November 10, 2024 The USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships returned to Bulder Colorado after a one-year hiatus. They were held again at the Harlow Platts/Viele Lake Park; it provides the perfect setting for a challenging but fair Cross Country course. Although known as a hilly Cross course, it has less than 200' of elevation gain. What makes it tough, especially for runners from the flatlands, is the relative lack of oxygen. It was a glorious, crisp fall day for racing! It was low 40’s for the Men’s race at 9:40 AM, and low 50’s for the Women’s race at 11:00 AM that closed off festivities. TEAM Boulder, the hosts, made sure everything went off like clockwork! With the majestic Rocky Mountains forming an impressive backdrop, the top runners from that part of the world were determined to make their mark. Some sea level runners dreamed big and made those dreams come true!
OVERALL MEN Joseph Gray HOKA/Colorado Springs CO is known as the best Mountain Runner in the country, with multiple national championships and one World Championship to his credit. Gray is also no stranger to Cross Country; he won the /Overall Championship at the 2013 USATF Club Open Cross Country Champion in Bend, OR, He celebrated his entry to the Masters ranks earlier this year with a dominant win at the Masters 10 Km Championships in Dedham, MA when he clocked 30:44. His main challenger was Neil McDonagh Square State Striders/Colorado Springs CO, who finished fourth here in 2022 with a 16:50 effort. In January 2023, McDonagh finished 2nd overall in the Masters race at the USATF Cross Country Championships, covering 8 Km in a nifty 25:26. In May of this year, McDonagh enjoyed his first Masters National Championship, winning the 1 Mile Championship with minutes to spare.
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| The Air is Crisp, the Gun sounds--They are off on a tour of Boulder's Viele Lake/Harlow Platts Park for the 2024 USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships hosted by TEAM Boulder Photo Credit: Dave Albo/www.lane1photos.com/Photos/Competition/Boulder-XC-Series/Colleen-De-Reuck-XC-Classic |
Gray put the hammer down from the start. In the early going, Gray and McDonagh were joined by Tyler Butterfield Unattached/Niwot CO, a two-time Olympic Triathlete for Bermuda, and Daniel McIntosh Unattached/Cheyenne WY /. Last year Butterfield had been able to edge McDonagh by 9 seconds to take the Masters win in 16:47 over this same course. McIntosh would rely on his endurance strength; he finished 9th overall and enjoyed the Masters win at the Equinox Half Marathon in September. His 1:14:13 time was at altitude. Gray ratcheted up the pace and that dropped Butterfield and McIntosh before the halfway point. Once Gray cranked it up another n8otch, McDonagh had to let him go. McDonagh kept him within striking distance but was not able to close, Gray took his second win on the Masters circuit this year, clocking 15:30 flat.
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| Joseph Gray attacks the last turn and heads onto the final stretch as he claims the Overall Masters win at the 2024 USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships hosted by TEAM Boulder Photo Credit: Dave Albo/www.lane1photos.com/Photos/Competition/Boulder-XC-Series/Colleen-De-Reuck-XC-Classic |
This complements Gray's 10 km win in April. McDonough, who won the Masters 1 Mile Championship in May, had to settle for second this time, 19 seconds behind Gray. But between McDonagh and Butterfield, this day belonged to McDonagh! Butterfield had a Wyoming runner to battle. Butterfield's surges could not shake McIntosh, until one finally did. Butterfield claimed third just six seconds ahead of McIntosh. They were followed across the finish line by Matthew Kempton Unattached/Steamboat Springs CO in 16:40. Twelve seconds later Gregory Mitchell Bowerman TC/Nampa ID finished 6th, the first athlete over 50 and the first athlete who resides and trains below 5000 feet 2,516'. Eleven more runners who live along the front range of the Rockies would finish before the first athlete who trains at sea level.
Joseph Gray 15:30 Neil McDonagh 15:49 Tyler Butterfield 16:14
WOMEN Melissa Dock Unattached/Boulder CO won the gold medal in Cross Country at the WMA Outdoor Championships this summer in Sweden. Her 29:29 over a hilly 8 Km course left her nine seconds ahead of US teammate, April Lund, who claimed the silver medal. A few years back, in 2021, when Dock was 39, she finished ninth overall in the Women's Open race at Club Cross in Tallahassee. Her main rival on this day, Ann Kirkpatrick Front Range Elite/Ft. Collins CO, was seeking to repeat her victory on this course when she claimed the 5 Km Championship. Kirkpatrick was in that same Tallahassee race but finished a minute back. They met more recently on the roads, with Dock taking honors at the Bolder Boulder 10K this May, 36:30 to 36:56. That gave Dock two for two over Kirkpatrick. But roads are roads and turf is turf. So the Bolder Boulder result might go topsy turvy. And conditions at Tallahassee in 20211, warm and humid at sea level as opposed to cool, crisp, and dry at altitude might not be a good guide either. Kirkpatrick was the defending champ until Dock could prove otherwise. And what about Michele Yates Unattached/Conifer CO? Yates has food speed over 5K; she finished 4th overall at the Masters 5 Km Championships in Atlanta this year behind a strong podium in 17:47. Her high altitude bona fides include first woman overall in 20:51 at the Elevation 5K in Conifer, CO, run at over 8,000'. How would she fare on the turf?
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| The Women's Race Unfolds-Two Hundred Meters Into the 5 Km Championship course for the 2024 USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships hosted by TEAM Boulder Photo Credit: Dave Albo/www.lane1photos.com/Photos/Competition/Boulder-XC-Series/Colleen-De-Reuck-XC-Classic |
When the gun sounded, Dock, Yates and Kirkpatrick surged down the opening slope, up again on the slant, over and down to circumnavigate a small pond. By the time they headed back to the starting area, it was Dock, Kirkpatrick, and Yates in single file but without much separation. The second loop belonged to Dock as she established a gap to Kirkpatrick and Yates, still locked in combat, with Yates sticking to Kirkpatrick for all she was worth! By the time they were headed down to the lower field for the finishing loop, Kirkpatrick finally had the gap she needed. Dock cruised to the win with a hundred meters to spare.
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| Melissa Dock celebrates her Masters Overall win at the 2024 USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships hosted by TEAM Boulder Photo Credit: Dave Albo/www.lane1photos.com/Photos/Competition/Boulder-XC-Series/Colleen-De-Reuck-XC-Classic |
Though closer between Kirkpatrick and Yates there was still over fifty meters of daylight between them. Kirkpatrick ran a minute faster than her winning 2022 time! Jacquie Mannhard TEAM Boulder/Boulder CO finished fourth in 19:05, with Ashley Carroll Impala Racing/Menlo Park CA, the first sea level athlete in at fifth, a half minute later. Eight seconds later, Kate Davis TEAM Boulder/Boulder CO finished sixth.
Melissa Dock 17:53 Ann Kirkpatrick 18:15 Michele Yates 18:27
AGE GRADING The age grading score, the Performance Level Percentage (PLP), identifies the runners, across all age divisions, who had the best performance relative to the fastest times in the world.
