Endless Summer 5k Race Report 2025

When I registered for this race, I kinda forgot that I'd already signed up for a 5k just last weekend, so yeah... A back-to-back! 

I didn't do a Race Report for the other race, but it was the Wounded Warrior Project Carry Forward 5k. Always a good time, easy race because so many people are just walking. Nothing amazing happened. I got an amazing parking space about 1000 feet from the after-party, which was great. The tee shirt is super comfy. Picked up half a dozen bottles of Core water (love those for work because they're sturdy and refillable). Finished 56:38 and got a great medal. 

Carry Forward 5k Medal

Anyway, so on to this race, the Endless Summer 5k on St. Augustine Beach. I did it back in 2021, and I said that I wasn't impressed, but that I'd give it another shot, so here we are.  

I got there with plenty of time to spare to ensure that I got a parking spot in the lot within the park, and went to the front to get my packet, and that’s when shit hit the fan. I was told that they didn’t have a shirt in my size – a Women’s XXL, which I paid extra for. The old blue-haired cat-lady  “allowed” me to get a Men’s XXL instead, which was just so frustrating… Men’s shirts suck because they’re so boxy, which is why I chose a Women’s shirt, and why I paid EXTRA for a Women’s shirt that would actually fit my large woman body… At least the reusable tote bag and sticker were cool.

Size 11 Flip-Flop for reference

As I walked around and made my way over to the start line, I got a text on my phone; it was my old boss asking if I was here – he said he thought he saw me! We texted back and forth a few times before we found each other, gave each other hugs, and then he went back to his family.
 
We took off and trudged through the soft sand to the hard-packed water line. I won’t lie, my only goal today is to stay far enough in front of my old boss so that we don’t have to chit-chat for an hour, or do that awkward “walking near each other” dance. So I put some speed in my steps and kept my pace pretty quick (of course, “quick” is relative, lol). Didn’t end up working all that well, because we finished within a minute of each other, and only 10 people between us.

Finished 59:42 (353 out of 463 Total Runners)

I got my medal and photo, then headed back to my car. I hit up one of the beach showers to wash all the sand and yuck from my legs before I headed out. I changed my clothes and headed toward downtown to get some fudge, but sadly, my “super-secret parking lot” directly behind Savannah Sweets has been turned into private parking! So I drove around for a little bit, looking for parking, but it was just busy EVERYWHERE, what the hell? Before I knew it almost an hour had gone by! I gave up on fudge and went over to Schooner’s for lunch, and when I asked the waitress why it was so busy in town, she told me that today was the first day of Nights of Lights. Yep, that’ll do it! Everyone was here to see the town lit up in millions of Christmas lights, no wonder there was nowhere to park! Also explains why I kept seeing a lot of “Park Here for Shuttle” signs – being a person who goes to Saint Augustine a lot, I assumed that those were for something specific, and probably cost $20 to park! Oh well, no fudge for me. Instead I got delicious fried shrimp. After that, I hopped over to Walmart for some pre-vacation shopping, then made my way home to pick Hubby up from work.

So, now that I’ve done this race twice, do I think I’ll do it again? Nah, probably not. The shirts are cute, but this is twice now that they haven’t had a shirt in my size (ahem… THAT I PAID EXTRA FOR), and it’s just not special enough to overlook that. Being in Florida, there’s lots of options for on-beach races, if I want to do one of them instead (and I will… spoiler alert!)

Race Notes                                                                                        

Location: Anastasia State Park (Saint Augustine), FL

Host: Don's Friends

Race Fee: $45.29 (Saved $3 with promo code ACRR)

Extra Fee: $2 (Women's XXL V-Neck Shirt)

Packet Pickup: Easy to find, didn't have my shirt size

Parking: Got there early enough to park in large Park parking lot; more parking available along the roads

Support: One water table (accessible up and back) 

After Party: A few vendor/expo type tables, good snacks (Utz pretzels, Rice Krispie treats, bagels, bananas, water); No music or entertainment afterward

Results: https://runsignup.com/Race/Results/25416#resultSetId-606552;perpage:5000

Potatoes & Parkrunners - Spud Run 5k Race Report 2025

Clockwise from me: Ava, Kristen, Luis, Samuel, Cliff, Jon, Dustin, Troy

I've never been a trendsetter before, but you guys! I spread enough awareness of this run amongst my parkrun people that there were a bunch of us there! Whenever a group of us at parkrun are standing around, it never fails that we talk running and races! Last year, two people heard me talking about Spud Run and they ran it (I didn't know this at the time). A few weeks ago, I saw one of the guys wearing the 2024 shirt, and we started chatting about it, and he told me that he never would have known about it if not for me. As we were talking, another person asked about it, so I told them about it, and they told me the following week that they signed up to do it in April. Word got around and by race day, I think we were up to almost 10 people! Luis, Cliff, John, and Samuel all did the 15k challenge, where they ran the 10k first then the 5k. The rest of us just did the 5k. 

