Strickler Gets Course Record at Cougar Mountain Series

The 3rd race in the Cougar Mountain Trail Run Series kicked off last weekend and when the dust settled on a very competitive men’s race a new course record was established. Edward Strickler(27) who was 4^th in the 2^nd race(8.20 miles) of the series a few weeks ago, notched the win over the challenging 10.48 mile course with a time of 1:14:54 at King County’s Cougar Mountain Regional Park. Not far off Strickler’s record pace was Keegan Symmes(17) in 1:16:20 and Gareth Jones(17) in 1:17:23. Rounding out the Top 5 were Dominic Smariassi(25) in 1:17:58 and Justin Wade(29) in 1:23:08.

Though Iliana Sach(35) was well off Chris Kimbrough’s 2006 course record of 1:26:32, she still posted an impressive win in the women’s race. Sach completed the course in 1:35:24, almost 5 minutes ahead of masters athlete Maureen Anderson (47) who finished in 1:40:00. Larissa Kolasinski, who is just 15, ran a strong race that put her solidly in 3^rd place with a time of 1:40:33. Sarah Roberts(29) and Tracey Straight(26) finished 4^th and 5^th with times of 1:42:09 and 1:43:08.

The next race in the Cougar Mountain Trail Series will take place on August 11 and will cover 13 challenging miles. There is still plenty of time to sign up.

139 finishers completed the 8.20 mile course on Saturday.

The 4th of July: Footraces, Fireworks and Fun

All around the United States people were celebrating the 4^th of July with hot dogs, fireworks, fun in the sun and possibly a road race if you are the running type. Washington is no stranger to 4^th of July races, as no less than 15 races were listed in the latest edition of the Northwest Runner for those of us who wanted to get out and pay tribute to the stars and stripes by dashing down Main Street.

Perhaps the largest 4^th of July race in Washington, the Firecracker 5000 presented by Club Northwest in Seattle got things going early with a start time of 11:55 pm on July 3^rd. Showing an increase in participation this year, the race saw 1657 finishers run their way into the next day with a quick romp around Seattle Center. Starting and finishing in Memorial Stadium under the watchful eye of the Space Needle, James Cameron was the first to finish in 15:28. David Garcia who also ran 15:28 for the 3.1 mile course was 2^nd, while last year’s winner Brian Masterson was 3^rd in 15:37.  On the women’s side, Kimber Lemon notched a convincing win in 18:38 over Rebekah Rizer and Robyn Hefner who were 2^nd and 3^rd in 19:16 and 19:24. The race itself showed an increase of 305 finishers compared to 2011.

The Yankee Doodle Dash in Everett which featured a 5k and 10k hosted a big 4^th of July celebration that attracted over 600 patriotic runners on Wednesday morning.  Matt Koenig and Rachel Cundy won the 10k races in 32:52 and 41:22 respectively, while Brian Sutter and Kelsey Kraft were victorious in the 5k with times of 15:47 and 19:47.

10K-Men		10k-Women		5k-Men		5k-Women
Matt Koenigs	32:52:00	Rachel Cundy	41:22:00	Brian Sutter	15:47	Kelsey Kreft	19:47
Arian Anderson	33:29:00	Sarah Washburn	43:00:00	Cody MacDougall	16:52	Jena Calder	21:35
Aaron Campbell	36:12:00	Bri Waldorf	44:01:00	Joey Davis	17:03	Sharon Bertolli	21:49

A little further north in Skagit County runners toed the line at The Great Sedro-Woolley Footrace to celebrate the 4^th of July at the Loggerodeo, which is the oldest continuous 4^th of July celebration in the state.  Matthew McClement  provided the early fireworks as he won the 5.17 mile footrace in 26:49 over Clay Wing(27:20) and Connor Whan(28:06).  Amber Monday won the women’s race in 31:04, while Lauren Breihof was 2^nd in 31:12 and Alma McMurty was 3^rd in 33:43. Between both the 5.17 mile and the 2 mile race, close to 700 participants came out to celebrate the 4^th, race down the main drag before the big parade and enjoy a wonderful event that was sponsored in part by the Skagit Runners.

