The cloud cover gave way to sunshine Saturday morning just before 8 a.m. and the start of one of Calvert County’s unique running events. What makes the Daring the Blaze 5 kilometer race notable is the time of year it’s run and the topography of the community where it’s held.
The eighth annual “Blaze” was run June 29 in Dares Beach.
The race is the brainchild of Noah Wood, a Dares Beach resident and avid runner. Wood started the race as a way to support the Prince Frederick Volunteer Fire Department. Company 2 reciprocates by sending personnel to aid Wood in any way they can.
“I enjoy this, the community supporting the fire department,” past chief Tim Delehanty told Southern Maryland News. Delehanty, who recently received the Strickland Award at the state firemen’s convention in Ocean City for his work in fire service certification, said he has attended all of the live races held in the event’s short history.
“It’s an opportunity for the community to make a difference,” Delehanty said.
“There aren’t too many guys like that,” Brian Ficke, Prince Frederick VFD president said of Wood, who directs the race and procures sponsors and donations.
Prior to the start of the race, Wood thanked the Dares Beach Civic Association “for allowing me to have a race in my own community.”
Those traveling the course are challenged by a few turns and hills, such as the one on Crest Street. But through all the panting and gasping for air there is the scenic beauty of the Chesapeake Bay to buoy the spirits.
In addition to volunteer firefighters and deputies from the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office, plus other volunteers shepherding runners and walkers along the course, several cadets from the Huntingtown High School Naval Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps interrupted their summer vacations to lend support to the Blaze.
The race’s name, while using terminology associated with firefighting, is also a reference to the late June heat, which so often taxes competitive runners that many race organizers opt for cooler times of the year, like spring and fall, to schedule their events.
As he has twice before, William Allen II outraced the field to the finish line with a time of 17 minutes, 42 seconds in the 3.2 mile race.
In second place was Andrew Gibson, who logged a time of 18 minutes, 8 seconds, and the third place finisher was Tyler Roberts, who posted a time of 20 minutes, 35 seconds. The top female finisher was Amanda Cordova, whose time was 24 minutes flat. Allen, Gibson, Roberts and Cordova all competed in the age 30 to 39 categories.
There were 17 Dares Beach residents in the race and 10 participants were in the 12-and-under category.
“The award for the most noisiest person on the course goes to me,” Wood joked after the race.
In a missive Wood posted after the race, he said, “It was especially encouraging to hear from several finishers who finished their very first race ever at Daring the Blaze. We are happy to be a part of your first racing experience.”
Totals on how much money was raised were not available by press time this week. Starting this weekend, those who weren’t able to make the June 29 event will be allowed to participate in a virtual event that will also benefit the Prince Frederick Volunteer Fire Department.
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