Running

Grimace vs Grin

2008-04-02T06:28:00.000-07:00

It may be difficult for people to believe now, but there was a time that Sports Illustrated would regularly feature track and field on its cover. One of the indelible headliners was a 1971 issue that featured the mile race between two of the greats of all time, Marty Liquori and Jim Ryun. Under the picture of the two on the final straightaway was the simple description “Liquori grins and wins”.

That cover became topical recently in my house when my daughter had the word “grimace” as one of her high school vocabulary words. I explained grimace as what she used to describe as my “monster face” when I would finish races. Of course, “Liquori grimaces and wins” is not as catchy as the rhyming phrase but I wonder how many non-runners actually thought that he was grinning?

It is very possible to grin at the end of a race but it is more out of satisfaction that the race has been finished or a goal was met. I have repeated the well-worn thought countless times that running is not fun but satisfying. There are many aspects of running that are very enjoyable and if we did not have fun doing it we would not be out there very long but it is the satisfaction of creating something new that continues to keep me motivated. The fact that it promotes a healthy lifestyle is also important, too but you could get many of the fitness benefits from other activities.

This is a somewhat far-fetched example of the numerous ways our hobby is so misunderstood by the non-running public.

It shouldn’t be too difficult for any of us to think of numerous examples of how misunderstood running is... How many times have you told someone you finished a marathon and they ask “How far was the marathon?” I’m guessing that confusion comes from some shorter races billing themselves as mini marathons.

There are so many others that could fill this blog but in keeping this story brief, I refer to one more of my favorites, especially true when I speak to formerly athletic men who have totally let themselves go. Whatever pace I just ran for my most recent races, they will always have some story about how in the past they ran six minute pace for four or five miles in non running sneakers.

To that one I grimace and know they can’t be truthful but since they think I’m grinning we have a good laugh and move on.

Raritan Valley Upcoming Events

2008-03-25T12:52:00.000-07:00

Saturday March 29, 8:00 AM, Grove 2 - The Towpath Run's official start time switches to 8:00 AM in Johnson Park, Piscataway, grove 2 by the zoo. Out and back on the Delaware-Raritan Towpath.
Saturday March 29, TOWPATH KICKOFF BREAKFAST - After the run at Sonya's house in Piscataway. Free breakfast, expenses on us - just everybody help out a little. Directions to Sonya's will be distributed at the Saturday morning towpath run.
Sunday March 30 - Bear Mountain Adventure Run - An IronPete Production. For information, click here or email IronPete directly.
April 15 - RVRR Newsletter Deadline - Send your writing to Ken Mangin. Any and all articles about club happenings and your own running-related stuff is welcome and encouraged! The first color newsletter was awesome, I must say!
Monday April 21 - Help Ultramarathoner Jodi-Lynn Richter Run NJ - About 5 PM - 1 AM. This is a fun, motivational experience! More info here. Let me know via email if you want to join the team and run with her any part of the route.
Saturday May 3 - Farmlands Flat Tour - Go for a long bike ride with RVRR people. Choose distances 18-100 miles. RVRR Tailgate Party after your ride! Let me know via email if you are going!
Wednesday May 7 - Backwards Run - Run the usual course backwards. This is Fun! This is Difficult! The biggest challenge you may have all year!
Saturday May 17 - Midland Run Memorial Run. The Midland Run is Dead - Long live the Midland Run! We will meet at the Far Hills Train Station. The run will start promptly at 11 A.M. We will run the old Midland Run 15K course as we have every year the week before the Midland Run. We will go out to a local establishment for lunch afterwards.
Saturday June 7 - Towpath "Train"ing Run - Details soon!
Wednesday June 11 - RVRR Pub Filp-Flop Cooldown - After the regular Wednesday Night Run. We will jog a circuit of New Brunswick wearing RVRR shirts, shorts and flip-flops. We will do it in the opposite way we did it in December (that's a flip-flop, get it?), stopping for "summer refreshment" at Dolls, Marita's, Harvest Moon, Old Bay, The Corner Tavern, Stuff Yr' Face (outside food), and back to Dolls. Schedule your sitters and prepare your designated drivers!
Wednesday June 18 - RVRR turns 25 years old! Super Anniversary Run and picnic! More info to come!
Tuesday June 24, 7pm - The first Summer Series and Youth Series race, back in Buccleuch Park in New Brunswick. For more information and registration, see the flier.
Tuesday July 8, 7pm - Summer Series Race #2.
July 12-13 - Road Trip to The Boilermaker 15K - If you are interested in running the 2008 Boilermaker 15K, the largest 15K in the USA, please let me know via email immediately! It is difficult to impossible to get hotel rooms in and near Utica on the weekend of this race. I have some reserved, but we may need more, so let me know ASAP. You must enter early for this annual sell-out race.
Tuesday July 22, 7pm - Summer Series Race #3.
Tuesday Aug 5, 7pm - Summer Series Race #4.
Saturday August 2 - River to Sea Relay on August 2, 2008! The entry fee cost will be $50 per person for RVRR member teams. The teams consist of 7 people. This totals $350. The pre-entry fee for the race is $400. RVRR will pay the remaining $50 for every RVRR team. If you are even remotely interested in being on an RVRR R2C team, let me know via email immediately!
Saturdays - Towpath Run 9:00 AM, Grove 2, The run starts in Johnson Park, Piscataway, grove 2 by the zoo. Out and back on the Delaware-Raritan Towpath. Breakfast at Newbies. Here is a map of the location.
Tuesdays at The Towpath RVRR Women's Team Workouts - Warm-up begins at 6 PM. Meet at the Towpath at Amwell Rd./Rt. 514 in East Millstone. Workouts will be intervals by time in minutes. We will do a 15-20 minute warmup prior and a cooldown for the same amount of time afterwards. Questions - contact Chris. (Though geared towards women team's goals, "non-women" can also participate.)
Wednesday Nights - At the Reformed Church of Highland Park. We start running at 6:30 PM - arrive earlier. Location info & directions here! Please study the map of the course - print it and carry it if you think you need to. I also mapped some course variations for those people that do not want to run the full 7.5 miles:
5.5 Mile Option
5 Mile Option
4 Mile Option
3.5 Mile Option
11.3 Mile "Out of Our Minds" Option

Dinner plans after the runs:
3/26 Pad Thai, Highland Park
4/2 Aposto's, Highland Park (OK2BYOB)
4/9 Marita's Cantina, New Brunswick
4/16 Doll's, New Brunswick
Runs in South Brunswick on Monday & Wednesday mornings, and Highland Park hill training on Tuesday evenings, a Ken V. Production.

Join the RVRR Group on Facebook!

You received this email because you are a RVRR member or a member of the RVRR Yahoo! Group (this might cause you to get two emails). If you do not want to receive future RVRR updates via email, please let me know by return email and I will remove you from the list. Also, any questions or concerns about these events or RVRR in general, feel free to let me know at rvrr@rvrr.org.

2008 Winter Track Meet of Champions

2008-02-25T08:01:00.000-08:00

Saturday’s Meet of Champions Indoor Track results provided an appropriate dénouement to what has been an unpredictable season, filled with prodigious achievements. One area performer finished first but unexpectedly it was not defending champion Mike Alleman of Scotch Plains Fanwood in the shot put, but fellow senior Adam Bergo of Westfield who took his first Meet of Champions title by winning the high jump.

Bergo equaled his personal best, set back in December at the Drew Invitational by leaping 6-8 and in doing so becomes the third Westfield athlete to win the event at the Meet of Champions, joining Kevin McGorty (1983) and Adam Wendel (2003). Bergo edged conference rivals Ameer Wright of Irvington and Afolabi Omole of Union as well as Chris Thomas of Pope John of Sparta who all leaped 6-6.

Bergo attempted to equal the school record of 6-10 ¼ set by McGorty in 1983 but missed at three attempts at that height after he had secured the victory. Bergo said that his victory came down to achieving better explosion off his last two steps.

Coach Jack Martin attributes much of the continued success of Westfield high jumpers to the expertise of Westfield jumping Coach Bill Mellott. “Bill coached Wendel and Bergo. He worked hard with both and deserves the credit all coaches do. He helped Adam smooth out some rough spots this winter,” said Martin.

Bergo won the NJSIAA North Jersey, Group 4, Section 2 meet with a leap of 6-6 and matched it last week at the Group 4 meet in finishing second to Carlos McKenzie of Paterson Eastside.

Bergo had another chance Tuesday to match the school record when he faced the best jumpers in the east at the Eastern States Championships in New York; Bergo is excited about the outdoor season and is hopeful that with better sprint workouts and weight training, he can continue to improve.

Alleman had another great performance throwing 63-3 1/4, nearly equaling his career best of 63-8 set last week. In every year since 1998, his efforts would have won the MOC, but this is not an ordinary year. Freshman phenom Nick Vena of Morristown bettered his national freshman record with a Herculean 66-0 ¼, the top throw in the country this season and fourth best in state history, In a nice gesture of sportsmanship Alleman shook Vena’s hand and joined everyone in applauding before his final record setting throw.

“I was very happy with my 63-3 1/4. All of my throws were well over 60 including three fouls, one of which was close to 65. I was happy with my whole series. It was my best set of throws ever,” said Alleman.

Alleman never expected that breaking 63 feet would put him nearly three feet behind. I didn't think 63 would necessarily be the winning throw but I did think it would be a lot closer,” said Alleman, who knows that he has to continue to focus on only his throws and not what his rival is doing.

“I try to only worry about myself, but at the same time I do have to keep what he does in the back of my mind. If he makes a big throw, I try to keep it in the back of my mind so that it motivates me to throw better, “said Alleman, who looked forward to his next meeting with Vena.

“Tuesday should be a lot of fun, I love competing against Nick whether I win or lose. There will be lots of competition at the Easterns because there will also be good throwers from other states there,” said Alleman.

Like last week, Alleman was also pleased with the continuing improvement of fellow Raider senior Carlaya Jones who enhanced her school record with a personal best throw of 40-2 ¼, good for sixth place.

“Carlaya really stepped up, that was the first time she ever broke 40, and she also broke her own school record. I'm real excited for her,” said Alleman.

2008 Winter Track Group Championships

2008-02-18T08:07:00.000-08:00

Another meet. Another stirring battle between the rookie and the veteran more records and the promise of something even better next week. And another Group 3 title for senior Mike Alleman of Scotch Plains Fanwood. For the sixth time this indoor season, Alleman met freshman phenom and national record holder Nick Vena of Morristown and for the fifth time Alleman won, unloading a personal best throw of 63-8 ½ to edge Vena who threw 62-7 ½.

Alleman, broke the Group 3 record of 61-6 ½ set in 1993 by Tyrone Garland of Matawan with the eighth best indoor throw in state history and the second best in the nation this season. Alleman's avenged his only loss this season which came in his previous meeting against Vena, in another stirring battle in New York. The two throwers clearly bring out the best in each other.

“Nick is a big reason for my big improvement this year. He is a great competitor and I love competition, and knowing that I have to be at my best to beat him. Without him there’s no way I would be doing what I am doing,”‘said Alleman, whose previous best was 62-1.

Although he has been the dominant thrower in NJ the past two years, Alleman came into the meet with something to prove. “After losing to Nick in NY, it definitely lit a fire inside of me. After that meet I really got back to work and changed a few things that really helped me to win the groups,” added Alleman who will face Vena again this Saturday when Alleman defends his Meet of Champions title.

``I think it will be another great competition again next week and it could take an even bigger throw to win,” added Alleman.

Alleman grabbed a big lead on his third throw of the trials, which was part of his strategy. “Going through the meet all I'm really thinking about is staying ahead of Nick. Once I was ahead of him I wanted to try and create separation between us. I just tried to stay relaxed and loose,” said Alleman

Always the consummate team player, Alleman was equally thrilled for fellow senior Carlaya Jones, who threw a personal best of 38-11 ¾ for third place.

“Carlaya really stepped it up Her knee was killing her the whole time. She couldn't even do her exchange when she threw. But she's a competitor and was able to pull one out and get a good seed for the MOC,” said Alleman, who helps coach the other throwers while weight coach Ken Hernandez is occupied, coaching the wrestlers.

Raider senior Erin Rossi finished tenth in the shot put.

Almost joining Alleman in the winners circle was senior Adam Bergo of Westfield, who jumped 6-6, the same as winner Marcus McKenzie of Patterson East Side, but a miss by Bergo in his first attempt at 6-2 made the difference.

“Adam has had a great season and had an excellent series. He will have a very high seed at the Meet of Champions and we expect him to do very well there, too,” said Westfield Coach Jack Martin.

Just missing the MOC was senior Alex Tarlow, who finished seventh in the 800 with a time of 1:59.35.

2008 Winter Track Section Championships -Cranford

2008-02-12T08:15:00.000-08:00

After a mid winter hiatus in which they skipped the Union County championship meets to save their legs from an awful running surface, the Cranford track teams began their push for state indoor championships at the inaugural state sectional meet which was held at the Jersey City Armory. Additionally, today will be a Pole Vault only day in Toms River at the John Bennett Indoor Athletic Complex in Toms River.

“Our section is tough, with top teams of Voorhees, Chatham, Governor Livingston, Johnson, and Summit amongst others,” said Coach Tim Styler.

While the Cougars figure to perform well, their real strength will show itself outdoors when several jumping events are added. “While the Indoor track meets definitely do not play to our field strengths, we are very happy to see our

girls spread themselves out to score points where we can. We work hard at practice finding new events for people and working to get better at them,” said Coach Pete Kane.

Senior Erin Hannen and junior Joy Hanke lead the deep group of distance runners. Freshman Natalie Englese has been one of the pleasant surprises of the indoor season and continues to improve.

“Natalie is a very talented athlete that will break many records in her career here at Cranford. Beyond her athletic ability Natalie is a great kid. She is positive and fun at practice and meets and the other girls took her in very quickly for that. She is

a very strong addition to our team,” said Kane.

After battling illness earlier in the winter, last year’s freshman sensation Kelly Burke is rounding into form. Burke has already broken the school triple jump record this year and is also a fine pole vaulter. Junior Lilas Human broke the indoor school Pole Vault record at 10'0 and will be a top contender. Claire Human and Jessica Phennes-Fenney also figure to score points in the hurdles.

While some coaches would not be happy with the large gap in meets, Styler sees a silver lining.

“We've taken a slightly longer layoff of racing since our last meet and

the sections. However with such a small team the rest has given the kids an opportunity to heal, focus on other events that we haven't spent as much time on, get some quality workouts in and attend to their Mid-Terms,” said Styler who is heading up a committee to try and move the county meets away from Dunn Athletic Center in Elizabeth.

“We are making a lot of progress in moving the meets from Dunn. We are organizing the coaches and plan to have a Coaches Association meeting before the

start of the outdoor season. The meet was actually moved on paper for the individual meet to Jersey City. According to the meet directors and others, this is more than likely the last year we will be in the Dunn Center,” said Styler.

2008 Winter Track Section Championships

2008-02-12T08:12:00.000-08:00

Scotch Plains Fanwood High School’s two outstanding senior shot putters, Mike Alleman and Carlaya Jones warmed up for tougher competition they will face this weekend with victories Monday night in the inaugural State Indoor Sectional Championships at the Jersey City Armory.

Alleman, who swept the Meet of Champions both indoors and outdoors last year and is one of the great clutch throwers in state history faces the unusual role of being underdog to freshman sensation Nick Vena of Morristown, who took over the national shot put lead with a throw of 63-2 ¾ and handed Alleman his first loss last Monday night in an invitational meet in New York. In suffering his only defeat to Vena, Alleman also established a career best with a 62-4 throw and seems motivated by the freshman wunderkind, who was recently featured in Sports Illustrated.

“It’s exciting to throw against him. We both make each other better,” said Alleman,who unloaded a 60-5 to win his specialty in Group 3.His next matchup with Vena takes place in the state Group 3 meet on Sunday at the Bennett Center in Toms River.

Led by Alleman, the boys finished fourth with 27 ¼ points, well behind conference for Irvington which had 76, mostly in the sprints. and Millburn, which dominated the distances for its 62 points

Junior Martin Sweeney, Scotch Plains placed fourth in the 1600 in 4:37.74 and seniors Pat Doliber (10:08.60) and Dan Sapienza (10:15.05) finished fourth and fifth in the 3200 meter run.

Junior Louvan Powell qualified third in the high jump with a 5-10.leap and Larry Dent also placed, tying for sixth with 5-4. Junior Matt McQuoid grabbed the final qualifying spot in the shot put with a sixth place throw of 40-6 1/2.

In the girls contest, Jones, the defending Group 3 outdoor sectional champion added the indoor title with a throw of 36-3 ¼. Jones will be a decided underdog this Sunday against one of the state’s top duos DeAnne Hahn and Lisa Stuto both of Brick, who each exceeded 41 feet this past weekend.

