Seashore Five-Miler goes over and under water

Trail runs at Cape Henlopen State Park are fun because they are unpredictable, transitioning from dry surfaces to soggy and saturated. 

The 41st annual Seashore Five-Miler held June 4 shot from the chute at Herring Point with 96 runners who were given the option of opting out.

“A short part of the course is underwater, and your feet are going to get wet,” Race Director Tim Bamforth told runners. “It is too late to change the course.”

Bamforth never mentioned hognose snakes, chiggers and deer ticks. Three mockingbirds were going off at the start making fun of someone, and then the industrial air horn started the race.  

“I stayed with Dylan [Smiley] the first half-mile, then just let him go,” said Martin Rodriguez. “I decided to use it as a training run. There was no one close behind me.”  

Smiley, 25, winner of the CoDel Marathon, strafed the course with his flying feet in a fast 28:02. Rodriguez, 41, was second in 30:19, which earned him the overall masters title. 

Candace Britt, 37, of Selbyville was the overall women’s champion in 38:36. 

“I was a triathlete,” she said, showing her Iron Man tattoo to prove it. “But now I’m concentrating on just the running part of fitness.”

Britt did not run in high school or college and laughed at her low-mileage, ready-to-run background. 

Eugenia King, 40, of New Castle closed in on Britt at the finish, but settled for the women’s masters title with a time of 38:43. 

Notables - Bryan Mack, 33, of Rehoboth Beach won the 30-34 age group and was third overall in 31:59. Beau Croll, 36, of Lewes rattled a stroller through the bog with son Axel on board in 37:04. Bruce Wentworth, 71, of Westminster, Md., was fastest among the older runners in 43:18. Magic Jack Noel, 84, of Lewes finished last with the biggest ovation in 1:31:30.

Keren Rams, 26, of Lewes won the 25-29 group in 43:46. Cassandra Gold, 30, of Camden Wyoming won the 30-34 division in 43:15. Megan Cerullo, 37, of New York, N.Y., won the 35-39 group in 42:01. Joanna Riordan, 47, of Rehoboth Beach won the 45-49 category in 42:49. Mardiny Ung, 56, of Elizabethtown, Pa., won the 55-59 group in 41:01. Debra Isser, 68, of Milton won the 65-69 division in 46:10. 

The Seashore Striders Triple Crown weekend begins at 7 p.m., Friday, June 16, with the running of the 19th annual Georgetown Library 5K. The inaugural 302 Uncorked 5K is set for 8 a.m., Saturday, June 17, at Hudson Fields. The race benefits Grass Roots Rescue. The weekend concludes with the 33rd annual Father’s Day 5K at 7:30 a.m., Sunday, June 18, in Rehoboth Beach.