Friday, December 14, 2018

Q&A and CIM race recap with Dan Vassallo, 2:17:27


CMS Blogger - Congrats on the PR of 2:17:27 (5:15 pace), 31st overall at the California International Marathon (Sacramento, CA) on Sunday, a time of which met the Olympic Trials Qualifier (US Olympic Trials Marathon for Atlanta, 2020) with a sub 2:19. How did you feel going into the race (you ran the Baystate Marathon 2:29:08 on October 21) and can you provide some insight to your approach and plan for Sunday?

Dan – I felt good going into the race.  I had a good buildup that really didn’t have all that much adversity.  No interruptions, no injuries, no especially long stretches of bad practices or bad races.  I think I only had four bad workouts or races between August and December, and some of that was because I probably overdid it at Baystate and the few weeks before that.  I keep a lot of detail in my training log, and I kept comparing my shape this year to when I ran 2:17 in Philadelphia four years ago.  Based on the data I had, I knew I was in close to the same shape I was in when I ran Philadelphia.  My game plan was to run a little quicker than “to the buzzer” of 2:19, but not to run recklessly in pursuit of a PR, because I didn’t think I was significantly fitter than I was when I ran 2:17.

CMS Blogger – being that the race was also the USATF National Marathon Championship and USATF Pacific Association Marathon Championship, this was a competitive field. What kind of impact did that have on performances out there?

Dan – At least in my pack, it was more cooperative than competitive, a level of cooperative I’ve never seen at a race before.  The Sacramento Running Association provided incentives for every guy like me in the country – the guys straddling the line between pro and amateur – to show up and run fast.  People responded to that incentive, because we were all there to do the same thing.  There was only one enemy (the clock).  People passed along water bottles, shared the pacesetting responsibilities, and worked together. 

CMS Blogger - there were a few competitors from the New England Region (Brian Harvey, Eric Ashe, Alex Taylor, Scott Leslie); what was it like to race them 3,000 miles away from Boston and did you talk it up with them?
Central Mass Strider Dan Vassallo ahead of Eric Ashe and Brian Harvey at the California International Marathon
Photo credit to Colin Carroll
Dan – I wrote that it was comforting to have the four yellow jerseys right there with me.  In New England (or in any event except for the marathon) it’s intimidating to race “against” those guys – I keep going back to when I was swallowed up by Harvey, Alex, and Chris Allen at Hartford this year.  But they were familiar competitors who know what they’re doing, and I knew that as long as they were close by, I was where I needed to be.  Didn’t see much of Scott, but he’s such a professional that I knew he knew what he was doing, too.  Was not surprised at all to see him PR by so much.

CMS Blogger – teammate Scott Leslie ran a PR by almost two minutes. I heard you guys had a “Presidential” workout run in Peabody a few weeks ago?

Dan – Yes, there was a cold, rainy Saturday when we did sixteen laps around the Roosevelt, a one-mile, hilly loop in Peabody (elevation is on his Strava).  I was honestly more nervous about this workout than I was about the race, and Scott was nice enough to come to my turf to join me.  He hung for a good deal of the workout, and even after I put some distance on him, he kept me honest and inspired me to keep going when it would have been much more pleasant to stop.  He finished within two minutes of me, in my big workout of the season, having never been on that loop before.  I ran that workout faster than I had ever done it before, so it was afterwards where I was almost certain that was fit enough to qualify again.

CMS Blogger – was there anything comical that came up during the race?

Dan – There was a dude on a bike with a speaker, and he was playing music from the Rocky IV soundtrack.  This was about eight miles into the race.  It would have been a lot more helpful if he were eighteen miles into the race.

CMS Blogger – was there any math going on in your head during the race to ensure you were tracking toward goal or were you locked in with the 5:15 pace all the way?

Dan – Of course there was math going on.  Especially the last eight miles, when I felt like I was just holding on and going “one more mile” to myself.  “I can pull off doing the rest of the race at 5:30/mile and still get under 2:19.  I can do the last two miles in 5:55 pace and still get under 2:19.”  I knew I had enough in my tank to do that, so I was confident I’d be okay with two miles left.  I wasn’t cognizant that I was still maintaining 5:15, though.

CMS Blogger – bib # 62 and you placed 31st. Does either number represent anything in particular?

