EXCELSIOR Running Club Results - 2008 
Empire XC - 08/23/08 Mickle Third, Daikoku Top 10! Iain Mickle led our masters with a fine 3rd place finish (19:06), while Jin Daikoku started off his cross country season with a strong 10th place finish, two seconds faster than Iain. Some of our women were out there, but I don't believe a full team. Details . . . Open Men
Byline Jin Daikoku With the promise of a full scoring Open Mens team, 5 of us made the trip out to Santa Rosa. Knowing that our bitter rivals at WVTC would be in Oregon for the HTC, we had high hopes for the XC season opener. Somehow they managed to field a full team anyway, though I only recognized one of their runners, and it would appear that WVTC beat us. I blame Chikara. At the start of the race, Ben Chaffee burst from the line with some of the top runners, while the rest of us were more content to take a backrow seat and watch the race unfold. After a mile or so, we started to pick up the pace, and I really didn't want to lose to anybody in a green jersey. The weather and the jagged rocks on the course eventually took their toll on most of the field, but we finished strongly with me (Jin) leading the way with a serendipitous 10th place finish in 19:04. Ben Chaffee was close behind in 13th place, 19:17. George Torgun came in at 20:01 (20th place), with a handful of the dreaded red jerseys just out of reach. Dan Lilot and our newest member Carlin Lee ran together most of the way and rounded out the team in 21:31 and 21:43, respectively. It looks like we took 3rd out of 5 complete teams. Great job guys! I hope to see you all and more at Golden Gate Park in 9/6. Women Women@Empire
Byline Heather Johnson
Three dedicated women made the trek to Santa Rosa. Even though we did not have a full team, the day wasn't at all "point-less." Yours truly ran up and down the rocky terrain without falling and finished in a respectable 25:18. Donna Chan got in a solid tempo run in 25:35, and Lee D'Alessandro persevered despite a nagging side-stitch to finish in 28:40. It's a shame we didn't have a full team. But I know the women will be well represented on Sept. 6. Old'uns
Byline Dan Mancini The Masters Men kicked off the 2008 XC season with what looks like a strong 2nd place showing at the Empire Open on Saturday. Leading the way in fine early season form was Iain Mickle in 3rd (19:06), followed by Tim Wallen in 8th (19:34), Dan Mancini in 10th (19:40), Pete Vicencio in 17th (20:35), Brian Schultz in 35th (22:15), and Senior Kim Lilot in 59th
(24:10) Headlands 50K - 08/23/08 Results are out for 8/23's Headlands 50K, and once again we had 2/3 of a strong scoring team. Cliff Lentz finished second in 4:27:11, while Jason Reed finished 5th in 4:56:15. Both won their respective age divisions. Great job! Plate to Plate 5K - 8/23/08 Congratulations to Kim Fanady on her overall women's win at the Plate to Plate 5K 8/23 at AT&T Park. Kim ran 19:43, finishing 23rd overall. Hood to Coast - 08/22/08 After signing up Paul (yes, Olympian Paul) McMullen at the 11th hour, the Santini Extra Virgins won the men's submaster title for the 12th year in a row, in the same pace as last year (19:22, 5:54/mile). The coed open Santini Popeyes and Olive Oils suffered several setbacks and illnesses, but still pulled out a third place finish. After threatening for years, Tyler Abbott has finally retired from Hood to Coast, but not before finishing all 36 legs (in 18:56, 19:06 if you adjust for the longer current course), and he is now claiming that particular record. The teams have sworn they will continue on, so mark your calendars for next year. Anyone looking for more statistics than they could ever digest should email
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. Also, former Santini members: be on the lookout for an announcement of Tyler's retirement party. DSE Cross Country - 08/17/08
Congratulations to Jin Daikoku on his 16:09 win at the DSE Cross Country 5K Sunday on a course that was probably a little short but that had its share of obstacles to overcome. Chikara finished not far back, along with several other club members, but results weren't available at press time. America's Finest City Half Marathon - 08/16/08 From Helen Kao . . . Maureen Hogan and I flew down to San Diego for a quick weekend away to run America's Finest City (AFC) Half Marathon a week ago Sunday. Balmy Saturday found Maureen catching up with an old school friend while I saw my cousin and her new baby. Balmy didn't feel quite so nice on Sunday. We stayed up late Saturday night to watch the Olympic Women's Marathon and then woke up 4:15AM. The race was very well organized but by the 7AM start the temperature was 70 degrees with 75% humidity-which didn't seem to phase most of the locals. Maureen and I, on the otherhand, sweated our way through the race. It was not the best of races for us. Maureen was a trooper and was glad she ran it despite it feeling painful. She finished 2:07 and I couldn't be more appreciative of her endless support for me throughout the weekend-especially after she had travelled a great deal, having been on the east coast just a few days before. I didn't run the time I wanted-felt like I was in PR shape for <1:28 - but given the heat/humidity and the 1 mile climb at the finish am pretty pleased with the 1:31 (7th age group finish, 21st woman). Next stop Twin Cities, via Banana Chase. DSE Lake Merced Summer Series
Finally, congratulations to Chikara Omine and Heather Leutwyler for being top point-getters at the eight-race DSE Lake Merced Summer Series. Matt Patout and Jason Reed finished 2-3, and Tyler Abbott finished third master.
Susan B. Anthony 5K - 08/09/08
Donna Chan forwards this report from the SBA 5K (which was on the circuit the last two years, but not this year) . . . Char and I was so lucky to have cool weather for the Susan B. Anthony 5K in Sacramento. Although not a PA race this year it is a fun women's race. We all received cute running tanks and schwag bags with lots of goodies. Char had a great race bettering her last years time by 11 seconds coming in 3rd AG 70th overall in a time of 25:48. I bettered my last years time by 42 seconds coming in 1st AG 25th overall in a time of 21:52. We both received beer steins for our efforts. Char had a chance to visit her 97 1/2 year old mother and her daughter who was too sick to run the race. I was able to visit my parents who live in Sacramento. Mickle Silver at Nationals! Tom Bernhard reports that Iain Mickle finished 2nd (16:19.77) in the 5000 at Nationals, in what must have been very difficult conditions given the number of DNFs. Congratulations Iain! San Francisco Half/Marathon - 08/03/08 Larissa Polischuk forwards this report from the SF Marathon . . .
Several NB teammates toed the line for the SF Marathon and Half Marathons. Whitney Stephenson and Brenda Gee DePeralta both went for the long
option. Whitney had a little trouble with the steps at Gerry's, but otherwise you would have never known she ran a marathon. She finished in 4:36 and was 35th in her age group. I was able to catch Brenda at the end of her race and she looked great! She finished in 4:04 and was 25th in her age group. Three of us chose the shorter option, Kim Fanady ran a super fast 1:33 for 2nd in her age group (wow!) and still asked me if her watch was broken because she didn't think she had been that fast:) Jen Major also came in 2nd in her age group and ran a fantastic 1:27:47, 11th woman Overall! Larissa Polischuk finished 2 seconds short of a PR in 1:31:36, good for 7th in my agr group. Maureen Hogan did run the 1st half as a training run (at 5am?!) and Helen helped pace former team member, Matt Greene in the second half. He finished in a very speedy 3:26:41 (musta been the pacer!) . Congrats to all participants (and if I'm forgetting anyone I deeply apologize!). In addition, Chikara Omine finished seventh overall in the Marathon in 2:41:49. Great job Chikara! I apologize to anyone I missed. Gay Pride Track Meet - 07/26/08
Tom Bennett reports that he won a "Gold Medal" at the Gay Pride Track Meet last month by finishing first in the mile, in his 60 plus age group. His time is "classified" but was faster than the competition!
