December 28, 2024 Event Date and Place-December 14, 2024 Chambers Creek Regional Park, Tacoma WA -- Recap, Part I-Masters Teams & Overall --The 25 mph winds, gusting up to 50 mph, were whipping up the whitecaps on the Puget Sound, visible behind the Start Line. It helped a bit that the course is mostly laid out east and west and the wind was out of the south. But that did mean lots of cross wind, and a high wind is never a runner's friend! Cloudy, with occasional light rain, the upper 40's temperatures were warm enough that most athletes ran in shorts and singlets, possibly with arm sleeves or, less commonly, a long-sleeve t-shirt. Some muddy spots on the course got muddier, and more slippery as the morning wore on. Unlike Lehigh in 2019, it did not appear that anyone went down, at least not on the usatf.tv/Runner Space video. These were classic Cross Country conditions, the kind that remind athletes they can do hard things! A common comment was something like, "Man that was miserable! Such fun! Loved being out there with the other guys!" All agreed that the Chambers Creek course, itself, was a fine course and that the host organization, Club Northwest, had organized a terrific competition that would be remembered for years as one of the classic tests of the Masters Cross Country runner.
The Women's race went off first at 9:30AM over 6Km, followed by the Men's 60+ race over 8 Km at 10:15 and then the Men's 40+ race over 10Km at 11:15. The course was laid out with a 3K loop and a 2K loop. The Women traversed the 3 Km loop twice. The 60+ Men did the same but added a final 2 Km loop. The 40+ Men added two circuits of the 2 Km loop, instead of just one.
Clubs is all about teams so let us focus on the Team contests first, followed by the Overall Competition, Age Grading and then Age Divisions.
TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS Note: For the Women and the Men over 60, clubs declare up to 5 per team; the top 3 are scored. For 40-59 Men, 9 may be declared; the top 5 score. Team score is the sum of the finishing places, 1st, 2nd, etc. of the first three or, for M40, first five athletes across the finish line. Low score wins. The other athletes on the team provide insurance, should one of the top runners run into trouble. They also displace runners on other teams, hence raising their scores. That sometimes makes a critical difference in the final outcome.
WOMEN'S RACE
40+ Team Red Lizard was going for their second straight win. After finishing second to San Diego Track Club at San Francisco in 2022, Red Lizard finished ahead of Bowerman TC, Cal Coast TC and Garden State TC at Tallahassee last year. Red Lizard, out of Portland OR, is so strong this year that they entered an 'A' and a 'B' team, both of which had legitimate podium aspirations. Last year they had Renee Metivier, who could run at the very front. This year the brought a more balanced squad. After skipping Tallahassee last year, San Diego was back to contend for the podium. Their top runner was again marathoner, Meriah Earle. Earle ran in the Olympic Marathon Trials in Orlando earlier this year, finishing in the middle of the pack. Bowerman would contend again with a 3-athlete team-no room for error! They were led by Carrie Dimoff, favored for the overall win. Club Northwest, the hosts, entered a strong team led by Andrea Garvue, who finished second to Dimoff last month in the Pac NW Championships on this same course. Checkers Athletic Club, out of Buffalo NY, had Jennifer Keenan, who finished top five last year in Tallahassee, leading the way. Last year, Metivier was able to stay with Dimoff for the first half of the race; this year Dimoff went to the front and enjoyed a wire-to wire victory.
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| Carrie Dimoff approaching the Finish Line with the Overall Women's Win in Hand for her Bowerman Squad in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
That was a single point for Bowerman-first score! A minute later, Garvue zipped across the line in 2nd, nipping Gretchen Hurlbutt Boisie Betties. Red Lizard's Chelsea Lenge Warren had the same time but was awarded 4th. Her teammate, Alison Crocker, was 7 seconds back in 5th. Red Lizard was the first team in with two of their three scores needed, at 9 points.