In Elite racing, Mike Sayenko(Club NW) and Uli Steidl(Seattle Runners Club) represented Washington well as they raced in one of the nation’s biggest and most competitive races, the Peachtree Road Race, on July 4^th in Atlanta, Georgia. Sayenko, who lives in Bellevue, finished 20^th with a time of 29:55 for 10k.  In a race that draws many of the best runners in the world, Sayenko was the 2^nd American finisher just behind Bobby Mack of North Carolina who ran 29:16. Steidl who was competing in the Masters race, was 3^rd in a time of 31:31 for the hilly and hot 6.2 mile course. Finishing just a few strides behind the winner, the Top 3 Masters runners were separated by a mere 10 seconds. With over 60,000 participants registered for the Peachtree Road Race, it is the largest 10k in the world. 

HS Track: Nike Elite Mile in Eugene

Last Friday at the US Track and Field Olympic Trials in Eugene, Nike hosted an Elite High School Mile that attracted some of the nations top returning talent and a handful of very accomplished runners from Washington.

Amy-Eloise Neal from Glacier Peak High School who came into the meet with a season best mile of 4:51.43 from her victory at the prestigious Arcadia Invitational in California was Washington's top finisher in the Nike Elite Mile with a time of 4:56.18.  Alexa Efraimson of Camas High School was 6th in 4:58.1 and Katie Knight of North Central HS in Spokane was 9th in 5:04. Hannah Meier of Michigan won the event in 4:55.6. 

In the Boy's Elite Mile, Andrew Gardner of Mead HS was the only entrant from Washington. Gardner who was a double state champion this spring at 1600/3200 meters finished 7th in 4:11.6. The event was won by Bernie Montoya of Arizona in 4:08.

Girls Nike Elite Mile Video

Boys Nike Elite Mile Video

Nike Elite Mile Results

Finish	Athlete	Time		Finish	Athlete	Time
1	Hannah Meier	04:55.6		1	Bernie Montoya	04:08.0
2	Amy Eloise Neal	04:56.2		2	Jake Leingang	04:10.6
3	Wesley Frazier	04:56.5		3	Jacob Burcham	04:11.2
4	Haley Meier	04:56.7		4	Nick Ryan	04:11.5
5	Nikki Hiltz	04:57.3		5	Benjamin Malone	04:11.6
6	Alexa Efraimson	04:58.1		6	Cody Brazeal	04:11.6
7	Erin Finn	05:03.9		7	Andrew Gardner	04:11.6
8	Jillian Fanning	05:03.9		8	Sean McGorty	04:11.9
9	Katie Knight	05:04.0		9	Blake Haney	04:12.3
				10	Joshua Brickell	04:26.7

Ragnar Northwest Passage: Summer Fun Part 1

So you’ve run them all. The 5k, the 10k, a few track races, a token marathon, some trail races and that crazy ultra marathon thingy. After over 25 years of running, it wasn’t until a few months ago that I finally got my first road marathon finish and felt like I could finally join “the” club. See even though I’ve completed the marathon distance and further on the trails several times I never felt like I could jump in the “marathon” conversation while people listed off races like NYC, Boston, Portland, Marine Corp, Chicago and Grandma’s. Now that I’m officially a marathon finisher and I can now jump in those conversations with ease(and a Boston Qualifier) but I still reserve the right to play my “Ragnar” card.

A little puzzled, you tilt your head and ask “What is Ragnar?”.  Take a seat my friend and let me explain.

Ragnar is a relay series with destination races across the United States varying in distance from 180 to 200 miles and that offers you and 11 of your best buddies the opportunity to traverse a veritable cornucopia of scenic and challenging running routes that will no doubt awaken your senses, challenge your physical being, rob you of much need sleep and allow you to see those around you from a different and more colorful lens while celebrating the joy of 24 plus hours of running. Now that sounds like fun.