WOMEN Kristine Clark, 61, enjoyed a massive age grading win of over two full percentage points. Her best prior finish at a national road or Cross Country Masters Championship was in September 2023, when she had the seventh best PLP at the 12 Km Masters Championships. Her division winning 21:13 on Saturday age graded at 88.3.
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| Kris Clark enjoyed the fastest age adjusted Cross Country Race, a Performance Level Percentage |
Dock, 42, not only won the overall race, she had the second best PLP, at 85.68. Kirkpatrick, 43, followed, as she did in the overall race, taking third with an 84.58 PLP.
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| Ann Kirkpatrick left and Michele Yates battle for 2nd and 3rd Overall while earning 3rd and 5th age grade prizes at the 2024 USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships hosted by TEAM Boulder Photo Credit: Dave Albo/www.lane1photos.com/Photos/Competition/Boulder-XC-Series/Colleen-De-Reuck-XC-Classic |
Michele Montgomery Impala Racing/Kentfield CA finished just off the podium at 83.69, with Yates, 42, fifth at 83.11.
MEN Top honors went to Frank Zoldak, 57, who won his division in 16:55, achieving a PLP of 91.58%. That is even higher than his winning PLP, 90.52 in Tallahassee last December.
Daniel King, 65, repeated his age grading silver medal performance from 2022. Fresh from a weekend earlier setting new 65-69 American Records on the track at 1500M and 1 Mile, King had the second-best PLP at 89.86, three full percentage points higher than in 2022. In a reversal of the overall finish, McDonough, 43, edged Gray, 40 for third 87.53 to 87.37. Mitchell, 51, enjoyed the fifth [lace finish just 0.05% behind Gray!
Frank Zoldak 57 16:55 91.58 Daniel King 65 18:28 89.86 Neil McDonagh 43 15:496 87.53
AGE DIVISION MEN 40-44 McDonagh is the 'Elder Statesman' of the overall podium at 43. When Gray, McDonagh, and Butterfield went 1-2-3 Overall, they collected the 1-2-3 in 40-44 as well.
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| Neil McDonagh claims the Overall and Men 40-44 silver medal in front of the majestic Rocky Mountains at the 2024 USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships hosted by TEAM Boulder Photo Credit: Dave Albo/www.lane1photos.com/Photos/Competition/Boulder-XC-Series/Colleen-De-Reuck-XC-Classic |
Kempton and McIntosh likewise follow in 4th and fifth, as they did overall.
Joseph Gray 15:30 Neil McDonagh 15:49 Tyler Butterfield 16:14
45-49 It was a different story in this division, shut out of the top ten overall, Taylor Carrington Unattached/Denver CO, Chris McCullough Fort Collis Running Club/Ft Collins CO, Gerardo Orozco Unattached/Boulder CO, Mark Saunders Ft Collins RC/Ft Collins CO and Jason Toth Ft Collins RC/Ft Collins CO battled for division and, in three cases, team glory. Toth finished 13th two years ago in 18:45. On the same course, last year, Carrington ran two seconds faster to win this division in the USATF-CO association XC championships. Toth had been ten seconds back in 2nd, with Saunders a good minute and a half back in third. I find no recent X-C+ for Mc=Cullough but he does have altitude credentials for road running. He ran a 29:34 5 Miler at the Equinox HM in September of last year, and in April of that year clocked 1:29:47 to take 3rd in 45-49 at the Horsetooth HM in Fort Collins. All I find for him this year is a triathlon, a 'fat tire' cycling event and a Road Mile in 5:36. Similarly for Orozco, there is just a trail run and a XC Skiing race. Perhaps the win over Toth last year in the USATF-CO championships gave him confidence. Whatever the reason, Carrington was able to make it work on Saturday, pulling away and crossing the finish line a good eighty meters ahead of Toth.
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| From Left: Glen Mays, Taylor Carrington, and Phil Smith Battle mid-race. Carrington claimed 1st 45-49; Mays 2nd 50-54; and Smith 3rd 55-59. All three were Top 20 Overall at the 2024 USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships hosted by TEAM Boulder Photo Credit: Dave Albo/www.lane1photos.com/Photos/Competition/Boulder-XC-Series/Colleen-De-Reuck-XC-Classic |
Saunders had a much better outing than last year, finishing just a half minute behind Toth in 18:43. A half minute later, Orozco claimed fourth; McCullough was another minute back in fifth.
Taylor Carrington 17:53 Jason Toth 18:11 Mark Saunders 18:43
50-54 As noted above in the Overall section, Greg Mitchell Bowerman TC/Nampa ID was the first runner 50 or over to finish, cracking the top 6 overall. And, of course, that means he took first in this division. It was not close; against a strong field, Mitchell enjoyed a winning margin of over 300 meters.
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| Gregory Mitchell claims the 50-54 Title with the Front Range of the Rockies among the spectators |
Three teammates, Flavio De Simone Boulder Road Runners/Boulder CO, Glen Mays Boulder R R/Denver CO, and Todd Stockford Boulder RR/Parker CO, did their best to stay with Mitchell. By doing so, they made sure their 50+ team did as well as possible. Mays had run 18:23 to years ago to finish 5th M50 in the 2022 5 Km Championships. De Simone finished 9th about 50 seconds back. Stockford did not run then. But at the USATF-CO Championships last year, contested over this same course, Mays, Stockford and De Simone finished 2nd, 4th and 5th at 18:57, 19:03 and 19:46, respectively. That was a good predictor. Mays stayed close for the longest time; he finished 2nd in 18:01, almost a minute faster than his 2023 time at the association championships. Seventeen seconds behind Mays, Stockford finished 3rd. De Simone wrapped things up for the BRR trio with a 4th place finish in 18:51, also almost a minute faster than his 2023 effort here. There was a gap of over three minutes to the 5th place finisher, Craig Belville Unattached/Boulder CO.
Gregory Mitchell 16:52 Glen Mays 18:01 Todd Stockford 18:18
55-59 Frank Zoldak Boulder RR/Golden CO was expected to dominate this division. He won it, with a at Club Cross in Tallahassee last December. Club Cross typically attracts the deepest and most talented fields of the three national cross country championships. Peter Hammer had won his division for six or seven years in a row at the annual Club Cross championships. Zoldak came in ahead of Hammer and it was not close. It seemed likely that Rick Granquist Boulder RR/Denver CO, Mark Lindrud Central Park Track Club/Basking Ridge NJ, and Phil Smith Unattached/El Dorado CA would battle for the two remaining spots. As noted above in the age grading section, Zoldak had the top age grading score on the day. He won this division by the better part of two minutes. Granquist had finished 4th in this division at this event here in 2022 in 19:25. But a year later over the same course at the association championships, Granquist was 44 seconds slower. Unfortunately, I can find no more recent results for Granquist. For a road race to compare, I could use his May 2023 41:46 at the Bolder Boulder 10K. I find no recent XC results for either Lindrud or Smith, but they have some swift road race results. Lindrud won his division at the Percy Sutton Harlem 5K in August with a 17:57. This September, he added the 55-59 title at the Bronx Ten Miler; his 56:55 suggests had he been running a 10K instead of a ten miler, his time would likely have been under 34:30. That is enough faster than Granquist that the elevation alone would not equate the Bolder Boulder time with the Bronx 10 Mile-equivalent 10K time. Smith ran a 17:54 5K at the Sactown Ten in early April and followed that up this October with a 17:41 5K at the Urban Cow HM. The same is true for a comparison of Smith and Granquist. Sub-18 5K's are quite a bit faster than Granquist can manage. Going back a few years, I found no 5K's under 19 minutes. And what about Lindrud vs. Smith. Would Lindrud's endurance overbalance Smith's speed or vice versa? The answers for this day of racing were that the two road aces from sea level were able to handle the elevation and turf well enough. Lindrud finished second to Zoldak in 18:36 with Smith 11 seconds back in third. Granquist gave a good account of himself, running two seconds faster than he did in 2022! But he had to settle for fourth nonetheless. Jonah Lovendahl Unattached/Loveland CO finished fifth in 19:44.
