Seventeen years of the Franklin 5k

I started running the Zeta Tau Alpha Franklin 5k in March, 1993 when I was a graduate student at Carolina. Back then, the race started near the bell tower and football stadium, worked its way down South Street, around the Ginghoul loop, on through campus and finally all the way down Franklin Street to finish at the Granville Towers apartment complex. I remember it having a very nice post-race party with lots of good food and music, and it was a nice t-shirt, so I decided to make sure and come back the next year.

That was seventeen years ago, and I've been back for the Franklin every year. Out of their twenty annual races, I only missed the first three. The course was reversed a few years ago to start at Granville and finish at the bell tower, and the last two years the course doesn't even hit Franklin Street, and we usually get colder weather now that the race is in February instead of March. Jason has run this race with me, Steve has run this race with me, Kip and Jessica have run this race with me, and I've run it alone. But the fun has stayed, and the women at Zeta Tau Alpha have always put on a good race.

For the last several years I've worn my 1995 Franklin shirt when running this race, but it's nearing the end of its life and I have to save it for this 5k. The '93 and '94 shirts got away from me, and the '96 and '97 shirts were worn to death, but I bet I still have all the others. Many times they're a bit nicer than your average race shirt, and that counts for something. Big kudos have to go to ZTA for being able to pull this breast cancer fundraiser together on what must be a shoestring budget and tons of volunteer hours.

I hope I'll be able to keep my Franklin streak going for many more years. It's always fun to be back on campus, even if my race shirt is older than some of the freshmen that are out running.