Hartford Half Marathon
Transcription
Hartford Half Marathon
Hartford Turns 20! by Bob Fitzgerald The ING Hartford Marathon/Half Marathon, Relay & 5K celebrates a 20th anniversary this October 12 and along with the tried and true, there are a few things new. Well actually, more than a few but we don’t have room for everything so here’s a smattering. Club Row – Open • Runner’s to running club members (gotta singlet?) featuring exclusive hospitality tents with refreshments and facilities just for club members. Drummers – In addi• Taiko tion to the 22 musical acts on the course, the Taiko Drummers of NYC will inspire both runners and spectators at the finish line on October 12th. States Reunion Celebra• 50 tion – The 50 States Marathon Club is celebrating its annual fall reunion at the ING Hartford Marathon. To date, 65 members will be running Hartford along their journey to run a marathon in every state in the country. Those accomplishing that task in Hartford will be recognized with a beautiful commemorative plaque in a special ceremony. From The Blogosphere NER’s linchpin with the New England’s Finest Program at Hartford, Ellen Smith, recently debuted in the “blog” section of the Hartford Marathon Foundation website. A marketing guru during the week, Ellen is a permanent part-timer with HMF during the course of its 22 running events from March thru Dec. with an additional five duathlons and triathlons from May thru Sept. Suffice to say that Ellen wears many hats in addition to other unique attire—such as the wading boots we caught her wearing the only time in five years we could track her down K Spreads Out – Big • Kids changes with the Kids K on October 12th. The start and finish has moved across the park to Elm Street to allow more room for more kids. Also added is a “Kids Fit Zone” with interactive fitness activities, a Chocolate Milk Garden, and much more! Green Initiative • EcoHusky – Named the greenest road race in America in 2008, the ING Hartford Marathon isn’t resting on its laurels. UCONN’s EcoHusky Club and the EcoHouse Learning Community will be on site on race day to inform attendees about composting. Compost collection bins will be throughout Bushnell Park and each will be staffed by a UCONN student who’ll guide folks to the proper receptacle for recycling, composting and trash. The goal – Zero Waste! Food – What can • Comfort you possibly add to 6400 yogurts, 4000 bagels, apple crisp and veggie soup—how about comfort staples like Grilled Cabot Cheese Sandwiches and House Made Tomato soup. on marathon day. She was by the food tents overseeing the placement of hay bales procured that morning following a heavy rain. Ellen made the call in a bit of a panic when she arrived at Bushnell Park and found it resembling Woodstock without the music. Her help is indispensable in keeping NEF speeding forward and there are even plans for a pre-race aperitif this year…we shall see…in the interim, Executive Director of HMF and ING Hartford Marathon Race Director Beth Shluger gives Ellen the following intro: “One of the greatest aspects of my job is the opportunity to work with really talented people, who want to work very flexible, Relaxing after last year’s half marathon, former University of Hartford teammates Jonas Hampton (5th, 1:07:18) and Andrew Chalmers (15th, 1:10:51). Photo by Steve McLaughlin The De Facto NE/NY Regional Championships Every marathon in New England and New York is unique with a number of superlatives richly deserved. Not to trill the NEF trumpet, but heading into its sixth year, the swiftest and deepest NE/NY fields now annually converge on Bushnell Park. “Regional” appears in the above headline in deference to the two World Marathon Majors in our backyard. In the NE/NY region, the strength of the ING Hartford Marathon fields are fairly obvious, but if you were to ask the general populace what the fastest half marathon in New England is…they’d point to the B.A.A. Half