Led by Jones, the Raider girls were third with 37 well behind winner Ridge, which scored 112. Senior Erin Rossi, who was injured most of the winter, gave the team a big lift with a 33-3 for third in the shot put.

Junior Brittney Veeck was the team’s top scorer, unleashing her finest distance double to date, finishing second in both the 800 meters (2:26.82) and the 1600 (5:29.72).Senior Cathy Harley ran a strong 12:06.04.to qualify fourth in the 3200 meter run. The Raiders’ 1600 meter relay also placed sixth in 4:23.36.

Showing their usual balance, the Westfield boys were fourth in a powerful Group 4 meet with 32 points. Leading the team was senior Adam Bergo who had the top mark of any section and will be the top seed in the high jump with his 6-6.effort, just below his career best of 6-8.

In the 800 meters, the Blue Devils qualified two runners senior Alex Tarlow fourth in2:02.62.and sophomore Josh Einbinder sixth in 2:04.69.Senior Evan Friedman, Westfield held on for third in the 1600 meter, running 4:39.28. Westfield displayed its usual strength in the pole vault with Danny Markowski third in 11-0. and Tim Woods, tied for fourth in 10-0. The Blue Devils’ 1600 meter relay ran 3:37.29 for fifth.

The Westfield girls finished with ten points in a tough Group 4 meet. Sophomore Lisa Nehring, Westfield finished fifth in the 800 with a 2:29.26, sophomore Claire Stevens-Haas placed fourth in the pole vault (9').and the 1600 meter relay of Christina Obiajulu, Ashley Edwards, Cat Cognetti and Tessa Schaaf was fourth in 4:17.83. Last Friday at the Collegiate Invitational at the Armory the 4 by 800 team of Schaaf 2:24.7, Rose Driscoll 2:31.6, Nehring 2:27.1 and Cognetti 2:23.7dropped their time to 9:47.3 in an effort to earn a spot at the Eastern States Championships.

2008 Winter Track MVC Championships -Cranford

2008-01-25T08:19:00.001-08:00

Although significant talent from last year’s outstanding team has graduated, the Cranford High School girls track team retained enough talent and with an outstanding addition appears poised to be just as strong. The 2008 edition flexed their muscles Saturday by repeating as Mountain Valley conference (MVC) championships at Drew University in Madison. Unlike a year ago when the Cougars shared the title with Union Catholic, they outscored Arthur L Johnson a 71-66 to gain sole possession of first. The boy’s team finished sixth with 16 points.

The victory was far from easy. Trailing Johnson by five points heading into the final event, the 4x400-meter relay, the Cougar foursome of freshman Natalie Englese, sophomore Kelly Burke, and junior twins Lilas and Claire Humen, combined to win in 4:18.87. Naturally, the title pleased coach Pete Kane, who realizes that the limited slate of indoor events does not play to Cranford’s field event strength, where they dominate in missing events like the long jump, triple jump and pole vault.

“Indoor track meets definitely do not play to our field strengths, but we are very happy to see our girls spread themselves out to score points where we

can. We work hard at practice finding new events for people and working to get better at them,” said Kane.

Lilas Humen, a top pole vaulter, who has already broken the school record indoors with a 10’0 leap this winter, typified the Cougar’s versatility, by picking up a new event, the shot put, and adding two valuable points with a fifth place finish.

“Lilas is a very quick, explosive and strong athlete. We started her throwing indoors last season and she is getting better still. She never complained about doing shot she was just asked to help the team and she works hard at it. All the girls on the team

exhibit this team mentality,” said Kane, one of the state’s top pole vault coaches.

The Cougar’s top scorer was senior Erin Hannen, the cross country captain last fall, who took the 3200 meters in 12:22.34 and was second in the 1600 in 5:38.36. Hannen has emerged from the shadows to help the Cougars withstand the loss of Laura Gallo, a 2007 graduate, who was the greatest runner in school history.

“Erin has been a little injured lately but she is a very strong girl who has

separated herself as a leader on this team. She ran a great 1600 and then came back and ran a gutsy tough 3200 when she knew how important it was for her to beat the girls from Johnson,” said Kane.

Junior veteran Joy Hanke and freshman Bridget Miller added key points in the 3200 with a third and fifth. The meet served as a coming out party for the team’s newest star, Englese, who in addition to her leadoff leg on the winning relay also won the 400 in 1:01.86, and finished third in the 55 meters. Claire Humen added a third in the 400 with a 1:04.43.

You would never know Natalie is a freshman. She is a very talented athlete that will break many records in her career here at Cranford. Beyond her athletic ability Natalie is a great kid. She is positive and fun at practice and meets and the

other girls took her in very quickly for that,” said Kane.

Burke, last year’s freshman has been battling illness, which slowed her progress, but

With a clean bill of health, Kane is expecting her to exhibit the awesome talent that marked her first season. She had broken the school pole vault record, which Lilas Humen now holds and the duo will team up at the state relays this Sunday. In addition to the relay, Burke tied for fifth in the high jump.

Another Cougar, who overcame illness to make a key contribution, was senior Jessica Fennes-Pheney, who ran strong second in the 55 meter hurdles in 9:43.” Jessica was the toughest person in the building. She has been dealing with a bad muscle strain in her quad and her status to run was questionable at best up until the race. She came prepared to run and did extra warm ups. She gutted it out and took second for us. That was tremendous,” said Kane.

Cranford 2007 Cross Country Review

2007-12-01T08:37:00.000-08:00

The first championship meet of the year can often be a daunting time for a team with as many new runners as the Cranford girls, but the Cougars used it as a stepping stone to show everyone that while the team members may be new, the success would continue.

With four freshmen among their top six, the Cougars just missed edging out favored Arthur L Johnson High School at the Mountain Valley Conference championship. The Crusaders, who two weeks later would later take their first Union County title, edged the Cougars 33-39 but Coach Tim Styler saw the meet as a turning point for a strong season that serves as a building block for the next three.

“We had a lot of new kids that weren’t sure how good they were, but the MVC meet showed them that they were ready to compete,” said Cranford Coach Tim Styler.

As they did all year, junior Joy Hanke, one of the team’s two returning runners, and freshman Alisa Commerato led the way finishing third and fourth respectively.

“We knew that Joy and (senior) Erin Hannen would give us two solid experienced runners but you’re never sure what to expect from your newcomers,” said Styler.

‘Alisa ran great as a freshman, it took a little while for her to come out of her shell and compete but she did an amazing job. Certainly the future looks promising for her and the girls,” said Styler.

“The Miller twins and Julia Langone ran a very gutsy and impressive fall
along with Junior Meghan Monahan. The all continued to improve and you
could see a vast difference from when they started to the end of the year,” said Styler.

Like the boys the girls qualified for the state finals by finishing third with 86 points in the Group II Section 2 races held at Warinanco Park Saturday November 3.

“We are very happy to have qualified to run in the state finals. It is a tremendous experience to be able to mix it up with the state’s best runners,” a said Styler.

Hanke led the girls with a fifth place finish, running a personal best of 20:21.97 (6:14 per mile) on the championship course. She also paced the team to a tenth place finish in the state championships with a 21^st overall.

In addition to Hanke, Styler was happy to have the experienced leadership that Hannen provided.

Westfield 2007 Girls Cross Country Review

2007-11-27T08:43:00.000-08:00

For most cross country programs an undefeated dual meet season and conference title would be cause for celebration but the Westfield Girls are no ordinary program and coaches Thom Hornish and Jen Buccino are hoping the 2007 season will be looked back on as the season where the Blue Devils began to regain their dominance in the county and state. By winning their first Watchung Conference title in five years, Westfield broke an uncustomary drought, the longest in the history of the program.

The coaches had a difficult challenge replacing their top three runners, Nicole, DiBenedetto, Kim Legones and Ayn Wisler, who all graduated.

“They were tough to replace. We had a young team this year which aside from Rose Driscoll is still learning the sport,” said Buccino.

Lending optimism is the youth of the varsity leaders as well as considerable talent from the freshmen and junior varsity teams. The Blue Devils swept the conference and county tiles in both the freshmen and junior varsity divisions and placed third in both the JV and the freshmen state championship meet that was implemented this year at Thompson's Park in Jamesburg. The team also dominated the class championships at the Stewart Invitational and qualified for the state championships for the 31^st straight year.

“Overall it was a good season. We won the Class, which to me is a real test of team, similar to a relay in track and the Conference and went undefeated in dual meets,” noted Buccino.

The Blue Devils lose Driscoll, Marissa Mumford, Tessa Schaaf, Caitlin Burke, and Lindsay Tishberg from their line up but have a strong returning group that gained valuable experience this year.

Junior Aileen Grogan, who was second in the Watchung Conference and should be one of the county’s best next year, led the team.

“She is just beginning to realize how good she can be,” said Buccino.

Fellow juniors Bridget Grogan, Alexis Constantine, Allie Lowenstein and Liz McCarthy were also major contributors.

“They will be great leaders next year as they look to end their careers with a special season,” said Buccino.

“At our final meeting of the season I had the girls write down what they were willing to commit to do for next year to make her individual and team season better. If they follow through, we could see a different team. We have to step up if we are going to keep up with the competition and the kids are receptive to doing that,” added Buccino.

First year sophomores, Sharon Faktor, Becky Castaldo, and Megan Pulliam all represented the varsity team throughout the season. The Blue Devils also return some unsung runners who rose through the ranks all season but just missed the varsity cutoff, such as juniors Chelsea Bryk and Casey Reimlinger and sophomore Karaugh Ball.

The Blue Devils also have a spectacular freshman class led by the “A-Team” of Alyssa Hatch, Abbie Kwok and Alex Frankel as well as Evan Hindes and Meghan Suriano The team finished with 85 girls, including 17 seniors, but there were 30 juniors, 17 sophomores and 21 freshmen.

“The numbers are a challenge to work with but I will say that we do have the right spirit within our team. The girls really do aspire to make the top twelve to be a part of the state championship portion of the season. This year, our varsity line up changed constantly. Fifteen different girls earned a spot throughout season, ranging from freshmen and rookies through fourth year seniors in the hunt for the first time in their careers,” said Buccino.

With an ever changing line up it is important that every person on our team accepts the changes and is genuinely supportive of the person who is new to step up and that is definitely the case, year in and year out,” said Buccino.

SPF,Westfield Boys 2007 XC teams make state finals

2007-11-06T07:46:00.001-08:00

An invasion of strong teams from the Skyland Conference dominated the Group IV Section II meet last Saturday and nearly ended the season for the Westfield Boys team, which was able to regroup for a fifth place finish and make the state finals for the 14^th straight season.

Hunterdon Central, Bridgewater Raritan, Phillipsburg and Franklin took the first four spots before the Blue Devils edged another Skyland team, North Hunterdon and earned a chance to compete this Saturday at Holmdel.

“This was the deepest section in quite a while. There were many teams with a solid five runners,” added Martin

Joining them will be rival Scotch Plains Fanwood, which qualified fourth behind powerful Millburn, which placed five of its runners in the top eleven to win easily with 25 points.

The Raiders and Blue Devils battled through difficult conditions which included winds that blew up to 40 miles per hour.

“The wind made things difficult but it affected everyone. Warinanco Park is very tough when it is windy. It takes mental toughness to overcome it,” noted Martin.

Leading Westfield was senior Alex Tarlow, who was 13^th in 17:19.55(5:18 per mile). Seniors Evan Friedman followed in 23^rd in 17:44.93 and Gus Gibbons 30^th in 17:56.92. According to Martin the heroes were the two sophomores, Ryan Scrudato and Tyler Cusick who were 33^rd and 34^th.

Also competing were junior Julian Applebaum, in 44^th (18:13.29) and senior Brendan Berkowitz in 49^th (18:23.39). The team averaged 17:47.

“Obviously we were a little disappointed. If we had run a little better we would have been third. Gibbons, Scrudato, and Cusick were solid,” said Martin.

After dominating the Watchung Conference meet on October 18 and squeaking through in the Union County meet the following week, the Blue Devils were not at the top of their game Saturday, a development that has their coach concerned but happy that they have another chance.

“The goal of Sectionals is to make it to the next level. We will see what happens next Saturday.”

The Raiders continued a familiar formula from recent meets with Union county champion Patrick Doliber leading the way in seventh place against the strongest field he has faced all year. Doliber ran 17:07.53, averaging 5:15 per mile. Junior Martin Sweeney, who has been the Raiders’ number two runner all year, was ninth in 17:12.51. Following close behind in 13^th place in 17:25.89 was the comeback story of the year, senior Dan Sapienza, who missed most of last year and the early 2007 season with injuries.

Senior Mike Ragan was 33^rd in 18:13.32, followed by sophomores Brandon Wheeler 40^th in 18:27.08, Brian Walsh 42^nd in 18:36.61 and Bobby Evans 46^th in 18:45.46. The Raiders averaged 17:41.27

Westfield,SPF Girls 2007 XC teams make state finals

2007-11-06T07:44:00.000-08:00

Tremendous depth, which has been the hallmark of the Westfield Girls Cross country team all season, enabled Coach Thom Hornish’s team to survive the tough Group IV Section II meat and live to compete another week. Tied with Skyland conference power Phillipsburg after five runners for the coveted final qualifying place, the Blue Devils sixth runner Bridgett Grogan finished 18 places ahead of the sixth Phillipsburg runner enabling Westfield to qualify for Saturday’s state finals at Holmdel Park.

Once again junior Aileen Grogan paced the team with a 14^th place in 21:12.90 (6:30.2), followed by dependable senior Rose Driscoll, 2oth in 21:24.07. Quickly improving sophomore, Sharon Faktor, who ran with the junior varsity earlier in the season, came up with a huge effort, finishing 32^nd in a personal best 22:06. Juniors Alexis Constantine and Allie Lowenstein finished in 33^rd and 38^th respectively in times of 22:12.48 and 22:22.52, leaving the Blue Devils tied until Bridget Grogan, normally the team’s number three runner clinched the meet with a 45^th in 22:43.30. Sophomore Rebecca Castaldo also finished ahead of Phillipsburg’s sixth runner with a 23:05 for 57^th.

“Bridget is battling some hip pain and had a cramp during the race, but pushed through and made the difference in our making the trip next weekend,” said assistant coach Jen Buccino.

Buccino was also pleased with her newer runners.

“Sharon Faktor is new to the team this year, and dropped her Stewart Memorial time from 24:41 to 22:06 today, so that was huge for her. Alexis Constantine dropped her time from 22:41 to 22:12, Driscoll tied her PR and Aileen Grogan dropped her PR a few seconds. Castaldo had a stomach virus this week and has not had time to completely recover yet. Competition was fierce, and we knew that going into this race,” said Buccino.

“We needed all seven to go well beyond her personal best, to place higher than we did today. We are happy and honored to move on and have a shot at improving our times at Holmdel next weekend.”

Buccino is certain that the young team will thrive from their participation.

“Every competitive experience you can offer is valuable. The girls have learned so much this season about their racing, their competition, and about the importance of summer conditioning. We did a lot of tweaking in our lineup this season, which gave a lot of different kids the opportunity to step up and represent. Considering all the changes in the lineup, all the pressure to earn and to keep a spot, and all the intense competition they faced, they did a great job this season and have much to look forward to in the future,” added Buccino.

With Skyland powers, Voorhees, the state’s number one team, and Ridge in the field, the Scotch Plains Fanwood Girls Cross country team knew they would be battling for one of the final three spots. As expected, Voorhees dominated, taking the first three spots and six of the first eight to win with twenty points, while Ridge put all seven of its runners in the top 23 to finish second with 62 points. The Raiders finished a comfortable fourth with 127 points, easily ahead of fifth place West Morris-Mendham.

Senior Cathy Harley once again led Coach Rob Rafferty’s team with a 14^th place in 20:18.92 Junior Brittney Veeck, continuing to battle illness, finished 20^th in 20:49.84, followed by senior Cassy Valdes 22^nd in 20:52.35. Junior Emily Carow, the teams most improved runner had another fine race, finishing 29^th in 21:55.05. It was a busy weekend for the Carow family, with Emily’s father Mark, running a 3:38 in the New York Marathon on Sunday. Senior newcomer Kate Johnson blasted another personal best in 23:03.48 to clinch the Raiders’ second straight trip to the finals. They hope to do better than last year when they only finished four runners. Freshman Chana Biner added a personal best 23:29.06 for 52^nd place.