Dan – I grew up right off of Rt. 62 in Wilmington, and I still do a lot of training on Rt. 62 between North Reading and Beverly.  So that meant something.  Thirty-first was good.  You always want to beat where you’re seeded.  Will try to do the same thing at the Trials.

Below is a summary from Dan Vassallo following the race.

Felt like nails on the warmup - primed to do exactly what I was supposed to do.  Gun went off and found myself very comfortably in a huge pack.  I was boxed in but didn't care except for the fact that I didn't want to roll an ankle on those little reflective things on the road.  There were definitely a lot of downhills, but the uphills were still memorable, as it seemed that everyone in the pack tensed up and ran harder up the inclines.  Hit 5k and 5 miles very comfortably, and what struck me as unusual was how cooperative everyone was - signaling before cutting in, sharing water bottles, and so-forth. 

Cannot definitely document what fluids I took in because many of them were passed water bottles.  Throughout the race hit all the official water stops well whenever I wasn't boxed in.  Keyed largely off of Harvey, Alex, Ashe, and Harper, and found myself with them, a guy wearing a "Pace Team" shirt, and a guy who was burping a lot and looked really uncomfortable.  At seven miles, when some wiseass fan said we were almost there, I remember being much less pissed off than others in the pack.  Minor stomach issues went away by ten miles. 

At ten miles, the pack splintered as three guys went ahead despite us being slightly under 2:18 pace.  I was getting nervous at this point because the last 5K was slower than 5:15/mile, so I went with them - kinda.  By not fully committing, I found myself in no man's land/frontrunning, but also prevented myself from running several consecutive 5:0Xes and putting the nail in my own coffin for the second half.  Remember seeing Bob and Allie, Colin, and Emma Spencer out there yelling for us.  Thought I did a decent job staying composed between halfway and 15 miles with a long, gradual hill, and between 15 and 18 I remained relaxed (I thought) while my body started to falter, but while others were certainly faltering more and I passed them to boost my own energy a bit, reminding myself that I'm not hurting the most of this field right now.  I was taking Gu at normal intervals (13, 16, 19, 21, 24), and was no longer sharing anything.  Saw an inflatable "The Wall" marker at twenty, and it really felt like that this time, but I knew that as long as I ran 34-flat for the last 10K I'd be able to make it to the Trials.  Seemed reasonable, but the last eight miles of this race I was holding on for dear life.  I guess that is part of doing the marathon: holding on while your body starts to fail you.  Quads, calves, feet, arms, and finally engine. 

Was very spooked at 21 because I saw the shadows of like four guys coming up on me quickly, when I felt at my very worst.  I prepared for this specter, remembering the four Africans in Philadelphia in 2014,  and just didn't want it to be the same as Hartford with three BAA guys all blowing my doors off as I started jogging.  None of them were my BAA friends, though.  One guy was a Bowerman guy who was wearing squeaky shoes that looked like Shox, another was a wearing a Tracksmith jersey, and another was wearing a jersey like the Millennium guys.  I was going to let them go because they sounded like they were running sub-5:10, but I was able to stay with them once I stopped front-running for a bit.  Climbing the bridge was the worst part of this race, and I crossed it with them.  I was on the left side, and right after the bridge I hit a pothole with my left foot, rolling my ankle to the point that I yelled.  But what was I gonna do, step off with four and a half miles left?  Continued calculating how slow I could close while still hitting the OTQ: 5:35, 5:40, 5:45, 5:55 at 24, but it never dawned on me that I was still running 5:15 pace and I had dropped three of the four guys in this new pack. 

Thought of Mindel at 40k, because marathon pace is easy when it's only 2 laps at a time.  Calculated I could run the last 400m in 3:00 when I hit that point.  Made it to the final stretch and shushed the haters, realizing I ran the exact same time as Philly.  Was not especially sick afterwards, but legs were thrashed, and I earned it.

Friday, December 7, 2018

Q&A with Scott Leslie, 2:21:39 at CIM

Scott Leslie on his way to a 2:21:39

CMS Blogger - Congrats on the PR (over 2 minutes) with the 2:21:39 (5:25 pace), 72nd place overall at the California International Marathon (Sacramento, CA) on Sunday. How were the legs after the Baystate Marathon (4th place, 2:32:45 in Lowell, MA on October 21, 2018 – 43 days ago) and what was the goal for CIM?

