Runners aren’t the only locals who turn out en masse annually for the Beach to Beacon. Despite Saturday’s clouds and possibility of rain, plenty of spectators got up early to line the 10-kilometer course to catch the action.
“It’s fun to have a world-class event in your hometown,” said Bud Coffrin of Cape Elizabeth, who took a seat with his wife, Deb Coffrin, along Route 77 near the race’s midpoint. The Coffrins biked three and a half miles from their home to get to the course.
“It’s been a great event for the community,” Bud Coffrin said. “Everyone has a little part to play. It’s fun.”
On top of the 700 or so Cape Elizabeth runners registered in the race, thousands of other townspeople find other ways to be involved, whether as staff, volunteers, or simply as onlookers. Race officials estimate a third to 40 percent of Cape’s 8,000-plus residents are somehow involved in the race.
“It’s all about passion and this is a passionate community,” said race founder and Cape native Joan Benoit Samuelson at a press conference on Friday.
The Coffrins saw how big a deal the first Beach to Beacon was 11 years ago and decided they weren’t going to miss the following year’s race. So they went out to watch in the second year, and their involvement increased after that. They said they’ve hosted runners from Kenya, Mexico, Romania, the United States and Morocco. This year, they opened their house to a Nike representative who needed a place to stay.
“The athletes are really easy to have in your house,” Bud Coffrin said. “They’re a little serious before the race, but after it, they relax.”
A little further along the course from the Coffrins was Cape resident Joan Burke, who had her folding chair set up a good half hour prior to the start of the race. She said it was the seventh time she’s come out for the race. She’s volunteered four years – both with registration and at the water shed. This year, she didn’t expect to be in town for the race. When plans changed, she made sure to get out to watch.
“It’s a good way to get out and get some foggy fresh air,” Burke said. She likes the spot near the intersection of Route 77 and Shore Road because “you can park close and sneak down.”
Burke, who came out with Gracie, her Boston terrier, said she’s always amazed by how fast the top runners are moving.
“I know who the elite runners are because you see them come through and then you don’t see anyone for a long time,” she said. When she worked at the water station, she said most of them wouldn’t even bother to take a water cup.
But it’s not just the top runners she comes out to see.
“To cheer on friends and neighbors is a lot of fun as well,” Burke said.
“Every year, it gets bigger and bigger,” Burke added. “I think it’s really good for the town.”
Just across the way from Burke was another Cape resident, Hollie Hayes, with her seven-month-old daughter Lila in a stroller. Hayes has lived in Cape Elizabeth for two years. This was the first year she turned out for the race. She wanted to see what all the talk was about.
“That’s the reason why I’m here, people have hyped it up so much,” Hayes said. It was a short walk from her home. She simply followed the crowd to find a good vantage point.
Hayes said the unique Cape community is the perfect place to have the race.
“What I’ve noticed since living here is everyone is into being outside and exercising,” she said. “It’s the only place I feel safe riding my bike with my daughter.”
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