The series itself started in 2004 in Park City, Utah as Ragnar Wasatch Back and has grown to over 15 events nationwide with over 70,000 participants annually. Luckily for those of us who live in and actively enjoy all that Western Washington has to offer, the Ragnar Nortwest Passage runs right through our backyard-from Blaine to Langley.

The Ragnar Northwest Passage  began for me as a mere spectator in 2009 when a crazy friend of mine signed up to run the race again as a 6 person ultra team.  Each of the 6 runners were well accomplished in their own right, great ambassadors of the sport and looking to challenge themselves beyond the same-old, same-old. So there I was at 5:30 in the morning, watching the sun paint its orange signature across the Cascade Mountains and waiting for my buddy to come rambling by.  Due to the reverse seeding(fastest teams start last) of the race, which is pure genius, I was able to witness and cheer on hundreds of runners and spy dozens of brilliantly decorated vans, before my buddy came running  by. The vans arrived in Mardi-Gras type procession complete with blasting music, scantily clad runners and an energy that was rare for Whidbey Island. As runners poured out of the vans and started dancing in the street I was overcome with amazement and I wanted to throw on my running shoes right then and there to join this traveling circus of runners. With the party in full swing my buddy came running into the exchange zone: he looked physically beaten, dusty and dirt ridden and was covered in something that resembled a sweaty Gatorade smoothie, but he was smiling beyond belief, slapping high fives and bounding towards his awaiting teammates who had worked themselves into a frenzy.

In that moment a wristband is exchanged, a fresh runner takes off, the party moves on and Ragnar has filled the hearts and souls of everyone for miles around.

Sign me up, I’m all in, no questions asked!!!!

(This is Part 1 of a 3 article series that will lead up to Ragnar Northwest Passage that starts on July 20th in Blaine and finishes 190 miles later on July 21st in Langley)

US Olympic Trials Photos and an Excited Track Fan

I received a few photos last night from the US Olympic Track and Field Trials in Eugene. RB Wick of Bellingham, who is a strong runner himself and sponsors several Ski-to-Sea Teams each Spring, was able to get a few pics with some London bound Olympians. Most impressive though was the fact that RB asked Nick Symmonds, the 800 Meter Trials Champion in 1:43.92, for his race bib during his victory lap and Symmonds was more than happy to make Wick the most excited track fan at Hayward Field that night. Great job RB and thanks for the pics.

Croft and Kokebe Win Seattle Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Titles

Shortly after the start of the 2012 Seattle Rock 'n' Roll Marathon the race announcer commented that there were a few “Rock 'n' Roll Legends” in the crowd. No, they didn’t play guitar for a living or sing any hit songs; however, they did have about 60 Rock 'n' Roll Marathons under their belts. While that is impressive and certainly noteworthy as the Rock 'n' Roll franchise has grown into "the" grand running tour that now includes worldwide stops, true “Legend” status was being achieved a few miles into the race as Sheila Croft and Teshome Kokebe were already pushing towards victory.

A few weeks ago I received an email from RUNRACEWA reader John Swenson who suggested a profile on a local runner who was flying under the radar, logging miles at the Redmond Watershed and posting some impressive performances. That runner's name is Sheila Croft and after doing some research, I found out that she was 13^th at the this year's Boston Marathon,  2^nd at the Rock 'n' Roll Portland Half-Marathon in May and that she is a very, very good triathlete. Croft, who is 37 and lives in Redmond, not only added another impressive performance to her resume today with her 2^nd Seattle Rock 'n' Roll Marathon title, but she cut nearly 10 minutes off her marathon personal best to run 2:41:38. In addition to winning the women’s title by nearly 12 minutes, Croft was the 5^th overall finisher across the line today and is now officially on the radar as her time would easily rank her among the best women’s marathoners in the United States.  Rounding out the Top 3 on the women’s side was former Romanian Olympian Nuta Olaru in 2:53:25 and Danya Crawford of Utah in 2:55:49. 

