This morning it was down to Pembroke, Massachusetts for the Huss Dog Jog 5 Miler. This race is held in memory of Steven Hussey and raises money for the American Stroke Association and a scholarship fund.

The race started and finished at the Pembroke High School and part of the course was through a street on the grounds of the school aptly named Learning Lane. After a quick loop through the school’s grounds for the first mile of the race it was then off into the streets of Pembroke for the next 3 miles. Feeling pretty good through 2 miles, I was in third place and running pretty strong. Race time temperatures were warm but not too hot however the humidity certainly crept in along the course in a big way. Thankfully the race started at 8:45 AM or this could have been really tough.

The running through the residential streets of Pembroke was rather tough as there were a good amount of rolling uphills along the way. That said, one would have expected to see some downhill rollers but they seemed few and far between. A really nice climb around 3.5 required you to kick the legs into high gear and with head down looking at the pavement I made my way up the hill pretty strong. The mile 4 marker was back on the school grounds where runners were met by those taking part in the 2 mile walk. The last mile was a loop back down the same loop the race started off on before doubling back toward the finish line.

Kudos to the race organizers who put on a nice race with raffle prizes, post-race snacks and a DJ keeping the mood light. The Pembroke Police Department also did a really nice job supporting along the course with traffic detail ensuring the runners were able to run without much disruption while out on the road.

I finished the Huss Dog Jog 5 Miler with an overall finish of 5th place and a time of 39:29 which was good for 7:54/miles. Always gotta love a Top 5 finish!