The Twilight Zone

This past weekend featured the premier local race of the summer...ROCKVILLE TWILIGHTER 8k

This is easily one of the most competitive local races which includes many local elites, college runners, and several African-born speedsters.  The pre-race warmup revealed cooler temperatures then normal due to a light drizzle and overcast but after we completed two miles on the course, it was apparent that the humidity was going to be a factor.

The race start got delayed about 10 minutes due to the police having trouble clearing the roads of traffic.  In the men's race, team captain, Carlos Renjifo, led the way per the usual crossing the line in 19th place in 25:57.  Mark Buschman and Andrew Madison followed in 26:40 and 27:00, respectively.  Jason Tripp kept his age group winning streak alive barely losing to the first Master, but winning the 40-44 age group with a time of 28:20.  He also earned a spot on the elite squad with this awesome performance!

Samantha Matthews led the way for the ladies, finishing in 22nd in 31:57.  Vicki Lang continued her comeback coming in 3rd in the Master's division, running 34:31.

A summary of the results:

Carlos Renjifo 25:57 19th
Mark Buschman 26:40 29th PR
Andrew Madison 27:00 42nd
Kevin Ford 28:00 56th PR
Craig Lebro 28:14 59th
Jason Tripp 28:20 62nd (1st, M40-44)
Dave Berardi 29:13 80th (3rd, M50-54)
Phil Lang 30:11 104th
Tunde Morakinyo 31:01 127th 
Chris Chattin 31:24 136th
John Chall 31:56 145th (2nd, M55-59)

Samantha Matthews 31:57 22nd 
Vicki Lang 34:31 34th (3rd Master)
Janeth Scott 35:55 43rd (2nd, F50-54)

Nice hair Craig!

Dave running with the young guns as always.  I used to be that guy
who would have to outrun him at the end of the race.

Vicki battling the humidity...

Meanwhile, out west in Garrett County, Bobby Gessler took part in the Salem Challenge 5k.  He indicated that the course was long (3.4 miles) and quite hilly.  However, he ran 22:04, good for 10th overall and first Master.

Sunday morning included the Rosaryville Trail Runs in Upper Marlboro.  Keith Levasseur, training for the Leadville 100 in a few weeks, placed 2nd in the 50k, crossing the line in 3:56:27, winning the 30-39 age group.

With her fantastic performance, Vicki Lang joined the team!  WAY TO GO VICKI!!!

Columbia Women's Distance Festival (WDF)

The conditions this morning were hot and humid, but that didn't deter some 400 women from taking on this year's edition of the Columbia Women's Distance Festival (WDF).  What makes this number particularly impressive in my mind is that the no-show rate was less than 10% -- an impressive number when conditions are perfect for running.  You ladies are tough!  Hats off to all of you.

Times didn't seem to be affected too much by the heat, with the eventual winner, Anna Holt-Gosslin, taking a commanding  victory in 17:45. Behind her was UnSong Ostrowski, who continues to run PRs, this time shaving an insane 20 seconds from her previous best and finishing in 18:26.  Kelly Westlake also had an excellent race, finishing 4th overall (1st in the master's category) with a time 18:51 -- her fastest 5k this year.  Samantha Matthews was next in 5th, equaling her time from the Baltimore Women's Classic (19:37) in tougher conditions.  Samantha was followed closely by Robyn Humphrey (19:48, 6th, 2nd master).  Closing out the list of performances was the dynamic trio of grand masters, who yet again achieved a 1-2-3 sweep for the 50+ age category: Pat Wilkerson (8th, 20:17), Janeth Scott (14th, 21:14), and Dorothy Beckett (17th, 21:22).


Full results are available here: http://striders.net/events/wdf/2012. Pictures will hopefully be posted soon.

A Great Weekend for Strider Women (and Keith as well!)

After a brutal week of temperatures in the high 90s, a slightly cooler weekend (particularly on Sunday) made for some great running.

To kick things off, Keith Levasseur took part in his first ever 100k, the Mason-Dixon Longest Day 100k Challenge, in Susquahanna State Park. The gun went off at 5AM to let runners take advantage of the 15+ hours of daylight. Keith had hopes of breaking the course record of 11 hours and change, setting a PR at the distance, and getting the HCS team record as well. Almost 50 miles into the race, it looked like he would get his way, as he was well ahead of pace. But unbeknownst to him, the last 12 miles of the course would have him essentially "rock climbing" up a side of a hill, just to come back down and repeat. The course record slipped away from him this time, but he still took the team record and set a PR in the process with a time of 13:06. Two out of three isn't shabby. He has already vowed to return next year to take another crack at the record.

A few hours later, Donna Wecker and Caroline Bauer took on the challenge extended by the "Dreaded Druid Hills" of Baltimore.  Donna continued to impress, not only finishing as the first grand master, but also taking the award for top female overall with a time of 43:47!  Caroline was not far back. taking third in a time of 44:27.

Sunday proved to be another showcase of Strider female talent, with the grandmaster women in particular putting on a "master class" for their competition.  In her debut as a part of the elite women, Samantha Matthews finished in 19:37, good for 12th place.  Samantha was followed by the ageless Pat Wilkerson, who continues to run blazing fast times year over year.  Her 20:04 got her 15th overall and first grandmaster.  After Pat was Janeth Scott, who just squeaked under 21 minutes (20:55) and took 1st in the 50-54 age group.  Janeth was followed by Dorothy Beckett, whose 21:38 was good for 2nd in the 50-54 group.  Finally, Tacy Powers rounded out the list of superb times by crossing the line in 22:23 (5th in 40-45).

