No More Cloudy Days

SWEEP was the name of the game this weekend as we saw 7 team members cross the line first, with a slew of their compatriots filing in behind them.

First on Saturday, Kris Simms ran the Marian House 5k. You remember this one - it's the race where Arjun contested an all-out, balls-out sprint with a competitor that time. Kris finished 2nd and ran 19:27. He was hoping I didn't see the result, but as I figured the race had to be long, he suggested that it was in fact quite more than 5k. Down in Glen Burnie, Terry Decker finished 2nd in the GBIA 5k, winning some cool prizes.

Terence Baptiste ran the Akron Half Marathon, finishing 25th in 1:19:31. I asked him where that speed came from and he said it was from our run at Patapsco from back during the summer.

Then it was onto Sunday, where TWSSers put on many free clinics. Starting on the NCR Trail with the NCR Half Marathon, where the trio of Phil Turner, Dustin Meeker and Nate Brigham ran together the entire way before Dusty and Nate left the door open for Phil to take the win (to complement his 2+ minute PR) in 1:13:27. Dusty was 2nd in 1:13:28 and Nate took the 3rd spot in 1:13:29. Steve Febish was using the race as a wave run, so while he surely had to be running by himself most of the way, he nailed the workout and finished 4th in 1:17:37. Melissa Tanner took the top spot for the women in 1:25:47. Bob Villanueva, just a week removed from his great Chesapeakeman Aquabike, finished in 1:33:11.

Heading down to Mt. Washington, it was time for the Race for Our Kids 10k. It's one of the more challenging races out there, with a serious uphill last mile +, but the weather could not have been better. Just a few years ago this race was at the end of June, and I literally saw someone wilt (Kris and I had to catch her before she fell. That girl went onto compete at the 2012 US Olympic Marathon Trials). Dave Berdan made a return to racing with a 32:10 4th place effort. About 3/4 of a mile back, but in 5th place overall, was Chrissie Ramsey, who easily won the women's race in 36:36 - making it one of her fastest times ever. Dave Berardi came in at 37:15 for 8th, and then it was Megan DiGregorio in 2nd at 38:09, just off her personal best, and then Meg McNew in 39:25, again not far off her best time. Denise Knickman completed the ladies' sweep in 41:17.

Moving further down the road it was the Falls Road 15k, now renamed the Pacemaker Prep 15k I guess. Newcomer David Cobb, fresh off his 17:42 at the RM Classic, crossed the line first in 56:33. He said he runs that route nearly every day, albeit with a baby stroller, and hasn't felt that light in months. Great job David! PJ Anderer took 3rd in 1:01:33. The race for the women's victory was much closer, with Sara Damiano making a strong move in the back half of the race to pass Jen Sheely, taking the win in a PR of 1:09:11 to Jen's 1:09:39.

Attached to the 15k was also the Hilson Hustle 5k, named after Bob Hilson in honor of his birthday. Cory Donovan, in his final Chicago prep, took the win in 19:15, and Josey Mintel was 3rd overall and first lady in 20:13. Lillian Pinault finished 4th in 22:12.

With so many terrific performances on a weekend I forgot even had any races, it was a tough week for the Purple Drink Athlete of the Week. 7 winners, numerous PRs, but the most impressive to me this week was Sara Damiano!

Receiving the KC Masterpiece Award this week are Dustin and Nate for displaying great team/sportsmanship.

Falls Road 15k - Sunday 9/29

Looking for a low-key race tune-up race this weekend? Check out the Falls Road 15k. It's on Sunday, 7:30am so you can be done and home well before the Orioles regular season finale against the Red Sox. It's at Druid Hill Park, so you could even run THERE, and then do the race.

If you're not up for running, but are available to help out, why not give back to the store that supports us and show up around 7am to be a course marshal, help with registration, finish line, etc.

Other events going on this weekend:

Race for Our Kids 10k - the challenging race in Mt. Washington that has a decent prize purse, so I can bet I know where most of our mercs will be. www.raceforourkids.org.

The Hilton, Hustle & Hops 8k - an EVENING race on Saturday. 5pm in Catonsville. Registration is on www.runningmaryland.com. Fun cookout and beers post-race.

