 |
| Marathoners Braving the Elements at the 2018 Boston Marathon Photo Credit-bostonmagazine.com |
Some of the older Masters Runners, who started in later waves,
saw the temperatures rise almost to 45 and the headwinds dip somewhat below 20
mph for the last dozen miles or so but, of course, they were subjected to the
conditions for a longer period of time. Apparently a remarkable 95% of the
runners overall were able to overcome the odds and finish despite risk of
hypothermia. Everyone who finished the race performed remarkably well and will
have the story to tell for years to come. My focus will be on the top US Masters
finishers, although I acknowledge top finishers from other countries. As is my custom, I report age-grades also,
but the conditions made for slow times and those slow times mean low age-grade scores.
Be careful in comparing to other races
and/or to Boston in other years. I start with the Overall Masters contest and then
consider the Age Division contests.
[Disclaimer: Whether discussing the overall results or age division contests, the coverage may suggest a race where all of the runners are aware of other competitors at all times. Under trying conditions, runners in later waves may wind up passing those in earlier waves. Even if competitors start in the same wave, they may never spot the other competitors at the start. In some cases, competitors may be keenly aware of one another but in marathons, even more than at shorter races, the main competition is often inside one's head.]
[Disclaimer: Whether discussing the overall results or age division contests, the coverage may suggest a race where all of the runners are aware of other competitors at all times. Under trying conditions, runners in later waves may wind up passing those in earlier waves. Even if competitors start in the same wave, they may never spot the other competitors at the start. In some cases, competitors may be keenly aware of one another but in marathons, even more than at shorter races, the main competition is often inside one's head.]
Overall Masters. Ordinarily
one would just pencil in the name Abdi
Abdirahman, before the start and feel confident of one’s pick. But on a day
when many elite runners were falling by the wayside, there was some doubt for a
while. But Abdi never faltered, and had another remarkable ‘top 15’ finish
overall, and a comfortable victory margin in the Masters Overall competition
and the 40-44 Age Division. Nonetheless, it was probably the first time in a
while that another Masters contender actually took time out of Abdi’s lead over
the 2nd half of the Marathon.
 |
| Abdi Abdirahman (L) dueling with Dathan Ritzenhein (R) Photo Credit: letsrun.com |
The other chief contenders were: Charlie Brenneman from Rocklin CA, near
Sacramento; Shaun Frandsen, from
Kirkland WA, near Seattle; Jorge
Maravilla, from Mill Valley CA, north of San Francisco; and Matthew Wolpert from Ogden UT. John Sharp from Glasgow, Scotland,
finished 5th in 2:36:08, with Bryan
Rusche of Toronto, Canada in 6th at 2:37:32. New to the Masters
ranks, Brenneman had a 2:28:35 in California’s Two Cities marathon and a
2:32:47 in the 2016 edition of Grandma’s Marathon. Frandsen took the Masters
win at the California International Marathon last December in 2:28:47 and a
2:31:50 2nd place Masters finish at the Eugene Marathon. Maravilla
is also new to the Masters ranks; in 2017 he ran an impressive 2:24: 27 at
Boston and was the overall winner of the San Francisco Marathon in 2:28:23. With
a 2:50:21 Marine Corps Marathon time and a 2:42:37 at the CIM, Wolpert would
ordinarily not have been considered a threat for a top 5 Masters finish. But this was no ordinary day.
 |
| Jorge Maravilla winning the 2017 San Francisco Marathon Photo Credit: San Francisco Chronicle |
Next to Abdi, Maravilla ran the most aggressive race,
hitting the 10K mark in 33:18 and the half way mark in 1:11:29. That was 5
minutes off Abdi’s pace but two minutes ahead of his closest pursuer, Frandsen,
who covered the first 10K in 34:14 and clocked 1:13:36 at the halfway mark.
Brenneman ran 1:16:55 for the first half and enjoyed a 25 second lead over
Wolpert. Maravilla continued to build the gap back to Frandsen through 30K when
his lead stood at 2:21. From there on, Frandsen slowly clawed his way back; at
35K the gap was under 2 minutes and by the 40K mark was about a minute. But was
there enough race course left? Perhaps not on an ordinary day, but this was no
ordinary day. Frandsen found he could still clock close to 4 minutes per
kilometer while Maravilla could no longer stay under 4:30 kilometer pace. He
had battled the elements and defeated them but could not quite hold off the
determined Frandsen who took 2nd to Abdi in 2:34:56, a mere 6
seconds ahead of Maravilla. Frandsen added this 2nd place finish to his Masters
win at the California International Marathon last December. Brenneman was 45 seconds back in 4th, with Wolpert 5thAmerican in 2:37:43.
Abdi Abdirahman 41
Tucson AZ 2:28:18 85.84% Age Grade Shaun
Frandsen 40 Kirkland WA 2:34:56 81.60% Jorge Maravilla 40 Mill Valley CA 2:35:02
81.55
-----------------------------------------------
In the Women’s
race international Masters runners took 1st and 3rd
through 5th places. Krista
Duchene from Brantford Canada, took 3rd overall and won the
Masters race in 2:44:20. She was followed by Jessica Draskau Petersson from Gentofte Denmark in 3rd
at 2:57:29; Sarah Dudgeon, of
Wallingford UK, 4th in 3:00:28; and Angela Switt, Toronto Canada, 5th in 3:00:47.
Like Abdi in the Men’s race, most would expect Dot McMahan to dominate the Women’s
race and, like Abdi, she did not disappoint, racing to a 2:48:57, good for 12th
overall and first American Masters athlete by nearly 10 minutes. Other American
contenders for a top finish included: Anne
Cushman, from Rancho Cordova California, near Sacramento; Brenda Hodge, of York, Pennsylvania,
south of Harrisburg; Nancy Jurgens, of Apex North Carolina, near
Raleigh; Shannon Siragusa, from
Simsbury Connecticut, northwest of Hartford; and Dara Steele-Belkin from Atlanta Georgia.
