On Thanksgiving morning, I drove to Andover, MA to run The 29th annual Feaster Five Road Race.

This is a huge running event that draws over 9,000 runners for the 5K and 5 Miler. As the web site says:

The Feaster Five Thanksgiving Day Road Race in Andover, MA has been a Merrimack Valley tradition since 1987. At 10,000 participants, it is one of the largest races in Massachusetts and one of the largest Thanksgiving day races in New England.

Running the Feaster Five Miler

I’ve never run this race before, but I’ve heard about it for years. Dave McGillivray’s DMSE manages the race and the Merrimack Valley Striders host the race. It is a well run operation.

One reason I’ve never run the race is that Andover seems like a long drive on Thanksgiving Day. Fortunately, the race area is right off of Rt. 495. I got to my parking spot in Andover in less than 30 minutes.

I picked up my bib and shirt in no time and was able to relax and go for a nice warm up jog. While finishing my jog I saw a familiar face across the street. It was Mike Sikkema from the Melrose Running Club. In a crowd like that, what are the chances we would run into each other?

We chatted briefly and headed our separate ways. Mike is a top finisher in this race and finished 20th over all this year!

At the start

The start was brutal. The 5K and 5 Mile race all began at the same time. 5 minutes after the races began they let the walkers start along the side of the road.

It took me over 6 minutes to cross the starting line. For the first half mile it was all weaving and dodging other runners. In the first mile we gained 116 feet in elevation, most of it in the last quarter mile.

As I pushed up the hill it became easier to pass more runners. Mile 1 came in at 9:05. Between the crowd and the hill I was happy with that.

Around a mile and a quarter into the race, the 5K runners turned left. This opened up the road a lot as there were over 5,500 5K runners.

Miles 2 and 3 were more up and down on small hills. We ran about a mile and a half until our first turn onto Morton Street and began our winding tour through the neighborhoods of Andover.

I didn’t bring any supplies with me. I usually don’t on a 10K or shorter race. As such, I did get a drink at the two water stops.

Many people took the stops as an opportunity for a break and either stopped or walked. I chugged down a gulp or two and tried to keep moving.

At about 3 and a quarter miles we took a left onto High Street for a nice strait run down to Haverhill Street. We were now on our 4th mile and there was plenty of room for running.

With only 1 mile to go I stepped it up a bit. We continued to loose elevation and I was feeling pretty good.

When we took our right onto York Street, we were now running next to the 5K runners. Mike said he was running past 5K runners. By the time I got there I saw mostly 5K walkers.

This last third of a mile was up hill and many people were done. Even on the 5 mile side of the road, there were a lot of walkers.

I managed to keep my pace and found the turn onto Brickstone Square. The finish area seemed narrow but I gave it a kick to the finish and my last mile was the fastest at 7:56.

Apre Race

After the finish we were in a huge parking lot with thousands of people milling about. I had no idea where there was water or food, or our pies! I asked around and someone pointed me to the big tractor trailer at the other end of the parking lot.

They had tables stacked with Table Talk apple pies and volunteers handing them out. I had never seen a full sized Table Talk pie.

Someone else pointed me towards the food and water area. I collected a bottle of water, a few Lara Bars, and the most delicious Macintosh apple that I’ve had in years!

The temperature was about 34°F so I didn’t hang out for long. It was a short and slow walk back to my car. I had a great parking spot and was on my way home in no time.

Feaster Five Road Race Results

The 5 miler was won by Ruben Sanca of Chelmsford. He is well known in the area and was an Olympic qualifier in 2012! He ran a 24:44 5 miler at a blistering pace of 4:59! That is just amazing.

The top woman was Danielle Poto of Pelham, NH at 30:19 at a pace of 6:06. She was quoted as saying she doesn’t run a lot of races and usually runs alone!

For the 5K, the top man was Neal Darmody of Groton, MA at 15:37 and a pace of 5:02. The top woman was Allison McCabe of Cambridge at 18:32 for a pace of 5:58.

My buddy, Mike Sikkema, came in 20th place over all in the 5 miler with a finish time of 29:38 and a pace of 5:58. He beat a lot of younger guys who finished in the next 20 spots or so.

I finished at 667th place over all and 62nd in my age group. Out of 2,156 5 mile runners, I’ll take it! My pace was 8:28 and my time was 42:06.

Granite State Race Services gives an age graded finish also. My age graded finish was 36:14 which put me near the top of the “Local Class” of runners. That was cool to see, but I’m a long way from reaching the “Regional Class.” I guess it gives me something to shoot for.

Here is the link to both 5K and 5 Miler results.

Run well my Friends!

Andy