|
|
|
I finally got around to running in a race, although it was low-key as can be. The Triple Cities Runners Club had an informal 10K--no frills, no t-shirt, awards only for first place, no post race party to speak of, and it was free.
The course was three two mile loops plus an added .2 miles at the end to make this a truly accurate 10 kilometers. I'm not in real good shape, but I'm not out of shape. I've just been running--no hard runs, no long runs (10 miles was my longest.)
There were 50 runners in this race, all race-day registrants. I was impressed at the size of the field for this impromptu race and even more impressed by the quality of the field. I was hoping to go sub 40:00 which would break Brian Norton's club record of 41:09. I went out easy and found myself in third place. Conaire "Deamworld" Foran and Bob "Hot-dog" Nugent (no relation to Ted) went out hard. A couple minutes into the race I was caught by Mike Kent, Bryon LeBarre (who was busy checking out scantily clad women--it was 85 degrees out), Dave Winslow, and some guy named Simon. We
|
|
|
|
|
cruised along at 6:00 pace, dropped Simon early and continued to run each two mile loop in exactly 12:00. My lungs were full of phlegm, which I was reproducing as fast as I could hack it up and spit it out. With about a quarter mile left Mike Kent and Dave Winslow dropped me. LaBarre had long since dropped off the pace. Going into the finish I held off a sprinting LaBarre thanks to my wife shouting, "He's coming back at you!" at the top of her voice. I finished in fourth place in 37:11--a new club record. Bob Nugent dropped out for undetermined reasons, although we can all probably determine that he was afraid to loose to a the 19-year-old Conair Foran, who took the race in 33:59. Mike Kent, the former editor of the TCRC newsletter (which was never as good as this one) finished third in 36:55.
Some Random Thoughts a' la Larry King:
It's just like good ol' Dwight Galbi to fearlessly take on an Olympian, even it that Olympian is all washed up and in the wrong sport...Welcome back Brian Norton, just start
|
|
|
|
|
answering your mail please. We can't all send e-mail because not all of us have given in to the cancerous computer age. Some of us brave souls have held out... "Expletive Deleted" sure brings back memories. Most notably what an (Expletive Deleted) Cliff Bills is. But it's nice to hear from someone living in North Carolina....My one complaint about the newsletter: Until this month there hasn't been enough coverage of me, Michael J. Cordi. I mean, come on! Someone runs a 6:30 pace for 5k and gets half a page? I do that in training runs. And I've even started to mountain bike...By the way, I've noticed that Dave Wisnisky handles his mountain bike like a $2,000 prostitute. You figure it out...More next month....
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
On May 17, Brian Norton placed second in the Highgate 10K, becoming the first American to cross the finish line in this tough international field. "Some Canadian guy won," Brian reports. "He tossed in a surge at the two mile mark, opened up a gap and I just couldn't pull him back. The rest of the way he just stayed
|
|
|
|
|
100 yards ahead of me."
Looking back on the race, Brian was able to recognize the turning point where a victory was lost. "The first 5k was just too fast. I needed to be in better shape to be able to make a move. I was just holding on. Still, I did well and I'm happy with my performance. "
Brian's time was 41:32, which
|
|
|
|
|
is excellent because this course is almost all uphill, leading to a very high gate.
And competitors in this race have their efforts rewarded by numerous prizes. Besides the typical t-shirt, all runners receive a flashlight and a water bottle.
Return to Page 1
Go on to Page 5
|
|
|
|