Frank Zoldak 16:55 Mark Lindrud 18:36 Phill Smith 18:47
60-64 Nat Larson Greater Springfield Harriers/Amherst MA owns the 60-64 American Record book from the 1 Mile run to the Half Marathon. All of those records, of course, are set on the roads. Each year the USATF Masters LDR Committee works with the Cross Country Council to identify a Masters Harrier of the Year. Traditiio8nally, that has gone to the athlete with at least two national championships and the most outstanding age grade PLP's. Larson has either been winner or co-winner of that award three times. Suffice to say, Larson can run fast on the roads or the turf. On the other hand, he has not raced much at elevation. When Club Cross was in Spokane at about 1800', Larson had his usual fine race, winning the age grade competition for the M40+ 10 Km race. But 1800' is not the same as Boulder's 5400'. It is also worth noting that Larson had a few months out of competition this year dealing with some kind of injury. 8He returned in mid-September at the 12 Km road championships but was not quite at full capability, due to some lost training. He still finished third in age grading. Larson entered as the strong favorite. His main competition would likely come from Mark Tatum Boulder Road Runners/Colorado Springs CO and Henry Notaro Shore AC/Northfield NJ. Tatum, primarily a trail runner, participated in the 2022 championships here, finishing 2nd M60 to Dan King. Perhaps his greatest claim to fame is his victory at the renowned Dipsea trail race a few years back, perhaps in 2021. A handicap race, Tatum caught and passed everyone in front of him and no one who started later, not the fastest of the fast, was able to catch Tatum! Of course, that race has over 2000 feet of elevation in just over 7 miles. One hundred fourteen feet of elevation gain in just over 3 miles hardly compares. But Tatum did well in 2022 and should do well in 2024. Notaro, primarily a marathoner, was not running the national Masters circuit in 2022 when the last race was held in Boulder. But he has done well on his cross country outings. He competed in Cross Nationals at Richmond, VA in both 20233 and 2024, finishing 3rd in M60 both times. He was further back at Tallahassee last December but Club Cross is typically a much deeper field. The expectations were fulfilled. Larson's training in the rest of September and October must have gone well. He was able to move ahead of Notaro midrace and was able to keep Tatum behind him. Tatum moved up during the race, passing Notaro before they headed out for the second loop.
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| Mark Tatum M60 leads the Way out for the second loop, ahead of Rick Granquist M55 blue cap, and Chris McCullough M45 blue singlet, sunglasses, followed closely by Roger Sayre M65 and Henry Notaro M60 at the 2024 USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships hosted by TEAM Boulder Photo Credit: Dave Albo/www.lane1photos.com/Photos/Competition/Boulder-XC-Series/Colleen-De-Reuck-XC-Classic |
Tatum never threatened Larson who took the win with a victory margin of over 150 meters. Tatum finished second, pulling away over the second loop. Notaro claimed third, twenty seconds behind Tatum. Adam Feerst Boulder Road Runners/Denver CO had finished 10th in this division in 2022, almost two minutes behind Tatum. He has had an up and down last year or so. He did surprisingly well, finishing fourth in 20:21, less than a minute behind Tatum this time. Like Larson and Notaro, Mike Mertens Genesee Valley Harriers/Farmington NY also enjoyed a successful trip up from sea level, finishing fifth in 20:49.
Nat Larson 18:56 Mark Tatum 19:34 Henry Notaro 19:54
Individual Grand Prix Implications: Larson's win gave him the extra 100 points he needed to once again earn a perfect 500 GP points and pass Lester Dragstedt for the win.
65-69 Dan King Athletics Boulder/Boulder CO won M60 here in 2022. With King setting M65 American records on the track at 1500M and 1 Mile the weekend before this race, few doubted he would be atop the M65 podium. And that is despite attracting a strong field including Roger Sayre Boulder RR/Golden CO, who broke his own M65 25K road American Record this May. In 2022, Sayre finished 6th in M60, a minute and a half behind King; he would likely do better this go round. In addition to his record-setting 25K exploits, his times in local 5K races this past summer are very close to what he was running two years ago in a younger age division. On the other hand, he has been focusing his training on longer events, with a 3-hour marathon one of his goals for this fall. Ken Youngers has been running at a very high level this summer and fall. He finished 2nd to Rick Becker at the 10 Mile Championships in Flint, clocking 1:05:01 and finishing with the third best PLP. At Highlands NJ he did even better, winning the M65 championship in 47:01, and achieving the highest PLP at 90.50%. A consistent performer on the turf as well, Youngers finished 2nd M65 at last year's 5 Km XC Championships in Boca Raton and 2nd M65 at Club Cross in Tallahassee last December. of course this would be altitude, more of a challenge for Youngers, presumably, than for King and Sayre. Jay Littlepage, who finished 2nd to Youngers at Highlands, would have been expected to challenge for a podium spot. That was a little more doubtful after he encountered a few niggles on the run into the championships with his hip and a short illness. King confided after the race that he was a little disappointed in his uphill stretch but made up for it by letting it out on the downhill that followed. That apparently worked well; not only did he win this division with room to spare, he also achieved the second-best age grade score. Sayre crossed the finish line a minute later, in second, followed by Youngers, in third, thirty-six seconds later. Despite his best efforts, Littlepage could not quite get there; he finished six seconds behind Youngers in 4th. William Hook finished 5th at 20:47.
Dan King 18:28 Roger Sayre 19:29 Ken Youngers 20:05
Individual Grand Prix Implications: David Westenberg was a scratch due to injury. He led with 475 points. Sayre's 95 points for second lace gave him 475 [points and Youngers' third place gave him 90 points and also 475 points. The head-to-head tie breaker left Youngers in third place. But neither the head-to-head tie break rule nor the number of 100-point scores would break the tie between Sayre and Westenberg. They both receive 65-69 Champion plaques.