Donna Chan forwards this race report from our newest member, Mulan Chan:
Well, the all-comers meet was super fun! I got 4th (women's/high school girls) in both races. In fact, I was the only "woman" in both races..the rest were all in high-school. I ran the 800m in 2:46 and the 400m in 68 seconds. The 800 was tough, I feel like I need to work on the pacing a bit as I just hit a wall at 600m. I think that perhaps I went out too fast as my splits were very uneven (75/91) However I think that I can improve and want to shoot for under 2:39. The 400 felt fantastic! I felt great, really strong.like I was 17 again! I ran in lane 1 (not the best) and remember thinking at 300m that I wished there was someone next to me to run down. Next time I would like to try running the 400m without running 800m 30 minutes before. I think that I will have more energy and can run even faster. Masters all-american for my age group is 65.5. I am going to try for this, if not this season, next for sure. Jininjapan
Race reports from Japan from Jin Daikoku . . .
I ran in the Obuse "Mini" Marathon (13.2 miles) on 7/20, and all I can say is that I'm glad the results are not going to end up on Zinsli. We had weather in the low 30s celcius (90s?) with the infamous Japanese summer high humidity. I ran the first 5K, which is the only uphill portion of the course, in about 19 minutes. Then I slowed down pretty much the rest of the way. At one point, I was walking, and a little boy told his mommy, "Look, that guy is walking!" and I wanted to say "Dude, I see lightning bolts... stop laughing," but I couldn't really talk. I also violated the well-known concept of not trying anything new on race day by drinking a new beverage I'd never tried before, which resulted in a fairly bad case of the runs. All told, it was the most excrutiating 1:34 of my life, and with Mt. Fuji coming up on the 25th, let's hope that what doesn't kill you really does make you stronger. You can read the full report and about my other adventures at http://prexemplar.com/blog/2008/07/whos_a_rec_runner_now.html And a few days later . . .
I completed the Mt. Fuji climbing race. It was very tough, but I've come to the conclusion that mountain races require a different skill-set from "regular" running. I had 17 minute 5k runners handing me my ____ on a stone platter. My time was 1:51.44, but I don't know my place because they only posted results for the top 10. I think only one woman beat me. She passed me near the end as I was climbing up the hurdles. I only fell twice. The winning time was 1:26.
I made a course map for those who are curious:
http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/united-states/ca/san-francisco/509590588382 Make sure you click "show elevation."
Vineman Ironman 70.3 Miler - 07/20/08
Matt Patout forwards this report about the Vineman Ironman 70.3 . . .
Heather Leutwyler and Matt Patout competed in the Vineman Ironman 70.3 miles this past weekend. Heather dropped her 70.3 mile time down to 5:30 overall with a 1:44 run for her 3rd ever, 70.3 mile ironman. Her AG was loaded but she still managed a 30th AG placing. Matt's 51st half ironman race and he continued to plug away with another post-surgery, course PR of 4:53 overall time with a 1:36 run. Not quite his 4:10 course PR, but best since 2005 and actually ran the whole thing for a 33rd AG placing without any snapped tendons.
Tahoe Rim Trail 50 Miler - 07/19/08
Congratulations to Ron Gutierrez on his 2nd place 8:44 finish at the Tahoe Rim Trail 50 Mile. From Ron . . .
This was a rough one altitude, hills, heat and some smoke but under sunny skies w/ a decent amount of shade and truly magnificent scenery. I stayed w/ the two leaders and eventual winner for a few miles but decided to hold back when the pace picked up at the top of the first climb. I moved into 2nd place just before the turnaround at about 4:15. Thomas Reiss had about 15 mins. on me at this point and he would extend his lead as the day wore on. I relaxed a bit w/ about 9 miles to go when I heard the gap to 3rd place was about 3 miles and I felt 2nd place was secure. The NB 826 has become my shoe of choice and held up very well on this course.
Eppies Great Race - 07/19/08 Donna Chan forwards this one about the Eppies Great Race... We were fortunate that the race was last weekend and not the week before because of the air quality. But while the rest of you were enjoying the cooler weather, I drove to Sacramento on Friday when it was 99 degrees. My son who is going to school in Davis said I was lucky because the weekend before was 105. I ran as a 3 person womens team and we came in first in our age group. Finally my younger cousin turned 50 so Nancy who rode her bike and Trish who was our kayaker finished in 2 hours 2 minutes 55 seconds. The water was lower and river times were a bit slower. I ran 42:15 for 5.82 miles and was very pleased with that time considering there was still come smoke in the air and the heat. It reminded me of Shriners. LEAP Mile - 07/04/08 Congratulations to Jin Daikoku on his 4:40 win at teh LEAP Mile on the 4th. Chikara Omine ran 17:20 in the middle of a longer run. Thanks to Donna Chan for forwarding the following the following additional report from the LEAP Mile July 4th, and congratulations all . . .
Char and I also ran the LEAP run on Friday. Char came in 2rd AG at 7:38 and I came in 4th women overall and 1st place 50 to 59 with a time of 6:38. Tom Bennett also ran in 7:06.
SHRINER'S 8K - 06/21/08 Mickle 3rd, Bernhard 1st AG Iain Mickle led the masters with a 1st place 45-49/3rd master 27:01 performance at Saturday's Shriner's 8K in Sacramento, while Tom Bernhard had a similar 1st 55-59/4th senior 28:53. On the women's side, Donna Chan finished second AG in 36:08, and Erin Brightwell continued her PR spree with a fine 31:08 on a hot day. Details . . .
Women
Byline Erin Brightwell It was so hot in Sacramento for Shriner's on Saturday, that I'm going to take the liberty of whining about it for a few sentences. There was suffering all around with temperatures in the mid 80s by the start of the race. Finishing times were on the slow side for pretty much the whole field. For me this race took on a kind of death march feel by the 2 mile mark, and I was extra glad when it was over and I was still relatively
coherent. Three water stations in 8k may seem like a lot, but it wasn't. It was a skeleton crew up there for the NBEx women, except for the awesome seniors team...congrats for scoring a full squad! Too bad open and
masters women didn't score, but honestly, this was kind of a throw-away race with the conditions such as they were. Anyway, who wants to eat pancakes in 90 degree weather when you've just survived racing 5 miles and you're having trouble getting your body temperature down? They need to either change the date for Shriners or change the menu. 80 ounce slurpees might be more appropriate, or, hey, let's forget about breakfast all together and just serve cold showers. Ok enough with the whining, let's start with the Seniors. Nancy Wang finished in 41:56, 16th AG; Donna Chan picked up a prize for finishing 2nd AG in a PR of 36:08; Charlene Bayles rounded out the team with a 50:57, 10th AG. Two open runners made the trip: Shelly Pierson raced despite just barely recovering from being sick and turned in a 34:25 for 9th AG; Erin Brightwell ran 31:08 the hard way for 5th AG. Congratulations to all of us who made the long trip and survived the heat! I'm looking forward to Stockton...it might be just as hot, but running a mile in that kind of heat makes a whole lot more sense.
