Total chaos broke out at the Saenger Theatre in Hattiesburg Saturday night as the Azalea Trail 10K post-race party spilled over from the Mobile Convention Center to the formal Heritage Festival concert featuring Ricky Skaggs. Unable to contain themselves after strong performances in the race in preparation for the Boston Marathon, Vicki Copeland and Joni Dunbar stunned the VIP crowd during the concert by storming the stage and clogging to "Rocky Top", a skill Dunbar perfected while growing up in the east Mississippi town of Waynesboro. (Copeland, a former prima ballerina, spun around on her toes in front of the stage as Skaggs wondered at the footwork of the Pacers’ own Dunbar.) But in spite of the evening’s climax, the real story was written that morning as the Pine Belt Pacers, thanks mostly to Nestor (Jean Claude Van Dame) Raul Anzola, sent its largest group ever to a race.

The evening before the race, the Pacers were hosted by the President’s mother, Barbara Bush Coll, who was not happy when Copeland accidentally slung her glass of Cabernet onto the lush carpet in the den. For her part, Copeland shrugged off the move as two of the club’s members hit the deck to sponge the mess up from the once-off white colored carpet. Things deteriorated further as Keith Barrett, unattended outside by the fire, commenced to discussing his plans for Boston with President Jim Coll, as a mesmerized Keith Hilpp listened in. Several members of the old guard decided that enough was enough and bailed out early, heading for the Ramada Inn in downtown Mobile.

Race day was gorgeous; perfect weather for running and walking. After a short warm-up, the Pacers formed at the starting line, lead by none other than Mustaffa Khanoucchi, of Soccer Locker fame. Other Pacers present, some hung over and some not, included a sleek looking Phillip Wedgeworth and Richard Sims, Hilpp, Coll, Barrett and his wife Deborah, Copeland, Dunbar, Anzola, Kim Ryder, Becky and Hollie Ryder, Dawn Smith, Brandy Windham, and a wired-up Steve Ulery.

Conditions Saturday promoted fast times, and those who didn’t have fast times the night before or after such as Dunbar and Copeland, certainly did during the race. Several Pacers set personal records (PR’s), such as Keith Barrett, Steve Ulery, Joni Dunbar, and others. Barrett actually beat his nemesis Coll by a second; both men completed the 6.2 mile course under forty minutes.

At the expo following the race, the party cranked up to live music, adult beverages, and good company. Special sightings included world-famous Leonard Verngunst of the Gulf Coast Track Club and Chuck George of the New Orleans Track Club. (Both refused to have their picture made with former president Tony Mozingo, however, and were only interested in whether Coll was participating in the Gulf Coast Triathlon…) The Azalea Trail Run is one of the best races of the year, especially when it extends into the evening to a concert in Hattiesburg.

The only comment made by a resolute Tony Mozingo, still on the comeback trail after six months, was to his wife back in Hattiesburg during the Skaggs concert. As Dunbar and Copeland approached the stage in a trot, he said:

"Now can you believe this? We finally have something really nice downtown and this happens…"

His wife’s only reply was, "Hey, that’s your buddies, isn’t it?"

The last thing Mozingo was heard saying as the couple snuck out the emergency exit was;