I got there pretty early and got a good parking spot really close to the starting area. The library was closed off this year, so packet pickup was outside. I got my bib and shirt, and I was a little frosty... They didn't have any 2X shirts - why offer them if you aren't going to order them?! The XL fit, but is definitely tighter than I'd like, so for now, it's been relegated to a "hang around the house" shirt. I picked up my bag of potatoes and brought everything back to the car. I walked toward the finish line to cheer on any 10k parkrun finishers, but I could see Clifford's Big Red Truck and he was already done, so I made my way over there instead. We BS'd for a while then I went looking for others. I found Luis, who said that he finished the 10k in about 40 minutes! After that I found Kristen & Troy, the rest of our parkrun people, did the group shot (above) then lined up for the 5k. 

I tried, y'all... I was looking forward to getting some running in, but my IT Band was not happy, so by Mile 1, I went back to straight walking. Kristen & Troy caught up with me and we walked together for about a mile, then took off on their own intervals (they finished maybe two minutes before me). 

I actually beat my 2024 time, coming in at 56:32, wow! 278th out of 317 total finishers, I was the 160th female (out of 190) and the last finisher in my age group.  

Yes, that medal is shaped like a potato!

Finish Line Video

Afterward, we all picked up our potatoes (I got a second bag, in lieu of cabbage) and went our separate ways for the day. I was kind of bummed, because I'd psyched my introverted self up for a group breakfast or something, but at the same time I was relieved that I didn't have to suffer through a group breakfast or something. 

These potatoes were so freakin' delicious!

I changed clothes and got a soda at the nearby RaceTrac then spent the day shopping around St. Augustine. I was on a mission to find a nice pair of work pants and/or a nice dress that made me feel pretty. I've been feeling down on myself lately, and I wanted to change that. 

First stop was Bealls Florida, which I thought was going to be a Beall's Outlet, but was actually their department store. I've actually never been in a Bealls Department store! Their Plus Size section was a good size, but their dress selection was small. I found a cute A-line dress that fit well, only made me look like a small tent, but none of the patterns were cute on me. I found a few cute shirts, but they didn't fit well (either too big or too tight across the bust). This store is interesting in that it truly is just how they advertise... "The Florida Store." All of the clothing was light, breezy fabrics that would be cool in the Florida sunshine. Lots of pineapples, flamingoes, nautical, or tropical vibes. The only problem is that I'm not much of a Florida fashion kind of gal. So all I ended up with was a blousy blue top and a cool running hat with a hole in it for a ponytail (I've been wanting one of these, and this one was on clearance for about ten bucks!)

Next up, I checked out the Burlington; now, I always have pretty good luck at the Burlington in my town, but boy, oh, boy... this Burlington was nasty. It looked like the store was going out of business, and there was about a month left before it closed its doors for good, and management didn't give a shit if the store looked good anymore. It wasn't going out of business, of course, but it looked that way... The Ladies fitting room was closed and blocked off by two tables full of clearance items and surrounded by carts full of junk. The wired locks that secured the more expensive purses were just dangling from hooks in the purse section. There was random crap on the floor. Racks were picked over and messy and overstuffed so you couldn't move stuff around. After about five minutes of walking around and trying not to flee from the ick of it all, I gave up... I felt like I was in a thrift shop where bad things happen in the back. And don't get me wrong, I LOVE thrift shops! 

Okay, so that was a bust; I regrouped with a corn dog and pretzel from Sonic then headed over to my all-time favorite Dollar Tree and found lots of goodies to bring home! I got some snacks, some root beer, a ready-to-finish vase, and some fake flowers to make a few new arrangements for my office. I bought a bunch of acrylic (okay, plastic) drawer organizers, but now that I'm back home, lord only knows what I'm going to use them for... It seemed like a smart buy at the time, I swear!

Next up, I wandered around Beall's Outlet, since I was still on a mission for pants and dresses, but they had nothing, so I went over to Marshall's. I was ready to give up at this point... These types of stores rarely have anything Plus Size, and if they do, it's of the Clown or Tent variety, so I didn't even look for anything really... I ended up with some undies and a bag of Butter Toffee popcorn. 

