Cross Country featured sixty seven teams at the national championship

Published by the DAILY RECORD of Morris County, New Jersey

On Sunday, October 27, 2013

Copyright, Madeline Bost, 2013

CROSS COUNTRY FEATURED SIXTY SEVEN TEAMS AT THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

Cross country racing was at its best on Sunday at Deer Path Park in Readington when masters athletes from around the country but most heavily from New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania came to compete in the USA national masters 5 kilometer championship.

The Atlanta Track Club with members scoring first, second, third, fifth, and sixteenth easily won Gold in the M40 race.  Chad Newton of the Atlanta team finished in 15:34 for first overall.  Second man on the team was the M45 winner, Kristian Blaich who finished in 15:41.  The Baltimore Washington Athletic Club was second and the newly formed New Jersey team, Pearl Izumi – Mid Atlantic took Bronze.  Their top runner was Dave Slavinski of Point Pleasant who finished fourth overall in 15.49 for the Bronze in the M40 division.

The Garmin Runners finished in fifth place with Brian Crowley of Hillsborough leading the team in with a 16:20, followed by Mark Williams of Columbia and Gary Rosenberg of Morristown.

To no one’s surprise in the M50 to 59 race, Peter Magill of the Cal Coast Track Club was the runaway winner in 15:57.  Raritan Valley Road Runner Mark Zamek of Macungie PA was second, finishing in 16:49.  Zamek’s team finished in seventh place while the Shore Athletic Club took sixth.

This is the first year that the M60 teams needed five men to score but the Shore Athletic Club appears to have had no problem in fielding a full team.  They earned the Gold with 40 points over Genesee Valley Harriers who took second.

In a heartbreaker the Raritan Valley Road Runners were two places away from third, when they scored 113 points while the Greater Philadelphia Track Club had 112 points.

The M70 division was won by Ed Smith of Mountain Lakes in 22:10, with Bill Hagman of Morris Plains second in 22:5.  The Clifton Road Runners won the M70 division and the Central Jersey Road Runners took first in the M80 division, although George Studzinski of Kinnelon who runs for the Fleet Feet Essex club won that division in 30:28.  In all, thirty eight men’s team competed.

Elena Rozhko of Morristown, a citizen of Ukraine, won the masters women’s race finishing in 18:09.  Rozhko’s performance was one of many outstanding performances by New Jersey women in the race that had twenty nine teams competing from age forty through eighty.

Nora Cary of Morristown, running for the Do Run Running club won the W55 division in 21:19.    Erika Campbell, 64 of Ridgewood, running for the North Jersey Masters team finished second in the W60 division.  She was outrun in that division by the incomparable Kathryn Martin of Northport Long Island who finished tenth overall in 19:46 for a top age graded score of 99.6%. 

Other local medal winners include Mary Ann Murphy who runs for the Do Run Runners who took third in the W70 division in 32:05 and the Morris County Strider women who dominated the older age divisions.  Shirley Pettijohn of Chatham took home Gold in the W75, Diane Stone of Basking Ridge Gold, Patricia Tummey of Randolph Silver and Melva Murray of Bedminster Bronze in the W80 Division.

In the women’s team divisions, Runner’s High placed second in W40 with their top scoring woman Diane DeOliveira of Brick finishing in 19:51.  Jill Evarts of Middletown was the second woman to score for the team in 19:56 which gave her third in the W45 division.

The Garmin Runners placed third with Susan Bessin of Madison bringing the team home in 20:30.  Running for the Raritan Valley Road Runners was Karen Pearlman of Branchburg who finished second in the W45 division in 19:33.

In the W50 team division the Shore Athletic Club placed second with Lauren Rhatigan of Ship Bottom their first woman in 21:17.  The Rose City Runners took third in the W60 division with Cande Olsen of Chatham fastest in 25:25.  The Morris County Striders W80 women rounded out the team division.  There were no W70 teams competing.

Starting off the day of races was the Garden State Classic for the open runners competing for New Jersey honors.  Ken Goglas of Randolph won the race in 15:13.  Cheyenne Ogletree of Garfield was the first woman over the line in 17:21.  Both Goglas and Ogletree compete for the Garden State Track Club that fielded eight open men’s teams and four women’s teams.