Scott – The legs were a little beat up after Baystate but that was the plan going into it.  I used it as a long marathon-specific training run/workout after a long training buildup over late summer/early fall.  The goal going into CIM was to at least try for a new PR (2:24:00 or better).  My training lead up went well but I wasn’t shooting for any specific time having never run the course.

CMS Blogger – when did you put CIM on your calendar and what was the drive behind it?

Scott - It was on my radar after I saw the 2017 results from some east coast guys start trickling in on Strava.  It was just a thought but nothing more than that until I started planning out the fall racing schedule and a fall marathon.  I think I “officially” committed somewhere in mid-August.  I wanted to get in a fast marathon and heard and read good things after the 2017 race results came in and I started digging into it more.  I also heard rumblings that some local NE guys might be heading out there for 2018 so that put a little more coal on the fire.

CMS Blogger – You ran a negative spit in the second half (1:11:17/1:10:22) and Brandon Newbould noted that split was your 2nd fastest 13.1? Truth and thoughts on that?

Scott – It depends on what you consider an official 13.1 result :) Race-wise my fastest HM was New Bedford from this past March (1:10:23).  In a few past fall marathon tempo-effort build-up runs (including this year) I’ve clocked faster times over 13.1 but those were GPS miles (most-likely short) and run on fairly downhill courses.  I don’t take those times too seriously, I use them more as a barometer of current fitness level.  Certified distance race results are what I’d consider “official HM times.”  The fact that the 2nd half of CIM was that fast was a little unbelievable though.

CMS Blogger – with the PR, what was different in the preceding 12 months heading into CIM?

Scott – I’d never planned for a serious late-fall/early-winter marathon this late into the year before.  The first couple of months of 2018 went pretty routine in terms of training for a spring marathon.  I went out to Carmel, IN (2:24:46) to try another fast course in late March then took some time off and went on vacation.  Because I hadn’t committed to CIM until mid-August I had a pre-emptive marathon build up that I had to cool off to account for the goal race date push out from October to December.  Everything else went as normal as I would call it for a training cycle.

CMS Blogger - just like in many New England Championship races, you had CMS teammate, Dan Vassallo (ran 2:17:27) at the starting line with you. Did you guys discuss the event in advance?

Scott – I had heard through the grapevine in June/July that he was thinking about going out.  Around the time that I was committing (mid-August) I talked to him (after the NH 10-miler) and he said that he had committed as well.  There were some on and off discussions post-race over the summer but nothing too serious.  We both ran Baystate as a hard training run but did meet up for a long tempo effort over a difficult course together in early November.  Dan’s an animal when it comes to the marathon and I knew he was going out to CIM on a mission for an OTQ.  I knew if I was “only” a couple of minutes behind him during those workouts then my training wasn’t going too poorly.

CMS Blogger – have you run a US National Championship before (50K roads)? What were those events and results? How was this Championship different compared to those?

Scott - I did jump in to the USATF 50k road championships back in 2012 (4th) & 2013 (3rd) out on Long Island.  Those events were much more low key than CIM in all regards (attendance, crowd support, etc).  It was a 5k paved park loop that you ran 10 times in a row.  Joe Gray was dominating those events but the ultra distances in general seem to draw a much more relaxed crowd that’s out there to run and enjoy the experience.  CIM was a much more serious event with people running for a specific purpose and looking to get a fast time.  It was a night and day differences in running culture.

CMS Blogger – did you do anything interesting while you were in California before or after the race?

Scott – I didn’t have a ton of vacation time to burn so my wife and I flew out on the Wednesday before and flew back on the Monday after.  With flying, the expo, previewing the course, etc. that only left one full day before hand to do some easy sightseeing and that’s about it.  We went out to the Sierras and South Tahoe to see some sights but nothing crazy.  Just some easy walking around.  It was good to see the area but it would have been nice to take some more time afterwards to relax and not worry about getting in a run or resting my legs.  I give my wife a lot of credit for putting up with all of my “requirements” when we do any destination marathons.

CMS Blogger – anything amusing or had you cracking up during the race?

