She Runs by the Seashore

 

 

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The Dogfish Dash is an annual tradition in the Junkin-Piorunski household. Each year, my boyfriend, Mike, and I participate in this race, which starts and ends at Dogfish Head Craft Brewery in Milton, Delaware.

This year, we also drove with/met up with other friends and gathered with plenty of our fellow Eastern Shore Running Club members for a photo before the start.

This was the third year that the Dogfish Dash was an 8K, which is just under five miles. When we started running this race in 2013, it was a 5K and 10K.

This year seemed to be particularly hot. The race was on Sept. 24, and it starts at 9 a.m.

Even though I think I started a little bit too far back and had to weave around people in the beginning, my first mile was still my fastest of the day, at 8:27.

 

I stopped at each of the three water stops and took two solid walk breaks with the last two. I was feeling hot, and since I’ve had heat-related issues before, I remember thinking somewhere around Mile 2-2.5 that I needed to finish healthy and enjoy the beers and party afterward.

Of course, I tried to keep up a good pace, but my pace was actually slower than what I just ran at the Mike Sterling 10K, a longer race. The weather was better for that one this year. This was also my slowest 8K of the three I have completed at this race, but I was still happy with it.

I picked up my speed at the end and did the last 0.96 mile in 8:34, coming in with a final time of 46:40.

The course is mostly flat, but there’s at least one decent hill. After the race, runners 21+ can get three beers. The choices this year were SeaQuench Ale and 60 Minute IPA. I got the can of SeaQuench ale first, but I’m not really a fan of sours and got the 60 Minute for my other beers. We also bought apple cider doughnuts and I had some of the post-race food.

Runners (21+) receive a stainless steel pint for the other beers, and we also got a water bottle upon finishing. The packet also included a reusable bag and various items, including work gloves. The T-shirt was a little bit thicker fabric than previous years.

This race normally sells out quickly (although that wasn’t exactly the case this year), and registration is generally at noon on April 1. So, if you want to register, mark your calendar — but don’t beat my fast fingers! The race benefits the Delaware chapter of The Nature Conservancy. Learn more about the Dogfish Dash here.

Splits:

Mile 1: 8:27

Mile 2: 9:16

Mile 3: 10:10

Mile 4: 10:11

Last part (.96): 8:34

Total: 46:40 (average 9:24 pace)

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