24th Annual Anheuser-Busch Colonial Half Marathon
Sunday, February 23, 2003
Williamsburg, VA (William and Mary Hall) - Results
By Rick Platt
Past winners Anna Pichrtova and Kibet Cherop won again Sunday, February 23 at
the 24th annual Anheuser-Busch Colonial Half Marathon in Williamsburg, VA. Strong
winds slowed the times considerably for the 1,283 finishers in the half marathon
and the 292 finishers in the accompanying three mile. Both races finished inside
William and Mary Hall.
Pichrtova (at left wearing number 1), 29, of the Czech Republic, but a ski instructor in Waynesboro, had run the all-time course and race records of 1:15:02 to win last year's half marathon. With this winter's heavy snows, she's been doing more skiing and less running the past two months. Combined with the windy conditions, Pichrtova was only able to run a 1:18:21 in 2003 on the very hilly, but scenic, Carter's Grove Country Road and Kingsmill course. That was good enough to win the $500 first-place check over Casey Smith, 23, of Arlington (1:19:57 for $300) and Denise Knickman, 34, of Baltimore (1:23:02 for $200). Pichrtova had also run a 1:18:14 for second place at the 2001 Colonial.
For the men Cherop, 28, of Kenya, but based out of Durham, N.C., had won the 2000 race in 1:08:07. He was remarkably close in time this year with a winning 1:08:06, almost a minute ahead of teammate Elly Rono, 32, of Durham (1:09:01). Kenyan runners had a 1-2-3 sweep of the prize-money spots ($500-300-200), as Fred Getange, 26, of Chapel Hill was third in 1:10:26.
North Carolina residents had the top four spots for the men, as Kevin Taylor, 27, of Raleigh, outkicked former William and Mary distance runner Eric Bonnette, 23, of Collingswood, N.J. for fourth, 1:10:47 to 1:10:56. There was more than a three-minute gap to the sixth-place finisher (and first local runner), John Piggott, 37, of Williamsburg (1:14:01), the Lafayette High School assistant track coach.
Perhaps the most impressive race of the day came from the 10th place male finisher, Chuck Moeser, 51, of Sterling, who ran a 1:16:09 to win the Masters (ages 40-and-over) category. Moeser, a nationally-ranked age-group runner (he was No. 2 nationally by Running Times several years ago in the 45-49 division, and hopes to be No. 1 this year for 50-54 runners), became the first 50 runner ever to win the Masters category at Colonial. He had also won the Masters category in 1994 at Colonial (with a 1:14:00) at age 42. Moeser is one of only three runners with multiple men's Masters titles at Colonial (Lew Faxon and Lanny Doan are the others).
Moeser was one of only two runners to set race age group records Sunday, but his mark was very significant. Mel Williams, a legendary distance runner from Norfolk, had been the only runner ever to hold three separate age-group marks at Colonial, with records for men 50-54 (1:16:11 in 1989), 55-59 (1:21:04 in 1993) and 60-64 (1:25:53 in 1999). Moeser, running on a tougher course (Carter's Grove Country Road is much hillier than the former Colonial Parkway course) and under difficult windy conditions, broke Williams's 50-54 mark by two seconds with his 1:16:09.
The other race age-group mark was set by Josella Faul, 66, of Bloomfield Hills, Mich., whose 2:20:08 (3rd for women 60-and-over) erased the previous mark of Pat Ewell (now a Williamsburg resident). Ewell had run a 2:25:21 at age 67 in 2001.
The women's Masters winner was Leslie Minnix-Wolfe, 41, of Herndon, who, like Moeser, placed 10th overall (in 1:30:15). Minnix-Wolfe is another former William and Mary distance runner. A total of four former W&M students placed in the women's top ten. The others were Lisa (Lipke) Thomas, 27, of Alexandria (6th in 1:27:13), Kristin (Halizak) Eddy (7th in 1:28:03) and Shannon Banks, 21, of Springfield (9th in 1:29:38). Two of the pre-race favorites for the women were fourth and fifth, just ahead of the W&M group--Sharon Donovan, 28, of Arlington (1:26:36) and 2000 Colonial winner Connie Buckwalter, 32, of Lititz, Pa. (1:27:06).
Five runners went out in the men's lead pack for the half marathon-- the three Kenyans, Taylor and Bonnette, with Rono setting much of the 5:05-5:10 per mile pace. A surge at six miles (to 4:45-4:50 mile pace) dropped the two Americans, then Kibet took off from Rono at nine miles with his winning move. Rono might have been stronger, but in preparing for a peak race at April's Boston Marathon, he trained through the Colonial Half, having done 20 x 400 meters speedwork three days earlier. "My legs were too flat," said Rono. "All my training is geared to Boston. He [Cherop] made a good move anyway."
