Graves wins his Labor Day debut Five-mile race hits 45-year mark

BANGOR – Some runners come to the Bangor Labor Day 5-Mile Road Race to compete. Others come in search of personal records. Others come to see friends, and reminisce about their summer.

The 45th edition of this end-of-the-summer tradition in the Queen City had a mix of runners who fit all three of those categories.

Evan Graves fits the first group. The 26-year-old Presque Isle resident and Easton High School soccer and basketball coach, running the race for the first time, ran uncontested to a 25-minute, 45-second victory.

Erik McCarthy of Orono finished second in 27:27, Joe Capehart of Bangor was third in 28:25, Adam Zukowski of Orono fourth in 29:16 and Austin Townsend of Perry fifth in 29:35.

Kristine Guaraldo of South Portland won the women’s division in 33:51, running uncontested.

Kathleen Bell of Orono finished second in 34:23, Katie Churchill of Bangor was third in 35:09, Chloe Hintz of Stillwater fourth in 35:47 and Misti Guerin was fifth in 36:06.

With the combination of its 45th consecutive run and the cancellation of the Boys and Girls Club 5-miler in Portland this spring due to a snowstorm, the race became Maine’s current longest continuously run road race.

A lot has changed in those 45 years, but certainly not the combination of good competitive nature and camaraderie at the event, which is what keeps many local runners returning.

“Just the team spirit and seeing all the Sub 5 [Track Club] people,” said Jeff Sands of Bangor when asked what draws him to run Labor Day on a yearly basis.

The race is quite different today compared to Lamoine’s Robin Emery’s first Labor Day run back in 1971.

“They didn’t have women runners [in the race], and it started at 1 in the afternoon,” said Emery, for whom the women’s championship trophy is named after.

In that 1971 race, Emery was the only female to compete in the race. Monday, 44 of the 124 runners who finished the event were women.

“It’s great to see all the women out here,” said the 60-year old Emery, who finished third in her age group and 93rd overall in 45:29. It was her 38th Labor Day race.

She did get a glimpse of the past in the final mile on Buck Street, passing Bangor Raceway where the race used to finish.

“Coming down Bass Park there I get an echo of the old days because you used to have to run around the track,” Emery said.

Like Sands, who finished 13th overall in 31:25, tradition and camaraderie are what brings Emery back every year.

“It’s just the tradition of this race, plus you see people you haven’t seen all year long,” she said. “It’s just a good race.”

Graves turned in a strong tactical race despite it being his first time on the course which winds through Bangor’s historic downtown and later passes Stephen King’s house and the Paul Bunyan statute,

“We passed Paul Bunyan?” Emery asked. “I didn’t even notice it today, there’s concentration for you.”

Graves was too busy winning the race to even notice the statue, saying he enjoyed the fast yet challenging course.

“I liked it, it’s a good course,” he said.

Graves came to Monday’s race in search of some speed work. He is currently training for next month’s Chicago Marathon, and was fairly pleased with the way his Labor Day debut went.

“It went OK,” he said, explaining that the speed work he did Monday was a good counter to the mileage he has put on over the summer.