Here we highlight three upcoming Newark-area races happening between now and Thanksgiving.
UD Homecoming 5K
Wednesday, October 23, at 5:30 p.m.
Delaware Stadium
625 South College Avenue in Newark
Ever want to finish a race inside a stadium? Here’s a great chance to do so. This out-and-back course on the University of Delaware’s south campus, though flat, is a good challenge for all. It finishes on the football field in Delaware Stadium.
20th Anniversary Scott Mackler 5K
Sunday, November 3, at 12:30 p.m.
Temple Beth El
301 Possum Park Road in Newark
It started in 1999, right after the late CRR Scott Mackler was diagnosed with ALS. It’s probably the toughest road 5K in Delaware. Runners are rewarded, though, with a full buffet after the run. Awards for top finishers—both runners and walkers.
47th Annual Turkey Trot 10K and 5K
Saturday, November 23,
10K at 9:00 a.m., 5K at 10:30 a.m.
Norma B. Handloff Park
Barksdale Road in Newark
The oldest continuously contested race in Newark is back for another year of pre-Thanksgiving fun. Do the 10K, the 5K, or both. Great course and a great community event.
In the 10K, CRR Christina Parsons won the 50-54 age group, finishing 40th overall out of 178 runners in 48:36. Parsons margin of victory in her age group was more than seven minutes! CRR Steve Tague, who finished 24th overall, ran a solid 44:37 and took second in the 55-59 age group.
In the 5K, the honors go to two 70-and-over seniors, who each won this ever-thinning division. CRR Doug Ridge won in 28:28, and CRR April Anderson won in 42:12 (no doubt walking much of it).
The fastest time among CRRs in the 5K belonged to CRR Doug Repetti, who ran a 27:05, taking second place among the 65-69s.
In the 5K, CRR Mark Deshon ran his best 5K time of the year, winning the 60-64s and placing 12th overall out of 444 finishers, with a 21:02. This race completed a “run” of 4-for-4 age-group wins in local races for Deshon in 2017. CRR Mary Braun finished 3rd among the 55-59s in 27:58. Multiple-state-record-holder CRR Bob Taggart placed 2nd in the 75-and-over age group in 31:10.
Next Saturday, Nov. 18, the Newark community will gather, pre-holiday eating, to run in the 45th Annual Turkey Trot 10K and 5K races on Barksdale Road. The 10K will start at 9:00 and the 5K at 10:30.
Saturday was a glorious day for racing (or pretty much any activity) in Newark. CRR Dan Weile took full advantage of the sunshine and mild temperatures during the 44th annual Turkey Trot, winning his age group (40-44) in the 10K and placing 3rd among his age-group peers in the 5K (just for a cool-down, we suppose). He was the 25th finisher (out of 185) in the 10K in 43:25 and 31st overall (out of 525 participants) in the 5K in 21:59, both solid times.
Coming off heart surgery early this year, CRR Bob Taggart won his age group (75-79) in the 5K in 30:03. A 5K footnote—had CRR Mark Deshon actually registered for the race (he only did three of the 3.1 miles), he would have won his age group (60-64) by about three minutes.