Sacramento Running News

Charlie Brenneman (left) and the author show off their Urban Cow trophies. (SRN photo)

If races have seasons, then we’re definitely in the middle of road half marathon season. October has already seen the Urban Cow, Humboldt Redwoods (part of the PAUSATF Road Grand Prix), and Folsom Blues Breakout.

Next weekend, you have a choice between the Clarksburg Country Run, or the new Run the Parkway Half, hosted by the Sacramento Running Association.

It’s hard to imagine that SRA isn’t directly targeting the Clarksburg events since they are offering similar 20 mile and 5 km distances alongside a more competitive half marathon.

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Second place woman Sara Hall and Charlie Brenneman are nearly to the finish of the Sactown 10. (SRN photo)

By Ellen Moore

After setting event records for money raised and runners registered for Sunday’s Credit Union SACTOWN Run, past champions Jordan Chipangama and Jane Kibii kept the momentum going by besting strong elite fields to win 10-mile individual titles and claim the $2,000 first prizes.

As an added bonus, Kibii, a 31-year old Kenya native who has lived in Auburn, set the women’s course record by nearly a minute to take home an additional $500 course record reward.

The SACTOWN event, organized by the Sacramento Running Association and sponsored by credit unions from California and Nevada, raised more than $200,000 for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, which includes UC Davis Children’s Hospital.

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Garrett Heath wins! (Photo courtesy of Erik Aguilar at www.painani.org)

San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park was the site of the this year’s USATF 2015 National Club Cross Country Championships, and it was action packed!

More than 1,700 of the nation’s best adult cross country runners converged on the park for several intensely competitive races on a hilly course, that wound through the park and finished on the broad track above the polo field.

Although the day was dry, recent rains left mud and standing water throughout the course. I’ve run several cross country races over the years, but I’ve never seen anything like the quality and quantity of runners out there on Saturday.

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Tim Tollefson powers up the hill for the win. (Photo by www.painani.org)

The Pacific Association’s cross country series started last weekend in Santa Cruz, but the first local race of the season was at Ancil Hoffman on Saturday.

Runners at the 4th Annual Rebels XC Challenge–hosted by the River City Rebels–enjoyed picture-perfect weather and a classic turf and trail course through the rolling hills around Ancil Hoffman Park.

As usual, the PA series event included three races: women, masters men (40+), and open men.

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“When I was still in contact with 100 to go, I knew I could do it. When I really need to do it, an emotional moment for me, very important, I can pull it out.” Awesome photo courtesy of Painani.org.

By John Schumacher

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Mo Bartley takes home a sweet, sweet plaque for her effort. (SRN photo)

On Saturday, several hundred runners kicked off the Memorial Day weekend with a run of the No Excuses 5K, Sacramento’s long-standing, age-graded race.

The key to winning this event is to be unusually fast for your age, and this year it was Mo Bartley, 59, of Auburn, who hit that sweet-spot and trounced all comers with a 20:44 finish that age-graded to 14:11.

Finishing in second place was Janice Kesterson, 60, of Oakdale, with a 21:07 that age-grades to a 14:15.

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By John Schumacher

Amid the sounds of Johnny Cash, Turlock’s Miguel Nuci and Auburn’s Jane Kibii earned individual honors Saturday in the inaugural Folsom Blues Breakout Half Marathon.

The race, sponsored by the Sacramento Running Association and presented by the city of Folsom, attracted 3,000 runners on a mild, pleasant fall morning.

Cash’s presence was everywhere, from the view of Folsom Prison and the recording of him talking about the grand old flag at the start on Folsom Lake Crossing Bridge to the bands playing his music along the course to the James Garner Johnny Cash cover band at the finish.

Nuci, who runs for the Sacramento Running Association’s Elite Team, took the lead five miles into the 13.1-mile race and pulled away to win the men’s title in 1 hour, 9 minutes and 42 seconds. Auburn’s Brad Poore finished second in 1:09:59 and Rocklin’s Charlie Brenneman, another SRA Elite Team member, grabbed third in 1:10:48.

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Barbara Miller running strong (SRN photo)

On an uncharacteristically cool Memorial Day morning, several hundred runners and walkers lined up in Land Park for another running of the No Excuses 5K.

No Excuses is Sacramento’s original opportunity for fast young men to get their clocks cleaned by older, fast women and pre-teens in the age-graded results–a race within a race, so to speak.

In the age-graded results, winner Barbara Miller, 73, of Modesto continues to dominate by continuing to run pretty darn fast–age graded or not.

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Dan Weintraub chases Marie Sample to the finish line.

It’s been a week since the marathon and it seems like a good time to  finally wrap up the news on the event. Hopefully it was worth the wait as we’ve got a bucket-full of fun facts for you!

The weather was close to perfect for this time of year. Although the streets were wet from the previous night’s deluge, the rain quit before the start and waited to resume until later in the afternoon.

Dylan Wykes, a Canadian, led wire-to-wire for the win in 2:12:39. Ethiopian Buzunesh Deba, the defending women’s champion, was first woman in 2:32:13.  Read what the Bee’s John Schumacher has to say about it.

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