The 640 runners who competed in the first Viking Half Marathon and 5K Saturday found Greenwood’s hospitality to be one of the highlights.
In post-race interviews, almost every half marathoner remarked about the number of spectators who came out to cheer along the route and at water stations.
“It helps you keep your mind off: ‘I’ve got this many miles to run,’” said Heather Chase of Jackson, who was competing in her third race of the year alongside her husband, Bryan.
“The volunteers out there cheering, that’s a nice touch. ... Helps you find that little burst of energy you didn’t know you had sometimes,” John Coccato of Vicksburg said.
Coccato also liked the course, being accustomed to training up and down the hills of the Vicksburg National Military Park.
“It’s fun to come run where it’s flat,” he said.
In the half marathon, 352 runners finished, and another 35 participated but didn’t finish in time, according to results posted online. Also, Clinton Boyd of Canton completed the wheelchair half marathon, doing it in one hour and 22 minutes.
In the 5K, 225 finished with an additional 27 competing.
The Greenwood-Leflore County Chamber of Commerce put on the event with Viking as the title sponsor.
At the starting line at 8 a.m., it was clear that a half marathon had attracted a different body type to the notoriously hefty Delta: There were a lot of very fit, very serious looking runners.
The half marathoners and 5Kers dashed off at the same time in front of the Leflore County Courthouse. They remained together as the race meandered through downtown, eventually splitting off on Front Street. The 5K runners ran toward the finish line in front of Viking Range Corp.’s headquarters, while the half marathoners branched off for another 10 miles in leafy North Greenwood.
Many of their appearances had changed greatly by the time they returned to Front Street. Running 13.1 miles put some strained, red looks on participants’ faces, but most seemed to recover quickly enough to enjoy the post-race cookout on Front and Main streets.
Shane Cook of Ridgeland pushed through his first marathon after being talked into the run by his friend Brian Clegg of Madison, a veteran of seven half marathons and two full ones.
Cook said having Clegg alongside gave him the motivation to keep going. He said he was pleased with his first try.
“It was great support from the community, I thought. A lot of people game out from the neighborhoods,” Cook said.
Clegg agreed: “I thought the crowd for a small-town race did a really good job,” he said.
Patrice Peacock of Carrollton enthusiastically cheered runners on East Claiborne Avenue and later as they exited Keesler Bridge for the stretch run on Front Street.
“They so deserve it. They are doing something that obviously a lot of us don’t do,” she said.
Runners universally praised the race, but some offered constructive criticism for how the event can improve.
Clegg said he’d like to see chip timing rather than a gun to start the clock for everyone, and he said he also wasn’t crazy about the 5K starting at the same time as the half marathon.
“I liked it except for the roads need to be fixed. Oh, they’re terrible,” said Jayme Jones of Batesville, referring to the milling work done last week. The city plans to repave the streets soon.
Heather Chase said she’d prefer pushing the start time up an hour to 7 a.m. so it wouldn’t be as hot.
Still, it was an overall good experience for her and her husband. She said she appreciated The Alluvian opening its doors to runners for registration and massages.
“We had a great time. We’ll come back next year,” Bryan Chase said.
• Contact Charlie Smith at 581-7235 or csmith@gwcommonwealth.com.