Congrats to all!  This coming weekend looks to be very hot and humid, so be careful if you are racing!

Tacy and Pat, after the race.

Pat and Tacy with a fellow runner (left).  I am told she is 76 years young!

Where did summer go...???

Father's Day weekend was unseasonably cool by mid-June standards.  Guess what that meant?  PERFECT running conditions!



Start of the B-10

The weekend kicked off with the Baltimore 10 Miler.  Keith Levasseur took top team honors, crossing the tape in 58:48 for 11th overall.  Not far behind was the new Master, Jason Tripp, who paced the 40+ers, posting a 59:03 for 12th place.  On the ladies side, Caroline Bauer kept up her kick-ass 2012 campaign finishing 9th with a 1:08:03.  Solid times on a slow course!

On Sunday, runners gathered at the Gateway Overlook Shopping Center to take part in the 2nd Annual Father's Day 8k put on by Bullseye Running.  There were not as many runners as I had anticipated (only about 120), but the times were blazing due to the prize money ($200, $100, $50).  Falls Road's Dave Berdan (3rd, 25:49) and Tristram Thomas (4th, 26:42) ran well on the tougher than advertised course.  Peter Keating led the way for the Strider men, finishing 5th in 28:04.  He and his son, Joseph (15th, 31:12) took the Father/Son crown.  Andrew Madison, who had to stop in the middle of the race due to stomach issues, still cracked the 30 minute mark, finishing 6th in 29:04.  Other notable performances on the men's side included: Dave Berardi (7th, 29:12) and Chris Chattin (8th, 29:50).

Janeth Scott cruised to an easy Master's win on the women's side, with a time 34:02, good for 4th.

Donna Wecker continued her comeback taking part in the Mount Hebron 10k Trail Challenge, winning the race in 48:13.  She loves running the trails, since Patapsco is literally across the street...

Finally on Sunday, Keith Levasseur and John Chall took part in the Dawson's Father's Day 10k hosted by the Annapolis Striders.  Keith ran a PR of 35:39, finishing 2nd to Karsten.  John took the GM title, crossing the line in 38:38 for 12th.

Also, we welcomed Samantha Matthews to the team late last week.  Samantha is a recent graduate of Bloomsburg University and is a former product of the Junior Striders.  She boast PRs of 18:03 for the 5k, 39:25 for the 10k.  Looking forward to having her help the ladies team come late summer and into the fall!!!

The Summer is Definitely Here

With temperatures already soaring into the 90s in early June, there is no doubt that the summer is here.  Along with it have come some blazing fast times by our men and women.

At Damien's Run this past weekend, the line was filled with a number of "bounty hunters", aiming to score some prize money and potentially a $500 bonus for breaking the course records (Men - 14:32, Women - 16:37).  Both races saw the records broken, with finishing times of 14:23 (Abiyot Endale) and 16:35 (Teszata Desalage).

Behind the leaders, there was a strong contingent of Striders, with some outstanding performances:

-- Jeremy Rea, who has just recently begun to do track work again, ran a solid race (16:56, 6th).
-- In his first race as a master, Jason Tripp (17:33) began his winning streak with a convincing victory over fellow Strider master runner, Mike Colaiacovo (10th, 18:23)
-- Craig Lebro made it under the 18-minute barrier (17:53)
-- UnSong Ostrowski, suffered her first defeat of the year to a record-breaking winner, but still ran a very strong 18:46, good for 2nd
-- Kelly Westlake ran a great race, finishing less than 10 seconds behind UnSong (18:56) and taking the award for first female master.
-- Robyn had a tough day, but still managed to run a 19:27, which is nothing to frown at
-- John Chall and Dorothy Beckett took the grand master awards, with times of 19:01 and 22:08, respectively
-- Bobby Gessler finished 2nd in the grandmaster category (19:46)

Photos from the race are available here and full results are available on the Striders website.

A Weekend to Remember

As Memorial Day came and went, I'm reminded of how great of a country we live in.  No matter of your political or ethnic background, America would not be the place it is today without the sacrifice of those who have and are currently fighting for the land of the free and the home of the brave...

The holiday weekend kicked off on Saturday in the Windy City of all places.  Keith Levasseur and Caroline Bauer competed in the Soldier Field 10 Miler....Home of DA BEARS!  The winning time was sub 50 minutes!  Keith clocked a 1:00:17 for 36th and Caroline ran 1:09:50 for 41st on the women's side.

Phil Lang was our lone representative at the McVet's 5k in Baltimore on Sunday.  He ran with the young guns, crossing the line in 6th overall with a time of 17:40.  He still has some speed!  In OC, Bobby Gessler and his girls led the way at the Seashore Strider's Masser 5 Miler.  Bobby led the GM division with a 32:57.  Julie was the 1st overall female in 34:13, Becky was 3rd in 35:21, Katie won the 20-24 AG with a 36:29, and Amy took the 14-19 AH crown with a 36:58.  SSSWEEEPPP!!!

