Running on The River 5k and 10k Recap

The Running on the River 5k and 10k is part of the Augusta Riverfest Regatta which was this past weekend and raises funds for CASA of Bracken and Mason County. This was the first year for the race. I found out about the race the week before on Bob Roncker's Race Calendar when researching races. I wanted to check out Augusta KY since a couple of famous people grew up there so anytime that I can do a race and visit a place is a good thing. Augusta KY is about 40 miles from Cincinnati and closer to Maysville than I realized.
The race was at the Augusta Riverview Park which is on the east side of Augusta. They had about 50 runners and walkers for the race. It was nice to converse and find out where other runners live since Augusta is in the middle of nowhere for a race. The race had a 5k or 10k option. Since I had run very little, I chose the 5k option which was flat unlike the 10k which included a 1 mile hill climb up a steep hill between miles 3 and 4. The 5k course was quite scenic as they took us along Riverside Drive in Augusta. One of the challenges in doing a race in a small town is that you need to be on the lookout for cars as traffic control is done by volunteers. Whether cars will respect a volunteer for traffic control is an adventure. Fortunately, it was not a problem. They had two waterstops on the 5k course and it was the first time that I got bottled water at a waterstop. Post race was bananas, bottled water and gatorade quarts. Afterward, I checked out the Riverfest Regatta and the town of Augusta. They did well for a first year race and with improvements like more food and less gatorade, I may be back in 2013.