Sunday, July 16, 2017

Verizon Corporate Classic went off without rain or lightning

Published by the DAILY RECORD of Morris County, New Jersey
On Sunday, July 16, 2017

  
VERIZON CORPORATE CLASSIC WENT OFF WITHOUT RAIN OR LIGHTNING

Would they have to cancel the Verizon Corporate Classic 5K again in 2017?  Heat was building on Thursday morning with dreadful thunder and lightning storms predicted.  But in Morristown the heat began to drop and a mild rain was all that fell as race time at 7:30 p.m. approached.

Not that is wasn’t uncomfortable.  The humidity was heavy as the nearly three thousand runners began the race down Maple Avenue and then down Route 202, Mt. Kemble Avenue.  Out in front a lead pack formed with close to ten runners a half mile into the race.  Down they sped to the turnaround just north of Harter Road, and back up on the same road that they had gone down. 

The lead pack had spread out after mile two with only a few left in the fight.  In the end Kyle Price of North Brunswick managed to make it to the finish line first, with Joe Mummert of Mahwah running for Merrill Lynch next and Liam Boylan-Pett of Clinton in third.  Their chip times were 16:25, 16:31 and 16:44 respectively.

Not far behind those lead men was Ashley Higgonson of Morristown.  She finished in seventh place overall in17:12.   Higgonson, running for Riker Danzig then and now won the 2014 race in the nearly identical time of 17:10.

The second place woman was Diana D’Achille of Denville, running for Verizon who finished in 18:33. D’Achille won the 2015 race in 18:17. Karen Auteri of Belvidere, running for Quintilesims finished third in 18:38.  Auteri finished second woman overall in 2014.

While the speedier runners were challenging themselves in the humidity on the deceptive course that drops down on the way out on Route 202 with the subsequent climb back to the finish on Maple Avenue with a short serious climb on Market Street, other participants were happily walking the length of the race.

  When Price was finishing five hundred participants had not yet hit the one mile marker.  One hundred sixty-two participants finished in over an hour - averaging each mile in slower than 19 minute per mile pace.

This is not to be scoffed at as the race invites people to come out and work toward fitness and health and if that means a 20 minute pace so be it.  The participants were out there and who knows, an elite runner may be hiding undiscovered in their ranks needing just this one event to inspire them to future fitness.  It happens.

MORRIS COUNTY STRIDERS CROSS COUNTRY 5K THIS TUESDAY

Looking for another race this summer?  Look no further. 

 The Morris County Striders summer series 5K cross country race is this Tuesday, July 18th at Johnson Park
 in Boonton.  Each race is part of a series that scores the best three out of the four races in the series.  
 
Robert Skorupski, 44, of Rockaway is in contention on the men’s side with two teenagers, Tommy Carney, 
14, of Denville who finished ahead of Skorupski in the first race, as did Noah Schagelin, 16, of Rockaway.  
Skorupski came back in the second race to finish in second place to Carrington Retzios, 17, of Budd Lake
 who finished in 17:30.  While the two teens finished in third and fourth.
 
On the other side of the ledger, Kayla Schramm, 12, of Goshen NY won the first race in age division 
course record time of 19:35.  Astonishingly right behind her was Allison Lounsbury, 13,
 of Franklin Lakes in 19:44.  Christine Carny, 17, of Denville was third in 22:05.
 
Schramm returned in the second race to win in a slower paced 21:00.  Carney returned for the second 
race making those two the leaders in the series on the female side.   Any runner who has completed
 just one race can hop back into the series by competing at this Tuesdays race and the next one on
 August 1st.
 
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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

 

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