Concord Classic (Concord - 2021 - 5K)
25 Mile Drive
Registration:
The Concord Classic
was part of the Orthopeadic Rehad Specialists race series. The series includes
nine races all near the Jackson metro area.
It was started with the goal of motivating people to get fit and active. Online registration stated that the Concord
Classic drew in participants from all over the country. I couldn’t believe it. I had a misconception of a small town,
smaller distance run not drawing in runners outside of Michigan, Indiana and
Ohio. It was an interesting fact. My first thought was that the race was very prestigious
with many elite runners. The course was described
as flat and fast, a good course for getting a personal best. The course was most likely a reason for the out
of state racers. I know Albion draws in
many out of state racers for their yearly Foundry Mile, but they also give out
$1,000 cash to the overall female and male winners. A flight to come to Albion and more are covered
by a Foundry Mile winner’s earnings.
Concord listed that
only the first 100 to register would get race shirts and that there was no race
day registration. Contact Information
was very different for the Concord Classic.
Instead of filling out the standard RunSignUp form that gets sent away
to an email address that cannot be seen, there was a name, phone number, email
and address listed for any questions. It
was a brief page that had to the point information about the race without any
pictures.
5K packet pick-up was right outside the main entrance doors of Concord High School facing the parking lot. The parking lot was a great size for the event. The lady manning the 5K packet pick-up table was well organized and kind. The half mile kids run packet pick-up was just inside the high school at a separate table. The two volunteers at the kids table were having a good time joking when Luke and I walked in.
Course:
Concord Classic had
a very unique course. It was extremely
flat as described in registration, but it also involved quite a bit of turning
which can slow runners down. The run
started on high school and elementary school grounds. We made four turns before leaving the schools
and getting onto Main Street. We went
past the Concord Cemetery. I really
enjoyed the older gravestones as course scenery. We were on Main Street for less than a
quarter mile before turning left onto Harmon Avenue where I was immediately next
to a very cute little girl dressed as a bee clapping for everyone. She was with her mom who was sitting on a
chair at the end of their driveway. On Harmon
Avenue I saw Saint Catherine Catholic Church and a large field that looked like
a dirt bike trail on google maps. There
were some pretty choppy concrete areas on the left turn we took onto Michigan Street
from Harmon Ave. It was on Michigan
Street we hit mile one, saw the start and finish in the distance and passed the
aide station manned by many school-aged kids. We followed a “first lap” spray painted direction
straight, past Concord homes, followed by two lefts and a right (turning at
every block) to make a square back to the high school. We got a lot of cheers as we passed the high
school only feet away from the finish. From
there, it was a repeat back around the big rectangle of Main, Michigan, Harmon
and Monroe streets that bordered the schools, minus the subdivision part of the
course. I ran past the cemetery, bee
girl and aide station again. I liked the
setup of passing the aide station and awesome cemetery twice. They took advantage of their loop course
using only one aide station that served as two aide stations.
The Concord Classic course was not the most scenic course I have run. It didn’t take us downtown Concord. I enjoyed its unique design. Making a lot of turns on a course helps keep my mind stimulated. The course was very well labeled with signs and had a lot of course volunteers. I always felt like I was close to the start and finish while I was running. It was a unique perspective that I haven’t had at a run before.
Swag:
Luke and I both received
gray t-shirts with the race name and a huge awesome footprint. Luke got a red finisher ribbon for the kids half
mile fun run. I was surprised when Luke
showed me a plastic Concord Classic finisher medal without a lanyard that they
were handing out as age group awards for 5K finishers. I saw them in the box at the tables as I
finished. Either way, he got two awesome
things for finishing his race. There were
no finisher medals for the 5K. I felt great
about my race time. In a group of very
fast runners I managed to come in sixth place.
The first, second, third and fourth place women in the 30-39 age group
were all 35-39 years old.
There was a Consumers Energy tent with lots of freebies. They had heavy duty clip magnets, koozies, chap stick, stickers and “Experience Jackson” arm band pockets for phones etc.
Food:
The post-race food was kept really simple for both the kids fun run and the 5K with only bananas and glasses of pre-poured water in Styrofoam cups. I was glad they were full bananas and not halved since they were the only food item available. I got one of the largest bananas I have ever seen! It was enough to feed three people.
Awards:
Overall and Masters plagues
were given to female and male winners of the 5K run and 5K walk. The plagues were really nice with the Concord
Classic car logo and a 5K road sign on them.
I was really glad they had awards for walkers. Three deep in ten-year increments received
plastic medals without lanyards from the run staff at the finishing tent. It was a very different finish line experience. After crossing the finish line I walked
through a flagged area and came to a sign that had men and women split into separate
lines. I walked under a large canopy
where one woman had a clipboard, read my bib number and said, “No age group age
award” as I came in. Another woman was
stationed with the medal box to hand out awards to participants as they came
through the tent. This method of award
dispersal eliminated the need for an “official” awards ceremony. I was impressed with how they knew winners so
quick. When Michigan Running Foundation
times races they produce the fastest results of any timing company I have seen. That was a huge factor in Concord having
awards immediately as we crossed the finish line.
