Run to Win

The L/A Bridge Run was this morning, concluding the 1^st Annual Lewiston/Auburn Triple Crown racing series. Conditions for the race were favorable, with temperatures in the low 60s, overcast skies, and only a very light breeze albeit with a bit of humidity mixed in.

Ethan Hemphill returned again this year to claim the victory, splitting the distance between his performances from the last two years to finish in 15:29, 20 seconds ahead of Nicholas Wheeler. The race was a little closer on the women’s side, where Lauren LaRoche’s 18:40 was only 15 seconds ahead of Tina Meserve.

There were a few guys that went out for the cameras at the beginning of the race but who quickly faded (all but one not even making it to the bridge before falling back,) but a lead pack of 5 runners quickly formed and put a little distance on the field after going through the first kilometer in 3:05.

Towards the end of the second kilometer, I was behind the pack which had whittled down to 3 guys with a few others starting to string themselves out. I ran it in 3:12, slower than I wanted to go but still on pace.

Everything fell apart by 3k, though and I barely managed to hang on for the rest of the race. I got passed by a few guys and finished in 6^th place overall with a time that was at least 45 seconds too slow. Most of the people that I spoke to felt that they had all run slower than they thought they would going into the day, but that is small consolation.

I did secure a 3^rd place finish in the Triple Crown Series, however.

Here were the final standings for the 3 races:

(Full Results – Triple Crown Results – Photo Credit: Erin Moore – Penta Photos: Kids Race – Start Line – Finish Line 1, 2, 3 – DCY: Photos & Video)

There are a lot of prizes up for grabs tomorrow morning at the L/A Bridge Run, the 3^rd and final triple crown race for this summer in Auburn. The series began with the L/A YMCA Fit Fest in June and continued with Emily’s Run at the end of July. If you have already run both races, then you should definitely go to tomorrow’s Bridge Run because not only are there prizes for the top 3 overall in the 3 race series, but there are also prizes for the top 2 in each age category. If you did not run in both of the races, there are still all of the normal prizes for the Bridge Run itself.

This list here is not at all official or definitive, just me trying to figure out who the top people are. It is shaping up to be a tight race for 3^rd place in the men’s race, which I can hopefully carry through given that my goal time would have gotten me 3^rd at the Fit Fest and would have won at Emily’s Run.

The race for 3^rd is pretty tight in the women’s race as well, although with fewer runners vying for the spot.

(More Info: Greater L/A Triple Crown)

Week 13 of the Back Cove Racing Series was this evening, which means that if you haven’t run yet then you will not be able to get onto the leader board. Who is going to win the free shoes for a year? Every week now people will start falling off of the list of people who might possibly jump out from nowhere near the top of the standings, and the people there now will be fighting to improve their positions.

There were 123 people who came out this evening, despite the wet weather that mostly held off during the majority of the run. Stan Pyle broke out his trusty green cross country spikes this evening to help lend himself some traction on the wet gravel, and it must have worked because he blew the competition away by almost a minute with his 15:53 finish. Stan will need to run 4 of the remaining 5 races in order to qualify for the free running shoes for a year.

Scott Gorneau (01:44:50) was again absent this week, which cost him his lead position in the standings as Tyler Jasud (01:41:51) made a debut on the leader board with a solid lead of 3 minutes.

A similar story was found on the women’s side this evening, as Katie Davisson (02:04:00) also completed her sixth race and took over the lead position in the standings.

For myself, I improved my time on the leader board but not my position. Today was an interval day, running 3 by 1 kilometer repeats with a kilometer running recovery between each. There were plenty of people to chase on the second two repeats, which helped to keep me honest as I ran 2:58, 3:15 and 3:08 for a 3:07 average. I was aiming for anything below a 3:12 average for the 3 repeats, although I would have preferred that all 3 actually be below 3:12.

(Full Results – Leader Board)

Mike Brooks (27:54)

Emily’s Run 5k was this morning, continuing the Greater L/A Triple Crown racing series. It was a beautiful morning, which helped 369 runners find their way to the finish line.

Stan Pyle asserted a firm lead in the series with a win today in 16:28. The women’s race was won by Erica Jesseman in 18:25. Both Stan and Erica donated their prize money to the Emily Fletcher Foundation. For the series, Anne Martin is in the lead for the ladies with her 2^nd place finish today.

The race couse has a lot of rolling hills and quite a few turns, especially late. The first kilometer predominantly climbs, and then the next two kilometers lead into a rather steep downhill section. It’s certainly not a course to leave you bored, with minimal space devoted to flat roads.

