Part of the fun of the Flying Pirate Half Marathon are the costumes.The Race
A little more than 1600 racers were registered for the Outer Banks Flying Pirate Half Marathon. Somewhere between The Woods Road in Kitty Hawk and the finish line at the YMCA in Nags Head 400 runners dropped out, although weather may have played a role in that.
With a stiff northeast wind and hard rain at the start time this morning, it's possible some runners decided not to even give it a try.
Too bad if that's the case.
The Flying Pirate Half Marathon is a beautiful run though two maritime forests—Kitty Hawk Woods and Nags Head Woods. The course parallels Kitty Hawk Bay of much of the run and for the most part it's a flat course, although there are some hills at the end.
Race conditions at the start were a bit wet and blustery, but it did calm down a bit, creating almost a perfect condition for long distance running. Cool temperatures and a light rain to keep the body from overheating.
The winning time seemed to reflect that. Asheville native, Chass Armstrong crossed the finish line in a blistering 1:12:13, almost 15 minutes faster than the second place finisher.
The Flying Pirate Half Marathon highlights a weekend of race related activities including a 5K and fun run on Saturday.
Sponsored by Outer Banks Sporting Events, the weekend is a fundraiser for two local nonprofits—the Dare Education Foundation and the Outer Banks Relief Foundation.
Where the Visitors Originated
In addition to its role as a fundraiser, OBSE races, which include the Outer Banks Marathon in November, are designed to promote the Outer Banks as a destination.
They may have outdone themselves this year. Although most runners were from North Carolina, Virginia and Maryland—and quite a number form the Outer Banks—there was a good representation of visitors from Georgia, Michigan and California.
However, the entry that really stood out were the four or five runners from Dalian, a port city in Northeastern China.
