Cross country Coach Vince DeGrado's team won their home meet, but his golf cart caught on fire and was destroyed at the end of the men's race.

With all apologies to Charles Dickens, Saturday was the best and worst of times for Vince DeGrado. First the good.

DeGrado’s Allen Community College cross country teams both shined, with the Red Devil men placing five runners in the top 12 of the Red Devil Duals, and two of the three Allen women — local runners Rachel Bycroft and Elka Billings — both securing top-10 finishes.

DeGrado didn’t get to bask in the glory for long. Not long after the men’s race concluded, DeGrado’s golf cart — used as a trail vehicle to follow the runners along the old Cedarbrook Golf Course grounds — caught fire and exploded.

There were no injuries, but the cart was destroyed, as was a GPS device and other personal effects. “Maybe you can say we ran so fast that we set the course on fire,” DeGrado joked.

Allen women’s soccer coach Jeremy McGinnis was driving the cart at the time on the makeshift course. DeGrado had set up the route in a matter of 10 days because its original site, the Allen County Country Club, had to undergo a maintenance project.

A cause of the fire has not been announced, but DeGrado suspects dry grass likely came in contact with the engine and began to smolder, then burst into flames. Several paint cans in the back of the cart quickly overheated and burst as well.

Firefighters were on the scene within minutes and quickly doused the flames, but the cart was destroyed. “Melted the (heck) out of everything,” DeGrado said.

DeGrado purchased the cart in 2011, and used it frequently for his duties as cross country coach. It was not insured. And the hits kept on coming.

In his haste to get water to try to douse the flames, DeGrado dropped his cell phone onto the ground, only to find later that somebody had stepped on it. “That hurts almost as much as the golf cart,” DeGrado said. 

Even so, DeGrado kept things in perspective. He was grateful McGinnis, who was driving the cart with his young daughter, were able to escape the vehicle in time. And now he and his teams will have another memorable event from an already unforgettable season, that he hopes ends with a national title.

“Regardless of whether we win or lose a national title, sometimes the journey is the reward,” he said. “This adds to it.” But perspective doesn’t pay the bills, he laughed. “Is it OK to ask for a GoFundMe page for me?” he joked.