From Andy Shearer, Middletown Athletic Club (MAC) – 2nd Annual Club Challenge 5K – 2/9 at Lum’s Pond
This is the weekend! 73 people are pre-registered as of today… very nice. The course is a bit soft but hopefully we get a cold and dry week out of this one and firm things up a bit. But hey, it IS cross country! “Be one with the mud”.
Just a reminder to your runners that the bathrooms in areas 2 & 5 will be open but not in area 1. Area 5 is the first area on the left past the guard shack so I’d recommend that as a stop in to anyone. Area 2 is about a 600m jog from the starting area, so no big deal.
Please also a reminder that, as with White Clay, the trails are public use and as such, are open to anyone with a dog, cow, horse, bike, pig, and family of 17 out for a weekend stroll.
I will have sharpees to mark hands, should anyone have difficulty recalling that red means turn left and yellow means turn right. I am bringing the finishing chute for set-up and also have a display timer, unless they are not needed. I will also grab about 4-5 cases of water but otherwise, folks are on their own for post run refreshments. The weekend weather (which will change 9 times between now and then) looks seasonal (high of 41) so as long as Friday’s showers are either light or non-existent, we’ll have a good day… but not too good.
Anything I am forgetting? Oh, I will do a course once-over on Friday and check for markings, etc… It’s a pretty easy course to navigate, with only one or two spots where the unattentive could end up in Jersey.
See you this weekend… have fun and, as we say in MAC, don’t suck!
Andy Shearer
Sign up for Annual Club Awards Banquet March 2
Registration for our banquet is now open. See menu choices and register either online with credit card, or download form to send check at www.pcvrc.com/banquet.php
Please sign up as much in advance of 2/22 deadline as possible. Event starts at 6 pm on Saturday 3/2 at Hartefeld National Golf Club in Avondale. We had 70 people last year and would like to see as many as possible, especially if you haven’t fit in many club events! It’s also important since we’ll be electing club officers. Cost is $30 for members and family of members, $40 for non-members. We’ll announce the guest speaker shortly and will also provide info on give-aways that you must be present for, so don’t miss our big event!
Group Runs Continue Throughout Winter
As mentioned in the last eBulletin, contact Denise Boyle if you’d like to host a Friday Fun Run when the weather gets warmer. In the meantime, you’re always welcome to our Wed & Thurs 6 pm runs at Delcastle and the Sunday morning Panera (Main Street in Newark) runs. It feels warmer with greater numbers. There is always someone to run with.
Race Results and accomplishments: If we missed your results, please let us know.
Run to the Plunge 5K, Saturday Feb. 2, 2013, Rehoboth Beach
Jim Durkin: 28:07 (DE 1st Place 70+)
I am particularly interested in acknowledging significant other accomplishments that may not get noticed otherwise – someone who ran a “first” (5K to a marathon, a tri, etc.) or ran in a “destination” race (like a Ragnar, Big Sur Marathon, etc.) So please, tell on your friends! And I am always in need of race reviews!
Matt Cutrona on the USA Cross Country Championships:
This is my first time posting, but I recently participated in a running event that has left me feeling rejuvenated and inspired. I traveled to St. Louis last weekend to run in the USA National Cross Country Championships. This also served as the USATF Master’s National Championship race. I’ve never ran in a cross country race before but 1) I’m a USATF member, 2) I’m competitive and 3) I had enough miles for a free flight. I was mostly intrigued by the event because a lot of my favorite elite professional runners were going to be racing and I wanted to see them; Shalane Flanagan, Kim Conley, Deena Kastor, Sara Hall, Matt Tegankamp, Dathan Ritzeheimer. The list goes on. I previously worked in Sports Marketing and have met a lot of athletes from the NFL, NHL, NBA and MLB. I never felt star struck. But put me within 10 feet of an Olympic runner and I fall apart. So, I found myself boarding a plane on Friday to Missouri. And yes, you can carry cross country spikes on a plane with no issue. Just not tooth paste.
