Sacramento Running News

Three thousand plus runners and walkers braved fierce winds along the river this morning at the Parkway Half Marathon and 5K.

Jeff Gardina, of Santa Clara, pulled off the half marathon win in a smoking 1:15:49. Chris Pollack, of Sacramento, and Jason Harne, of Folsom, earned 2nd and 3rd with 1:17:54 and 1:18:45.

The top woman was Kelly Wisnicky, of Fair Oaks, in 1:30:16. Rounding out the top three women were Jennifer Kent, of Sacramento, and Marrie Chen, of Davis, in 1:31:53 and 1:32:20.

In the 5K, the first in was Alex Diehl, of Lodi, in 16:25. The top woman, and 3rd overall, was Kimberly Williams, of Berkeley, in 18:26.

Rounding out the top women of the 5K were Sarah Carvill, of Santa Cruz, and Julia Christian, of Sacramento, in 23:12 and 25:08. The 2nd and 3rd men were Curt Casazza, of Cameron Park, and Kyle MacLachlan, of Eldorado Hills, in 18:13 and 21:44.

Did I mention that Kimberly Williams was third overall?

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If you are planning to run on the American River Parkway this Saturday, you should probably avoid the area within six-miles of William Pond. The Parkway Half Marathon will be starting there at 7:15, and the Parkway is otherwise “closed” in this area until noon.

Remember that the Parkway Half is actually two out-and-back races, with walkers going upstream from William Pond and the runners going downstream.

Plan accordingly!

The Minimus Road in garish blue and yellow. (Go Bears?)

Until now, I couldn’t imagine finding a running shoe that I ever felt was worth writing home about. I always enjoy getting new running shoes, but for me shoes are by nature a utilitarian purchase, something not typically freighted with emotion.

But, there is something different about these particular running shoes.

Dear Mom and Dad,

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In the very popular book Born To Run, author Christopher McDougall describes how humans were evolved to hunt by simply outrunning the animals they were hunting. In the book, he tells of a researcher who was able to join a hunter gatherer tribe and run down wild game in Africa.

Sadly, this has never been duplicated in the US, even though it would likely be the premise of a wickedly popular reality television program. This could be because of inadequate hunting and tracking ability on the part of those individuals who have tried. It could also be because the runners weren’t hungry enough.

In this month’s Outside Magazine, they describe the experience of a group of very fast marathoners attempting to chase down a pronghorn in New Mexico.

Entertaining reading. You should check it out!.

About a month ago, when talking about the Hornets prospects for the rest of the season, distance coach Scott Abbott promised big things for 800 meter runner Lea Wallace. He noted that at the time, “Lea Wallace was the number one ranked half-miler in the nation at 2:03.07.”

Well, Wallace has since improved on that time with a 2:02.95 at the Mondo Mid-Major Challenge, setting a school record in the process. Wallace’s time also maintains her standing the nation’s fastest in the 800, and sets her up as the one to beat at this year’s NCAA Champs.

We’ll be looking forward to seeing what she can do at the NCAA Div I Championships in June.

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The World Masters Athletics Championships (AKA World Masters Track & Field Championships) are coming to the good old USA this July, for the first time since 1995.

As exciting as that is, you should be thrilled to pieces to know that they will be held right here in River City! (Right here!)

I know what you’re saying: “But I’m only 37! I’m too young to be a masters athlete!”

Well, fortunately for you, you sprightly younger person, for purposes of the Masters Track & Field World Championships, a masters runner is anyone 35 or older!

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This morning, I took a run through Discovery Park to see if the trail was clear of water at last.

There was still the carcass of a large salmon, somewhat worked over by scavengers, lying on the grass near the archery range. It seemed an ominous sign.

Between the 0.5 and 1.o mile marks, there was a large, smelly pond lying across the trail–but there was a narrow strip of asphalt showing along one edge of the trail.

Bicyclists could pass easily, but would be happiest with fenders. Runners could jump across with maybe one shoe getting soaked with dank water.

By tomorrow, I expect there will be a ribbon of dry pavement to run across.

That being said, the county is stating that Discovery Park will remain closed until April 30th so the parks folks can clean things up. (The park itself is still a disgusting mess.)

Other than that, the parkway is now clear, for runners and cyclists, all the way from downtown to Folsom Lake. Start running!

The world of sports lost one of its true champions today in the passing of marathon great Grete Waitz.

I can’t think of a runner today who enjoys the stature of Grete Waitz in her heyday. Only in the rarest of individuals does one ever find her combination of incredible talent, indomitable spirit, and humility.

In 2007, I had the pleasure of hearing Grete speak at the Boston Marathon Expo. She told of her first run of the New York City Marathon. She was warm, engaging and funny. She charmed the audience with a tale, not of the unbreakable champion, but of the incredible naif. Out of her depth. Overwhelmed by the experience, and difficulty of the marathon, she somehow emerged an unlikely champion.

In 1978, Greta Waitz was the world record holder in the 3000 meters and, as she told the story, her husband thought they should use that to get a free trip to visit America from their native Norway.

The race director of the New York Marathon was the first race to take them up on this, thinking that she would make a good rabbit to help speed the elite women to a fast time.

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The sun will come up tomorrow, and the village of Hopkinton‘s population will swell to triple its usual number, the streets of Boston will ring with the rubber tread of the shoes of tens of thousands of runner, and the women of Wellesley will be screaming their heads off and making even the most mediocre of runners feel like a rock star, if for only about 300 meters.

If you are there, well done. If not, chances are you’d like to be.

In either case, Competitor.com has an entertaining video of a Training Day With Ryan Hall. You can see what Ryan does for his final pre-Boston big workout.

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NB Minimus Trail

The New Balance Minimus Trail is another in the growing herd of “minimal” style trail running shoes. It was designed with the assistance of bearded ultra-runner phenom Anton Krupicka.

When you pick up the Minimus, the first thing you’ll notice about the shoe is that it is amazingly light in weight. The shoe weighs in at a measly 7.1 ounces–2.5 ounces lighter than my current light-weight trail favorites: the Saucony Peregrine!

Other details you’ll notice upon closer inspection are the lack of a removable insole, a rather thin and flexible sole, and a set of stretchy stability straps wrapping the forefoot and back of the heel. The heel-toe drop is a slight 4 mm, going from 15 mm in the heel to 11 mm in the forefoot. This is the same drop as the Kinvara or Peregrine, but in the Minimus you’ll feel considerably lower to the ground.

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