Run to Win

The weather this morning for Eliot was much better than what the forecasts had called for. Rather than the torrential downpours and wind we were expecting, the runners were treated to a very humid but relatively cool and very calm morning with temperatures in the low 60s. Fog may have blanketed everything and all of the events for the Eliot Festival Days (except for the race) may have been canceled, but 412 runners still came out to run.

The men’s field was very competitive, with 13 runners going sub-16. Not quite the 25 sub-16s of 2005, but a good jump on the past few years where only 7 or 8 sub-16 runners competed. Louis Luchini was unchallenged at the finish line in 14:39, while Robert Edgerton only managed to edge out Patrick Moulton by 1 second with a time of 14:53.

Carry Buterbaugh also had a strong lead at the finish line, finishing 22 seconds ahead of Johanna Fickenscher in 18:11. Christine Reaser took 3^rd place in 19:13.

In team racing, Dirigo won the day no matter how you scored the race. It seems as though they went on finishing time at the awards ceremony, but the final results have the scores age graded (as they were supposed to.) All that meant was that 2 of our 3 scorers were different. PR Racing finished in 2^nd place, about 3 and a half minutes back.

The food at the end of the race was pretty good, with plenty of fruit, bagels, bread, pasta salad, cookies, and soup for all of the runners. There was even some left after people finished their cool downs.

I am not sure if there was a problem with the sponsorship, though, because the prize structure did not seem to pan out. The race announced that it would pay out 10 places, male and female, but they decided only to pay out 5 places and also reduced the money earned at that. This does not strike me as a good way to convince top talent to return to your race, especially with the constant turnover in race directorship. I think that Eliot’s best days may be past, which is shame because it used to be such a good showcase for New England talent.

My own race went well, but I still failed to meet my season goal. I finished in 16:30, going out a few seconds slower than I wanted and then falling apart near the end. One of my teammates kept himself motivated at the end by watching my form fall apart in the last half mile, although I still kept my lead on him as I struggled to the finish line.

(Full Results - Team Results - Official Photos - Photos & Videos)

This week last year was all about racing, specifically focusing on the New England Mile. Alas, the NE Mile no longer exists, but at least it went out with a bang. I also delved a little into politics and into cross training last year.

• Early in the week, it was announced that we had secured a $1500 bonus for breaking 4 minutes in the New England Mile. If it happened, then it would be the first time that a native Mainer had done so on Maine soil. Standout runner Louis Luchini and Pete Bottomley appeared on the Kid’s First radio show before the race, discussing the father/child competition and general running. Shortly after the show was announced, though, Pat Tarpy announced his intention to race. Not only did he intend to race, but Tarpy won the race in 3 minutes and 54 seconds, winning the race and taking home the prize money. After the race, he was asked when he knew that he was going to win the race. “Yesterday,” was his reply.
• In other racing news, the first Back Cove 5k Leader Board was announced. I expect that this year’s first leader board (which will be announced on Wednesday evening) will be much larger. Not only have there been over 100 runners every week, but there have been quite a few people that have run all 5 of the initial races so far.
• For cross training, I suggested that you pay attention to your lawn and do some yard work. You can get a good workout that way and your spouse will love you for it.
• Delving into politics, I tried to determine whether the NCAA had the right to kick a blogger out the baseball finals so that he couldn’t “scoop” the paid media sponsors. I never did see what agreements that he had to sign in order to get his press pass.
• This week two years ago I concentrated mostly on topical news, both local and national. I also shared my recipe for grilled catfish and tried to determine how many pushups I was capable of doing (46).

The results for the New England Mile are available and are now online. The official press release is copied below. The race was a great time, and I am looking forward to it again next year. The race was twice the size of last year’s field, and it is very exciting to see that sort of growth.

Overall Results | Top Ten Males & Females | Top Ten Masters M/F
Age Group Results | Father/Son Team Results | Father Daughter Team Results

June 17th, 2007
Portland, Maine

The organizers of the KeyBank New England Mile got what they wanted when Pat Tarpy shattered the 4 minute barrier running 3:54 and collecting the $1,500 prize sponsored by The Downeast Group at Smith Barney, to lead a pack of 5 talented Mainers who all ran 4:05 or better.

“I’m still keyed up from Tarpy’s performance,” said an elated Pete Bottomley, Key Bank New England Mile director. “I expected Pat to be fast but I was surprised that he broke the 4 minute barrier by such a large amount. It was inspiring to watch.”

The lead packed came through the quarter mile in 56 seconds. 20 seconds later Tarpy surged to the front and was never really challenged. He led through the half mile in 1:56 and was running strong and smooth at the ¾ mile marker that he passed in 2:56. With 30 meters to go and the crowd going nuts Tarpy eased back a little and took a moment to wave to the crowd.

Ayalew Taye, who will attended Georgetown University in the fall, finished second in 4:02 followed by Gabe Rivard in 4:03, Jeff Caron in 4:04 and Louie Luchini in 4:05.

“We had truly amazing performances in all age group and gender categories with over 300 people running the race. I think we’ve hit our mark and I hope this race will continue to go and become a Father’s Day tradition,” exclaimed Bottomley. “We already have a commitment for equal award money for the female runners next year. Claudia Camargo shattered the women’s record running 4:27 which equates to a sub 4 mile for men. I would love to be able to reward a woman with the same amount of prize money that the men receive for that type of performance.”

