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The 2010 USATF-NE Grand Prix Series has been selected by an online vote of the membership. A total of 440 votes were cast during the one-week period from November 11 through 18. The results of the vote have been verified by the LDR Chairs and the winning schedule is Slate "C", as follows:

Jones Group Realtors 10 Mile, 10M, Amherst MA, Sun, Feb. 28
New Bedford Half Marathon, 13.1M, New Bedford MA, Sun., Mar 21
Bedford Rotary Memorial 12K,12K , Bedford NH, Sat., May 22
Rhody 5K (MEN ONLY) ,5K ,Lincoln RI , Sun., June 6
Stowe 8 Miler, 8M, Stowe VT, Sun., July 18
Bridge of Flowers 10K , 10K , Shelburne Falls MA, Sat., August 14
Providence Ronald McDonald House Women's Classic (WOMEN ONLY) 5K, Providence, Sun, Oct. 3

In a separate vote, the Marathon selected is the Bay State Marathon, Lowell MA, Sun., Oct. 17, 8:00 AM

The vote was the final step in new process in which a selection committee consisting of the Long Distance Running Chairs and representatives from the clubs created a ballot from the 17 bidding races with 4 slates of non-marathon distance races, a separate ballot question for the marathon distance and a survey question on a post-series awards banquet. The Survey Question for a banquet was 54% in favor.

Timothy Davis (Team RUN) had a strong race in winning the Bantam Boys race on The Farm (courtesy Mark Coddaire)

Timothy Davis (Team RUN) had a strong race in winning the Bantam Boys race on The Farm
(Photo courtesy Mark Coddaire)

After the rains of Saturday, it was a perfect day on Sunday for the USATF-NE Junior Olympic Cross Country meet at Freestyle Farm in Amherst NH. The 557 entries was the largest in 5 years.

Five teams took home at least one team title, led by Granite State Flash's four (Midget Girls, Midget Boys, Youth Boys, Intermediate Girls). Sentinel Striders took two wins (Intermediate Boys, Young Men), with Bradford Elementary (Bantam Boys), Nashua PAL (Bantam Girls), and GCS Triad (Youth Girls) each with one team win.

The top 3 teams and individuals finishing in the top 25 advance to this weekend's Region I meet in Augusta Maine. Results are at usatfne.org/cross and Region I info is at meusatf.org.

Jennifer Donovan (new balance Boston / Boston MA) was named to the Team USA squad for the 2009 International Chiba Ekiden to be held Monday, November 23 in Chiba, Japan. Ten nations will be represented in the event. The race features mixed teams of men and women running six alternating legs totaling the marathon distance (26.22 miles / 42.195 km). It's her first selection to represent Team USA.

Ben Nephew and Lisa Mikkelsen at the RI 6 Hour Run on Sunday, the USATF-NE ultra distance championship. It was the first ultra title race in the association in several years.

Nephew (Mansfield MA / CMS) covered 51.323 miles in 5:58:41 (distance based on last complete lap in the time period) running much of the race with Martin Tighe (Providence / TNT) who was one minute behind at 5:59:41 and earning the masters gold. Third USATF-NE finisher was Seth Roberts (Longmeadow MA / GSH) at 37.817 miles in 5:53:57. Mikkelsen (Holliston MA / INOV-8) was first open and master NE runner; the overall women's winner was Danielle Cherniak of Cohoes NY at 41.409 miles. 67 individuals took part in this successful first-ever competition.

The NE ultra championship will vary in distance from 50K through 100K in future years, based on the event selected. Full results at coolrunning.com.

CMS team at the USA Trail Marathon Championship (courtesy of Dave Dunham)

CMS team at the USA Trail Marathon Championship
(Photo courtesy of Dave Dunham)

The Central Mass Striders foursome of Jim Johnson, Dan Verrington, Dave Dunham, and Judge Jones combined to win both the USATF National Trail Marathon Open and Masters Team Championships in Ashland, Oregon on Sunday. The first three took the open gold, and with Jones replacing Johnson in the totals, the masters crown as well. All scored individual medals; Johnson placed fifth overall in 2:56:57, Verrington and Dunham finished 1-2 in the M45-49 division (3:03:10 / 3:09:36) and 9/11 overall, and Jones second 55-59 (3:48:39, 23rd overall.

The individual race winner was former US world cross country team member Max King of Bend OR (2:40:23). Full results at usatf.org

Back from injuries, Kent Lemme won the masters championship.
Photo: Henry Finch

Lucas Meyer and Jenn Donovan led the men's and women's fields, respectively around Franklin Park on Sunday to win their first New England Cross Country Titles. Two weekend days in a row with great cross country weather made for good racing conditions.

Meyer (BAA) dueled with Ruben Sanca (Boston) and was ultimately first down the straightaway, stopping the clock at 30:05 with his pursuer 13 seconds back after 10K. Donovan (New Balance Boston) had a larger gap over the shorter 6K, winning in 20:

The Boston Athletic Association claimed both open team titles, followed by Greater Boston TC and New Balance Boston in the men's totals; the latter clubs reversed order in the women's tallies.

Kent Lemme (Williamstown MA) led a 1-2-4 finish of individual placers by Greater Springfield Harriers in the masters 8K, enough for the team win over Dirigo. Within the women's race, Christine Reaser was the first 40+ by 7 seconds over Jen Hegarty, and Green Mountain AA won the 40+ team honors over Liberty as both totaled 13 but GMAA having the better third scorer.