In the women's race, Smith was close to Pichrtova in the opening miles, but realized she didn't want to run that fast a pace. Pichrtova was bothered by some hamstring soreness. "The last two miles I was jogging. I couldn't run," said Pichrtova. In contrast, Smith felt strong to her 1:19:57 finish. "I didn't feel like I pushed a lot until the end, when I thought I could go under 1:20." Tucking behind a male runner for many miles, she said, "That saved me a lot of energy." Smith's only previous half marathon had been a 1:20:00 at the flat 2002 Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon in Virginia Beach (she was the first non-invited runner).
Piggott
(at right heading to the finish at W&M Hall), who had company with Kevin
Stover, 36, of York, Pa. (7th, 1:14:25) for the first 4 1/2 miles, then pulled
away and had to run solo into the wind for the final nine miles. "That
wind was gruelling," said Piggott. "This was the worst ever."
The wind was particularly strong on the return trip, and through any open areas.
Most runners said the wind added 2-3 minutes to their times.
The age-group awards were distinctive awards from Shirley Pewter of Williamsburg.
The men's records remain the 1:04:39 race record by Steve Taylor of Blacksburg
in 1991, and the course record of 1:05:46 by Mark Andrews of Chapel Hill, N.C.
in 1998. The Masters race records are 1:10:42 (Tim Dunlap of Lancaster, Pa.
in 1997) and 1:19:16 (Rose Malloy of Annapolis in 1991). Cherop (two times)
and Taylor (three times) are the only multiple men's winners of the Colonial
Half Marathon. For the women, the only multiple winners are Inge Schuurmans
(the previous course record holder at 1:16:08) and Pichrtova.
In the accompanying 3 mile race, Williamsburg runners went 1-2 in the men's
division. Bruton High cross country and track runner Adam Canning, 17, won in
16:36 with a strong finish, while Jim Goggin, 49, was second overall, and first
in the 40-and-over category, in 17:01. The women's 3 mile was won by precocious
Aurora Scott, 13, of Portsmouth, who ran a 17:16 to win the women's division
by almost two minutes over Masters winner Kendall Tata, 40, of Virginia Beach
(19:14). Scott, who hopes to break 3:00 at the Shamrock Marathon on March 15
in Virginia Beach, was fifth overall in the 3 mile, just ten seconds and one
place behind her older brother Justin, 17(17:06).
Anheuser-Busch Colonial 3 Mile Run
Sunday, February 23, 2003
Williamsburg, VA (William and Mary Hall) - Results
By Rick Platt
To many runners, cross training means adding swimming, cycling or stairstepping
to their regular running program. Bruton High School senior Adam Canning of
Williamsburg took cross training to the extreme last weekend in as busy and
varied a three-day period can be for any high school athlete.
On Friday (Feb. 21) Canning was in Blacksburg for the AA Virginia state indoor
track championships, scoring points for the Panthers, and setting a personal
record in the 1,600 meters with a seventh-place 4:35.
Last Saturday (Feb. 22) he was in Massaponax for the AA sectional wrestling
tournament, where he placed second in the 152-pound weight class (and was one
of the four qualifiers from each division to qualify for the regional meet,
to be held March 1 at Tabb High School). Canning raised his season record to
an impressive 33-6. The state championships will be March 8 in Salem.
Then on Sunday (Feb. 23), Canning, 17, was the overall winner of the three mile race accompanying the 24th annual Anheuser-Busch Colonial Half Marathon, pulling away in the last mile to win in 16:36 over Masters (40-and-over) winner Jim Goggin, 49, of Williamsburg (17:01).
Canning has competed all four seasons at Bruton in cross country (fall), wrestling (winter) and outdoor track (spring). This winter was Bruton's first year of indoor track, and the first time Canning had to juggle training for two sports at once. "It didn't make a difference," said Canning about whether doing two sports concurrently hurt either one. "We didn't practice as much (in track) because of the weather, and my endurance is a lot better [in wrestling]. Others [wrestlers] are out of breath by the third period." While wrestling was his primary sport this winter, Canning said running is the most important overall, and is the sport in which he will compete in college.
In cross country Canning has been the No. 1 man for Bruton his junior and senior years, and was on the all-district, all-region, all-Virginia Gazette and all-Peninsula teams as a senior. His best 5K cross country time was a 17:07 at the Newport News Park course.
In indoor track this season, Canning was second in both the district and regional 1,600 meters, and third in the district, and second in the region, in the 3,200 meters.
