Talk about a punchy intro! The lead to this nice story about local Olympic Trials Marathon bound runner, Megan Daly, begins thus:
Megan Daly saves lives by day and trains for the olympic trials by night.
Makes her sound a bit like Buckaroo Banzai.
Lloyd Levine
Quick! Name the second fastest (ever) female U.S. Marathon runner. The answer will probably surprise you.
Recently, I wrote about Ryan Hall and the state of men’s marathon running in the United States. Given that, it seems only fair to look at the status of women’s marathon running in the U.S. as well. The women don’t have a Ryan Hall type figure (i.e. fast times but no wins) who draws praise, and scorn in equal measures, but the status of women’s marathon running in the U.S. is not much different from that of the men. There are a few women marathon runners who draw praise and generate excitement but, except for Deena Kastor, have little to show in the way of meaningful results or times. Additionally, like the men, there is really very little depth in the talent pool.
Most serious marathon runners in the United States probably know that Deena Kastor holds the American Record, but do you know who the second and third fastest are? After analyzing the 1,875 (which is how many times the 2:30 mark has been broken) fastest women’s marathon times of all time it appears that the United States has only had two, legitimate, top-level marathon runners, Deena Kastor and Joan Benoit–who is still the second fastest U.S. woman of all time, despite having run her best time 1985. (Editor’s Note: The list, updated today, now includes 1,917 names but the analysis of the standing of the US women has not changed materially.)
Deena Kastor and Joan Benoit are the only U.S. women to have won major marathons, posted times competitive with the best in the world, and won Olympic medals. Deena Kastor has a PR of 2:19:36, good for 11th place on the all time list (and fifth on the all time list of women not named Paula Radcliffe). Deena won the bronze medal in the Athens Olympics, and has won London and Chicago (as well as many other top finishes). Joan Benoit has a PR of 2:21:21, won the Olympic Gold medal, held the world record, and won numerous marathons.
The Mathis were the force behind the Sierra Nevada Trail Runs.
According to a report in the Reno Gazette Journal, around 8:00 PM Friday night, Robert and Linda Mathis were struck and killed while crossing Highway 28, in a painted crosswalk, in Incline Village.
Although they haven’t released details, the Nevada Highway Patrol suspect drug use was involved in the accident. The driver, Christopher Smith, was arrested and booked into Washoe County Jail on two counts of DUI causing death and failure to yield to a pedestrian.
The Mathis are widely known in the road and ultrarunning community, and Robert Mathis is the race director behind a large number of races, including the River City Marathon and Rock’n River 50.
The end of 2011 is upon us so it’s time to check out the results of the major road race series/grand prix that local runners compete in.
We’ll start with Sacramento’s own Buzz Oates RunSac Race Series. This year-long series of local races is a points competition with over $7,000 in prize money and bonuses. Points are earned based on age-graded performances in more than a dozen top Sacramento-area road races. There are awards for team and individual competition, and in 2011, there were several hundred individuals and eight local teams vying for the prize money.
The top placing individuals for 2011 were Janice Kesterson, 57, running for the Buffalo Chips, and Terry Baucom, 54, running for Fleet Feet Racing.
Second and third individual women were Karen Jeffers, 48, with the River City Rebels, and Stacey Worthen, 38, running for Fleet Feet Racing.
Hitchings nearing the finish at the Rocket City Marathon in Huntsville
This morning, Sacramento’s Jenny Hitchings won the Huntsville, Alabama Rocket City Marathon.
After a near miss earlier this year in Eugene (2:46:10), Hitchings was aiming for an Olympic Trials qualifying time at last weekend’s CIM.
Fairly early in the race, she was off pace and knew it was not going to happen, so she dropped at the half-marathon point. Later that day, she joked a bit with me about finding another marathon to run the following weekend, before the qualifying window closes.
Nice place to visit, but don't drink the water!
I have heard it said that there is no such thing as bad publicity. Is this still true?
Last weekend’s Las Vegas Zappos.com Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon is getting a lot of press and discussion on the boards this week, but it’s probably not the kind of news they were hoping for.
There were complaints of mayhem and confusion at the finish line, runners possibly getting sick from the aid station water, and my favorite, allegations of cheating in the half-marathon by the CEO of Competitor Group (the race management/promotion company).
Sounds like good times!
Your last chance for an OT qualifying time
Next weekend’s California International Marathon is pretty much the last chance for runners to earn an Olympic Trials Qualifying time.
Today’s Bee includes some pretty decent coverage of local marathoners gunning for this magic time at next weekend’s CIM.
Dec. 11 is the last day to qualify for the 2012 Trials – scheduled for Jan. 14 in Houston – which means those attempting to qualify at the CIM most likely will be taking their final shot. The men’s standard is 2:19; the women’s is 2:46.
Check out the article, it’s definitely worth the read. In the Sports Section, no less!
Kevin Pool at the 2010 San Diego Half (Photo courtesy of Kevin Pool)
Local speedster Kevin Pool stormed Philadelphia this weekend and wound up taking 2nd overall in the Philadelphia Marathon–just 6-seconds behind Ethiopia’s Folisho Tuko.
Tuko’s winning time was 2:19:16.
The winning woman was Mariska Kramer, of the Netherlands, in 2:35:46.
You wake up on Thanksgiving morning and realize it’s only a matter of hours before you’ll be forced to endure another retelling of your father-in-law’s story about that time in college when he and his drunken buddies carried the Volkswagen beetle into the physics lecture hall.
Or maybe you’re dreading your aunt Murtle’s terrible political opinions and her even worse lime jello salad, as well as your annoying vegan cousin and her endless muttering about “meat is murder.”
Perhaps you’re lucky, and looking forward to a house-full of wonderful people and great food, but would like a bit of exercise to start the day.
There are many reasons to join your friends and neighbors for an organized run on Thanksgiving morning. Fortunately, in this region, there are so many Thanksgiving Day races you have no excuse not to run one.
Things have changed for women runners!
There are a couple of recent articles about women runners of note that are delightful in their juxtaposition, in what they say about women’s running.
First off was a New York Times article about women’s running pioneer Dr. Julia Chase-Brand.
On Thanksgiving Day, Dr. Julia Chase-Brand, 69, plans to run a 4.75-mile race in Manchester, Conn., where the presence of women will be plentiful and unremarkable. Fifty years ago, when she and two other women ran there the first time, it was a widely publicized act of civil disobedience that became a pioneering moment in female distance running in the United States.
Not only was she pushing against the AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) prohibitions against women competing in road races, she was fast. Starting a block behind the rest of the runners (to avoid race officials), she still managed a 33:40 for that run.