 |
| Dot McMahan won the Masters Title at the 2017 TCS NYC Marathon Photo Credit: NY Road Runners |
Last year Cushman took 2nd Masters at the Santa
Rosa Marathon in 3:05:54, and then was 9th Masters at the CIM in
2:58:53. Whether due to the warm weather in Boston in 2017 or for some other
reason, Hodge only managed a 3:13:27. Later in the year she clocked 3:00:16 at
Grandma’s and cracked 3 hours at the TCS NYC Marathon in November with a
2:59:23. New to the Masters ranks, Jurgens ran 3:07:47 in the 2016 Richmond
Marathon at age 38 and then last year, at age 39, ran 2:59:49 at the Kiawah
Island Golf Resort Marathon. Siragusa finished 21st in her first try
at Boston as a Masters athlete in 3:09:35, but her time skyrocketed in the warm
conditions of 2017 when she ran 3:46:53. A solid 3:05:20 effort for 2nd
masters in the Eversource Hartford Marathon suggested that, in the absence of a
hot race, she should be competitive. In her first race as a Masters athlete at
Boston in 2015, Steele-Belkin finished 15th with a 2:59:44 effort. The
next year she got to battle 20+ mph headwinds although the temps, unlike 2018,
were moderate, in the 50’s and there was no rain. Still, her time ballooned to
3:18:58. But that experience may have helped prepare her, if anything can, for
the near gale conditions of 2018. Despite the warm conditions in 2017,
Steele-Belkin improved to 3:10:24. In November of 2016 she clocked a 3:00:49 at
the Richmond Marathon, showing she still had the possibility of cracking three
hours in a Marathon.
The race was really tight over the first 10K, with Hodge
leading at 41:23, followed by Cushman at 42:13, with Jurgens 9 seconds back. Siragusa
and Steele-Belkin were another 12 and 14 seconds back. Jurgens, Siragusa and
Steele-Belkin all pushed past Cushman in the next 10K, but Hodge continued to
pull away, enjoying a lead of over a minute on the rest of the field. By the
halfway mark it was Jurgens leading the chasers at 1:29:16 with Siragusa only 9
seconds back, and Steele-Belkin another 28 seconds back, but now 15 seconds
ahead of Cushman. Hodge continued to build her lead as she was two minutes
ahead of Jurgens at the 35K mark. Jurgens pushed the gap with Siragusa up to 31
seconds by the 35K mark but just as with the Men’s race, Siragusa found a well
of strength to draw on, as she closed with Jurgens and established a gap of 31
seconds by the end of the race. Hodge finished 2nd American in 2:58:50,
with Siragusa 3rd American in 3:01:31. Jurgens finished a half minute back as 4th American with Steele-Belkin two minutes further back, and Cushman next in 3:04:44.
Dot McMahan 41 Oakland Township MI 2:48:57 83.19% Age Grade Brenda Hodge 46 York PA 2:58:50 82.10%
Shannon Siragusa 43
Simsbury CT 3:01:31 78.54%
Age Division Results
40-44. The Overall Race description above gives the details of how the race unfolded. The
age division and the overall podium for the Men was the same; for Women it
differed in that Hodge took the 45-49 crown, allowing Nancy Jurgens 40 Apex NC to take 3rd in the 40-44 division
with a 3:02:02 76.70%.
45-49. The top contenders were all
American, John Barry, Brett Bernacchi,
Chris Hartshorn, Mark Hunkele, and Chris
Knorzer. Barry’s Athlinks profile
is private; all I could find was a 56:53, finishing 3rd in the
division in the American Tobacco Trail 10 Miler (2:38:39 age grade equivalent). He had apparently not raced at aboston in the 12014-2017 period either. Bernacchi ran a half dozen half marathons in 2017, with the fastest being
1:15:51 at the BMO Harris Bank Mesa-Phoenix HM. In 2016 he ran 2:40:04 at the
GoodLife Fitness Victoria Marathon in Canada. Hartshorn has run the Boston
Marathon several times since turning 40. His fastest time was 2:27:58 in 2013.
In 2016 when runners encountered a double-digit headwind, his time rose to
2:37:46. Hunkele ran 2:52:58 at the 2015 edition of the Boston Marathon, a day
with light rain and double digit headwinds. He ran 2:50:51 later that year at
the Chicago Marathon. Knorzer ran 2:35:50 at the 2016 California International
Marathon and 2:42:46 at the 2017 Big Sur International Marathon. Knorzer threw
caution to the wind and went out quite fast, hitting the 10K in 35:42. He had
over a minute on Hartshorn, who had over a half minute on Barry. Bernacchi was
taking a more cautious approach with a 38:42 10K,while Hunkele apparently came
across in 40:08. After the 15K split, Hunkele’s splits are either missing or
obviously wrong (e.g. 30K 3:09:03). He is listed as having a valid finishing
time of 2:47:11, good for 5th place. Knorzer was still going strong
at the halfway point, clocking 1:17:39; Hartshorn was now 1:15 back. Barry came
across the mat in 1:19:28 with Barry almost two minutes back. Knorzer finally
started to feel the effects fo the weather and the early pace. By the 30K mark,
Hartshorn and Barry had passed him and opened up a lead of nearly a minute,
1:53:29 for Hartshorn to 1:53:38 to 1:54:21. Bernacchi was able to passed Knorzer
before the 35K mark and that’s the way things remained until the end. Hartshorn
took the 45-49 win, with Barry over a minute back in 2nd and
Bernacchi two more minutes back in 3rd. Knorzer was just off the
podium in 2:45:16, a terrific time considering the conditions and his early
pace. He was followed 2 minutes later by Hunkele and in another minute Moore.
Chris
Hartshorn 46 Boston MA 2:39:46 82.99 John Barry 49 Cary NC 2:41:00 84.48
Brett Bernacchi 45 Phoenix AZ 2:43:28.
--------------------------------------------------
In the Women’s contest, Joanna Bourke Martignoni, an Austrian
national, took the win in 2:53:19, and Chunhua
Liu, a Chinese national living in the Greater Boston area, finished 4th
in 3:10:47.
The other
main contenders were all US citizens: Ellen
Basile, Lisa Bentley, Brenda Hodge, and Suzanne Rinehart. Basile clocked
3:07:52 in the 2016 BOA Chicago Marathon but had otherwise kept her focus on
Half Marathons and below. She ran 1:26:05 in the AirBNB Brooklyn HM and 1:05:40
in the New Balance Bronx 10 Miler. A 1:26:53 in the UA NYC HM left her prepped
for Boston. In 2017 Bentley ran a 1:23:04
Half Marathon in Orlando, and a 3:02:23 in Boston. Hodge, in 2017, ran 3:13:27
in the Boston heat, but followed that with a 3:00:16 at Grandma’s and a 2:59:23
at the TCS NYC Marathon in November. Primarily a triathlete, Rinehart has
gradually become more comfortable on the roads. In 2015 she ran 1:37 and 1:43
in two Half Marathons; in 2016 she tried Boston and ran 3:38:31. Apparently
heat was more to her liking than headwinds as she ran again in 2017, clocking 3:28:54.
