Are You Afraid of the Dark? Part II
Our second ever Friday the 13th race, could not have delivered more ideal running weather. Jason Voorhees himself, would’ve taken a night off killing to come spectate OCRC’s second relay race. And what a race it was!
Our teams started sprinkling in around 7. With “Sad But True” blasting on the speakers, Vince marked our starting line and set off the flares. Vibes were high. Watching each squad check-in and warm-up, you knew this was gonna be a close one.
Team #4, featuring Julia Dotter, Alese Morales, Fermin Lopez and Jules Ferrero, enjoyed some pre-race team bonding. Per Jules:
“Our team warmed up by setting the mental and emotional tone of peace and determination, with a temporary-tattoo meeting in the parking lot. We got inked, ran 2 miles together and talked about life and the pursuit of happiness.”
At 8:00 PM, the runners lined up at the starting line, astir with nerves. Our race began, and three teams shot to the lead: wearing bib #1 Rafael Aguilar, #17, Matt Campbell, and to the roars of “GO BLUE” in bib #3, Ishan Vashista.
After the first hand-off, Team 1 and Team 17 separated from the pack, trading the lead back and forth. We witnessed elite performances from Kendall Rose (1) and Juliette Vielhauer (1) as they fended off Jodi Jordan (17) and Madeleine Forde (17) battling along the S. Houston Bridge.
In the end, it came down to the anchor leg. Tyler Forde (17) and Braden Keefer (1) received their batons at nearly the same time. Braden took the lead early, cutting off Tyler on the turn. Tyler, recognizing we’re facing a global oil crisis, decided to save some gas and patiently waited. Like a tiger, stalking his prey, Tyler waited until about a half mile remained and made his move on the final climb. Overtaking Braden, Tyler tore downhill towards the finishing line taking 1st and all the glory it accompanied. Clad in rose colored lenses, Team 17 pulled away, with a winning time of 20m:10s. Following closely, with a time of 20m 28s, Braden crossed earning team #1, an admirable second place finish. Rounding out our podium, at 21m 33s we witnessed Brent Turner, rocking bib #7 cross the finish. Brent anchored a team composed of Gerardo Soto, Sarah Wyonicz and his better half, Angelle Turner.
Rounding out our podium, at 21m 33s we witnessed Brent Turner, rocking bib #7 cross the finish. Brent anchored a team composed of Gerardo Soto, Sarah Wyonicz and his better half, Angelle Turner.
There was deafening applause from the cheer squads and all the supporters, as each team finished. Ice cold Modelos and Athletics in-hand, our racers debriefed and traded war stories from the bridges. Team #16 aka “Tweatus” featuring Helen Ding, Sam Buescher, Brooke López and (Tall) Paul Terbrueggen celebrated appropriately with a ceremonial crack of a tall boy Twisted Twea. Per Tall Paul:
“I put it all out there and actually hit a lifetime PR in the mile at 37. It hurt, it was type II fun. Let’s be honest though, I did it for Cenzo’s and Twea. “
Our winning teams were awarded their Gold, Silver and Bronze Warstic Batons, along with handsome cash prizes and we made our way over to our friends at Cenzo’s. Boy oh boy did they take care of the crew! Pepperoni and Cheese pies were served up all night to our racers' enjoyment. Drafts and Spaghett’s were being guzzled by our gladiators. It was truly a night for the ages.
Our folks from team #18, Ezedeen Zakir, Aziza Ayoub, Lubna Adulaimi and Ariel del Fierro, repping the Dallas Muslim Running Club, said post-race:
“I knew this was gonna be a cool experience without all the fluff. It was exactly what I was hoping for” and “I can’t wait to run this again next year”.
Thankfully, y’all won’t have to wait until next year. Are YOU afraid of the Dark? If not, we’ll see you on November 13th.