On Monday morning, Memorial Day, the humidity made it feel like a rainforest out there.  That didn't keep our crew from partaking in the Rotary Remembrance Run 5k.  In the men's race, Peter Keating led the way with a 17:26.  Our newest lady member, UnSong Ostrowski, proved my hypothesis correct (see below), WINNING the women's race with a PR performance of 18:53.  A summary of the results:

Peter Keating 17:26 6th

Steve Olenick 17:42 7th
Jason Tripp 18:04 11th
Phil Lang 18:40 13th

Michael Mbugi 18:42 14th
Tunde Morakinyo 18:50 15th
John Chall 19:29 18th

UnSong Ostrowski 18:53 1st
Robyn Humphrey 20:00 3rd
Janeth Scott 21:39 9th
Dorothy Beckett 22:55 15th

Great performances in unseasonably warm conditions!  Pictures from the race can be found here.

An Endless weekend of first place finishes...

While it was a rather light weekend on the racing front, those who did venture out in the heat to tackle the competition produced well....

While many of us were running the bagel run, Keith Levasseur headed down to Annapolis to compete in the Endless Summer 6 Hour Run.  The race started at 8am and forced runners to push through the heat and humidity.  The goal of this race is to run the 3.4 mile loop as many times are you can in the 6 hour timeframe and the person with the most distance at the end wins.  Well, Keith did just that, logging 45.1 miles and setting a new course record!!!

Sunday morning, Donna Wecker returned to the race scene after a long layoff due to multiple injuries at the BRRC Patapsco Trail Run.  The exact course distance is unknown, but it's approximately 8 miles.  She won the women's race in 1:04:20.  She is looking forward to making a noisy return here soon... Peter Keating took part in the relay at the Columbia Triathlon on Sunday.  He told me that their swimmer ended up choking big time in the water and put them pretty far back at T1.  He ran hard (as the norm) and finished the 10k run in 36:36, good for an 8th place team finish. 

Finally, John Chall took top honors at the Benfield Elementary School 5k in Severna Park, crossing the finish line in 19:02.

FLASH: After months of heckling, we finally got Unsong Ostrowski to cave and join the racing team!!!  She is going to kick some @$$ this Fall!  She already has 1st place finishes at Clyde's and the MD Half.  I GUARANTEE she'll tack on a few more before 2013 gets here...Welcome Unsong!!!

Rockville Twilighter 8k

THE BEST LOCAL RACE OF THE SUMMER!  IT'S ALWAYS HOT AND HUMID BUT THE POST-RACE PARTY AND BEER ARE WORTH THE PRICE OF ADMISSION!!!

Register NOW for the Rockville Rotary Twilight 8K on Saturday, July 21! The price will increase on May 20! Fees are as follows: $28 by May 20, $32 May 21-July 1, $37 July 2 - July 20, $42 Race Day registration.

REGISTER HERE: http://www.imathlete.com/events/twilightrunfest. For more information, please visit http://rockvilletwilighter.org/

For elite team members, we will reimburse most of the entry fee if you register by Sunday (exact amount not certain at this time).

Dance to the Music

The racing week kicked off on Friday with the Armed Services 5k+.  This is a race for NSA employees and contractors who work down at Fort Meade.  Not sure if the results are top secret classified, but in any case we got the inside scoop.  The course was way long, somewhere between 3.35 and 3.4 miles.  Keith Levasseur took 4th in 18:44 while John Chall took the GM crown, finishing 8th in 20:30.

Saturday morning presented the Musical Madness 5k, put on by the Reservoir High School band and directed by fellow Strider Greg Schuler.  On the men's side, Tunde Morakinyo was the first master to cross the finish line, taking 6th in 18:27.  Bobby Gessler was 9th in 19:54.  The ladies race was swept by our speedy trio of Robyn Humphrey, Caroline Bauer, and Pat Wilkerson, who took 1st (19:27), 2nd (19:45), and 3rd (19:47) respectively.  Way to go ladies!!!

Top 3 overall: Robyn, Caroline, and Pat

Finally, Conrad Orloff was spotted in his first race since running a great race at Boston on Sunday.  He won the Run for Coffee 5k in 16:47.

I also heard from Carlos late last week.  He is in Sydney, Australia for vacation.  His plane arrived Saturday night so when he woke up, it was Mother's Day.  No surprise to me, he stumbled onto a race going on just a minute from his hotel.  Here are some of his words about his experience:

"Got out the door this morning with no clue where I would be going. About a block from my house I noticed that there was a race going on for Mother's day. I had no clue what the distance was, but I ran alongside the group of people racing (on the sidewalks) and decided at that point that I would run a workout of sorts. I didn't go all out, but was running somewhere in the ballpark of 5:30 pace, avoiding spectators in the process. The route was very pretty. After I completed the 4k loop, I skipped the finish line and continued to run the second lap (it was a two-loop course). I didn't see anybody, which made me think I had run the wrong way, but I found out later that I had actually been running the 4k race and not the 8k, which would start a little later. I ran the second loop and then made the turn and crossed the finish line. My final time was about 29:15, but the effort was probably more like 28:00 to 28:30, because running on the sidewalks added about 0.15-0.2 miles and avoiding pedestrians was challenging. When I finished, I heard someone on an amplifier near the finish urging people running the 8k to rush to the start. At that point, I was feeling pretty good and figured I still wanted to run 5-7 more miles for the day, so I went back to the start, stretched for about 3 mins and started with the racers. The pace for this race was understandibly faster, but not that out of control. I found myself still running on the sidewalks, because I didn't want to disturb the runners that paid for the race (which it turns out was for Mother's Day). Like the previous race, I took very long routes to stay out of the way of the runners and had to contend with oblivious pedestrians, who were not expecting someone to be blazing at 5:20 pace along the sidewalk. After the first 4k loop (around the Botanical gardens), I think I was in the top 10 to 15, with the first female right on my heels. I picked it up a bit to keep picking people off, but it turned out that the crowds were much thicker in this race, so some spots I had to come to a complete stop to get past the crowds. At one point, I saw the leader crossing somewhere around 5k in about 15:59. I reached the same point about 1:50 later. The second loop was an absolute mess. The crowds were thick and to add to that, the slowest people were only 3k into the race when the leaders reached 7k. I had to almost stop on two more occasions and then I said "screw it" and jumped on the course to run last 2k. The first female had put on a surge and was about 15s ahead. I pushed to catch her and did somewhere around 1k to go. At that point, we were all weaving thick crowds of people. On the finishing stretch, I peeled off to the side and kicked it in on the grass. I could swear that the first female was still gunning for me, because I could hear her kicking about 10 feet to the left of me on the finishing road. I put on a final surge and crossed the (imaginary) finish line around 28:40. A quick compensation for extra distance run and stopping for pedestrains, put this effort around 26:50 or so. Felt really good overall. I was going to congratulate the first female runner, but it looks like she got swept away by reporters. I ran quick cool-down around a park and back to the hotel. Overall a great day for a tempo."

For those who are interested in running the Army Ten Miler (ATM) in October, open registration opens tomorrow (May 15th).  Based on the website, the field is already half full from priority registration so sign up EARLY!!!

Another busy weekend at the races...

Despite the heat, we had another busy weekend of racing, all on Sunday... We'll start in Frederick where Caroline Bauer continued her 2012 rampage at the Frederick Half Marathon. She cruised across the finish line in 1:29:56, good for 5th overall and a spot on the Elite team!  Awesome job Caroline!!!

We had a nice contingent at the Maryland Half Marathon in Maple Lawn.  Keith Levasseur was the 2nd male to complete the hilly course in 1:20:09.  Meanwhile, our female master's wrecking crew of Kelly Westlake and Robyn Humphrey found themselves running with the men, coming in 2nd and 3rd respectively, with times of 1:28:08 and 1:30:24.  Also of note, another Strider, Unsong Ostrowski, finished 1st overall breaking 1:28!!!

Post-MD Half Marathon (left to right): Keith, Jim, Robyn, Unsong, Lisa, Kelly

Finally, yours truly, along with my boys, Kent Werner and Jason Tripp, road-tripped it to Pittsburgh so they could take on the Pittsburgh Marathon.  While it was cloudy down in Maryland, it was HOT and humid in Pittsburgh, making for tough times.  The course is quite hilly and there are no places to hide from the sun!  I booked it 3 miles uptown from the start to just before Mile 12 where I was able  to catch the fellas cross back from the North Side on the Birmingham Bridge.  I hopped on the course with Jason and paced him through 25.2 miles.  The heat forced several people to stop along our way, including a few Kenyans.  Jason battled through sharp cramping in his right hamstring at Mile 24.5 but manned up and finished in 3:05:23.  Kent echoed similar cramping issues.  Rumor has it he walked about a mile and still ran a very respectable 2:50:04 for 39th.  Great effort in far less than ideal day in the Steel City!!!  Both are BQs!

Just a reminder that registration for Remembrance Run and Damien's has opened so if you're around, these are both good local races so try to make an appearance!

Weekend Recap

It was quite a busy weekend on the racing front on what I'm calling the official closing of the spring racing season.

On Saturday, Robyn Humphrey started the team off with an easy victory at the AFCEA 5k, finishing 4th overall and the first female by 30 seconds in 19:35. In Columbia, Bullseye Running put on the First Annual Thunder Hill 5k. Adam Wytko took 1st in 16:32 while Phil Lang decided to run his race, finishing 3rd in 17:35. Pretty amazing considering he was up late showing off on the dance floor at Izzy and Kathleen's wedding! Finally, our crazy ultra duo of Keith Levasseur and Caroline Bauer ventured down to Lynchburg, VA to run the Promise Land 50k++. From what I was told, the course is 34 miles and the conditions were brutal. Rain, sleet, wind....just awful! Keith managed 13th on men's side in 5:11:42 while Caroline pushed through for 37th in the women's race.

Sunday featured one of the biggest and fastest local races of the spring....Pike's Peek 10k. Conditions were near perfect and the times were crazy fast. This race gives money to the top 10 overall, as well as top 3 per age group. The top 8 men broke 29 minutes!!! Carlos Renjifo closed out his amazing spring season with another PR, finishing 19th in 31:47. He has been battling a sore ankle over the past few weeks which flared up after the 5k point, in which he completed in 15:35ish! Time to rest up bro! Craig Lebro ran well, finishing 39th in what I believe is a PR of 34:50. On the ladies side, Janeth Scott kept up her tear on the newly-entered grandmaster division, running a 41:55 for 45th. Might need to exchange her navy blue singlet for a royal blue! Fellow GM Dorothy Beckett ran 43:55 for 56th.