Marathon. The percentage that read NER would hesitate for a moment, “What about Hartford?” Exactly! If you discount foreign runners (top 5 at Boston, top 2 at part time hours. Because of the ability to offer this type of job, we get the best and brightest, who normally would be scooped up for big jobs by big employers with big budgets. One such great employee is Ellen Smith, who has worked with HMF for over 12 years. We are so lucky! “Ellen helps HMF throughout the year and can expertly tackle any task we throw at her. Reprinted from New England Runner, September/October 2013 Hartford in 2012 – Our house, Our rules) regional speed and depth tips to the Nutmeg State. The top regional athlete at Boston last year posted up in a fine 1:07:29. That would have been fourth at Hartford following ME’s Jonny Wilson (1:06:24), NH’s Dan Hocking (1:07:11) and CT’s Jonas Hampton. It continues—30th at Boston, 1:17:45; Hartford, 1:16:09 – on the women’s side, 12th at Boston1:26:33; at Hartford, 1:23:47. Both races were run in fine conditions on not dissimilar courses. The New York City Half Marathon dwarfs both events in numbers, but in 2013 the first regional runner was the Greater New York RT’s Mike Cassidy in 1:07:25; the second was NER loyalist Eric Blake of CT in 1:09:09. The defense rests. As the great character actor Walter Brennan used to say in every episode of the ‘Guns of Will Sonnett’ (the wisest show in the west) “No brag, just fact.” On race day she can be found managing (wrangling!) HMF FitKids races, coordinating food for athletes or working the bike course during duathlons and triathlons. For the ING Hartford Marathon, she coordinates athlete hotels, supervises the Official Charity program, helps run the Elite programs including New England’s Finest, and manages the Athlete Food Tent.” New England's FINEST A Quick Q&A: Q: Favorite HMF race to work Ellen Smith: The Shamrock Duathlon! I have managed the bike course for this Glastonbury race for over 10 years. It is held in my town, so I always see people I know, I am very familiar with the course and it’s a challenging race for both beginners and experienced athletes. Q: All-time best race experiences ES: My best personal experience was running in this year ’s Vermont City Marathon. I set this as a goal for my 50th birthday year, and beat my 1999 marathon time by 13 minutes! My best professional race experience was working at the 2013 Sandy Hook Run for the Families. It was amazing to see the huge turnout of runners and spectators for this event. They never stopped coming! Hartford Marathon RD Beth Shluger. Photo by FitzFoto/NERunner Photo by Steve McLaughlin Q: Oddest thing on your race day check list ES: I always make sure to bring a bottle of champagne to the Manchester Road Race each year to celebrate the race after everyone is finished. Q: What most people don’t know about making a successful event NEW FOR 2013 Blame it on Reno In addition to every 20th marathon/half marathon finisher receiving a free subscription to Photo by Scott Mason NER, here’s something else that we’ll keep going. A few years ago we asked age-group ace and NEF participant Reno Stirrat if he had any suggestions on making the program better. It was post-race and Reno’s head and stomach had experienced a disconnect on the race course, largely owing to his love affair with a creamy alfredo sauce at the pasta party the previous evening. In between moans he managed, “You could offer a bonus for New England’s Finest records.” So it has come to pass. At 59, Reno will be “prime time” in 2014. Most vulnerable this year is the half marathon men’s Master record—no knock on Jason Porter ’s 1:16:00, but Jason ran this after an injury setback and a switch from the marathon to the half marathon, and thus the 40+ record is only 35 seconds faster than Reno’s 50+ record. HMF heroine Ellen Smith (red hair) with project worker Peggy Byram. ES: Act and be prepared. Make all runners, volunteers and spectators feel that the race staff has thought of everything and that we’re here to put on the best race that we can each and every time. Q: Favorite post-workout snack ES: Chocolate milk and bananas. 