In outdoor track his PRs as a junior were 4:37 for the 1,600 meters and 10:16 for the 3,200 meters. His goals this outdoor season are sub-4:30 and sub-10:00. Canning has lived in Williamsburg since age 4, and lives in the Banbury Cross neighborhood.
At the Colonial's three mile, Canning was understandably not at his peak, saying "My energy level was fine, but my body was sore. I wasn't expecting to win. My dad signed me up for it (father James, 45, ran a 21:37, while younger brother Ben, 13, was at 18:20)." It was more his upper body that was hurting, his neck and back tight from the wrestling matches. After a small pack of five broke apart, Canning said, "It was just me and some other guy. I let him go for the first two miles. The wind was real bad. I took the lead after hearing the two-mile time."
That "some other guy" was Jim Goggin, vice president of the Colonial Road Runners, and a runner with credentials that Canning would be thrilled to own when he attends Virginia Commonwealth University next fall while running cross country and track.
Goggin has excelled at every distance from the half mile on the track (1:50.0, while competing for Boston College) to the marathon (2:30:59 at the 1981 Richmond Marathon). At "B.C." (class of 1975), he qualified for the NCAA indoor track championships four times (twice in the 1,000-yard run, and twice with the two-mile relay), but the school only sent him once, his senior year for the meet in Detroit in the 1,000. He ran 4:14 five times in the mile, and had a 9:27 for two miles on the track.
After graduation Goggin moved to Williamsburg, where he has been a physical education teacher at Rawls Byrd Elementary, the Walsingham Academy Lower School, and Clara Byrd Baker Elementary. He continued running track meets, including a PR 14:47 for the 5,000 meters at the Colonial Relays (the year the meet was held in Richmond, during track construction), but mainly turned to roadracing.
On the roads, Goggin has PRs of 15:15 (5K), 32:21 (10K), 53:10 (10 miles) and 1:11:09 (at the 1981 Colonial Half Marathon). He has run four marathons, starting with a 2:34 at the 1980 Marine Corps Marathon, the PR 2:30:59 at the 1981 Richmond Marathon (placing seventh overall), a Boston Marathon qualifying 2:57 at the 1994 Greensboro Marathon, then running the 100th anniversary special of his hometown Boston Marathon in 1996 (3:05). In 1981 he tied for first with former William and Mary All-American Reggie Clark in the Carter's Grove Country Road 8 Mile Race.
In Colonial Road Runners Grand Prix races, Goggin has run in the 16:50's for the 5K in both 2000 and 2001 (at ages 46 and 47). Despite battling injuries the first half of the year, Goggin was second in the CRR's Grand Prix for men 40-49 in 2002.
For the 3 mile race last Sunday, Goggin took the lead before the one-mile mark, pushing the pace past two miles. "He was just biding his time," Goggin said of Canning. "We made the turn [onto the Yates Drive hill], and he just started going." With the 32-year differential, Canning's younger legs put 25 seconds on Goggin in the final 3/4 mile.
Completing the top five for the open men were Jeremiah Downie, 30, of Hagerstown, Md. (17:04), Justin Scott, 17, of Portsmouth (17:06), Dave Tushingham, 34, of Thomasville, Pa. (17:49) and former W&M middle-distance runner Nate Reilly, 31, of Washington, D.C. (17:51). The top three men's Masters were Goggin, Bill Alto, 51, of Newport News (18:24) and Peter Bartos, 41, of Seaford (18:34).
The women's top five included Aurora Scott, 13, of Portsmouth (17:16, trailing
only the top four men), Linda Sawvell, 37, of Newport News (19:20), Rebecca
Ives, 28, of Durham, N.C. (20:16), Becky Stewart, 13, of Manassas (20:22) and
former Bruton runner Sharon Barnes, 23, of Yorktown (21:05). The women's Masters
top three were Kendall Tata, 40, of Virginia Beach (19:14), Caren Ware, 40,
of Twin Peaks, Cal. (21:26) and June Ring, 41, of Fairfax (22:23, just three
seconds ahead of Williamsburg's Linda Kidder).
24th Annual Anheuser-Busch Colonial Half Marathon - Race Preview Article
Sunday, February 23, 2003
Williamsburg, VA (William and Mary Hall)
By Rick Platt
Three of the race favorites will feel right at home for the 24th annual Anheuser-Busch Colonial Half Marathon, slated to start at 1 p.m. Sunday from Barksdale Field on Jamestown Road, with a finish inside William and Mary Hall. The three will be defending women's champion Anna Pichrtova of Waynesboro and the Czech Republic, 2000 men's winner Kibet Cherop of Durham, N.C. and Kenya, and former William and Mary distance standout Eric Bonnette of Haddonfield, N.J.
