By Tom Ratcliffe

Originally published in New England Runner, November/December 1988

Parked in the lot adjacent to Nike Wellesley, Tom Carleo pulled wet clothes, empty beer cans, mismatched racing flats and banana peels from his Plymouth Voyager. Tom is cleaning out the “support van” for Nike Boston’s assault on the Plymouth to Provincetown Relay. As another Bud can rattles to the black top, I am struck once again at how ragtag and lowtech the relay remains.

The P to P relay, as it is affectionately called, was an idea that was born out of Fred Brown’s participation in road relays in the in 40’s and 50’s. The race remains today as it did when it began 14 years ago, a one man operation with very few amenities. This annual trek from Plymouth to Provincetown is a combination of orienteering and running. Given the logistical problems involved, the less adventurous need not participate.

On a December day in 1974, 13 teams answered the starter’s gun for the inaugural race. Subsequent to that inauspicious debut, its popularity had grown steadily with this year’s race being closed out at 300 teams, made up of 2400 competitors. Ironically the race was moved to its present date in October due to the possibility of cold and snowy weather. This year’s rendition may have been spared the snow, but all who made it to the start braved some of New England’s worst weather, as heavy rains and gusting winds welcomed them.

The organization of the event, or lack thereof, is legend in the annals of New England running history. I had been warned about the potential problems, but I had never envisioned it to be equally as difficult to find our way to P-Town as it would be to get there ahead of the competition. My fears were confirmed when the course maps arrived. These maps (our only guide to the finish) contained such notable landmarks as “unmarked road” and “Marconi area.”

The most controversial portion of the race comes on the sixth leg. Shortly after passing the 4 mile point, the course takes a deceptively tricky turn onto Frontage Road. In 1984, a CMS runner missed this turn and continued down West Road toward Slaket Beach. Upon discovering his mistake, he jumped into a waiting vehicle and was taken back to the course. He then set off in pursuit of a BAA team member who had passed him during the mishap. The race went down to the wire, with CMS winning by 37 seconds. CMS was initially disqualified, but were subsequently reinstated as the winners a few days later.

This intersection was no kinder this year. Nike Boston and CMS battled for the lead in the first five sections of the race. On the sixth leg, Mark Kimball of Nike Boston built up a 15 second lead on Wayne Levy of CMS. As Kimball approached this infamous turn, a member of the opposing team’s support crew must have thought, given the balmy conditions, that Mark would like to visit the beach, because he said nothing as Mark turned off the course. This same individual, realizing the potential danger that the unsettled seas held, sent his man in the correct direction. Kimball, who doesn’t subscribe to the “win at any cost” philosophy, was a bit upset when he realized his misfortune, and set off in a determined quest to regain the lead.

This leads us to another story about “the corner.” The efficacious BAA, with their multitude of support people, vans, and walkie talkies, led their A team runner, Bob Walmesley, down West Road to Slaket Beach. Although it would be nice to put the blame for this miscalculation on Bob (the same person who scoffed at Nike Boston’s ability to get to the finish without getting lost), it is probably due more to the fact that the Slaket Beach sign was removed in the 24 hours preceding the race. During the BAA’s meticulous inspection of the course on the day before the race, the sign had been there, but it had somehow disappeared on race day.

The only “positive” note to this miscalculation is that it set up one of the most exciting contests of the day. The Greater Lowell Track Club passed the BAA as Walmesley looked for the beach, and the race for third was on. Doug Sweazy and Art Demers battled for the entire 8.8 miles of the final leg. Both approached the finish line, fatigue evident and legs wobbling, with Demers and GLTC getting the nod by 3 seconds. 

The misjudgment on that, the sixth leg, had no bearing on the final outcome of the relay. The race for first was a relatively close affair until the eighth and final leg, when Richard Nerukar of Nike Boston and England took the baton and headed for P-Town. Nerukar is no stranger to relay running. “In England, club athletics is very big. On a club’s calendar there are four main events, two of those being relays. Everyone runs, Coe, Cram, Ovett; it’s a real team oriented event.” Nerukar’s enthusiasm was evident as he set out for the finish, passing through 2 miles in 8:48 and 10K in 28:49.

With Nerukar in pursuit of the course record, the Nike support crew was in pursuit of a goal that would prove to be a bit more difficult to attain: that of finding the finish line. Since the finish changes each year, no one knows exactly where the race will conclude. As Nerukar crested the last hill, with 100 yards remaining, the Nike crew became more anxious. Race mentor Fred Brown, spray paint in hand, slowly ambled about, looking for a suitable spot for the finish of his race. As he proclaimed that the race would “finish here” and painted a stripe on the black top, Nerukar crossed the line.

The victorious team (Pat Gillooly, Tom Carleo, Todd Coffin, John Clopeck, Chris Schille, Mark Kimball, Tom Ratcliffe, and Richard Nerukar) climbed into Carleo’s Voyager and began treating themselves to some well earned libations. As they discussed the day’s events, there wasn’t a consensus that they would be back the following year, but there was a general agreement that aside from the few problems they had encountered, it had been enjoyable. The race creates a camaraderie among the participants which is lacking in many other athletic endeavors. Perhaps a bit disorganized, but definitely an interesting way to spend an autumn day.

Fred Brown Relay Plymouth to Provincetown, October 22

Men’s Open

1. 1. Nike Boston 6:50:38
2. 2. Cen Mass Striders (A) 6:57:30
3. 3. Gr Lowell TC (A) 7:06:16
4. 4. Boston AA (A) 7:06:22
5. 5. Cen Mass Striders (B) 7:25:38
6. 6. Cambridge Sports Union (Y) 7:26:56
7. 7. Boston AA (E) 7:29:02
8. 8. Hartford TC (A) 7:29:43
9. 9. Amtrol Racing Team 7:31:01
10. 10. Falmouth TC 7:33:02
11. 11. Wampanoag RR (A) 7:37:44
12. 12. Bentley TC (A) 7:40:15
13. 13. Cen Mass Striders (C) 7:41:33
14. 14. Gr Boston TC (A) 7:46:59
15. 15. Boston AA (C) 7:52:20
16. 16. Tie Dyes AC 7:52:43
17. 17. Shenipsit Striders (B) 7:53:20
18. 18. Fitcorp Striders (B) 7:55:50