Runnin' Til We Outta Time

This past weekend was pretty stacked with 5k and 10k events. On Saturday down in Clarendon, Mike Mashner laced 'em up for the running equivalent of a double-header as he finished 20th in the 5k in 17:58, and then 41:48 in the 10k. Mike, much like a number of others last week, came down with something and was not on good legs. But Patty Stott was on top form as she ran a PR for the 10k distance, finishing in 53:00. Nice Patty!

At the Diane Geppi-Aikens Memorial 5k, a race in honor of the late Loyola Women's Lacrosse coach, Amy Horst finished 5th in 20:15. Up in Havre de Grace, Meg McNew was in 3rd place overall in the Celebration Run 5k before the two guys ahead of her made wrong turns. By the time they corrected themselves, they were mid-pack, so Meg just ran back and scooped up her dad, and they ran it in together!

Another race marred in controversy was the Jessica Meredith Jacobson Memorial 5k in Towson. It must be a conspiracy of officiating, because Steve Febish said at one point the cop didn't know which way to go, so he told them to STOP dead in their tracks while he radioed to figure out which way they were supposed to turn. Steve finished 3rd though, and Patrick O'Rourke was 5th.

Sunday came and it was time for Suzanne Hurst to show off her summer training - in the pool - as she competed in the Swim Across America 1 mile event. She swam 33:02 and finished 33rd, which is pretty amazing! She must have rubbed elbows with Michael Phelps up at Meadowbrook this summer...

Spider Sillery took part in the Duathlon World Championships in Nancy, France, where he said he had two good runs but didn't perform so well on the bike. But nevertheless, really cool to get to compete in a World Championship event.

I would be remiss not to point out Aaron Tripp, who rode in the Charm City Cyclocross race(s) on Sat/Sun - his first ever CX racing!

Sunday's big event was the Race for Our Kids 10k. This challenging race in Mt. Washington usually draws a competitive crowd, lured in by the crisp crinkling of cash. Dave Berdan was our top finisher, running injured, and finishing in 5th in 32:58. He was thinking that kind of time could put him in the money; unfortunately he was not correct. Kent Pecora was next up, running 33:25 and finishing 6th. Alex Battaglino wasn't far back at 33:51 for 7th, and Dan Miranda had the race of the day - and a big redemption race following his performance at PDR last week - running a PR 34:07 and finishing 8th.

The ladies' race featured 3 Olympic Trials Marathoners, including race winner Samia Akbar and NJ-native, Amanda Marino, finishing 1-2 ahead of our own Chrissie Ramsey, 3rd in 37:21. Megan DiGregorio had a huge race, smashing her PR and finishing 4th, 90 seconds better than what she did last year, crossing the line in 37:58. It's unfortunate, because that time would have easily won the last two years (when Diane and Meg McNew were the respective winners, ahead of Meg D). But the time matters, so great job Meg. Karen Menge is running out of time before she turns 50, and keeps getting those races in. She finished 15th in 47:34. Angela Vavasori, realtor, is used to the triathlon circuit, but wants to work on her running, ran 48:23 for 16th.

Our Purple Drink Athlete of the Week went to Dan Miranda - great work buddy!

And as I mentioned in the email, I am proud to congratulate our two newest PhD's: Kipchirchir Bitok and Carly Page. We are a group of overachieving, intelligent, amazing people, and these two newest Docs on the Block have more than put in their time and earned their stripes. It's a culmination of years of hard work, dedication, and focus, and we wish you the best wherever your journeys take you!

Dancing in the Dark

As I scrolled through the race results from the weekend, one of my first thoughts was man, what a great weekend it would have been to cherry pick a win.  There were some seriously slow races (Run With the Horses 10k, Notre Dame Prep 5k) and some races that any of our girls could have stormed (Chestertown Half winner was 1:42, money race Hidden Treasures Half top 3 within a minute in the 1:33 range).  Then, as my phone returned to service and a flurry of text messages and emails popped up in my inbox, I found out that a number of other races were really poorly organized. 

Pete Mulligan finished 3rd at the Caribbean Sounds 10 Miler in the Harbor, and remarked that it made the Figgy Pudding 5k look like an "organized event."  With 3 races (5k, 10k, 10mi) just running out and back through the Harbor, all three distances were short.  But at least he got to eat some great jerk chicken afterwards. 

