FireCracker 5 Mile RROY Race

FireCracker 5 Mile - July 3rd Fleet Feet Sports FireCracker 5 Mile Rochester Runner of the Year 2010 Race #6 by Ellen Brenner-Boutillier It is a great honor that this year the Fleet Feet Sports FireCracker 5 Mile was asked to be in the Rochester Runner of the Year Series.  This year’s event is SATURDAY, July 3rd, YES SATURDAY, in Fairport, NY!  This is the first time a July 4th event has been part of the series (even though it’s on July 3rd).  The FireCracker 5 Mile has been around for over 32 years, exact year is unkown.  As I write this now, I am looking at the 1978 “US Post Office mailed” results and letter from Perinton Chamber of Commerce President Tom Kennel.  Yup, for those that remember, once upon a time results weren’t posted at the race site after the race but mailed to you a few days and maybe weeks later.  That year there were approximately 309 finishers.  The awards were given to top 3 Overall Men and top 3 in 10 year age groups for the men;  meanwhile the women’s awards were top 3 for Under 30 and Over 30.  Not sure what happens when you are 30 and a female .  There was even a parent/child division and a husband/wife division.  The results do not denote if you were a male or female nor your age, just your finish position.  However, they did provide a graph of the age grouping breakout.  Interestingly the largest age group was 30-39, by far.  Nowadays, 40-49 is the most popular age group for most events. If you are a race history statistics geek, that year the top 3 men were: Paul Stemmer (25:39), Bruce Baden (26:12), Derek Frechette (26:38).  That year Scott Bagley won the under 15 category in 28:19 and the late Pete Glavin was 2nd in that AG in 28:29.  Roberta Kirsch was the fastest woman (32:18), although for the results she won the Under 30 category not Overall Female.  Second fastest female time was Anne Bartsholts (33:46) and Beth Dwyer (33:47) – also categorized in the Under 30 grouping.  It should also be noted there were only about 30 female finishers.  It is so interesting to see these results, not only the manner in which they were done, but some of the names from yesteryear and even some folks who are still racing today such as: Tom Lamme, Jim May, Mike Reif, Pete Leonard and Scott Bagley. Flash forward 20 years, 1999ish, and that was when Boots took the event over from Buzz Schild.  At the time the race had about 250-300 finishers, Scott Bagley was winning the event and not just an age group award, the results looked similar except the gender and age were added, and women were able to get “Overall Female” prizes vs. Over/Under 30.  There still wasn’t chip timing in our area and the internet started to become a vehicle to promote events, although minimally. Flash forward 10 more years and now it’s 2010.  Now what?  There are over 500 participants, more women are partaking, age groups are 5 year age groups, chip timing is the norm, shirts have changed to tech tops for early entrants and internet is almost the sole source for race info. But in those 30 some odd years, what’s remained the same.  On July 4th (or July 3rd when July 4th falls on a Sunday) people arrive to Fairport, NY to register, run 5 miles with their families, their friends and neighbors  and finish in Perinton Park just in time to head down to Main Street and check out the parade in celebration of Independence Day.  The reality is – it’s a Holiday Tradition for Rochester hence why it’s been around so long.  Through the years, we’ve seen the changes in technology, goodies and demographics but it’s still the same great race, with great competition, with families and friends on a holiday to celebrate our Independence as a country.  We invite you this year to join us Saturday, July 3rd for this long standing tradition.  Bring your family, bring your friends and enjoy the day! Race Info & Details can be found at www.yellowjacketracing.com