GET NOTHING 5K #010 - Superb Owl Sunday 5K

[Word has it there is some sort of large sporting event on television on this day.  WHO is planning on watching?  WHO is maybe even planning to consume copious amounts of food and libations while doing so?  Whether or not, why not come out to move your body for a bit before then - join this FREE timed 5K and burn off some calories.  You will definitely see "Eagles" later - and WHO knows, you might even see an eagle while running with us today, because:  originally the plan was to run the Southbank Riverwalk with a view of the "Football Stadium" at the turnaround, but since that area appears to be under construction, we will be traversing beautiful Ringhaver Park instead.  And since this is the "SUPERB OWL Sunday 5K", it makes sense to run here, in Jacksonville's second-largest natural owl 🦉 habitat (I totally made this fact up, but WHO would know the difference?  Plus surely there are at least SOME owls around here... probably even some SUPERB OWLS! 🦉).  

A great mix of paved forest paths and wooden boardwalks takes you all the way down to a side branch of the Ortega River and back for 2 loops.  At the Get Nothing 5K you famously get NOTHING, but thanks to our generous donors, this time all participants will receive a superb owl 🦉 mini-medal as a memento. WHO can afford to miss this great little FREE running event?  Not you!  Join the fun early afternoon, and you'll be back at your regular viewing stations in ample time to view that purported large sporting event on television! 

We will meet all the way further INSIDE Ringhaver Park at the parking area near the baseball fields, so go right past the soccer fields by the entrance. If you put "Ortega Stream Valley Trailhead" or "Ringhaver Playground" into your GPS mapping app, you SHOULD find it fairly accurately.]

GET NOTHING 5K offers NO swag bags, NO medals, and absolutely NO shirts - just the pure, unadulterated joy of running together.  Experience the exhilaration of crossing the finish line and getting NOTHING: no cheaply made medal to gather dust, no poorly designed t-shirt to stuff in your already overflowing drawer, no pressure to compete for age group awards - just the satisfaction of knowing you ran 5 kilometers and had FUN while doing so.  Since you get NOTHING, you even need to bring your own HYDRATION.  But that's okay, because you also PAID NOTHING - GET NOTHING 5K is a FREE TIMED 5K.  🤷‍♂️

Make it whatever YOU want it to be:  you can run fast and aim for a PR if you want, but if you "win", you still get NOTHING.   Run fast, or run slow - or somewhere in between.  Do a tempo run, interval training, use it as a tune-up or shake-out, just get in a few miles for the day, or enjoy a leisurely jog with your running bestie.  Meet new friends, catch up with old ones, encourage others along the way, maybe even inspire someone to join the fun next time.  

Running together is always more fun than running alone!  😍

WALKERS are very welcome.  GET NOTHING 5K is a community event meant for everyone, regardless of pace.  There will be a designated "TURTLE" whose job is to bring up the rear.  So unless YOU volunteer for this vital task, you will never finish last!  

Since you get NOTHING to eat or drink at the finish line - no water, no chewy granola bar, not even a stinkin' banana - why not have a spontaneous social meet-up afterwards?  Go for a beverage, ice cream, or some tacos with your fellow finishers.  You earned it today!  After all you ran 5 kilometers, by gum!  

To participate: register online, check in before the start to get your bib, then wear it on your FRONT.  Timing is done manually, and that's really hard to do if you hide your bib!  There are no timing chips - everything is GUN TIME.  That means the clock starts when the GO command is given, NOT when you cross the start line.  Keep that in mind when comparing official results with your own GPS time, so no complaining later!  Depending on where we run, there may or may not be toilets available nearby... so please mind your own "business" before the start.

Let's get together to RUN, and to have some FUN - see you at the start line!  🏃 🏃‍♀️

PLEASE BRING YOUR OWN HYDRATION.