Other masters placers and team scores are with the results at usatfne.org/cross

Stonehill College (North Easton MA) and U.Mass.-Lowell will advance both their men's and women's teams to the NCAA Division II Nationals in two week, based on their top two finish placings in the East Region qualifier at Franklin Park on Sunday. Stonehill led UML 51-76 on the women's while the placers were reversed in the men's race, River Hawks winning 43-67 over Sky Hawks. The two squads have dominated the team results in the region in recent years.

Two other New England collegians will advance as individuals by placing in the top 5 overall. Following a series of victories including the all-New Englands this fall, overall men's winner Glarius Rop of American International College (Springfield) dominated the race and clocked 30:16 ahead of runner-up and teammate Victor Kemboi; both will also Evansville IN on November 21.

More information at goriverhawks.com

Under sunny skies and in seasonal temperatures, the first Massachusetts Middle School Invitational Championship, sponsored by Saucony, ran a successful series of races on Saturday at Devens. A team championship plus three grade races for both boys and girls had spirited competition and runners from nearly 100 schools, who covered the 1.7 mile two loop course; the girls team event having the top 3 teams within three points.

Alexia Lipman of Bromfield /Harvard ran the fastest girls time, 9:52 in the team race. Diamond Middle School of Lexington topped all schools with 132 points.

The boys' fastest time was turned in by Jordan Comeau of Murdoch/Winchendon in 9:21 in the eighth grade race. The R.J.Gray Middle School of Acton/Boxborough was the winning boys team at 109 points.

Full results at coolrunning.com

Joan Samuelson at NYC Marathon
Photo: Used with permission from the Running Network

Sunday's New York City Marathon was the largest marathon in history, and several performances of note among the 43,475 finishers in the 40th anniversary race. US Olympian Meb Keflezighi became the first American winner since Alberto Salazar in 1982, clocking a personal best 2:09:15 to beat 4 time Boston Champ Robert Cheruiyot and two time World Champion Jaouad Gharib.

In the USA Men's Championship contest, Pat Tarpey (Providence) was the first New England finisher in his debut at the distance, placing 21st overall/13 US in 2:20:43.

On the women's side (not the championship), reliable Heidi (Westerling) Westover was 13th in 2:44:59. In 17th, Joan Benoit Samuelson continues to defy the aging process, setting a the US women's age 50+ record in 2:49:09.

In other weekend accomplishments outside the 6 state region by locals, Portsmouth NH HS grad Cory Thorne, now at U.Louisville, won the Big East Conference cross country championships held in Kenosha WI, and Harvard's Dan Chenoweth led the field at the Heptagonals (Ivy League) at Van Cortlandt Park, NY. Ryan Collins (Mansfield MA / U.Virginia) was second in the Atlantic Coast Conference title race held in NC Big East Conference Championships

Sean Quigley, originally from Braintree, Massachusetts, won in a lean over last year's champion Jacob Korir of Kenya, to win the 20th Mayor's Cup Cross Country 8k Championship at Boston's Franklin Park on Sunday in a time of 23:54. Quigley, a graduate of LaSalle University in Philadelphia and who now runs for Puma, returned to the course where he won the Mass. Division II high school state championship in 2002 while at Archbishop Williams and beat a talented field of 144 finishers on a picture perfect day.

Quigley and Korir separated themselves from the other co-leaders on the final loop and the course's landmark Bear Cage Hill. Quigley did not lead during the race but timed his finish sprint perfectly, as he recorded the same winning time as did Korir in 2008; Korir finished one second.

New Balance Boston led by Roland Lavallee, scored 75 points, and won the men's championship team competition over host Boston Athletic Association (78) and Genesee Valley Harriers (96).

In the women's 5K championship race, Kenyan native Irene Kimaiyo outpaced Virginia's Samia Akbar. Kimaiyo's time, 16:39, was 13 seconds better than Akbar. Kimaiyo's Team Riadha - victorious with 43 points - placed three runners among the top four of the 95 finishers. Eight teams scored, with New Balance Boston and the B.A.A. both tallying 53 but the former taking 2nd with the tie-breaker.

The Mayor's Cup has witnessed Olympians, world cross country team members and running legends participate over its hill and dale since the first race in 1990. During the last 20 years, the event has grown from a single race with 9 competitors to a full slate of six races - including an open 5K and three youth races - similar to the growth of the B.A.A.'s Boston Marathon. With the support of the same B.A.A. and its partner adidas, the Mayor's Cup is the pre-eminent cross country racing opportunity for clubs and teams on the East Coast.

Full results at www.coolrunning.com.
(story from Jack Fleming / BAA)

Division winners:
Men - Sean Quigley, Puma 23:54 ($600 + $300 USA)
Team - New Balance Boston, 75 ($500)
Women - Irene Kimaiyo, Riadha 16:39 ($600)
Team - Riadha, 43 ($500)

Franklin Park 5k (356 finishers)
Men - Antony Taylor, Arlington MA, 16:04
Women - Samantha Chase, Warwick RI, 19:51

Youth Races (1.1 miles)
Age 10 and under
Boys - David Principe, Cranston RI, 6:40
Girls - Chloe Taylor, Waltham TC, 7:11
Age 11-12

Boys - Isaiah Savage, South Shore Fireboltz, 6:42
Girls - Sonya Jampel, Waltham TC, 6:40
Age 13-14

Boys - Geoffrey Pendergass, Nitehawks, 5:55
Girls - Phoebe Morse, Nitehawks, 6:16

With temperatures as low as 30's, Brandon Newbould and Sara Donaghue kept the heat on over 26.2 miles and won New England Championships at Sunday's 21st BayState Marathon in Lowell. The marathon can be a race of attrition, and the men's contest was not decided until there was less than a mile to go; Justin Fyffe (CMS) and Joseph Koech broke from the field by 4 miles, and worked together at the front, building as much as a 2 minute lead. At 30 kilometers, Fyffe moved 2 seconds ahead of Koech as the master ace was affected by the conditions (and gamely finished in 24th). At 23 miles, the lead was 1:30 over second place, who was now Newbould - looking strong and working on a negative split in the windy run to the finish. Fyffe had no answer when the Whirlaway runner, a coach at Phillips Exeter Academy contesting his fourth marathon, decisively passed him in the final mile and strode to his first 26.2 mile win in a personal best 2:27:53. Fyffe earned the series win with his second place in 2:28:15.