Open Men
Report to come . . .
Old'uns
Iain Mickle led the masters in a strong 27:01, 1st 45-49 and 3rd 40+, behind Jeff Adkins and newly-minted master Gary Towne. Cliff Lentz followed three places back in 27:22, followed by Pete Vicencio (29:06, 7th 40-44), Jeff Dewey (31:40, 14th 40-44), and Brian Schultz (32:20, 17th 40-44). Tom Bernhard once again led the seniors in 28:53, good enough for 4th senior and the 55-59 win. Kenny Warde once again came out to assure a full masters team and ran 36:18 (4th 55-59).
Double Dipsea - 06/21/08 Larissa Polischuk forwards this Double Dipsea report . . . I'm going to whine a little about the heat too since running the Dipsea even once in 80 degree weather is torture, but I actually paid money to do it twice. Despite the conditions, I survived w/o falling or poison oak and managed a 5 min PR! I came in 2nd in my age group (behind former teammate Stacey Schweighart, who ironically is still my friend even after I convinced her to run this:) and 28th overall. The race volunteers were outstanding with all the water and sponges and even the Mill Valley residents helped out handing out water bottles and spraying their hoses for us. Thanks to Jen M and Patti S for coming out to cheer!
Midnight Sun Half Marathon - 06/21/08 From club masters record book owner Kim Fanady . . . While you were all sweating at Shriner's, I was running the cool, cloudy, rainy Mayor's Midnight Sun half marathon in Anchorage, Alaska. The race features a nice, somewhat hilly course through city streets, along a lovely bike path which follows the shoreline and has beautiful views of Cook Inlet and the downtown Anchorage skyline, and even a mile or so of x/c --gravel then grass trail --with a dramatic finish on the track at West Anchorage High School. I happened to finish the half at the exact same time as the winner of the full marathon (it started an hour earlier). So there was wild cheering as I chugged for the finish line, just not for me! I finished 42nd overall, 6th woman, 1st master woman, 1:36:33. Fun trip and a fun race! Grandma's Marathon - 06/20/08 Heather Johnson forwards this race report:
Just wanted to let you and the Excelsior women know that I finished Grandma's Marathon this past weekend--in a personal best of 3:32:23. It's my first marathon since December 2003, so I guess this qualifies as my marathon comeback! And despite a very difficult final few miles, I placed in the top 20 in my age group (out of 402) and was the second California woman --about an hour behind Calif.-based Mary Akor, the female winner! The race itself was incredible. Grandma's is the most organized race I have ever run. The volunteers (4,500 of them) are amazing, and seemingly the entire city comes out to support the race. The final few miles are just packed with people. The course leading into Duluth is beautiful, with Lake Superior on your left, lots of tall trees and a winding highway to travel with mostly mild rolling hills. I'm putting a report with all the gory details on my blog. I'll let ya'll know when it's done. Woodminster 15K - 06/15/08 Lentz Fastest @ Woodminster, Wins Triple Crown!
Cliff Lentz had the fastest time overall in 6/15's Woodminster Cross Country Race. Cliff ran 59:54 to take 4th in the handicapped race. John Spriggs and Pete Vicencio finished 14th and 15th in 1:08:37+12 handicap and 1:04:57+16 handicap, respectively, followed by Gary MacPherson 1:21:17+4, 51st).
I apologize to anyone I may have missed. This effort also gave Cliff the East Bay Trail Triple Crown, by a margin of nearly ten minutes! Note that this is NOT a masters division crown, or handicapped in any way--it's just based on overall time in the three races--Tilden Tough Ten, Lake Chabot Half, Woodminster. Spirit Run 5K - 06/15/08 Don Hogue reports that he finished first master at 17:11 at the Spirit Run 5k in Pleasanton on Fathers Day. Congratulations Don! Dipsea - 06/08/08 Cliff Lentz continued his torrid racing with a sixth place finish in Sunday's Dipsea handicapped race. Cliff finished in a fine 53:03 on a very hot day to run the fifth fastest time of the day as a 43 year old (and a 51 year old ran the sixth fastest time, a few seconds behind and a couple minutes ahead of Cliff). Other black shirts: Iain Mickle in 13th, Ben Chaffee as a scratch runner with the fourth fastest time of the day, and Jenny Wong in 26th with the third fastest women's time. Patti Shore forwards the following report (with a few additions):
Dipsea No. 98 is in the books! Second oldest race in America (only Boston is older, but I'll guess that Dipsea is tougher). In my last outing as a Dipsea spectator (this is my LAST pregnancy, so come hell or high water, I will run every Dipsea from here forward until it's time to bury my burned-out old bod), I'd say one of the best moments was watching Roy Rivers come cruising in with his huge margin of victory and the wherewithal to check his watch as he approached the finish line. Those of us who have watched Roy get helicoptered off the beach in medical distress more than once can appreciate this. As for our team--we had a fine day! Most know that the race is handicapped for age and gender, making age and gender irrelevant in terms of results. Thus, a combined report. NB Excelsior had a strong force out there, with 4 Black Shirts, 10 Top 100 finishes, and 2 out of the 4 available "heartbreak" placings. Ultra-fit Cliff Lentz led the way with his 6th place finish (53:03/3 minute handicap)--despite a knee twinge that inconveniently appeared Tuesday before race day. Up next was Dipsea Black Shirt regular Iain Mickle, who continues to defy age with his 13th place finish (55:36/4). It is hard to believe Iain is old enough to have kids in college, but he does. Ben Chaffee turned in a PR (?) performance with a 24th place finish (52:54/0). Jenny Wong, consistent as ever, was 26th for her 4th Black Shirt (1:00:58/8; she also owns Nos. 28, 29, and 30). Then came our team's first bit of heartbreak - Place No. 36--the first non-Black Shirt finisher, our very own Adam Hersh (55:13/1). Adam came into the race fit enough for a Top 10 finish, and he would have definitely challenged Mark McManus for the Fastest Time Trophy for the men. But, he hurt his foot badly enough that running more than 2 miles the week leading up to the Dipsea was out of the question. Then he crashed during the race - probably a bigger factor than the foot. Dang! Shortly after Adam was Chikara Omine (56th, 56:30/0), Dan Shore (60, 59:17/2), and Brian Gillis (76, 58:40/0). Brian ran the race just two weeks after being helicoptered out of a cycling race due to a crash that left him with a concussion, broken wrist, and plenty of other injuries, so his Top 100 finish is quite an accomplishment, considering he was carrying a cast along with him. Close behind Brian was George Torgun (85, 59:08/0) and Jen Major (95, 