70-74 Two years ago in Boulder, Doug Bell Boulder RR/Greeley CO and Douglas Chesnut Boulder RR/Keller TX finished in 23:08 and 23:21, well over a minute ahead of Jim Linn Shore AC/Harleysville PA. A year ago, when these championships were held in Boca Raton, Chesnut finished 3rd in M70 at 22:51, with Bell 6th at 24:05. Linn did not run but his teammate, Reno Stirrat did. Stirrat finished well over a minute behind Bell. But Stirrat has been up and down over the last couple of years. It is worth remembering that in the January 2023 XC race at Richmond, Stirrat clocked 36:27. That was over a half minute faster than Bell's time over the same course in 2024. And even though Stirrat finished behind Bell at Boca, a couple of months later at Tallahassee, Stirrat came in 45 seconds ahead of Bell and Chesnut who were given the same time. Linn has been running much faster this year than in the recent past. In January, Linn finished over two minutes ahead of Bell at Cross Nationals in Richmond, and then, in February, won the 5 Km M70 Championship in Atlanta with a sparkling 19:47. Another wrinkle is that Stirrat ran the Marine Corps Marathon MCM the weekend before this race. A Marine veteran, it was important for Stirrat to bookmark his many other marathons. The MCM was Stirrat's first marathon in 1976, and now it is also his most recent. Would that slow him down. There were lots of questions but, as it turned out, Linn and Stirrat had all the answers. Linn led the way for much of the race with Bell and Chesnut in hot pursuit, a few strides back. A few more strides back and one found Stirrat. Despite their best efforts, Bell and Chesnut could not run Linn down. When, late in the race, Stirrat was able to move past them, Bell could not respond. Chesnut did respond but could just manage to stay close. In the end, Linn won with a 7-second margin over his teammate, Stirrat, and just five more seconds back to Chesnut. It was quite a race around the final lower field to the finish! Bell was fourth in 23:11, a minute and 17 seconds ahead of Rich Sandoval Athletics Boulder/Boulder CO, in 5th place.
James Linn 22:39 Reno Stirrat 22:46 Douglas Chesnut 22:51
75-79 In 2022, Gary Ostwald Boulder RR/Denver CO was not able to use his elevation advantage to keep Dave Glass from winning the championship by 45 seconds. Two months later Ostwald took the win at Club Cross in San Francisco and then went on to win most championships that year, losing only to Gene Dykes when he competed at Cross Nationals in Richmond in January. Glass, unfortunately, discovered toward the end of the year that he had a heart valve problem that required surgery. How big an effect that had on his performances earlier in 2023 is unknown. With Glass taking a break from competition following his surgery, and Dykes preoccupied with ultras and marathons, the field was clear for Ostwald. Rick Katz Boulder RR/Boulder CO and Jerry Learned Atlanta TC/Gainesville GA would battle for 2nd and 3rd place. At these championships in 2022, Katz finished a good minute and a half ahead of Learned. By February I was aware that Learned had a health problem that was slowing him down; that may already =have been affecting him at Boulder. By the summer, Learned was in the process of recovery. At Boca Raton in October, he still finished well back from Katz but at Tallahassee in December, Katz came in just 18 seconds ahead of Learned. But by January, Katz was again finishing well over a minute ahead of Learned. With elevation working in his favor, it seemed unlikely that Learned would be able to stay with Katz. Ostwald had no problem claiming the win this time around. In fact, he ran 1:42 faster than in 2022. When Ostwald crossed the finish line, Katz still had 200 meters to go. But Katz, in turn, had a hundred meters on Learned and would not lose that lead, claiming second in 24:09. Learned crossed the finish line twenty-four seconds behind Katz in third. Jeffrey Dumas was 4th at 26:20, with John Roeske finishing fifth twelve seconds later.
Gary Ostwald 23:00 Rick Katz 24:09 Jerry Learned 24:33
Individual Grand Prix Implications: Ostwald's win gave him 490 points for the year and the 75-79 Grand Prix win. Learned lowest of his top five scores going in was 95; the 90 points he received for his third-place finish left him 2nd int he GP at 475. Katz, meanwhile, leapfrogged ahead of me, Paul Carlin, to claim third place in the GP, 465 points to 440.
80-84 Jan Frisby Boulder RR/Gand Junction CO turned 80 just before the Masters 10 Km Championships in April. Five years ago, he had to worry about battling Doug Goodhue for top honors in the 75-79 division but Goodhue has been largely absent from national masters championships this year as he rehabs a hamstring. Frisby promptly won the 10 Km and 1 Mile Championships but strained his glute. That forced him to cut back his training. He had already entered the WMA Championship and ran the 10K there but was not at his best. The glute was largely under control by mid-September but the loss of fitness due to less intensive training meant that Frisby finished third. With six weeks of added training under his belt for this race it seemed likely he would come out on top. His main competition would come from his teammate, Tom Lemire Boulder RR/Boulder CO, who seldom competes nationally. Lemire ran a very respectable 54:49 at the Bolder Boulder this year. It was not as fast as Frisby's 51:57 at Dedham. But the Bolder Bouder is at least as challenging a course as at Dedham and has the altitude factor on top of that. He would definitely press Frisby for the win. Ed Bligh Atlanta TC/Alpharetta GA who won this division at Club nationals in Tallahassee last December would be right there if either of the two Coloradans faltered. Frisby encountered no problems; he came home first with over half a minute to spare. His 28 minutes flat was over three minutes faster than the winning M80 time in 2022. Lemire also had a good outing, taking the silver medal, well ahead of Bligh who earned the bronze medal.
Jan Frisby 28:00 Tom Lemire 28:33 Ed Bligh 33:25
85-89 David Turner made the trip for the 80+ Atlanta team. Unfortunately, one of his teammates was unable to make it to the championship after all. Their Club Grand Prix hopes dashed, Turner nonetheless competed and brought home the Gold.
David Turner 33:20
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| Mid-Race-Gregory Mitchell leads a Chase Pack off a bridge onto a grassy verge between the path and the pond-at the 2024 USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships hosted by TEAM Boulder Photo Credit: Dave Albo/www.lane1photos.com/Photos/Competition/Boulder-XC-Series/Colleen-De-Reuck-XC-Classic |
WOMEN 40-44 Dock, Kirkpatrick, and Yates all came from the 40-44 age division. When they went 1-2-3 overall, they also earned the 40-44 division medals.
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| Michele Yates turns onto the final straight for her final sprint to the finish line ad her Overall (and W40+) Bronze medal at the 2024 USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships hosted by TEAM Boulder Photo Credit: Dave Albo/www.lane1photos.com/Photos/Competition/Boulder-XC-Series/Colleen-De-Reuck-XC-Classic |
Mannhard and Carroll who finished 4th and 5th overall finished 4th and 5th in this division. See overall description above for details.
Melissa Dock 17:53 Ann Kirkpatrick 18:15 Michele Yates 18:27
45-49 Although they did not factor in the overall competition, it was a battle between two Fort Collins athletes and two from Atlanta for division honors. Sara Callor and Janet Clements came in two seconds apart at the FireKracker 5K in Ft Collins in July at 21:18 and 21:16. Those times would be faster at sea level. Clements finished 9th at these championships here in 2022, clocking 22:56. In April 2023, Clements ran 1:39:00 at the Horsetooth HM in Ft Collins. Hiroko Guarneri and Alicia Eno finished 4th and 6th respectively at these championships held last year in Boca Raton, clocking 23:33 and 24:49. Guarneri ran 21:55 to finish 9th in 45-49 at the Masters 5 Km championships in Atlanta this past February. Eno clocked a 1:41:02 at the Rock n Roll San Diego Halm Marathon. It appeared that Eno and Guarneri would have to raise their game a bit to compete with Callor and Clements. Callor and Clements left nothing to chance. Callor won the division with a fine 21:28. Clements improved on her 2022 time by a minute to win silver. Guarneri finished seven seconds ahead of her teammate, Eno, in taking the bronze medal.
