Sunday, December 28, 2014

More from New Jersey runners on the national race



Published by the DAILY RECORD of Morris County, New Jersey
On Sunday, December 28,  2014

 

More from New Jersey runners on the national race



It may have been three weeks past, but the enthusiasm of the New Jersey runners who competed in the national club cross country championship has not waned.

“It was fantastic to see the Open & Masters Clubs representing our Association at Lehigh University, said New Jersey association Managing Director Terry Mullane. “Competing against Nationally ranked competition, our Association showed the country the quality and depth of running clubs that are in NJ,” he wrote.  “Congratulations to the Garmin Women’s 50 team who placed third in a very competitive race. In addition, congratulations to the Team Pearl Izumi Men’s and Adidas Garden State Women’s 40 Teams who placed 4th in their respective Division. A special shout out goes to the Shore AC and Clifton Roadrunners Men’s 70 Teams who finished first and third in their Division. It was a great day on a great course!”

Garmin runner Janie Morra of Morristown said she had a moment of déjà vue.  “To me it felt like one of the Holmdel Park high school state sectional/group XC meets,” she wrote.  “So happy to see so many folks warming up, racing, cheering teammates on!!! Such camaraderie!!”
 
Reno Stirrat of Rockaway took a more serious note.  “When I looked at the list of entrants to the [meet], I knew this would be a race against the best of the best. All the Shore AC 60 year old team members would need to have great races in order for us to reach the podium,” he said.   “As we lined up and the gun went off all of the masters runners went out especially fast. If at any point a runner let up a crowd of competitors would whiz by. “
 
Stirrat’s Shore Athletic Club M60 team placed fourth out of sixteen teams in their division.  “Not bad for racing against the best of the best,” he concluded.

Ed Smith of Mountain Lakes placed third in the M70 division.  The meet gave him a chance to reconnect to the days of his youth.
 “Best was the people I saw,” wrote Smith.  “Running was a teammate from the 1960 Penn State freshman XC team. Another teammate cheered us on.”
 He said that two teammates from the Prudential Insurance Company racing team of twenty years ago were racing with another teammate there as well.
 “We have all moved on and hadn't seen each other in many years,” said Smith.
Phil Coffin of Bloomfield who races for the Fleet Feet Essex club offered his observations.   He came to cross country as an adult and finds it unusually rewarding he said, and the national race especially so.  

Note:  It was here that the newspaper editor cut the December 21st column. It was not cut from the online column on this page.

“Being part of a national race is special, even when you know you are going to be part of the back pack,” he said.  “Seeing the huge field in the men's masters’ race dash off the starting line -hundreds of runners arrayed across the turf was spectacular.”
 
Coffin noted the group support among the New Jersey runners.  With four races in the meet, racers could be spectators and cheerleaders for three other races.  He said he got a little extra burst of adrenaline with each cheer from his teammates and that wasn’t all.

“The other New Jersey teams were rooting for us as well,” he said. “Even runners I did not know from Raritan Valley, Clifton and Shore were yelling for us when they saw our Essex singlets. It may sound silly, but there was some Jersey pride out there.”
 
“The cheers of my teammates and others helped me finish as hard as I could, and that was a rush. So what if I was 452nd,” said Coffin.   “It was a great course, and I raced as hard as I could with a throng of runners loving it as much as I did. You can't ask for much more from a race.”

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Monday, December 22, 2014

New Jersey runners have a ball at XC Nationals



Published by the DAILY RECORD of Morris County, New Jersey
On Sunday, December 21,  2014

 

New Jersey cross country runners have a ball at the national meet


New Jersey runners who made it to the US national cross country club championships last Saturday came away with mud on their spikes, smiles on their faces and new found appreciation for cross country racing.  The meet, with a record number of runners, was held at Lehigh University in Bethlehem Pennsylvania under overcast skies.  The course was a mix of solid footing and gooey mud, around corn fields and open space, up hills and down -  a classic cross country course.