20th Running New England Runner Magazine Bonus Awarded to the first male and female runners in the New England’s Finest program to best any of the existing ING Hartford Marathon and Half Marathon New England’s Finest event records. NEF Half Marathon Senior record holder Reno Stirrat. Reprinted from New England Runner, September/October 2013 New England’s Finest – Class of 2013 Men’s Marathon Overview Westchester TC teammates Abiyot Endale and Mathew Kiplagat went 1-2 last Oct., Endale in a course record 2:15:35. The defending champ is out with a knee ailment, but if he was in we’d still give the No. 1 seed to last year’s No. 2. Former Iona ace Kiplagat is now a 2:12 ‘guy’ after running 2:12:09 at Grandma’s this June. When Endale surged at 20 miles last year, Kiplagat decided not to give chase in his debut marathon. “I’d watched too much coverage of guys that went fast and then staggered across the finish line. I didn’t want to be that guy,” said Kiplagat, who is looking to add a marathon title to the half marathon crown he earned in 2011…and then there’s the $1K course record bonus. 2:35 marathoner Heidi Westover. Photo by Scott Mason Women’s Marathon Overview The field lost top New Yorkers Sarah Cummings (2:43:03, 2012 – work conflict) and US Olympic Marathon trialist Jodie Robertson (2:42:31, 2012 – injury setback) but retains three women who have run 2:39 or better, including defending champion and NEF course record holder Hilary Dionne, plus six (6) current marathon champions. The aforementioned doesn’t include 2011 champion Erica Jesseman, runner-up in 2012 during an injury plagued year but now having the season of her life. The 2:39 club does include Walpole, NH’s Heidi Westover, a twotime US World Championship team member and two-time US Olympic Marathon trialist who ran 2:41:09 in the 2008 trials held in Boston and was 15th in 2:35:45 at the trials in Houston in 2012. While making her Hartford fulldistance debut, Westover is a 4time winner of the Cape Cod Marathon and 5-time winner of the Vermont City Marathon where she holds the women’s course record of 2:35:01. Heidi’s most recent marathon was at Vermont in May, which she won by over 8-minutes in 2:42:02. Men’s Marathon Scott Mind el, Ballston Lake, NY – We’ll give Scott 1:07:29 to place as 1st US in the 2012 B.A.A. Half Marathon, but that performance motivated him to enter the Cape Cod Marathon. Running within himself, Eric let the course take care of the competition, winning by 3-minutes in 2:26:13 (good for 2-3 minutes elsewhere). This year the 4:03 miler won the Bedford Rotary 20K in 39:04 and ran 14:05 at the Hollis Fast 5K. Eric MacKnig ht, C lifton Park, NY – A two-time NCAA THE RUBBER MATCH qualifier at Keene State, CT native MacKnight ran 2:26:13 for 7th last year. In 2012 he also won the Adirondack Grand Prix over Alex Paley (running the half here). If anything, MacKnight has upped his cardio this year on the USATF-NE mountain circuit, winning at Wachusett, 2nd at Ascutney, 10th in his debut at Mt. Washington and 11th (1st NE/NY) at the US Mtn. Running Championships at Cranmore in late July. Matt Pelletier Chris Zablocki Photo by Steve McLaughlin Photo by MickFoto/NERunner West Greenwich, RI’s Matt Pelletier and Essex, CT’s Chris Zablocki went 3-4 a year ago. Matt ran 2:19:33 to break the NEF record with Chris notching a then PR of 2:20:11, since lowered to 2:17:49 at the Shamrock Marathon (VA), one of four marathons Chris won this year before hooking up with Matt again at May’s Vermont City Marathon. The pair was still together at 25 miles before Photo by FitzFoto Matt and Chris have agreed to work together at Hartford to achieve a 2016 US Olympic Marathon trials qualifier (2:18-B, 2:15-A). Chris, who