Awash in 5Ks

We live in a region with unparalleled support for almost every kind of running, from middle school cross-country to recreational road racing to geriatric track events. every weekend in the fall, the calendar sags with the weight of all the competitive events scheduled in and around Boston. And when I say "competitive" I mean that the depth of talent is unlike anywhere else in the country. As one small example, a week ago I ran in a race in which a masters (40-49) runner ran 33:45 for 10K (5:28 pace) and finished 10th in his age group.

But the undisputed king of the weekend events is the local 5K. With entry fees at $20-30 and a seemingly endless supply of runners eager to improve their PRs and earn another t-shirt, 5Ks are immensely popular as civic events and fundraisers.

For fun, I scanned the race results on Cool Running for the past weekend and identified no fewer than 26 5K races in Massachusetts held either 9/26 or 9/27, and plenty more in Rhode Island and New Hampshire. And that doesn't even count the cross-country events raced at 5K. Anyway, here's the list:

Saturday, 9/26:

Bedford
Boston (x2)
Canton
Dighton
Dorchester
Lancaster
Medfield
Northboro
Shrewsbury
South Boston
Tewksbury
Woburn

Sunday, 9/27:

Billerica
Boston
Braintree
Danvers
Hingham
Littleton
Lowell
Lynnfield
Milton
Northampton
Plymouth
West Newton (my home town!)
Wilmington

By the way, I spotted two NNHS alumni results amid all these 5Ks. Tim Killilea ran 19:19 in the Newton Boys and Girls Club 5K. Meanwhile, Tom Davis traveled out of state to Rhode Island and ran 15:17 at the Smithfield Lions 5K race to place second to Eric Lonergan, who was given the same time.