We have another busy weekend of racing coming up. I will be on-site in Pittsburgh as Kent and Jason will attack 26.2. I know Keith is running the MD Half on Sunday. Broad Street is also this weekend.

For those who care, our Tuesday night group run is finally (and thankfully) switching from HCC to the trails at Patapsco (Landing Road entrance) at 6pm. Feel free to join us whenever you can.

Oh yeah...ONE MORE THING!  If you will be around this Sunday 5/6, please consider helping out at the Junior Striders home meet at OMHS.  The meet starts at 12:30pm.  Phil and Vicki could use as many people as they can get.  If interested, send Phil an email at coachlang@hotmail.com.

Is it July already?!?!...Clyde's and Boston recap

This weekend was one of the busiest racing weekends of the year for us. On Sunday, we had a solid showing at the 34th Annual Clyde's 10k. The weather was quite nice, with the exception of the humidity. Carlos Renijifo, going for the first three-peat in Clyde's history, had a hard fought battle with Kyle Stanton and Falls Roads' Dustin Meeker. As the trio passed me near Mile 3, they were making it look easy. Kyle put in a push after hte 108 hill and Carlos didn't have enough in the tank to go with him. The chase pack was quite a sight to watch as well. Kent Werner, Seth Geoghegan, Kevin Ford, Peter Keating, and Craig Lebro were running together as they proceeded up Columbia Road to 108. Kent ended up edging out Seth by 16 seconds for a 4th place finish! However, Seth logged another PR. This makes a 5k, 10 mile, and 10k PR so far in 2012 for him! Also of note was the long awaited return of Steve Olenick to the racing scene. For those who don't know, Steve battled a mysterious knee injury after PRing in the 2010 Baltimore Marathon and was forced out of action for well over a year. Two surgeries later, he's back at it and I expect him to be in the racing team by the Fall!

In the women's race, Unsong Ostrowski ran away from the field early and won easily in 38:49. Allegedly, she doesn't enjoy racing because she gets nervous. Well, that's about to change as we are starting a non-stop stalking campaign to get her on the team. Kelly Westlake ran a great race for 2nd place in 39:48. Former rockstar, Pam Markley, who currently resides in Vicenza, Italy, made a stop in her old stomping grounds to edge out Robyn Humphrey for 3rd place. Pat Wilkerson cleaned house in the grandmaster division with a 41:26 and Janeth Scott, recently turned 50, broke 44 minutes (43:51) for 21st.

Here's a recap of the results:

Carlos Renjifo (2nd) 32:36
Kent Werner (4th) 34:22
Seth Geoghegan (5th) 34:38
Kevin Ford (6th) 34:46
Peter Keating (7th) 34:50
Craig Lebro (8th) 35:52
Steve Olenick (9th) 36:34
Jason Tripp (10th) 36:46
John Chall (31st) 39:19
Tunde Morakinyo (32nd) 39:21
Bobby Gessler (65th) 41:58

Unsong Ostrowski (1st) 38:49
Kelly Westlake (2nd) 39:48
Pam Markley (3rd) 40:08
Robyn Humphrey (4th) 40:10
Pat Wilkerson (7th) 41:23
Janeth Scott (21st) 43:51

Monday was the biggest racing day of the year (in my humble opinion)...the 116th Boston Marathon! What a difference a day makes. The morning low was in the low 60s and the humidity never dimished as the sun went down. To make matters worse, this race starts at 10am, meaning that even if you run a world record time, you'll have to do it during the hottest part of the day!

I received conflicting records about temperatures during the race. Conrad indicated that temperatures reached 90 degrees as he hit Mile 16. Caroline Bauer's recollection seemed a bit more realistic with mid 80s, but either way that's a good 30+ degrees warmer than anyone in their right mind would have wanted it! Conrad, who had been battling some injuries, which included taking a couple weeks off about a month or so ago, was shooting for a 2:44 and ran a fantastic race crossing the line in 2:50. Keith Levasseur ran solid race in 3:02. The fearless Phil Lang, running marathon #45, crushed Mother Nature and ran an amazing 3:10. Adam Wytko struggled with the heat, but was able to gut it out with a 3:29.

On the ladies side, we only had Caroline representing the team. She had been running her butt off this winter with 70-80 mile weeks, several MP runs, and two 50k's just for the hell of it. She was undoubtedly in 3:10 shape, but played it smart and didn't let her adrenaline get to her and just enjoyed the race (as much as one could) running a 3:31.

26.2 results:

Conrad Orloff (207th) 2:50:12
Shawn Young (537th) 3:00:56
Keith Levasseur (581st) 3:02:00
Phil Lang (993rd) 3:10:34
Adam Wytko (2640th) 3:29:48

Caroline Bauer (443rd) 3:31:22
Becky Ramsing (1776th) 3:53:06
Julie Thienel (1798th) 3:53:19
Lisa Fichman (2098th) 3:56:30
Janelle McIntyre (2186th) 3:57:36
Amanda Loudin (4252nd) 4:19:00

Incredible job by all, especially the Beantowners! Don't let this year deter you from doing this race again. When the weather is right, it's one of the best running experiences you can have!