Scott – No funny anecdotes about signs or spectators or anything.  The funniest thing was just the number of Northeast/New-England guys that I saw out there.  A perfect example was running in an early pack and thinking that one of the guys in our group kind of looked like Eric Blake but I didn’t say anything to him, I was just focused on running my race.  In my mind it could have been anyone and he didn’t have on any NE-specific running gear that I could recognize.  He turned to me at mile 10 or so and said something to me by name and I knew that it must have been him.  We ended up running together until mile 23 or so.  Post-race I probably saw another 6 or so past/present NE guys that I recognized and talked to that I had no idea were going out to run CIM.

CMS Blogger – what is next and plans for 2019?

Scott - Time off from any serious running for the time being.  CIM was a long build up and I usually take some time to decompress after a marathon training cycle.  Maybe some late-season indoor track stuff but I’m not too concerned if I miss out on this season.  After seeing the time that I ran at CIM I’d like to take a crack at a marathon OTQ but the window for that is shutting very quickly.

Monday, November 5, 2018

CMS at USATF New England Open and Masters Championships



The CMS open men placed 10th, CMS masters and CMS Senior teams both placed 3rd. under sunny skies but muddy conditions at Franklin Park who hosted the USATF New England Open and Masters Championships. The open team was led by Scott Mindel placing 26th overall. He was followed by Jack Delehanty who was running his first 10K cross country race, finishing in 54th place. Scott Leslie was the 3rd CMS runner finishing 59th. David Brooks broke 35 minutes and came in as the 4th CMS open runner in 75th place. Daniel Raboin would close out the open team scoring.

The masters/senior teams were led by 50 year old Tim Van Orden, 15th place – 27:38, who also paced both teams to third place finishes. Todd Callaghan was the 2nd master runner for the CMS masters team. Gregory Hammett and Arthur Besse were right behind Todd with 28:30 and 28:38 respectively. Joe Shairs would score down from the 50+ team to cap the scoring for the masters team with his 28:55. The CMS masters would finish 3rd , scoring 91 points behind BAA (21) and Dirigo RC (55). The HFC Striders would finish 4th with 104 pts.

The CMS Senior teams 3rd runner was David Principe, placing 32nd. Paul Young would run 33:50 and Steve Laska would wrap up the scoring for the CMS 50+ team who placed 3rd behind Greater Springfield Harriers (59 points) and Dirigo RC (69 points) who broke the tie with CMS with the 6th place runners finish.

2018 USATF New England Cross Country Championships - 11/4/2018
Franklin Park, Boston MA
Open Men 10k
Name                                 Age Team                    Finals  Points
1 #896 Jordan Mann          25 Ocean State                30:52
2 #521 Ben Groleau          25 Western Mass             31:04    1
3 #897 Julian Oakley        25 Ocean State                 31:09
4 #928 Jesse Young          29 Tracksmith Hare AC    31:14    2
5 #885 Aaron Dinzeo         26 NE Distance               31:20
26 #676 Scott Mindel         32 Central Mass            32:47   19
54 #669 Jack Delehanty       31 Central Mass          34:03   39
59 #674 Scott Leslie         37 Central Mass              34:13   43
75 #667 David Brooks         34 Central Mass           34:54   59
107 #680 Daniel Raboin        27 Central Mass         36:40   76

Top 11 Open Teams, CMS Open 10th out of 14 teams
  Team Scores
=======================================================================
Rank Team                      Total    1    2    3    4    5   *6   *7
=======================================================================
   1 Tracksmith Hare AC           37    2    6    7    8   14   22   23
      Total Time:  2:39:42.00
         Average:    31:56.40
   2 Boston Athletic Associati    58    4    9   10   15   20   21   24
      Total Time:  2:41:25.00
         Average:    32:17.00
   3 Battle Road TC               93   11   13   18   25   26   28   48
      Total Time:  2:43:48.00
         Average:    32:45.60
   4 Western Mass Distance Pro   113    1   12   32   33   35   74   80
      Total Time:  2:44:40.00
         Average:    32:56.00
   5 Greater Boston Track Club   182   27   30   34   41   50   55   56
      Total Time:  2:49:26.00
         Average:    33:53.20
   6 Hfc Striders                209   17   29   42   58   63   73   78
      Total Time:  2:50:21.00
         Average:    34:04.20
   7 Williams College            224   31   38   47   51   57   64   68
      Total Time:  2:51:21.00
         Average:    34:16.20
   8 Dirigo R.C.                 225    3   44   49   52   77
      Total Time:  2:51:31.00
         Average:    34:18.20
   9 Green Mountain Athletic A   226    5   40   53   62   66   67
      Total Time:  2:50:52.00
         Average:    34:10.40
  10 Central Mass Striders       236   19   39   43   59   76
      Total Time:  2:52:37.00
         Average:    34:31.40
  11 Old Goat TC                 247   16   45   54   61   71   81   85
      Total Time:  2:52:13.00
         Average:    34:26.60