Cranford XC teams make 2007 state finals

2007-11-06T07:42:00.000-08:00

Cranford Cross Country Coach Tim Styler’s young teams both earned an extra week of competition by placing in the top five in their respective races at the Group II Section 2 races held at Warinanco Park Saturday November 3. The girl’s team, with four freshmen in their top six, finished third with 86 points, trailing only winner Chatham and Bernards. The Cougars actually had a faster team average time than Bernards running 21:34.41, which comes out to under seven minutes per mile for their top five. With sophomore Will Smith smashing his personal best for the second straight week, the boys squeezed into the fifth and final qualifier, defeating Rutherford by 19 points. Each team will compete in the state championships to be held Saturday at Holmdel Park.

“We are very happy to have qualified both of our teams to run in the state finals,” said Styler, who ran in the championships each of his years with the Cranford varsity.

“It is a tremendous experience to be able to mix it up with the state’s best runners and experience the Holmdel course. It will help everyone over the next few years,” said Styler.

The heavy favorites in the Group II girl’s race is expected to be Haddonfield, one of the state’s top teams that took the first four places in its South race.

“We will not be one of the top contenders there. We are not expecting miracles but we will be there competing and hoping for as many personal bests as possible,” added Styler.

Junior Joy Hanke led the girls with a fifth place finish, running a personal best of 20:21.97 (6:14 per mile) on the championship course. Finishing just behind her in sixth was spectacular freshman Alisa Commerato, who was sixth in 20:27.70. Senior Erin Hannen had another solid performance finishing ninth in 21:10.58.

The freshman Miller twins completed the scoring for the Cougars. Bridget Miller ran a personal best 21:59.74 for 19^th and Veronica Miller was 48^th in 23:52.02. Freshman Julia Langone was 58^th in 24:09.66 and junior Meagan Monahan was 60^th in 24:14.

Smith was in a pack with eventual winner Thomas Lavelle of Chatham and Mountain Valley conference (MVC) champion Christopher Johnson of Governor Livingston, who finished second.

“We are still working on Will’s strength. That will come with more experience and more mileage over the next season,” said Styler.

“Will certainly has the leg speed and turnover to stay with most top runners,” added Styler.

Fellow sophomore Roy Colicchio continued his solid season with a 25^th with a 18:13.20 and senior Stephen Phillips was 34^th in 18:36.84 Freshman Michael Cassidy was 38^th in 18:47.70 and junior Miguel Caulfield was right behind in 18:50.76 for 41^st.

Also competing were Senior William Albert was 52nd in 19:13.81 and junior Tyler Schott, 54th in 19:25.91) as the boys averaged 18:18.

Westfield Girls win 2007 Watchung XC title

2007-10-20T07:56:00.000-07:00

Depth continues to provide the winning formula for the Westfield Girls cross country team. After carving out a 9-0 dual meet record, the Blue Devils needed every one of their balanced top seven runners to edge defending champion Scotch Plains Fanwood 42-45 at the Watchung Conference championship meet held Thursday at Warinanco Park in Elizabeth. Westfield withstood a gutsy victory by SPF’s outstanding junior Brittney Veeck to annex its first team title in five years, the longest drought in school history. Westfield had last won in 2002, when it earned its seventh straight title.

Veeck fought off the effects of bronchitis, and then had to withstand the allergic reactions to the medication which induced hives, dizziness and nausea. An hour before the race Veeck was staggering due to dizzy spells. Despite her physical issues and a week of light workouts, Veeck was able to run 20:30.8, defeating Westfield sophomore Aileen Grogan by eight seconds. After finishing second to Plainfield’s Jahlisa Smith a year ago, Veeck became the first Raider girl to win an individual conference title in cross country title, adding to her outdoor track 1,600-meters title won last spring. Her victory was reminiscent of 2006, when Raider Adam Biner won the boy’s race after being hospitalized earlier in the week. Biner’s sister, freshman Chana Biner, competed for the Raiders in the girl’s race.

Veeck’s victory and a third place finish by senior Cassy Valdes gave the Raiders a big advantage but Westfield coach Thom Hornish and assistant Jen Buccino have built a team of remarkable balance and depth where the first and 20^th runners are only separated by one minute. Often that type of squad is not always able to win championship meets against teams that have several outstanding runners. The Raiders took first, third, eighth and 12^th, which is usually enough to win a big meet but Westfield countered with Rose Driscoll (fifth, 21:04.1), junior Bridget Grogan (10th, 21:44.0), sophomore Rebecca Castaldo (13th, 22:04.2) and senior Tessa Schaaf (14th, 22:26.0). finishing right behind in 15^th and 16^th were Allie Lowenstein (22:39) and Alexis Constantine (22:40).

“Yes the score was closer than I was hoping for. The girls gave it their best though. I am sure they were feeling tremendous pressure after being named the favorite in the paper, after a five year gap since our last title, and after an undefeated season. They wanted this very badly and I hope that this will give them the confidence to step things up for next week (Union County championships),” said Buccino, who was proud of Grogan’s strong finish.

“Aileen did a great job, and dropped her time from 21:45 to 20:39. At two miles SPF had two runners ahead of our first. And while we had seven ahead of their 5th at two miles, there was not enough cushion to count on coming out on top because SPF had countered with 4 ahead of our 5th. Aileen caught Union's Hyppollite and SPF's Valdes with about 300 meters to go. Additionally, with 300 meters to go, Bridget Grogan kicked and caught SPF's Carow before the finish for 10th which gave the additional help” said Buccino.

Cranford Girls 2007 XC MVC

2007-10-17T19:58:00.000-07:00

For the most part the names and faces have changed for the Cranford High School girls cross country team, but even with the school’s most talented senior class now on college campuses, a new group of girls is serving notice that the Cougars should not be overlooked.

With four freshmen among their top six, the Cougars just missed edging out favored Arthur L Johnson High School at last week’s Mountain Valley Conference championship held at Warinanco Park. The Crusaders took the top two places in the race to defeat Cranford 33-39 but Coach Tim Styler saw much to be pleased about.

“We came into the season with two girls returning from last year's championship squad and we expected a run from A.L. Johnson. They were second to us last year and returned most of their squad. They ran very well at the conference race this year and were able to sneak two girls in front of our top three,” said Styler. Earlier in the season Johnson had edged the Cougars by two points in a dual meet.

Junior Joy Hanke, one of the team’s two returning runners, finished third in 20:52.20, just ahead of freshman Alisa Commerato fourth in 20:57.99 and the team’s other veteran, senior Erin Hannen fifth in 21:05.73

In only her first year of cross-country, Commerato has already turned heads with her strong consistent runs. “Alisa is finally getting into the habit of getting out faster. Alisa has natural speed and we are seeing steady improvement out of her. She and the other freshman have come along nicely this season and have really been a nice surprise for us,” said Styler,

Freshman twins Bridget and Veronica Miller finished ninth and 18^th respectively and freshman Julia Lagone was 19^th “The Miller twins, Bridget and Ronnie are rounding out our top five. They are getting stronger as the season progresses. Both have taken the
challenge of running with the older girls and push themselves in races

to stay within striking distance of the other girls,” added Styler, who is pleased the way that his veterans have led the youngsters. Also competing in the junior varsity race were juniors Meagan Monahan and Polly Powasnik

“Erin has stepped into the role of captain for our team. This is an honor that we do not hand out. She is always on the phone with the girls and organizing the girls for runs and keeping the group together, which is key to developing a strong team. She trains hard and along with Joy is an example for the other girls and we have seen a lot of progress from them,” said Styler

The Cougars now set their sights on attempting to win their third consecutive county title next Wednesday at Warinanco Park. Last year’s favorite, Summit, is considered the front-runner again this year but Styler’s rapidly improving team should not be counted out.

“These girls are showing an ability to rise to each challenge and I expect them to step up during the next championship meets ahead of us ,” said Styler.

2007 Cranford Boys XC MVC

2007-10-17T19:43:00.000-07:00

At the Mountain Valley Conference (MVC) meet last Tuesday Cranford sophomore William Smith ran 17:33.31, the third fastest overall time. The only drawback for the Cougars was that it happened in the Junior Varsity race where Smith finished more than two minutes ahead of the second place runner. While coach Tim Styler noted that Smith would not have made a difference in the varsity race, he was pleasantly surprised that his prodigy looks ready to make a solid Cougar team that much stronger for the championship races coming up.

Smith was left off the varsity seven because he had missed most of the season with a lingering viral infection and had been unable to run under 20 minutes in practice.

“A few days before the race he was mentioning how he was feeling pretty good

and wanted to run varsity at the conference meet, however I couldn't pull one of our other seven runners out of the varsity lineup. So we had Will run the JV race hoping that he would get his confidence back and challenge for a spot in the top seven,” said Styler who added.

“ Will is talented and we expect him to drop his time this fall. His third place finish overall would not have changed the varsity team standings. We would have still finished third,” said Styler.

“Our other seven guys have been running well all season and steadily dropping their personal bests,” said Styler.

With Smith sidelined, fellow sophomore Roy Colicchio has stepped up to become the team leader, followed closely by senior captain Steven Phillips.

Colicchio ran 18:03.44 (5:48.8 per mile) to lead the team in eighth place. Phillips followed in 11^th in 18:19.555:54).

“These two are always leading the workouts and runs and along with Will should be a good nucleus moving forward,” said Styler, who envisioned 2007 as a bit of a rebuilding season due to the graduation of one of Cranford’s greatest all time runners, Joe McKenney as well as solid performers Kevin Boyle and Eddie Baker.

“We had a very talented senior class last year but you always have to replace good people,” said Styler who noted that McKenney has continued his outstanding running at New York University, who is currently ranked second in the country.

But Styler has been pleasantly surprised by the overall balance that his team has shown.” We’ve had great improvement from our young team, Sophomore John Powasnik is becoming a steady fourth runner and freshman Michael Cassidy has run in the mid 18s so far and is very determined to be among the best freshman in our school history books,” said Styler.

Juniors Tyler Schott and Miguel Caulfield have also shown improvement and rounded out the top seven along with senior Billy Albert. With Smith healthy, it makes for eight runners battling for the top seven.

“We have great competition with these guys battling for spots and setting personal bests every race,” said Styler.

Powasnik was 14^th in 18:35.04 (5:58.9), followed by Cassidy 17^th in 18:42.39(6:01.3) and Schott completed the scoring in 20^th in 19:00.83(6:07.2). Caulfield was 22^nd in 19:05.88 Albert was 27^th in 19:44.16.

In addition to Smith, three other Cougars competed in the junior varsity race.

Seniors Jacob Skelcy, Max Lasky and Mark Kuczynski ran 21:01.56, 21:57.35 and 22:25.60 respectively.

“The competition is great for the team and will certainly lead us to some good
results in the upcoming races. “

Westfield Girls 2007 XC Preview

2007-10-17T19:39:00.002-07:00

Some of the most competitive and crowded girl’s races this fall are likely to take place at Tamaques Park when the Westfield Girls Cross Country team conducts its time trials as it tries to whittle 94 runners into a varsity unit of 12, which will eventually be pared down to seven runners for later championship meets. Veteran coach Thom Hornish and assistant Jen Buccino face the challenge of trying to replace their top three runners from a year ago, Nicole DiBenedetto, Kim Legones and Ayn Wisler as well as Jen Danielsson, Beth Budnick, Hope Skibitsky, and Marissa Goldner.

DiBenedetto and Legones showed vast improvement throughout the season and by the end of the year were the top 1-2 punch in the county. “Nicole and Kim’s improvement began when they took their summer training seriously last year.and when they came to realize how much they really loved the sport and let that passion take them to the next level.,” said Buccino.

Thus far, Buccino has not had any runner separate themselves from a large pack of 15 runners in a first group with 15 more right behind. “The team is shaping up nicely, after the first week. It looks like all of our large number of runners are in for the long haul,” said Buccino.

“ We have a really solid group of 15 training together and another 15 right behind. The time trial went very well. Summer training was taken more seriously this year by many. A lot can happen between now and November, but the spirit and enthusiasm is very high and the new crew has already blended well with the veterans,” Buccino added.

Buccino finds it very hard to single out more than a few girls that she knows will be in the lead group. “I think we are going to have an ever evolving top seven. There is a very healthy competition within the team..The rookies are not afraid to challenge the veterans, and the veterans welcome it and encourage everyone to be her best,” said Buccino.

Among the group vying for the top seven include seniors Rose Driscoll, Marissa Mumford, Tessa Schaaf, Caitlin Burke, Lindsay Tishberg, and newcomer Jaclyn Kirna,juniors Aileen and Bridget Grogan, Moira Smith, Alexis Constantine, Liz McCarthy and Alli Lowenstein, sophomores Megan Pulliam , Becky Castaldo and Karaugh Ball and freshmen: Angela Tata, Abbie Kwok, Alyssa Hatch, Alex Frankel and Meghan Suriano

Among the 25 freshmen are three sets of twins, making the coach’s goal of learning all names in the first week more difficult.

Driscoll, Marissa Mumford and Josie Reinhardt are this year's captains, and combined with Alli Lowenstein, Aileen and Bridget Grogan, and Liz McCarthy make up the returning members of last year's varsity 12. Seniors Caitlin Burke, Tessa Schaaf, Lindsay Tishberg, Marlee Austin, Dylan Wallace...juniors Alexis Constantine, Moira Smith, and Marie DiIorio, and sophomore Karaugh Ball clearly made it their business to come back in shape this year in an effort to earn a spot on this year's top twelve to make up for our loss to graduation.

We have some fresh faces that are really showing promise for some additional depth in the potential varsity line up. We are very excited to have seniors Jaclyn Kirna and Dylan Wallace, junior Casey Reimlinger, and sophomores Becky Castaldo and Megan Pulliam who converted from other fall sports and are helping lead the way in workouts. And finally, Angela Tata and Abbie Kwok are leading the pack of freshmen thus far...with several that are sure to rise through the ranks as the season progresses.

If there is strength in numbers, then the Westfield Girls’ Cross Country team, with its remarkable group of over seventy runners should be formidable once again.

“We have a long time tradition of success so we like to set our expectations high. These girls over the years have been very good at responding to challenges,” said Hornish.

One the of the keys to the team’s long time success has been coaching, where the Blue Devils have been fortunate to have Jen Buccino, in her eighteenth year in the program and an accomplished runner, who still competes in road races. Buccino is also the head coach of the successful Westfield Girls Indoor Track team and was Union County Track coach of the Year in 2005.

The Blue Devils lost an outstanding senior class quartet of captains; Jen Danielsson, Beth Budnick, Hope Skibitsky, and Nicole DiBenedetto. Danielsson, the most accomplished of the four, was a sectional 3200 meter champion as a sophomore but was held back by injuries last season.

Seniors Ayn Wisler,. Fellow seniors, and Kim Legones team last spring, competing in the sprints, hurdles and jumps.

Hornish is counting on big things from

Regaining Union County supremacy in 2007 will be an uphill fight for Westfield. The coaches are expecting strong challenges from Summit and Scotch Plains among other teams as the Blue Devils try to regain the county crown last won in 2003.

“There is tough competition out there but he team is off to a great start. The interest, enthusiasm, and desire are all there from this year's team, and all things are possible when you have that going for you. ,” said Buccino.

The Blue Devils open against Kearny on September 12 at Hudson County Park in Kearny before competing in the St. Dominic Invitational at Lincoln Park in Jersey City

on Saturday, September 16.

Firedman and Tarlow lead 2007 Westfield Boys XC

2007-10-17T19:36:00.000-07:00

Evan Friedman and Alex Tarlow grew up less than a mile from each other on the south side of Westfield, a short jog from Tamaques Park. They each attended Tamaques Elementary School and Edison Middle School as well as belonging to Temple Emanuel.

But it wasn’t until they began attending Westfield High School in the fall of 2004 that they really started to get to know each other as they competed on the cross country and track teams.

Three years later they form the top 1-2 combination in the county and hope to lead another strong Blue Devil cross country team to its third straight county title. Last year at the Union County meet Friedman edged Tarlow 17:07 to 17:12 as they finished fourth and fifth for the top two performances by underclassmen, leading Westfield to a 46-85 victory over Roselle Catholic. They are friendly rivals who appreciate each other’s intensity.

“Evan and I are like running brothers. We are always looking out for each other and thoroughly enjoy one another's company on our long runs. Like brothers do there is a bit of sibling rivalry,” said Tarlow.

“We may be known to push the pace now and again because to us, there is always second place in a recovery workout. We feed off each others running and we look forward to seeing one another succeed in and out of the XC world.”

“We are competitive with each other but we really don’t care who wins as long as Westfield finishes 1-2,” added Friedman.

Martin feels fortunate to have such a talented a motivated trio to lead his team. Senior Brendan Berkowitz, the team’s third runner last year also returns and along with Friedman and Tarlow is a tri-captain.

“They have worked hard all summer and are coming off big track seasons. They are motivated and want to get to the Meet Of Champions. Evan, Alex and Brendan have been solid leaders thus far”.

Martin was also pleased with the condition of most of the team members.

