Run to Win

The 10^th annual TD Banknorth Beach to Beacon 10k was this morning in Cape Elizabeth, Maine. As always, it was a closely contested race that is great for spectating. While the temperature was not very high during the race, it was quite humid. Unlike last year, the fog never burned off so that combined with a low tide caused the race to not quite lead up to it’s reputation as one of the more scenic New England races.

Leading the way was Ed Muge of Kenya, who had to battle it out with Maregu Zewdie of Ethiopia to earn his 0.6 second win in 27:52.4. Duncan Kibet fell back to 4^th place in 28:21 this year.

The women’s race was also pretty exciting, despite there being a slightly larger lead. The race was won by masters runner Edith Masai of Kenya in 31:55.6, followed by Liudmila Biktasheva of Russia (although she now resides in New York, I believe.)

The Maine race was won by 22 year old Ben True in 31:01.8, over 40 seconds ahead of a pack of Mainers that all came in right under 32 minutes. Women’s winner Kristin Barry set the Maine record, dropping it by over 6 seconds to 34:37.1. She was working hard for that win, and you can see how much pain she was in at the finish line in the news video, but she regained her composure by the time I turned to see her come through the finishing chute.

There were a total of 5248 finishers, the first time that the race has cracked 5000 finishers in it’s 11 year history. That the race sold out in about a day this year is just a small testament to the popularity of what Joan Samuelson has brought to her hometown.

My race went pretty well; I just barely run negative splits (17:05/17:03) to finish in 34:08.1, getting outsprinted by PR Racing’s TJ Hesler to the finishing line. I felt really good, though, and I know that I need to have a lead on TJ at the end of a race if I am going to beat him. He is especially hard to edge out when he has a downhill finish.

WCSH6 has full video coverage of the race, including 5 minute videos that show everybody coming across the line. I picked out my wife’s finish and you can clearly see her disgust with her time after she crosses the line and checked her watch.

Congratulations to everybody that ran this morning and thank you to everybody that came out to support or cheer at the race. Almost everybody that I spoke with ran well today and enjoyed themselves and the crowd support was as good as it normally was. The race also requires a large number of volunteers who are all kept extremely busy from hours before the race to hours after, and we appreciate the hard work that goes into putting this event on.

(Official Results – Full Results w/better formatting – Race Photos – Photos Source: Home Page)

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Photo by David Colby Young
Photo #68 of 124The Elliot Festival Day 5k was this morning in Elliot, Maine. There were 683 finishers this year, including Kay West (pictured right) who finished below the USATF age group guidelines time in 1:28:53; she was the oldest finisher at 97 years of age!

The weather conditions were near perfect for running, with clear skies and cool temperatures in the mid-60s. The course is slightly aided with about 5 feet of total elevation loss.

Ethan Hemphill did not face the stiff competition that he had last year, but bettered his time to win the race in 15:08. There were 20 finishers under 17 minutes, when Mariko Holbrook came in to win the women’s race by a healthy 26 seconds.

Team results for this race are based upon an age and sex graded time, so despite winning the race Ethan did not even score to help Dirigo in their almost 2 minute win over Whirlaway Racing. The age graded times of Tom Ryan, Mike Payson, and Pete Bottomley were all faster than Whirlaway’s first runner.

Dirigo had a good showing at the race; my time was not even fast enough to make it into the team results. I failed to meet my goal of running under 16 minutes. I was right on pace through 2 kilometers (6:24) but wound up running at about the same pace as I have for most of this season. My 16:37 was a 1 second season PR.

In a reversal of last year specifically, and just about any race with a downhill finish generally, I managed to out sprint TJ Hesler by about 4 seconds coming into the finish line. I did not manage to keep up with Chris Gatchell, who ran a personal best 16:16 (congratulations!)

(Full Results – Team Results – Race Photos: Set 1 – Set 2 – Set 3)

The Physical Therapy 8k in Brunswick, Maine went off this morning at 9:00. The weather was on the cool side, but it was a beautiful day for running. There were some breezes along the course, especially early in the race, but the headwinds were not too strong. There were 164 finishers.

Dirigo beat out PR Racing/Moose Milers by about 8 minutes, taking 4 of the top 5 in the race. Ethan Hemphill (25:36) and Josh Zolla (26:45) led the way for the entire race. TJ Hesler from PR Racing came in a solid 3^rd place with a time of 28:08, followed by Rob Fast (28:26) and Blaine Moore (28:49). Marjorie Graff completed the scoring for Dirigo in 31:57, winning the women’s race by over a minute. Tiki Humphries (33:09) and Jessica Fortin (33:28) raced it out for 2^nd and 3^rd place.
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Yesterday morning was the Craig’s Cup 5k. The race also doubled as the Maine USATF championship cross country race. The results were a little late getting up. It was an absolutely beautiful day to run, with race temperatures in the low 40s. In the sun, it was very comfortable; the breeze and the shade made it a bit chilly but not too cold to need anything to warm you up during the race. The course was very soft; there was some mud on the trails in spots but it did not stick to your racing shoes. The grass was a bit damp but not enough to get into your socks. In other words, it was a course made for a good pair of spikes.
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The Eliot Festival Day 5k was this morning in Eliot, Maine. The field was not quite as deep this year, but still saw a record setting winning time of 14:16. Pat Tarpy of Providence (formerly of Yarmouth) beat the field by almost a minute. Casey Moulton and Ethan Hemphill came through in 15:12 and 15:18 to round out the top 3. Rehima Kedir and Reba Naser of Ethiopa won the women’s race, coming in right behind me in the low-mid 16:40s. Kristen Barry was third in 17:14.

There was no team award this year, but Dirigo would have won it had there been one. Everybody that came down on both the men’s and women’s side went home with cash or hardware. Josh Zolla missed breaking 16 minutes by 6 seconds. Bill Mariski and Tom Ryan were the first masters runners in 16:19 and 16:20. I was a short ways behind them in 16:38, failing to catch PR Racing’s TJ Hesler.
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The Portland Trails 10k, aka the Tukey Trot 10k, aka the Trail to Ale, was run this morning. It also played host to the Maine Senior Games. It was rather warm with temperatures near 90º, but a constant breeze kept the course feeling a little cooler. Michael Slinsky won the race in 32:38, followed by Jason Cakouros in 33:15. Christin Doneski won women’s race in 38:20.

Tom Ryan won the Maine Senior Games in 35:52, which was run as part of the same race. He finished almost 10 minutes of second place David Colby Young.
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