2018 USATF New England Cross Country Championships - 11/4/2018
Franklin Park, Boston MA
40-99 8k masters men
Name                                       Age Team              Finals  Points 40+  50+
1 #714 Michael Gordon       40 Dirigo R.C.                26:51    1
2 #967 Daniel Smith         40 Western Mass             26:52
3 #652 Aaron Price          41 Boston Athle                26:52    2
4 #644 Peter Hammer         52 Boston Athle            26:55    3
5 #643 Mike Galoob          44 Boston Athle               26:56    4
15 #683 Tim Van Orden        50 Central Mass           27:38   12   1
22 #668 Todd Callaghan       49 Central Mass            28:27   18
23 #673 Gregory Hammett      41 Central Mass        28:30   19
25 #665 Arthur Besse         46 Central Mass              28:38   20
29 #681 Joe Shairs           50 Central Mass                28:55   22   4
30 #678 Joshua Perks         44 Central Mass             28:56   23
31 #666 Steve Brightman      49 Central Mass          29:00   24
32 #679 David Principe Sr    51 Central Mass           29:02        5
39 #677 James Pawlicki       44 Central Mass             29:37
61 #670 Dennis Floyd Jr      41 Central Mass             32:34
68 #685 Paul Young           53 Central Mass               33:50       22
106 #684 Steve Laska          56 Central Mass             43:37       37

Top 5 40+ teams, CMS Masters 3rd out of 9 teams  

Team Scores
=======================================================================
Rank Team                      Total    1    2    3    4    5   *6   *7
=======================================================================
   1 Boston Athletic Associati    21    2    3    4    5    7    8   10
      Total Time:  2:14:48.00
         Average:    26:57.60
   2 Dirigo R.C.                  55    1   11   13   14   16   21   27
      Total Time:  2:18:47.00
         Average:    27:45.40
   3 Central Mass Striders        91   12   18   19   20   22   23   24
      Total Time:  2:22:08.00
         Average:    28:25.60
   4 Hfc Striders                104    6    9   26   28   35   37   38
      Total Time:  2:23:46.00
         Average:    28:45.20
   5 Greater Springfield Harri   156   15   25   33   36   47   58
      Total Time:  2:35:53.00
         Average:    31:10.60

Top Men 50+ teams, CMS Seniors 3rd out of 7 teams
   1 Gr Springfield Har           59    2  6 10 13 28
   2 HFC Striders                 69    8 12 15 16 18 (19 20)
   3 Central Mass Str             69    1  4  5 22 37
   4 Greater Lowell RR            90   11 14 17 23 25 (26 31)
   5 Dirigo RC                    90    3  7 21 29 30 (33)

 
Scott Mindel

Scott Leslie

David Principe and Joe Shairs in the masters race




CMS finds team wins at Baystate Marathon


The Central Mass Striders men traveled to Lowell, MA for the USATF New England Marathon Championship. The Baystate Marathon was expecting up to 3000 runners between the marathon, half marathon, and relay. Runners had temperatures in the low 40’s. A head wind would greet runners along the course into Chelmsford and the Tyngsboro Bridge. The CMS men would find gold, finishing 1st in the open team, masters team, and senior team competition. CMS had 6 finishers in the top 18 overall. 10 men under 2:50

Scott Mindel from Burlington took his first USATF New England Championship win, leading the marathon all the way aside from company from the men’s half marathon winner, Tyler Andrews, in the early miles before the half marathon course turned right onto the Rourke Bridge. Scott would grind away breaking the tape in 2:23:50 which was the fastest winning time at Baystate since 2008. It was Scott’s third fastest marathon time behind a pair of 2:22’s at Boston. Peabody’s Dan Vassallo would move up into second place over the last 10K with a time of 2:29:07. Scott Leslie, Rutland, moved up several places in the second half of the course to finish fourth overall with a time of 2:32:44. Dan and Scott will be running the California International Marathon in December. Daniel Raboin from Acton would run a personal best in his marathon debut finishing 29th with a time of 2:44:59. It was the open team’s first win within the Grand Prix Series in 2018. Dirigo from Maine was 2nd, and WRT was third among 14 USATF New England teams.