Donahue (Gr.Boston TC) looked fresh as she crossed the line in 2:51:16, having passed runner-up Sumner Fletcher (unattached, Uxbridge MA) for the lead in the final third of the course; the latter clocked a personal best 2:52: for silver. The win by the doctoral student was productive on many accounts as she also led GBTC to the race and series titles, and gave her the individual GP crown.

The worst weather in the past decade of the event (maybe ever), conditions only got worse through the morning, as spitting rain became a steady flow and the wind picked up from the 8 a.m. gun through the 6 hour mark, and those leaving the awards ceremony had a ride home in snow; hardly October conditions. The 1561 finishers was a record (as was the 1226 in the half), though there were numerous "did-not-finish". Director Mark Coddaire and his large volunteer crew did a commendable job in the rough conditions.

Results of the marathon and half marathon are at www.baystatemarathon.com. GP standings will be updated by Tuesday night, after checking on a few corrections. usatfne.org/gp.

Presentation meeting for bidders for the 2010 series is Monday, November 2, at Brandeis University.

With temperatures as low as 30's, Brandon Newbould and Sara Donahue kept the heat on over 26.2 miles and won New England Championships at Sunday's 21st BayState Marathon in Lowell. The marathon can be a race of attrition, and the men's contest was not decided until there was less than a mile to go; Justin Fyffe (CMS) and Joseph Koech broke from the field by 4 miles, and worked together at the front, building as much as a 2 minute lead. At 30 kilometers, Fyffe moved 2 seconds ahead of Koech as the master ace was affected by the conditions (and gamely finished in 24th). At 23 miles, the lead was 1:30 over second place, who was now Newbould - looking strong and working on a negative split in the windy run to the finish. Fyffe had no answer when the Whirlaway runner, a coach at Phillips Exeter Academy contesting his fourth marathon, decisively passed him in the final mile and strode to his first 26.2 mile win in a personal best 2:27:53. Fyffe earned the series win with his second place in 2:28:15.

Results of the marathon and half marathon are at www.baystatemarathon.com. GP standings will be updated by Tuesday night, after checking on a few corrections. usatfne.org/gp.

Presentation meeting for bidders for the 2010 series is Monday, November 2, at Brandeis University.

A handful of championships and elite events ran through the Columbus Day weekend, each meriting a headline of their own below).

New Balance Boston won the team title for the second year (and the B team finished 7th)
Photo: Steve Vaitones

With the ultimate results again coming down to the final straightaway, Molly Huddle (Saucony) repeated as winner at the 33rd annual Tufts Health Plan 10 K for Women and with it, the USA Women's 10 km Championship, Monday through Boston and Cambridge. It was the third US road championship title in 2009 for the diminutive Providence-based runner. The traditional COlumbus Day event served as the USA Championship for the 15th time in the past 16 years.

Kenyan Genoveva Kigan had a 5 second lead just 400 meters into the race and by one mile, a chase pack had whittled itself down to four. Around the B.U.Rotary, that pack became a single file line led by Huddle with Rebecca Donahue (new balance Boston) in third. The 5K splits of 15:58 for the leader and 16:02 for Huddle foreshadowed fast finish times on the beautiful afternoon. The time margin was reduced to zero at the hairpin turn before the four mile mark when Huddle came up on Kigan's shoulder. the two maintained the side-by-side position until the series of turns in the final 600 meters, and the winner was first to hit the homestretch on Charles Street.

After her slim one second margin in 2008, there was a more comfortable gap of 5 seconds at the tape, her time of 32:07 marking a personal best; only 2 winning times have been faster in the past decade. Following Kigan, Donahue also ran a personal best 32:29 for third place and, backed up by teammate Jenn Donovan (Brighton MA) in twelfth - 8th American (PB 33:29) - and Kim Partee, New Balance Boston repeated as team champions with Boulder Running Company again second.

After the final race of ten on the Women's 2009 USA Running Circuit (USARC), 2008 Olympian Magdalena Lewy Boulet (Oakland, Calif.) - though only 20th at Tufts - was crowned the women's USARC Grand Prix champion with 59 points. Colleen De Reuck (Boulder CO) finished second with 54 points and Huddle third (50). The USARC, a USA Track & Field road series, features USA Championships from 5K to the marathon.

The largest women's 10K in the country had over 5700 finishers, with the top 50 women faster than 37:37. Results are at coolrunning.com.

A pair of Olympians covered the most ground on Sunday at the USA 1 Hour Race Walk Championship held at Bentley University in Waltham on Sunday. Two time Olympian Tim Seaman (San Diego CA/ NYAC) covered 13,307 (splitting 10K in 45:00) to beat many-time internationalist Ray Sharp (Atlantic Mines MI) for the men's title; it was his 40th USA Championship of his career, third best total in US history. Seaman, who also coaches a stable of walkers, found his charges take third in both races.

Teresa Vaill (Gainesville FL / Walk USA) dominated the women's race. The sole US walker at last summer's World Championships, Vaill cranked out 60 minutes of even splits to end up with a distance 12,263 meters in the 60 minutes. Both Vaill and Seaman were winners in the USA 5K walk the previous weekend.