When the race started, Hodge had the more aggressive approach, covering the
first 10K in 41:23, with 49 seconds on Bentley, another minute or so on Basile,
and 3 minutes to Rinehart. There were no major changes by the half way mark, with
Hodge crossing the mat in 1:27:48, a minute and a half in front of Bentley,
with Basile now only half a minute back from Bentley.
 |
| Lisa Bentley at Boston in 2014 won her age division Photo Credit: triathlonmagazine.com |
Rinehart was now over 3
minutes behind Basile. Hodge kept her pace going, just forging a bigger and
bigger lead over her American rivals. Basile, meanwhile, kept chipping away at
Bentley’s lead, cutting it to 11 seconds by the 30K and then passed with force
in the next 5K. At 35K, Basile had a minute and a half margin, which she pushed
to over 3 minutes by the finish. Rinehart closed well, taking over two minutes
out of Bentley’s lead from 30K to Boylston Street, but ran out of race course.
Brenda
Hodge 46 York PA 2:58:50 82.1 Ellen
Basile 45 New York NY 3:06:47 77.81
Lisa
Bentley 49 Clermont FL 3:09:59 80.03
50-54
Daniel Descharnais of Quebec, Canada
and Alberto Manzanares Elias of Spain finished 4th and 5th
in the race in 2:51:56 and 2:51:57.
The top
Americans in contention included 2 of the BAA’s finest Masters Runners, Andrew Gardiner and Peter Hammer, along with Douglas Baldwin of St. Paul MN and John Hill of Pleasant Hill CA. Baldwin
has run 2:56:30 in the 2016 edition of the Boston Marathon and 2:48:32 last
year. In the fall of those years he ran 2:48:59 and 2:43:26 in the Medtronic
Twin Cities Marathon so his times improved consistently from 2016 to 2017. Hill
has two prior Boston Marathon times in the last few years. He ran 2:52:45 in
the 2014 edition and 2:47:06 in the 2016 edition. In December he has run the
California International Marathon, which tends to be faster than Boston. His
times have included: 2:41:44, 2:45:44, and 2:44:45 the last three years.
Although not a regular, Hammer does run the Boston Marathon every few years.
His last two were a 2:45:46 in 2012 and 2:37:20 in 2015. This may be Gardiner’s
first Marathon; I have not found other Marathon results for him. Hammer tuned
up with a 1:14:44 in the new Bedford HM in March and Gardiner tuned up with a
51:39 in the Boston Tune-Up 15K.
Hill and
Gardiner threw caution to the wind, covering the first 10K in 36:00 and 36:17
respectively. Baldwin was about a minute behind Hill, with Hammer taking a more
measured approach to things, over two minutes back from Baldwin. Hill crossed
the halfway mat in 1:17:22; Gardiner was now a full minute back, with Baldwin
another minute back and Hammer now well over 3 minutes behind Baldwin. Gardiner
whittled away at Hill’s lead ever so slightly between there and the 35K mark,
reducing the margin to under a minute. Baldwin still had 3 minutes on Hammer. By
40K, Gardiner was within 38 seconds of Hill but his only hope of catching Hill would
depend on Hill falling way off his pace and that did not happen. Hill kept it
together all the way to Boylston Street, keeping Gardiner 15 seconds back at
the end. Hammer, by the 40K mark, was only a minute and a half back and now
Baldwin was suffering, as so many of the Open Elite athletes ahead of him had. It
took Baldwin almost 12 minutes to cover the last two kilometers; it must have
been very painful in every respect. Hammer had no such difficulties though
covering the last two kilometers in 9 minutes and claiming the 3rd
American spot.
John
Hill 50 Pleasant Hill CA 2:44:29 83.41 Andrew
Gardiner 52 Dover MA 2:44:44 84.75
Peter Hammer 51 Needham MA 2:50:50 81.01
-------------------------------------------------
The top 4
contenders were all US citizens including: Corina
Canitz, Lina Garcia, Kim Ionta, and Christine
Morgenroth. In 2015 Canitz ran 2:56:50 at the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon
and in 2017, 2:49:26 in the KP Napa Valley Marathon; in 2016 she ran 2:51:33 at
Boston. Garcia ran 3:11:11 in the 2015 TCS NYC Marathon and 3:07:26 in the 2016
Bank of America Chicago Marathon. Ionta ran the very warm 2017 Boston Marathon
in 3:28:29; three weeks later she ran 3:24:02 in the Providence Marathon. Last
October she ran the Lowell HM in 1:28:49 suggesting room for improvement with
her Marathon times. Morgenroth ran 3:19:54 at Boston and in the fall 3:14:11 at
the TCS NYC Marathon. She tuned up for
Boston with a 1:31:30 at the United Airlines NYC Half.
Canitz was
the aggressor, hitting the 10K mark in 41:59, with a 2 minute lead on Garcia and
nearly 5 minutes on Ionta. Morgenroth’s chip did not register at 5K nor 10K but
judging by 15K and 20K splits was, most likely between Garcia and Ionta,
probably closer to Garcia. Canitz showd no sign of giving into the weather,
crossing the halfway point in 1:31:56 with a minute and a half lead on Garcia. Morgenroth
was now well over 3 minutes back from Garcia and Ionta had cut her gap up to
Morgenroth from over a minute at 15K to just 36 seconds. Canitz’s pace slowed
considerably over the next 9 kilometers with the result that Garcia had closed
to within a half-minute by the 30K clock. Ionta, in that same space had passed
Morgenroth and now enjoyed a lead of 16 seconds. Canitz’s struggles continued
over the next ten kilometers which took her over 48 minutes but now Garcia was
struggling even more, and the gap grew to well over a minute again.
 |
| Corina Canitz on her way to a 2:51:33 at the 2016 Boston Marathon Photo Credit: muisephoto.wordpress.com |
Ionta
pulled steadily away from Morgenroth and now, at 40K enjoyed a two-minute lead.