recently finished 15th at Falmouth, will be leaving after Labor Day to begin medical studies at American University of the Caribbean and will fly back a few days before the marathon. Chris scorched the final mile in 5-flat to win in 2:18:23 with Matt following in 2:19:02. Photo courtesy of Scott Mindel props in the marathon section. This is where he wanted to be before coming down with two golf ball sized knots in his leg and glute after camping out the night before a relay race across Michigan this August. Scott was 19th at Boston in 2012 and 1st New Yorker this year at Boston in 2:22:25. Running again, he’ll drop to the half this Oct. Eric Ashe, Allston, MA – Former BU runner Eric Ashe is 1for-1 on the marathon circuit. He hadn’t planned on running Reprinted from New England Runner, September/October 2013 Photo by George Ross New England's FINEST Oz Pearlman, NYC – Oz Pearlman is a magician and mentalist who’s appeared in Sports Illustrated, USA Today, the NY Times and elsewhere. He’s also a two-time winner of the Chicago Additional Men’s Marathon field A: After 3 top-3 showings in the Beach to Beacon 10K Maine division, Erica broke through in August, winning by 24 seconds in 34:17 (5:31 pace). Thomas O’Grady, Latham, NY – 2:29:27, 2013 Boston Marathon. Brendan O’Leary, Whitman, MA – 2:30:41, 2013 Boston Marathon. Spencer McElwain, Old Town, ME – Debut, 2012 Maine Half Marathon winner in 1:10:23. Sarah Bard, Somerville, MA – Originally from Waterville, ME, Sarah ran her first marathon as a Photo by Clay Shaw/Sports 35 Photo courtesy of Oz Pearlman 50-miler, winner of the 2012 Sri Chinmoy Marathon and twotime (2011-2012) winner and course record holder at the New Jersey Marathon (2011, 2:28:19; 2012, 2:28:23). Kevin Collins, Liverpool, NY – Collins, 42, is the 2013 US Masters 10K Champion and ran a world class age-graded percentile at this year’s New Bed- The Willow Street AC’s Thomas O’Grady. Photo courtesy of Thomas O’Grady Women’s Marathon Hilary Dionne, Charlestown, MA – Former Dartmouth Megan Nedlo, Salem, MA – Megan Nedlo relocated to New England from Charlotte, NC in Nov. of 2011. She then ran the 2012 US Olympic Trials Marathon in Houston in a then PR of 2:41:06. Later in the year she ran 2:39:08 to place as 4th woman (2nd US) at the Philadelphia Marathon. Her stated goal for Hartford is to go for the 2016 Olympic Trials ‘A’ qualifier of 2:37. Erica Jesseman, Scarborough, ME – In her debut marathon here in 2011, Erica won in a Trials qualifying 2:45-flat. Photo by Andrew McLanahan/photorun.net college senior—Boston 2006 in 4:01:04. Since then it’s been 7straight PRs between the BostonChicago-NY Marathon Majors. This past April at Boston she notched No. 7 in 2:45:26. Diane Senecal, Wakefield, RI – A 40 year-old mother of three “rambunctious boys” and a full-time Nurse Practioner, superduperdiane@ as her email begins, pretty aptly displays the underlying spirit of the NEF program. With a few friends, Diane lightly trained for the 2012 Philadelphia Marathon and logged 3:13:40. Bitten by the run- College runner Hilary Dionne nailed an 8-minute PR in 2:40:35 last Oct. to upend Jeannette Photo by MickFoto/NERunner Photo by Scott Mason ford USATF-NE Half Marathon Championship in 1:09:23 and at the Lake Effect Half Marathon (NY), running 1:09:07. He is a 3time US Olympic Marathon Trials qualifier and was runner-up at the 2003 US Marathon Championships in 2:15:32. Photo by Steve McLaughlin Faber ’s NEF record of 2:41:06 from 2010. Hilary ran a PR 2:39:34 at Boston this April and also notched her half marathon PR of 1:16:12 this year. She ran 2:46:11 in Houston and then spent much of 2012 injured; still, last fall she rallied to place 2nd here in 2:46:59. After a rest and feeling healthy again, she ran a PR 1:16:01 at the New Bedford Half Marathon and used this April’s Boston Marathon (PR 2:44:35) as a springboard to winning everything in sight. Exhibit Reprinted from New England