15th Annual Biltmore/Kiwanis 15K/5K Classic, Sunday May 20, 2012

Bronze statue of
Cornelia Vanderbilt and pet Cedric

What a beautiful day to feel like you've stepped back in time to run along the scenic grounds of the Biltmore Estate.  We can only imagine what is was like when Biltmore House opened on Christmas Eve 1895.







It was  the first of many gala affairs on the Estate. Guest came to relax and partake of a range of activities, from tennis, archery and croquet to picnicking, riding, and hunting; evenings brought concerts, parlor games, and dancing.  Today we joined in the 15th Annual Biltmore/Kiwanis 15K/5K Classic.  The proceeds of the event benefit the Kiwanis Children's Charities. Both 15K and 5K races are USATF certified courses.  This is truly a classic event. The entire course is spectacular, the climb up to the Biltmore House is challenging, but worth the effort as runners are allowed to run the loop past the entrance to the House. This years race brought runners from 25 states. 567 runners finished the 15K and 232 runners finished the 5K .  For full race results see www.carolinarunner.com or www.biltmorekiwanisclassicrace.com

Eve's race:  I love this race!  It's so beautiful.  My race time this year was a far cry from my PR 4 years ago, but the most important part to me is to be having fun and surrounding myself with positive fun people all having one goal in mind, and that's to get across the finish line without spewing! okay, that may be just my  goal alone... Today I was surrounded by our friends Dennis Duffy out in front of me setting pace, Karen Chavez was behind me, beside me and eventually in front of me setting an even harder pace, and the spirit of Karen's late beloved pet companion, Shelby, pulling us all toward the finish line.  I was able to hang on for a second place win in my age group.

Bart's race: Got off to a good start and I felt good the first half of the race.  The climb to the house went well and I ran a few miles with my friend John Kennedy who I haven't seen since last year.  Seeing the house in full sunshine and the fog lifting up from the French Broad river in the valley was a beautiful sight.  It was nice to know this was the highest point in the race and it would be down hill for the next two miles and then mostly flat until the finish.  From 6 miles on was where the race really began for me because I began to get very tired and had to concentrate and focus on keeping my cadence up and staying relaxed.  The race into the finish went well, but with a mile to go, I began to struggle and was glad to be wrapping it up. This was a great race and I was very happy to be running at the Biltmore Estate again.

We would also like to make a special note of exceptional accomplishment to our friend Lloyd Slocum for finishing the 5K race in a time of 23:28 (7:34 minutes per mile pace) finishing 10th place overall and second place in the Masters division.  Age graded conversion time is 14:45 which is over 3 minutes faster than the winning time. Did we mention that Lloyd is 79 years old?  Awesome!

Last 1/4 mile of the race

Last turn to the finish line

Finish line

Bart stretching out at the finish area

Awards ceremony

Our doctor, Joshua Bernstein 2nd place finish overall

Our pal, Curtis Rowe 4th place finish overall

The Bartman, 1st place age group win, 30th place overall

Shadow, modeling Eve's 2nd place age  group award

Antler Hill Village, perfect place to hang out after the race

Post race meal, warm apple turnover, mocha latte, and a bag of chips

Happy Running!
Eve and Bart