And that is the way they finished, all conquering the elements to finish
1-2-3-4: Canitz, Garcia, Ionta, and Morgenroth, two minutes behind Ionta.
Corina
Canitz 51 Brookfield WI 3:13:35 80.53 Lina Garcia 50 San Juan Puerto
Rico 3:16:17 78.43 Kim
Ionta 54 Marshfield MA 3:17:16 82.16
55-59
Graham Merfield, resident of Atlanta but GBR citizen,
finished 4th in 2:57:11 and Slovenia’s Bostjan Svab and Australia’s Peter
Rushen finished 5h and 6th in 2:57:26 and 2:58:58.
The top four American Masters Runners who contested the race
were: Tony Bleull, Jeff Duyn, Doug
Fernandez, and Scott Sneddon. Bleul
has two recent outings at Boston. In 2015 he ran 2:58:22 I the tough 50-54
division where he was not in the top 50, and last year in the warm conditions,
his time ballooned to 3:10:10. .Last October he ran considerably faster inth e
Grand Rapids Marathon, 2:52:27. Duyn has run Boston twice previously, clocking
2:50:05 in 2015 and 2:51:11 in last year’s heat, capturing 2nd and 4th
respectively in his age division. A regular on the age division podium at
Boston since 2014, Fernandez clocked 2:34:43 to finish 2nd in the
50-54 division in 2014; 2:47:37 when he finished 9th on a rainy and
blustery day in 2015; 2:50:55 for a 4th place age division place in
2016; and a win last year in 2:44:52. Fernandez runs several marathons in most
years. This was apparently Sneddon’s first go at Boston, at least in the last
few years. He ran 2:44:35 at the 2016 Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon. Fernandez
took off with the horn, like the true
Champion he is, clocking 38:11 for the first 10K, leaving Bleull a minute back,
followed a half minute later by Duyn, and it was another half minute back to
Sneddon.
 |
| Scott Sneddon running comfortably at the 2015 Montana Marathon Photo Credit: billingsgazette.com |
Fernandez, no stranger to Boston’s challenges, backed off a bit in the
next 11K and hit the halfway mark in a more moderate 1:24:01. Bleuell had
closed considerably, crossing the mat only 18 seconds back. Sneddon and Duyn
were just over a minute back from Fernandez so things were tight! The early
pace may have drained Fernandex as it did many of the elite Open runners, and
he found both Sneddon and Duyn passing him in the next 9K. Duyn crossed the 30K
timing mat in 2:02:11, followed only 5 seconds later by Sneddon. Fernandez was
now over half a minute back from those two, but had built his lead over Bleuell
to almost 40 seconds. Duyn pulled away from Sneddon and Sneddon continued to
put space between him and Fernandez. Duyn took the win by 1:18 and Sneddon
claimed 2nd with almost 2 and a half minutes on Fernandez.
 |
| Doug Fernandez winning the 2014 Harrisburg Marathon Photo: Daniwel Zampogna/Penn Live-newslocker.com |
Fernandez
hung tough all the way to the finish to claim his 2nd consecutive
podium finish under two very different Boston challenges. Bleuell clocked 2:59:19,
a terrific effort on a tough day; breaking 3 hours in 2018, at age 55, will be
a worthy story for years to come.
Jeff Duyn 58 Garrett Park MD 2:53:17 85.08 Scott Sneddon 55
Billings MT 2:54:35 82.18 Doug
Fernandez 57 Richmond VA 2:57:01 82.52
-----------------------------------------------
Teresa Novik of Canada and France’s Claudine Noiraud finished 3rd
and 4th in 3:23:29 and 3:24:00 respectively.
The top American challengers for the podium included: Terri Cassel, Sue George, Heather Knight Pech,
and Doreen McCoubrie. Cassel ran
3:27:37 in 2014 but had an unhappy race in the warm conditions last year,
finishing in 4:10:49. She came to Boston hoping to enjoy a better outing in
2018. As prep, she captured her age division at the Aramco Half in Houston in
January and the Cowtown Half in Ft. Worth TX in 1:28:38 and 1:29:46. Cassel was
ready to roll. George runs Boston on occasion. In 2016 she ran the New Bedford
Half as prep in 1:36:55 and Boston in 3:48:11. She ran the TCS NYC Marathon in
3:50:59 later that year. She took some time off from Marathons and was ready to
try again this spring. She won her age group at the Fitbit Miami Half in 1: 35:06
in late January, and then took age division titles at a 30K and a 20 Miler in early
and late March in 2:18:03 and 2:29:50. The 30K time is age-grade equivalent to
a 3:19 Marathon. Last year Peck and McCoubrie went 1-2 in 3:10:30 and 3:13:56
in the heat; how would they fare in rainy and blustery conditions? McCoubrie
ran 3:16:54 in 2016 also; she did not appear to run a prep race any further
than an 8K. Cassel and McCoubrie are teammates on the Athena Track Club that
actively participates in and typically wins the 50 and up division in USATF’s
Masters Grand Prix circuit.
 |
| Heather Knight Pech in celebratory mood after her successful 2017 Boston Marathon Photo: Stowe Reporter at stowetoday.com |
Pech took off like she intended to win again; she clocked 44:01
for the first 10K and had the better part of two minutes on McCoubrie and her
running partner through the first 6.2, Cassel.
 |
| Doreen McCoubrie captured the 2017 55-59 National Half Marathon Championship in Orange County, California Photo: Paksit Photos-Courtesy of OC Marathon |
George was a minute behind them.
That set the pattern for the race as each slowed over the course of the race
but relative pace remained the same. Gaps grew larger through the race except
that Cassel struggled a bit more toward the end than George did, so Cassel’s
lead shrunk from over 3 minutes at the 30K mark to just under 1 minute at the
finish. In the end it was Pech with the repeat win in 3:10:15, 15 seconds
faster than last year. McCoubrie again took 2nd, 7 minutes back this
year, and Cassel 3rd American another 7 minutes further back. George crossed the line 55 seconds later.
Heather Knight Pech 56 Darien CT 3:10:15 87.48 Doreen McCoubrie 56 West Chester PA 3:17:26 84.3 Terri Cassel 56 Tulsa OK 3:25:00 81.19
60-64
The primary contenders, all US citizens included Charlie Muse, Kevin O’Brien, Roger Sayre,
Doug Steedman, and Michael Young.