First on the schedule was the masters women’s 6km at 10:30 a.m.  Over two hundred and fifty women age 40 plus toed the line when the starter’s pistol sent them off.  Jennifer Found of Hopewell, running in the W40 division was the first New Jersey woman to finish.  Her time of 22:50 put her in 12th place overall.

Local teams were well represented with the Garmin W50 team picking up a bronze medal.  Mary Christian of Flanders was the first woman on the team to finish (24:41) with Susan Kinsella of Millington next in 24:50 and Janice Morra of Morristown third in 27:07.

Christian said that she had not been part of a cross country team competition since college and she really enjoyed it, along with wearing spikes for the first time in 30 years.

“It was great for New Jersey teams to have the meet so close to home! Overall, except for a few muddy spots, I thought the course conditions were good,” said Christian.

Other local teams were the Do Run Running team that finished 16th in the W50 division, the Morris County Striders W50 that finished 21st and the Rose City Runners that finished 6th in the W60 division.  Although the Club is not local the Adidas Garden State Track Club W40 team finished in an impressive fourth place in their division. 

Going into the masters men’s race, the never-shy Frieder twins, Elliott of Montville and Jonathan of Hartsdale, NY, predicted they would have the best men's 40+ team in NJ.  The twins and their Pearl Izumi teammates backed that up with a strong showing at the meet.

In the largest and deepest masters field ever assembled, the team finished a solid fourth out of forty teams.  They finished ahead of perennial powers such as the Asics Aggies Running Club and the Baltimore Washington Athletic Club, which had edged them out of second place at last year's National 5km Cross Country Championship held in Flemington, New Jersey.

Local M40 teams included the Garmin racing team that finished in 23rd place, hampered by the loss of key runner Gary Rosenberg of Morristown who was a late scratch.  Bill Bosmann of Rockaway, who at age 64 was meant to be the back-up man, became the fifth scoring member of the team.  The Do Run Runners placed 30th and the Morris County Striders placed 39th.

No local clubs had an M50 team.   Although Brian Crowley of Hillsborough ran on the Garmin 40 team, he placed third in the M50 division with his 34:20.16;  an age graded 89.41%.

Reno Stirrat of Rockaway placed second in the M60 division with a 38:50.54 which helped his Shore Athletic Club team to place fourth in their division.  The Shore’s M70 team took first in that division with the help of second place Przemysla Nowicki who finished in 48:58.62, and third place Ed Smith of Mountain Lakes whose time was 49:58.98.  The Clifton Road Runners took home the bronze, and Clifton’s Matt Lalumia placed second in the M75 division.

In the open women’s race Haddonfield’s Erin Donohue finished in 20:32.14 for 30th overall.  Cheyenne Ogletree of Port Reading, who had just been announced as the winner of the NBGP placed 86th with her 21:35.11. Ogletree’s Adidas Garden State Track Club’s A team finished 13th place.

The club’s open men’s A team  finished in 20th place in their race.  Another familiar face; Colt’s Neck’s Craig Forys place fourth overall in 29:13.98.

Phil Coffin of Bloomfield who races for the Fleet Feet Essex club offered his observations.   He came to cross country as an adult and finds it unusually rewarding he said, and the national race especially so.  

“Being part of a national race is special, even when you know you are going to be part of the back pack,” he said.  “Seeing the huge field in the men's masters race dash off the starting line -hundreds of runners arrayed across the turf  was spectacular.”

Coffin noted the group support among the New Jersey runners.  With four races in the meet, racers could be spectators and cheerleaders for three other races.  He said he got a little extra burst of adrenaline with each cheer from his teammates and that wasn’t all.

“The  other New Jersey teams were rooting for us as well,” he said. “Even runners I did not know from Raritan Valley, Clifton and Shore were yelling for us when they saw our Essex singlets. It may sound silly, but there was some Jersey pride out there.”