The CMS Masters team would also command a presence in the front of the race with 13th, 16th, and 18th place coming from Patrick Rich, David Principe, and Kevin Hankens. Patrick Rich from South Hamilton, would run a time of 2:37:57. He was the second master overall, just behind Jon Chesto from GBTC (2:37:15). David Principe, Johnston, RI, would score down from his senior age group for the masters team. David would run a lifetime personal best 2:40:45 marathon time, just behind Robert Ashby (Dirigo). However, David would find himself as the top age graded finisher with an 86.7%. Kevin Hankens from Salem, MA would also find a marathon personal best with a time of 2:40:57. Rounding out the masters squad was Arthur Besse with a personal best of 2:43:46 (25th), Alan Bernier 2:48:55 (38th), Nick Taormina 2:49:53 (41ST), and James Pawlicki 3:12:30 (199th). The CMS masters won their 4th team Grand Prix for the year and out-paced Dirigo and BAA on the day. There were nine USATF teams that had at least 3 40+ runners.     

The Seniors would also take the team win, the fourth in the Grand Prix for the year. David Principe led the way with his 16th overall placed finish and 2nd overall Senior. Dave Dunham from Bradford, who set the event record of 2:21:36 20 years ago would run 3:01:51 and 110th place. David Lapierre from Chelmsford would be next running a 3:07:09 in 145th place. Paul Young would follow in 198th place with a time of 3:12:26. BAA would finish 2nd and host Greater Lowell Road Runners would finish 3rd out of 6 teams of at least three finishers.

USATF New England - 2018 Baystate Marathon Team Results
Open Top Five Teams – CMS Men Open 1st out of 14 teams
CNum Time5 GroTsismF e3 ClubName Runners TeamTime Pts
1 02-0009 12:44:28 07:25:44 Central Mass Striders                     07:25:44
2 02-0225 13:24:21 07:47:08 Dirigo R.C.                                        07:47:08
3 02-0192 13:59:38 08:02:41 Whirlaway Racing Team                08:02:41
4 02-0366 19:36:43 08:10:18 Western Mass Distance Project   08:10:18
5 02-0131 14:47:48 08:10:31 Somerville Road Runners              08:10:31

Masters Top Five Teams – CMS Men Masters 1st out of 9 teams
CNum Time5 GroTsismF e3 ClubName Runners TeamTime Pts
1 02-0009 13:32:25 07:59:42 Central Mass Striders                     07:59:42
2 02-0225 21:55:28 08:35:28 Dirigo R.C.                                        08:35:28
3 02-0001 18:40:31 08:40:04 Boston Athletic Association          08:40:04
4 02-0485 15:22:40 09:04:47 BEN Running Club                           09:04:47
5 02-0068 16:06:40 09:12:16 Greater Lowell Road Runners      09:12:16
Seniors Top Five Teams – CMS Men Seniors 1st out of 6 teams
CNum Time5 GroTsismF e3 ClubName Runners TeamTime Pts
1 02-0009 18:42:15 08:49:48 Central Mass Striders                     08:49:48
2 02-0001 22:31:13 09:11:13 Boston Athletic Association          09:11:13
3 02-0068 16:06:40 09:12:16 Greater Lowell Road Runners      09:12:16
4 02-0485 16:16:56 09:19:55 BEN Running Club                           09:19:55
5 02-0157 23:53:57 10:33:57 Gate City Striders                            10:33:57



