AUBURN - After a long morning of cycling and kayaking, Greg and Kathie Speck of Rensselaerville were ready to relax and listen to music during the post-Great Race celebration.

The two, who both participated during Sunday's morning race, had brought chairs to set up around the stage area to enjoy the music and spend time with old friends.

Greg Speck said he grew up in Auburn, but now lives in Rochester. This is his second year participating in the Great Race and he said it's one of the few times he's able to get back to the area.

"I've got to see people I haven't seen in 30 years," Speck said.

Jim Hanley, a Great Race committee member, said event organizers have been providing post-race entertainment for participants and the community since the beginning, starting with a small jug band after the first Great Race.

The level of entertainment has grown in 28 years, however. Hanley said the sound system and the caliber of the bands have both improved.

This year, the committee brought back Letizia and The Z Band, a professional group out of Syracuse who performed after the race last year.

"They're a happy, fun group," Hanley said. "You want a group that personifies what we are. We want to make sure that they are really top notch."

By the first song, a small crowd had gathered around the stage. Hanley said he's hoping the post-race entertainment will be just as popular this year as it was last year.

"Usually the crowd doesn't start dancing until the third or fourth song, but it started much earlier last year," he said. "We wanted them to have an all day affair."

John and Kim Hutchings of Rochester have been participating in the Great Race for a few years. Like Speck, John said he only gets back to Auburn once in a while, and he wanted to stay around for the celebration after the race to relax and see others.

"We try to see the people that we haven't seen in a while," he said. "We're just here to relax, but it sounds like a good band."

Chuck Fluno and Dale Ottosen of Auburn have been participating as a team for the past four years.

The two, along with several friends, had set up a tent and lawn chairs near the stage. Fluno said the group has been bringing the tent ever since they went without one the first year and suffered through 100-degree heat.

Ottosen, Fluno and their teammates plan to continue to participate in the coming years, even though it requires a fair amount of training.

"We're here to have fun, but we don't want to embarrass ourselves," he said. "It keeps us off the couch."

Staff writer Anne Gleason can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 248 or anne.gleason@lee.net