover three miles at a decent pace, at least for me.
I speak of competing in the annual Turkey Trot through the streets of Uniontown (which really upset folks who had to sit and wait at intersections on their way to grandmother鈥檚 house).
If the race had been just three-quarters of a mile in length, you鈥檇 be reading the account from the 2022 walking champion.
But, alas, the race was tad longer.
Buddy Segal and Jacynth Drumhiller first caught me. Then, Don Slusser pulled alongside. The four of us were a tidy little group of walkers for a half-mile or so, until 鈥渢he hill鈥� heading back up to Main Street.
Segal was able to put some distance between the three of us. Drumhiller tried to fend off Slusser, while that Downey guy was valiantly attempting to maintain touch.
Well, the brain was saying go, but the legs were saying no. Funny how that happens with regularity now that I鈥檓 in the AARP stage of my career.
Kudos to those three folks for a walk well done.
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The weather wasn鈥檛 that bad, considering the thermometer was working its way up to the freezing mark as the race began.
Believe me, I鈥檝e walked that race in a lot worse conditions. The first two I competed in, at the insistence of former 缅北禁地 sportswriter Cecelia Jo (Record) Harris, the conditions were better suited for sled dogs than runners and walkers.
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The results in the 5K run was basically a who鈥檚 who of Fayette County鈥檚 best over the past decade or so.
The first runner older than 21 was Albert Gallatin grad Daron Christopher in 10th place.聽
Only six of the top 25 runners were over 23 years old.
Joe Everhart鈥檚 Uniontown program dominated the top spots in the run with Mason Stewart and Hope Trimmer repeated as Turkey Trot champions.
Fellow Red Raider program runners, past and present, in the top 25 were Logan Maust, Grant Barcheck, Payton Hostetler, Christian Georgiana, Layton Maust, Tanner Uphold, Luke Stanton, Donte Rugola, Parker King, and James Stanton.
Laurel Highlands鈥� Matthew Schwertfeger was second, who was also second to Stewart in the annual county meet, and Connellsville鈥檚 Austin Molinaro placed third, who was third in the FCCA championship.
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Thanksgiving is a day to share with family and friends, and I was able share the race with my nephew Brian Lohr, one of my race adventures we鈥檝e done over the past two decades.
Brian used to run with his Hempfield area cross country buddies in the Greensburg race, but they are getting older and have other responsibilities so he opted to travel to Uniontown to share in the fun.
He was one of the 鈥渙ld鈥� finishers at 30-years old, placing 23rd overall and second in his age group.
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The race also included runners 鈥� and the occasional walker or two 鈥� with a lot of WPIAL and PIAA gold.
The outstanding group included Connellsville鈥檚 Kenny King, two-time PIAA champion in the 800, and Brownsville grad Jennifer (Locke) Hoffman, a WPIAL cross country champ a few years ago.
The current group of runners with Stewart, Schwertfeger, and Trimmer all won WPIAL and PIAA medals this fall, and the aforementioned trio, along with Molinaro, Barcheck, Emma Larkin, and Emily Angelo all finished in the top five.
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Kudos, once again, to all the staff, sponsors and volunteers who made the experience fun and safe.
The faces might have been dour and strained during the race, but it was smiles all the away around after the race among the 813 runners and walkers.
So, another Turkey Trot is in the books. Hope to see you all next Thanksgiving.