Top USATF-New England competitors were Bob Keating (NE Walkers, 7th, 10808 meters, 1st 60-64) and Pat Godfrey (CSU, 10th, 9181 meters, 1st 60-64). Team winners were Maine Walkers women and Pegasus AC (Michigan) men. Results and a photo slideshow are at usatfne.org/walk

The fourth race in the 2009 USATF-NE Cross Country Circuit, the Wayland XC Festival, topped 330 runners this year, with record numbers participating in the youth 3k races.

The fourth annual race saw records fall in the open 5K and youth 3K races, both male and female. Tim Ritchie of Brighton MA set the pace in the open 5k at 15:12 with GBTC's Jennifer Lee pulling the women's standard down to 18:48 ahead of previous record holder Caitlyn Clark of Sisu Project. In the 3k race, Phoebe Morss (Nitehawks) shattered the girls' course record with a time of 10:57, and teammate Arthur Whitehead improving the boys' mark to 10:17.

Full results of the race can be found at waylandxc.com and GP standings are tallied at nexcgrandprix.org. Next up is the October 25 Mayor's Cup in Boston.

Irishman and Providence College alum Martin Fagan and Ethiopian Belainesh Gebre took advantage of dry conditions and temperatures in the mid-40s to run to wins in the ninth annual B.A.A. Half Marathon through Boston's Emerald Necklace loop. Fagan, who set an Irish national record of 1:00:57 earlier in the year, clocked 1:02:21, just one tick off the course record. It was a 2 man race from the mile onward, with Fagan only earning the victory over Kenyan Philimon Tererin the final 100 meters, as the two were within strides of each other from the gun. The women's race looked to followed a similar script early on, but Gebre moved from third to the lead after the half way point, and was clear of challengers by twelfth mile.

Among the international and national caliber runners in the field of the 4025 starters (3989 finishers), the top New Englanders were the host club's Will Dobbie (10th, 1:07:40) and Kasie Enman (7th, 1:17:31), both leading their unicorn squads to team wins. Complete results at coolrunning.com

Heidi Westover - formerly Westerling - (BAA / Acworth NH) placed 38th and fourth American at the IAAF World 1/2 Marathon Championships in Birmingham England on Sunday. A late addition to the US team, the New England champion ran 1:14:22 and was part of the fifth place US team. Winner was Mary Keitany of Kenya in 1:06:36, with Amy Begley top American in 11th (1:10:09). Providence based Kim Smith, representing New Zealand, placed 7th in a national record 1:09:35.

In the men's race, Dathan Ritzenhein clocked a an even 1:00:00 to win the Bronze medal and set a personal best. Winning for the fourth straight edition was Zersenay Tadese of Eritria. The US men were fourth - just 8 seconds out of the medals - behind Kenya, Eritria, and Ethiopia. Stories and links are at www.usatf.org.

On Saturday, the 97th edition of the New England Intercollegiate Cross Country Championships ran at Franklin Park in Boston with both varsity and JV races totaling close to 1200 runners.

Individual race winners scored the first ever golds for their respective schools. American International College (AIC) had their first win in New England cross or track with freshman Glarius Rop (Eldoret KEN) holding the lead almost from the gun in the men's race, and U.Maine sophomore Corey Conner (Townsend MA) being the first Black Bear to lead the women's field to the finish.U.Mass-Lowell was a repeat team champion on the men's side with a 93-116 margin over cross-state rival U.Mass-Amherst, while Brown took the women's team trophy, gapping runner-up Boston College 130-170. See neicaaa.org for full results.

Leading the way at the event selected as the "Greenest Road Race in America", Pat Moulton (BAA / Pelham, NH) won the ING Hartford Marathon Saturday in 2:25:22, taking home $6000 in the process. NE Grand Prix leader Titus Mutinda (Team RUN / Lowell MA) was second overall and first master in 2:29:14. Running a personal best, Jeannette Seckinger (BAA / Somerville MA) clocked 2:46:33 and the same prize purse as Moulton, with Somerville Road Runner's Diona Fulton second in 2:51:12 and masters winner Tara Cardi (Reebok Providence / E Greenwich RI) third in 2:53:31.

A pair of New England high school harrier powerhouses made the medal stand on October 3 at the prestigious Great American Cross Country Festival in North Carolina. Great American, run by the National Scholastic Sports Foundation, attracts invited teams from all over the Eastern US.

In the "Race of Champions", the top division, Bishop Guertin of New Hampshire placed second with 149 points, one marker better than Rhode Island's Bishop Hendricken at 150. (The scoring originally had the two teams reversed in placing until a scoring error was found the following day). The race was won by Brookwood of Snellville, Georgia at 118. Individually, Hendricken's Jacob Sienko placed third in 15:20, and Guertin's Francis Hernandez was a place behind in 15:23. Both were among the top 10 times of the day at a meet that contested 16 races. In the Invitational Boys seeded race, Amherst-Pelham (MA) Regional was fifth.

They'll likely meet again at the New England HS championships in November.

<-- original location of GP process information -->

Several carloads of New England's top masters traveled west and returned with significant hardware at the USA Masters 5K held with the 17th Syracuse (NY) Festival of Races on October 4. The race is always among the top fall 5K runs in the northeast, and the championship added to the race quality.

Averaging 17:07 for their scorers, the Green Mountain AA quintet of Vermonters Norm Larson, Tony Bates, James Miller, Kevin McMahon, and Jack Pilla was a strong winner in the M50+ division, while the New England 65+ RC trio of Bil Spencer, John Pelton, and Jerry LeVasseur took home gold with a 22:21 average. GMAA also medaled in the 60+ scoring, taking second.