1:07:55/8), and then Heartbreak Placing No. 2: Larissa Polischuk, No. 101 (1:08:29/8). Those finishing in the Top 100 get their placement as next year's race number - but not 101. Larissa takes heart in her 4 (!) minute PR in her first crack at the Invitational race; she'll surely run in the top 100 next year. Not far behind Larissa were new member Hansi Rigney (156, 1:27:14/25), Jeff Dewey (164, 1:05:40/3), Jocelyn Friel (256, 1:13:26/8), Tyler Abbott (300, 1:10:56/4), and David Moulton (330, 1:09:48/2). We had three team members trying to qualify for Invitational for next year. Peter Hsia (Dipsea Runner section 31, 1:07:10/4) and Brian Schultz (DR 43, 1:07:05/2) qualified, and Gerry Kim placed 788th overall (1:22:04/8); through 750 is guaranteed a spot, but with a well-written sob story, Gerry has a great shot! A few team friends deserve mention. Former teammate Stephen Donahue, now of Transports, placed 20th but was outgunned by his little sister, Sara Donahue, who placed 8th and won the women's Fastest Time Trophy. The Donahues together brought home the family award, meaning Sara got on her plane back home to Boston with a whole lot of hardware. Former teammate Stacey Schweighart, now of the Olympic Club, pulled down Black Shirt 22 in an very strong performance in her first Invitational. Kim Fanady's brother Todd (at least I think that's her bro) ran well, holding his spot in the Invitational with a placing at 360. Brian Gillis' wife, Molly Burnett, also ran the race and made it into the Invitational by just 8 places in 742nd. The next Dipsea is June 14th, 8:30 AM. You have 369 days left to train. Start today. Fleet Feet 5K - 06/08/08 From senior standout Donna Chan:
While Char Bayles visited her mother and I visited my parents in the Sacramento, we decided to run a 5K run. It was part of the Nike women's fitness festival which included a 5K run and 5K walk around the Capital. (Really cute Nike shirts and bag.) Char did a great time of 26:14 6th AG, 208 overall out of over 2100 women. Doing this a week after her San Diego marathon!!! So awesome. And I ran with a time of 21:55 placed 1st AG 24th overall. The temperature was nice and warm. I didn't have to worry about being cold and windy. Rock and Roll Marathon - 06/01/08 Larissa reports that "Char Bayles snuck in a marathon on us! She finished in just over 5hrs and was 33rd in her age group in a marathon with over 16K runners...Congrats Char!" Lake Chabot Half Marathon - 06/01/08 Cliff Lentz made it three strong weeks in a row (with the big one coming up) at Sunday's Lake Chabot Half Marathon. After an outright win at Tilden and the masters victory at MMD, Cliff finished second at Lake Chabot.
Cliff also made himself the odds-on favorite for the revived East Bay Triple Crown title. BTW, I could not find results at press time, so I apologize to anyone else who run whom I missed.
See Jane Run Half Marathon - 05/31/08 [Polischuk] Bigelow Wins SJR Half! This past Saturday, in the second annual See Jane Run Half Marathon, our very own Allie Bigelow won in a stellar 1:27:55! Kim Fanady, not far behind in 1:34:42, came in 5th overall and Maureen Hogan ran a speedy 1:47:32, 9th in her age group. Congratulations!
Marin Memorial Day 10K - 05/26/08 Lentz Wins MMD! After winning Tilden last weekend, Cliff Lentz won the masters division in Monday's Marin Memorial Day 10K in a not-too-far-from-lifetime-PR time of 33:36. This seems to have led us to a TIE with Pacific Striders, with both teams finishing in 2:55:37! Among other notable performances were Erin rightwell's several minute PR 38:07 and Tom Bernhard's 55-59 winning 6:15. Details . . .
Open Men
Byline Chikara Omine The Marin Memorial Day 10K was one of the rare races where the open men were represented by more than the minimum 5 people to score a team. Before the start of the race we were just one short of having a B team! We arranged a carpool, arrived with plenty of time for a warmup, and seemed to have a solid team. Everything seemed great, but 3 of our open runners had a hectic start. Chikara Omine and Jin Daikoku were about 100 meters away from the start line before hearing the announcement that the race is going to start in 15 seconds. Both sprinted toward the line and made a 360 degee turn to start the race. If that wasn't bad enough, Bee-Oh Kim, thinking that the race is at 8:30 instead of 8:15, was relaxing in preparation of he race until he saw a stampede of runners and learned that the race started 3 minutes ago. Not a great way to start a race but the open men still had a solid performance with the scoring team finishing withn 49 seconds of each other.
Ben Chaffee, showing the same strength that he had on a run up Mt. Diablo last weekend, led the team in 34:08/32nd place. Jin "we've got plenty of time till the race starts" Daikoku, feeling comfortable compared to the prior year, cruised in next at 34:21/36th place with Eric Knackmuhs not too far behind in 34:28/39th place. Next was Chikara Omine struggling in at 34:39/43rd place. George Torgun, who has had much better days, completed the scoring team in 34:57/48th place. The open men were also represented by Dan Shore in 36:02/70th place, Jason Reed in 37:20/105th place, and Robin Hart, making a return for a local race, in 41:20/214th place. Let's see how many people we can get for Shriners!
Women Byline Patti Shore 14 NB Excelsior women raced last Monday in the Marin Memorial 10K. Conditions were perfect and there were some mighty fast times because of it! Leading the way with a monster PR was Erin Brightwell (38:07, 21st) who continues to have a spectacular spring season. Jen Major (39:40, 39th) and Jenny Wong (39:45, 41st) ran strong Dipsea tune-ups together.
VERY close behind was Shelly Pierson (40:00, 46th place), running very well despite low mileage. Larissa Polischuk rounded out the Open Women's A team with a FIVE MINUTE PR, running 40:38 for 51st place in her own Dipsea tune-up. Master standout Kim Fanady led the B team with a solid 40:53 performance, 52nd overall and 9th master.
Helen Kao continued a steady return from injury with her 41:20 (57th). Sarah Jones (minus Mr. Jones, where was he?!?!) had a solid 42:37 (66th). Jocelyn Friel, also preparing for Dipsea, was close behind in 42:54 (69th). Heather Johnson also had a fine day in 44:56, for 82nd place. Just missing the scoring team was Brenda Deperalta, who ran 49:36. The senior ladies turned out in force: Donna Chan had a crisp 47:26, Nancy Wang ran well in 52:27, and Molly Newlon had a fine 54:32. Well done, all! I would like to say I enjoyed cheering you all on, but the truth is, I sure miss racing and can't wait to be back out there! Up next on the PA: Shriner's! In between: DIPSEA! Do try to come out and cheer on your teammates if you can - we have a VERY strong team this year between our men and our women, and it should be very exciting to watch!
