| ********Barry-- diss is da latest from sizzlerville on a wild
night. ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhh boooooooyyyyyyyyy***** Jenkins (Ben... not Nick-- he stayed home and ate bon-bons) Cheats Death, Swims To Victory at Sizzler Summer Splash & Beach Bash 5-miler @ Nuby (aka Hail Hop & LIghtening Leap Fiver) From wire sources & Sizzler Media Syndicate)-- Holy Hail-The -Size- Of -Basketballs, Batman! Or so it seemed. Hurricane force winds. Lightening . Crashing Thunder. Monsoon-like downpours. But you squandered the opportunity for personal growth and missed all the goings on last night, July 9th, in a land that time forgot at a venue called "Nubanusit. And only in The Sizzler Zone( doing my Rod Serling impression as I type this). Yikes. Could I consider breaking a string of one hundred plus Sizzlers contested which took ten years plus to build? What would my ancestors say? What would Cal Ripken say, who knows a thing or two about streaks? What Would Fred Brown say, a pioneer of New England distance running who never nixed a race and loathed to see the practice done. Dilemma? Anguish? Nail biting time? Consternation in Sizzler Nation? Oh, dear! What do I do? Actually, no matter what, no matter how bad, if yet one runner showed up, I would lace up my shoes and compete. Two runners makes it an official race. Even a passing skunk crossing the road or a flying squirrel losing its balance and falling headlong onto the pavement( not wearing its helmet) below would count as competitors. Hey.A t least they were there. Maybe they are not Homo sapiens. But both are warm -blooded and mammals. Details. Details. As most of you know, Sizzler Nation gained its Independence back in 1997, after "The Revolution", which featured --among other events-- dumping tea into Norway Pond to protest the unfair tariffs of a tyrannical government, the former regime housing their soldiers in our homes against our will, and the "Shot -Heard- 'round- The Monadnock Region" on a chilly April Morning we will not soon forget. I can still see Bob Fogg riding valiantly on his stallion in the middle of the night (all the way from Keene) to warn us of the impending attacks of thousands of enemy troops, who had come up the Connecticut River, docked in Brattleboro and marched into New Hampshire unannounced and undetected. Not to mention uninvited. And of course who can forget the construction , signing and reading of Our Sizzler Nation Declaration of Independence as well as the subsequent Bill Of Rights And Constitution. Anyway, not in the 114 race of our tradition-laden history have we witnessed such meteorological mayhem in Sizzlerville. Some wondered -and assumed- we had canceled. A reasonable conclusion. But in the Spirit of The Founding Fathers of Sizzler Nation (and distance running in general) we carried on. Stoic. Brave. Undaunted. And believe me ..... it was nasty and a bit scary. I started setting up at Nuby around 4:30, some 2 hours before the race itself. At 4 p.m. or so I retrieved a few tables form The Depot. It was starting then. Race Day typically involves 12 - 15 hours, start to finish, including race reports like this, standings updates, and results. Nuby is an out and back 5 mile course, and there was a fair amount of prep work to do- measuring and marking the course, placing trivia questions here and there, directions so runners would know how to get to the Boat Landing, and markers warning drivers there was a race going on and to be careful. Would anyone out there dare to venture out in this, for a race? I did. I always have .When the elements worsen, that is when the adrenaline flows unrestrained, common sense is left behind, and the prospect of a thrilling and rewarding athletic experience is at the ready. Certainly others of old school tough mentality would present themselves . Nuby, Our Resident leviathan, lives for this weather. He could be seen through the fog thrashing about Nubanusit Lake, spouting streams of water hundreds of feet into to the salty air above, emitting his familiar sounds that echoed in an eerie manner. He would dive as high as his 100 ton carcass would carry him, then sink deep into the lake, disappearing for a minute or two, then resurface to do it all again. Waves would come crashing into the shore every time Nuby danced, sending me and all wildlife scattering for higher ground. Nuby was happy. He has swallowed many a tourist and fisherman from overturned shrimp boats this way. But Nuby doesn't have to run. So the first sign of life was "Blood 'N Guts Ben Jenkins, who arrived in a minivan, simply wanting to know if we were still on. "Ayuh," said the Cap'n, fresh from a profitable day of clam digging. "We ain't nevah done canceled. Nevah will," he continued matter - of - factly. So at least we would have a single competitor. And Ben would have his choice of prizes. The UNH middle distance prodigy