I missed running the JSRM the past couple of years strictly because of price. Luckily (or unluckily), this year, I substituted for Dennis Murphy, who donated his entry in memory of Mel Mirliss (a longtime AREC member who died in February this year).
My history with JSRM was interesting. The first year I was aware of AREC participants, there was 1 team (I wasn’t on it.) and some runners arrived late, ran their leg, and left (and it wasn’t Tim Hickok!). The following year, I think we had three teams, and we tried to come up with the slowest sounding names (Tortoises, Slugs, etc.). Being with a faster group, we settled on Mad Cows.
The makeup of this team changes on and off throughout the years (Chuck, Laura, Todd Byers, myself, Tracey Johanson, Cindy Bear, Margaret, Todd Fanady…) but they always have a good time, with Bernard at the grill, Margaret and Roberta organizing WAY TOO MUCH FOOD! And of course, Todd Rose coordinating the whole she-bang.
Fun was had by all, we had a surprise visit by Heather, everyone ran great, and we closed down the beer area (and Ed V. wasn’t even there!). Hope to see you next year!