What happened to Brentwood? (Not #124)

Well, it happens once in awhile. On Sunday, July 31, I drove out to the town of Brentwood (about 40 minutes) to take part in the "Kuiper Twin 5K," set to start at 8 a.m. at "Brentwood School" (actually Swasey Elementary School) on Middle Road. Simple enough. So I get out there, and the school is completely deserted. So is the town hall/police station. So is the town recreation center. So is everything. And there's no one to ask. Anywhere. Not even birds are chirping.

By the time 8 a.m. came and went, I had checked out all the likely spots, and found no race evidence: no cones in the road, no arrows chalked at intersections, no volunteers cautioning me to slow down for runners in the road. So I went and had breakfast in Exeter. Oh well! I'll have to pick up Brentwood (one of the remaining towns in Rockingham County) some other time.

I later found that yes, there had been a "Kuiper Twin 5K" race, but it took place on Saturday, July 30, not Sunday. D'oh! Lesson learned: check and double-check obscure road race listings before setting out, as more than a few times I've beed misled by inaccurate postings or what I refer to as SCC Syndrome. (The initials stand for "Self-Caused Confusion."