“To be successful in the fall we encourage the boys to run as much as possible. We look at the running as being year round and do not make x-c a do or die situation-there are two more seasons of running left,” said Martin

While both are outstanding cross-country runners, they had different strengths during the track season. Tarlow was one of the county’s top 800 runners (1:55.60) and also ran on the 4 by 400 team as well as the mile. Friedman excelled in the 3200 (9; 49) and 1600.

“Evan is definitely more of a natural cross country runner than me,” said Tarlow.

In addition to Tarlow, Friedman and Berkowitz, Martin also has senior Neil Fitzpatrick returning from his top seven. Depth is never a problem on a team with around 100 athletes and the first few dual meets may determine who runs the championship races that start in late October. In addition to their Union County title the Blue Devils are also defending Watchung Conference champions.

Seniors Gus Gibbons, Tianyou Xu, juniors Josh Einbinder Dennis Elwell, Julian Applebaum, Eric Hagstrom, Andrew Marra, Joey Martoglio, Ross Tucker and sophomores Mike Fietkiewicz, Ryan Scrudato, and Tyler Cusick are all competing

for varsity spots. During a Saturday morning time trial at Tamaques Park it was easy to see why Martin can maintain such a large and enthusiastic squad in such a demanding

sport. The coach as well as assistant Chris Tafelski, a former Blue Devil runner

shouted encouragement to each runner, no matter what their skill level.

“We try to relate to each boy on the team each day. We include the science of the sport and try most all to have fun. We also encourage the boys, above all, to be good citizens,” said Martin.

Westfield 2007 Girls XC Stewart

2007-10-12T19:30:00.000-07:00

The Westfield High School girls cross country team showed off their prodigious depth at three big recent meets, edging archrival Scotch Plains Fanwood 26-33 in their annual dual meet, finishing sixth in the prestigious Stewart Invitational and running strong last Saturday at the Shore Invitational.

The Blue Devils withstood a victory by SPF standout junior Brittney Veeck (21:04) and a fourth and fifth by Cathy Harley and Emily Carow by taking the next five scoring places. Senior Rose Driscoll (21:18) led the way with a second, followed by junior Aileen Grogan (21:47) in third. The next five scorers sophomore Meg Pulliam, junior Bridget Grogan, sophomore Becky Castaldo and juniors Alli Lowenstein and Liz McCarthy finished within 20 seconds of each other.

Buccino was worried that the team might still be leg weary from winning the overall team championship at the Bernie Magee Memorial Class Invitational the previous Saturday. In that meet there are separate races for each high school year and Westfield’s dominance in the junior race helped pace the triumph.

“The girls were coming off an exciting weekend at the Class meet with their team title, and really looking forward to our dual meet. We did not take SPF lightly as they are a team we face later in the conference and county meets. The girls did their job, despite the heat and humidity, and made sure that they separated the top SPF girls and packed themselves in together as tightly as possible,” said Buccino.

Veeck ran 20:42.32 for tenth overall to pace the area runners at the Stewart Invitational and Harley edged Aileen Grogan, finishing 22^nd at 21:22. Grogan was 24^th(21:34), followed by Driscoll (21:38), Castaldo (21:54), Bridget Grogan (22:07),

Marissa Mumford (22:26), Pulliam (22:27) and McCarthy (22:47).

“The Stewart meet gave us a chance to see how we stacked up against our Sectional competition...Hunterdon Central, North Hunterdon, and Bridgewater-Raritan. The girls took 6th behind some tough competition and we know we have work to do in the next few weeks,” said Buccino.

Rob Rafferty’s paper-thin team did not have enough runners to get a finishing score as depth continues to be a problem for Scotch Plains. For Westfield, with its plentiful battalion of runners, the front pack is beginning to sort itself out.

“Our top seven has changed every week, and the good news is that we have a good 15 girls in contention for that coveted varsity spot

Buccino was also pleased that the junior varsity team easily won with 31 points and placed five in the top ten overall. The freshmen team also took third.

“What we need to develop is a stronger 1-2 punch in the front to help break up the top runners of our opposition. The girls have their eyes wide open with regards to their competition. They know they have to work very hard over the next few weeks and they are more than willing to do their best to rise to the occasion. There is an incredible chemistry within the team this season and sometimes that can be the difference when the pressure is on,” said Buccino.

At the Shore meet Driscoll, was 39^th in 21:43, followed by 46th place Aileen Grogan, Castaldo in 52^nd in 22:23, Bridget Grogan 74^th in 22:53. Pulliam, 92nd in 23:39, Mumford 93^rdin 23:41 and Tessa Schaaf 100^th in 24:02.

Westfield 2007 Boys XC Stewart

2007-10-11T19:33:00.000-07:00

The Westfield and Scotch Plains Fanwood Boy’s cross country teams served up two tasty appetizers last week before they attack the main courses of the Watchung Conference and Union County title meets in late October.

As has been the case in recent years, the Raiders will have some ground to make up if they want to catch the Blue Devils, who easily won their dual meet 23-36 at Warinanco Park. Four days later at the Stewart Invitational also at Warinanco Park Westfield finished fourth with 127 points while the Raiders settled for sixth with 194 points.

Seniors Alex Tarlow and Evan Friedman of Westfield and Patrick Doliber of Scotch Plains Fanwood had two stirring battles with Tarlow outrunning Doliber on an unusually warm early autumn day in the dual meet and Tarlow and Friedman edging Doliber at Stewart. In both meets the Raiders matched Westfield through the first three runners but the Blue Devils dominated after that.

In the dual meet Tarlow broke open a tight race after the two mile mark to win easily at 17:22, followed by Friedman fourth in 17:51 and junior Julian Applebaum fifth in 17:51. Doliber was second in 17:44, Martin Sweeney sixth in 17:50 and Mike Ragan seventh in 18:31 but Westfield runners senior Brendan Berkowitz, sophomores Ryan Scrudato and Tyler Cusick and freshmen Zack Lizmi and Andrew Kirna took the next four places.

“The times were slow all around. It was our first time this season running at Warinanco and the heat was also a major issue. There were several dual meets going on in front of us which not only slowed us down but kicked up dirt and dried us out,” said Tarlow.

“SPF is always a big rivalry meet. The heat was a factor. Alex was pumped and ran that way. There weren't too many close races over the last mile. Julian Applebaum had a big race,” said Westfield coach Jack Martin.

At Stewart, Tarlow was sixth in 17:04.21 (5:14 per mile), with Friedman seventh in 17:04.52 and Doliber next in 17:06.96. Sweeney was 15^th in a personal best 17:29 and senior Mike Ragan was 27^th in 17:49.60, but Westfield runners Scrudato (36^th), Berkowitz (37^th), Applebaum (41^st), Gus Gibbons (46^th), Tianyou Xu (55^th) all finished well before the next SPF runner, sophomore Brandon Wheeler (68^th).

“Alex and Evan ran together and ran well and both had a bit left at the end. The varsity was solid although a little tired from the dual meet on Tuesday against SPF in the heat. The JV ran well and the freshmen second place was huge,” said Martin.

The usually circumspect Martin could hardly hold back his enthusiasm about his two prized freshman, Lizmi and Kirna.

“They both have been running well-perhaps the best one-two as freshmen in my time. The overall freshmen average at Stewart was about our fastest during my time as coach,” said Martin

“We went into Stewart with a winning mentality. We had a couple of really strong practices, along with the win against SPF that told us we could create some excitement at the meet,” said Tarlow.

Martin is confident that the Blue Devils are on track to repeat their Union County title.

“I like the way things are moving along. They have the hunger and desire to pick up from last year’s team.”

2007 Cranford Girls XC Proeview

2007-09-17T20:10:00.000-07:00

For the past four years Laura Gallo was a model of consistency for the Cranford Girls Cross Country team, leading them to two Union County titles, two Watchung Conference titles and a Mountain Valley title. Gallo was a three time county champion and second team all state selection last year and was the leader of an outstanding senior class that also included solid contributors like Joy Hanke, Hannah Van Why and Caitlin Curtis.

But all good things come to an end and third year coach Tim Styler is fortunate to have two key members of the team, senior Erin Hannon and junior Joy Hanke, back to lead a young but talented Cougar team.

“It's not every year when you have a front runner like Laura. She was a
consistent number one over the past few years and when you can count on
finishing with a lead runner in the single digits it helps that ever
important team score. Erin Hannen and Joy Hanke are now going to have
to lead this team while the freshman will be challenging for top honors each meet,” said Styler, who is an expert at getting the team to peak for championship meets.

.Last year at the county meet, despite having their entire team returning from the 2005 championship group, the Cougars were considered underdogs to Summit but led by Gallo, who broke away from the pack in the second mile and breezed in a personal best 19:07, the Cougars defended their title with a 44-65 victory. Always the consummate team player, Gallo, now a freshman at Georgetown, seemed more pleased than the performances of her team mates than her own.

Hanke was fourteenth in 20:42 and has been a scoring member of both Union County championship teams. Hannen ran a personal best (21:16) and enters the season ready to take a leadership role.

“Erin and Joy are our two leaders. They are ready to be in the front of the
conference races and county and then lead us into the state meets,” said Styler.

Styler has a young team with freshmen Alisa Commerato, Julia Langone,
Bridget and Veronica Miller and junior Polly Powasnik.

The Cougars opened their invitational season on September 8 at the Cherokee Challenge.

"This will be the first test for the kids as it is a challenging 2 milecourse. We will get to evaluate where everyone is at early in the season as well as getting to see the South Jersey competition. A lot of the top teams in the state this year are hailing from the south. This gives our kids a chance to run against the best and against their own class,” said Styler.

Styler is confident that the Cougars are well on their way to building a new powerhouse.

“So far we are looking fairly fit. Obviously most of our summer is spent
getting a base. We started some threshold work recently and incorporated other lactate workouts into the training such as tempo runs of four miles,” said Styler.

“You can’t expect every season to be like the last two but we are going to be a much improved team by the end of the year.”

Doliber leads deep talented 2007 SPF Harriers

2007-09-17T19:40:00.000-07:00

When the 2006-7 cross country and track season commenced, Patrick Doliber of Scotch Plains Fanwood was not one of the leading names in Union County and among a group of underclassmen vying for second place behind senior Adam Biner, the team’s unquestioned leader. Now, fast-forward a year later. Biner has graduated and Doliber enters this season as one of the favorites to win what should be a wide-open Union County championship race this year. His emergence once again shows how unpredictable high school track can be from one year to the next.

Biner had a memorable senior year. He won the Watchung Conference meet in a personal best time of 17:09 after being hospitalized and missing three days of practice. “Adam really showed what he was made of out there,” said Koegel.

“We have had many champions since I have been here but this one was pretty special.”

Fifth in the conference race, Doliber kept improving and really hit his stride when he won the Union County indoor 3200 meter title and cracked the coveted 10 minute barrier for 3200 meters when he won the Watchung Conference outdoor 3200 meter title in 9:53.8. Doliber later dropped his time to 9:52.08 when he finished sixth at the sections, qualifying for the state championships.

“I knew if I kept working hard and listening to my coach, my times would eventually start to improve. Breaking 10 was important because I knew it was within my reach,” said Doliber, who had run 10:17 indoors.

Doliber leads one of the deepest and most talented Scotch Plains Fanwood Boy’s teams since the 2001 squad that featured Brian Kopnicki, Mike Dixon, Zack McGuire and Bob Wallden. Senior Dan Sapienza and junior Martin Sweeney, who both missed much of last season with injuries, pushed Doliber last spring in the 3200 and had times of 10:12 and 10:16 respectively. Senior Mike Ragan excelled in the 800 (2:02) and 1600 (4:37) and is also in the front pack

Two other experienced seniors, Adam Horowitz and Greg Bencivengo have each won three letters and will give Koegel the depth and flexibility he has rarely enjoyed in his nine years at the school. Horowitz missed much of last season with injuries. Bencivengo had a breakthrough season in outdoor track, smashing his personal best in the mile with a 4:52.93 at the section meet.

They are facing spirited competition from two talented sophomores, Brian Walsh and Bobby Evans, who both had impressive freshman years and vastly improved sophomore Brandon Wheeler. A pleasant surprise has been, senior Marc L’Heureux, who broke 20 minutes for the first time in the opening meet Providing additional depth are three newcomers senior Mike Bover, junior Erick Walker and freshman Mike Pesin.

The newfound depth gives Koegel insurance against injuries and will also enable him to have a fully stocked junior varsity team. The Raiders looked impressive in sweeping their opening two races against Kearny and Elizabeth.

Koegel has always considered Westfield to be a major bellweather for his team and this year should be no exception. In addition to the natural local rivalry, the Blue Devils defeated the Raiders in a close dual meet last year and also took their measure in the Watchung Conference and Union County meets.

The two teams had the first of three meetings this past Tuesday. Westfiled won 23-36

Cranford Boys 2007 XC Preview

2007-08-27T20:15:00.000-07:00

When Joe McKenney graduated last spring it removed the final link to the Cranford High School cross country dynasty that won eight straight Union County titles. between 1997-2004 and were group II champions in 2004. Losing McKenney, who finished first, second and third in the county from 2004-6 and now runs for New York University (NYU), presents challenges for third year coach Tim Styler, a key member of Cougar championship teams in 1997-9.

“Joe was our leader for practically four years,” said Styler who ran for and replaced legendary Cranford coach Ray White, who coached from 1969 through 2004.

“It will be a new era now that Joe is off at NYU. We certainly wish him much success and we will go see some of his races when we can.”

The Cougars also lost, Eddie Baker, an unheralded but consistent runner, and Kevin Boyle, a solid performer the past two years.

“Eddie was a spark for this team last year; he ran some gutsy races and really showed that if you work hard it will pay off. Eddie will be around this season for some runs with the team. Kevin will also be a missed senior as he was a quiet leader of the team, ran hard and improved over his four years,” said Styler.

The Cougars will count on sophomore Will Smith, who showed flashes of brilliance in his first season, while battling through numerous injuries.

“Will will certainly be called upon to lead this team on the course. He showed great promise as a freshman and brings that talent to the line this season,” said Styler.

At the 2006 Union county Championships, Smith, in just his second varsity race opened many eyes with a 12th place finish in 17:26, a time comparable to McKenney’s ninth place finish as a freshman. Another sophomore, Roy Colicchio, hopes to build off a strong spring track season to push Smith.

“Roy finished the track season well and built on that to have a good summer. We are expecting big things from him,” added Styler.

Colicchio combined with Smith and the three seniors to lead the Cougars to a fifth place finish at the county meet with 129 points, three behind fourth place Scotch Plains Fanwood. a marked improvement from their third place finishes at the Mountain Valley Conference championship in early October.

“We did some of our best running later in the year,” said Styler.

The coach looks to experienced seniors Steve Phillips and Billy Albert to provide leadership on and off the track. Styler expects sophomore John Powasnik and

freshmen Michael Cassidy and Kevin Swan to fill out the first seven but depth could be a problem.

“We certainly are young this year. We have a few seniors but the nucleus of

our team is sophomores and freshman.”

Styler is hoping the team can contend for the Mountain Valley Conference (MVC)

Title and be competitive in the county and state meets but also hopes that the youth and talent can be the springboard for the next Cougar dynasty.

2246 pizza runners

2007-07-27T20:40:00.000-07:00

Despite large turnouts the past few years, the question always in the mind of Westfield Downtown 5K and Pizza Extravaganza Race Director Sherry Cronin was what would the turnout be if we ever got excellent weather? The answer was stunning.

Even the normally ebullient Cronin could not have predicted that when the final post entrant signed up at 6:58, two minutes before the scheduled start time,
the entries were an incredible 2226.Nearly perfect weather for the last Wednesday in July helped the runners and volunteers but the huge turnout presented its own challenges. With such a large crowd in a constricted area, safety became a major consideration.

“We want to ensure that all of the runners are safe on the course and a
larger crowd means more volunteers and staff to monitor the race. We have
also communicated with the residents along the race route as we do every
year to ensure that they know when the race will occur in front of their
home. We will also be notifying the parkers on the street along the route
so that they make alternative arrangements tomorrow and move their cars
before the race,” said Cronin.

While there were no major curveballs thrown by Mother Nature, such as excessive heat and thunderstorms, safety was only one of many concerns for the primary organizers.

“The logistical issues are enormous for a race of that size, Everything is harder including setting up water stops, getting all runners to the start and making sure the registration lines move quickly “ noted Mark Zenobia of On Your Mark Productions, who was the chief race organizer for the sixth straight years and has seen the race grow from its initial size of 950.

“It was great night for Westfield and a fantastic chance for us to show off our beautiful town,” said Mayor Andy Skibitsky, who also hosted the telecast for Cable Channel 36.

“I am really proud of the all the Westfield people who helped to pull off such a fantastic event.”