Old'uns
Cliff Lentz led us in 33:36 to win the masters title by four seconds over Michael Woodward. Iain Mickle followed in 34:15, with Dan Mancini (35:20), Pete Vicencio (36:11), Peter Hsia (37:53), Brian Schultz (39:09), Tyler Abbott (43:12), and Marlin Gilbert (47:46). After dropping down Tom Bernhard, we seem to be in a tie with Pacific Striders for the team win. Also of note, new member but not in time for the race Harold the Hammer Radin finished in a strong 35:54. Tom Bernhard led the seniors in 36:15 to win the 55-59 age division. Kenny Warde finished next in 44:14, with Allan Stanbridge (44:27) and Gary MacPherson (45:38) rounding out the team. Apologies to anyone I missed. Bay to Breakers - 05/18/08 I'm afraid I made it out too late to catch the lead runners, but Allan Stanbridge forwards the following B2B notes--thanks Allan! If anyone wants to write a full Breakers report, write away! Results from yesterday's B to B. According to the post race chip results given to runners on their way to the Polo Fields, I finished in 493rd place in a time of 54:43. I also finished in 3rd place in the mens' 60 to 69 division. Also saw Bob Darling, Kenny, and Eric Knackmuhs at the race. Kenny Warde forwards a couple other notes from Bay to Breakers . . . Although I have been still fighting pneumonia since Boston, my Bay to Breakers time was 55:06. I place 533rd overall and 30th in the 50-59 age division. "The Rocket" Bob Darling ran a fine 52:57 and placed 389th overall. In our 50-59 age group he was 24th. And as you heard from Alan, he ran 54:43 and placed 500th overall. He came in a great 3rd in his 60-69 age division. Tilden 10 - 05/18/08 [Vicencio] Lentz Wins Tilden! Pete Vicencio forwards this Tilden Tough 10 report. Thanks Pete! Among the men, Cliff Lentz won in a strong 59:64. However, this strangely did not qualify him for a sub-60 t-shirt. Cliff was followed by Dan Shore in 7th (?) and Pete Vicencio (65:31, 9th). For the women, Stacey Schweighart and Jenny Wong finished 2-3 in 67:40 and 67:50. Allie Bigelow and Larissa Polischuk followed in 71 minutes, with Jocelyn Friel rounding out the team.
Santa Ynez Half Marathon - 05/10/08 Larissa Polischuk reports that Helen Kao finished 13th in 1:32:55 at the 2nd annual Santa Ynez Half Marathon this past Saturday. From Helen: Was a much hillier course than I'd imagined (and that was advertised) and the race organization needed a little tidying up (not enough shuttle buses to the start, overcrowded gear drop off, race start bumped 15 minutes later b/c of these problems, only water and no gel or elecrtolyte drink, and not a single mile marker on the course!) but, despite these 'oopses' it was a beautiful course and perfect weather. Finished 4th AG, 13th woman
in 1:32.55. Quicksilver 50 Miler - 05/10/08 Chikara Omine finished second at Saturday's Quicksilver 50 Miler, his first run that long in a while. In the companion 50K, Ron Gutierrez finished third overall/first master, in a PR 4:14:21. Congratulations both of you! Napa Valley Half Ironman - 05/04/08 Matt Patout forwards the following report . . .
Heather Leutwyler finished her first half ironman last weekend at the windy, Napa Half Ironman, placing 4th in her age-group and 17th Female Amateur with a time of 5:47 (29:59 swim, 3:16 bike, and a very strong
1:51 run). Heather is using triathlons to get back into running after several months recovering from multiple injuries. Matt also trained through the race to get an 18th overall placing with a 4:54 time on a very tough run and bike course. Wildflower Triathlon - 05/04/08 Tracy Hogan finished 2d in her division at the Olympic Distance Wildflower Triathlon 2 weekends ago. Her finish time was 2:30 with a strong 41min 10k to close the race. Congratulations Tracy! Big Sur 5K - 04/27/08 After nine (?) years on the circuit, Big Sur took a couple years off, and the break seems to have reinvigorated the race (though the double points/money could also have something to do with that). NBEx saw many excellent performances, among them Tom Bernhard's 55-59 win, Donna Chan's 55-59 2nd place effort, Cliff Lentz's 4th master finish, and Erin Brightwell's top 10 placement. Details . . .
Women
Byline Helen Kao A dozen New Balance Excelsior women road-tripped down Highway One for a gorgeous weekend in Monterey/Big Sur. The weekend was highlighted by team debuts by two new master/senior women (Maureen Hogan and Hansi Rigney) and a welcome back to former team member Chelsey Remington Dabora who saved the day by rejoining the team at the 11th hour and helping us score a full team in all age categories. Most women were there for the PAUSATF 5k (back on the short course grand prix after a two year hiatus) with the exception of stellar new member Hansi Rigney who, 6 days after finishing 4th Age Group at the Boston Marathon 3:43.21, won the 65-69 Age Group at the challenging Big Sur Marathon in 3:54.27! Congratulations Hansi! Additionally, Donna and Erin once again had fabulous performances for 2nd Age Group each. Reports are alphabetical below. The Senior team will pull strong points for their showing at this Double Points race: Char Bayles continues her recovery from a fractured foot with her 28:18 "kick it" finish (130th woman, 4th AG). Donna Chan cruised in, per her usual style, with a 22:44 2nd AG finish! (47th woman). Nancy Wang placed top ten with 25:43 (92nd, 9th)
The Master team also scored a full team with great races by all: Brenda G Deperalta ran 24:11 (72nd, 6th) followed in tandem by Maureen. Maureen Hogan who normally races in longer events ran a 24:11 (73rd, 11th) catching up to Brenda in the final stretch. Chelsey Remington Dabora kept the race comfortable by jogging to a 23:55 (64th, 5th) The Open team managed to score with the aid of master-drop-down Kim: Erin Brightwell ran a second-fastest-personal-time 18:54, placing 2nd AG! (10th woman overall!!). Kim Fanady enjoyed the experience much more than the agonizing race she recalled from several years ago, 20:32 (32nd, 4th). Helen Kao overcame dead legs in Mile 1 to run tempo race for 20:58 (36th, 9th). Larissa Polischuk speeded to a quick 20:27 despite a 2hr+ run Saturday (31st, 8th). Jenny Wong pushed under 20min with 19:55 (23rd, 6th). Congratulations team! Next up, Marin Memorial 10k.
Open Men
Byline Chikara Omine With the Big Sur 5K being a double point race, the open men felt the need to scrounge up a team. Three open runners were able to make the trip down to Carmel. None of us were feeling too great--two just ran the Calistoga to Santa Cruz Relay last weekend and one was coming back from injury--so we only had one goal: to finish the race. Although we spread apart during the race from time to time, we ended up finishing close together with Jin Daikoku in 17:09/27th place, Chikara Omine in 17:11/28th place, and new member Bee-Oh Kim in 17:24/35th place. Welcome to the club Bee-Oh! We should have a complete team with the masters drop downs. As always, a big thanks to the masters team who have saved us numerous times.