You can see the course elevation below:

My race went rather well. I started out with the second pack, but by 2k had worked my way into third place where I’d remain the rest of the race. I was hoping to average anywhere between 3:20 and 3:25 per kilometer and managed to run at 3:21/pace.

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(Full Results – Awards – Race Home Page – Photos – Awards Video)

Here is a quick breakdown of races today throughout Maine. I will update this page as I find more results. If you know of any races that are missing, please let me know in the comments so that I can add it! Same goes for any photo galleries.

The current tally of the number of runners that competed today in Maine: 5152

The LL Bean 4^th of July 10k in Freeport is first this year, since I decided to go back and race there after taking a few years off.
Ethan Hemphill once again took top honors, finishing in 32:36 with a 15 second margin. Kristin Barry led the rest of the women by 68 seconds with a time of 35:12. There were 918 finishers. (Full Results – Photos)

Next up is the 32^nd Bridgton 4 on the 4^th. Stan Pyle was looking to go under 20 minutes today, but he missed the mark. He can’t be too upset, though, because he beat some very stiff competition to win the race in 20:26, winning by only 2 seconds. Carry Buterbaugh had about a half minute lead with her winning time of 23:26. There were 1670 finishers. (Full Results – Race Website – Photos: CD1 – CD2 – CD3 – CD4 – CD5 – CD6 – CD7 )

The York 4 on the 4th also had a pretty good draw, with 787 finishers. Bob Winn had a 19 second lead with his winning time of 21:10, while Amy Gosztyla had to fight for her 4 second winning time of 22:51. (Full Results)

The Goose Rocks Beach Association puts on an annual 5k in Kennebunkport, and it also had a large draw with 777 finishers. The entire field got “Huppeed” when Nathan Huppe crossed the line in 15:49, 13 seconds ahead of 2^nd place. Abby Iselborn had a similar lead over the rest of the women with her winning time of 18:22. (Full Results – Race Website)

The Walter Hunt Memorial 3k in Brewer was led by Ruben Sanca in 8:25, giving him a win by 7 seconds. Hilary Maxim had a 19 second lead with her winning time of 10:27. There were 472 finishers. (Full Results)

The Friends on the 4^th 5k, put on by the Friends of the Cobbosse Watershed in Winthrop, was won by 16 year old Luke Fontaine in 16:16. He won by less than a half second. Lauren Laroche had a slightly larger lead of 18 seconds to take the women’s title. There were 405 finishers. (Full Results – Race Website)

There were 107 finishers in the Firecracker 5k in Thomaston. Darren Winchenbach won the race in 19:45. (Full Results – Video – Photos)

There was a 5.1 mile race in Brooks called Let Freedom Ring. There were 16 finishers, led by Kevin Patrick who won with over a 4 minute lead in 28:34. (Full Results – Photos & Video)

There were 8 teams of 8 legs each in the 6^th Annual Mount Desert Island Relay, a 61.09 mile race. I have not yet had a chance to figure out how many people ran more than one leg but there are at least a few so there were less than 64 competitors. The Spudland Racers won by over an hour, setting a course record. (Full Results [pdf])

I am still awaiting the results of the Sebec Village 4th of July 5k. (Update: 31 people finished – Full Results)

Updates to follow.

Week 7 is now in the books, with almost 160 runners finishing on a warm, sunny day in the mid-70s. These huge crowds are very exciting to see week after week. There are now 37 runners who have run at least 6 of the races, building the leaderboard over half again from last week’s 22.

Stan Pyle led the way this week, winning the race in a (for him) pedestrian 16:41. Tyler Jasud was 15 seconds behind him.

Heather Pagano followed up her performance from 2 weeks ago with a new women’s course record of 18:40! Way to go, Heather! Her season seems to be ramping up very quickly.
(Click here to continue reading…)

Norm Duphily (29:04)

The YMCA Fit Fest 5k was this morning, kicking off the Greater L/A Triple Crown racing series. The series got off to a good start, with a record 249 finishers in today’s race.

Last year’s winner Stan Pyle ran 70 seconds faster this year than he did last year, but it wasn’t enough. Ethan Hemphill managed to win the race by 1 second, finishing in 15:20. Their closest competitor was almost a full minute behind them.

Anne Martin had a slightly larger margin in the women’s race, where 18:26 gave her a half minute lead over second place.

Dirigo did well as a team today, placing all three runners in the top 10 in positions 1, 2 & 9. I was about half a minute slower than I thought that I would be with a 17:34, but I wasn’t overly surprised with my time. In the next 2 to 3 months, I need to cut about 90 seconds off of that in order to meet this season’s goals.

(Full Results – Awards – Photo Credit: David Colby Young – Don Penta’s Photos)