Wall’s Firecracker Five
celebrates its 19th year
WALL — Some of the questions that Fred Rummel receives regarding the Wall Township Firecracker Five road race leave him a bit puzzled.
“I had a Brielle resident call and ask where Wall is,” Rummel said. “The best this year was ‘What is the nearest ocean?’”
While the type of queries that he fields range from the serious to the downright bizarre, the patient and well-spoken Rummel — who has organized the event for the past 18 years — is eagerly awaiting to continue the tradition tomorrow at 8:35 a.m., starting at the Wall Township Municipal Complex on Allaire Road in Wall.
“It’s all for the love of the sport, I really enjoy it,” Rummel said. “It’s a sport that I have been involved in for some time now and I love the fact that it is a recreation sport within the Wall Township community.”
And while Rummel hopes for good weather, his response to what the weather will be like never changes.
“Well you can rule out snow and freezing rain,” Rummel said. “It’s either going to be hot and humid or raining.”
A Monmouth County Park Commissioner for 11 years, a member of the Wall Board of Adjustment for 11 years and on the Wall Planning Board for the last two years, Rummel never feels the need to step away from his coordinator role of the race.
“I’m an active guy that doesn’t let things come to me, I move and go get ’em,” Rummel said. “It’s better to be involved in the front of the room than at the back of the room.”
A former runner in marathons in New York, Boston, Washington, D.C., Montreal and Toronto, Rummel likes to consider the group of runners a fraternity, no matter the distance ran or time that participants complete their race.
“Although we’re smaller than some of the other area races, it doesn’t change our dedication and commitment to the runners,” Rummel said. “From EMTs on bicycles to firefighters hosing down runners and the police taking care of the route’s path, it’s a great effort from the community that we hope continues for years to come.”
The kid’s races kick off the festivities today at 6:30 p.m. and are broken up into four different age groups at four different distances. Registration begins at 5:30 p.m.
“The ultimate goal for the kids is to get to run the Firecracker Five,” Rummel said. “Hopefully they can move on to the 1-mile race and then be on the starting line of the firecracker.”
Those in the 4-year-old age group will be running 50 yards while children 5 and 6 years of age will run 100 yards.
“To see the little 4-year-olds run is just a great sight and a lot of fun for them,” Rummel said. “They’re the future of the main event.”
The 7- and 8-year-old age group will run 200 yards while the 9- through 12-year-old runners will compete at the 440 yard distance.
The kids races have a $5 entry fee.
All participants on Thursday and Friday will receive a Firecracker Five T-shirt.
As for tomorrow’s races, there will be a 1-mile fun run at 8 a.m., followed by a 3.5 mile leisure/fitness walk at 8:20 a.m. and then the five-mile race walk competition at 8:35 a.m.
“Not everyone can run 5 miles so we wanted to make sure everyone could be involved in the event,” Rummel said of the leisure/fitness walk that started seven years ago.
There is an entry free of $20 for that race and a post registration fee of $25 which begins at 7:15 a.m.
An awards ceremony will take place at Bar Anticipation in Lake Como following the run.