Muse ran the 2016 TCS NYC Marathon in 2:59:10
and followed that with a 7th divisional finish in 3:09:14 at Boston
the next spring in the heat. He tuned up for Boston this year by running 1:25:22
at the UA NYC Half, his fastest half marathon in the last few years. O’Brien
finished 16th in the division last year in Boston with a 3:04:52.
That improved considerably over his 2016 run where he clocked in at 3:20:36,
and his 2015 race in 3:19: 21. The warmth must have agreed with him. Sayre is
one of America’s top Masters runners at distances up through a Half Marathon.
In 2014 he tried a Trail Marathon in Alaska, taking the age division win in
3:15:51. Subsequently he ran a lot of half marathons and near-half marathons on
the roads and trails. In 2017 he ran 2:58:10, at age 59, at the Colorado Marathon.
[Like many Rocky Mountain races, it is probably slower due to high altitude but
faster due to a steady elevation drop of over 1000 feet. This one, because the
gradient is gradual, is probably faster than an out and back nearer to sea
level.] Like Sayre, Steedman has focused more on the shorter distance races.
But he ran the California International Marathon in 2013 in 3:01:34 and in 2016
in 3:04:44, and in 3:02:41 in 2017, and the Edinburgh Marathon (Scotland) in
2015 in 3:16:32. The CIM is definitely a fast race, given its elevation loss from
366’ above sea level to 26’ above. Young has run lots of other Marathons but
has been a regular every year at Boston at least since 2010 when he finished 345th
in the 50-54 division in 3:24:03. In 2013 he ran 3:00:43 to finish 25th
in the 55-59 division. The next year he ran 5 seconds faster and finished one
place higher, no doubt vowing to come back better prepared next year. In 2015
he ran 2:54:25 and finished 7th. But Boston knocks you around a bit.
The next year he was back just above 3 hours and the same the year after
although, having graduated to 60-64, took 2nd in the division; it
was also very warm so times were slower. What would 2018 hold for Young?
Young went out the fastest at 41:14 for the 1st
10K, with Steedman a half minute back, and Sayre tracking him another 30
seconds back. O’Brien was a minute back from Sayre and Muse 40 seconds back
from O’Brien. Little changed from there to the halfway mark except that the
gaps got a little bigger. Young hit it in 1:27:33 with a 6 and a half minute
spread back across the other chasers to Muse in5th at 1:34:06. At the 35K mat,
Young had a 2 minute lead on Steedman who had nearly three minutes on Sayre.
Muse was now less than 4 minutes back from Sayre and 3 minutes ahead of O’Brien.
Young ad Muse could still cover the 5K from 35K to 40K in about 22 minutes but
the conditions had eroded the speed of the others. Muse took almost 5 minutes
out of Steedman’s lead in that 5K span and pulled within 2 minutes of Sayre. Young
and Muse were both able to clock 9:45 for the final 2 kilometers in taking 1-2
in 2:59:53 and 3:09:05. Like so many of the Open Elite runners, Steedman and
Sayre were spent, but they were tough and finished, even though those last 2
kilometers were probably the slowest kilometers they had run in a race in a long
time.
 |
| Doug Steedman competing at the 2015 USATF National Club Cross Country Championships in San Francisco Photo: Mike Scott |
Steedman’s pace fell off more than Sayre’s did , but Steedman took 3rd
with 46 seconds to spare. Sayre was 4th in 3:12:41, three minutes
ahead of O’Brien.
Michael Young 61 Orchard MI 2:59:53 84.32 Charlie Muse 61 Boston MA 3:09:05 80.22 Doug Steedman 62
San Francisco CA 3:11:55 79.8
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Canadians Elizabeth Waywell and Lucie Rochon took 1st and 3rd
in this division in 3:20:18 and 3:30:19.
The top American contenders were Becky Backstrom, Cory Benson, Karen Kunz, Maggie Mason, and Katherine Wild. Backstrom had run
Boston from time to time, in 2008 when she ran 3:04:50 to win the 50-54 division
and had a repeat win two years later in 3:03:50. In 2013 she finished just off
the 55-59 podium in 3:06:45. She won the 55-59 division at the Green River Marathon
in 2017 in 3:24:15 and prepped for Boston with a Hot Chocolate 15K in 1:07:08
in Seattle in March. Benson ran Boston in 2015, clocking 3:40:12, finishing 35th
in the 55-59 division. She had an off year in 2016, running just over 4 hours
but redeemed herself the following year with a 7th place division
finish in 3:45:39. Kunz ran 3:53:08 at Boston in 2014, finishing 84th
in the 55-59 division. A 3:33:35 in 2016 netted her a 4th place in
the 60-64 division. 2017 was Kunz’s disaster year where her time ballooned to
well over 4 hours. Vowing to redeem herself, she was back in 2018 for another
try. Mason ran Boston in 3:29:57 in 2014, finishing 17th in 55-59.
In the interim she has run the California International Marathon in times from
3:19 to 3:23 and was now back to try Boston again. In 2011 Wild ran the
Portland Marathon in 3:38:27 and in 2015 ran the TCS NYC Marathon in 3:52:33.
In May of 2017 she ran the Eugene Marathon in 3:35:55 and she was ready for
another Boston run. Backstrom started out at a brisk, but measured pace,
crossing the 10K mat in 46:22. She had 3 minutes on Kunz and Mason, only 2 seconds
apart. Wild was a minute behind them with Benson another minute back in 51:10. At
the halfway mark Backstrom was still clicking off the miles and had opened up a
6-minute gap between her and Kunz, who had nearly a minute lead on Mason.
Wild
was a minute and a half behind Mason but now just had a 7 second lead on Benson.
Backstrom continued strong all the way to the finish, clocking 3:22:32 as first
American and 2nd overall in the division. Kunz continued to lead
Wild but her lead was shrinking, from 3 minutes at the 25K to 1:13 by the 35K
mat. Wild, in the meantime, closed on Mason between 30 and 35K and at the 35K
mat had a 9 second edge. Despite Wild’s best efforts, Kunz ran strong to the
tape crossing as 2nd American with just 14 seconds to spare. Benson
closed to within 15 seconds of Mason by the 40K mat but then Mason found her
stride and kept the 4th place American finish in 3:39:27 to Benson’s
3:39:53.