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| Gretchen Hurlbutt right outkicks Chelsea Lenge Warren for third in the 40+ team competition, with Alison Crocker background looking to join her teammate in the Top 5 in the Team Competition in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Garvue claimed 6th for Northwest, ahead of Earle, 7th for San Diego. Jennifer Boerner, of Checkers, edged Bowerman's Kristin Rohde, for 8th. That left Bowerman and Checkers tied for 2nd place at 10, each with two runners scored. Carre Joyce Heineck rounded out the top ten, tallying the first score for Lizard 'B'. Cal Coast's Maggie Shearer nipped Lizard A's Eva Vail for 11th, but Vail's 12th place finish slammed the door for Lizard A.
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| Eva Vail finishes 12th in the Women's 40+ Team Competition to give Red Lizard 'A' the win in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Vail gave them three runners scored and a total of 21 points. No other team could match that. Team Red Lizard 'A' had the win! With Northwest's Caroline Koplowitz and Laura Breyman finished 14th and 16th, each ahead of their Red Lizard B counterparts, Kristin Shaw, 16th, and Crystal Query, 24th. Northwest had 38 points for second, with Red Lizard 'B' third at 50. Bowerman edged San Diego for fourth by a single point! Had Kelly Ranali allowed the runner who finished two seconds behind her to pass in the final stretch, Bowerman and San Diego would have tied for 4th. That is why displacement is important! Taking both 1st and 3rd with A and B teams is almost unheard of at Club Cross. Red Lizard underlined their dominance of the W40+ division!
Team Red Lizard 'A' 21 3 scorer time average = 23:51 C Lenge-Warren, A Crocker, E Vail, [L Bernard, A Lewellen]
Club Northwest 38 24:17 A Garvue, C Koplowitz, L Breyman, [M Heuer, M Lyle]
Team Red Lizard 'B' 50 24:35 C Joyce Heineck, K Shaw, C Query, (J Adelman, K La Croix]
50+ Central Park Track Club CPTC looked to repeat its 2023 victory at Tallahassee. The Garden State TC was just three points back in 2nd, with Sirius Athletics in third. The year before in San Francisco also saw Garden State and Sirius going 2-3. CPTC is stronger this year; Jennifer St. Jean Central Park , one of the podium favorites, is new to the Club Cross team this year. Neither Garden State nor Sirius is in Tacoma this year. CPTC has a new set of clubs to worry about. Club Northwest has a top contender in Holly McIlvaine Northwest, and strong support. Boise Betties and Prado Racing, out of San Diego, are well outfitted to contend for the team podium. St Jean proved to be very strong, running in the top ten overall and dominating the 50+ division. St. Jean's first place gave CPTC the single point to start their scoring. They came in as expected after St Jean.
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| Jennifer St. Jean claims first place in the W50+ Team Competition for Central Park in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
McIlvaine claimed 2nd for Northwest, followed by Amy Halseth Prado claiming third and Allison Nuxoll Boise finishing 4th. That gave the four main contenders one score each. It looked like it could be close until the next two runners crossed the line. CPTC's 2nd and 3rd runners, Rebekah Kennedy Central Park and Jennifer Harvey Central Park finished four seconds apart in 5th and 6th. That gave CPTC 12 points and three scores. It was 'Katie Bar the Door!' No one could catch them now! CPTC won with 12 points.
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| Rebekah Kennedy #1184 and Jennifer Harvey #1183 Running in Tandem in the Early Going-with a glimpse of Amy McMahon right behind Kennedy, Deanna O'Neil red & black singlet, Patricia Bellan light blue singlet, and Suzanne La Burt white singlet-They Ensured the W50+ Team Win for Central Park in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Those two had had quite a battle with Northwest's Gwen Lapham Northwest who finished two seconds behind Harvey in 7th place. Norhtwest could not win but they had a step up over the other teams with just one runner finished. Margi Bell Prado and Sarah Battersby Boise both crossed the finish line in 27:29 in 10th and 11th, moving Prado and Boise to 13 and 15, respectively with two scores in. But Deborah Fletcher Northwest was just two seconds back in 12th place, closing the door on second place in the Team competition. Northwest's total of 21 points could not be matched! But the bronze medal spot on the podium was still open. Would it go to Prado or Boise or someone else? Twenty-six seconds later, Meredith Patria Prado provided the answer, crossing the finish line in 17th place to give Prado the bronze medals with 30 points.
