Wednesday, March 6, 2019

Late to start but early to finish, Charlie Johnson wins the Shamrock Scurry

About 1500 meters into the Shamrock Scurry 5K, Charlie Johnson was in an unaccustomed position. The Tallahassee, Florida triathlete was half a minute behind the leaders, running in fifth place.


"I was late to the start!" called Johnson.


He wasn't late to the finish line. Johnson made up the deficit and won the race by more than 120 meters, running 18:13. Alyssa Terry was the first woman in the race, placing tenth overall in 21:26.

Charlie Johnson

The 31st Shamrock Scurry started on the north side of Tallahassee at Killearn United Methodist Church on Saturday morning, 2 March 2019. It was rainy; one other race in town had already been canceled out of concern over thunderstorms. The kids' mile at the Shamrock Scurry had been delayed, starting at 8:15 AM instead of 8:00. It looked like the 8:30 start of the 5K would be similarly delayed, but the runners got the command to "Go!" at 8:35. Charlie Johnson wasn't among them.


"We saw a mass of people running by," said Johnson. "We thought, 'That's a lot of kids finishing the mile. Wait, that’s the 5k start!' Then we sprinted to the start and pulled a hard U."

Zach DeVeau

Arriving at the line a minute late, Johnson had hundreds of athletes that he had to pass and wind through before he got near the front of the field.


"I went 5:08 on my first mile to get visual contact to the front, then chipped away while hanging on for dear life," said Johnson.


Zach DeVeau, who has started in a more timely fashion, was leading at the mile mark. Master runner Myles Gibson was the next runner past the mile post, followed by master runner Randy Porcher and Montford Middle School seventh-grader Jackson Rowe. By the two-mile mark, Johnson had overtaken everyone except for DeVeau. Less than halfway through the third mile, Johnson passed DeVeau to take over the lead. Johnson remained in first for the rest of the race, finishing in 18:13. DeVeau was runner-up in 18:41. Gibson was the first master runner in the race, coming in third overall in 19:14. Randy Porcher took fourth in 19:59 and Jackson Rowe fifth in 20:08.

Alyssa Terry

"I’ve had to take some time off from running due to a minor knee injury so I wasn’t sure how today would go," said Alyssa Terry.


It went well enough. Terry led the women's field nearly from start to finish, covering the course in a winning 21:26--fifteen seconds faster than she had run in her Shamrock Scurry debut in 2017. Corinne Porcher had also been in that 2017 race, running 24:23. She had lowered that to 22:30 in the 2018 Scurry, and further improved to 21:59 in 2019. That performance made Porcher the top woman master and second female finisher in the 5K, placing fifteenth overall. Jillian Heddaeus, another Scurry veteran, took third in the women's standings and and 26th overall in 23:37.

Corinne Porcher

Intermittent rain during the Scurry did nothing to dampen anyone's appetite for the post-race pancakes and sausages served at the church. 315 athletes finished the 2019 Shamrock Scurry 5K, with another 109 completing the kids' mile. Gulf Winds Track Club chip-timed both races.


Top Ten Men, 2019 Shamrock Scurry 5K
  1. 18:13, Charlie Johnson (M, 39)
  2. 18:41, Zach DeVeau (M, 31)
  3. 19:14, Myles Gibson (M, 52)
  4. 19:59, Randy Porcher (M, 53)
  5. 20:08, Jackson Rowe (M, 13)
  6. 20:29, Stephen Andrews (M, 33)
  7. 20:45, Blaine Thomas (M, 21)
  8. 20:57, Kasey Mick (M, 13)
  9. 21:01, Ryan Baumbach (M, 39)
  10. 21:30, David Welling (M, 34)

Top Ten Women, 2019 Shamrock Scurry 5K
  1. 21:26, Alyssa Terry (F, 25)
  2. 21:59, Corinne Porcher (F, 50)
  3. 23:37, Jillian Heddaeus (F, 35)
  4. 24:26, Megan Chapman (F, 27)
  5. 24:30, Nancy Proctor (F, 58)
  6. 24:53, Amanda Prine (F, 33)
  7. 24:55, Paula O'Neill (F, 57)
  8. 25:14, Martha Guyas (F, 34)
  9. 25:50, Ashley Welch (F, 24)
  10. 26:00, Bethanie Telesz (F, 32)

Known Shamrock Scurry 5K winners, 1981 - 2019
DateMenWomen
1981

13 March 198217:05, Paul Hodge21:22, Cathy Shuler
12 March 198315:35, Adam Pinkston19:21, Cheryl Jennings
17 March 198416:19, Bobby Shackleford17:42, Nellie Orr
16 March 198514:35, Jeff Wentworth19:20, Angie Crook
15 March 198615:33, David Keen18:42, Janice Hochstein
7 March 198715:21, Richard Corbett18:15, Janice Hochstein
12 March 198816:01, Bill Crooks19:59, Robin Tanner
11 March 198915:57, Bill Crooks19:32, Yvonne Gsteiger
17 March 199015:39, John Charlton20:07 Jane Henderson
16 March 199115:32, Gary Droze19:15, Vikki Saga
14 March 199215:53, Jessie Close17:50, Paula Johnson
8 May 1993

19 March 199415:17, Robin Rogers18:38, Jane Johnson
18 March 1995

1996

   
13 March 200416:02, Ryder Leary16:44, Sinead Evans
5 March 200516:29, Matthew Dobson19:21, Breeda Willis
18 March 200618:21, Michael Martinez20:10, Jennifer Emo
17 March 200715:43, Joey Zins21:55, Jun Inoue
15 March 200814:47, Mark Carroll16:55, Barbara Parker
   
13 March 201017:25, Jay Wallace21:03, Anna Busby
12 March 201118:14, Peter Kaus19:35, Sheryl Rosen
10 March 201216:27, Stephen Cox19:43, Carrie Seiberlich
9 March 201316:13, Stanley Linton20:38, Mary Anne Grayson
8 March 201415:44, Stanley Linton19:48, Katie Sherron
14 March 201516:30, Chris Lake20:45, Emily Molen
12 March 201619:51, Duane Evans22:47, Emma Spencer
4 March 201716:38, Matthew McCurdy19:09, Katie Sherron
3 March 201817:22, Vince Molosky18:40, Katie Sherron
2 March 201918:13, Charlie Johnson21:26, Alyssa Terry
Originally scheduled for March 13, the 1993 race had to be
postponed because of a severe winter storm.
The Shamrock Scurry was held from Killearn UMC from 1981
to 1996.
The Shamrock Scurry was not held from 1997 to 2003.
From 2004 to 2008 the Shamrock Scurry was held from
Celebration Baptist Church.
The Shamrock Scurry was not held in 2009.
From 2010 to 2019 the Shamrock Scurry was held from Killearn
UMC.


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