Jasper

 Jasper 5k

Jasper was one of my favorite races. Sponsored by Jasper Textiles, winners received warm up suits they made in their long outsourced factory. We’d be bussed out to Bright Pond road north of town, where the sheriff with the accent similar to Boss Hog of the Dukes of Hazard, said he would arrest anyone on the spot who didn’t obey his instructions. The race was one of the few in the area I ever had the chance to finish in the top five, for this event was largely unknown to the speedsters of the Florida Track Club who usually cleaned up with the awards. This race was mostly dominated by Danny Daniels and his family of runners from Jasper and some friends from the Valdosta Track Club, Steve Plymale and the Edgar Winter look alike Rusty Jones. We usually were more interested not in who would win, but who would duke it out for last, be it Sue Moody, Gwen Roebuck or Liz Plymale.