Becky Backstrom 60 Sammamish WA 3:22:32 86.87 Karen Kunz 62
Rancho Cordova CA 3:38:04 83.06 Katherine
Wild 61 Portland OR 3:38:18 81.78
65-69
Roger Turgeon from Quebec, Canada, won the division
in 3:16:56.
The top 4 Americans were Martin Keibel, Alan Pemberton, Patrick Rupel, and James Wilson. A true Marathon Man,
Keibel has run Boston every year since 2013 and several others each year. In
2013 he finished 7th in the 60-64 division with a 3:07:10. He ran
3:18:30 the next year and then skied to 3:41:56 in the rainy, windy conditions
of 2015. After returning to a more normal time of 3:22:33 in 2016, his time
climbed again, to 3:43:53, when the conditions turned warm in 2017. How did he
cope with 2018 with harsher winds than in 2015? Pemberton ran 3:12:41 in the
rain and wind of Boston in 2015. Rupel finished 6th in the 60-64
division at Boston 2013 with a 3:05:29. The next year he won the division in
2:59:08. Could he return 4 years later to take the 65-69 title? Wilson finished
19th in 60-64 in Boston in 2016 in 3:18:40 and came back the next
year to run 3:36:58 and finish 91st in the same division with the
warm conditions. On e would think Rupel would be the favorite but it was not a
day to favor the favorite. Keibel rolled past the 10K mat in 44:21 with Rupel a
half minute back and Pemberton a minute and a half back from Rupel. Wilson’s
chip did not register but based on 5K and 15K splits, Wilson was between Rupel
and Pemberton, probably closer to Rupel. As the only other split where Wilson’s
chip did not register was the Halfway mark, I will report the 20K instead. At
that point Keibel clocked 1:29:25 and his lead over Rupel was down to 21
seconds; it would shrink to 16 by the halfway mark. Wilson was nearly two
minutes behind Rupel and nearly two minutes ahead of Pemberton. After closing
up on Keibel by the halfway mark, Rupel ran into some trouble and lost everything
he had gained and more by 25K. it was that kind of day. By 30K Keibel’s lead
was up to almost a minute. But then it started coming down again as Keibel
slowed in the later stages after battling the elements so long. Rupel sped up
in the 5k from 35K to 40K and actually passed Keibel just before the 40K mat
and at that point was 3 seconds ahead. But Keibel showed some extra grit as he
rallied for the final 2K and came home the division winner by 22 seconds—What a
race! It’s a shame they could not both win. Wilson came in 5 minutes later;
Pemberton cut into Wilson’s lead a bit but was a minute and a half back at the
finish.
Martin Keibel 66 Manchester CT 3:18:06 80.42 Patrick Rupel 65
Edmond OK 3:18:28 79.48 James Wilson 65 Brookline MA
3:23:18 77.59
The top 2
finishers in the division were Annie
Pedersen of Denmark and Chile’s Rut
Guzman Aguayo in 3:55:15 and 4:03:24
The top 4 American finishers included Kristi Berg, Alyn Park, Sharon Vaughn, and Shuko Yamane. Berg has run lots of marathons over the years, but I
cannot find any recent Boston Marathon attempts. She won the 60-64 division at
the 2014 Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon in 3:46:42 and then last September at
age 64 shew took 3rd in the 60-64 division in 4:05:51. Park finished
2nd last year at Boston in this division in 3:49:08. I cannot find
any marathons for Vaughn until October 2016 when she finished 34th
in the 60-64 division at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon in 4:24:17. In
April 2017, she ran 3:33:58 to win the 65-69 division in the Big Sur
International Marathon. But there must have been some problem that forced them
to shorten the race because Athlinks lists it as being 21.0 miles, not 26.2.
Yamane runs lots of marathons including Boston. In 2014 she ran 4:26:11 to
finish 109th in the 60-64 division. In 2016 she was back, running
4:10:45 to take 63rd in the division. She came back again next year
to take 21st in the division in 3:56:18. Now she was getting
somewhere!
Park started out like she expected to move up from 2nd
last year to 1st this year, crossing the 10K mat in 54:49. Two
minutes later, Vaughn sped past the clock, followed 45 seconds later by Yamane;
Berg was nearly 2 minutes further back. Although Park and Vaughn were both
slowed by the elements, they maintained their paces well so that Park gradually
pulled away for a 4 minute edge over Vaughn at the finish and Vaughn kept the
rest of the field well behind her, claiming 2nd US finisher by nearly
4 minutes. Yamane and berg had quite the see saw battle though as Berg
gradually cut down Yamane’s lead from 1:10 at 20K to 11 seconds at the 35K mat.
Surprisingly or not considering they were past the most serious hils, both sped
up from 35K to 40K but Yamane sped up more. Berg cut her pace from 6:11 per
kilometer to 5:56, but Yamane lowered hers from 6:17 to 5:50. And that increased
the gap between them back up to 16 seconds in favor of Yamane. Yamane kept it
up all the way to the finish,taking the 3rd spot by 45 seconds—quite
a duel!
Alyn Park 67 Denver CO 4:06:22 79.36 Sharon Vaughn 65
Austin TX 4:10:21 75.69 Shuko Yamane 65 Honolulu HI
4:12:19 75.10
70-74
Albert Wieringa, a long-time resident of Florida but
still a Dutch citizen and Sweden’s Björn
Suneson finished in3rd and 4th in 3:50:07 and 3:53:10. Wieringa
won the Age Division last year in 3:29:38.
