Race
Report - Space Walk of Fame 8K
The Space Walk of Fame 8K is a truly
wonderful race. The race director, Marty
Winkel, has been doing this for years.
He has it down to a science. He
also has a dedicated crew of volunteers that help out every year and know how
to do their jobs well. I like to count
myself among that group. After all, I
have been helping him with this race since the 80's.
The race is always in early
April. It starts at 8 AM near the Space
Walk of Fame Park in Titusville, located on the Indian River. The location is beautiful. You can watch the sunrise over the water as
you warm up for the race. The course
runs through older, but very nice neighborhoods under oak trees with much of
the course bordering the river. It is a
2 loop course, which helps motivate many runners, but also offers a 2 mile
option.
This course
is run through an old riverside neighborhood on the Indian River Ave among
beautiful homes and graceful oaks and then onto Riverside Dr with homes on one
side and the majestic Indian River on the other. You can see the VAB and launch pads in the
distance at the Kennedy Space Center. The
course is almost entirely shaded and run early enough to avoid the heat.
The morning was perfect. It was foggy and cool (for April).
Almost 300 runners lined up for the
race, which was a record by about 35%.
This number is low for some of the bigger cities, but actually very good
for a small town like Titusville, with a population of about 40,000. We believe part of the increase was the
result of web hosting with Florida
East Coast Runners and the promotion we did on their behalf. Also, thanks to Orlando Runners Club, who listed
them at our request.
Anyway, the registration went
flawlessly, the race was perfect, and the awards were outstanding. With Marty's organization and all of the
great volunteers, everything went smoothly.
The runners left happy.
The male winner was Tyler Subasic in 27:21. The female winner was Tracy Smith in
31:50. The Masters winners were Frank Kapr in 29:43 and Nancy Buonanni
in 33:57. One other thing to notice is
the prevalence of older age group awards.
In addition to 3 deep overall, Masters (40+), Grand, Masters (50+), and
Senior Grand Masters (60+), the 3 deep awards in 5-year age groups go through
75-79, followed by 80+, and there are competitors in those age groups. I hope I am still running at 80+!
The complete results are provided by Space Coast Runners and are
available here. You should put this race on your calendar for
next year!
Copyright 2009 by Florida East Coast Runners and
Frank Norris. Reproduction or reprinting
without written permission is illegal.
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