Sara Callor 21:28 Janet Clements 21:58 Hiroko Guarneri 23:33
Individual Grand Prix Implications: By participating in this final event, Alicia Eno qualified for a 4th place MNGP certificate.
50-54 Samantha Forde Impala Racing/Santa Criz CA finished 5th in this division here in 2022 with a 23:32 effort, so she knows the drill. Forde has had a good Grand Prix season. She started with a 4th place 50-54 finish in Tallahassee in 25:18 over 6 Km and followed that with a second-place finish at Cross Nationals in Richmond at 25:24. A 40:52 at the Masters 10 Km Championships for another 4th place led into a bronze medal effort at the 1 Mile in Danville, finishing off a good stretch for Forde. Nicole Howley Boulder RR/Boulder CO, as seems to be the case with many Boulder runners, focuses on trail runs. Her trail 'cred' this year comes from a 3:34:12 Mt Evans Ascent Trail Run--nothing like a 14.5 mile run up a mountain to start your day, they say! Howley also exhibited some road speed with a 21:18 Alpine Bank Thanksgiving 5K. Even with the altitude difference that does not quite seem to match Forde's road speed. But the turf can also be an equalizer although Forde has plenty oof experience there. Others who figured to be in the mix included Forde's Front Range residing teammate, Alexandra Newman Impala Racing/Golden CO and Christie Nie Shore AC/Princeton NJ. Newman finished a half minute behind Forde here in 2022 and was two minutes behind Forde at Richmond in January Cross Nationals. I find no recent XC results for Nie but she ran a 1:30:39 half at the Shamrock Marathon in March, followed by a 3:19:56 effort at the Boston Marathon. In September of 2023, Nie finished 2nd in this division at the Masters 12 Km Championships in Highlands NJ with a 50:42, roughly equivalent to a sub-42-minute 10K. Her speed does not appear to match Forde's but endurance like Nie's often translates well to the turf.
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| Early In the Women's Race-From Left: Christie Nie, Kris Huff, Hiroko Guarneri, Catherine Douras, Antigone Pierson, Kate Schulte, and Laura Delea, runners from the 40's through the 60's, mixing it up on the turf at the 2024 USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships hosted by TEAM Boulder Photo Credit: Dave Albo/www.lane1photos.com/Photos/Competition/Boulder-XC-Series/Colleen-De-Reuck-XC-Classic |
Whether it was the Trail Running or something else, Howley was able to navigate the Boulder course at the head of the 50-54 pack, winning in 21:25. Nie was able to stay with Forde in the early going but had to let her go. Forde finished a minute behind Howley and sixteen seconds ahead of Nie. Newman gave her usual strong effort to finish fourth in 23:28, shaving a half minute off her 2022 time. Lori Emerson Colorado Racing Club/Boulder CO was eleven seconds behind Newman in fifth.
Nicole Howley 21:25 Samantha Forde 22:26 Christie Nie 22:42
Individual Grand Prix Implications: Alexandra Newman's 5th place finish earned 85 points. That raised her total, final GP points by 80 from 295 to 375, allowing Newman to jump from 6th place to 2nd place in the 50-54 MNGP standings. Alexandra Marzulla's 70 GP points from her 7th place finish allowed her to vault from 6th to 9th in the final MNGP standings.
55-59 With their focus primarily on the 50+ team race, Chery Aley Fort Collins RC/Loveland CO and Kristine Leader Athletics Boulder/Boulder CO also contested for the 55-59 win. Aley finished 4th overall and won this division at the Colleen De Reuck XC Classic in 2022 over this same course in 23:52. A year later, Leader finished 6th overall at the De Reuck Classic in 22:29. Leader clocked 21:22 at the Alpine Bank 5K last November and ran 21:22 at the FireKracker 5K this July. That appeared to give Leader the edge but every race is different, especially in cross country. Laura Delea Shore AC/Allamuchy-Hackettstown NJ was in the race for her 50+ team and to enjoy the camaraderie. She had surprised herself, after an up and down training year, to do well at the 12 Km and Half Marathon Masters Championships, snagging the bronze medal in both. It was tight between the two Coloradans all the way, but on this day, Aley had just a little more in the tank at the end, winning the gold medal with a margin of just four seconds, the tightest division race of the day! Delea was not competitive with those two but kept everyone else at bay for her third consecutive bronze medal at a national masters championship to finish off the MNGP season. Tina Gini Larter Athletics Boulder/Boulder CO finished fourth in 33:53.
Cheryl Aley 22:05 Kristine Leader 22:09 Laura Delea 23:36
Individual Grand Prix Implications: Delea's bronze medal finish vaulted her from fourth to second in the final 55-59 Grand Prix standings.
60-64 Kris Clark Athletics Boulder/Salida CO is tough to beat. At the 2022 edition of these championships in Boulder, Clark was in her last year in 55-59. That is what it takes to keep her from winning. She still managed to claim second place at 21:39. In September 2023, she finished 2nd in 60-64 at the Masters 12 Km Championships in New Jersey, finishing 11 seconds behind the winner. Had she not fallen in the last hundred meters, it would have been tight for the win. This year she ran 42:10 at the Bolder Boulder 10K in May, and 20:02 at the Cookie Chase 5K in July. Mercedes Gil Fort Collins RC/Fort Collins CO and Kate Schulte Fort Collins RC/Fort Collins CO would give chase as they sought a team title. In 2022, Schulte finished 7th in that edition of these championships with a 24:18. Schulte's 1:47:15 at the Spring Equinox HM allowed her to finish three minutes in front of Gil. This September, Gil ran a 38:56 5 Miler at the Equinox HM, roughly equivalent to a sub-24-minute 5K. Since turning 60 last winter, Kris Huff Atlanta TC/Newnan GA has done well at Masters National Championships. She finished 4th at Cross Nationals in Richmond in January and followed that in August and October with 2nd place division finishes in the Ten Mile Championships in Flint Mi and the Half Marathon championships in Indianapolis. Her half marathon time on a challenging course was 1:39:32. Stephanie Scholl Boulder RR/Kremmling CO was a minute and a half slower than Schulte on this course in 2022. Her 1:53:04 at the Steamboat Half Marathon this past June suggests Scholl would have a tough time staying with Huff over the half marathon distance. But this race is much shorter, just 5 Km and is at altitude. Clark, as expected, went right to the front of the division, running in or just outside the top ten overall. She ran 26 seconds faster this year than in 2022, taking the win with a margin of nearly two minutes. Schulte claimed second in 23 minutes flat. Huff led Gil and Scholl into the final uphill before descending to the starting area and around behind to the lower field with the finish. Gil was able to pass Huff, taking third in 23:49, with a half minute to spare. Scholl tried her best but could not get past Huff. Huff's 24:18 gave her fourth place with Scholl just six seconds back.