Having managed races in all types of weather over the past decade, Zenobia
was thankful for the best race weather since 2002, the race’s first year.

“Good weather will substantially increase the numbers. It wasn’t only the weather on race day, but it has been nice all winter and spring which got more runners on the road. Most race registrations have increased this year,” added Zenobia, who manages many of the state’s biggest races.

Cronin also realized that the race’s size has an upper limit, although she would not name the breaking point.

“The numbers are wonderful, but it does present some challenges logistically with the space we have on Elm and Quimby Streets for the pre and post run activities. We may also need to order more water and pizza as the event comes together, and possibly pull shirts from previous years for overflow registrations,” aid Cronin.

“We always conduct a feedback session after the event to find out how to improve it for the following year. We may need to make a decision to limit it to 1,800 just because of space constraints but we will not know that until after the race. “

Almost forgotten in the hoopla was the race, won by a familiar face, Gene Mitchell, owner of the Running Company chain of stores won his fourth straight title with a time of 15:21, nine seconds ahead of Chris Heibell of Hillsborough.

Employing the same strategy as last year, Mitchell was content to run behind the leader, Heibel through a 4:56 first mile. Mitchell made a strong move on an uphill just after the mile mark and pulled away from Heibel, hitting 2 miles in 9:52 and he enhanced his lead in the final mile with another 4:56. Mitchell, now 39, has learned to run more controlled races, aiming for an even pace.

“I can’t take it out fast and challenge the younger guys. I just have to try and stay back and grind it out,” said Mitchell.

“There are parts of the course where I know are important to push, especially the final hill just past two miles. I tried to break away from him but he held on really tough. I’m very happy to win four in a row,” added Mitchell who enters a new age group in August.

Brian Harris, who manages the Running Company’s Westfield store, repeated his fourth place finish of a year ago, running one second slower than 2006 in 15:47.

“The legs weren’t there tonight,” said Harris, who won the Cranford Firecracker Four Mile earlier in July.

Amy Van Alstine,19 of Midland Park, won her third straight women’s title in 18:02.

The first town finisher came down to a battle between former Westfield teammates Kris Kagan and Evan Friedman. Kagan, a 2006 graduate edged Friedman, a rising senior, running 16:53 to Friedman’s 16:56.

“This is a shorter distance than I am used to running,” said Kagan, who finished his freshman season at The American University in Washington DC.
“The weather was much nicer than I have been used to in Washington,” added Kagan.

“It was a good race. Kris had a little more at the finish,” said Friedman, who is pleased at his fitness level. Friedman’s teammate, fellow rising senior Alex Tarlow was third Westfield finisher in 17:23.

Former Blue Devil star Jeffrey Perrella, the top Westfield finisher in 2005 and 2006 was not able to attempt the three peat because of injuries suffered during the outdoor season at William and Mary.

“My spring season was going alright until i got a femoral stress fracture and
pretty much this whole summer i wont be able to run. i got it in early
April but ran through it until IC4As in May, the last meet of the year for me,” said Perrella had personal bests of 3:57 for 1500 meters and 14:35 for 5k.

“Since then I have been biking, but my leg isn’t doing that great. so now, i
still have probably another month until i can run unless something
miraculous happens.”

Jim Colvin, 58 of Westfield finished in an impressive 18:48 to win the age graded first place

Sheila Courter edged Debby Hall 20:12 to 20:29 for first Westfield female finisher. Hall also finished second in the master’s division.

A race so large could not succeed without dedicated sponsors and volunteers.

“Our race sponsors enable the event to take place since registrations alone
do not cover the cost for running the event,” noted Cronin.

Pacing a wide and varied sponsorship list was Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield that returned to be a Gold Sponsor. Cronin was also pleased that over 75% of the sponsors are located Westfield’s Special Improvement District (the district which is managed by the Downtown Westfield Corporation). Bronze sponsors included Lucky Brand Jeans,Verizon Fios, Lord and Taylor, Citibank, and Westfield Pediatric Dental Group and Rockn' Joes Coffeehouse and Bistro .

Lance Marvin, the owner of Rockn' Joes Coffeehouse and Bistro, was pleased with the exposure his new restaurant received. Marvin and his wife Lisa kept busy handing out over 300 cups of their ice coffee in their post just past the finish line.

“We will be back next year. This is a fantastic event ,” said Marvin, whose restaurant opened last October.

Contributing sponsors include: Rita's of Westfield, Needle Point Homes,
Qdoba Mexican Grill, The Town Bank, North Fork Bank, and Center for
Orthopedic Surgery and Sports Medicine, Perla, and Stop and Shop. Supporting
sponsors include: Amper, Politniner and Mattia, Redco Engineering and
Construction, and J. Mark Albertson, DMD.

At any race the unsung heroes are the volunteers who work tirelessly at numerous tasks to assure a good race experience. The Westfield Jaycees handed out the pizza and cookies. Girl Scouts handled the water stops. The Westfield Y brought a crew of volunteers to assist with many jobs. The Westfield Area Chamber of Commerce helped with course marshals. Many volunteers who already serve on the Downtown Westfield Corporation Board of Directors and Committees also assisted. Manny of Westfield Coastal brought his 1957 three-wheeled BMW and Vespa motorcycle for the race beginning and dressed as the Cosimo's chef.David Martone, DWC Chairman and proprietor of Classic Thyme, dressed as the
Ferraro's chef.

Zenobia was assisted by Beth Brenner, DWC Executive Assistant and
Naomi McElynn Executive Director of the Westfield Chamber of Commerce.
Cosimo's Restaurant & Pizzeria and Ferraro's made 550 pizzas for the night. Shop-Rite of Garwood, Xocolatz, and Stop & Shop provided the cookies. The Flower Zone provided the flowers for the female winners. TSS Maintenance provided the clean-up crew during the event. Michael Craig Band and Night Moves DJ provided entertainment. Trader Joe's provided water for the water stops. Brooks Crandall, Tiger Paw Images, and DWC Design Committee Chairperson Karrie Hanson took photographs. The Town of Westfield
provided the stage, garbage removal, chairs and barricades. The Westfield
Police Dept. handled traffic control and road closures during the event.
The Westfield Fire Dept. provided hose-down areas for the runners on the
course. Many Westfield businesses provided goodies for runners in
promotional products and offers.

By 8:15 traffic was flowing smoothly again on Elm Street as the town returned to normal on what was an incredible night.

Summertime Pizza Part 6

2007-07-20T05:38:00.000-07:00

It has taken the Westfield Downtown 5K and Pizza Extravaganza only five years to go from an interesting fund raising idea that promoted health to the state’s top attended non-corporate road race, a fact that even surprises the normally ebullient Sherry Cronin, Executive Director of the Downtown Westfield Corporation (DWC).

“Six years running and the pizza's still hot. The event just keeps getting
better,” said Cronin.

After four years of steady growth the race exploded in its fifth rendition to include a record 1525 finishers, a nearly 20% increase over 2005.

The race has established a reputation and turnout that is the envy of many older and more established races. The event, which starts at 7 pm Wednesday at the corner of East Broad and Elm Streets, has shown phenomenal growth in its first five years.

“This event is successful because it is a healthy event on a fast and relatively flat course which allows runners at all experience levels to achieve their best race results. It also involves many people in the community: businesses, volunteers, organizations, and Town of Westfield departments,” said Cronin.

The event is organized by the Downtown Westfield Corporation(DWC) and was the brainchild of Alan DeRose, an avid runner and former Chairman of the DWC and Meg Mehorter, a former Executive Assistant.

“They are both runners and wanted to create a health related event that would
promote our vibrant downtown as well as our beautiful residential areas,”
said Sherry Cronin, Executive Director.

Needless to say, the race has been a tremendous boon to both Westfield and the DWC.
“The race is designed to profile Westfield, not only the downtown but also the
beautiful residential areas. It has also yielded a great benefit to the DWC
in building goodwill and awareness with our residents,” said Cronin

The event enjoys a wide and varied sponsorship list that is paced by Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield that has returned once again to be a Gold Sponsor. Cronin is also pleased that over 75% of the sponsors are located Westfield’s Special Improvement District (the district which is managed by the Downtown Westfield Corporation). Bronze sponsors include: Lucky Brand Jeans,Verizon Fios, Lord and Taylor, Citibank, and Westfield Pediatric Dental Group and Rockn' Joes Coffeehouse and Bistro .

Contributing sponsors include: Rita's of Westfield, Needle Point Homes,
Qdoba Mexican Grill, The Town Bank, North Fork Bank, and Center for
Orthopedic Surgery and Sports Medicine, Perla, and Stop and Shop. Supporting
sponsors include: Amper, Politniner and Mattia, Redco Engineering and

Construction, and J. Mark Albertson, DMD. Cronin also expects many local businesses to provide many giveaways and promotional items at the event.

In order to encourage more participation from local businesses in the
district, the DWC offered 15% discount on all sponsorship levels. The race is also going back to cotton shirts this year.

After a packed start on the main streets, the course winds its way through Mindowaskin Park before heading down Tuttle Parkway past Roosevelt School The course heads down Edgewood Avenue and the two Mile mark is on Effingham Place. The last mile is an uphill straightaway down Elm Street

However, the end of the race only signals the beginning of an entertaining and pallet satisfying evening. There will be a DJ and live music by the Michael Craig Band and lots and lots of pizza.

It will be a team effort of the downtown pizzerias and restaurants.
Westfield’s top running store, The Westfield Running Company has made its mark in many aspects of the race. The owner Gene Mitchell of Franklin Lakes in Bergen County has won three the last three men’s titles and is the course record holder. Mitchell had also finished second in 2002 and 2003.

Fourth last year was another Running Company member, Brian Harris of Clinton, who manages the Westfield store and should be among the leaders again this year.

“We recognize the importance of this race,” said Harris.
“Westfield is a very good running town and this is one of the most successful races around.”
Harris recently won the Cranford Firecracker Four Mile on July 4 for the second straight year and would not think of missing this race.

“This is a pretty easy race for me to enter. There is no other race closer to where I work,” said Harris.

“Our store is strategically located neat the beginning and end of the course, so it gives us the opportunity to meet with and help runners before and after the race,” added Harris of the store, located at 17 Elm Street.

For the sixth straight year the race production will be handled by Mark Zenobia, of On Your Mark Productions,” He does a terrific job ,” said Cronin.

The first 600 registered runners will receive embroidered caps and the first 1800 get T-shirts The pre-registration fee is $20 and is $25 the day of the race. In addition, runners will have plenty of pizza to eat-no matter how long the race takes them

Harris repeats at "cool" Firecracker

2007-07-05T19:34:00.000-07:00

For Independence Day 2007, the weather gods served up conditions more conducive to running than swimming which was the perfect recipe for Firecracker 4 Mile Race Director Mike Rokicki and defending champion Brian Harris. Temperatures in the high 60’s produced a large amount of post registration race day entrants that swelled the overall finishers 20 percent over 2006 totals for the race, which celebrated its 28th anniversary at Nomahegan Park in Cranford. The cool conditions also pleased Harris, who easily defended his title running 20:36, 34 seconds faster than his 2006 time

“Although we haven’t counted everything yet, it appears that the race was a huge success in every way possible,” said Rokicki.

“It was very helpful that the rain held off and with the cool records many people decided to run at the last minute.”

In a pre-race interview Harris was hopeful that the temperature would not exceed 70 degrees, an unlikely occurrence for a race usually conducted in hot and sultry conditions. But on cloudy breezy morning, Harris broke away from field just past the one mile mark and was never seriously threatened

Harris was able to put together consistent mile splits of 5:05,5:06 and 5:08 before finishing in 5:17 on the final mile which contains a multitude of turns and also includes a footbridge.

“The key to winning this race is getting a lead at three miles because it is very hard for the trailing runners to see the leader because of all the turns ” said Harris, who had not raced seriously since running 2:32.49 at this year's Boston Marathon.

“I was very pleasantly surprised to run as well as I did. The strength I built up training for Boston has helped me maintain my fitness over the last few months. Obviously this was great weather for me to run in. I was not in the shape I was in a year ago but I ran faster,” said Harris, who did not take advantage of several water stops during the race.

Holding on for second place was four-time winner Budd Coates of Rodale Press, who has made a tradition of traveling over 70 miles from Emmaus, PA to run the race.

“I originally came here in the early 90’s because they offered prize money but now I just come here because it’s a fantastic race and a great way to start the holiday,” said Coates, who won the master’s championship and has run as fast as 18:27 on the course.

Coates, who turned 50 in April, also won the parent-daughter competition, teaming with his 14-year-old daughter Kelsey, who ran 27:42.

“It is nice that the race has all these different categories that give you a chance to combine with your children,” added Coates.

Kevin Brown, a star distance runner at Cranford, who graduated in 2006,was the first town finisher, winding up eighth in 21:51. Brown, who just completed his freshman season at Yale, has fought through injuries and now feels like he his rounding into shape for this fall.

“I have been running this race since I was small and enjoy the chance to run a race through my hometown,” said Brown.

Kevin Mahoney, a 2005 graduate, was second Cranford finisher, 16th overall.
The women’s winner was Sarah Muhlbradt 29 of Piermont, NY who ran 23:37. The first Cranford woman to finish was Lauren Krause Garbac, 36 who ran 27:19.

Jim Colvin, 58 was the first Westfield finisher in 24:30 and Mark Carow, 48 (25:19) was first Scotch Plains finisher. Jim Lambert, 40 (27:03) led the Fanwood finishers.

Former Race Director Art Bilenker, a Jaycee and race benefactor once again held court after the race and gave out awards to runners who could answer trivia questions, had the strangest jobs and had the nicest biceps among other things.

“This is nice day for the community. It’s a good day for everyone,” said Bilenker, a dentist in Cranford.

After a frenzied start early in the day when he seemed to be holding three conversations at once, Rokicki settled in and after the race could enjoy what was another successful race.

“I hope to do this for many years. Once you get through the first one, each year gets a lot easier,” said Rokicki.

24 years of Tuesday Summer races

2007-07-02T18:39:00.000-07:00

Next Tuesday July 10th will be a major milestone for the Raritan Valley Road Runners as they present their 100th race in their Tuesday night summer series which spans an incredible 24 years.

On May 22, 1984, Club President Allen Paul's vision of a series of competitive but fun summer races was born. Mike Geraltowski and RVRR's current president Gene Gugliotta placed 1st and 2nd place in that race, and both have pledged to return on Tuesday, 24 summers later, to "defend their titles". Kristin Stout, winner of the 1st 1 mile run at age 10, has also agreed to return, this time to run the 5K. Kristin, recently back from Iraq, was surprised at her 6:19 time in 1984. "I would have felt less sorry for my fellow platoon members during their 1 mile training run if I had remembered that I ran 6:19 as a 10 year old".

Over the years, the RVRR Summer Series has changed its course, its location, and the runners have aged (a little). But ask anyone of the 300+ competitors we average in a summer, the tradition of competition and fun remains.

For the 100th race, race director Doug Brown plans some special and exciting events. There will be plenty of food, lots of prizes, and more special guests. The race commences from its current location, Buccleuch Park across from St Peters Hospital in New Brunswick. Registration starts at 6pm with the race at 7pm. There is also a Kids Series with races starting promptly at 6 pm.

Big race on Independence Day

2007-07-02T11:10:00.000-07:00

For the twenty eighth straight year, Cranford will begin its Fourth of July celebration earlier than most towns when the Firecracker Four Mile commences at 9:30 am Wednesday at Nomahegan Park in Cranford. After starting modestly in 1980, the race quickly gained in prominence and has long been considered one of New Jersey’s top races as well as a starting point for a full day of activities at Nomahegan Park that culminates with a firecracker presentation at night.

Last year, despite hot and sultry weather, a large walk up entry and enthusiastic sponsorship helped make the 27th annual event the most successful ever according to second year race director Mike Rokicki. Buoyed by $5,000 from lead corporate sponsor Commerce Bank, the race raised a record sponsorship total of almost $23,000.

“Commerce continues to be a great supporter of all local activities and we’re very fortunate that they are so supportive,” said Rokicki who succeeded Vitas Roman, who directed in 2004-5.

Over 300 registered for the one-mile and over 1000 runners signed up for the four mile, with 924 finishing. While the turnout was comparable to recent years Rokicki is confident that turnout will increase this year.

“This race has a great word of mouth factor built into the race,” said Rokicki.
“People who have run it tend to come back year after year and bring in new people.”

The defending champion Brian Harris, 33 of Clinton, is expected to run although he admits he is just rounding into form after a personal best 2:32.49 at this year’s Boston Marathon which was run in a steady rain and heavy winds.

“I got pretty beat up at Boston and I am just starting to get some good training in.” said Harris

“I really enjoy running this race. The course is flat and there is a lot of good competition. I wouldn’t mind if the temperature is about 70 degrees that day,” added Harris.

