Sacramento Running News

Kevin Pool gets the win. (SRN Photo)

It always seems like summer is finally winding down when cross country races pop up on the calendar.

This year, for your running pleasure, there are three PAUSATF Grand Prix cross country races in the Sacramento area. These races are quite competitive as they draw talented runners from across Northern California.

It was a little hot, but there was a good crowd on hand as The River City Rebels hosted the first of these races today in Granite Regional Park: the First Annual Rebels XC Challenge

Today’s race followed the usual format, with separate races for women, masters men, and open men. For this race, the women ran 5K and the men ran 7K.

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The Start of the 2011 Susan B. Anthony 5K (Photo courtesy of Craig Newport)

If you were in River Park on Saturday morning, you were in for a treat as the Susan B. Anthony 5K, one of Sacramento’s oldest running traditions, showed it is as important as ever.

The Buffalo Chips have been hosting this race for 35 years, and Race Director Carol Parise has been at the helm for the past several of those years. This experience showed and the race continues to be a popular first race for many women in the region.

“We were really overwhelmed by the response for this year’s race,” said Race Director Carol Parise. “Our numbers were up significantly from last year’s event, so clearly, there is a demand for a well run, supportive, women’s race in Sacramento.”

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Alberto Zanelli of Italy running the 3rd leg of the 4x100 relay.

After a 10-day run, the curtain has come down on the 2011 World Masters Athletics Championships.

Was it worth the hype? Was Sacramento a worthy host? Was it fun?

Yes, yes, and yes!

What About the Weather?

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The Czech delegation for the World Masters Champs checks out Old Sacramento.

I took advantage of the beautiful weather today to enjoy a running commute to my office in downtown Sacramento.

As I passed through Old Sacramento on my way to downtown, I noticed it was overrun by a friendly army of foreign athletes here for the World Masters Athletics Championships.

As I ran by the Railroad Museum, I was flagged down by a gentleman by the name of Jaroslav Hovorka.

Jaroslav Hovorka, it turns out, is here from the Czech Republic to compete in the throwing pentathlon.

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A couple of weeks ago, I wrote here about drug testing for the upcoming World Masters Athletics Championships that will be held this month in Sacramento.

It was nice to see in this morning’s Sacramento Bee, Sam McManis giving it the full treatment. McManis does an excellent job of picking through the various facets of the issue.

The money quote from elite masters runner Pete Magill:

“Like it or not, the perception of drug use among all athletes is out there,” he said. “It’s important that, as a group, we submit to drug testing to fight that perception. Any time now anyone has a great performance, the first thing people think is not, ‘That’s a great performer.’ They think, ‘That guy has a great pharmacist.’ “

I couldn’t agree more. It’s a definite “must read.”

If you are planning to run in this summer’s World Masters Athletics Championships, you should be aware that there will be dope testing.

While reporting on last summer’s National Masters Championships, as national and world records fell like rain, I started to wonder about the lack of doping controls.

I felt bad for the clean athletes who might be setting records. The lack of controls made me questions the results, and I know I’m not alone on this point.

Fortunately, this year’s World’s Masters Championships will have doping controls. (more…)

Jenny Hitchings after the 2011 Eugene Marathon

Local speedy master, and Buffalo Chips Race Team coach, Jenny Hitchings gets the Age Group Ace treatment in the June issue of Running Times magazine.

Check it out!

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The World Masters Athletics Championships (AKA World Masters Track and Field Champs) are a little more than a month away and there is excitement in the air. It’s a little like you’re a kid waiting for Christmas, except maybe you’re hoping that Santa Claus is going to bring you that massive track meet you’ve always wanted!

(I suppose I should task the interns with rounding up some better metaphors.)

Most of the venues are pretty easy to figure out. One world-class track is pretty much the same as another. The critical question for most of the events is: What’s the weather going to be like? (It’ll be July in Sacramento so the odds are good it will be warm and sunny.)

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If, perhaps, you forgot to register for the World Masters Track and Field Championships and are still interested (and have a few bucks lying around), you may be in luck!

The Sacramento Local Organizing Committee is reporting that late entries are being accepted, but not for very long. There is a $50 late penalty until May 6th, when it goes up to $100–until a “a to-be-determined date in mid-May.”

Better hurry up! That registration isn’t going to get filled out by itself.

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It must be spring! Not only am I sneezing every 30-seconds, it seems as though we were overwhelmed with races and tasty results to report on.

In track and field, Stanford was host to the 2011 Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational, where the Hornets’ Lea Wallace turned out the 2nd fastest Division I 1500 of the year. Wallace, in her first 1500 of the season, ran 4:11.31. The only collegiate athlete ahead of her is Jordan Hasay (Oregon), who ran 4:10.28 in the same race this weekend. Letsrun.com has an excellent write-up about the event.

Up in Oregon on Sunday, Sacramento’s Jenny Hitchings ran a PR 2:46:10 in the Eugene Marathon–just 11 seconds shy of the Women’s Olympic Trials Marathon qualifying time. Hitchings was 5th woman overall, and 2nd masters behind Bend’s Kami “The Machine” Semick.

Speaking of close calls, at the Quicksilver 50K in San Jose, Jen Pfeifer, of El Dorado (former of Folsom), was reportedly in the lead until the final mile of the race where she went off course and picked up several extra minutes. While lost, Pfeifer was passed by a more attentive Adona Ramos, of San Jose. Ramos took the win with only about 15-seconds to spare.

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