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 Click on this link for results from the national race.

 http://www.usatf.org/Events---Calendar/2013/Masters-5-km-Cross-Country-Championships/Results.aspx

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.

Cross Country today and next Sunday

Published by the DAILY RECORD of Morris County, New Jersey

On Sunday, October 20, 2013

Copyright, Madeline Bost, 2013

CROSS COUNTRY TODAY AND NEXT SUNDAY

All eyes will be on Flemington today and the national USA masters cross country 5 kilometer championship races.  A record number of masters have entered the meet. As of press time Friday three hundred thirty one men were entered and one hundred and forty women.   In addition are one hundred and fifteen open division men and women in the Garden State Classic Cross Country 5 km that leads off the schedule this morning.   Late entries were taken on Saturday so those numbers will have changed.

Next Sunday the New Jersey cross country racers will return to Deer Path Park for the New Jersey 8 kilometer cross country championships.  Unlike today with several separate races to accommodate the large starting fields, the 8 kilometer race will have a combined field of open and masters men and women.

It’s an important race too.  The open teams will be competing for first place and a $500.00 travel stipend for both the men and women’s team to help with travel to the national cross country club championship in Bend Oregon on December 14^th.

In 2012 both spots were taken by the Garden State Track Club and there is little reason to doubt that the same club will be repeat winners next Sunday.  The teams went to Lexington Kentucky last year where the men’s team finished 20^th out of 42 teams, not a bad showing when the leading teams were Brooks – Hanson Distance Project, Asics Aggi, and Boulder Running Company – Adidas.  Their women’s team placed 14^th out of 24 against similar competition. 

 GREAT SWAMP DEVIL RACES NEXT SUNDAY

Other races coming up include the Great Swamp Devil Run 5K and 15K in Basking Ridge.  Once a November race the run moved to October and seems to have found a spot on the calendar at the last Sunday of the month.  Both races have certified courses and are part of the New Balance Grand Prix and that is a draw for people needing a Category Three race that can be fulfilled with the 15K. 

Being located and run on the roads in the Great Swamp naturally makes for a flat course.  Another feature is the out and back configuration.   Twice the runners can see who is coming from behind them and who is already in front.  Races like that are a lot of fun to race if a runner remembers to not give too many shout-outs to friends as they pass.  Save their lung power for their own race.

The 5K race starts at 11:00 a.m. while the 15K has a noon start.

DEVIL’S RUN 6.66 WON BY SIXTEEN YEAR OLD, MASTERS WOMAN WON DISTAFF

Sixteen year old Brandon Meyer of Hackettstown established a course record in the 6.66 mile Devil’s Run in Allamuchy last Sunday.  Running at 5:58 per mile pace he finished in 39:46.  On the women’s side, masters runner Wendy Locke, 52, of Boonton was the women’s winner, finishing in 46:05.  Each age division winner now holds the course record for the event.

Gary Leaman, 54, of Hardwick won the Shades of Death Half Marathon in 1:20:53 putting him at the top of the men’s age grading list at 85.64%.  The women’s race was won by Lauren Lotruglio of Andover in 1:34:13.

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Publish only when space permits.

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.

Record field for Sunday's masters championship at Deer Path Park in Flemington

All eyes will be on Flemington on Sunday and the national USA masters cross country 5 kilometer championship races.  A record number of masters have entered the meet.

As of Friday three hundred thirty one men were entered and one hundred and forty women.   In addition are one hundred and fifteen open division men and women in the Garden State Classic Cross Country 5 km that leads off the schedule this morning.   

 Late entries are being  taken on Saturday so those numbers will have changed. 

There will be no entries taken for the national races on race day, but they are being taken on a limited basis for the Garden State Classic 5km.

If you are going plan to car pool.  Parking will be tight.  Give yourself extra time.

National Masters racers heading to New Jersey next Sunday

Published by the DAILY RECORD of Morris County, New Jersey

On Sunday, October 13, 2013

Copyright, Madeline Bost, 2013

NATIONAL MASTERS CROSS COUNTRY NEXT SUNDAY AT DEER PATH PARK

National championships are not all alike and even national cross country races are not all alike.  Most masters cross country races separate the men and women into two races.  The New Jersey hosted race has four masters races and one race for open runners and non USATF members.

