Neither Rain Nor Sleet Nor Edicts Can Stop Runners In Manchester

MANCHESTER, CT — On a rainy, chilly Thanksgiving morning when the streets of central Manchester were relatively deserted, a number of runners ignored a request from town officials and traversed the 4.748-mile course of the Manchester Road Race.

Normally, Main, Charter Oak, Highland, Porter and East Center streets are jammed with not only more than 10,000 runners, but thousands more spectators basking in the combination of elite world-class and Olympic competitors, weekend warriors and total goofballs dressed in the gaudiest of get-ups. However, the coronavirus pandemic forced race officials to conduct the event on a virtual basis this year, and they encouraged competitors to stay off the course and find alternative spots to run.

Despite the edict, an estimated 100 runners were seen running the course Thursday morning, albeit in small groups or individually rather than in large packs. Many waited on the sidewalk across from St. James Church until 10 a.m., the normal starting time for the race, then headed southbound on Main Street. The front lawn and driveway of the church, normally the hub of activity as the corral for thousands of walkers, was eerily empty, save for a lone Manchester police SUV.

Some of the usual cast of characters were on hand: three guys wearing red, white and blue body paint (and little else) carrying the American flag; a trio of friends portraying the Hanson Brothers from the hockey film "Slap Shot"; and a few scattered turkey hats. Noticeably missing, however, was the rock band which plays at the end of the driveway of the last house on Highland Street before the left turn onto Porter Street. Instead of the usual jamming groove of Led Zeppelin, we were treated to the prerecorded strains of John Denver.

Kevin Loggozzo of Wethersfield, Brian Carvell of Ellington and Carlos Velasquez of South Windsor have participated in the race dressed as the Hanson Brothers for a dozen years.

"It wouldn't be Thanksgiving morning without putting on the foil," Loggozzo told Patch.

One notable who ran the course Thursday was Charlie Duggan, returning 40 years later to the scene of his 1980 victory. Now 67 and living in Tennessee, he was also a 2-time runner-up in the race, and remains the last Connecticut resident to win the event.

Matt Conyers, past president of the Connecticut Sports Writers' Alliance, ran the course alone, unaccustomed to having freedom from the hordes of runners normally packed into the streets.

"It was definitely different," he told Patch. "Still I had to get out there. I have run it every Thanksgiving since I was in second grade. So it just felt right to be on the course, even if it wasn't racing. It was nice to have some people out there, too, but man it is a weird year."

Here are some photos from Thursday morning.

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