Kris Clark 21:13 Kate Schulte 23:00 Mercedes Gil 23:49
Individual Grand Prix Implications: Had Carol Keller not competed in this event, she would have lacked the minimum number of events to qualify for an award. With her 60 points from her 9th place finish, Keller earns an 8th place MNGP Certificate.
65-69 Suzanne Cordes Impala Racing/Alamo CA won the 60-64 division two years ago in 23:16. That us somewhat surprising as she lives in the East Bay area of San Francisco. But she apparently has a business relationship that draws her up to elevation from time to time where she can enjoy the altitude benefits for training. The win at Boulder in 2022 was in line with her tendency to place among the top 5 even at the most competitive XC events. Two months later Cordes finished 4th in 60-64 at Club Cross in San Francisco and last December at Tallahassee, she did it again. Things look good for Cordes to get the win. Not only is she in the first year of her new age division, no strong individual runners from the Front Range are entered. Every such runner is focused on the team competition. Cordes brought her own competition with her. Michele Montgomery Impala Racing/Kentfield CA has no recent Cross Country races showing up in Athlinks, but she does have a 21:25 5K at the 2018 Stow Lake Stampede. Montgomery enjoyed a division win at the Sactown Ten this April in 1:16:12, consistent with a sub-46 minute 10K. Liane Pancoast Greater Lowell Road Runners/Westford MA was 5 minutes behind Cordes at the Club Cross race in San Francisco. She finished 6th in 65-69 at the Masters 10 Km Championships in Dedham MA with a 51:53, suggesting that she lacks Montgomery's speed. Susan Stirrat finished a minute behind Pancoast at Dedham. Stirrat's recent 25:40 at the Verona Labor Day 5K is a reminder that she would need to go faster here to land on the podium. Cordes led the division from the base of the opening downhill to the finish line. She eventually would open up a 70-meter lead which she carried across the line to finish with the 65-69 win at 23:43. Montgomery was the closest of Cordes's rivals in this race, just under half a minute back in second. Pancost was 400 meters behind Montgomery in third. Stirrat finished fourth at 28:27.
Suzanne Cordes 23:43 Michele Montgomery 24:10 Liane Pancoast 26:35
Individual Grand Prix Implications: Cordes's win allowed her to move from 6th to 5th in the final MNGP standings.
70-74 Connie Harmon Boulder RR/Boulder CO, Nancy Antos Boulder RR/Boulder CO, and Lynn Hermanson Boulder RR/Boulder CO are teammates. In 2022, on this course, they finished in 32:03, 32:11, and 32:43 respectively. Antos and Hermanson went 5-6 in 70-74 while Harmon finished 10th in 65-69. Cindy Lucking's Atlanta TC/Greer SC goal was to either beat them or break them up. Lucking ha=s no recent results at altitude but she has run well at two national championships coming into this one. At Tallahassee last December, Lucking finished 2nd in 70-74 over 6 Km in 35:11. She also finished 2nd on the roads in Atlanta in February, clocking 26:51 in the Masters 5 Km Championships. Antos offers a point of comparison in that she ran Tallahassee last December also. Her 37:56 time was over 2.5 minutes slower than Lucking's. But altitude can be a great equalizer. Having a teammate t run with also can help. Harmon and Antos were able to work off of each other for much of the race. Lucking had no teammates near her. Harmon earned the win at 31:46, a half minute ahead of Lucking. It is a tribute to Lucking that she was able to break up the top two Boulder Road Runners. Antos fought hard though and, in the end, Lucking had silver, finishing just ten seconds ahead of Antos. It was an off day for Hermanson; she finished fourth in 39:56.
Connie Harmon 31:46 Cindy Lucking 32:15 Nancy Antos 32:25
Individual Grand Prix Implications: Helene Myers Columbia MD/Potomac Valley Track Club does not show up in the recap above. She finished 6th in 45:44. Myers is committed to the Grand Prix. The only event she missed this year is the Ten Mile Championships. They overlapped slightly with the WMA Championships. Had Myers not celebrated her 70th birthday the week before this championship, Myers would have finished 8th in the 65-69 division at Boulder. Her 65 points would have brought her total to 400 points. That would have been good for a third-place finish, on the 65-69 Grand Prix podium. But because she celebrated her 70th birthday, she competed as a 70-year-old, wound up with 410 GP points and wins the 70-74 MNGP title with 410 points. Lucking finishes second with 385 points from her four events.
75-79 The two entrants in this division are both from sea level, and both ran at Club Cross in San Francisco in 2022. Irene Herman Impala Racing/San Francisco CA ran 39:15 to finish 14th in 70-74. Andrea McCarter Atlanta TC/Duluth GA stopped the finish line clock at 51:23. That was over 6 Km in a howling thunderstorm. This race, over 5 Km, would be closer, but the outcome would likely have the same finishing order. Both were here to get points for their clubs. Any individual honors would be gravy. Herman claimed the win in 34:15. McCarter finished second, less than four minutes behind this time.
Irene Herman 34:15 Andrea McCarter 38:01
Individual Grand Prix Implications: Irene Herman scored her third Grand Prix event. She qualifies for an award; her 265 points earn a second-place plaque in the 70-74 division. McCarter had the win locked up with 485 points.
80-84 No entries.
85-89 Joyce Hodges-Hite, the sole entrant, running for Atlanta's 40+ team, wins in 1:00:15.
Joyce Hodges-Hite 1:00:15
TEAMS Note: Team score is computed by summing the finishing places of the first three finishers on each team (Women and M60+), low score wins. The fourth and fifth athletes on a team can displace athletes on another team. For M40+ it is the usual first five finishers that count. Athletes finishing 6th through 9th can displace athletes on other teams.
WOMEN 40+ TEAM Boulder and Fort Collins Running Club entered teams to compete for the Masters 5 Km Championship win. The Impala Racing and the Atlanta Track Club entered teams for Grand Prix and Team camaraderie purposes. Melissa Dock and Jacquie Mannhard took 1-2 for Team Boulder.
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| Melissa Dock leads Ann Kirkpatrick and the rest of the field along a grassy verge in picturesque Harlow Platts/Viele Lake Park in Boulder CO at the 2024 USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships hosted by TEAM Boulder Photo Credit: Dave Albo/www.lane1photos.com/Photos/Competition/Boulder-XC-Series/Colleen-De-Reuck-XC-Classic |
Ashley Carroll of Impala finished 3rd. When TEAM Boulder's Kathryn Davis finished 4th in 19:50, it was all over. Their team total was 1+2+4 = 7 and no other team could match that. FCRC's Shelley McDonald and Kieran Toth finished 5th and 6th. After TEAM Boulder's Lara Johnson and Ann Marie Cody displaced FCRC's Sara Callor to 9th, FCRC was home in 2nd place with 5+6+9 =20 points. No other team could match them. Impala had a team consisting of Carroll plus Michelle Holmes, 54, and Irene Herman, 75. This allowed Impala to score points in W40+. And otherwise there would have been no team for Carroll to run on. Also it allowed Impala's W50+ and W60+ teams, which would have a good shot at the podium, to keep its key athletes. It was the same for Atlanta. Andrea McCarter, 78, and Joyce Hodges-Hite, 87, ran with Hiroko Guarneri, 49, and Alicia Eno, 49. Guarneri and Eno finished 12th and 13th for Atlanta. But then Holmes and Herman finished 14th and 15th for Impala to take 3rd. They had 3 points from Carroll plus 29 from Holmes and Herman for a total of 32. McCarter's 16 points added to the 25 from Guarneri and Eno for a total of 41 points and 4th place.