Here's some pics from Clyde's:


Top 3 men (left to right): Kyle Stanton (1st), Dustin Meeker (3rd), Carlos Renjifo (2nd)



Jason x 4!



The guys model their prizes (mini collapsible chairs and beach mats). 
Kent, um... takes modeling to a whole new level.



Bobby, Pat, Tacy, and Robyn enjoying the postrace party

More pictures from Clyde's here
Clyde's video, courtesy of Carlos and Issel, located here

BOSTON LOOMS...

We had several awesome performances at Clyde's this morning! I will provide a recap once chip times and pictures are posted.

Meanwhile, our focus shifts to Boston where the 116th running of the Boston Marathon is scheduled to be a scorcher! Good luck to all of those running. Forget that PR and enjoy the experience and remember to stay hydrated...

Feet First Anniversary Run - This Saturday!

Feet First is celebrating their 33 year anniversary this coming Saturday, April 7th. If you are around this weekend, please consider stopping by at 7AM to take part in their 3 or 10 mile run, followed by refreshments.

Jeff and Karen have been very supportive of the Striders over the years and it would be awesome if we could show our support by attending this event.  Details are copied below.

Save the Date!!!

4th Annual Feet First Anniversay Run
10 mile and 3 mile runs
Saturday, April 7, 2012
7:00am
Rain or shine
"33 Years and Still Running"
Free Premiums for all finishers and refreshments will be served

Location: Feet First Sports, 6420 Freetown Road #130, Columbia, MD.

Cherry Blossom: Team Competition Results

The team competition results have been posted.  Men finish 1st and 5th. Masters take 3rd, 6th, and 9th!

Running Club Team Results Running Club, Open Male

1.  Howard County Striders Men

      51:43   55:11   56:36 (58:27) = 2:43:30

      Carlos Renjifo, Tom Williams, Kent Werner, Keith Levasseur

2.  Capital Area Runners – MRC

      53:44   57:33   58:59 (1:06:57) (1:07:39) = 2:50:16

      Rich Saunders, Romain Mareuil, Andrew Jacobson, Michael Miller, Daniel Vogel

3.  Washington Running Club + Dojo

      56:47   57:13   59:56 (1:02:57) (1:05:36) = 2:53:56

      Shawn Rumery, Geoff King, Kirk Masterson, Kit Wells, Andrew Killian

4.  DC Road Runners

      57:08   57:59 1:00:32 (1:01:28) (1:05:32) = 2:55:39

      Matt Deters, Benjamin Mitchell, Dylan Barlett, Joe Schoenbauer, Joseph Fisher

5.  Howard County Striders Men B

      56:01   59:06 1:00:59 (1:02:27) = 2:56:06

      Seth Geoghegan, Jason Tripp, Brian Fleming, James Blackwood

Running Club, Coed Masters Teams (Score Top 3, By Net Time)

1.  MCCRC Mixed Reality

      56:52   58:03 1:06:29 = 3:01:24

      Kevin Yates, David Haaga, Cindy Conant

2.  -PR-Masters X

      1:00:11 1:00:22 1:01:51 = 3:02:24

      Jim Nielsen, Peggy Yetman, Mark Malander

3.  Howard County Striders A

      57:07 1:03:08 1:04:40 = 3:04:55

      Peter Keating, John Chall, Robyn Humphrey

4.  DC Road Runners Masters

      59:23   59:51 1:15:29 = 3:14:43

      Kevin D'Amanda, Ian Clements, Janet Braunstein

5.  Atlanta Track Club

      57:48 1:04:34 1:13:18 = 3:15:40

      Ken Youngers, Nancy Stewart, Michele Keane

6.  Howard County Striders B

       1:06:01 1:07:38 1:07:49 = 3:21:28

      Bobby Gessler, Richard Chase, Pat Wilkerson

7.  -PR-Masters XX

       55:56 1:02:54 1:29:04 = 3:27:54

       John Zimmerman, Jim Bradford, Maria Nusbaum

8.  DC Front Runners Platinum

       1:08:06 1:09:01 1:17:19 = 3:34:26

       Seth Kalish, Allen Greenberg, Blake Rushin

9.  Howard County Striders C

       1:10:56 1:11:44 1:14:15 = 3:36:55

       Kenneth Sevik, Dorothy Beckett, Rebecca Ramsing

As the cherry blossoms fell off the trees, many Striders were in full bloom at the season's biggest race

I decided to join those racing with a 4:30am buzzing alarm. By 5:20am, I pulled up to the Broken Land Parkway Park 'N Ride and discovered several Striders were on the exact same schedule. The Metro ride was a piece of cake and the crisp, cool air shocked our systems as we crested the (broken) escalator. Sorry to digress; now to the real story:

The conditions were near ideal for this time of the year (unless you were spectating). I didn't hear anyone complain about the wind going around Hains Point. We had several amazing performances which including huge PRs by our team captain, Carlos Renjifo, who blasted across the finish line in 51:43 for 20th place and a 1:37 PR. He ran with the big dawgz and showed he deserves to be in the discussion with the area's elite. This is also a new team record! Seth Geoghegan, our newest (official) member battled through a toe blister (wore a new pair of shoes for race day...what an idiot) to run a 2:00 PR, 56:01 for 49th. Docta Kent wasn't far behind in 56:36. Peter Keating, reportedly only running 25 mile weeks, ran 57:07 for 72nd overall. Keith Levasseur, who I'm guessing ran a 20-30k warmup, had a solid Boston tune-up as he cracked the top 100 men for 96th place with a 58:27. The last of our sub-hour crew was the infamous Jason Tripp, who looked strong the last 150m, clocking a 59:06. Our only healthy grandmaster, John Chall, performed well with a 63:08.

