The Showdown at the Milltown JavaJog 5K

January 13th, 2024 : Princeton, NC

The Milltown Java Jog 5K has turned into a much anticipated annual event for runners in the club. This small-town race embraces and highlights everything that makes the running community great. It brings friends together, offers a flat and fast course, awards ceremony and a free breakfast after the race. The race is hosted by Milltown Java and raises money every year for a good cause. This year all money raised was for a hometown woman Jerry Jo who is battling cancer. We hope this race helps offset the financial burden of fighting this terrible disease.

Princeton is a small, rural, agriculture town located in Johnston County. So small in fact, to accomplish a 5K race requires running through town, out to some farmland then back.

The route is USATF certified and features virtually no elevation gain or loss. With the right conditions, the route offers a great opportunity to PR this distance.

This year, even with adverse weather conditions, our very own Amber set a new PR with the help of Anthony!

Amy and Dwayne, longstanding members in the club, live in Princeton and have been great proponents of this hometown race. Their enthusiasm for this local race is contagious but after you run the course, you'll know why!

This year we had almost 20 runners make the short drive to test themselves on this fast course. This year also featured a 3-way race between friends!

There was a friendly competition on course between Jan, Jesse and Dwayne. It all started last year in 2023.

There was no intentions on racings "against" each other, but in 2023 something happened. Roughly half way through the race, Jan made a move around Jesse and continued to step it out to the finish. This unexpected move, usually seen in NASCAR, put Jesse into a state of surprise. In that moment, a competition was born. Jan and Jesse continued to run hard to the finish and Jesse never caught Jan again. At the finish line, Dwayne was literally 0.05 seconds behind Jesse. We now have a 3-way competition!!

Jan's dominance at the 2023 race was a topic of discussion throughout the remainder of 2023. It set the stage for a showdown in 2024.

Jesse and Jan decided to run together, not necessarily a "race", but to stay at a competitive pace that would push both of their limits. Dwayne, as it became evident at the 0.5mi mark had other plans, this was a race!

Dwayne took off ahead of Jan and Jesse and wasn't seen again until the finish line! He set a new personal course record 25:37. This established a clear winner. As far as Jan and Jesse's race went, they were shoulder to shoulder, and within arms reach, all the way to the finish line! Jan finished less than 1-second behind Jesse's 25:54 finish. 2025 will surely be a fast and competitive, friendly competition, race.

This race brought out the best in many of our runners. Amber decided that today would be a new PR for her and she asked Anthony if he could pace her.

It's unclear if Amber was aware of Anthony's policy before the ask, but Anthony only paces winners! If you want to be a better runner, run with Anthony.

Running with friends is better! Racing with friends makes you faster! Despite the incredible powerful headwinds, crosswinds and windchill, Amber pushed hard for a new PR. With Anthony pacing her and fellow CAR runners cheering her on and running alongside, she set a new personal PR of 26:25!

This is what it looks like when you run and race with friends!

Our very own Mike finished in the top 10 with a finish time of 22:22! Even though this is a small town race, the competition is real, real fast! The overall winner finished in 16:37.

Congratulations to all of our runners! We had multiple runners place in the top 10 of their age groups!

All results can be found here along with your finish line video! Java Jog 5K Results

2nd Place (F30-39) Amber!
6th Place (F30-39) Esther!
1st Place (F40-49) Jan!
1st Place (F50-59) Amy!
5th Place (F50-59) Heather!
2nd Place (F60-69) Sharon!
4th Place (F60-69) Libby!
5th Place (F60-69) Tina!
1st Place (M30-39) Mike!
2nd Place (M40-49) Jesse!
5th Place (M40-49) Mike!
5th Place (M50-59) Dwayne!
4th Place (M60-69) Dave!
6th Place (M60-69) Stan!

Clayton Area Runners won the Team Competition for this race and was awarded with a plaque! It must be pointed out, the Race Director is doing everything right to grow this race and it's always a good time!

Whit was featured in a local YouTube video talking about the Java Jog 5K!