At this point, I was super-tired (I've been dealing with some PMS-like symptoms this week), so I decided to call it a day. I picked up some Chick-fil-A nuggets and a drink and made my way home. 

Getting Stretched by a Stranger - Santa Suits on the Loose 5k 2024

Hello, and welcome to a very melancholy race report, brought to you by the letters D, E, A, T, and H. 

For those who may not know, our cat Clover was diagnosed with Lung Cancer a few days after Thanksgiving, and after giving a kitty middle-finger to the nurse who estimated she had a very short time left, she passed away on December 13. 

Yesterday. 

Over the past year, personally, I've been trying to get myself back into some semblance of a routine, and getting back to running and doing races. I signed up for Santa Suits on the Loose way back in the spring, so from that standpoint, this was the worst day for a race to be on for me. If Clover was still alive, there was no way I would have left the couch, but when I went to bed last night, I thought that this would be good for my mental health. I've been moping around the house a lot this year, because of Hubby's health issues, my own health issues, and then Clover's health issues. So, I decided to go and kind of force myself to be jolly. 

I drove out to St. Augustine (as always, leaving too early), and parked in my favorite spot. I put on some of my festive gear (like my cute skirt and my Christmas Tree hat), but I just felt like a faker. I walked around everyone else feeling like a robot. 

I honestly can't tell you anything that stood out from this race... There were cute dogs and babies and costumes and a marching band. But I have no funny stories, or random thoughts that I had at Mile 2. It was like I was just programmed to walk and think of nothing at all. And, in a way, I'm so thankful for that. It was an hour of not thinking, or feeling loss, or actually crying. I was able to just zone out and stop feeling at all. I didn't have to think about Clover. Or work. Or Christmas. Or anything. I simply existed to put one foot in front of the other (okay, Winter Warlock). 

On the upside, because I wasn't thinking about anything, I wasn't thinking about how far I was walking, or how long it was taking, so I kind of just "arrived" at the finish line without realizing it'd been an hour! I picked up my medal and a bottle of water, and a few snacks. 

As I was walking around, heading back to my car, I saw that there were a few tables set up, for what I assumed was massage, but then realized it was for a company called Stretch Zone. Usually after races, these types of services are either busy because they're free, or empty because you have to pay. These were free and they were empty! So yeah, you bet I walked over there! After a short chat with the employee, telling him that I usually felt pain in my upper external calves and lower external hamstrings after a race, he moved ahead with a full lower-body routine. I figured that this would be more akin to a quickie chair massage, but I was on this man's table for at least 20 minutes! He stretched my leg up toward my head, out (like a straddle), in across my body, bent my knee and shoved my foot toward my tushie, rotated my knee out like a frog... There was a lot that he did, and holy shit, it all felt so good... well, as good as it can with my jacked-up muscles. He said that my hip flexors were severely tight (no, you don't say?!) and that I should work on them at home. As I got myself back together, I thanked him for his stretching, saying that I'd never experienced an actual stretching session before. He reached into a box and pulled out a Goodie Bag for me! He said that there was some swag in there, as well as a gift card, and took a photo of me for social media (I wonder if they'll use it, lol). Back in the car, I checked out my goodies, which included a container of Tic-Tacs, some lip balm, and y'all... a $50 gift certificate to the local Stretch Zone! Yeah, they're probably really expensive then, right? Nah, I don't think so. I looked them up later, and they look to cost about $100 for an hour-long session, so basically, it's half-price. I plan on using it soon, next time I'm in St. Augustine (maybe after Gate River Run in March... that's only an hour's drive south). They also have something called a Flex Membership, that is $100/month that includes two stretches per month, with the ability to pay a smaller fee for extra stretches. Honestly, $50 is about what I spend for my massages... And I found out that they have a Stretch Zone in the city I live in! I'm really wondering if it's beneficial to get me limbered up to a point that I can take over and fix myself the rest of the way... 

Anyway, after a delicious stretch, I headed over to Culver's for lunch, picked up some groceries at Aldi, then headed home. I felt a little better by the time I got home, but when I parked and didn't see Clover in the window, I remembered that she was gone, and it just hit me all over again. I went inside and snuggled with hubby for a while then had dinner and went to bed early. Today helped a little, but not nearly as much as I wanted it. 

ETA: I don't think it fixed as many of my mental issues as I thought it did... I kind of had a little meltdown about a week after this post... Not my finest day, but a totally understandable one.