May 9, 2015
By Michael Pelletier
May 9th in Chelsea turned out to be another exceptional spring day. It started out cloudy and cold, but by race time (10 am) it was sunny but still cool and dry—perfect for racing.
The Chelsea Chase 5K starts and finishes at the Dockside Pub in the new Market Basket Plaza. This is a surprisingly scenic and fast course which quickly goes up and around Admiral’s Hill on Commandant’s Way past the historic brick buildings of the former Chelsea Naval Hospital which was decommissioned in 1974, before it swoops under the toweringly high Mystic River Bridge and then rolls into the City Hall area to loop around and then head back for another trek up Admiral’s Hill. I had forgotten how we now had to climb even higher to the true top of the hill before we headed down and then snaked back up again before a final long descent to the dead flat two-block-long final stretch.
Leading all North Shore Striders was the speedy Vanessa Diranian who was 1st F30-39 and 5th Woman overall. Close behind her was Neil the Snail, followed by Tom McMahon.
The Chelsea Chase 5K comes with a free lunch at the Dockside Pub (which truth be told is blocks away from the docks on the Mystic River) and two free drinks—either alcoholic or non-alcoholic. What could be better than lunch and a couple of cold ones while you relax on the patio beside the pub and await the race results with teammates?
North Shore Striders at Chelsea Chase 5K
| Name | Time | Place |
| Vanessa Diranian | 24:17 | 1st F30-39 |
| Neil Bernstein | 24:38 | 2nd M60-69 |
| Tom McMahon | 25:37 | 3rd M60-69 |
| Mike Pelletier | 26:29 | 1st M70-79 |
| Rosie Kyes | 29:14 | 6th/24 F40-49 |
| Marisol Ficaro | 29:14 | 4th/14 F50-59 |
| Jackie Gomez | 29:58 | 12th/33 F30-39 |
| Maureen Kelly | 31:30 | 5th/14 F50-59 |
| Mary Stevens | 32:43 | 6th/14 F50-59 |
| Armand Claveau | 34:32 | 4th/4 M70-79 |
| Jenny Reynolds | 38:10 | 22nd/33 F 30-39 |
Note: seven of us ran both the NECC Campus Classic 5K and the Chelsea Chase 5K and every one of us ran faster in Chelsea despite the hillier course. Loving the downhills the most was Jenny Reynolds who improved her time for the 5K by a whopping 2:17 in just one week.
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