Old'uns Cliff Lentz again led the masters, again finishing 4th master overall, in 16:40. Iain Mickle followed Cliff in 17:04 (6th master), with Pete Vicencio (17:50, 13th), Jeff Dewey (19:03, 23rd), and Tyler Hoping to Pick Up a Few X-points Abbott (21:22) rounding out the team. Tom Bernhard was disappointed with his 18:28, but it was still good enough to win the 55-59 division. Alan Stanbridge was our first super senior in 21:17 (6th ss), with Kenny Warde showing up to make sure we have full teams just a week off Boston and running 22:35 (5th 55-59). Boston Marathon - 04/21/08 Boston!
Byline Julie McGee On Monday April 22, over 20,000 runners, including some from our own New Balance Excelsior toed the line in Hopkinton, MA at the start of the 112th Boston Marathon. Prayers of weather being better than last year's were answered with the start being cool and overcast, and then clearing and reaching from the low to mid 60's during the race. As the runners made the 26.2 mile trek to Boston, they were met by thousands of cheering (and sometimes screaming) fans. First across the line for NBEx was JULIE M who was happy to qualify to come back next year, but wishes she had written her name on her shirt in 3:29.45. Running her second marathon, and having a great time was GERRY K in 3:40.52. Rounding out the NBEx ladies was Brenda G with a 4:03.49, who was very happpy wiith her race. Congrats to all those who ran. With a net loss of elevation, but a hilly mile 17-21, the Boston Marathon is probably the most humbling of marathons. A special thanks to CHAR B and TANJA T who made the trip to Boston, and provided their support, but were unable to run due to injuries. [And Kenny Savior Warde ran 3:35:44. -Ed.] From Kenny The Savior Warde (who also still came out to Big Sur Sunday, Bronchitis and Bostonitis notwithstanding) . . .
__
The 112th Boston Marathon began under sunny skies with a temperature range from 52 to 55 degrees and a 5 to 15 mph headwind. With 22,375 official starters toeing the line, this was the second largest field ever in Boston's history. Not only was this my 26th Boston; but my 16th
consecutive. My splits throughout the race were rather even, although I did lose about 3 minutes on the second half. Perhaps this was due to not drinking as much as I should have and therefore, I developed legs cramps the last 5K. I also had a major fall just past the 20 mile mark in the flat area just before the last big hill in the Heartbreak Hill series. A young female spectator stepped off of the curb and looked up the hill instead of down the hill at the oncoming runners. It happened so fast that I couldn't avoid plowing into her. As I am heading towards the gutter and curb, my only thoughts were, "Do I land on my hands, knees, and face; or do I turn sideways and hope for the best?" I chose the latter. Once I was on the ground, my next thoughts were to get up as quickly as possible, so as to not lose any time. So, I rolled over and got up. Luckily, everything was in working order except for some serious road rash and blood on my elbow, forearm, hip, and outer knee. So, mile 21 was in 8:48. I finished in 3:35:44. Overall, I ended up in 8,148th place; and 841st out of 3,762 in my veterans (50-59) age division. Considering the fall, I was happy my time and effort. [Hansi Rigney] Notes from Boston, Big Sur
A big thanks to Kenny Warde for recruiting top super senior runner Hansi Rigney. The notes below are from Boston and Big Sur from Hansi--welcome!
Kenny Warde recruited me for your NBEx team and I'm looking forward to some of the races on our schedule. Boston this year was a great experience. I had my best Boston time of 3:43:21 which got me a fourth place. In my past 5 Bostons I was slower but placed better, relative to my age peers. In 2006 a 3:46 got me first place in the Senior division! I think more women are participating in running events and coming up through the age ranks with a lot more experience and training than in the past. All of this, if my theory is right, is very good for "running at all ages" with "senior" running in particular more and more competitive in the future. This year's Boston was run in near perfect conditions.....a little less sun and a little less wind would have been perfect, but we could not in good conscience complain at all! I started the race at the back of the first wave and as always went off too fast, loving the frequent downhills of the initial course. When I started to seriously pace myself I was joined by a young Canadian friend whom I had met at my hotel and I was drawn into a good pace of 8:08, good for him but too fast to sustain for me. We stayed together till mile 12 or 13 and then lost each other after a water stop. The Newton Hills, including Heartbreak were not a problem this year. I followed Kenny's advice of short high steps and managed the hills well with confidence in the next and last 6 miles. In retrospect, I should have pushed harder in the last phase, the last 2 miles in particular. I did enjoy the cheering crowd greatly and flattered by the young guy who asked me to slow down as I passed him so that he could take a picture
of me, with my white hair, to show his wife! I was feeling so good at the finish that I could kick myself for not going harder. All the same.....very happy with the results, till I saw bloody Kenny who had been tripped by an unwitting spectator! Six days later it was Big Sur and another marathon! I thought I could break the course record of 3:52:44 having come within 30 seconds last year. Again, went out too fast when it was easy and slowed down slowly but surely all along the course with its 13 hills. I wanted so much to pick it up in the last 4 miles and make up what I had lost, but my legs were just too heavy and tired. Managed a 1st age div finish, but a 3:54:40. The only consolation is that I still have 3 more years to give it a go! Zippy 5K - 04/20/08 Thanks to race directors Jin Daikoku and Matt Patout, with a strong assist from Lloyd Stephenson, for running such a great race Sunday. Women Byline Kim Fanady The NBEx women made a strong showing at our very own Zippy 5K on Sunday. We lucked into great running weather: clear, cool, sunny, without the gale force winds and subarctic temperatures we feared.
Leading the NBEx pack was Erin Brightwell, running a 18:42 (13 OA, 4 AG) a 30 second PR! Great job Erin! Close behind was the always fabulously fast Jenny Wong (22 OA, 8 AG), posting a 19:06 on a bad hamstring. Team stalwart Shelly Pierson (31 OA, 7 AG) ran her usual smart and sharp race, coming at 19:26 (running great on 3 days/week training). Kim Fanady overcame her hatred of the 5K and a way too fast first mile to run 19:35 (35 OA, 2AG, 6 master). Helen Kao, pretty in pink, put down a 19:45 (39 OA, 12 AG), not what she hoped to run but OK just the same; reminds her not to go out so fast! Sarah Jones, in her second race with NBEx, ran a sharp 20:30 (48 OA, 14 AG), with Jocelyn Friel just behind in 20:45 (52 OA, 12 AG) . Heather Johnson, also in her second race with NBEx, had a nice 21:54 (63 OA, 13 AG). And good work, seniors! Donna Chan ran 21:57, 1 second faster than last year -- every second counts! (64 OA, 2 AG), and Molly Newlon (97/6) posted a 25:39 (96 OA, 6 AG), showing her heels to lots of girls in their 20's.
And thanks to our volunteers who showed up to help out and cheer us on: Patti Shore, Kelly Daikoku, Lee D'Alessandro, and the long lost but not forgotten Whitney Stephenson. Sorry to anyone I missed.
Ziperrific! Ziptastic! Zipitudinous! Nice job everyone -- great running!