Our ladies squad was quite (grand)masterful as well. I swear they get younger each day! Robyn Humphrey led the way averaging just under 6:30s, rolling through in 64:40 for 56th and 2nd in AG. Kelly Westlake was right on her heels, finishing 65th in 65:18. Ms. Constantcy, Pat Wilkerson rounded out the sub-70 crew with a 67:49, including 3rd in her age group. Janeth Scott ran even splits for a 70:26 followed by Dorothy Beckett in 71:44. Many of the Run 4 Chocolate ladies were also spotted on the course.

Courtesy of Robyn:
So Kelly and I are out together, too fast (Kelly's fault) but good thing as at 1.5 miles Joan Benoit Samuelson comes up on my right and I say "Kelly, an American treasure is to our right", Kelly looks to see and she is like OMG, where is Dave Tripp with his camera when you need him? Joan says "Thank you so much", so humble, lovely lady as she powers up and pulls away I say, "now I can die", which got a big smile! A great moment for Kelly and I!

Here's a formatted Striders breakdown:

Place / Name / 5 Mile / Gun Time / Net Time / Pace
20 Carlos Renjifo* 25:51 51:43 51:43 5:11
41 Tom Williams 27:04 55:12 55:11 5:32
49 Seth Geoghegan* 28:19 56:04 56:01 5:37
56 Kent Werner 28:11 56:38 56:36 5:40
75 Peter Keating 29:46 57:26 57:07 5:43
96 Keith Levasseur* 29:29 58:30 58:27 5:51
111 Jason Tripp 29:25 59:08 59:06 5:55
171 Brian Fleming 30:46 1:01:37 1:00:59 6:06
263 John Chall 31:01 1:03:14 1:03:08 6:19
307 Akintunde Morakinyo 32:05 1:04:05 1:04:01 6:25
429 Bobby Gessler 32:25 1:06:06 1:06:01 6:37

56 Robyn Humphrey 31:37 1:04:42 1:04:42 6:28
65 Kelly Westlake 31:58 1:05:20 1:05:18 6:32
117 Pat Wilkerson 33:14 1:07:51 1:07:49 6:47
160 Julie Thienel 34:18 1:09:35 1:09:31 6:58
183 Janeth Scott 34:48 1:10:55 1:10:26 7:03
230 Dorothy Beckett 35:26 1:12:06 1:11:44 7:11
253 Lisa Fichman 36:00 1:12:43 1:12:27 7:15
260 Janelle McIntyre 36:27 1:13:03 1:12:41 7:16
323 Tacy Powers 36:46 1:14:05 1:13:35 7:22
356 Rebecca Ramsing 36:54 1:14:31 1:14:15 7:26
416 Grace Tran 37:35 1:18:13 1:15:07 7:31
641 Hazel Chase 38:27 1:20:56 1:17:51 7:48

* denotes PR

Congrats all!!!

A few selected pictures (click the Picasa link on the right side of the blog for more):


The crew!



Carlos kicking some ass!



Seth with a HUGE PR!



Robyn leading the way for the ladies...

More Photos
Taken by GRC's Michelle Miller are here.

Videos
Finish Line videos on the Cherry Blossom Website
Compilation of Howard County Striders Finishes (Thanks to Issel Lim!)

WE JUST CRAZY AND RICH

It was a quiet weekend on the racing front, but there were a few performances worth mentioning. On Saturday, in Susquehanna State Park, our ultra duo, Caroline Bauer and Keith Levasseur, participated in the 24th Annual HAT 50k. I suspect they were both using this race as a long training run for Boston in 3 weeks. Caroline battled through the sub-par conditions and stream crossing for a 9th place finish in 5:39:15 while Keith took 7th on the men's side in 4:24:56.

On the race, Caroline wrote: 'The race went pretty well, it was a muddy day but thankfully the rain stopped right as we were lining up at the start line and didn't start back up again until we were driving home. Keith and I both took falls and ended up with pretty bloody knees. There were a few major climbs and descents which will hopefully only get me ready for Boston!!'

In Ellicott City, a few team members raced in the 2nd Annual Northfield Roadrunner 5k. The course was said to be quite hilly, particularly the first mile or so. Andrew Madison ran with the lead pack for the first half of the race then ran away from Mike Colaiacovo to win in 16:41 and $200. Mike took second in 16:47. Jason Tripp, who received props during the awards ceremony for being in the middle of Boston training, ran a modest 18:33 for 8th. Little did the race director know he is just getting old and slow!!! On the women's side, Robyn Humphrey ran a solid race in 19:55 for 2nd overall and $150. Megan Digregorio and Sara Breedlove from Falls Road stumbled over county lines to grab 1st and 3rd, respectively.

