Hurricane Barry could not dampen the enthusiasm of Mississippi runners Saturday as the 8th annual Rez run, part of the Choctaw Indian Fair, got underway under threatening skies.
Race director John Ferguson said the run was a great success with over 200 runners turning out for the 10K, 5K and 1-mile fun run distances.
In fact, Ferguson said, organizers had to delay the race for 30 minutes due to an influx of runners registering.
“There was a race in Meridian, a triathlon, that was canceled,” he said. “That’s what delayed our race because we had an influx of people coming from that.”
This year, Ferguson said, the Rez run partnered with Mississippi Race Timing to do the timekeeping for the race. In previous years, he said, the Rez run worked a company out of Atlanta, Georgia to do the timing.
“It’s worked out really well,” he said. “Thank goodness the weather is cooperating.”
Ryan Crandall, who won the 5k race with a time of 18:02, said he enjoyed the Rez run so much last year he decided to come back again this year. The weather, he said, was perfect for running.
“This is my second year to do it,” he said. “I did the 10k last year.”
In 2018, he said, he ran the 10k while his coworker and running buddy, Peter Kazery, ran the 5k. This year they swapped places, both winning their respective races.
Crandall said he focused on speed during the first mile, putting distance between himself and the rest of the 5k runners. Then, he said, he focused on pacing himself and maintaining the lead for the remainder of the race.
But most of all, Crandall said, he just focused on having fun.
“It’s a fun race to do,” he said.