The top American contenders were Thomas Claflin, Gene Dykes, David Howey, and Byron Mundy. A regular at Boston in recent years, in 2014, Claflin
finished 83rd in the 65-69 division in 3:59:02. The following year
was his high point in the division, finishing 41st in 3:47:36. In
2016 he ran 3:59:01 to finish 94th in 65-69; his 4:34:58 in 2017 led
to 254th place in his last year in 65-69. Dykes has also been a regular
at Boston; in 2014 Dykes’s 3:09:04 left him 3rd overall (1st
American). After taking 2015 off, Dykes won the following two years in 3:09:56
and then 3:09:35. Eight days before the Boston Marathon this year, Dykes ran in
the Rotterdam Marathon and took down the US 70-74 Marathon record, cracking the
3-hour barrier in the process with a 2:57:43. One would have thought that would
rule him out for Boston but not so. Howey finished 9th overall (5th
American) at Boston in 3:30:08 in 2015 and finished 7th (4th
American) in 2016 in 3:24:04. In November 2017 he ran 3:30:14 in the Harrisburg
Marathon. Another regular at Boston, Mundy ran 3:49:57 to finish 57th
in 65-69. The following year it was a 3:30:20 for 11th. Mundy ran
almost as fast in 2017, clocking 3:34:33 for another 11th place. Dykes
should either be a strong favorite because of his speed in past Boston
Marathons or a non-factor with heavy legs after running a fast Marathon 8 days
before Boston. Which would it be?
 |
| Gene Dykes [#257] winning his division at the 2015 Caesar Rodney Half Marathon in 1:30:46 Photo: usatoday.com |
Dykes had no doubt in his mind which it would be as he
passed the 10K mat in 43:25, with a 4-minute lead on Mundy and a 5-minute lead
on Howey. Claflin, perhaps wary of the weather was another 3 and a half minutes
back from Howey. Considering the weather conditions, one would have to conclude
that running two marathons in 8 days quite agrees with Dykes. He sped through
the half marathon in 1:33:47 and took the win in 3:16:20. It was almost a half
hour before another runner in the division finished. By the halfway mark, Howey
had passed Mundy and enjoyed a lead of over a minute, passing the mat in
1:43:19. Claflin was another 7 minutes back and appeared to be no threat for
the 3rd American spot. By the time they got into their 2nd
hour on the course, the elements were wearing down Claflin, Howey, and Mundy.
It took Mundy nearly an hour to traverse the 10K from 25 to 35; Claflin took 2
seconds less and Howey did a bit better, keeping it down to around 55 minutes.
From there both How3ey and Mundy slowed further but, surprisingly, Claflin
managed a quicker pace and pulled within 2 minutes of Mundy by 40K, slipped
past in the last 2 kilometers and wound up 3rd American, well behind
Howey, but almost a minute ahead of Mundy.
Gene Dykes 70 Bala Cynwyd PA 3:16:20 84.57 David Howey 70 Etters PA 3:44:53 73.83 Thomas Claflin 70 Brighton MI 3:54:09 70.91
-----------------------------------------------------
Japan’s Tamaki Matsuda finished 2nd
in 4:17:41 and 4 Canadians, Patricia
Dudar, Susan Magher, Jane Wintemute, and Gayle Robinson finished 4th through 6th and 8th
in 4:36:44, 4:36:45, 4:37:58, and 4:46:24.
The top 4 Americans included Joanne Neustrand, Jeannie
Rice, Nancy Rollins, and Irene Taylor. Neustrand is definitely
a regular at Boston. In 2013 she finished 3rd in 65-69 with a
4:12:36 effort and came back a year later with a 4:21:30 for 19th
and in 2015 with a 4:25:43 and again 19th place. After waiting out a
year, she came back with a 4:26:48 and a 24th place in her final
year in 65-69. She would do better in 2018 she thought, at least in terms of
finishing position. Rice runs lots of marathons and many other races of varying
distances. Like many of her counterparts, she is devoted to Boston though. She
ran 3:46:49 in 2014, taking 3rd in 65-69. The following year she won
the division in 3:39:34. The next year was an off year by Rice’s standards as
she ran ran 3:54:06 and finished just off the podium/ Perhaps that is why she
skipped Boston in 2017? Rice was not idle; she ran 3 other marathons at least.
The best of those was her winning effort at the Columbus Marathon in 3:29:41.
Rollins has been a regular at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon, winning
65-69 there in 2014 in 3:43:06 and in 2015 in 3:43:30. In her final year in the
division she finished 2nd in 3:46:04. 2017 was an off year as her
time skied to 4:01:35 although she did return to the top of the podium, albeit
in 70-74. Boston was a bit more up and down for Rollins; she finished 3rd
in 2015, running 3:48:55. She returned 2 years later with another subpar, by
her standards, effort, finishing 3rd in 4:23:44. She was determined
to do better in 2018. Taylor, by contrast, is not a regular at Boston. Hailing
from Alaska, she is a regular at the Anchorage Weekend Festival of Races,
although running the Half more commonly than the Marathon. She won the Skinny
Raven Half in 2013, 2014, and 2017, posting the same winning time of 2:05:13 in
both 2013 and 2017. She tried the marathon in 2015, finishing 2nd in
4:55:07. It would seem this should shape up as a duel between Rice and Rollins.
 |
| Nancy Rollins running 1:47:18 at the 2016 Door County Half Marathon Photo: Nate Perry |
Rice was taking no prisoners as she laid it out in the first
10K in 47:14; it was 5 more minutes before Rollins crossed the mat, taking a
much more conservative approach. Neustrand was another 6 minutes back with
Taylor a further 6 minutes behind. Taylor was one fo the rare runners who ran a
negative split on the day. Covering the first half in 2:23:36 and the 2nd
half in 2:23:16. That stood her in good stead as as she almost made the podium,
finishing 4th. The early speed of the others left her too far back. Rollins
was the only one of the top 3 to run a faster 2nd half marathon on
the day. Neustrand ran strong enough to keep Taylor at bay, claiming 3rd
with over 8 minutes to spare. Up through the 35K it looked like there was no
contest for 1st as Rice had widened her lead over Rollins to nearly
17 minutes. But then as with so many other elite runners on the day, the
elements finally caught up with Rice; she had been clicking off her 5K’s in
31-33 minutes. From 35K to 40K, it took her over 45 minutes, and she lost 12
minutes of her lead to Rollins. Rice is a gritty runner, though, who would not
give up. Even though it took Rice another 23 minutes to cover the last 2
kilometers, she was determined to finish. Rollins passed her and took the win
with 2 minutes to spare. Rice took 2nd place and was almost
certainly brought directly to the medical tent.
Nancy Rollins 71 Evanston IL 4:17:01 81.23 Jeannie Rice 70
Concord OH 4:19:11 79.21 Joanne Neustrand 70 Boca Raton FL
4:38:25 73.74
75-79
Villiam Novak of Slovakia took 3rd in
4:15:32.
