Scott and Smith blast by the Beachgoers in Dothan

On standard calendars the seasons, in order, are winter, spring, summer, and fall. But in athletics, the season following summer is cross-country season. And in Dothan, Alabama when the Life Is A Beach 5K Trail Race comes to Westgate Park, you know that summer is almost over and cross-country will soon be here.


Heralding the approach of another cross-country season, the Dothan Runners Club held the seventeenth annual Life Is A Beach 5K on Saturday morning, 19 August 2017. Will Scott won the race in 20:42, while Kate Smith took the women's title, placing third overall in 23:11.


Scott is heading into his sophomore year at Headland, Alabama's Headland High, where he runs on the school's cross-country team. This was his second year racing the Life Is A Beach; in 2016 he had finished runner-up to Ashlee Romani in 22:06. Twelve months later, Scott trimmed nearly a minute and a half from that time to earn his first Life Is A Beach win, finishing close to 40 meters ahead of the next runner, Dale Thomas. Thomas, the 2005 Life Is A Beach 5K champion, was the fastest master runner in the 2017 race, running 20:52. Brooks Newell edged master runner Mark McCarra for the third spot in the men's standings, 23:15 to 23:17.


Kristi Holland was the first woman master and second female finisher, placing tenth overall in 27:21. Jennifer Wade was the third woman in the 5K and eighteenth overall in 31:59.


Top Ten Men, 2017 Life Is A Beach 5K

1. 20:42, Will Scott (M, 15)
2. 20:52, Dale Thomas (M, 54)
3. 23:15, Brooks Newell (M, 31)
4. 23:17, Mark McCarra (M, 52)
5. 25:31, Paul Turner (M, 54)
6. 25:42, Stan Lane (M, 60)
7. 26:19, Roger Rocha (M, 53)
8. 27:09, David Forrester (M, 38)
9. 28:27, Brad Sasser (M, 36)
10. 29:03, Paul Jernigan (M, 44)

Top Ten Women, 2017 Life Is A Beach 5K

1. 23:11, Kate Smith (F, 29)
2. 27:21, Kristi Holland (F, 41)
3. 31:59, Jennifer Wade (F, 32)
4. 32:28, Sandy Turner (F, 54)
5. 34:19, Susan Anderson (F, 55)
6. 35:14, Hannah Popwell (F, 17)
7. 35:50, Rene Jordan (F, 52)
8. 36:17, Jocelyn Richardson (F, 39)
9. 36:55, Sarah Herrell (F, 35)
10. 37:11, Julia Moss (F, 32)

Dothan Runners' Life is a Beach 5K Trail Run Champions, 2001 - 2017
Date	Men	Women	Finishers
11 August 2001	18:18, Matt Parker	24:09, Piper Stockman	68
18 August 2002	18:55, Shawn Latshaw	22:05, Teresa Lafleur	75
16 August 2003	18:04, Myles Gibson	21:09, Sandy Ebanks	71
14 August 2004	17:24, Nicholas Ireland	23:18, Ali Keith	74
13 August 2005	20:42, Dale Thomas	24:40, Nancy Hein	60
12 August 2006	18:15, Gabe Mitchell	25:45, Cassie Logan	72
11 August 2007	18:39, Myles Gibson	24:18, Amelia Carter	86
16 August 2008	17:54, Ryan Overstreet	23:20, Lou Ellen Jayroe	71
15 August 2009	20:37, Brian Hickey	23:00, Kristina Bennett	62
21 August 2010	17:52, Nicholas Ireland	21:50, Katrina Bokenfohr	113
27 August 2011	18:57, Sean Kent	17:55, Casey McDermott	82
25 August 2012	18:26, Sean Kent	24:23, Val Lichner	119
24 August 2013	20:26, Cliff Rogers	22:29, Brooke Hoopert	81
23 August 2014	18:46, Myles Gibson	24:38, Val Lichner	46
22 August 2015	18:40, Myles Gibson	23:49, Kimberly Floyd	54
13 August 2016	22:06, Will Scott	20:44, Ashlee Romani	44
19 August 2017	20:42, Will Scott	23:11, Kate Smith	39

Links

• Complete results of the 2017 Life Is A Beach 5K Trail Run
  https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vRwWNle8MbZGQXZ1PPf3p0K1RO8ExIK_reH_MKex3RTj9S9ssQkusG-dJ_0n0oMLaMYcd9ObsTUNu6-/pubhtml
  
  
• 2016 story, “Ashlee Romani takes the whole pile of sand at the Life Is A Beach 5K”
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2016/08/dothan-beach-2016.html
  
  
• 2015 story, “Life Is [still] A Beach for Gibson and Floyd”
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2015/08/dothan-beach-2015.html
  
  
• 2014 story, “Nothing to beach about for either Gibson or Lichner”
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2014/08/dothan-beach-2014.html
  
  
• 2013 story, “Rogers and Houppert win for Team RWB at Life Is A Beach 5K”
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2013/08/dothan-beach-2013.html
  
  
• 2012 story, “No sand, no waves, but wins for Kent and Lichner”
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2012/08/dothan-beach-2012.html
  
  
• 2011 story, "Coach McDermott crashes Dothan's beach party”
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2011/08/dothan-beach-2011.html
  
  
• 2010 story, “Ireland and Bokenfohr winners at this beach party”
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2010/08/dothan-beach-2010.html
  
  
• The Dothan Runners Club
  http://www.dothanrunners.com
  
  
• Beach runs and sunny beach runs on the Trouble Afoot! calendar
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/search/label/calendar?max-results=1
  
  

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