Grand Prix standings have been posted

Published by the DAILY RECORD of Morris County, New Jersey

On Sunday, October 4, 2015

GRAND PRIX STANDINGS HAVE BEEN POSTED

Both the USATF team and individual standings have been posted with some surprises and some, “well, no surprise there”.

The club standings combine all of a club’s scores, from the A team to the E team.  Of course only one club has been able to field an E team and that is the Adidas Garden State Track Club and there is no surprise there that the club is first. 

The Morris based Garmin team has the distinction of being second with the Shore Athletic Club in third place.  Garmin’s strength comes from their younger older teams, an oxymoron of course.  It is their masters teams, leading in the M40, M50, W40, and W50.

The Do Run Runners are the next strongest local club with thirds in the M40 and M50 divisions.  In the M50 division the Do Run team is only one point back from second – 56 to 57 points.

MASTERS LEAD THE NEW BALANCE GRAND PRIX

John Hogan of Washington Township (Bergen County) has the lead in the New Balance individual grand prix with 5,551 points and all nine races filled.  Second place is David McLaughlin of Rockaway and in third is Gary Leaman of Hardwick.  All three have something in common – all are over age 50 with Leaman highest at 56.

Of course lurking in the shadows are other runners who have not filled out their card, like Atilla Sabahoglu of Somerset who is in fourth with a Category Three race missing.  Once that race is run, Sabahoglu, who won the 2014 grand prix, will spring to the top.  Gary Rosenberg of Morristown is also missing one race and is sitting in fifth place.

Other fast open men need to fill in their score cards and if they do they too will displace the fast 50+ men.

Hiding in seventh place on the women’s side is Randolph’s Roberta Groner.  She needs to run a 500 point Category Three race to move to first, displacing Mary Christian of Flanders who now is at the top spot.

Hurricane Joaquin has thrown the USATF championship open women’s division into limbo.  Races down the Shore were canceled due to the possibility of local flooding.  The Little Silver 5K that was scheduled for today was one of those races.  Expect the LDR committee to have an emergency meeting to find another race that will be a good substitute for the Little Silver race. 

SHADES OF DEATH IS A WILD CARD RACE

It has been a few years since the USATF association held their 10K in December that was a Wild Card race.  Runners could choose between 500 or 700 points.   That meant that runners who needed a Category Three championship score could choose to have their place in the race scored as though it was a championship, which it was, or be scored as though it was a 500 point non-championship race.  Category Three races -15K to half marathon in length - were less common than the other shorter categories and having that option was a godsend to runners who needed one or the other.  When the ten miler was stopped, that option disappeared.

Enter the Shades of Death Half Marathon, a race that is hosted by USATF as a fund raiser for the association.  This year, for the first time, the race next Sunday, October 11, will be a Wild Card.  It will not be a championship race but it can be scored as a 700 point race if a runner chooses that option.  If not, the default will be 500 points.

The half marathon double loop course is run on flat to rolling country roads in the Allamuchy farm country north of Route 80 on the border of Warren and Sussex County.  One loop makes for a perfect 6.6 mile course.  Only the half marathon will have the Wild Card option.

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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.