Boise's Sara Wright crossed the finish line 4 seconds later in 18th, giving Boise a 4th place finish. That improved over their 7th place finish in 2022! Impala Racing finished 5th with 55 points, followed by Greater Lowell Road Runners, 6th with 61.
Central Park Track Club 12 25:17 J St. Jean, R Kennedy, J Harvey [E Basile, T Ballou]
Club Northwest 21 26:16 H McIlvaine, G Lapham, D Fletcher [J Saam, J Puzon]
Prado Racing 30 27:01 A Halseth, M Bell, M Pathria
60+ Impala Racing finished 2nd in San Francisco and 2nd last year. Would this be their year to move to the top spot? Club Northwest topped the division two years ago and would send a strong team to defend the home turf. Shore Athletic Club won last year, and Liberty AC finished second two years ago. They were both back. A new team in the mix comes from the Bowerman TC out of Eugene OR. Suzanne La Burt Shore, who led her team to victory last year, gave Shore the single point to start things off.
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| W60+ Team Competition-Early Going Before La Burt Applied Pressure-From Left-Patricia Bellan #1357, Deanna O'Neil #1102, Suzanne La Burt #1575, and Lisa Knoblich#1211 in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Fifty seconds later, Mary Cass Liberty gave her team the 2-point start. Five seconds later, third went to Deanna O'Neil Bowerman; Lisa Knoblich Northwest was a few strides back in 4th. A half minute later, Helene Hutchinson Bowerman gave her team a boost with their second score; they had 6 points from their first two scorers. Eileen Brennan-Erler Impala gave Impala its first score at 6. Myra Klettke Bowerman gave Bowerman the team win four seconds later by finishing 7th.
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| Myra Klettke #1101 Leads Eileen Brennan-Erler blues singlet and headband, background In the Women's 60+ Team Contest--Amidst Younger Runners, Hiroko Guarneri #1019, Genesssa Younger #1543, Jessica Graham right behind Klettke, and Kathy Wiegand #1027, in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Bowerman claimed the win with13 points; their victory was almost as dominant as CPTC's in the 50+ race. After Kris Huff Atlanta took 8th, Victoria Bok Liberty gave Liberty their second score at 9th. Liberty had 11 points from their first two. Next up was Michelle Neal Northwest in 10th for. Trailing her twenty seconds back was her teammate, Kathi Sleavin Northwest. Her 11th gave Northwest 25 points and the silver medals! Impala got their second score with Sara Tabbutt's Impala 12th place. After Heather Slee Northwest 'B' claimed 13th, Suzanne Bryan Impala gave her team their third scoring runner and 32 points. Liberty could still claim the bronze medals if their third runner finished in the top twenty. But it was not to be. Impala's 32 points held up for the bronze medal position. And 4th place slipped past as well when Donna Grocki Shore and Deborah Capko Shore finished 15th and 20th, to give Shore 36 points. They edged Liberty for fourth place by 4 points. San Diego TC was sixth at 59 points.
Bowerman Track Club 13 27:56 D O'Neil, H Hutchinson, M Klettke
Club Northwest 25 29:19 L Knoblich, M Neal, K Sleavin [K Pinkstaff]
Impala Racing 32 30:22 E Brennan-Erler, S Tabbutt, S Bryan [T Quan, I Suzuki]
70+ Team Red Lizard has won the last three W70+ crowns at Club Cross. Impala finished second in San Francisco two years ago. Atlanta finished 2nd at Tallahassee in both 2021 and 2023. San Diego TC decided to try their luck this time around. Even though she is now 75, Jeanette Groesz is such a strong runner that she still delivered the single point for Red Lizard, clocking 31:13.
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| Jeanette Groesz #1659 Battles Younger Runners, Jinghua Liu Tervalon #1153, Donna Grocki #1574, and Suzanne Bryan #1377 pink cap as She leads her Red Lizard 70+ Team to Victory in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
A minute later, Ernestina Martin contributed the two-pointer to San Diego. A few minutes later, Donna Chan and Jo Anne Rowland claimed third and fourth, just 20 seconds apart, for Impala. That put Impala in the driver's seat as the first team with two scores in, at 7 points.