Open Men
Byline Jin Daikoku
I'm not sure if I got this right... but if nobody else writes to you, I'll give it a shot.
Fears earlier in the week about not fielding a full 5 open men at our own Zippy 5K proved to be unwarranted as we had six men toe the line (and one co-race director on the sidelines ready to stand in, just in case).
Despite all the pre-race grumbling about not being in shape, we performed remarkably well. George Torgun led the way with a 15:57, which was good enough for 27th place and a 4 second course PR. Eric Knackmuhs and Ben Chafee used a little teamwork, pushing each other to 16:30 (39th) and 16:33 (40th), respectfully.
Dan Shore and Brian Gilliss also came in close together, running 17:07 and 17:17 for 55th and 59th, rounding out our scoring members. To keep them honest, Dan Rhodes ran almost two minutes faster than he predicted, at 18:47 (104th). Matt Patout went really fast, but he was in car so that doesn't count. Great job and thank you so much guys! It was a pleasure seeing you all out there.
Old'uns Cliff Lentz led the masters with a strong 16:29 (4th master), with Iain Mickle next on the team and next master in 16:33. Don Hogue continued his early Spring string in 17:04 (12th), with Pete Vicencio (17:47, 21st), Jeff Dewey (35th), and Brian Schultz (19:18, 39th) rounding out the team. For the seniors, Tom Bernhard returned to racing in 18:09 to win the 55-59 age division. Jim Gorman was next on the team and in the division in 18:30. Al Stanbridge led our super seniors in 21:07 (4th super senior), followed by Tom Bennett (23:40, 11th). Congratulations all! Finally, Zippy finish line video, courtesy coRD Daikoku: Presidio 10 Miler - 04/06/08 Larissa Polischuk reports that Micha Lowe placed 3rd woman overall in this past Sunday's Presidio 10miler with a time of 1:10:39. Great job on a not so easy course through the hilly Presidio and over the Golden Gate Bridge!
Run Like the Wind Half Marathon - 03/30/08 Don Hogue reports that he finished third in the Run Like the Wind half marathon in San Ramon this past weekend. From Don . . .
Time 1:18.32 - happy with results on the hilly course. Won age group (40-44) and only got beaten by two guys who were both 19 years younger than me.
Across the Bay 12K - 03/16/08 Open Men Byline Chikara Omine George Torgun led the open in a time of 40:31 (20th place) improving from last year by one second and one place. Next was Chikara Omine in 43:19 (47th place), closely followed by Eric Knackmuhs in 43:45 (54th place) and Jason Reed in 43:50 (56th place). Michael Richardson completed the open team in 54:07 (318th place), racing for the first time as a Excelsior runner. Unfortunately, Michael will be moving to San Diego soon. Good luck in San Diego Michael and thanks for helping us field a team! Women Byline Gerry Kim The Across the Bay 12K was a blur of blue as a dozen NBEx blazed the course. Leading the ladies in was none other then JENNY WONG with a 49:01. Following closely behind her, JULIE MCGEE brought in the Boston crew with a 49:22. Also seeing Boston in the distance, the ever speedening LARISSA POLISCHUK came in with a 50:30. HELEN KAO, taking yet another one for the team, followed with a very solid 50:59. Coming off a foot injury, SHELLY PIERSON ran an impressive 51:25. Chart topper, KIM FANADY came in 5th in her age group with a 52:15. HEATHER JOHNSON sharpened into distance in her debut NBEx run at 56:09. (Welcome, Heather!) GERRY KIM, inspired by the NBEx ladies to scramble some eggs, ran home at 57:59. DONNA CHAN led the fierce seniors team with a 59:58. Following, BRENDA GEE finished a wonderful run with a 1:02:37. NANCY WANG, also representing the seniors, came in with a magnificent 1:06:00. Most amazingly, team trooper CHARLENE BAYLES ran a 1:18:44 coming off a foot fracture. Thanks to everyone who came out to race and to Jen Major for cheering us on! Old'uns Don Hogue led the masters for the second race in a row in a fine 44:31. Pete Vicencio finished next in 45:53, followed by Ian Hersey (46:16), Brian Schultz (49:12), Jeff Dewey (49:39), Tyler Ouch Abbott (55:05 the hard way), Greg King (57:03), and Michael Gama (59:21). Several runners we haven't seen for a while (including yours truly)--great to see you all out! It should also be noted that Tim Wallen was near the front of the masters pack (Chris Schille wasn't in the pack) when his calves gave out around mile 5 and he was forced to drop out. Get better soon Tim! For the seniors, we had but two runners. Kenny Warde ran a fine 54:37, followed by Wayne Plymale (1:00:53). Great job everyone! Stanford Treeathlon - 03/02/08 Hogan Wins Treeathlon!
From our own tri star Tracy Hogan . . . I raced the Stanford Treeathlon a sprint distance triathlon this past weekend and to my surprise was the overall female winner. I was so thrilled! I think this is the first triathlon in the state of California that I have won the overall. I had a really solid swim in the 55 degree Bay water which was numbing. The headwinds on the bike were fierce but all the strength training that I've been putting in really paid off and I had the fastest female bike split of the day. Running my bike into transition I somehow tweaked my back and got a horrible shooting pain but it only lasted a moment so I continued on. I had a very solid 20:15 5k but my posture felt off for the entire run. After I finished the race I realized that my hips were crooked and I had strained my back. Luckily my chiropractor just happened to be in the office on a Sunday afternoon so I had my back adjusted within 5 hours of the race which seems to have made all the difference. Three days after straining my back my hips were straight and I was out training again. Napa Valley Marathon - 03/02/08 Mancini Runs a Marathon Not a typo. From short distance specialist Dan Metronome Mancini . . .
I celebrated the 25 anniversary of my first and only other marathon (a DNF from 1983) with a 2:42:51, good for 9th place and 2nd Master. I think I justly earned my reputation as a metronome with half marathon splits of 1:21:20 and...1:21:20, with a 10 sec. stop at mile 22 to search for a water bottle. It was an ideal day for a marathon: perfect temp., with a slight tailwind at times, on a nice scenic rolling course. Somewhere around mile 22, someone decided to take batting practice on my quads - a unique kind of running pain I must admit - but otherwise managed to close well with the final 10km only 8 secs. slower than the first 10km. Overall, an enjoyable experience. I'm penciling in NYC in 2033. NorCal 10 Miler - 03/01/08 We managed to scrape together the two open teams anyway for the inaugural race on the 2008 road grand prix. The race was highlighted by George Torgun's 10th place finish and Don Hogue's 5th place master finish. Details . . . .
Open Men
Byline Chikara Omine As usual this race was a difficult one to field a team however, 3 open men made the trip to Redding. George Torgun lead the team with a 56:35 and placing in the top 10 (10th place). George was followed not so closely by Chikara Omine 59:19 (18th place) and Oliver Chan 1:00:10 (25th place).
With the aid of the masters drop downs it looks like we were able to score as a team. Next up, Emerald Across the Bay!