There were also individual successes, with New Englanders taking both golds in the 50's divisions; Tom Ryan (Dirigo RC) in M50 (16:16) and Reno Stirrat (Whirlaway) in M55 (16:45). Bill Tribou (Connecticut) topped the M85 at 32:39.

Other individual medals won by NE runners included silvers by Ron Lombardi (Gr.Springfield Harriers, M45, 16:01) and Ted McKnight (GMAA, M65, 20:43), and bronze won by Francis Burdett (GSH, M40, 15:16), Kevin McMahon (GMAA, M55, 17:02) and Bill Spencer (NE65+, M70, 21:15). No NE women finished in the medal hunt.

Burdett was 10th overall in the race, while Ryan was third overall in the masters' age graded scoring. Full results at festivalofraces.com

Shari Piers (Falmouth ME / Dirigo RC) took advantage of fall conditions and places seventh at the USA Women's Marathon Championship on Sunday at the Twin Cities Marathon in Minneapolis MN. As important as the $3000 prize money, both she and Heather Cappello (BAA/Waltham MA), who placed 22nd, both bettered the qualifying time for the 2012 USA Women's Olympic Marathon Trials; the USA Championship was the only opportunity to achieve that standard in 2009.

The race was won by Ilsa Paulson of New York in 2:31:49, and 47 women broke 2:50:00 in the race. Other locals among the frontrunners were Lesley Hocking (Dover NH/BAA), 44th in 2:49:20, and Simonetta Piergentili (Wilmington MA/Whirlaway), 55th in 2:52:17 (and 12th master).

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Mirroring similar successful events in Connecticut and New Hampshire, a new Massachusetts State Middle School Invitational "Championship" will be held this fall. USATF New England is part of a team organizing and running this first time event to be held on Saturday, November 7, at Devens MA.

Building on the success of the Northeastern Conference Invitational that has grown to over 1000 runners in 6 years, event founder Joe Abelon of Lynn created the event to offer younger runners a chance at a big meet. With increased participation in middle School cross country in recent years, interest in the meet is high.

With no statewide Massachusetts organiziation legislating middle school sports, the event is open to public, parochial, private, charter, and home school students, covering grades 5-8 (if grades 5-6 are in a middle school). A team championship race - all runners must be in the same school, not just from the same town) will be supplemented with additional races by grade to ensure all of a team's runners may participate. Large entry numbers may require 2 divisions in some races.

We hope this will lead to increased participation in the NE Junior Olympic program as well. The meet has sponsorship form Saucony, and will be run with the support of MassDevelopment in Devens.

The general information, entry form, and Frequently Asked Questions can be found at the USATF-NE Cross Country page. Entry deadline is October 16.

Joseph Koech (Team RUN) and Brett Ely (BAA) at the Lone Gull 10K in Gloucester MA. Perfect weather, and a mostly flat oceanfront course let to fine times top to bottom, with the 777 finishers being more than 50 percent better than last year.
Men's winner Koech took double honors for the second week in a row, as the past world-level runner was also the first master. Unlike the Ollie, where the race came down to a kick in the final 50 meters, Koech made a move on the turn at 1 1/2 miles and never looked back. The top 7 were under 31:00, and more under 32:00, making it the deepest local 10K in many a year, and places two through five were within 5 seconds. Among women, Ely had just as easier a time along the scenic shorefront, her margin being 44 seconds over Tammie Robie (Whirlaway RT) at the tape.

Behind Koech, Titus Mutinda (Team Run) was next over 40, and retains the overall lead in the series over the race winner. Women's masters division had Tina Dowling(adidas NE) 3 ticks ahead of Barbara McManus (CMS) and 9 seconds on Sim Piergentilli (WRT). Craig Fram (WRT) and Cathy Merra (GCS Triad) gained their third 50+ division wins, Gordon McFarland (CSU) moved into the lead with his 60+ title, and hometowner Carrie Parsi, at 70 years young, was first women over 60.

The young Adidas New England squad outlegged the BAA men for team honors, as places in the top 6 required max efforts by every scorer; Team RUN (3) and Whiraway (4) were separated by 3 seconds, and CMS and GBTC in 5-6 were just 2 seconds apart. Whirlaway won both the M40 and M50 battles, with CSU leading the M60. On the women's side of the ledger, Greater Boston (open), Whirlaway (40+) and GCS Triad (50+) took home the gold.

Current standings and Ironrunner lists after 6 events are posted at the USATF-NE GP page.

The Bay State Marathon closes the 2009 series on Sunday, October 18; the marathon is now open only to USATF-NE members; it's otherwise full. The latest standings and Ironrunner lists are at the Grand Prix page. Ironrunners should check for completeness, and contact the office with jacket size if not previously submitted.

Current standings and Ironrunner lists after 6 events are posted at the USATF-NE GP page.

Matt Tegenkamp and Amy Yoder Begley (both Portland OR) won the respective men's and women's titles Sunday at the USA 5 km Championships in Providence RI at the 20th annual CVS/Caremark Downtown 5K. The race drew a record crowd in the signature event as well as the youth events and high school "inspiration run".

Both competed in this summer's World Track & Field Championships, as Tegenkamp ws the US 5000 meter track champion and Begley took the USA 10,000 meter track title in June. Making the final turn off Canal Street and up the only major hill on the course, Tegenkamp made his move to kick to a one-second win in 13:57. Top New Englander in the men's race was BAA's Lucas Meyer in 15th, 14:18; 30 total runners broke 15:00.

In the women's race, New Balance Boston ace Rebecca Donahue placed second. Mirroring the men's race, a group was together on the final. Begley made her decisive push at three miles to pull clear for the title (15:27). Donahue held off Jen Rhines by one second in 15:30. Local connections were strong on the women's side, as after Donahue, Providence residents Mary Cullen (Ireland, 15:48), Molly Huddle (15:52), and Amy Mortimer (16:05) were in the money at 5-7-9.