On the men’s side, Teshome Kokebe was also sprucing up his already impressive running resume with a convincing win over Cheyne Inman of California. Kokebe, who runs for Club Northwest and has been battling a nagging injury, was 2^nd at the 2012 Eugene Marathon in May and has still managed to put together a stellar 2012 with fast times from the 5k to the Marathon. The Lynnwood resident, who is originally from Ethiopia, was 2^nd at last year’s Rock 'n' Roll Marathon in 2:27:13 and is no stranger to winning, as he already owns a Seattle Marathon title from 2010. Having had the unique opportunity to regularly train with/behind Kokebe as part of the Wednesday Night Runners in Seattle, I can say with ease that if he gets healthy he can run well under 2:20 and add a few more marathon titles to his name. Kokebe ran 2:31:47 today under cloudy skies and light showers, while Inman clocked 2:34:41 and Eric Brill of Bellingham finished 3^rd place today was Eric Brill from Bellingham.

Congrats to Sheila Croft and Teshome Kokebe, today you are Rock ‘n’ Roll Legends!!!!

Runner of the Month: HS Boys WIAA 1600 Meter Runners

RUNRACEWA is excited to announce the HS Boys 1600 Meter Runners from the WIAA State Track and Field Championships as its Runner of the Month for May. In looking at the results, May was a phenomenal month for track and field both on the high school and collegiate level with a great number of athletes performing at a high level. Additionally, Dan McLean, Uli Steidl, Megan Heuer and Claudia Copeland all posted some impressive victories last month at big road races. Joseph Gray continued his winning ways and ran superbly as he claimed several victories on both the roads and the trails; however, the fast times and depth of the Boys 1600 meter races at both states meets were possibly the fastest times amassed in state history and the results themselves is a great testament to the coaching, talent, dedication and development in our state.

For comparisons sake, in the 2011 WIAA year-end rankings only one runner broke 4:11 for 1600 meters. Forward to May of 2012, 10 athletes ran between 4:04 and 4:11.29 for 1600 meters. In one calendar year that is a phenomenal improvement and bodes well for the future as three of those performances were from underclassman. Looking beyond the borders of our state, California has long been known to, almost annually, produce busloads of talented 1600 meter runners/milers, though this year the State of Washington overtook that status as statistical analysis shows almost a 14 second advantage when combining the Top 10 1600 meter times from each state. The numbers also show over a one second advantage per runner for the Evergreen State and put Washington’s Top 10 average at 4:08.61 for 1600 meters while California’s Top 10 failed to crack 4:10, with an average of 4:10.01. 

State	Grade	Athlete	Time	State	Grade	Athlete	Time
WA	12	Izaic Yorks	4:04.00a	CA	11	Cody Brazeal	4:07.72a
WA	12	Nathan Weitz	4:05.60a	CA	12	Darren Fahy	4:08.15a
WA	12	Marcus Dickson	4:05.83a	CA	12	Luis Gutierrez	4:08.68a
WA	10	Joe Hardy	4:09.29a	CA	10	Blake Haney	4:10.04a
WA	12	Korey Krotzer	4:09.61a	CA	12	Thomas Joyce	4:10.35a
WA	11	Andrew Gardner	4:09.71a	CA	12	Austin O'neil	4:10.54a
WA	12	Conor McCandless	4:09.72a	CA	11	Daniel De La Torre	4:10.74a
WA	12	Jacob Smith	4:10.40a	CA	12	Billy Gaudreau	4:11.12a
WA	12	Anthony Armstrong	4:10.72a	CA	11	Juan Gonzalez	4:11.28a
WA	11	Patrick Gibson	4:11.29a	CA	12	Nicholas Woolf	4:11.57a

To further illustrate the presence of 1600 meter runners/milers in Washington state, at the Adidas Dream Mile in New York City on June 9^th, Marcus Dickson and Izaic Yorks ran 4:03.18 and 4:04.38 respectively to finish 5^th and 8^th in the most prestigious high school mile race in the United States. Dickson’s time was a personal best and helped place Washington ahead of California again as their best finisher was Blake Haney at 4:09.43 in 13^th place.

Kudos to all of the HS Boys WIAA 1600 meter runners, their teammates, coaches and parents as May was a great month and the culmination of a thousands of miles of hard work.