The top 4 American contenders were Frank Bright, Myung Joon
Kim, Kenneth Neil, and John [‘Johnny-O’]
Ouweleen. Bright finished 2nd in the 70-74 division at the 2014
Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon in 3:48:27 and the following spring ran 3:48:37
at Boston, finishing 10th. The following October at Twin Cities, his
time grew to 4:07:45, still good for 2nd though. The next year he
skipped both but returned to Boston in 2017 with a 4:21:24 for 30th
place in his last year in 70-74. Kim ran many marathons on the West Coast, most
around 4:30 or so. He decided to head east to try Boston but still ran the LA
Marathon in February 2016 in 4:16:48. Two months later he uncorked a 4:04:36 to
finish 14th in 70-74. Kim returned and ran a little faster in 2017,
clocking 4:02:18 for 9th place in the division. He wanted to be
ready for a strong effort for his first Boston try at the 75-79 division. A
regular at Boston the last few years, Neil ran 4:01:43 in 2015 to finish 22nd
in 70-74, followed by 4:18 and 21st in 2016 and 4:16:42 and 23rd
in 2017. Maybe 75-79 would treat him to a better finishing position. Ouweleen
has been a fixture of marathoning for many years and almost always runs Boston.
He skipped it in 2016 to run in the Virgin London Marathon. In 2013 he was 2nd
in 3:23:52 followed by a 70-74 division win in 2014 in 3:28:11. He took 3rd
in 2015 in 3:37:59 and then in 2016 enjoyed his trip to London, winning the 70-74
in 3:22:58. Ouweleen returned to Boston in 2017 for the warm conditions
resulting in a 4:05:41 and a rare finish off the Boston podium for his first try
at 75-79. Ouweleen took off with his usual aplomb, letting the downhills carry
him to a 50:28 for the first 10K and a 5-minute lead over Kim.
Seven minutes later Bright crossed the 10K mat, followed by Neil a minute later. Try as he might the rest of the way, Neil could not close on Bright who ran a well-paced race, covering the first half in 2:12 and the second half in 2:15. Bright took the third spot on the podium with 16 minutes to spare. Ouweleen went through the Half in 1:49:36 over 8 and a half minutes ahead of Kim. That was the largest lead he would enjoy. By the 30K mark it was down to 7 minutes and it kept coming down as Ouweleen’s 5K splits climbed from the 27-28-minute range up to over 30. By 35K the lead was under 5 minutes. Both runners were struggling but Kim not as much as Ouweleen. By the 40K Kim was within 16 seconds and continued strong to take the win with 1:44 to spare as Ouweleen claimed 2nd by almost 14 minutes.
 |
| John Ouweleen during a training break photo: http://www.tcpalm.com/news/no-headline-tc_spt_runner_6c |
Seven minutes later Bright crossed the 10K mat, followed by Neil a minute later. Try as he might the rest of the way, Neil could not close on Bright who ran a well-paced race, covering the first half in 2:12 and the second half in 2:15. Bright took the third spot on the podium with 16 minutes to spare. Ouweleen went through the Half in 1:49:36 over 8 and a half minutes ahead of Kim. That was the largest lead he would enjoy. By the 30K mark it was down to 7 minutes and it kept coming down as Ouweleen’s 5K splits climbed from the 27-28-minute range up to over 30. By 35K the lead was under 5 minutes. Both runners were struggling but Kim not as much as Ouweleen. By the 40K Kim was within 16 seconds and continued strong to take the win with 1:44 to spare as Ouweleen claimed 2nd by almost 14 minutes.
Myung Joon Kim 75 Los Angeles CA 4:11:52 70.45 John Ouweleen 77
Sebastian FL 4:13:36 72.48 Frank
Bright 75 Shreveport LA 4:27:15 66.4
-------------------------------------------------
The top 4 Women were all US Citizens: Jo Ann McCallister, Hansi
Rigney, Molly Sherwood, and Carol
Wright. McCalister finished 3rd in the Boston Marathon last year
with a 5:03:46 and ran the Boston Prep 16 miler in New Hampshire in late January
in 3:00:54; she was able to maintain fitness at least through mid-Winter. One
of the top Marathoners in the country and a regular at Boston, Rigney has finished
on the Age Division podium on Patriot’s Day in 2013 to 2017 except for 2016
when she finished 5th. She won 70-74 in 2013 in 4:15:57 and 75-79
last year in 4:53:58. She also won her age division at the Big Sur
International Marathon, Chicago and the California International Marathon, all
in faster times than her Boston win, unsurprisingly given the heat in Boston.
Sherwood has not been a regular at Boston but she had run the last two years.
In 2016 she finished 8th in 70-74 in 4:55:22 and finished 4th
75-79 in 2017 with a 5:06:37. Like Sherwood, Wright has recently become a Boston
regular, finishing 9th in 70-74 in 2016 with a 4:57:13 and returned
in 2017 to claim 5th in 75-79 in 5:26:21. It looked like this was
Rigney’s tyo lose. Considering how most favorites did, that might not have been
surprising.
As one might expect from these seasoned veterans, no one
blew up. But that meant that leads established early typically held all the way
to the finish line, with little drama. Rigney ran like the Champion she is, covering
the first 10K in 1:02:11; McCalister came across the mat 2 minutes later,
trailed by Wright 3 minutes later and Sherwood another 8 minutes back. Those
gaps all grew throughout the race with Rigney winning by over 20 minutes,
McCalister claiming 2nd with over 45 minutes to spare, and Wright taking
the final podium spot with a 25 minute margin on Sherwood. Rigni apparently
likes near gale conditions better than heat as she carved over half an hour out
of her 2017 time.
Hansi Rigney 76 Carmel CA 4:55:58 77.20 JoAnn McCalister 76 Goffstown NH 5:17:44 71.99 Carol Wright 76
Sandpoint ID 6:03:40 62.9.
80 and Up
Our
international guests from Japan and Canada took the first 4 spots and 6yj, with
a German resident of Florida 5th:
The lone American entered, James Michie, has run many Marathons including Philadelphia in 2014
where he finished 5th 75-79 in 4:46:25. He tuned up for Boston by taking
3rd in 75-79 at the Chevron Houston Marathon in 4:54:45. The weather
was not kind, as we know, but Michie persevered and finished the race in
6:08:01. That was definitely a victory!
Three cheers for the Masters Runners who raced in Boston in
2018 and persevered all the way to the finish in near gale conditions.
Congratulations to one and all!
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