The race is the major fundraiser for the Cranford Jaycees scholarship fund, which awards scholarships to Cranford residents graduating high school, based on community service and academics.

“I wouldn't say there is much "new" this year, but I am happy to say all of our
little amenities will be back. Free activities include disk jockey music, popcorn,
ice cream, face painting, cotton candy, etc. We are also providing a commemorative pint glass for those registered early enough for the second year. Last year it was very well received,” said Rokicki.

As always, the Jaycees will handle all volunteering and logistical aspects of the race, which can be considerable. In addition to Rokicki, Dr. Art Bilenker will be his usual ubiquitous self. Bilenker will handle post race announcing duties. The race will be timed by Compuscore using the race CHIP program, which automatically times each runner who has a chip affixed to their shoe. Bilenker, who has directed the race numerous times, is once again donating prize money to be paid to the second place finisher.

“We are lucky to have Art do what he does every year,” said Rokicki.

Another factor that draws a large number of repeat runners to the race is the amount of gifts each runner gets in addition to their tee shirt. In recent years, every runner has received such nice extras as designer polo bears, luggage or a men’s cologne package.

Bilenker, as has become the tradition, will be giving out numerous prizes after the race for such diverse skills” as the nicest legs, the most degrees earned, trivia questions and of course the runner who traveled the furthest. Usually there is at least one runner who has traveled across the country or come from overseas. The key to the race’s long-term success has been the dedication of the volunteers.

“On race day, many things do not go exactly as planned, as any Race Director
will tell you. The key is to make it look to the runners that everything is
fine, and it really is, but adaptation and flexibility is the key,” said Bilenker.

Everyone who volunteers, Jaycee or not, from the police and the First aid
squad to the people at the water stops and the sponsors should be thanked,” said Rokicki, who has never directed before but is confident that the number of experienced Jaycees will help sooth the transition.

“The Cranford Jaycees, being such an active group in the community, feel it”
our duty to encourage and reward a new generation of volunteers. We hope to increase the scholarship awards we offer each year,” said Rokicki.

The Jaycees sponsor and volunteer at various events throughout the year
including the Halloween parade, the Holiday tree trimming, the
children's Holiday party, , the pancake breakfast, the pasta night, the mini golf tournament, an NCAA night and NFC/AFC Championship Sunday fundraiser, and the
Leonard J. Snyder memorial fishing derby in honor of one of a Cranford Jaycee member
who died in the terrorist bombing of the World Trade Center September 11, 2001.

Registration is available online at cranfordjaycees.com

Running Relativity

2007-07-01T06:03:00.000-07:00

The theory of relativity isn’t just in physics. With apologies to Albert Einstein running’s theory of relatively probably predates his ground breaking work. It probably dates back as far as the first human runner who didn’t get somewhere as fast as expected.

When the Athens Olympics dominated the headlines in 2004, we heard much about the story of Pheippides, the young Greek messenger who was dispatched by his commander to deliver news of the victory to Athens. No run in history was more important.

It was critical that the people of Athens knew about the victory, so if the Persian ships arrived at the city, the people wouldn't surrender to them. So he ran the 26 miles from Marathon to Athens without stopping for a rest. and arriving at Athens, he delivered his message, and then died.

One could imagine Pheippides, saying “I’ve done the trip a lot faster, but my pacing wasn’t too good today or I’m just not in the shape I was two years ago.”

Of course this is all fictional and no disrespect is meant towards probably the toughest marathon runner this side of Deena Kastor, but relativity will always be a big part of running as long as we strive for performance.

I learned about relativity almost as soon as I started racing over 20 years ago. Being new to the game meant I didn’t know much about other runners and remember this was long before the internet made it easy to find race results for anyone. I would congratulate the runner who was just ahead or behind me with a “great race” and based on their expectations would get the appropriate response. An 18 minute 5K is great if you’re used to running 19’s and awful if you’re used to 15’s.

For a long time I had a habit of asking a fellow runner how they did in a bit of obnoxious manner. Instead of asking them what their time was or how they did I would say “Did you break (fill in a number for a distance)”. I learned after a while that my realism wasn’t being appreciated. I was trying so hard to act like I knew a fellow runners’ expectations that I overstepped the bounds of decency and became a person to be avoided after races.

It took some humbling performances of my own especially a DNF in a marathon that made me realize the error of my ways. For the past few years as I have fought a futile battle to run times that resemble what I used to run, I have kicked the habit of asking “did you break “ to “How did you do? Or what was your time?”. I let the person tell me if it was a good or bad time for them
even though in many cases I think they realize I know the answer.

Relativity seems to be more prevalent in discussions with newer and less active runners. After a recent race where I had run high 23’s for a 5K, a person who is physically active but doesn’t race was amazed at how fast I had run. When I told him that I used to regularly run in the 18’s for the time, he said “That’s world class”. I responded “What world is that?” I was going to continue with the usual retort “It’s all relative” but I figured what’s the use.

So it’s going to continue to happen as long as there’s the dichotomy between the running obsessed on one side and the running ignorant on the other side and the best thing we can try to do is politely say thank you and avoid the word relativity.

Unless we’re talking physics.

Laura Gallo

2007-03-05T20:18:00.000-08:00

        In the fall of 2003 it didn’t take Tim Styler long to realize that the gangly freshman was destined for greatness. Styler, one of the Cougar’s finest runners ever, is a keen judge of talent and watching Laura Gallo’s determination as she hung tough with senior standout Mallory Harlin made him certain that Gallo had championship potential.

        And Gallo has not disappointed. Four consistently excellent years, ten county individual titles and numerous school records has brought Gallo even in titles with Styler, who now coaches her in three sports, cross country, winter and outdoor track.

        “More than anything else it is Laura’s determination that makes

her a successful runner. She refuses to lose,” said Styler.

        Gallo has been the leader of a remarkable senior class that has brought the school its first two Union County cross country

championships in 2005 and 2006 and capped off a great year by qualifying for the Meet of Champions for the first time in school history.

        “When the team qualified for the Meet of Champions for cross country we were very excited.  Many of us are seniors, so it was important for us to make it this year.  Also we are very proud of our multiple county and conference titles,” said Gallo.

        Gallo enters her final outdoor season coming off a solid if unspectacular winter year. She capped off the indoor season running 11:09 in the 3200 meters, winning her third straight county title.

The time was well off her best performance of 10:48 run last spring at the Meet of Champions.

“It certainly is the goal to improve upon the 10:48 and to have a chance at the county record (10:43.7 held by Tracy Biber of Dayton High School in 1986),” said Styler.

        Gallo will also compete at the Penn Relays again in the 3000 meters, trying to improve on an eleventh place finish in a school record 10:11.

        “Going under 11 minutes for the 3200 meters and breaking 19 for cross country were my goals that were most important to me, so I am proud of those achievements,” said Gallo.

        Styler, a college star at Villanova, is confident that Gallo will excel when she competes collegiately at Georgetown next year.

      “Laura will be a valuable asset Georgetown in the 5,000m and

10,000m on the track and she will fit in on the cross country squad,” said Styler.

        “Georgetown is traditionally a strong team and competing in the Mid Atlantic Region and one of the strongest conferences for distance, the Big East.  Hopefully she continues to improve and carries her love for running beyond college,” said Styler.

Styler believes Gallo will go down among the great female distance runners from Union County, which include Cathy Persichetty of Oak Knoll, Marissa DeFreese of Rahway, Theresa Gschwind of Summit, Tracy Biber of Dayton and Mary Beth Hogan of Cranford.

“Laura deserves to be mentioned amongst those names. She has certainly

worked very hard for what she has accomplished and there is more out

there to take aim at,” said Styler.

While Gallo looks forward to her final season and the challenges of college, she nostalgically wonders where the time has gone.

“High school definitely went by so quickly.  Meets, championships, and season started to blend into one another and now it if feels strange to know that I have only one season left “.

2007 St Pete Beach Classic Race Report

2007-01-17T06:24:00.000-08:00

On the second Saturday morning of January I ran a 10K in shorts and a singlet and worried about overheating. In any winter it would be obvious that it wasn’t run up here and it wasn’t but it’s too bad there weren’t any races scheduled the first Saturday of the year that could have taken advantage of Florida like conditions.

I ran my race in St Petersburg, FL, the 4th Annual St. Pete Beach Classic. The race has grown quickly and seemed worth going to from its advertisement in Runner’s World.

Because the schools were also off in Scotch Plains on Tuesday January 16, we decided to
take advantage of the long weekend and see family that lives in Tampa. The race seemed
like a dubious idea since we had to drive over an hour to get to an 8 am race the morning after flying in but my sister in law was game and got us all up a little after 5am and we were off in two cars in the darkness.

Like so many events, getting to the race and moseying to the starting line was the hardest part. My 16 year old daughter was entered in the 5k, which for some reason started first at 8 am. When they started us at 8:15, we could see the 5k leaders come back but I was unable to find my daughter.

With race time temperatures at around 65 and no shade to be found, my main goal was to stay cool and hydrated. The odd thing about running on a west coast beach was that the ocean was on the opposite side where you would see it at the Jersey Shore.

The race was generally uneventful for me. I tried to make as many mental notes as possible to help with writing this story. The bad part of running in a strange place is that you are highly unlikely to know anyone. There was nobody to encourage you and nobody to discourage you by being far ahead of you.

I was amazed by how clothing so many of the runners wore. Florida seems like a great area to run as long as it’s in December or January. Most people I talked to are resigned to the weather and run at obscenely early times to avoid the heat.

I spoke to a few people during the race, boring them with where I was from and how
great the weather was. I overheard some runners discussing their marathon training. Although there is a summer running season in Florida, the bulk of good racing occurs in the winter months.

Fortunately the mild winter actually enabled me to not have totally pale skin but I still wore sun block. The race was a bit of a challenge since I had not run that far since my injury at the USATF ten miler in December 2005. The last two miles were an out and back where I saw people finishing who were a mile or two ahead of me.

As I neared the finish at the entrance to the Tradewind’s Hotel, I looked around for familiar faces. My chip time of 54:58 was about what I expected considering everything.
I first found my daughter who had every excuse in the world for her slow time (for her), which still got her an age group award.

The post race buffet was excellent. There was a beer truck, too. The hotel provided nice amenities for the runners and the pool and beach were both delightful. What more could you ask for on the second Saturday of January?

Cranford Boys 2006 XC Preview

2006-09-03T20:28:00.000-07:00

Joe McKenney has been a major player in the Union County cross country scene for such a long time it seems inconceivable that the Cranford star still has his senior year ahead of him but that’s the reality when you win the county cross country championship and are a first team all state selection in track as a sophomore.

McKenney, who has run 4:21 for 1600 meters and 9:20 for 3200 meters, is hoping to bounce back from what was by his lofty standards a disappointing junior year last season and lead a very young Cougar team which will be coached by former star Tim Styler, who replaces Ray White after 37 successful seasons.

“He’s hungry for a really good senior season and if he stays healthy he should get back to where he wants to be,” said Styler.

“Joe sets an excellent example for our younger runners with his strong work ethic and they all look up to Joe for what he’s accomplished.”

“This is my senior year and I have the most experience, so I feel like I should be the leader this year,” said McKenney.

Although many of his performances would have been good enough to win the conference and county titles in most years, McKenney was unfortunate to be competing against Westfield’s Jeffrey Perrella, one of the state’s top three runners.

“I just had a lot of things go wrong last year. It wasn’t just one thing but a combination of things and once Jeff started beating me, I lost confidence,” recalled McKenney.

McKenney is the only remaining member from the Cougar team of 2004 that won the school’s first Group II championship in the school’s storied history. That team also featured Josh Hanke and Kevin Brown, who both graduated in 2006 and with McKenney formed the heart of last year’s team.

Styler realizes that this is a rebuilding season but is expecting improvement as the season progresses.

“Our kids worked hard during the summer and have put in quality miles since the end of the school year. We expect to see the results of that work as the season goes along,” said Styler.

After opening against Rahway this past Tuesday, the Cougars will be tested at the Cherokee Challenge tomorrow.

“It's a two mile race which will be a good early season indicator on our fitness,” said Styler.

With the move to the Mountain Valley Conference(MVC), Cranford will be facing almost a completely different set of teams from the last few years. Even local rivals Westfield and Scotch Plains Fanwood have been dropped but Styler expects no drop off in competition.

Union Catholic and Roselle Catholic are expected to be two of the top teams in the county this year and Styler thinks they match up well with Westfield and Scotch Plains.

Styler is also pleased that the MVC championships are a week earlier than the Watchung Conference.

“I like the earlier date because it allows us to get some quality workouts and

race less. Many people don't understand all the racing takes its toll. I

am a firm believer in "making deposits in the training bank" in order to

have enough quality that we can withdraw at the end of October and

especially the three consecutive weekends in November for the state meets,” said Styler, who still holds numerous school records in cross country and track .

“Last year we had some growing pains, with a lot of first and second year Cross

Country runners who needed time to mature,” noted Styler.

“When you go from being amongst the top teams in the state with a number of All Americans on your roster and having to step right up and fill those roles as underclassmen it's a challenge. I think this year these boys are ready to reclaim the tradition.,” added Styler.