The 2009 USATF-NE annual meeting took time to review the year, look ahead, vote, and to honor several individuals on Thursday.

Marja Bakker

After opening with recognition of the Athlete of the Month winners, the business meeting followed. Individual and committee reports began the sessions. President Ken Robichaud then presented two "President's Awards" to a pair of deserving Daves. Dedicated track and field official Dave DeInnocentis of North Andover MA was the second ever recipient of the "Gerry Cantor Award" given for service to USATF-NE events. The Volunteer Award, renamed the "Marja Bakker Volunteer Award" by president Ken, was presented to past board member and all-around sport supporter Dave Dunham.

Elections for sports chairs and athlete representatives followed. There were exactly two nominations for the two vacant board positions, and with no further nominations, all positions were voted in by acclamation. Taking over the Youth Chair position is Larry Libow of Springfield and Y-Speed TC. The new athlete rep will be Caitlyn Clark of Sisu Project. A slate of 15 delegates was voted from 20 nominees.

A informative presentation on the D-tag timing system was made by Dave Camire of Yankee Timing, and the uncontroversial meeting closed with a discussion of the new selection process for the 2010 Grand Prix road race series.

The minutes will be posted on the Board page within a week.

The sixth race in the USATF-NE Grand Prix Series is coming right up this Sunday, September 20, at the Lone Gull 10K in Gloucester MA. The mostly oceanfront course has registration at Good Harbor Beach - carpooling is recommended - and entrants are at a record 700+ to date. See lonegull10.com. Current standings and Ironrunner lists are posted at the USATF-NE GP page.

The CVS Caremark Downtown 5K celebrates its 20th Anniversary on Sunday in downtown Providence. From elite down to recreational athletes, a record participation of up to 10,000 runners may take to the streets, starting and finishing in front of the Rhode Island State House.

. Rhode Island's largest road race will kick-off with 21 different races for children, pre-kindergarten through eighth grade, followed by the main 5K race that serves as the USA Championship, and concludes with a High School Inspirational 3K for student athletes.

Online registration closes on September 15, but late entry is available on site on Sunday from 7:00 to 10:45 a.m. Complete event information can be accessed at www.cvsdowntown5k.com.

A rainy day for the 69th Annual Ollie 5 Mile Road Race in South Boston
Photo: Tom Derderian

Joseph Koech and Heather Cappello led the slosh through South Boston and took titles at Saturday's USATF-NE 5 Mile Championship at the Ollie 5 Mile. The 2009 edition was not able to dodge the precipitation as happened last year; instead, steady rains, some of it heavy and punctuated by one loud thunderclap preceded the starting horn and continued through the morning. Despite the precipitation, almost 800 of the 1200 entrants braved the weather and crossed the finish line.

Please Note: Incorrect cone placement at the Castle Island parking lot turnaround means the course was about 150 meters short. That should not diminish the competitiveness of the race, as fourth placer Mark Miller noted that it was the most competitive local race he had contested in several years. "A number of the leaders tried to make a move in the last 2 miles, and the others would cover each surge."

A spirited race developed at the lead (the top 21 finished within a minute), and round the final bend, Koech had the freshest legs, outlegging Pat Mellea, former BC runner visiting the area, and Justin Fyffe (CMS) who moved into the overall GP lead, each separated by half a stride. It was the second time this season Koech broke the tape as first for both overall and masters championships.

Women's winner Cappello had a more comfortable margin of 27 seconds over teammate Emily Kroshus, with new GP leader Jennifer Campbell in third. The BAA swept both open titles, With all five women's scorers in the top 11.

Mimi Fallon repeated as women's masters winner, 14th overall, with Cathy Merra notching her third straight 50-59 GP win this year, and Heidi MacDonald ahead among the 60+ runners. On the men's side, Craig Fram (Whirlaway, 50+) Bill Dixon (GLRR, 60+) and Jim Daley (CMS, 70+) took the honors.

Whirlaway won both the men's 40+ and 50+ team honors, with GCS Triad matching those wins on the women's side, and Cambridge Sports Union led the men's 60+ trios.

Two events remain in the 2009 series; the Lone Gull 10K in a week on Sunday, September 20, and the Bay State Marathon on Sunday, October 18; the latter is officially full, but entry is still open to USATF-NE members only. The latest standings are at the GP page and Ironrunners will be updated this week; Ironrunners should check that credit has been given for all races to ensure your jacket.

Many New England schools participate in the Footlocker championship qualifier each year. Note that, due to construction at historic Van Cortland Park, the 2009 Foot Locker Northeast Regional Championships will be moving east to Long Island's Sunken Meadow State Park. The challenging 5000 meter Sunken Meadow course has played host in the past to the New York State Federation Championships.

Auburn University in Alabama has named long time Providence resident and two time Olympian Mark Carroll as cross country head coach. The Providence College alum by way of Cork, Ireland, said he chose Auburn because he saw strong potential with the existing team, which has had success in the NCAA in recent years. With his own athletic career winding down, Carroll has moved in to coaching, having worked with cross country runners with the Athletic Association of Ireland.

His wife, Amy Rudolph, is also a two time Olympian (1996 and 2000). Both have been fixtures on the New England racing scene, and we wish them well in their move down south.

The Rhode Island 6 Hour has been selected to serve as the USATF-New England Ultra Running Championship for 2009. The race will take place in Warwick (RI) City Park.