TEAM Boulder 7 Fort Collins Running Club 20 Impala Racing 32
Implications for Team Grand Prix: Heading into this last event on the Masters National Grand Prix circuit, Impala led Atlanta 250 to 195, both from three events. Any score they earn in Boulder would increase their total. If Impala failed to compete and Atlanta finished 5th or higher, Atlanta would win the 40+ Grand Prix. Of course, the only way for Atlanta to win is for them to compete and hope that the Impala Racing fails to score a complete team. So both teams competed. Impala finished 3rrd, earning 80 points and raising their total to 330. Atlanta's 4th placer finish gave them 70 points, raising their total to 265. Impala wins the W40+ GP and Atlanta finishes second!
W50+ This was a knock-down, drag 'em out, team tussle of the first order. Just five points separated the first five teams: Athletics Boulder, Boulder Road Runners, Fort Collins RC, Impala Racing, and Shore AC. Kris Clark scored first for AB, followed by BRR's Nicole Howley in 2nd. Cheryl Aley got 3rd for FCRC before AB's Kristine Leader gave then their second score at 4. AB had the early lead but it was far from over. Samantha Forde contributed the first points to Impala's total, 5. Christie Nie got the first points for Shore, 6. Alexandra Newman gave Impala their second score, 7. Now Shore AC was in 2nd. AB+ had 5 points with two runners in and Impala had 12 points with two runners in. The third scoring runner would be crucial! Laura Delea came next in 8th. That moved Shore into 3rd place, 14 points with two runners in. Tina Jones got ninth place for FCRC and they moved into a tie with Impala, 12 points and two runners in.
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| Tina Jones crosses the Finish Line with Valuable Points for the Fort Collins Running Club in Front of the Rocky Mountains at the 2024 USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships hosted by TEAM Boulder Photo Credit: Dave Albo/www.lane1photos.com/Photos/Competition/Boulder-XC-Series/Colleen-De-Reuck-XC-Classic |
Sixteen seconds after Jones crossed the finish line, Alexandra Marzulla gave Shore their third scoring runner at tenth. Shore AC+ was, arguably, in the lead, the only team with a complete scoring team. Shore would finish with 24 points. Would that be good enough for the win? Katharine DeSimone finished 11th for Boulder RR, 2 runners in and 13 points. Heli Uusitalo gave FCRC a compete scoring team with her 12th place finish. They joined Shore with a complete team and at 24 points as well. Neither Boulder nor Impala could match 24 points now. Only AB still had a chance. They were at 5 with two runners. Their third athlete could finish as high as 18th and AB would win outright. AB was probably fairly confident as their third runner was Laura Bruess. But even top runners can have an off day. Boulder's Julie King finished next in 13th, giving BRR 26 points and a complete team score. Shore's Alysia Puma finished 14th and displaced all later runners. So the Impalas had to add 15 points for Goria Wahl, not just 14 if Puma had not displaced her. Impala had 27 points and were one point behind BRR.
Julie King #268 digs for the Finish Line, Making sure that Alysia Puma cannot Catch her at the 2024 USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships hosted by TEAM Boulder Photo Credit: Dave Albo/www.lane1photos.com/Photos/Competition/Boulder-XC-Series/Colleen-De-Reuck-XC-Classic
Tina Duncan scored a displacing 16th for FCRC. All this displacing could have made things rough for Buress and AB. But Bruess toughed it out. As Duncan was crossing the finish line, Bruess was approaching it, crossing it just nine seconds after Jones! Wow, that was close! Bruess brought 17 points to raise AB's final total just to 22! They got the win! Shore and FCRC were tied at 24. The current tie-breaking rule is whichever team's third scoring runner finishes closest to first. In this case that was Shore; their third runner finished 10th while FCRC's finished 12th. The Boulder Road Runners were fourth and Impala fifth.
Athletics Boulder 22 Shore AC 24 Fort Collins Running Club 24
Implications for Team Grand Prix: Going into this final championship of the GP series, Impala led Shore 450 on 5 events to 420 on 5 events. If Shore should win and Impala not compete, Shore could pass Impala with a win. That was certainly not an idle worry as the results above show. Both teams did compete. Impala's 5th place finish was worth 60 points but because they already had five events, it erased their lowest score and replaced it, raising their total to 460 points. Shore did better with 90 points but that also just erased their lowest score of their five, a 60, and replaced it. That raised their total from 420 to 450. Impala wins outright.
60+ Fort Collins and the Impala Racing Team would battle for the win. Atlanta and the Boulder Road Runners would battle for the bronze medal. Kate Schulte scored first for FCRC but Suzanne Cordes answered for Impala with 2nd. No worries, answered Fort Collins; Mercedes Gil finished six seconds after Cordes giving FCRC 4 points and two runners in. Michelle Montgomery kept Impala on track by finishing 4th. It was still either team's to win. Impala had 6 points with two runners. FCRC had just a two-point lead. That could easily be reversed by the third scoring runners. Kris Huff gave Atlanta its first score at 5th, followed by Boulder's Stephenie Scholl in 6th. Thirteen seconds later Michelle Mueller gave FCRC its 3rd scoring runner at 7th. FCRC had a final team score of 11 points. No other team could match it. Impala came as close as possible a half minute later when Carol Keller finished 8th to give Impala a final score of 14 points.
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| From Right: Carol Keller W60+ leads a group of W50+ runners, Katharine De Simone, Alysia Puma, Julie King, and Tina Duncan at %the 2024 USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships hosted by TEAM Boulder Photo Credit: Dave Albo/www.lane1photos.com/Photos/Competition/Boulder-XC-Series/Colleen-De-Reuck-XC-Classic |
Which team would now get third? Robin Tanner finished 9th for Atlanta and Ellen Rich scored a 10th for Boulder. When Cindy Lucking finished 11th, that gave Atlanta the bronze medals at 25 points. Virginia Schultz finished 12th for Boulder. They wind up fourth with 28 points.
Fort Collins Running Club 11 Impala Racing Team 14 Atlanta Track Club 25
Implications for Team Grand Prix: Shore AC and Liberty AC had the top two GP 60+ spots locked up. But Atlanta led Impala for the third-place finish in the GP, 330 points to 260. If Atlanta did not score in this event, Impala would only have needed to finish in the top three to zip past Atlanta into third in the GP. As it turned out, both teams did compete. Impala got 90 points for finishing second, more than enough to pass Atlanta, had Atlanta not competed. It was critical that Atlanta had a complete scoring team of three runners. That is why it was so important that Lucking dropped down from her usual 70+ squad to run on the 60+ squad. Atlanta's third place gave them 80 GP points, a final total of 410 and third place in the 60+ team GP.