Jon Miller, Meg McNew and Christa Wagner all competed at the 3/10-too-long Great Prostate Cancer Challenge 5k in Towson.  I mistakenly listed Meg and Christa at 3rd and 5th, respectively, but I didn't realize that some name that looked weird was a girl, so they were actually 4th and 6th.  For Christa, it was just her 2nd race this year and first since Club Challenge.  A long road back from injury, and a great result!  Apparently this 2000 person race had no food or water after and was just a complete Clusterf***.

At the aforementioned half marathons, Chris Benassi took 2nd at Chestertown in 1:20:39, while Brennan Feldhausen finished 3rd at Hidden Treasures in Salisbury with a 1:17:36, picking up $200 for his effort. 

Two other results originally omitted in my email were Julia Webb's 1st Female/3rd overall 23:27 at the Virginia 4 Miler, and Dan Miranda's 2nd place in the Naylor's Beach Duathlon, with the fastest Run1 and Run2 of the day. 

I don't have results for the Bull Run Reunion Run, but I do know that Tristram Thomas picked up a well-deserved W in 16:55 - a great time on that course, and a minute faster than he ran there last year.  Erik Westlund also competed. 

At the Great Pittsburgh 10k, Terence Baptiste had one of the best races of the year.  He ran 34:58 for 30th place in this stacked field, and as far as I can tell it's a 90sec+ smashing of his previous 10k best.  I know he ran in the 36:30 range at both Pike's Peek and the infinitely slower Race For Our Kids (I thought he may have gotten into the 35 range somewhere through the years but couldn't find any confirmation).  I talked to T about his race and he said he went out a little more relaxed, as he's been going out too hard recently.  Splitting 17:45 at 5k, he then tore into the course, ripping a negative split 17:13 or so for the back half.  He said the course is pretty similar to Pike's Peek: net downhill but mile 5 is straight up.  Tuesday Tibbs ran well too, running 54:41.

Speaking of Race For Our Kids, that was on Sunday as well.  The course seems to be slightly friendlier these days, as the race was moved from late June to late September, and the route changed slightly.  Last year, Andy Biladeau of UVA came and ripped into the course, running the fastest 10k at RFOK (although it was the new course).  Dave Berdan slotted into 2nd then, but this year was back with a vengeance, and great form following last weekend's PDR.  Dave has had some great performances at this race over the years, winning in 2008 and finishing 2nd twice, but this year was great.  Dave's winning time was 30:58 - the fastest he's run here by quite a bit.  Alex Battaglino hasn't raced in some time, but has been putting in monster volume as he prepares for the BAA Boston Half.  He ran 32:19 in his runner-up finish.  Elijah Kosgei has been 40 for at least 3 years.  I don't understand it, or why he keeps writing down that he is 40, but c'mon Peter Pan - we all have to grow up at some point.  Face facts: the reaper is near.  But, he didn't let that stop him from running 35:22 for 4th.  Dave Berardi has been hampered by some hamstring issues again, but avoided getting girled by Diane, finishing 8th in 38:59.  Diane Heiser has never run a 10k before (at least not while she's been here that I can find) so her 39:25 established a personal best for the distance.  It was also more than good enough for the win, over Megan DiGregorio, who finished 2nd in 40:19.  Meg D has run 3 10k's this year and has been within 6 seconds of that time, each time.  Suzanne Hurst completed the Falls Road clean sweep, running 41:05.  Cynthia Evans also ran, finishing in 50:29. 

I would be remiss to not mention our brave Ragnar Relay folks: Dustin Meeker, Liz Lawton and Melissa Majumdar.  Dusty's team did great battle with Liz, and came from behind to outpace them by 10 minutes at the end.  Dusty's team was 2nd overall, Liz's was 3rd (1st in the mixed division).  Melissa was on the lone ultra mixed division, which meant just 6 team members instead of 12.  All I have heard was just how difficult the legs were from Dusty and Liz, that running up South Mountain (in Boonsboro) at 3am was terrible, and how wrecked they were from the effort. 

Our Purple Drink Athlete of the Week went to Terence, for his terrific PR and great finish at Pittsburgh!

We'll be at the track tonight, 6:30pm, let's try and make sure we're starting by 7.  Another fairly long workout for the marathon folks, who I think are going to do 6x1600 somewhere between tempo and marathon pace, with 200m jog rolling recovery.  For those who are winding down or focusing on shorter events, we'll do a simple workout:  4x800, 4x400, 4x200, getting faster on the way down.  90sec in between the 8s, 60sec after the 4s and 200m jog in between the 200s.