That race is the first on the schedule and will start at 10:00 a.m.  A large contingent of Garden State Track Club runners have entered.  The club has dominated the open division all year and will make for exciting racing. 

The course is a double loop of Deer Path Park with opportunities for spectators to view the action four times in the race.  Spectators can position themselves on the park access road west of the start and then run about two hundred meters up the road where the runners will be about a half mile into the race.  An easy jog back to the original viewing point and they can see the runners at about half way into the race.  Another quick jog to the second spot and they will see the runners on their second time out on the course.  Another easy jog back to the original location and they can watch the runners race to the finish. 

Next up is the masters women’s race that will feature superstar Kathy Martin of Northport, Long Island, NY.  Martin missed by two seconds the 5K road mile age division record at the Syracuse Festival of Races on the 6^th.  Martin finished in 19:06 and age graded at 103.14% PLP.  Ironically the record that she missed was her own that she set two years ago at the same race.

North Jersey Masters runner Erika Campbell, 64, of Ridgewood will be another strong contender in that division.  Campbell placed third in the W60 at the Syracuse race in 21:24 and took home some prize money in the age grading division where she scored 94.75% for fifth age graded.

The Men 40+ race is the first of three masters men race.   Ray Pugsley of the Baltimore Washington Track Club should be heading the lead pack.  Pugsley was third in the national cross country club championships last December, where he finished the 10K in 33:16.   Eric Stabb and Chad Newton of Atlanta Track Club should be up front as well.  Stabb finished the club 10K in 34:07 and Newton in 34:17.  Newton won the masters division of the Syracuse Festival of Races 5K last Sunday in 15:25.  New Jersey’s Hector Rivera of Clifton placed fourth at Syracuse in 15:37, but his name has not appeared on the entry list for the masters cross country race.

Kristian Blaich of the Atlanta Track club was fourth overall in Syracuse and easily won the M45 division in 15:29.  Hillsborough runner Brian Crowley, 48, was third in Syracuse in 16:25 helping his Garmin Runners to second place in the M40 team division.

The Men 50+ race will be no less exciting with Running Times columnist Peter McGill of the Cal Coast team the headliner.  He will have competition from Mark Hixson from the Hartford Track Club who was fifth at the club race in 2012 in 34:26 in the M45 race.  Gary Droze of the Atlanta Track Club was third in that division in Syracuse in 16:49.  Mark Zamek who runs for the Raritan Valley Road Runners was a late entry last week who can be expected to put in a good effort.  Zamek was the Midland Run winner in 1992.

Ken Youngers  of the Atlanta Track Club won the club 10K in 2012 in the M55 division in 37:11 and in the Syracuse race last Sunday he was second in 17:02.

Ronville Gravesande of Union New Jersey placed fourth in the M60 division at the 5K in Syracuse in 18:47, a few seconds ahead of Kirk Larson of the Atlanta Track club.  They’ll have competition from Roger Price, 64, of Randolph who runs for the Raritan Valley Road Runners and Emmanuel Brody from Roselle who runs for the Shore Athletic Club

Price’s RVRR teammate Terry Delph could be the pick for the M65 division although Jerry Learned of the Atlanta Track Club could give him a good run.  Learned finished in Syracuse in 19:31.

Ed Smith, 71, of Mountain Lakes and the Shore Athletic Club has to be the favorite in his division.  He placed second to Doug Goodhue of Ann Arbor in 21:29.  Goodhue is not coming to New Jersey and that leaves the race wide open, although Charles Patterson of the Atlanta Track Club has entered the Deer Path race.  He was first in his division at the club nationals last December.

Notable by their absence in the registration list is the Genesee Valley Harriers.  The Harriers are always late entries and their coach has told organizers that they will have between 30 and 40 runners at the race.  As of mid afternoon on Friday the status of entry page at the national website showed 374 runners entered.  Add in the Genesee team and the entries will jump to over 400. 

Tonight at 11:59 p.m. the entry fee will go from $30.00 to $40.00 so it is time for the procrastinators to fire up their computers and get in their entries.  Thirty dollars is a snap when you throw in the long sleeve technical shirt and the chance to watch some exciting racing.