1 1 MM3039 SCOTT MINDEL Burlington MA 32 M 16:14 34:12 46:46 1:11:38 1:29:32 1:42:12 2:05:51 2:23:50.5 5:30 2:23:51.2 BQ
2 2 MM3039 DAN VASSALLO Peabody MA 33 M 17:16 36:08 49:20 1:15:25 1:34:07 1:47:28 2:11:32 2:29:07.7 5:42 2:29:11.5 BQ
4 3 MM3039 SCOTT LESLIE Rutland MA 37 M 17:55 37:13 51:33 1:18:48 1:37:01 1:50:51 2:14:50 2:32:44.8 5:50 2:32:48.6 BQ
13 2 MM4049 PATRICK RICH South Hamilton MA 42 M 17:35 37:01 50:37 1:17:29 1:36:53 1:50:43 2:17:49 2:37:57.5 6:02 2:37:59.4 BQ
16 2 MM5059 DAVID PRINCIPE Johnston RI 51 M 18:03 37:57 52:04 1:19:42 1:40:09 1:54:30 2:21:01 2:40:45.3 6:09 2:40:48.7 BQ
18 3 MM4049 KEVIN HANKENS Salem MA 40 M 17:47 37:12 51:06 1:18:34 1:38:06 1:52:06 2:19:04 2:40:57.9 6:09 2:41:01.7 BQ
25 5 MM4049 ARTHUR BESSE Templeton MA 46 M 18:46 39:21 53:48 1:22:15 1:42:58 1:57:25 2:24:10 2:43:46.1 6:16 2:43:51.9 BQ
29 12 MM1629 DANIEL RABOIN Lunenburg MA 26 M 17:47 37:11 51:05 1:18:33 1:38:05 1:52:46 2:21:55 2:44:59.4 6:18 2:45:03.7 BQ
38 8 MM4049 ALAN BERNIER Dover NH 44 M 18:26 39:07 53:45 1:22:39 1:43:03 1:57:58 2:27:11 2:48:55.9 6:27 2:48:57.6 BQ
41 10 MM4049 NICK TAORMINA Gloucester MA 46 M 19:32 40:49 55:49 1:25:28 1:46:33 2:01:24 2:29:07 2:49:53.1 6:30 2:50:00.4 BQ
110 8 MM5059 DAVE DUNHAM Bradford MA 54 M 19:50 41:40 57:12 1:28:07 1:50:32 2:06:40 2:37:23 3:01:51.8 6:57 3:01:56.3 BQ
145 11 MM5059 DAVID LAPIERRE Chelmsford MA 54 M 20:43 44:16 1:01:26 1:33:53 1:57:03 2:13:27 2:44:24 3:07:09.6 7:09 3:07:17.9 BQ
198 16 MM5059 PAUL YOUNG North Andover MA 53 M 20:47 44:01 1:00:34 1:33:08 1:56:57 2:13:48 2:47:25 3:12:26.6 7:21 3:12:38.6 BQ
199 47 MM4049 JAMES PAWLICKI Lynn MA 44 M 20:42 44:14 1:00:49 1:33:53 1:57:33 2:14:41 2:48:23 3:12:30.7 7:21 3:12:39.8 BQ


Thursday, October 18, 2018

Local Press for Dave Dunham

Dave Dunham winning the 1998 Baystate Marathon
photo credit Lowell Sun
This year is the 20th anniversary of his US Olympic Trials Marathon Qualifier and Baystate Marathon event record that still holds, 2:21:36. Read the article in the Lowell Sun (by Barry Scanlon).

Dave will be competing for the CMS senior team on Sunday at the Baystate Marathon. The Central Mass Striders expect to have up to 20 men racing on Sunday.


Monday, October 1, 2018

CMS teams at Lone Gull 10K


The Central Mass Striders (CMS) men's racing team competed in the USATF New England 10K Championship, hosted in Gloucester, MA at the Lone Gull 10K. This was race number six for the 2018 USATF New England Road Race Grand Prix. A clear blue sky and sun greeted runners with comfortable fall temperatures in the low 60's at the 9AM start. 

The CMS open team finished 5th, men’s masters and seniors both finishing 2nd overall in a very competitive event. Scott Mindel led the open team, Patrick Rich led the masters (1st 40+ overall) and scored down into the open team, and Tim Van Orden led the Seniors. Jack Delehanty from Worcester made is CMS debut for the open team.

One last Grand Prix road race remains with the Baystate Marathon concluding the series for 2018 in October. 