Finally, John Chall ran the Dancel Family YMCA 5k on Sunday and crossed the finish line in 18:58, good for 1st in his age group.

Next weekend will be busy as just about everyone (except the wounded) take part in the Cherry Blossom Ten Miler. Can't wait to report on the fast times!

It's beginning to feel a lot like Spring...

It was a busy weekend of racing that had a spring-like feel to it. It started off in our Nation's Capital, as a few racing team members competed in the Rock 'N Roll National Marathon/Half. Caroline Bauer continued her PR crushing 2012 campaign with a 1:28:55 in the half, good for 26th place! I know from experience this course isn't as flat as advertised. She is definitely going to be in sub-3:10 shape as she toes the starting line in Hopkinton in less than a month! Meanwhile, Keith Levasseur still coming back from injury hopped into the marathon like it was nothing and ran 2:54:27 for 21st place on the men's side as he begins to set his sights on a big PR in Boston.

Also Saturday morning, our Captain, Carlos Renjifo, and Kevin Ford took part in the 2nd Annual Forget Towson Invitational at UMBC. This low key track meet consisted of a 3k and 4x800m relay with several members of the Georgetown Running Company and Falls Road racing teams. In the 3k, Carlos hung with the big dogs from DC and ran a 20+ second PR with an 8:46.68 for 4th place while Kevin ran a smart, even race in 9:39.35. Carlos then ran a 2:03 split in the 4x800. BEAST!!!

Finally, Phil Lang ran the Germantown, TN half while in Memphis for the Annual RRCA Convention in 1:22:03 for 13th overall and 4th in the M40-44 age group!

Great start to the spring season!!!

Striders represent at Shamrock 5k

On a spring-like afternoon in Charm City, several members of the Striders Racing Team came out with hopes of a PR. As I stood with Issel just around the final turn near the finish line, I wondered who would shoot around the corner first. It was none other than the team captain, Carlos Renjifo, as he powered past a solid Falls Road pack in the last mile to win the race with a new PR in 15:04. Soon after, it was nonstop cheer time as several Striders came cruising in. Most notably, Seth Geoghegan kept his amazing 2012 campaign going with a 15 second PR of 16:20. Pat Wilkerson crushed her goal of sub 20 minutes with an incredible time of 19:38 and took home the women's masters title. She is getting faster with age! This race indicates that many are going to run very well at Cherry Blossom in a few weeks. A summary of the results are as follows:

Place Div/Tot Name S Ag Hometown Gun T Net T Pace
===== ======== ======================= = == ================ =====
1 1/317 Carlos Renjifo (PR) M 29 Columbia MD 15:05 15:04 4:51
13 7/530 Seth Geoghegan (PR) M 32 Columbia MD 16:22 16:21 5:16
14 6/317 Andrew Madison M 23 Baltimore MD 16:30 16:28 5:18
21 9/317 Craig Lebro M 26 Columbia MD 17:02 16:59 5:28
22 11/530 Keith Levasseur M 33 Columbia MD 17:10 17:08 5:31
25 14/530 Jason Tripp M 39 Ellicott City MD 17:14 17:12 5:32
31 3/253 Phil Lang M 44 Columbia MD 17:32 17:29 5:38
60 2/129 John Chall M 54 Crownsville MD 18:39 18:36 5:59
69 2/69 Bobby Gessler M 55 Ellicott City MD 19:02 19:00 6:07


79 1/146 Pat Wilkerson F 53 Columbia MD 19:40 19:38 6:19
111 1/321 Vicki Lang F 43 Columbia MD 20:26 20:21 6:33
175 8/968 Grace Tran F 34 Columbia MD 21:35 21:31 6:56

Great job everyone!!!

Full Results can be viewed here: http://charmcityrun.com/content/results/shamrock12.htm
Pictures from the race, courtesy of: Charm City, HCS
Videos of the race, courtesy of : Falls Rd, HCS

Post Race: All Smiles!

Washington Running Report

The March/April edition of Washington Running Report is now available.  It includes -- among other things -- a recap of the US Olympic marathon trials , a cool article on the top local finisher (Ricky Flynn), and "Best of 2011" rankings.  Check it all out here: http://digital.runwashington.com/ .




Congratulations to the following Striders for being ranked in the 2011 overall standings:

Best of 2011 Men
Carlos Renjifo (32nd, Open Men)
Mark Buschman (41st, Open Men)
Jason Tripp (15th, M35-39)
Mike Colaiacovo (3rd, M40-44)
Doug Mock (9th, M40-44)
Peter Keating (2nd, M45-49)
Dave Berardi (3rd, M50-54)
John Chall (17th, M50-54)
Bob Burns (15th, M55-59)
Mike Fleming (12th, M65-69)
John Elliott (2nd, M70-74)

Best of 2011 Women
Kara Waters (9th, Open Women)
Julie Gessler (4th, F19 & Under)
Becky Gessler (7th, F19 & Under)
Amy Gessler (11th, F19 & Under)
Robyn Humphrey (3rd, F45-49)
Janeth Scott (17th, F45-49)
Lisa Fichman (19th, F45-49)
Pat Wilkerson (4th, F50-54)
Dorothy Beckett (12th, F50-54)

Also, congrats to Marsha Demaree for getting her photo posted!