70+ The Boulder Road Runners had the only complete team in this division. The team of Connie Harmon, Nancy Antos, Lynn Hermanson, and Lorraine Green go 1-2-3- (4) and score a perfect 6 points!
Boulder Road Runners 6
MEN 40+ The Fort Collins Running Club fielded the only complete scoring team of five. Jason Toth, Juan Morales, Mark Saunders, Chris McCullough, Joshua Fay, and (Peter Webb) went 1-2-3-4-5-(6) and score a perfect 15 points for the win.
Fort Collins Running Club 15
50+ The Boulder Road Runners have put a real focus, over the last few years, on developing their 50+ team. They were hoping for a good challenge, but it did not arrive. They were the only team entered. Frank Zoldak, Glen Mays, Todd Stockford, Flavio De Simone, and Rick Granquist won with a perfect 15 points.
Boulder Road Runners .15
60+ Everyone expected Dan King to give Athletics Boulder their first scoring runner and they were right. After that, though, it was a short parade of three Boulder Road Runners A athletes. In a space of less than a minute, Roger Sayre, Mark Tatum, and Adam Feerst came across the finish line just ahead of AB's Jay Littlepage. That 2-3-4 string meant BRR A had a complete and final score of 9 points. AB had 6 points from two athletes. The best they could do would be if the next runner was an AB runner; that would give them 12 points. In fact, as it turned out, the BRR B team scored next with William Hook. A half minute later, Rick Bruess took care of business for AB. His 7th place finish gave them 13 points and assured them of second place.
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| Heading for the Finish Line in the M60+ Team Contest-From Left: Jack Pottle #789; Rick Bruess right behind Pottle; and Jay Survil #752 at the 2024 USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships hosted by TEAM Boulder Photo Credit: Dave Albo/www.lane1photos.com/Photos/Competition/Boulder-XC-Series/Colleen-De-Reuck-XC-Classic |
Jack Pottle and Jay Survil finished in 8th and 9th to give the BRR B team 23 points and the bronze medals.
Boulder Road Runners 'A' 9 Athletics Bouder 13 Boulder Road Runners 'B' 23
70+ No one was quite sure how strong the Shore AC team would be. Their top two runners, Jim Linn and Reno Stirrat had had good seasons on the roads. But Linn had not run that well here in 2022 and had a potential issue with a toe. Stirrat was coming in with a strong set of recent results but the most recent was the Marine Corps Marathon, just six days prior to this race. A casual observer might think that would limit Stirrat's effectiveness. Such an observer would have been wrong. Linn's toe stayed where it should be and did not let out a peep during the race. [Although it may have complained afterwards?!] Stirrat kept Linn in sight all the way. Even though Douglas Chesnut and Doug Bell, of the Boulder Road Runners 'A' team, got out ahead of him, Stirrat's strength, from the miles logged for the marathon, allowed him to overtake them and move clear. Linn took 1st, with Stirrat second, just seven seconds back and five seconds ahead of Chesnut. Shore drew first blood; they were in with two runners and 3 points, the best start possible! But they knew there were a lot of strong runners on the course who might come in ahead of their #3 runner.
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| Jim Linn leads the way in the M70+ Team Competition, ahead of Doug Bell backward cap/blue shorts; Douglas Chesnut next to Bell; and Reno Stirrat white singlet/gray sleeves at the 2024 USATF Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships hosted by TEAM Boulder Photo Credit: Dave Albo/www.lane1photos.com/Photos/Competition/Boulder-XC-Series/Colleen-De-Reuck-XC-Classic |
In addition to Chesnut, who gave Boulder 'A' their first score at 3 points, Gary Ostwald moved up late, as he often does, and gave Boulder 'A' their second finisher with 4 for a total of 7. Less than a dozen seconds behind Ostwald, Bell closed out the scoring at 5 points. Boulder 'A' had the classic tight pack of runners, just 20 seconds between #'s 1 and 3. They won with 12 points! Rick Katz got Boulder 'B' on the books at 6th. In less than half a minute, the Atlanta Track Club was on the books with Jerry Learned's 7th. Scott Lucking gave Atlanta two in at 7+8 = 15. George Braun gave Boulder 'B' 15 points with his 9th added to Katz's 6th. Aaron Pratt gave the Ann Arbor Track Club its first score at 10. Fourteen seconds later, Ken Wilson delivered the goods for Shore. His 11th place finish capped their scoring at 14 and assured them of 2nd place. No one could touch them. Boulder 'B' got as close as they could-Jeff Dumas finished 12th to close off their scoring and give them a total of 27 points. Bruce Kirschner was less than half a tick behind Dumas. His 13 points did not count toward Boulder's total, but it added to the total score of the teams without three runners in yet, Atlanta 'A' and 'B' and Ann Arbor. Jan Frisby displaced at 16 for Boulder 'A'. Then Jim O'Brien scored 15th for Ann Arbor. After Bill Dunn [Welcome back, Bill!!] and Rich Castro did a little more displacing, Neil Feather finished 18th to give Atlanta 'A' a total of 33 points and fourth place. David Turner, Ed Bligh, and Patrick Taylor finished 19th through 21st for Atlanta 'B's 60 points. When Paul Carlin [That's me, folks!] struggled home 9 seconds after Taylor, that gave Ann Arbor 47 points and fifth place, just ahead of Atlanta B.
Implications for Club Grand Prix: Ann Arbor needed a fifth score to stay ahead of Shore AC in the Grand Prix. It looked like Shore would almost certainly score 80 points or more. Shore had 250 GP points entering this championship. Anything over 65 points would give them enough points to pass Ann Arbor for third place in the GP if Shore did not get a score to add to their 315 total. When Pratt asked who could join him in Boulder, I agreed to run and Pratt convinced O'Brien, who had run, most recently, for Ann Arbor a decade ago, to join us. That gave us three runners. Even if we finished last, which we did not expect, we would have enough points to put us out of reach of Shore. And now a little extra detail. On the way to Boulder, I came down with food poisoning or a nasty intestinal bug. Whatever it was I had an unhappy night before the race and was really not in great shape for the race. The evening after the race, I was in the ER at the U of Colorado Med Ctr in Aurora CO receiving IV fluids for general diarrhea and dehydration. I only note this to say that my *only* goal for the race was to finish and get the points we needed for the GP. I did not want to take any chance of bowing out during the race. 'Go slow and finish' was my mantra. Mission accomplished! I finished, we got the fifth-place finish, 60 points and finished third in the 70+ Team GP with 375 points. The illness did not make any difference to the individual 75-79 contest. Even at my best it is highly unlikely I could have finished even in the top five. I like to think that, without the illness, our AATC total points would have been a little lower, but they would not have been low enough to catch Atlanta 'A'. Of course, that is just what I would like to think; others are always free to think differently.
The was the final event of the 2024 Masters National Grand
Prix. The 2025 Grand Prix kicks off in Tacoma WA at the 2024 USATF Club Cross
Country Championships on December 14, 2024. Details are here.
