Run for the Children Half Marathon
Eldon, Missouri
April 27, 2013
Below are most of the photos I took at the race. Sorry I don't have any photos taken while on the course, as I usually get during our local 5Ks. I had barely enough energy to keep moving forward, much less lift and point a camera. (Plus, any such photos would have been of people's backs as they zoomed past me. :) ) Feel free to use or post these photos anywhere you wish. No permission or attribution is necessary, either.
Click on a photo to view a larger image, or to begin a slideshow of all the photos.
To download the original, full-size, uncropped and unedited version of any photo below, click on the "Download" link next to it.
DownloadThe Lake Area Runners (Facebook page) is an informal group that simply shares the love of running and physical fitness. The t-shirts not only band them together, but help make the local running community more visible to residents and visitors to the Lake of the Ozarks. It isn't a formal club, so there are no dues, meetings or politics. If you run or walk at the LOTO, you're already a Lake Area Runner, whether you know it or not. Get yourself a very inexpensive Lake Area Runners t-shirt (e-mail me and I'll let you know how to get one) and let everyone know that you're part of the community of runners in the Lake area.
DownloadRunners find shelter from the mist and wind soon before the start. The gentleman with the sunglasses resting on his head, Brian Schulte (1:26:02), was the overall male winner.
DownloadAnd yet another. All the fast kids are up front. It's interesting to see the full range of clothing decisions that were made by the runners for the misty and breezy conditions.
DownloadI think I know who these folks are, but I don't want to make mistakes. Can anyone help? E-mail me.
DownloadThe course was marked with blue arrows painted on the streets, but this was the blue paint we were really looking for.
DownloadThe finish line. It's always interesting how you can suffer for hours, but as you approach a finish line, the adrenaline kicks in and you suddenly feel energized and pain-free. Unfortunately, the adrenaline disappears immediately after crossing the line, leaving you feeling sore and exhausted, but elated nonetheless.
DownloadJayna Gray (2:26:24) is welcomed at the finish line by her husband and (I assume) her son (with hands to his ears). Jayna is one of the organizers of the wildly successful Ta-Ta Trot 5K, coming up on May 11th. She used to be only a walker at the various 5Ks in Eldon before starting to run them last year. And now, she's a half marathon finisher. Congratulations, Jayna! You've come a long way!
DownloadThis is my favorite photo of all, especially if I'm correct in what I think is going on. I believe these three are firemen for the Lake Ozark Fire Protection District. (I zoomed in on the logo on the t-shirt, but it's a bit fuzzy). The runner in the middle is Jeremy Phillips (2:46:14) , about to cross the finish line. To his sides are Bobby Allison (2:06:20) (pictured at left) and Caleb Freese (2:06:21) (right, wearing jacket). Bobby and Caleb finished forty minutes earlier than Jeremy, then went out to meet their comrade and escort him to the finish line.
DownloadWillard Haley (2:09:30) finishes his first half marathon, and takes home third place in his age group. An outstanding performance by a gentleman who hasn't been running very long.
DownloadStacie Verslues (2:10:24) (in green shirt). I'm guessing, but I think the woman in red is Jill Herigon, since she finished in exactly the same time as Stacie. (Please e-mail me if you know for sure.)
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Busted! That's Scott Page (1:54:51) on the far right, eating one of the doughnuts that were all supposed to be reserved for me. :) Scott ran the Garmin Marathon the week before, and wasn't sure whether he'd run or volunteer at this race. He decided a couple days in advance to go ahead and run (though taking it somewhat easy), and helped pace Tara Grantham (1:54:51) to her personal best at this distance.
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Andrea Anderson (2:06:50) (left) and Jen Wiethop (2:11:26). Andrea and Jen had been running together for miles, but the competitive beast inside Andrea awoke at mile 8.5, when she left Jen behind and took off like a rocket. She blew right past me, as if she were on a relay team, just starting her leg of the race with fresh legs. All we could do was wave bye-bye.
Please let me know if I've made any errors, or posted a bad link. Also, I respect others' desire for privacy. If you want a photo of you deleted--for any reason--just ask.