Hot Summer Pizza

2006-07-30T05:59:00.000-07:00

When Westfield Mayor Andy Skibitsky started the 2006 Westfield Downtown 5K and Pizza Extravaganza by blowing an air horn at the corner of Broad Street and Elm at just after 7 pm on the final Wednesday of July, he unleashed a cacophony of 1525 sets of pounding feet which must have seemed like the culmination of a five year dream for Race Director Sherry Cronin.
After four years of steady growth the race exploded in its fifth rendition and could turn out to be the largest 5K in the state and by the rousing enthusiasm of its participants the numbers should continue to grow.
“We are very pleased with the amount of enthusiasm and number of runners this
year. The race gets better and better each year,” said Cronin.
“It was great night for Westfield and a fantastic chance for us to show off our beautiful town,” said Skibitsky, who also hosted the telecast for Cable Channel 36.
As expected Cronin was gushing with enthusiasm and relieved that the race avoided weather problems for the first time since 2003. While the race time temperature was in the high 80’s with stifling humidity it still was a marked improvement over the previous two years, when severe thunderstorm warnings and heat warnings complicated pre race preparations.
“The weather was great and the non-threat of rain that evening was a big
relief. “ said Cronin.
What greatly enhanced the numbers was an incredible post registration of
574 runners, many who traveled significant distances.
“Many of them had their pre-mailed registrations completed and brought them to the event,” noted Cronin.
“.Many others downloaded the form off the website and brought that with them.
We also had a lot of marketing in the last week of the race which probably
helped to bring in a lot of post-registrants.”
With the overwhelming success in year five comes new challenges for 2007.
The huge turnout on narrow Broad Street made for a congested start and a tenuous first turn into Mindowaskin Park.
“We have recognized that there is a limit to how large the event can become.
We will be evaluating feedback and making adjustments for next year,” said Cronin.
“There was emergency roadwork in front of the first turn which made the roadway even tighter before the turn. We also may have to require baby joggers fall to the back of the race.” said Cronin.
Almost forgotten in the hoopla was a well contested race won by a familiar face, Gene Mitchell, owner of the Running Company chain of stores won his third straight title with a time of 15:08, twenty seconds ahead of Ben Reynolds of Chatham. The Running Company was also the race’s lead sponsor and contributed a state of the art running shirt for the first 1500 registered runners.
Unlike last year when Mitchell led nearly wire to wire, he was pushed through the first mile by Reynolds who held a slight lead as Mitchell clocked 4:55. Mitchell made a strong move on an uphill just after the mile mark and pulled away from Reynolds, hitting 2 miles in 9:50 and he enhanced his lead in the final mile with his fastest mile(4:48).
“It was very tough night to run so I just tried to run an even pace,” said Mitchell.
“Ben is a very strong runner and he made me earn it. Overall I would have to say this was the most difficult of my three victories. Maybe I’m just getting old,” said Mitchell who turns 39 in August.
Reynolds, 42, was an easy winner in the masters division over Paul Buccino of Westfield. Buccino, the head track and cross country coach at Morristown High School and husband of Westfield Girls Indoor Track coach Jen Buccino defeated his twin brother Peter by nine seconds but was the second Westfield finisher to recent WHS graduate Jeffrey Perrella, who was sixth in 15:56.
“I’m in the middle of base building for the fall season, so overall I’m pleased with my performance,” said Perrella, who will run for William and Mary this fall.
Perrella pointed to Blue Devil junior Alex Tarlow as the team leader this fall after Tarlow ran an impressive 17:12.
Second a year ago, Brian Harris, who manages the Running Company’s Westfield store, ran two seconds faster than 2005 but fell to fourth, losing a close battle with Chris Heibell of Hillsborough.
“I just couldn’t get it to the next gear,” said Harris who finished in 15:46.
“I’m a little disappointed because my legs just didn’t respond,” added Harris, who won the Cranford Firecracker Four Mile earlier in July.
Fellow Running Company member, Heather Gardiner of Franklin Lakes, the women’s winner at Cranford, was second to Amy Van Alstine of Midland Park, who defended her title in 18:08.
Debby Hall ran 19:59 to finish first in the women’s master’s division and was also the first Westfield female finisher. Other Westfield residents that won their age group included Caroline Williams (14 and under), Cynthia Benn (45 to 49) and Madeline Salom (55 to 59),
A race so large could not succeed without dedicated sponsors and volunteers.
“Our race sponsors enable the event to take place since registrations alone
do not cover the cost for running the event,” noted Cronin.
In addition to The Westfield Running Company other Gold sponsors were Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield and Overlook Hospital. Stop & Shop was a Silver Sponsor and TSS and Washington Mutual were Bronze Sponsors.
Contributing sponsors included The Town Bank, Qdoba Mexican Grill, Lord & Taylor, Commerce Bank, Center for Orthopedic Surgery & Sports Medicine, North Fork Foundation, and Sneaker Factory.
Supporting Sponsors included Redco Engineering, Mountainside Wellness, Amper, Politzner & Mattia, Century Carpet, and Dr. J. Mark Albertson.
At any race the unsung heroes are the volunteers who work tirelessly at numerous tasks to assure a good race experience. Former DWC Executive Assistant Meg Mehorter directed over 100 volunteers who flawlessly handled such diverse tasks as stuffing race bags, manning water stops and doling out over 4000 slices of pizza.
The Westfield Jaycees handed out the pizza and cookies. Girl Scouts handled the water stops. The Westfield Y brought a crew of volunteers to assist with many jobs. The Westfield Area Chamber of Commerce helped with course marshals. Many volunteers who already serve on the Downtown Westfield Corporation Board of Directors and Committees also assisted. Manny of Westfield Coastal brought his 1957 three-wheeled BMW and
Vespa motorcycle for the race beginning and dressed as the Cosimo's chef.
David Martone, DWC Chairman and proprietor of Classic Thyme, dressed as the
Ferraro's chef.
For the fifth straight year Mark Zenobia of On Your Mark
Productions was the chief race organizer assisted by Courtney Nemec, DWC Executive Assistant, and Laura Pietruszki, DWC Intern.
Cosimo's Restaurant & Pizzeria and Ferraro's made 550 pizzas for the night. Shop-Rite of Garwood, Xocolatz, and Stop & Shop provided the cookies. The Flower Zone provided the flowers for the female winners. TSS Maintenance provided the clean-up crew during the event. Michael Craig Band and Night Moves DJ provided entertainment. Trader Joe's provided water for the water stops. Brooks Crandall, Tiger Paw Images, and DWC Design Committee Chairperson Karrie Hanson took photographs. The Town of Westfield
provided the stage, garbage removal, chairs and barricades. The Westfield
Police Dept. handled traffic control and road closures during the event.
The Westfield Fire Dept. provided hose-down areas for the runners on the
course. Many Westfield businesses provided goodies for runners in
promotional products and offers.
And last but not least was the pizza which was again eaten in record numbers and the volunteers who never stopped smiling as they quickly shuffled slices from boxes to plates.
Running for the fifth straight year, Don Hessemer of Fanwood succinctly summarized the reasons for the race’s overwhelming success.
“This is a great race to run. For me it's close to home, there are a
lot of familiar faces to socialize with and you can't beat the free
pizza".

Summer Pizza Part 5

2006-07-20T06:03:00.000-07:00

The numbers do not lie. There is a middle of the summer phenomena in Westfield. In just its fifth year the Westfield Downtown 5K and Pizza Extravaganza has established a reputation and turnout that is the envy of many older and more established races. The event, which starts at 7 pm Wednesday at the corner of East Broad and Elm Streets, has shown phenomenal growth in its first four years, and is one of the top five overall races in New Jersey for attendance, ranking only behind the Flemington 5K among short distance races.
The race is organized by the Downtown Westfield Corporation(DWC) and was the brainchild of Alan DeRose, an avid runner and former Chairman of the DWC
and Meg Mehorter, a former Executive Assistant.
“They are both runners and wanted to create a health related event that would
promote our vibrant downtown as well.as our beautiful residential areas,”
said Sherry Cronin, Executive Director.
“It helps the DWC because it provides exposure of our business community, which is the goal of the DWC. “
After nearly a thousand finishers the first year, the race has continued to grow and had an impressive 1326 finishers last year. That total was held down by dangerous heat which prompted all sorts of precautionary measures.
With the heat index hovering near a dangerous 110 degrees much of the day, the organizers were prepared to make the race a fun run if the heat index was over 100 by race time. They also checked Doppler radar every ten minutes for the Fire Department in order to gauge the path of oncoming storms. Fire truck hoses were brought onto the course with hoses stationed near the finish line if necessary.
Amazingly enough, 33 more finished the race than the year before and with decent weather the number would have likely exceeded 1600. Many registrants were unable to get to the starting line and the race day signup, which was over 400 in 2004, was more subdued.
“We think that we can get 1800 runners with favorable conditions ,” predicted Cronin, who attributes numerous reasons for the runaway success.
“People love Westfield and this race is different that many others. It is a
night race which the runners respond very well to. It brings people
downtown on a night which is less busy than other summer nights,” noted Cronin..
“In the past, it was 43% attended by residents of Westfield and the five surrounding towns. So it proves that this race has a far reach beyond the neighboring community. “
After a packed start on the main streets, the course winds its way through Mindowaskin Park before heading down Tuttle Parkway past Roosevelt School The course heads down Edgewood Avenue and the two Mile mark is on Effingham Place. The last mile is an uphill straightaway down Elm Street
However, the end of the race only signals the beginning of an entertaining and pallet satisfying evening. There will be a DJ and live music by the Michael Craig Band and lots and lots of pizza. It will be a team effort of the downtown pizzerias and restaurants.
Westfield’s top running store, The Westfield Running Company has made its mark in many aspects of the race. The co-owners, Gene and Amanda Mitchell of Franklin Lakes in Bergen County are the respective men’s and women’s record holders and have won two men’s and two women’s titles respectively. They opened their seventh store in Westfield the day of the 2003 race. Gene Mitchell had finished second in 2002 and 2003 but has won the past two years.
Runnerup last year was another Running Company member, Brian Harris of Clinton, who manages the Westfield store and should be among the leaders again this year.
“We recognize the importance of this race,” said Harris.
“Westfield is a very good running town and this is one of the most successful races around.”
Harris recently won the Cranford Firecracker Four Mile on July 4 and would not think of missing this race.
“This is a pretty easy race for me to enter. There is no other race closer to where I work,” said Harris.
“Our store is strategically located neat the beginning and end of the course, so it gives us the opportunity to meet with and help runners before and after the race,” added Harris.of the store, located at 17 Elm Street. Another new sponsor this year is Overlook Hospital of Summit.
For the fifth sraight year the race production will be handled by Mark Zenobia, of On Your Mark Productions,” He does a terrific job ,” said Cronin who also mentioned the Westfield Jaycees who provides many volunteers for distributing pizzas. In addition, volunteers from the Downtown Westfield Corporation, the Westfield Y, and the Girl Scouts also assist. Businesses also support the event by sponsoring the event and providing promotional items for the runner’s bags
The first 600 registered runners will receive embroidered caps and the first 1500 get T-shirts, which use a dri-fit technology which retails for over $20.
The pre-registration fee is $20 and is $25 the day of the race. In addition, runners will have plenty of pizza to eat-no matter how long the race takes them.

The father of East Brunswick 10K

2005-10-21T19:03:00.000-07:00

After twenty years of participating in the East Brunswick 10K as both a runner and volunteer (usually both) I finally got to meet the person whose name has been on so many of those long sleeve shirts. This year the legendary New Brunswick track coach John Ragone was an honorary starter of both the 5k and 10k to lend a historic footnote to the races he helped start.

I was hoping Mr. Ragone wasn’t too disappointed at the small turnouts for the two races and that he realizes the challenges of attracting runners to fall races that aren’t marathons or marathon tune-ups. More and more the running choices tend to be either very long or very short. The 10k’s, which used to be so easy to find, are slowly being blanched from the race calendar, replaced by the easier to manage and run 5k.

I still have vivid memories of my first EB 10K from 1986 and one of the best was when the full race results came in the mail about two weeks later. It was sent courtesy of the race director, George Kelly, who was also a software developer. This was a decade before Compuscore and its ilk and was certainly ground breaking at the time. Up to then the only races that ever sent results were the very large ones like Asbury Park. I still have this priceless record of the ninth annual race and it speaks volumes about the quality of racing in that time period. I barely made the front page, 95th out of 463 in 39:39! The ageless one, Roger Price, then 37 was a mere 21st in 34:29, a time exceeded by only two runners this year. Over 1/3 of the finishers were under seven minutes a mile on a course that was very similar to this year’s.

Our own Dave Hoch finished sixth in 32:57 and John Kane was 44th in 36:36 but many of those top finishers have long since left the running scene, making Roger all the more remarkable for twenty plus years of consistency.

Did it mean that runners were better than they are today? The answer seems obvious and the reason could be that there were more good runners who were in their early period of racing, while today many of the runners like myself have long ago run their best race and out there for fitness. Running a pedestrian 49:14 left me sore for several days, a depressing thought but still better than most 49 year olds. I ran as well as I could and had an enjoyable and competitive finish with three other runners, two of whom I beat. The clock time left me accomplishing my modest goal of breaking 50 and it wasn’t my worst time at this race.

East Brunswick was also ahead of its time as one of the few races giving out long sleeve shirts. I’m pretty certain they’ve given out long sleeve shirts every year since, many of which are in my regular rotation of shirts.

East Brunswick 2005 was as well organized a race as I’ve run this year, with a goody bag that was the envy of all other races, chock full of usable items. The course continues to be a perfect combination of rustic roads with some challenging hills and inviting straight-aways that lend themselves to fast times for those fit enough.

While the race in many ways is not what it once was, it had a nice increase in 10k finishers this year and I am certain there was nary a person unhappy with the fabulous amenities. With the new energetic leadership of Catherine Glamkowski, I think this race is in good hands for many years to come, something that should leave Mr. Ragone with a
nice feeling as we near our fourth decade. Long live the 10K!

Running and Baseball

2004-10-22T06:18:00.000-07:00

This column was originally written in October 2004.

And on the sixth day I slept. and slept and slept some more. Thankfully the series ended because I couldn’t take much more. It was like running five marathons in five days but my legs weren’t sore just my eyes. Because of a rainout Friday night the Yankees and Red Sox played five straight days of riveting baseball games that ran the whole gamut of emotions. I won’t reveal which side I was rooting for but like most of the Eastern Seaboard I was entranced by what transpired in the best rivalry in sports. There is no second best. There is nothing even close that approaches the history, the different cultures of the two cities and the huge chasm between the unparalleled success on one side and the unmatched anguish and heartbreak on the other. And if New York and Boston aren’t big enough rivals just consider this; Their marathons occur approximately a week after baseball ends in the fall and a week after baseball resumes in the spring. The Yankees and Boston even fought it out last spring during the Boston Marathon in the annual Patriot’s Day game.

So why is this in a running blog?

Well for starters, there are probably no two activities different than going out for a run and following a baseball game. Running is relentless, inexorably moving forward, usually with a finite goal of either time or distance. Baseball, on the other hand, takes its sweet time delivering its story uncaring whether you need to be somewhere, or whether you should be asleep or whether things should be getting done. And for me the game isn’t enough. I have to hear the commentary and the fan reaction and see if I’m thinking the same way the experts are. And at work, everybody has an opinion and people take sides.
Some take it more seriously than others. Some don’t realize their lives won’t change no matter who wins. I’m happy to see that I finally have that awareness although it took a long time.

So why is this in a running blog?

Well for starters, the weather for most of the series was pretty awful for spectators sitting in those ancient open air stadiums-cool and clammy in the high 40’s to low 50’s . You saw them huddled in their winter clothes hoping they would eventually remember what their hands felt like.Beer and soda were disdained. Hot chocolate and coffee were hoarded just for hand warmers. By the end of a game a spectator could have spent enough money keeping warm and well fed to afford a pair of good running shoes. And all I kept thinking was could I please get weather like this for all my races especially my marathons.

Great! But why is this in a running blog?

When I figure that out, I’ll let you know but right now I’m too drained and going through withdrawal. It’s going to be five long months before the Yankees and Red Sox play again. Thankfully I’ll have running to sustain me through the baseball free winter.

Rain cools off Contact Race

2004-08-26T18:56:00.000-07:00

At a little after two pm on Saturday afternoon, August 21, 2004,the sky opened up in torrents of rain and heavy wind gusts just like the weather forecasters had been ominously predicting all week. The wind was so vicious that it picked up the volunteer tent and split it in two. But the weather soon improved, as the rain eventually stopped and the stifling humidity broke and the ninth annual Fanwood Contact We Care 5K
proceeded according to schedule.

“The bad weather actually happened at the best time ,” said race director Mark Zenobia of On Your Mark Productions (OYMP). “We had already set up and covered everything and it was better that the thunder and lightning didn’t happen around race time as they had predicted.”

“We’re pleased with the turnout ,” said Jeff Stirrat, director of Contact We Care. “We had over three hundred applicants again and might have done even better if the weather forecast had been better.”

The overall winner was 27-year-old Tirhazovin Khalid of Parsippany,NJ in a time of 16:11 , breaking a two-year streak of Scotch Plains Fanwood High School runners. The previous two winners Bob Wallden and defending champion Zack McGuire chose not to run.

Walter Biner, a 2003 Scotch Plains Fanwood High School(SPFHS) graduate was the first Scotch Plains finished, third overall in 16:41 improving on his ninth place finish a year ago.

“I have been training hard this summer on hills in Watchung Reservation so I felt ready for this course,” said Biner who will be running cross-country at the University of Massachusetts this fall. Biner’s high school coach and current Raider Cross Country coach Jeff Koegel was proud of his former pupil.

“Walter came to me at the beginning of the summer looking for help with his training, so I shared my philosophy on college-level summer training with him. He really dedicated himself to logging the type of miles you need to succeed at the 8K distance,” said Koegel.

“A lot of the miles that he ran were not easy miles, either. It's very easy, living in Scotch Plains or Fanwood, to stick to the flatlands, but he has spent a lot of time running on the other side of Route 22 on the hills.”

Although she did not repeat as women’s champion, Raider senior Mary Shashaty improved her 2003 time by 33 seconds, running 19:47, 13 seconds behind the overall women’s winner Kim Keenan-Kirkpatrick of Pittstown, NJ . Shashaty needed medical assistance after the race because of breathing difficulties but was pleased with her race.

“I think I’m ready for a good season. I ran very well today,” said Shashaty.

“Although we didn't discuss any expectations before the race, my goal was for Mary to run under 20:00, which is a big barrier for high school girls. She had only done so once before, at last year's Watchung Conference meet ,” said Koegel.

“I think she could have run faster had she not been suffering from an exercise-induced asthma attack during the race. I truly believe that she could have run about 20 seconds faster if her respiration had remained normal throughout the race .”

The top Fanwood finisher was junior Josh Zinman who lopped 56 seconds off his 2003 time with an 18:06, good for sixth overall and propelling Zinman to the top of the SPFHS
team.
“I’m sure this was a big confidence boost for him going into the fall having run nearly a minute faster than last year. I think he still can improve on that quite a bit. You have to remember that this was his first race since May 22, “ said Koegel.
.”His training has picked up over the past few weeks and it is starting to show now. He still needs to work on his form a good bit.”

Raider sophomore Allie Hoynes-O’Connor was top Fanwood finisher with a time of 21:09 “ I know she was disappointed that she didn't break 21:00, but I think she will just use that as motivation. I am hoping that Allie will get herself down to the low-20:00's this fall, “ said Koegel.

The most improved Raider runner was sophomore Adam Biner,Walter’s younger brother, who improved from 21:04 last year to 18:54 this year, 13th overall. “He seems to be picking up his effort in training, and he's obviously way ahead of where he was at this point last year. The key now is to get him used to being a varsity runner and dealing with the psychological pressures that accompany that ,” said Koegel.

The top family performance was by the Bencivengo family of Fanwood, where the father 49 year old David was able to outrun his twin thirteen year olds, Greg and Lana in times of 19:46, 20:28 and 22:00 respectively.

In addition to the main event over one hundred children between the ages of two and eleven participated in races from 25 to 200 yards and six wheelchair racers competed in a one-mile race.

“It was a great day ,” said Stirrat.
“We can hardly wait for the tenth annual race next year”.