I wish Concord had had five-year age groups. I would have come in first in an age group of 30-34. I came in sixth place to women all 35 years and older. It was very ironic. I think it was a good foreshadowing of the next five years come January. I am not excited about joining the 35-39 age group next year. Women in the 35-39 year age group are extremely fast. Age group wins for me may be falling by the wayside soon. ☹
City Notes:
Downtown Concord has
a lot of great murals on buildings. They
had picture murals and historical murals that advertised products. There were amazing homes in Concord. A red, white and blue house on N. Concord
Road was exceptionally amazing. There
was an awesome historic white house with four columns and a cupola! In the last six months I feel like I have seen
a lot of cupolas on historic homes during our city trips.
There was an awesome
welcome sign made from street lights painted in different colors by Pa-La Self
Storage. Sattler’s Tasty Treats is one of the first businesses
you see coming into Concord. It opened in
1968. Concord
has an “Open Door Free Store.” It is an
amazing concept that I am sure helps Concord and surrounding communities
tremendously. Reading the store’s
reviews online confirms how impactful it is.
This was not the first time I have seen a town give free things to locals
in need, but it is the first time I have seen a store front version. I loved Grandma’s Quit Shop that was located
a little outside of town. It was a cute
little home and business name.
Falling Waters Trail
begins in Concord and spans 10.5 miles through three townships heading east where
it connects to Jackson’s Inter City Trail.
In Concord the trail runs along the beautiful Mill Pond and North Branch
Kalamazoo River. Concord made a park at
the entrance of the trail where people can barbeque, fish and gather. It’s a really beautiful spot.
There was a home that had what we called a, “metal spaceship” in their yard with a cement goose below it. We thought it was some kind of heater. It was really cool looking! Concord has a really old gas station that is out of service but still has the pumps standing. Concord’s veterinary clinic is a cozy home in a neighborhood just outside of downtown.
City Sign:
We did not find the Concord city sign the night of the Concord Classic. We came back to Concord months later and had trouble finding the city sign once again. I stopped in the Concord Township Hall Office and a woman told me the Village of Concord had their own office a half mile down the road in the heart of downtown. When I went into the Concord Village Office the receptionist told me she did not live in Concord but thought there was a “Welcome to Concord” sign at Falling Waters Park. She was right! The Concord city sign we found in Falling Waters Park had the most interesting location of any city sign I have found yet. Being in a park off main roads makes it a city sign that isn’t seen as you drive through Concord but rather as people bike, run or walk down the trail to or from Jackson. The sign reads, “A bike friendly community.” I liked that Concord’s sign had a back, front and a nice flower bed. The flowers were dead from the frost when we took the city sign picture, but I imagined how nice it looked during the Summer.
Other Awesomeness:
We were the last participants to leave the run once again! I have a new motto, “Last to arrive and leave.” My running is very unconventional and always
has been. I enjoy staying until the end
of races because on many occasions I get to chat and take pictures with race
staff. I did not do that at Concord but
I did get some great pictures of the high school with no one around. We also got to see the finish line arch being
taken down.
Jason’s elementary school mascot was a hornet. He thought the Concord hornet looked the same. I photoshopped the Hoben Hornet and Concord
hornet next to one another and Jason’s Hoben hornet was a lot cuter. Concord’s hornet is a badass hornet. I loved Concord school’s purple and yellow
colors.
Luke got to run an awesome half mile kids run with cross country
boys leading the kids. He came in second
place. His run only cost $9.00. He got a kids shirt, ribbon, medal and the same
post-race food. It was a great deal and
he had a great time. I love runs that
discount their races for younger runners.
The directional and mile signs at the Concord Classic had great
variety and were very helpful. They put
out kilometer markers in addition to mile markers on the course. They had flags, staked signs, regular cones, never
seen before cones with cardboard signs strategically placed around them and spray
paint on the roads. I really liked the kilometer
signs.
Nathan Martin was an insanely fast elite runner with a four minute
and forty four second mile time. Nathan
coaches runners at Jackson High School, is a substitute teacher, has six
sisters and is currently working on making the Olympic team and setting a marathon
PR of under two hours and nine minutes. His
current marathon personal best stands at 2:11:05. It was amazing to be in his presence.
The toilet video from inside the bathroom at Concord High School was made because Luke went in, used the bathroom and ran out yelling that a toilet in a stall next to him was flushing on its own. I went back in with him to investigate the paranormal bathroom. We found no evidence. We documented the findings by video.
Course Rating: 3.2 Stars
Post-Race Food Rating: 2.5 Stars
Swag Rating: 4 Stars
Awards Rating: 3 Stars
Concord Classic Quote:
“A flower does not think of competing next to the flower next to
it. It just blooms.” - Zen Shin
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