“The cheers of my teammates and others helped me finish as hard as I could, and that was a rush. So what if I was 452nd,” said Coffin.   “It was a great course, and I raced as hard as I could with a throng of runners loving it as much as I did. You can't ask for much more from a race.”

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Here is a great  video of the cross country club championship. 

If you were there, relive the moment.  If you were not - well this is what you missed.


Monday, December 15, 2014

Figures in for Grand Prix finals



Published by the DAILY RECORD of Morris County, New Jersey
On Sunday, December 14,  2014

 

Figures in for Grand Prix finals


As they say in the movie industry.  It’s a wrap.

The final figures for the USATF New Jersey New Balance Grand Prix have been posted on the association website.  In the overall men’s results, the point spread was a mere eleven points.  Atilla Sabahoglu of Piscataway won with 5,689 points out of a possible 5,700.  Ken Goglas, former Randolph standout, now of Port Reading was second with 5,681 points.  Close behind him was previous grand prix winner Michael Dixon of Fanwood with 5,678 points.

Cheyenne Ogletree of Port Reading who could have won the women’s grand prix in 2013 but for lacking a Category three race made sure she made it to all the needed races this time around.  Her score was 5,699, just one point off of perfect.  Misa Tamura, the outstanding masters runner from Ridgewood was second with 5,672 points.  Karen Auteri of Bloomingdale was third with 5,652 points.

A good number of local runners hit the top three in their age divisions.  Gary Rosenberg of Morristown won the M40 division and Robert Skorupski of Rockaway placed third.

In the M45 David McLaughlin of Rockaway placed third.  Lawrence Czaplewski of West Caldwell placed first in the M50 division but only with a five point margin over runner-up Antonio Massa of Budd Lake.

Beau Atwater of Bernardsville, who had a great year this year won the M55 division with Gary Leaman of Hardwick next and Charlie Slaughter of Parsippany rounding out the top three.

Bill Bosman of Rockaway placed first in the M60 division and Lou Grunfelder of Florham Park took third.  Bruce Langenkamp of Wharton placed third in the M65 division and George Studzinski of Kinnelon placed second in the M80 division.  And by the way there were five men in that age division and two in the M85.

The W80 division matched the men with Diane Stone of Chatham taking first and Shirley Pettijohn also of Chatham in second.  Pat Tummey of Randolph had the W85 all to herself to win that division.

Sherri Landolfi of Lincoln Park placed first in the W40 division with Sue Bessin of Madison first in the W45 division.  Mary Christian of Flanders won the W50 division with Joyce Morgan of Boonton in second.  Lorraine McPhillips of Basking Ridge also placed second, in the W65.

Nora Cary of Morristown won the W55 division and Jane Parks, also of Morristown is a repeat winner in the W60 division.  A repeat winner in her respective age divisions for 21 years.  What an awesome record.
All the grand prix winners will be invited to the annual Awards Banquet in January.

Super Santa 5K next Saturday in Morristown


The folks that bring you those Super races have one for Morris area runners next Saturday, December 20th at the oft used Ginty Field course.  That’s the course that has you chugging up hill in the second mile so that you can sail down the same grade in the third mile.

In 2013, the first year for the race, 664 runners finished so it was obviously a success from the start.  Unless weather interferes we can look for the same numbers or even greater.  Pre-race sign up and packet pickup will take place at the Morristown Running Company from
Wednesday, December 17th to Friday, the 19th.  On race day all activities will be at the Morris Township Fire Department building at 2 Dwyer Lane, next to Ginty Field.

Oh, run in costume for a chance to win the best costume division.  Awards will also be given to the top overall men and women and to the first three in ten year age divisions.

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Race Results can often be found at www.compuscore.com or at  www.bestrace.com 
A calendar of USATF sanctioned events can be found at www.usatfnj.org or at www.raceforum.com for running and tri and biathlon events.
Contact Madeline Bost at madelinebost@verizon.net.