Runner, September/October 2013 Photo by George Ross ning bug, she then trained in earnest under Senior savant Glen Guillemette and this April won the women’s division of the Gansett Marathon (RI) in 3:03:09. Additional Women’s Marathon field Kate Pallardy, NYC – Winner of the 2012 Cape Cod Marathon in 2:52:30; 4th at 2013 VT City Marathon in 2:53:47. Kristina Gracey, Albany, NY – 2:52:38 at the 2011 Cal Int’l Marathon; top NYer at Boston this year in 2:58:38 - 1:22:35 at the 2012 Hartford Half Marathon. Eliza Tibbets, Falmouth, ME – 2:57:08, 2013 Boston; winner of the 2012 Maine Marathon in 3:03:48. Katie Edwards, Glastonbury, CT – Winner of the 2012 Harrisburg Marathon in 2:57:58. Abbey Wood (nee Gosling), Laconia, NH – 2:58:41 at 2011 Cape Cod Marathon. Katherine Frey, Bayville, NY – 2009 Chicago Marathon, 2:57:38. Jackie Evans, E. Longmeadow, MA – 2:59:32, Boston 2013; 3:00:31, Hartford 2012. Hope Ratham, Hingham, MA – 3:00:05, 2012 Chicago Marathon. Carolyn Williams, Boston, MA – 3:00:13 at the 2012 Richmond Marathon. Sarah Romain, Easthampton, MA - 3:01:38, 2013 Boston Marathon. Meghan Mortensen, Rotterdam, NY – An up & coming 3:06 marathoner, Meghan was runner-up at the 2012 Kentucky Derby Marathon. Maureen Terwilliger (40+) runner, Guilford, CT – 2013 Gansett Marathon (RI) runner-up in 3:04:13; 2012 Hartford Masters winner in 3:03:09. Connie Grace (50+) runner, Hopewell, Jct., NY – NEF 50+ record holder at 3:05:11, Hartford, 2012. Men’s Half Marathon Ruben Sanca, Dracut, MA Maine Marathon winner Eliza Tibbets. Photo by Scott Mason – Winner of the 2011 USATF-NE Half Marathon Championship in 1:05:26, Ruben ran his only marathon to date that same year, posting up in 2:18:43 as the first American at the Rotterdam Marathon. With dual citizenship, he represented his native Cape Verde in the 5000m event at the 2012 London Olympics. Ruben is bouncing back nicely from knee surgery this past May, having recently run 24:03 (4:49 pace) at the USATF-NE 5M Championship in late July. Jonny Wilson, Falmouth, ME – Wilson went through 10 miles last year with the two Kenyan frontrunners in 50:22. In Photo by Steve McLaughlin the 11th mile his legs went numb but he still placed 3rd in a 3minute PR of 1:06:24. The former U. of Richmond runner recently placed 15th overall at the world class Beach to Beacon 10K in 30:48. Brian Harvey, Allston, MA – An NER Runner of the Year in 2010, the multi-talented B.A.A. ace was 2nd American at Bay to Breakers in 2012, has a 10K PR of 29:39 from the 2011 Penn Relays and this year won both of the featured 5000 meter races at the New Balance Boston Twilight Series. In August at Newburyport’s High Street Mile he ran 4:08. Harvey brings with him a half marathon PR of 1:06:46 from the 2011 Philadelphia Half Marathon. Additional Men’s Half Marathon field Dan Hocking, Dover, NH – The former UNH Wildcat was 4th last year in a PR 1:07:11. Jonas Hampton, Hartford, CT – The former U. of Hartford ace was 5th last year in 1:07:18. Chase Pizzonia, Bronx, NY – 1:07:15, 2012 Philadelphia. The former Iona ace is a past NEFer. Phil Mitchell, Glastonbury, CT – The 25 year-old placed 6th last year in 1:08:22. Zach Schwartz, Medford, MA – The former Brandeis runner clocked 1:08:24 last year for 7th. Nick Wheeler, Rockland, ME – Nick placed 9th last year in 1:09:07. Kevin Treadway, Albany, NY – The 25 year-old former Dartmouth College harrier and current Albany Running Exchange member ran 1:09:10 for 10th last year. Alex Paley, Albany, NY – 1:09:13, 2013 Rochester Flower City Half (NY). Joe Darda, Willimantic, CT – Winner of three straight Hyannis Marathons, Joe ran 2:33:09 for 12th at Hartford last year and has a 13.1M PR of 1:11:30 from 2010. Jason Porter, 40+ runner, Bedford, NH – Jason won the Masters division last year in 1:16-flat. Tim Murphy, 40+ runner, Ronkonkoma, NY – Tim was 3rd Master in the marathon in 2011 and 3rd master in the half last year in 1:17:31. Women’s Half