Twelfth Annual Lone Gull 10K
Sunday, September 30, 2018 - Gloucester, MA
USATF New England Grand Prix 2018 10K Championship Race

18  Scott Mindel        32 M M3039 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Burlington           MA   31:52.9  5:08   31:56  5:09
20  Pat Fullerton         30 M M3039 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Bradford             MA   32:03.1  5:10   32:05  5:10
21 Scott Leslie             37 M M3039 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Rutland              MA   32:06.9  5:11   32:09  5:11
30 Patrick Rich             42 M M4049 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         South Hamilton       MA   32:38.6  5:16   32:41  5:16 1ST 40+
47 Dave Brooks              34 M M3039 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Holden               MA   33:23.1  5:23   33:26  5:23
49 Jack Delehanty           31 M M3039 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Worcester            MA   33:32.7  5:24   33:35  5:25
58 Daniel Raboin            26 M M2029 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Ayer                 MA   33:54.3  5:28   33:57  5:28
66 Arthur Besse             46 M M4049 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Templeton            MA   34:21.3  5:32   34:25  5:33
71 Kevin Hankens            40 M M4049 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Salem                MA   34:25.9  5:33   34:30  5:34
81 Tim Van Orden            50 M M5059 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Bennington           VT   34:53.4  5:37   34:56  5:38
84 Alan Bernier             44 M M4049 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Braintree            MA   34:58.8  5:38   35:03  5:39
103 Joshua Perks             44 M M4049 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Windham              NH   35:49.2  5:46   35:53  5:47
118 Tom Steele               43 M M4049 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Rutland              MA   36:00.5  5:48   36:09  5:49
125 Joe Shairs               50 M M5059 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Peabody              MA   36:28.2  5:53   36:32  5:53
127 Dave Dunham              54 M M5059 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Bradford             MA   36:31.5  5:53   36:35  5:54
130 Erik Vandendries         53 M M5059 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Chestnut Hill        MA   36:43.5  5:55   36:50  5:56
133 Nick Taormina            46 M M4049 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Gloucester           MA   36:49.4  5:56   36:57  5:57
146 James Pawlicki           43 M M4049 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Lynn                 MA   37:42.3  6:05   37:51  6:06
156 David Lapierre           54 M M5059 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Chelmsford           MA   38:00.2  6:07   38:05  6:08
162 Dan Verrington           56 M M5059 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Bradford             MA   38:16.5  6:10   38:25  6:11
213 Dennis Floyd             41 M M4049 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Georgetown           MA   40:26.8  6:31   40:35  6:32
217 Philip Savoy Jr          56 M M5059 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Shrewsbury           MA   40:36.2  6:33   40:44  6:34
376 David Krom               59 M M5059 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Worcester            MA   48:52.4  7:52   49:01  7:54
671 Larry Morris             72 M M7099 CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS         Leominster           MA 1:03:10.9 10:11 1:03:21 10:12


Mens Open Team Place out of 25 teams
1. BAA
2. WMDP
3. TRACKSMITH HARE AC
4. WHIRLAWAY
5.  CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS            
            31:52.9   32:03.1   32:06.9   32:38.6   33:23.1 (  33:32.7) (  33:54.3)
          (  34:21.3) = 2:42:04.6
         Scott Mindel 32, Pat Fullerton 30, Scott Leslie 37, Patrick Rich 42,
         Dave Brooks 34, Jack Delehanty 31, Daniel Raboin 26, Arthur Besse 46


Mens Masters Team Place out of 17 teams
1. BAA
2.  CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS            
            32:38.6   34:21.3   34:25.9   34:53.4   34:58.8 (  35:49.2) (  36:00.5)
          (  36:28.2) = 2:51:18.0
         Patrick Rich 42, Arthur Besse 46, Kevin Hankens 40, Tim Van Orden 50,
         Alan Bernier 44, Joshua Perks 44, Tom Steele 43, Joe Shairs 50


Mens Seniors Team Place out of 12 teams
1. GREATER SPRINGFIELD HARRIERS
2.  CENTRAL MASS STRIDERS            
            34:53.4   36:28.2   36:31.5   36:43.5   38:00.2 (  38:16.5) (  40:36.2)
          (  48:52.4) = 3:02:36.8
         Tim Van Orden 50, Joe Shairs 50, Dave Dunham 54, Erik Vandendries 53,
         David Lapierre 54, Dan Verrington 56, Philip Savoy Jr 56, David Krom
         59