They will have until Wednesday to register at $40.00 and after that the online option is closed and they will have to enter in person at the meet hotel, the Holiday Inn in Clinton, Saturday afternoon/evening and pay another extra tenner.  There is no race day registration.

 The national entry can be done at the New Jersey race calendar.  Click on the link and have your USATF membership number handy as well as your credit card.

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.

Last chance to register for the National Masters Cross Country Championship at $ 30.00

This Sunday's Running Column will be all about the USA National Masters Cross Country 5 kilometer race at Deer Path Park next Sunday, October 20th.

Sunday, the 13th is the last day to register for the race at $30.00.  After Sunday the fee goes up to $40.00.  As you will read in the Sunday column you will be getting four races to view and one race to run for your money, along with a long sleeve technical running shirt.  That's a bargain at $30.00 or $40.00.

 The national entry can be done at the USATF New Jersey race calendar.  Click on the link and have your USATF membership number handy as well as your credit card.

Shades of Death Half Marathon add a Develish Run

Published by the DAILY RECORD of Morris County, New Jersey

On Sunday, October 6, 2013

Copyright, Madeline Bost, 2013

SHADES OF DEATH HALF MARATHON ADDS A DEVILISH RUN

Yes, half marathons are big now in road racing.  While they are not as plentiful as 5k’s that dot the state like raisins on an oatmeal cookie, they are showing up more and more often on race calendars.

With the closing of Sandy Hook national recreation area and thus the cancelling of the Jersey Shore Half Marathon that was to have taken place today, disappointed runners may be searching for an alternative race.   While the Sandy Hook course features a beautiful setting with water on both sides of the route, another race also features a beautiful setting.

No water views for the Shades of Death Half Marathon but the bucolic farms scenes of Allamuchy have their own charm.  The Shades of Death name and theme come from one of the roads on the course that has been featured in Weird New Jersey.

When the half marathon was first conceived in 2011, a relay was also run.  Since the course is a double loop a relay seemed to make sense; two people could run the race, one loop each.  But it really didn’t work out that well, according to race director Pam Fales of Boonton, who said that the relay had remained stagnant with little growth.

“This year we added the Devil’s Run.  We run on Shades of Death Road so in keeping with that theme, and knowing that the first loop of the half marathon is roughly 6.6 miles, we thought we could make it be 6.66,” she said, “and have it be called the Devil’s Run.”

They’ve done even better than that and Fales said that the course length is actually 6.666.

The change from a relay to a Category Two New Balance Grand Prix race has clearly paid off.  As of Friday over 130 runners had registered for the race, getting close to double the number of runners in last year’s relay.

Entries for the half marathon are also on track with the online deadline closing tomorrow, the 7^th.  The runners who could not run in the Jersey Shore Half Marathon can get their entries in today or tomorrow before the deadline and the price goes up. 

One thing that hasn’t changed according to Fales is the long sleeve technical shirt with the skull and crossbones logo.  It will be black, as were the 2011 and 2012 shirts, but this year with red accents and red stitching on the front.  The half marathon runners will get a long sleeve shirt and the Devil’s Run runners will get a short sleeve shirt with similar design.

“Our shirts are high quality technical shirts, not fake technical shirts,” said Fales.  Her statement brings into the open a growing complaint among runners about souvenir shirts that claim to be technical shirts that are mere knock-offs.

With the half marathon as young as it is with only two races, course records are there for the picking.  In 2011 Mike Anis of Highland Park won the race in 1:18:40.  In 2012 Anis took over two minutes off his time to finish in 1:16:15 but the course record went to Atilla Sabahoglu of Piscataway who finished ahead of Anis in 1:13:19.   On the women’s side Laura Swift of Woodbridge won the 2011 race in 1:28:11 but lost the title to Kavitha Manley of Piscataway who finished in 1:27:26 in 2012.  The course records are listed in the athletes booklet that will be picked up on race day.

How many people can predict how fast they can run 6.666 miles?  A 10K is 6.2 miles so just add another .466, or about a half mile.  Everyone who wins their age division in the Devil’s Run will be establishing course records for the new race.

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.