For race results go to www.newenglandmile.com

For more information and interviews contact:

Pete Bottomley
207-807-1133

On Saturday, June 16^th, the “Kids First” radio show on the Big Jab WJAB (1440 AM / 95.5 FM) will be featuring Pete Bottomley, Lou Luchini, and Cameron Bonsey from 8:00 am until 9:00 am. Be sure to tune in if you are in the Portland, Maine area as they discuss the New England Mile, the new father/child competitions this year, and running in general. The show is hosted by Regis Tremblay.

Louie Luchini is going to have his work cut out for him on Sunday at the New England Mile, because Patrick Tarpy has just announced that he will be joining the field. The $1500 prize for the first sub-4 minute mile on Maine soil is really up for grabs. Pat Tarpy has recently run a 23:15 8k. He ran a 3:41.28 in the 1500 in Boston last week, the equivalent of a 3:59.3 mile. The last time that I raced him, he beat me by over 2 minutes at the Elliott Festival 5k with a time of 14:16. There may very well be 4 or 5 people below the course record of 4:05.

Whether you can run or not, I recommend getting out to at least watch what is going to be a spectacular race.

The Downeast Group at Smith Barney has come to the rescue of the New England Mile and is sponsoring the sub-4:00 minute mile prize of $1500 this year. Jeff Caron and Gabe Rivard are signed up to help bring Louie Luchini through in under four minutes. Top female master Zofia Wieciorkowska (1 mile PR of 4:41) and high school all-American Ayalew Taye (4:08.50 at the 2007 Nike National High School Track Meet) in will also contribute to a very fast field.

More about the race was included in today’s press release:

The Historic KeyBank New England Mile
June 12th, 2007
Portland, Maine

The 3rd annual KeyBank New England Mile will be held on Father’s Day June 17th at 9:00 am on Congress Street in Portland, Maine.

“This year is destined to be an historic run”, said Pete Bottomley the Director and Founder of the race. “Our goal has been to have the first Maine native break 4 minutes in the mile on Maine soil. This year we are extremely fortunate to have Louie Luchini flying in from Portland, Oregon to run. He is healthy after having Achilles surgery injury and he is excited to have this opportunity to continue his positive impact on Maine’s rich running history. The Downeast Group at Smith Barney also came through to sponsor a $1,500 prize to the first runner to break the 4 minute barrier”

Luchini is arguably the greatest high school and collegiate runner ever from the State of Maine. In high school he was a 14 time individual state champion and a 2 time finalist at the Foot Locker Cross Country Championships.

At Stanford University Luchini was an 11-time All-American in track and cross country. At the time of his graduation Luchini held the Stanford school record in the 5000 meters at 13:25 and was one of the schools most accomplished runners.

Louie will be joined on the starting line by former University of Maine stars Gabe Rivard and Jeff Caron. Rivard, from York, recently ran a 3:48 1500 and Caron, from Auburn, is ready to run in the 4:05 range. Both runners are focused and ready to push the pace to help Luchini make history.

“ We have also added a father/son and father/daughter division to the race to encourage kids to exercise’, announced Bottomley.” The first 50 father / child teams will receive a $10.00 Friendly’s gift certificate just for entering. With the distance being one mile they will get an opportunity to run without being overwhelmed, see a talented field run and eat some ice cream. I can’t think of a better way to expose kids to exercise!”

Proceeds for the Key Bank New England Mile will benefit Easter Seals of Maine.

For more information contact:

Pete Bottomley
207-807-1133

More information can be found on the race’s website at: http://www.NewEnglandMile.com

Every year, the Portland Sea Dogs put on a 5k race on Mother’s Day. The team mascot, Slugger, drives in the pace car with his mother around the course, which is one loop. It is a fun race that usually has less than ideal conditions. Not today, though. The weather was beautiful, with a slight brreeze, no clouds, and temperatures in the mid to high 50s.

The good weather contributed to a record turn out, sealing this race as the largest 5k in Maine. There were 1439 finishers of almost 1800 registered for the race. There were around 1300 runner pre-registered. All of the runners that have made this event as well attended as it has been allowed for there to be professional photographers on the course, and for bagpipers to be hired. They did the awards ceremony outside of the stadium this year, though, which was a little odd. There is a 1:00 game against Binghamton, which must be the reasoning behind that.

Louie Luchini decimated the field in 14:30, averaging 4:41 per mile and beating the course record by 42 seconds. Ethan Hemphill came in about a minute later in 15:27. Kristin Barry and Sheri McCarthy-Piers repeated last year’s top two for the women’s race, finishing in 17:35 and 17:49 respectively.

I had a better race than I could have expected. I was there a few hours early to register and to run the course backwards at a very slow 9:00 to 9:15 pace. There were no dead animals on the course this year. After standing around for a while I got a few more miles of slightly quicker warm-up in, and then got ready to race. I managed to come through in 16:43, which is a slightly quicker start than I normally have at this time of the year. Less than a month out from my marathon, I will take this as a sign that this year I will go below the 16 minute barrier. My best remains either 16:07 or 16:09 from an indoor track race in college. I managed to place third in the 25-29 category, and the trophies remain the only ones that I have that have a baseball in them.

(Full Results - Photos (1) - Photos (2))