Pichrtova smashed both the course and race records last year with a 1:15:02, winning over UVA grad Dana Coons (1:17:24) and former Williamsburg resident Alison Holinka (1:18:43). Holinka had won the 2001 race in 1:17:34, but has since moved to Colorado. Pichrtova used the Colonial Half as a stepping stone for a breakthrough marathon just one week later, when she placed third in the Los Angeles Marathon in a personal record 2:33:25, earning $10,000.
The prize money for the Colonial Half is $500-$300-$200 for the top three men and the top three women. Pichrtova's competition in the women's division will come from Casey Smith, Denise Knickman and Sharon Donovan. Smith, 23, of Arlington was a national champion at 10,000 meters for Roanoke College (graduating in 2001), where she ran a 35:05 for 10,000 meters on the track. Last year, she was the first non-invited runner at the Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon in Virginia Beach with a 1:20. Knickman, 34, of Baltimore, won Maryland's Marathon in the Parks last November in 2:59:19 and has a 37:16 at the 2001 Georgetown 10K. Donovan ran a 2:58:20 at the Chicago Marathon.
Last year's men's winner at Colonial, Gabriel Muchiri of West Chester, Pa. (a 1:06:26) is not returning to defend his title. Cherop, 28, had won a tactical race in 2000 with a relatively slow 1:08:07. The men's course record on the Carter's Grove Country Road/Kingsmill course is 1:05:46 by Mark Andrews of Chapel Hill, N.C. in 1998, the first year the Carter's Grove course was used. Previously the Colonial Half Marathon had been held along the Colonial Parkway and Treasure Island/Lake Powell Roads, but the section on Route 199 became too high-speed and dangerous, necessitating the change. The Carter's Grove Country Road version is very scenic, but with constant challenging hills, except for the flat 2 1/2-mile Kingsmill loop.
Although Cherop is a past winner his teammate, and fellow Kenyan, Elly Rono, 32, of Durham, may be the race favorite. Rono has run a 2:12:53 for the marathon, and is using Colonial as a tuneup for the Boston Marathon, where he hopes to break 2:10. He's won three major marathons--Pittsburgh (2001), Columbus (2000) and California International (2000), and won the 1998 Penn Relays 10,000 meters in a PR 28:52.
Another Kenyan who will be in the mix is Fred Getange, 26, of Chapel Hill,
who has PRs of 2:16:45 (marathon), 1:02:49 (half marathon) and 29:06. Two U.S.
runners are capable of running in the 1:07s--Eric Bonnette, 23, the former W&M
runner and Kevin Taylor, 27, of Raleigh. As a cross country and track runner
for W&M, Bonnette has run many workouts on the Carter's Grove Country Road,
so will have a home-course advantage. He is now a first-year law student at
Rutgers-Camden, and is an assistant coach for cross country and track at his
old high school, Haddonfield Memorial High, where he was an eight-time state
champion. At W&M (class of 2001), Bonnette was all-conference in cross country
(1999 and 2000), and in the 10,000 meters (2000), and was a three-time member
of W&M's NCAA qualifying cross country team. His college PRs were 24:55
for 8K cross country, 3:55 for 1,500 meters, 8:36 for 3,000 meters and 31:30
for 10,000 meters.
After college Bonnette has been on the Fila Discovery USA team for two years,
with a training camp in Mt. Laguna, Calif. His current PRs are 50:36 (10 miles),
30:00 (10,000 meters at the Penn Relays), 24:28 (8K) and 1:07:38 (half marathon).
He will be running the D.C. Marathon March 23 with hopes to qualify for the
2004 U.S. Olympic Trials Marathon (sub-2:22:00).
The local favorite on Sunday is Williamsburg's John Piggott, the Lafayette High assistant track coach. Kevin Stover, 34, of York Pa., is also capable of a sub-1:10.
The Masters (ages 40-and-over) favorites are Chuck Moeser, 51, of Sterling, Mark Malander, 44, of Fairfax, and Mike Fuller, 47 of Chesapeake. For the women, the Masters favorites are Lee DiPietro, 44, of Baltimore and Velda Kannewurf, 40 of Mechanicsville. Another past champion, Connie Buckwalter of Lancaster (1:22:58 in 2000) will be among the top women.
An accompanying 3 mile race will start behind W&M Hall at 1:10 p.m. The half marathon has been closed since mid-January, but the 3 mile is still open, with race-day registration at W&M Hall from 10 a.m. to noon. A runners expo will be at W&M Hall from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and is open to the public at no charge.