Marathon Jessica Barton, Newton, MA – A 3-time MA HS All State Cape Cod Marathon winner Kate Pallardy. Photo by Scott Mason Photo by Ted Tyler Photo by FitzFoto/NERunner Reprinted from New England Runner, September/October 2013 champion at Newton North, Jessica holds the Northeastern Uni- New England's FINEST Terrific Masters Troika Photo by Jon Litchfield/NU versity women’s school record at 5000m (16:35) and the steeplechase (10:55). In 2011, she was the NCAA NE Indoor 3,000m champion and also placed as 13th woman at the US 20K Championships in 1:14:00. Now a professional triathlete, Jessica was runner-up at the 2012 Austin 3M Half Marathon in 1:15:52. She recently was 15th woman at Falmouth in 41:34 (5:55 pace). Katie Hails, Somerville, MA – Somerville RR Katie Hails has been throwing in some impres- Photo by MickFoto/NERunner sive times this year, starting with a 2:57:27 clocking at Boston. Since then she’s run 58:16 at the Utica Boilermaker 15K, 17:05 at the Hollis Fast Five 5K and in late July she placed as third woman in the USATF-NE 5M Championship in 29:31. Kara Haas Photo by Scott Mason Kara Haas Chelmsford, MA – The Saint Anslem College Hall of Famer is the reining US Masters 10K champion (37:51) and winner of the 40+ division at the B.A.A. 10K (37:47). Kara also ran 16:29 for 5K at the Hollis Fast Five (downhill course). At the USATF-NE 5M Championship she placed 10th overall (1st 40+) in 31:12. Undefeated as a Master in 2013, Kara, 43, ran a 4:40 mile in 2011 and in 2010 won the B.A.A. Half Marathon 40+ title in 1:21:44. Kara was the top 40+ female runner at Falmouth this August. Additional Women’s Half Marathon field Mandy West, NYC – Mandy was 5th last year in 1:21:47. Breanne Simpson, NYC – Breanne ran her debut marathon in 2:54:45 for 4th here in 2011 and then placed 6th in the half marathon last year in a PR 1:21:54. This year she’s run 1:22:25 at the Brooklyn Half Marathon. Mimi Fallon Photo by Victah Sailer/photorun.net Emily Bryans Photo by FitzFoto/NERunner Mimi Fallon, Walpole, MA – Fallon, 47, a 3-time Olympic Marathon Trials contestant and former US World Marathon team member, gets better as the distance increases. Tho’ she did win the 40+ title at the B.A.A. 5K in 17:59. In March she was 2nd 40+ at the USATF-NE Half Marathon Championships to Sheri Piers in 1:23:47. She was a close 2nd to Haas at both the US Masters 10K Championship and B.A.A. 10K and most recently was the top Master at the Litchfield Hills 7M. Emily Bryans, Delanson, NY – Bryans, 46, has gotten better with age and has some impressive overall PRs to prove it— like her victory at the 2010 Hudson River Marathon in 2:50:35, and this year’s 17:02 clocking at the Westfield Flat Fast 5K. She also ran a Masters PR of 5:08 for the mile this year, one in which she’s been excelling at distances long and short—such as an overall win at the Running of the Green 4M in 23:14 and 3rd overall among women at the Martha’s Vineyard 20-Miler at 6:44 pace. A marathoner by nature, Bryans hasn’t run a half marathon since she won the Olesak Half Marathon in western Mass. at age 39 in 1:23:39. Laura Brustolon, Lawrence, MA – The former Southern Connecticut SU standout ran 1:23:18 at New Bedford this year before running Boston in 2:56:32. A four-time winner of the John & Jessie Kelley Ocean Beach 11.6M, Laura ran 1:10:18 (6:03 pace) there this August. Alexandra Varanka, Amherst, NH – 2:54:35, 2013 Boston Marathon; 1:21:59 at 2011 New Bedford Half Marathon. Susannah Landreth (40+ runner), Newburyport, MA – Hail- ing from a running family, Susannah is a two-time Olympic Marathon trials qualifier and past winner of the women’s 40+ division at the B.A.A. Half Marathon. Maureen Burns (50+) runner, Hampden, MA – Top Senior in 2011-2012, 1:32:03 & 1:33:48. Linda Jennings (60+) runner, Tewksbury, MA – Nationally ranked, Linda set the NEF 60+ record of 1:33:45 last year. NR Reprinted from New England Runner, September/October 2013