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| Impala's Jo Anne Rowland #1393, raingear in place, leads Atlanta's Cindy Lucking #1073 background-red singlet, with a W60+ runner, Drusilla Pratt-Otto #1444, interspersed in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Cynthia Lucking finished fifth for Atlanta. Deborah Shea gave San Diego their second score; her six points brought their total to 8. Suzanne Ray, who has been battling injuries off and on fo r the last year and a half, finished 7th for Red Lizard, giving them 8 points and so tied with San Diego. When Arlene McCarthy finished 8th that gave Impala all they needed. Impala took the win at 15 points. McCarthy's two teammates, Terri Rourke and Irene Herman, finished 9th and 10th, pushing up every other team's score. San Diego's Robin Paine outlasted Red Lizard's Pauline Kinneman. Paine's 11th gave San Diego 19 points and the one-point margin they needed to finish second, just ahead of Red Lizard. With just four points separating 1st and 3rd, that was the closest team finish of the day in the Women's race.
Impala Racing 15 36:04 D Chan, J Rowland, A McCarthy [T Rourke, I Herman]
San Diego Track Club 19 36:35 E Martin, D Shae, R Paine [D Karp]
Team Red Lizard 20 36:31 J Groesz, S Ray, P Kinneman
MEN'S 60+ RACE
60+ Twin Cities Running TCRC has been on the podium in this division each of the last three Club Cross competitions. They finished first in 2022 and third the other two years. Boulder Road Runners won in 2021; Shore Athletic Club took top honors last year. A different team has finished 2nd each year. Athletics Boulder in 2021, followed by SRA Elite SRA, out of Sacramento, in 2022 and Genesee Valley Harriers GVH, out of upstate NY, in 2023. TCRC was loaded again but GVH were improved, as well, with the return of Mike Nier. SRA had a strong squad and Atlanta Track Club looked sure to contend. Ann Arbor Track Club AATC has Steve Schmidt, pretty much a lock for the 60+ podium. He finished 2nd in 2022 and 5th in 2023, after marshals failed to warn him of a wrong turn just after he had moved into 3rd place. AATC has added depth as well.
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| And They Are Off and Running-Start of Men's 60+ Race in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Schmidt Ann Arbor dropped the hammer for AATC, coming in first in 31:21.
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| Ann Arbor's Steve Schmidt Heads for the M60+ Win on the Final Straightaway in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Fifteen seconds later, Paul Smith Bowerman, crossed the line 2nd for Bowerman Track Club. Douglas Baldwin Twin Cities, a new addition, and John Van Danacker Twin Cities, the top Twin Cities runner the last few years, were bearing down on the finish line, along with Alan Evans GVH. Baldwin had the most in the tank, finishing 3rd in 31:43, with Evans 4th at 31:45 and Van Danacker 5th at 31:47! That gave TCRC the early lead-8 points on two scores.
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| John Van Danacker #1645 pulling the top M60 Runners out in the Early Going- From Left: Douglas Baldwin behind and to Van Danacker's right, Mark Zamek #1777, Thomas Tayeri #1468, Nat Larson #1348, and Steve Schmidt #1011 in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Dan King claimed 6th for Athletics Boulder, followed by SRA's Scott Lacrosse in 7th. Three seconds later, Joe Mora gave GVH their second score; his 8 points gave them 12 from two scores, moving them into 2nd. Lester Dragstedt opened the scoring for Atlanta with his 9th place finish. Patrick Billig slammed the gate shut for TCRC with his 10th place finish. TCRC had the win with 18 points! Timothy Ensign's finished 11th for Chattanooga Track Club. Four seconds later, one of Atlanta's elder statesmen, Ken Youngers, 68, finished 12th to put Atlanta into 3rd with 21 points. Four seconds later, Nier zipped across the line in 13th. His lucky 13 gave GVH 25 points and 2nd place. After Kevin Haas placed 14th for TCRC, Atlanta's other elder statesman, Rick Becker, 70, claimed 15th, assuring Atlanta of third place with 36 points. SRA took 4th in the team competition with 51 points. Ann Arbor nipped Club Northwest for fifth by a single point, 65 to 66!