Paul Kirsch, USATF-NE Mountain/Ultra/Trail Chair, noted that "We haven't had an ultra running championship event in the association for a few years, and this event will get us back on schedule. Future ultra championship events will vary distances from 50 kilometers to timed events such as the RI 6 Hour." The race is open to all, but racers must be USATF members to score in the championship. There will be a championship-only team division (distance covered by top 3 on a club) as well.

An ultra marathon is any event longer than a standard marathon. Placing in the 6 Hour is based on the total distance covered in the time period. The course is a paved, slightly rolling loop of 2.7 miles in Warwick City Park and is closed to traffic. Splits of Marathon, 50 K, and 50 Miles will be marked. There is also a (non-championship) relay being contested at the same time. Relay teams may consist of 2 to 6 runners with runners completing as many laps as they wish before handing off to a teammate.

For complete information on the event, go to ri6hour.com.

The World Track and Field Championships closed its 9 day run in Berlin on Sunday. Weekend action found several locals in the thick of the action.
Sean Furey placed 12th in the javelin, the only US athlete to make the final. Furey noted, "I don't think I was too scared or nervous with the situation. I didn't feel sharp", but that might be expected in one's first time on the world stage. His best throw in the final was 244'5" after a 260'1" personal best in qualifying.

Nate Jenkins placed 63rd, not his best by any means, but he importantly finished to give the USA a scoring team of three after one team member did not take to the start due to injury and one did not finish. "I started at 3:05 at the kilometer, and actually felt good through 10-12k, then started having some hamstring problems, which has been par for the course for me", said Jenkins. "I was slowed down, but still rolling along until 32 k, and thinking I can run 2:20, then the wheels just came off. I knew I had to finish, since we only lined up four athletes, so it was one foot in front of the other."

Four time Boston Marathon champ Robert Cheruiyot was fifth, top American was Dan Browne in 24th (2:16:49), and former Providence College runner Dylan Wykes running for Canada was 33rd (2:18:00); 21 of 91 entrants did not finish the race.

The USA won 10 gold medals and 22 medals total, and one American Record was set (100 meters, Tyson Gay, 9.71). There were many other superlatives from the meet. For summaries, stories, and pictures on a day by day basis, go to runblogrun.com and check usatf.org for Team USA news and notes.

MIT Pole Vault Club men and New England PV Club women won the inaugural edition of the New England Team Pole Vault competition on a steamy Saturday at MIT. The novel meet scored a club's two vaulters' total height to get a placing. with MITPVC totaling 27'3" and NEPV 19'6". Highest individual heights were cleared by Nate Ball (MITPV) at 15'0", and NEPV teammates Stephanie Brown and Hannah McPhee, both at 9'9".

Full results at the checking the MIT Pole Vault Club site.

Mike Griffin (SISU Project) and Kasie Enman (BAA) took the wins at the GMAA Scholarship Race in South Burlington VT on Saturday, the first race in the 2009 USATF-NE Cross Country Grand Prix. The six race series continues at the Thomas Chamberas 6K at Great Brook in Carlisle MA on Saturday, August 29. Find standings and results at See www.nexcgrandprix.org.

Molly Huddle (Providence RI / Saucony) won the USA 10 Mile Road Race title at the 33rd annual Crim 10 Mile in Flint Michigan on Saturday. Her time of 54:01 placed her fifth overall in a close race that found Alemitu Albera (Ethiopia) winning in 53:49. Huddle, who also won the US 7 Mile Championship in the past month, was one place and 11 seconds up on Magdalena Boulet for the US title as only 3 Americans placed in the stellar field's top 10. The race drew a record 15,000 entrants.

Former Methuen MA and Dartmouth competitor Sean Furey qualified for the finals in the Javelin today at the 12th IAAF World Championships in Track and Field.
Furey threw a season's best of 260 feet 1 inch, good for 11th in Sunday's 12 man final.
Earlier in the week, GBTC's Samir Layne (Haiti) was 15th in the triple jump in a respectable 53'7 1/2'. Former Providence College ace Kim Smith, often back here training took 8th in the 10,000 at 31:21.42, while her teammate at PC, Martin Fagan (Ireland) did not start the men's 10,000 due to injury.

Lowell's Nate Jenkins will toe the line in Saturday's marathon (with Boston Marathon third placer Kara Goucher running Sunday).

Live and on-demand event coverage can be found on universalsports.com. It's free and simply unmatched in the quality of the coverage from individual events to daily summaries.

The 12th IAAF World Championships in Track and Field begins its nine day schedule on August 15 in Berlin Germany with several New England athletes competing on the big stage.

Lowell's Nate Jenkins is on the 5 runner marathon squad and former Methuen MA HS and Dartmouth record setter (and past GBTC member) Sean Furey - will compete in the javelin. (See Dartmouth story on Sean). Jake Freeman (Westbury NY via E.Greenwich RI and Bishop Hendricken HS) was top 3 at the USA Championships and hit the A standard in the hammer, as did Marblehead MA native Shalene Flanagan in the 10,000 meters. GBTC's Samir Layne will represent Haiti in the triple jump. Other locals may be representing their home countries as well.

Lots of media coverage with weekend shows on NBC, weekday television on theVersus network and webcasts on universalsports.com. Here's the broadcast schedule.

And, there is more info than you can handle at IAAF.org.

The 12th IAAF World Championships in Track and Field begins its nine day schedule on August 15 in Berlin Germany with several New England athletes competing on the big stage.

Lots of media coverage with weekend shows on NBC, weekday television on theVersus network and webcasts on universalsports.com. Here's the broadcast schedule.

And, there is more info than you can handle at IAAF.org.