won last week at the Depot, is a 1:53 800 meter guy, and crusty Sizzler Veteran. So he would clean my clock in a one -to -one race. At least the tradition would continue. Year One we had just six at our first race. Tonight looks like we may get half that. When marking the course, I stopped for a few mins to stay dry. A vehicle recognized me, and out pops Series Leader "Fast Eddie" Glidden. "Are we still running!? he queried in a hopeful tone. "Ayuh", said the salty fisherman, through his fine Cuban Cigar as he gutted and cleaned another cod. Well, I never saw anyone so thrilled. He let out a yell a that would make Tarzan proud. That boy wanted to test himself against man and against nature. I like that attitude. And it was wild. One buy one they came , one by one same thought of "no mas" crossed their minds, but each time came the same reply: "Ayuh," mutters the ancient mariner in his Gloucester rain jacket, wiping his brow, "Race goes off at 6:35, as scheduled." So twenty of the bravest souls you'd ever want to meet got up the gumption to sign on the dotted line and fork over five very wet dollars( still drying out) for the chance of a lifetime. This reminded me of the 1977 Silver Lake Dodge Marathon, when as a senior in high school I ran 26 miles in a driving blizzard. Completely irrational. Thoroughly exhausting. But what a feeling and sense of accomplishment. I have been hooked ever since. That is 30 years ago. I have run and finished at least one marathon a year since then, and have never ever dropped out of one. It toughens you. The rougher the course, the more challenging the weather, the more I want to do it. It is a disease for which there is no known cure at this time . So there we gathered at water's edge, serenaded by angry seagulls( worried we would take the scraps left behind by the clamdiggers) and of course Nuby the Lake Monster, playfully splashing in a cove near The Light House. Fog Horns indicating freight vessels were in the vicinity emitted their familiar refrain. But the runners thought it was the starter's pistol, and before I could utter: "THAR SHE BLOWS!" --Well, "thar they went." Twoscore save four of the most rugged individualists you will ever meet this side of Heaven. Hands on deck for the race included Ruth "Ingrid" Bergman, Bob "Egg Nog" Fog, and Glenn "Spider" Web-ber. After nearly half an hour of cleaning fish, harvesting whale blubber, granting guided tours through the sea museum, making chowduh, and emptying the lobster traps, a lone silhouette emerged through the mist. From the highest mast on the ship, the sea whistle pierced the ears of all bystanders below . "MAKE WAY! MAKE WAY! LAND HO! " HE SHOUTED. So Big Ben Jenkins, of UNH and Francestown, made it two sizzler wins in a row, splish-splashing to a 29:45 victory under the very worst of conditions on a very brutally hilly course. Take 3 mins off if this were a pancake five miler. Second and third placers were Con-Val teammates Troy (Mister Mustard) French, Antrim, and Ethan (Allen) McBrien, Dublin, in 31:30 and 31:31 respectively. "Fast" Eddie Glidden, Greenfield, took fourth in 32:45. For the ladies, Eliza "Paine" Webber of Stoddard snagged top honors ( and 5th overall!) in a crisp 32:49. while two-time Sizzler lady champ "Fashionable" Sasha Varanka, Amherst , returned home to the venue of her former glory, posted a 35:32 for runner-up lassie. Rounding out the third spot for women was Tamara (World Wide) Webber in 40:38. Prizes, trivia, and raffles were all related to our summer/nautical theme, and in great abundance. Beach Balls, sunblock, fly swatters ,a ship -in - a bottle, and more were there for the taking. But don't despair. Next Monday, July 9th, affords area athletes yet another shot at partaking of the Sizzlers. The race moves to Oak Park, Greenfield. The cost is $5.00,the distance is four miles , and start time is 6:35 pm EDT. The series hits the half- way mark with Race Five. The theme is "Mystery Prize Night." Theme -related trivia and prizes as well as raffles and post -run goodies will all be on board as the Good Ship Sizzler Nation puts up the sails, disembarks from the stormy waters of Nubanusit Lake , points its compass due east to Greenfield, and heads for the open seas, landing on the Contoocook River sometime next weekend. All Aboaaaaaaaaaaaaaarddddddd!!!!!!!!!! For further information on getaway vacations aboard our cruise ship, to spend an afternoon deep- sea fishing off one our hearty ocean faring vessels, to rent one of our Sizzler paddle boats, canoes or kayaks; or even if you just want to run, volunteer, or become a financial sponsor, please contact Cap'n Dave (Phone:525-9357, 249-6557 and email: sizzlermania@hotmail.com, mistermarathon@juno.com) or First mate Bob Fog (Horn) at 525-4496. - dave birse sizzler city world hq |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tuesday, May 20, 2008 04:50 PM