St. Augustine: Endless Summer 5K & 10K at Anastasia State Park

Endless Summer... ah yes, I recall that wonderful movie. The Endless Summer, which simply enforced my wanderlust and desire to seek warm climates year round.  As you know by now that doesn't always happen but it is a dream.

10 K Runners blessed by a rainbow
after the early morning shower.

For others the dream was to complete the Endless Summer 5K or 10K walk/run on Sept 19, 2015.  The event was held at Anastasia State Park in St. Augustine FL, sponsored by the Friends of Anastasia,and Don's Friends.

The Official Logo which was fantastic on a Tee Shirt
Pre-order ONLY

This was the 12th Annual running of the Endless Summer event and tickets were sold out by early 2015.  Yes, it is a popular event that can handle at most 450 participants.  This year runners awakened to the patter of rain, actually it had been raining most of August and September so the planned route was modified... otherwise it would have been a mud run! 

 

Photo complements of the race website

Not a problem as the new route spent more time on the beach and who will complain about running along side the ocean on firm and forgiving sand?  Not me.  Luckily someone snapped a photo of the runners for me! (see above)

The rain ended before dawn
the runners are ready to start

Bill and I volunteered on race day and arrived at the race site around 6 AM... yes it was an early start but then we are often up between 5 AM and 6 AM to walk the cats.  It was still dark when we arrived and the roads were wet from the early morning rain shower.  

5K participants rounding the corner
and heading to the finish line

Bill was once again the 'sound man' and 'stage hand' helping with the microphone, speakers, and assisting as needed.  I spent time between traffic direction and insuring the bathrooms were neat and clean, both important for safety and civility. It is interesting how you can feel the excitement, hope, and tension in the air from those 450 runners.  Emotions certainly cut through the early morning dawn.

Runners warming up
and heading to registration
the tension is in the air

But all is well that ends well and everyone finished in a reasonable time.  I truly enjoyed watching the runners and walkers as they crossed the finish line and read their event time on the huge time banner.  Later the results were posted on the event web site.

Post race
time to wind down

By 11 AM most of the runners had exited the park, the surfers were heading to the beach with their boards, and the volunteers had clean-up from the race.  By noon, it was all history and a memory of the lovely rainbow that promised a perfect day for everyone.

Rainbows promise beautiful days
and it was a magnificent day.