Cranford Boys 2006 XC Preview

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

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

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.