ST. ALBANS — Runners again will have the chance to follow in the footsteps of bank-robbing Confederate raiders during next weekend’s St. Albans Raid 150th Anniversary Commemoration Celebration.
The Second Annual St. Albans Raid Half Marathon, a 13.1-mile race, is sponsored by the Franklin County Regional Chamber of Commerce (FCRCC) Sunday, Sept. 21, at 9 a.m.
One of the runners already registered is longtime Bellows Free Academy-St. Albans cross-country and track coach Michael Mashtare, who has been a running presence in the community for the last four decades or so.
The 54-year-old Georgia resident has coached students for 33 years, including his own children, Meredith, 14, and Ethan 10. Mashtare also began his own running fitness business last year.
Michael Mashtare, who has been a running presence in the community for the last four decades or so, will be among the hundreds of runners in the St. Albans Raid Half Marathon on Sept. 21.
Mashtare ran the St. Albans Raid half marathon last year, something he said was a last-minute decision.
“I figured I needed to support it so I jumped in,” he said in an interview on Tuesday. “I thought it was a fabulous event.”
Mashtare said he especially enjoyed the out-and-back nature of the racecourse. “You get to see people both ways,” he said. “It makes it fun.”
He added, “The terrain was very forgiving.”
Mashtare ran the race with several of his athletes in August last year. Because the race takes place in September this year to coincide with the raid anniversary events, Mashtare said none of his students would do the race due to it coinciding with cross-country season.
His daughter, Meredith, is planning to do a two-person relay with a friend.
Mashtare said while he’s going to run next weekend, he probably won’t be getting any personal best times. He does want to beat one hour, 41 minutes, the
time he ran in his last recent half-marathon.
For Mashtare, running, whether with his athletes or in local races, is a way of life for him. “I think I’m just avid about running because it’s just something you can do your entire life,” he said. “It’s a cultural thing.”
As for St. Albans and the rest of Franklin County, Mashtare said it’s perfect for runners, both local and out-of-town. “We’ve got some of the most beautiful places here on earth,” he said.
In raiders’ footsteps
According to FCRCC assistant to the director Lisamarie Charlesworth, the race will allow runners to get a little taste of history.
The St. Albans Raid was the northernmost land action in the Civil War – it took place on Oct. 19, 1864 when 2 or so Confederate soldiers (dressed in civilian clothes) robbed three banks of $208,000, held villagers by gunpoint on the village green, killed one man, injured others, tried and failed to burn St. Albans to the ground, and then escaped to Canada.
Charlesworth said in an interview this week that the race will start and end at the location of one of the banks robbed 150 years ago, where TD Bank now is on North Main Street, and next to the former village green, which is now Taylor Park.
The runners will follow the path of the Confederate raiders along the Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail until the halfway point, where they’ll turn around and head back to St. Albans City.
“A good chunk of the course is the route that the Confederation used to escape to Canada,” said Charlesworth in an interview this week. “They’re actually running in the footsteps of the soldiers.”
In addition, the race is started by a live volley shot from muskets held by Civil War re-enactors in full costume. This historical presentation pre-race was well received last year, the first time the race was put run.
“It was so cool,” Charlesworth said. “The runners were blown away by it.”
She added, “Last year’s was very successful – we got a lot of positive feedback.”
Charlesworth said the half-marathon’s early success on its first go-around promised good things for this year. Charlesworth has been working hard alongside FCRCC’s executive director, David Southwick, former FCRCC executive director, Peoples Trust Company business development and marketing manager and race director Jay Cummings, runner and Peoples Trust Company treasurer Aaron Reynolds, and “scores of volunteers” to put on this year’s race.
The Rotary Club of St. Albans is a primary sponsor of the race. Northwestern Medical Center, Mylan Technologies, and Peoples Trust Company are also sponsoring the race.
“We could not do it without the volunteers,” said Charlesworth.
As of early this week, over 100 runners had signed up for this year’s event, the registration for which closes Saturday Sept. 20 at 4 p.m.
Drawing in visitors
It appears runners from other local towns, from other states, and even other countries, think this area is good racing grounds. According to Charlesworth, participants are coming from each New England state, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Florida, and even Ireland, among other places.
“We’ve got runners from all over,” said Charlesworth. “There are some people coming who have never been to St. Albans before. That’s a really key point for the community.”
She added, “We’re drawing people in. We want those people here.”
That’s exactly what Jay Cummings, former FCRCC executive director as well as the race’s director and original creator, wanted too. “I wanted to do something to expand St. Albans’ tourism,” said Cummings on Wednesday. “I thought, ‘What a great event it would be to have a run commemorating the raid.’”
Though the race was Cummings’ brainchild 15 years ago, it became more relevant last year.
“As we got close to the 150th, I said, ‘It’s time to do it,’” Cummings said.
Last year’s race took place just after St. Albans City finished a large portion of the downtown streetscape project. “The place looked perfect,” Cummings said. “A lot of [runners] had never seen St. Albans in their lives.”
The event’s good reception from runners both local and from out-of-town showed Cummings the race did exactly what he intended it to do – it showed more people that St. Albans is a good place to come and run in a unique race, stay in hotels, eat at restaurants, and shop around. Due to its success, the St. Albans Raid Half Marathon will continue to be put on by the FCRCC for many years to come, according to Charlesworth and Cummings.
“It worked out great,” Cummings said. “I love stuff that’s good for the community.”
By ELODIE REED
St. Albans Messenger Staff Writer