2004 Contact We Care Preview

2004-08-19T18:50:00.000-07:00

The naysayers said that a Saturday evening race at the height of the summer vacation
would never work but the Fanwood Contact We Care 5K have been proving its doubters wrong for eight successful years.
and by late Saturday night there will be a ninth piece of evidence that a well run summer race that pleases its entrants will always draw a loyal following.

If past races are any indication, the race should draw over 300 runners to the 5K events
Saturday night. Under the direction of Mark Zenobia of On Your Mark Productions
(OYMP) and with the help of Frank Gousman and the dedicated volunteers from
Contact We Care the race has become a staple of the late summer running
schedule Debuting in 1996 with 288 runners, the race has drawn between 300 and
400 the past eight years.

“ It’s a solid, local family event...with a tough but fair course. It has good amenities and an eight year history ,”
said Zenobia.

Scotch Plains Raider distance runners both past and present have dominated the 5K the past two years.
Last year 2004 graduate Zack McGuire won the men’s race in 15:56 and senior Mary Shashaty captured the women’s
race in her first road race. The previous year 2002 graduate Bob Wallden out ran McGuire to win by
ten seconds. According to coach Jeff Koegel, who finished third here in 1997, the Raiders will be hard pressed to make this a three-peat.

“The only way it would be three in a row is if one of my alumni wins it, but I don't know if you're planning on counting
on that. No one currently on the team is going to win it- I'm more than a bit disappointed in most of their fitness levels right now, “ said Koegel.

Leading contenders among recent Scotch Plains alumni are Walter Biner and Michael Dixon who have had some strong performances in summer races. McGuire is not expected to enter this year and last years’ top runner Brian Kopnicki
will be preparing for an important time trial at his new school, the College of New Jersey.

Koegel’s women runners led by Shashaty have a better chance of winning the race for a second straight
year. “That's a possibility, but that all depends on who shows up, which you can never
determine in a road race the way you can in a conference or county XC race.
You never know if some area college girl will show up and use this race as a
tune-up before she goes back to school for training camp, or if one of the top
state-level runners will jump in,” said Koegel.

“I have no concern over her winning the race or not, just as I didn't last year
with her or with Zack. It was nice that she won the race, but neither of us
even spoke or thought of it before the race. The sole purpose of us coming and
running this race is to see what kind of fitness level we have at that point and
to see where we need to go with our training from there,” added Koegel.

Another rising Raider women’s star, sophomore Allie Hoynes-O’Connor should finish among the top women.
O’Connor missed last year’s race but was the top freshman distance runner last year and looks forward to running
the race.
“I live right along the course and have been watching this race from in front of my house for several years ,”
said Hoynes-O’Connor.

Fanwood resident Don Hessemer will be running the race for the ninth straight years. “I try to never miss this race,” said Hessemer. “It’s really great that a town like Fanwood can have such a good race.”

The festivities start at 5 pm with a kids sprint for ages 2-11. The races
increase in distance for each age group The main event goes off at 5:45 pm. The
men’s record was 15:25 by Amilcar Duarte in 1998 and the women’s by Jodie
Dariano , a 17:53 in 1998.

The course starts on Martine Ave and crosses LaGrande and South Avenues before
turning right on North Avenue. The one-mile mark is passed as the runners make
a hairpin left onto Midway. The runners go left on Martine and right on south
before crossing the railroad tracks over Sheelen’s Crossing. After going left
on South they run a short distances on 2nd before going right on
LaGrande,passing the finish line and the two-mile mark. They then head left on
Helen Street before making another left onto Coriell and another left on
Martine before turning left one more time back onto La Grande where the finish
line sits in front of the park.

“It is a fair,challenging course with four good upgrades”, said Koegel. After
the race will an invitational wheelchair race at 6:30.

The proceeds from the race benefit Contact We Care a 24 by 7 telephone
hotline serving residents of Union, Essex, Middlesex and Somerset Counties. It
trains and supervises volunteers who listen, understand and assist callers to
work through their problems. The hotline number, 908-232-2880, receives over
1,000 calls per month.

E Murray Todd

2004-03-02T06:49:00.000-08:00

This race report was originally written in March 2004

Winter was broken with a vengeance this year. Unless we get one of those March
surprises it will appear that the worst winter storms actually happened in Autumn, the early December blizzard playing havoc with a number of late season races. January was brutally cold but not too stormy and February was snow free which is all that you can ask for. The rare 29th day superceded what would normally be March 1, which for runners is the true end of winter when the spring races start up in earnest.

It took me 20 years of racing but I finally experienced the E Murray Todd half marathon
which took advantage of the beautiful weather to double their entries with 250 post registrants almost unheard of for a half marathon. One would hope that these last minute sign ups were not sedentary the whole winter and decided to take advantage of the conditions for some needed exercise. If they did they are most certainly in a lot of pain for the next week.

This was not just any half marathon. My best description would be Midland terrain with four extra miles which doesn’t mean it’s a slow course but it will challenge the strength of your quadriceps. Although the race has been around over two decades and definitely has a hard corps of annual returnees(I saw many people wearing previous years’ shirts) it does not draw the USATF crowd because it doesn’t offer points and has frequently conflicted with the Newark 20K. It is run by the Monmouth County Parks commission and has some nice amenities like the use of the Brookdale Community College facilities which includes a large parking lot and gym and locker room facilities.

Seeing the amount of runners who seemed in near mid season form makes you realize that there really is no down time for running. Although I have run all winter and had no problem with the distance, I was not ready to run any kind of fast pace and my slow time showed it.
But there’s a lot racing time left this year and I can only hope that other races this year can have the weather that we had on the last day of February.

The weight is over

2004-02-15T20:31:00.000-08:00

As most of you know I was pretty exhilarated with my performance at the 2003

Philadelphia Marathon. I just can’t believe how far off my prediction was.

I am usually pretty accurate at predicting my race times, sometimes being so

close that if the prognostication was overly pessimistic I have been accused of

sandbagging or lowering expectations too much. I attribute my accuracy to a

three category approach I have always used to try and gauge my fitness before

an event.

I have always believed that to run your best a runner must have three things

going for them and each scales from 1 to 100 points:

The first is weight, which becomes more important as the distance lengthens. If

you think of a marathon as 50,000 steps then every extra pound you are carrying

is 50,000 pounds of stress on your legs. Weight is a personal thing based on

many factors including your bone density. What is a fit weight for one person

may not be so for another but I have gotten to know what my correct weight

ranges should be. Going into Philadelphia my weight was very worrisome. It had

been on an inexorable climb since September. I gave myself about a 30 or 35 (of

100) .

The second is leg strength which again is far more important as the distance

lengthens. The amount of hills whether up and down accentuates the need for leg

strength . While I was never sure exactly how long my long runs had been, they

were taking well over three hours and I felt better after each long run. I was

also doing significant weight training to strengthen my quads and hamstrings so

I give my leg strength about 85.

The final is aerobic capacity which is more important in the shorter races.

Aerobic capacity can be very helpful in predicting times because it enables you

to know what pace you are comfortable with. I had a good idea of what my

training run paces were and combined with mediocre race times gave me no more

than 40 or 50 rating.

There is a fourth variable that can be added and this is miscellaneous factors

that combine intangibles like attitude and race strategy with uncontrollables

like weather and health.

I think the miscellaneous factors again matter more when the race is longer.

One of my friends absolutely lives for colder running conditions which has

always been my preference.

So based on everything I knew, I had no reason to think I could go any faster

than 4:10 at best and I was starting to scale that back. My attitude was pretty

good and the weather was great which took some time off the predictor.

The secret of course, is to get everything working together at the same time

and find the perfect day and the perfect distance and you can then have your

perfect race. While Philly was far from a perfect race for me, the final time

was in comparison to my predicting indicators.

If I was 20 pounds lighter, with better aerobic capacity and similar leg

strength the miscellaneous factors would have to be pretty strongly negative

for me to not significantly beat this time. I hope I can test that one in my

next marathon.

Slow USATF 10 mile

2003-12-11T19:08:00.000-08:00

One last chance to show how slow I am. There are not a lot of reasons to go to
the USATF 10 mile championships. You get nothing for running the race-no goodie
bag or shirt-nada!. You are matched up against mostly very serious runners on a
three loop course where if you're as slow as me you actually get lapped by the
leaders. So why go? I kept asking the question.

As of about 9 am I wasn't positive I was going to run but I thought if I didn't
I would have no benchmark of where I was at the end of the year. The weather
was pretty good also, so I drove over.

This was a course that I knew real well having run close to 100 races there
mostly in the summer. I was hoping to break 82 minutes and figured I would try
and hold 7:45's to 7:50's as long as I could. I ran the first mile with Dean
Shonts and had a 7:46 but I couldn't hold it. Three miles was 24 minutes-5
miles was 41 and you get the idea.

I was slowing down and made a new goal of breaking 84. That became 85 minutes
as the leaders started lapping me between the sixth and seventh miles. The
winners did 52 minutes-my seventh mile was about 58 minutes. I was slowing to
just under nine minutes a mile and was running all alone. There were a few
runners slightly ahead of me and I almost caught one. I knew exactly how far I
had to go and actually ran the last mile pretty well. My finishing time of
84:25 was 17 minutes slower than I had run in 1996 and 5 minutes slower than
1997 where I had gotten hurt and walked almost a mile but I was still happy.

This was yet another case where a race time portended a slower marathon but in
the race that counted the most-I had a time at Philly I can be proud of for the
winter. Before I go to Florida on Wednesday I am planning on signing up for
Shore so I have a nice bullseye at the end of April to shoot for. Now,if I can
just start doing the Saturday ten miles a little closer to Sunday's time. My
legs are so sore today - I guess it was worth it.

McGuire wins 2003 Contact We Care

2003-08-26T18:48:00.000-07:00

Add hair styling to Zack Mcguire’s talents. Figuring he would need every advantage possible to try and improve on his second place finish at last years’ Fanwood Contact We Care 5K, Mcguire cut off nearly all of his hair Saturday afternoon only hours before the race. The new look paid immediate dividends as the Scotch Plains senior won the eighth annual race in 15:56.

“My hair had gotten too long.” said Mcguire. “It made me feel lighter. I had been running with extra weight all summer”.

Mcguire was satisfied to let 22-year-old Jeffrey Bingham of Madison, a recent college graduate set the pace for two miles.
Mcguire’s first mile was a comfortable 5:05,seven seconds behind the leader and his two mile split was 10:20 As the runners turned from Helen Street onto Coriell Avenue, Mcguire made his move drawing even with Bingham as the runners turned onto Martine.

“I knew there was nobody in back of me, so I figured why not go for it”, said Mcguire. “Even if I crashed and burned the last half mile I would still finish second”.

But there would be no repeat second as Mcguire used his superior finishing speed to win by four seconds in a time three seconds slower than his coach Jeff Koegel had run to finish third in 1997. Mcguire’s last mile was his fastest, 4:58.

“I am not surprised that he broke 16”, said Koegel of his star runner. “I am very proud of his continual improvement. He has worked very hard this summer”.

It was an all winning day for Koegel’s Scotch Plains Cross Country teams as his top girl runner, junior Mary Shashaty made her road running debut a memorable one by taking the women’s division in 20:20.

“We set a modest goal for her, to break 21 “, said Koegel. “She blew away her personal best by 34 seconds”.

“I tried to run an even race”, said Shashaty. “I just listened to what Coach Koegel told me to do”.

Scotch Plains runners past and present were ubiquitous in the top echelon with 2002 graduate Michael Dixon, finishing
sixth in 16:55. Dixon ran a 1:57 half mile this past spring for Ramapo College. Walter Biner, a 2003 graduate was ninth out of 309 finishers in 17:25.

Koegel, running the race for the first time since 1997 ran a subdued 20:20 finishing just behind Shashaty, but good enough to win his age group. “I felt good out there”, said Koegel. “I know I can go a lot faster”.

Although youth dominated the race, there were some impressive performances by area masters’ runners. Susan Graff, completed a sweep of the three area summer races by finishing first among female Fanwood runners and was second overall master in a time of 22:32.

Don Hessemer of Fanwood, was not a prize winner but he completed his eighth consecutive Fanwood 5k while doing what he usually does on race day, running 10 miles in the morning. “I’m training for a marathon,” said Hessemer, “so it’s important to get the long run in but I try and always run this race”.

It is said that for every finisher in a race there is an individual story. The second place masters’ finisher, 58 year old Douglas Brown of East Brunswick had no intention of running the race but he was working in the area on Saturday delivering local yellow pages and saw the large race sign on Martine Avenue between South and LaGrande .

“I always carry race stuff in the van with me, so I figured why not”, said Brown. “It was a very well done small town race”, said Brown.

The race was once again flawlessly directed by Mark Zenobia of On Your Mark Productions (OYMP), ably assisted by dozens of energetic Contact We Care and local volunteers.

2003 Contact We Care Preview

2003-08-17T18:43:00.000-07:00

When Jeff Koegel first experienced the Contact We Care Fanwood 5k race in 1997
it was as an elite runner hoping to finish first, a goal he fell just short of,
finishing third in 15:53. When the Scotch Plains Fanwood boys and girls cross
country coach toes the line this Saturday night for the eighth annual race it
will be for the first time in six years and with much more modest ambitions.

“I’m just going to be a pacesetter for one of my (cross country team) girls “,
said Koegel, who in a few weeks will begin his seventh season as boys coach and
his second as girls’ coach. Koegel’s masterful rebuilding of the Raiders’ cross
country programs parallels his own recovery from numerous leg surgeries and
helps shape his own perspective towards running the race and his philosophy of
coaching.

“Several doctors told me I would never run again so I just want to show
everyone I can still do it. I also want to help the kids that I work with
understand what the sport is about”, added Koegel whose most serious surgery
was an entire reconstruction of his right leg which left in on crutches for two
months during 2000.

Koegel will have particular interest in the front of the pack where one of his
Raider runners has a good chance of winning the race for a second straight
year. Senior Zack Mcguire , second a year ago to former Raider star Bob Walden
figures to set the pace especially since Walden, an outstanding collegiate
runner at Columbia will miss the race.
Walden ran 16:10 and Mcguire 16:20 and both would have an excellent chance of
improving on Koegel’s time according to the coach. “They have been pushing each
other this summer” said Koegel..

Also expected to contend is senior Brian Kopnicki 13th a year ago and expected
to be the number two runner on this falls’ Raider team.

As tempting as it is for his runners to enter and excel during the busy summer
road racing season, Koegel has strongly discouraged it using his own
experiences which he believes led to his physical ailments.”My college coach
over raced me “ recalled Koegel.

“I did fine in cross country when we only had to race once a week but in track
the dual meets during the week killed me”, said Koegel a 5000 and 10,000 meter
star at Lebanon Valley College in Pennsylvania. While he learned to race with
minor aches and pains throughout college, Koegel never had any major problems
until April 2000, when during a routine track workout he tore his hamstring.
After going through physical therapy for a month without any significant
improvement,Koegel decided to see a specialist who diagnosed eight or nine
things wrong with his leg.

The first surgery was in June 2000. “He went through my knee like Grant went
through Richmond” , recalled Koegel. “It was a very depressing time for
me,thinking I might never be able to run again”. Koegel .

If past races are any indication, Koegel will be joined by over 300 runners
Saturday night. Under the direction of Mark Zenobia of On Your Mark Productions
(OYMP) and with the help of Frank Gousman and the dedicated volunteers from
Contact We Care the race has become a staple of the late summer running
schedule Debuting in 1996 with 288 runners, the race has drawn between 300 and
400 the past six years.

The festivities start at 5 pm with a kids sprint for ages 2-11. The races
increase in distance for each age group The main event goes off at 5:45 pm. The
men’s record was 15:25 by Amilcar Duarte in 1998 and the women’s by Jodie
Dariano , a 17:53 in 1998.

The course starts on Martine Ave and crosses LaGrande and South Avenues before
turning right on North Avenue. The one mile mark is passed as the runners make
a hairpin left onto Midway. The runners go left on Martine and right on south
before crossing the railroad tracks over Sheelen’s Crossing. After going left
on South they run a short distances on 2nd before going right on
LaGrande,passing the finish line and the two mile mark. They then head left on
Helen Street before making another left onto Coriell and another left on
Martine before turning left one more time back onto La Grande where the finish
line sits in front of the park.

“It is a fair,challenging course with four good upgrades”, said Koegel. After
the race will an invitational wheelchair race at 6:30.

The proceeds from the race benefit Contact We Care a 24 by 7 telephone
hotline serving residents of Union, Essex, Middlesex and Somerset Counties. It
trains and supervises volunteers who listen, understand and assist callers to
work through their problems. The hotline number, 908-232-2880, receives over
1,000 calls per month.