Westminster
celebrates the 38
th running of the Main Street Mile
April 10, was the scene of the 38th annual Westminster rite
of spring – the Westminster Road Runners Club Main Street Mile
The annual event dates back to 1981 and is known as one of
the fastest one-mile courses in the world, because it begins at the top of East
Main Street at Fair Avenue and follows Main Street west to the Westminster
Branch of the Carroll County Public Library - all downhill, with a total
vertical drop of 144 feet.
This year the weather was nearly perfect as friends,
families, and neighbors gathered on Main Street to take part in the historic
event. In keeping with tradition the first heat began at 7 p.m. The race is run
in two “heats.” Heat #1 is officially timed and scored with prizes awarded. To
qualify for Heat #1, you must be age 11 or older and be capable of running a mile
in less than 10 minutes.
Heat #2 is the “Connor Smith Memorial Fun Run.” It is neither officially timed nor scored. A
clock showing an unofficial race time, however, will be at the finish line.
Because so many young people participate, the Main Street
Mile is really quite a fun family event.
Even the “race numbers” are fun, since everyone under the age of 10
wears a race identification badge, which bears the number “1.”
The cheers for the “number 1’s” always seem the heartiest,
since finishing is quite an accomplishment for the little runners. Every
“number 1” is awarded a medal at the finish line.
Hats off to the Westminster Road Runners Club - WRRC. The Main Street Mile is a five-star
community event that brings together many different
folks for an enjoyable family-oriented experience.
The quality of the WRRC and the greater Westminster
community shines through as the race itself has regional “cult” status in the
running community and brings many visitors to Carroll County.
Organizing the Main Street Mile is a feat all to itself. The
race seems simple enough - a one-mile straight shot. But organizing the race is
deceivingly complicated as it involves closing Main Street and many intricately moving gears which all need to come
together perfectly at a precise time.
Fortunately, getting complicated
things done for the greater benefit of the community is something that is
second nature for Carroll County. Thanks to over 50 volunteers and the help of
the Westminster Police Department and Fire Police, this year’s event was
another great success.
Credit also belongs to the “Race Director.” There have been many great Main Street Mile race
directors over the years, including Beth Weisenborn, Liuda Galinaitis, and one of the
founders of the event, the late Dave Herlocker.
This year’s race director extraordinaire is once again the
totally unflappable Sandy Cole Matthias.
The very busy Westminster Family Center in the Jerome Day
historic armory building on Longwell Avenue graciously opened its doors for
pre-race registration and the after-race ice cream and results.
Yes, ice cream, the key ingredient of all successful
community events.
Our correspondent Kevin Dayhoff has covered the Westminster
Main Street Mile for over 20-years. Some portions of this article have appeared
in previous stories in previous publication.
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Photo captions:
The Westminster Road Runners Club is a non-profit
organization, based in Carroll County, Maryland. The goal of the club,
according to information obtained from its website,
https://sites.google.com/site/wrrclub/,
is to promote a healthy and active lifestyle through running. Courtesy Westminster
Road Runners Club
Main Street in Westminster on Wednesday evening, April 10,
was the scene of the 38th annual Westminster rite of spring. Kevin Dayhoff |
www.KevinDayhoff.net
Ice cream is distributed after the race. Yes, ice cream, the
key ingredient of all successful community events. Kevin Dayhoff |
www.KevinDayhoff.net
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Westminster Annual Main St Mile, Mile, Westminster Annual Main St Mile, Annual Events, Dayhoff writing essays running, Dayhoff writing essays Sports, #DayByDay, Dayhoff writing, Dayhoff Media Westminster Patch,
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Kevin Dayhoff for Westminster Common Council
Westminster Municipal election May 14, 2019
Authority Caroline Babylon, Treasurer.