Seventeen New England youth earned top 8 placings and the accompanying medals at last week's USATF Junior Olympic National Championships n Greensboro, North Carolina. Over six thousand entrants contested a full schedule of events in five age divisions (Bantam 10 & under, Midget 11-12, Youth 13-14, Intermediate 15-16, Young Men/Women 17-18). Age is based at the end of the year.

Highest placing was achieved by Carla Forbes of the Waltham Track Club. Setting a new national championship meet record in the Youth division, the 14 year old won the triple jump with a bound of 38'9 3/4" on Sunday. She prefaced that with a third place in the long jump at 18'1" on Saturday.

The most New England successes came in the javelin where four locals picked up medals; third places were secured by Waltham TC teammates Emma Fitzgerald (Midget) and TJ Noonan (Youth) along with Lucas Haddon (Waitsfield VT, Young Men), with Katie Cataldo (Attleboro MA) placing eighth (Intermediate)

In the field, the top mark beyond the javelin was a third in the hammer by Wakefield RI thrower Mike Gama (Young Men). Becca Parascandola (Londonderry NH) and Kelly McCabe (Mansfield MA) endured heat and humidity to place 6-8 in the heptathlon. Karla Ganley (Air Time Athletics, Intermediate) soared to sixth in the pole vault, and taking podium positions with their seventh place finishes were Haley Laird (Southboro MA, Intermediate, high jump), Jaynah Jimenez (Waltham TC, Midget, long jump) and Christopher Perry (Providence Cobras, Young Men, triple jump).

On the track, medals were earned by Emily Stark (Concord MA, 3000, fifth, Youth), John Henry Fitzgerald (Waltham TC, Youth, 3000 Walk, sixth, Youth), and eighth placers Jarrell Forbes (Providence Cobras, 400 hurdles, Young Men), Maddy Berkson (Providence Cobras, 1500, Youth) and Tim Cox (Team RUN, 1500, Youth).

Complete results by event are at the USATF Junior Olympic Web page. They're worth checking out to note the high quality of youth track and field around the country.

John Henry Fitzgerald displays his national medal
(Photo: Waltham TC)

The USATF Junior Olympic National Championships begins its 6 day run in Greensboro, North Carolina with nearly 6000 young athletes in five age groups for boys and girls vying for top places as they end their seasons.

With the meet on the east coast, a large number of local youth will be competing over the six days. Leading off what should be good representation were a pair of medallists on the opening day. Mike Gama (Wakefield RI) took the bronze medal in the Young Men's hammer throw at 200'4" and John Henry Fitzgerald (Waltham TC/Wayland MA) finished 6th in the Youth Boys 3000 walk.

Follow daily results at the USATF Junior Olympic Web page.

No records at this year's USATF-NE Masters Championships this year, just solid performances on a warm sunny day. The new Cranston West HS facility proved to be an amicable site for the event, and the association will return there for some events in the future.

Numbers were a bit small, as the meet was sandwiched on the schedule between last week's USA Masters meet and next week's World Masters in Finland.

Full results at the track page.

GBTC women - National Club Championships winners
Photo by Mike Scott

Capitalizing on their field event strength, Greater Boston TC won the women's division in the USATF National Club Track and Field Championships held at Icahn Stadium in New York City. It was the women's third win in the meet's nine year history.

GBTC outscored arch-rivals and host club Nike Central Park TC by a mere 4 points, 159-155 with sprint power Norfolk Real Deal TC third in 105. The win made the pre-planned post-event Manhattan cupcake shop tour sweet in two ways.

The GBTC men placed fourth with 75 points as Shore AC of New Jersey piled up a 199 points, giving a massive 111 point gap over Connecticut's ConnQuest which garnered 88. That winning margin by Shore allowed them to take the combined team score with 246, as the NE team in red tallied a respectable 234 for second.

Individual winners from the New England association included three GBTC women; double gold medalist Joeane Jadotte (shot and discus), meet record setter Ayanna Alexander (triple jump - 45'8") and Jen Harlow (high jump). On the men's side, Samyr Laine (GBTC) took the triple jump and matched his teammate's feat of a meet record - 54'10.25" - and Ari Zamir (new balance Boston) won the 5000. Overall, 8 meet records were set.

Other NE teams scoring points on the men's side were New Balance Boston (14, 12th place) and New Hampshire Tracksters (7, 22nd place); no other local women's teams scored.

Check the full results at www.usatf.org.

Registration for the October 2009 BAA Half Marathon opens this Wednesday, July 15, at 9:00 a.m. Registration is on-line only, and is expected to fill quickly - within several days and likely sooner as many major races are doing.

Go to baa.org for details.

The Level I Coaching School set for July 24-26 at Governors Academy in Byfield MA is FULL and no further applications are being accepted. While a waiting list is being compiled, the chances of taking more applications is slim. We hope to host another school in the summer of 2010 or 2011.

Jim Johnson and Kasie Enman were first up the hill on Sunday at the Loon Mountain Run up in Lincoln NH. Good weather greeted the 200-plus at the summit and provided great views on the gondola ride down.

Johnson (Salem NH/CMS) scaled the dirt and grass in 48:25, with Abdeltif Faker (Malden MA) Patrick Ard (Raymond NH / Whirlaway) barely thirty seconds back. The women's race was a one runner show, as Enman clocked 53:17, almost 9 minutes up on Lynne Zummo (WMM), and good for 13th overall. The 10+ kilometers averages a 10% grade and includes 2887 feet of climb and 1113 feet of descent.

Just one event remains in the 2009 USATF-NE Mountain Circuit, this Sunday's journey to Vermont and Mt.Ascutney. Todd Callaghan (GCS) and Dawn Roberts (GSH) top the individual series standings, with masters leaders Dave Dunham and Karen Encarnacion solidly ensconced second overall. The rankings as of Loon can be found at coolrunning.com