Sunday, December 7, 2014

New Jersey running in Pennsylvania



Edited and updated version of column
Published by the DAILY RECORD of Morris County, New Jersey
On Sunday, December 7,  2014


New Jersey running in Pennsylvania


There will be a little uptick in travel from New Jersey to Lehigh University in Bethlehem Pennsylvania next weekend.  New Jersey runners have an opportunity to compete on Saturday, December 13th in the annual US national club cross country championship races.  This is the closest geographically that the race has ever been in the history of the event.

In 2013 it was held in Bend Oregon and only one club from New Jersey made the trek.  In 2012 Lexington Kentucky hosted the meet and in 2011 the meet was held in Seattle.

The New Jersey association has been strongly urging its clubs to send runners and to make it a bit easier each team will receive a small stipend to help cover the cost to enter.  All open teams and Men 40, 50, and 60 teams will receive $100.00.  All masters women’s teams, and Men 70, and Men 80 will receive $60.00.  No, that’s not discriminatory.  Teams receiving $100.00 require five runners to score, while the others only require three.

A good number of clubs have responded.  The Adidas Garden State Track Club was the only club to send teams to Bend in 2013 and they have the largest number of runners from New Jersey and perhaps the largest number from anywhere in the country.  And that is saying a lot.  In the open men division about one hundred teams have entered and Garden State has five of those teams with a total of 35 runners at last count.

The club also has three open women’s teams.  The Raritan Valley Road Runners has an eight member open women team.

Masters women’s teams need only three women to score, making it easier for a club to send runners.   The Adidas Garden State Track Club has a W40 team, as does the Raritan Valley club, Fleet Feet Essex, Shore Athletic Club and a new shore area club, Bella N Motion.  That club also has a W50 team.  Four clubs are sending a W50 team, Garmin racers, Do Run Runners, Morris County Striders and the Shore Athletic Club.  The Rose City Runners are sending a W60 team. 

Six New Jersey M40 teams are entered with complete teams; the Adidas Garden State Track Club, Do Run Runners, Garmin Racers, Morris County Striders, New Jersey Shore  and Team Pearl Izumi.  Only the North Jersey Masters and the Shore Athletic Club has a complete M50 team.  The Shore Athletic Club is sending both an M60 and M70 team.  The Raritan Valley Road Runners M60 team is registered as is the Clifton Road Runners  M70 team.

There was a price change at 11:59 p.m. last Sunday taking the registration fee from $40.00 to $65.00.  That prompted a surge in registrations.  Sunday afternoon there was a total of 482 masters men registered.  Monday morning there were 603.  The masters women’s head count went from 205 to 256.  These are huge fields by cross country standards. 

The Seattle meet had the largest number of runners up until this year.  But Seattle had only 152 masters women finishers and 356 masters men.  Those numbers have nearly doubled for the Lehigh meet.

With over six hundred masters men you might think that was far too many to go charging across a field at the start.  But with any masters race, men or women, there will always be the younger runners quick off the starting line and the older division runners moving a bit more slowly.

In a really ironic twist, the open men’s field for the Lehigh meet by rough count was a bit less than the masters men field. It’s the full fields for the open race that can become a crush of runners in one pack, at least early on, before the field thins out.

The first race of the meet is the masters women 6 kilometer that will start at 10:30 a.m., then at 11:30 a.m. the masters men will start their 10 kilometer race.  At 12:45p.m. the open women run their 6 kilometer race and they are followed at 1:30 p.m. by the open men.   It is an all day affair that follows with a happy hour at 5:00 p.m. and awards program at 6:00 p.m. followed by more partying. 

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The US Club Cross Country link is http://www.usatf.org/Events---Calendar/2014/USATF-National-Club-Cross-Country-Championships.aspx
Contact Madeline Bost at madelinebost@verizon.net.