When I arrived, the first thing I noticed was that it was COLD. About negative 5 degrees wind chill. I drove straight from the airport to the course so I could get a preview. It was covered in snow. I laced up the spikes and set out on my first loop of the course. About a half mile in, I passed a contingent of Asics runners and had my first Olympic athlete sighting, Sara Hall. She was the defending champion. We gave each other the courtesy runner’s head nod as we passed each other. COOL! I kept on running. There was a section of the course where the hill was slanted. I ran it once and then realized it would be better if I took a different line and ran near the bottom of the hill where it was flat. I decided to back track and run that section again. As I turned around, I see two female runners approaching me. I notice the Nike gear. Yup, the best female marathoner in the US, Shalane Flanagan, and Nike Oregon Project team member, Emily Infeld. I latched on to them and ran a few loops of the course. The whole time I’m thinking I’m running with the best marathon runner in the United States. AWESOME!
Saturday was race day. The snow from the previous day had melted and the course was in great shape. There was an open community run at 8:30 followed by the Women’s Master’s Championship at 9:15. My race was at 10:00. The weather was pretty nice, 25 degrees, sunny with a stiff breeze. There were about 130 men in the race. I was hoping to come in the top 60. The race was an 8K. It was basically a 4 loop course which had a nice flat section, a downhill section and 2 modest hill sections. There were some tree roots to contend with too. My biggest fear going into the race was being lapped by the leaders. I listened intently to the race announcer during the race indicating where the leaders were and was always happy to hear they weren’t closely approaching. I LOVED running the course. It was the most fun I’ve had in a race in a long time, probably because I didn’t put any expectations on myself. I ended up running the 8K course in 29:45, good for a 30th overall place and a 76.49 age group ranking. I’ll take it. It was time to watch the professional Women’s Open race.
It ended up being a two women race between Shalane and New Balance’s, Kim Conley. They pulled away from the rest of the field on the first loop and ran together for about 7K before Shalane put a gap on Kim and won the National title. The great thing about watching cross country is that you can literally get within 2 feet of the runners and see them about 15 times during a 5 mile race. As I was cheering for the runners, I yell “Go Sara” as Sara Hall passed. Two seconds later the guy next to me starts cheering for Sara. Yup, I was standing next to Ryan Hall, one of the best current US male marathon runners. NUTS!
I really wanted to meet Kim Conley. One, because she runs for New Balance and I run for the Delaware New Balance team. And two, she is cute. I ran into her a few times at the race but didn’t have a chance to talk to her because I guess if you come in 2nd place you have to take a drug test. I thought it would be strange if I waited outside a porta potty. So, back to the hotel I went.The next stop for me was the after race party which was at a small hotel bar. I was sitting at the bar for about a ½ hour making small talk with whomever stopped by. Runners are cool. I turn my head and see a woman 2 feet from me with a New Balance back pack. Yep, Kim Conley. I thought I was cool since I had my New Balance back pack too. I went over and congratulated her on the race, made some small talk and did the picture thing. INCREDIBLE! I decided to call it a night. It was all too good to be true. I walked a block back to my hotel and decided to go into the lobby bar. Of course, Shalane Flanagan is sitting there eating an ice cream sundae. WHY NOT??
The experience of being in the presence of all these Olympians and elite runners left me excited to get back to training. It has reignited my passion for running. I can’t wait to run the NYC Half Marathon in 6 weeks. As Shalane tweeted an hour before winning: “Be Inspired. Be Inspiring”. It worked.
Board Meetings: PCVRC Board meetings are scheduled for these dates in 2013 – Mar 19, Apr 23, Jun 18, Aug 06, Sep 17, Nov 12. Board meetings are open to all members – we do ask that you contact a board member of your interest to attend before the meeting to confirm the date and location. All meetings are at 6:30 pm.
Remember to renew your PCVRC membership for 2013 if you have not already. Mail your $25 check payable to “PCVRC” to PCVRC, PO Box 3259, Wilmington, DE 19804 or pay $26 online by credit card at www.pcvrc.com/join.php. Consider inviting someone new to join. Some of the benefits (shirt, free food & drink, discounts, etc.) are listed at www.pcvrc.com/joinbenefits.php