Women
Byline Julie McGee On a sunny but windy Saturday, 5 Excelsior women raced in the NorCal 10 miler after making the long drive up to Redding the night before. First across hte line for the team was Tanja Tamguney, running a 1:06.29. Next was Julie McGee, with a 1:08.26. Third for the teram was Larissa Polischuk who ran a 1:09.30. Helen Kao crossed the line next in 1:12.54. Rounding out our group of 5 was Gerry Kim, who ran a 1:17.06. Afterwards, eveyone agreed that the hill with the switchbacks arouind mile 4 and the overall design of the lollypop course made it very hard to settle into a pace. Regardless, the team placed 2nd overall! Congrats to those who ran:)
Old'uns Don Hogue led the way with a fine 1:00:05 finish--good job, Don. Vitas
Ezerskis fought a tough knee injury to finish in 1:03:18, and Kenny Warde rounded out the team in 1:14:52. Thanks all of you for making the trip and helping out the young'uns! Cross Country Nationals - 02/16/08 Masters Men Fourth at Nationals, O'Rourke 5th!
Byline Dan Mancini After years of futile persuasion [or, apparently, lack thereof -Ed.], it took the prospect of a balmy San Diego venue to finally convince the required 5 scoring team members to lace up the spikes for a February cross country race. Sunscreen and shades were the order of the day, as sunny skies, warm temps. and a dry all-grass, mostly flat course greeted the Masters Men's team at the traditionally miserable weather USA Cross Country Champs. This race has grown in size every year since its inception, and this year some 200 Masters men lined up for the 8k race.
Leading the team with a superb effort in a strong field was Iain Mickle in 23rd, followed by Tim "thirty-mile-a-week" Wallen in 34th edging out Dan "eighty-mile-a-week" Mancini in 36th, newly minted Senior Tim O'Rourke in 43rd (5th 50-54--just eight seconds off the podium!), and Pete Vicencio in 80th.
And although the top 3 powerhouse teams made a podium spot unrealistic, the team scored a moral victory with a surprising 4th place finish, nipping the 5th and 6th place teams by narrow 7 and 8 point margins. The team enjoyed the race so much, that they have already signed on (with binding contracts) to next year's race in Anchorage, Alaska. Caruso 5K - 02/10/08 Well, I won. Which I guess means I can't complain about my time, which was 3 seconds slower than last year on this course, 10 weeks post-partum. Oh, what the hell - I am going to complain a little. I really thought I was in better shape than 20:02, but perhaps the head and chest cold I've been fighting all week played a role. Back to the bright side - I won! There was a nice prize - a one year membership to the Koret Center, and it was a lot of fun. Each year this race has more and more participants, and the USF students who put the race on do a nice job of it. The race director said some nice things about our teammate, Tom Caruso, whom this race honors - I am sure that the family is gratified that 8 years later, large crowds of people still remember Tom and his contributions to USF as both a student and an athlete. Maybe next year more of us will be able to participate!
Ed.: For club newcomers, Tom Caruso was a club member who was very tragically struck by a bus while heading to the start of the Las Vegas Marathon eight years ago this month. He passed away a few days later. Kaiser Permanente (SF) Half Marathon - 02/03/08 A big turnout for club members at Sunday's somewhat Wet and Windy Kaiser Permanente Half Marathon . . . Women
Byline Helen Kao A wet but successful weekend for many women! I apologize if I've missed anyone. In alpha order:
Chelsey Remington, team friend, returns to running with a 1:34.59 (11th AG) despite not being sure she wanted to run if it rained.
Christine Brighton, returning team member, ran a 4th age group 1:27.09.
Corrine Roberts, team friend, finished right behind Julie in 1:30.20 (1st AG)
Jen Major logged a 6th AG 1:28.05
Julie McGee starts her Boston prep with 1:30.19 (8th AG)
Kim Fanady, also a 4th AG Master along with Christine, ran 1:34.26
Larissa Polischuk revs back up from her NYMarathon PR with 1:31.34 (12th AG)
Maria Fregoso speeds to a stellar (PR?) 1:24.48, 9th women OA and 3AG (she'll clearly break 3h marathon)
Micha lowe, team friend, picks up after a longstanding injury with 1:34.10 (6th AG)
Molly Newlon demonstrates why she loves the half distance with 2:12.06 (24th AG)
Congratulations to all! Men George Torgun led our charge in 1:14:23, 7th place, with Adam Hersh close behind in 1:15:34 (11th). Iain Mickle won the masters competition in 1:17:10, 15th overall, with second master Dan Mancini close behind in 1:18:23, 19th overall, followed by Matt Patout (1:19:44, 25th), Daniel Shore (1:21:36, 49th), Mark Janes in his farewell race as he relocates to Portland--bye Mark, and see you at Redding! (1:22:11, 57th), and Adam Lucas (1:22:22, 59th). Just behind Adam was new member and senior winner John Hale, running 1:22:24, 60th overall. followed by Andy Chan (1:23:24, 69th), John Spriggs (1:26:18, 112th), Peter Hsia (1:26:40, 118th), Ian Reid (1:32:02), and--doubling with Jed Smith 50K Saturday--Oliver Chan (1:32:59, 299th). A big race--I apologize to anyone I missed. And in the much less competitive 5K, Andy Apfelbaum finished 3rd (and 2d master) in 18:43.
Jed Smith 50K - 02/02/08 Open Men Win Jed Smith 50K
Byline Chikara Omine
A few of us decided to send a team up to Northern Sacramento for the Jed Smith 50K. Jason Reed led the the charge in 3:39:35 (4th place). Chikara Omine, who learned that the lesson "never run a marathon unprepared" (obviously) applies to ultramarathons, staggered through the finish line next in 3:54:20 (7th place). Oliver Chan completed the team in 4:08:17 (12th place). It appears that we won the team division. Also, team friend Eduardo Vasquez joined us for a carpool and completed his first ultra as a really hard training run in a fine 3:57:22 (9th place). None of us planned to double for the weekend with the Kaiser Half Marathon (although Jason only decided not to run because of the entry fee), but Oliver Chan must have changed his mind, as he was spotted on the Kaiser course with a bib number the next morning. Bear Valley Cross Country Ski Area Hwy 4 - 1/27/2008 And thanks to Iain Mickle for culling the following Chikara result . . . * * * Results by ON YOUR MARK * * *
3RD ANNUAL JAZZ TRAX SNOWSHOE STOMP 10K - BEAR VALLEY, CA - JANUARY 27, 2008 Top Male
1. Chikara Omine, San Francisco, cA 25 1:01:43 This brings up the formidable question of how many Chikara results we've missed, so I'm looking for an official club Chikarawatcher (individual or committee) who will cull the internet every week and forward any Chikara results. Volunteers? DSE Sawyer Camp 10K - 1/20/08 Bob Rocket Darling reports the following results: Women: Maria Fregoso- Age 29- 1st -36:49
Tracy Hogan Age 37 2nd 40:49 Men: Grant Johnson - 1st - 35:11
Jason Reed - 6th - 36:29
Bob Rocket Darling Age 58 -2nd 50+ 40:41 |