Twin Cities Running Company 18 32:18 D Baldwin, J Van Danacker, P Billig [K Haas, R Economy]
Genesee Valley Harriers 25 32:41 A Evans, J Mora, M Nier [M Mertens, J Van Kerkhove]
Atlanta Track Club 36 33:30 L Dragstedt, K Youngers, R Becker [D Black, C Hannan]
70+ Boulder Road Runners won this division handily in 2021. Jamul Toads enjoyed a dominant win in 2022. Boulder nipped Jamu; for the win last year 18 to 21. In addition to those two rivals, Bowerman, GVH, and Shore AC would also contend. Greater Lowell's John Barbour took top team honors, giving the single point to start the scoring for Greater Lowell Road Runners.
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| John Barbour #1334 and James Linn white singlet-behind and to Barbour's right taking it out hard in the M70+ Team Competition among 60+ Runners in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
A minute later, Jim Linn, go t the first score for a top contender, giving Shore the early lead. Four seconds later, James Robinson put GVH on the board at 3. Jack Pottle, a newly minted 70+ athlete gave Boulder their first score at 4th. Douglas Lewis gave Bowerman his 5 points to get them started. When David Parsons finished 6th for Northwest and Greg Wilson scored a 7 for the Toads, all of the main contenders were on the board with a single score. The next big question was which team would get a second score? Gary Ostwald had the answer! He finished 8th, giving Boulder 12 points and the lead. Scott Harvey, just 8 seconds back in 9th, put Northwest into second place at 15. Shore's Reno Stirrat got the top ten finish in the team competition. His ten points left Shore tied with Boulder for the lead. Five seconds later, Douglas Chesnut finished 11th! Boulder won with 23 points! Chesnut outlasted Jamul Toad's Rick Pfeiffer who took 12th just two seconds back from Chesnut.
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| Top M70+ Team Runners Mixing it Up in the Early Going-From Left: Reno Stirrat Lime Green gloves, Douglas Chesnut blue cap, white singlet, Rick Pfeiffer #1414, and Gary Ostwald #1065 in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
When Pfeiffer's teammate, David Dunbar finished 13th, that gave the Toads 32 points and the lead for second place. But Northwest's David Crawford, dashed that hope 17 seconds later when he took 14th. Northwest would finish second with 29 points! But no one could push the Toads off the podium. Bowerman, Shore and GVH had quite the tussle for the remaining top six spots. Bowerman and Shore tied on points at 51, with GVH at 53. Bowerman was awarded 5th on a tie-break rule: the team whose final scoring runner finishes closest to first gets the better finish. Bowerman's third runner finished 29th; Shore's 39th. The final order was Bowerman 4th, Shore 5th and GVH 6th.
Boulder Road Runners 23 38:09 J Pottle, G Ostwald, D Chesnut [D Bell, R Katz]
Club Northwest 29 38:43 D Parsons, S Harvey, D Crawford [L Sharpe, R Leone]
Jamul Toads 32 38:47 G Wilson, R Pfeiffer, D Dunbar [R Wells, D Diehr]
MEN'S 40+ RACE
40+ Indiana Elite Athletics Club won this division in 2021 and 2022. They edged West Valley Track Club by a single point in 2021 and enjoyed a 27-point win over West Valley the following year. Last year in Tallahassee, West Valley turned the tables, defeating Indiana by 23 points; both teams are back this year. Tracksmith Boston Hares, Garden State Track Club GSTC, Team Run Flagstaff, and Club Northwest finished 3rd through 6th last year.
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| Start of M40+ Race for the Team M40+ and Team M50+ Championships in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
With this championship taking place on their home turf, everyone expected a beefed up Northwest team. They got it! Joseph Gray nailed 1st to get Northwest started.
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| Joseph Gray Gets Club Northwest Off to the best Start Possible with his First Place finish in M40+in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
They put two more runners in the top ten with Kevin Hansen 4th and Mark Mandi 8th. In the meantime, Jesse Davis got Indiana started with 2 points and Brian Flynn started Garden State with three. Indiana matched Northwest in getting three runners in the top nine: Davis 3rd, Daniel Rowe 7th, and John Poray 9th.
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| Jesse Davis left and Brian Flynn fight for every inch as they fly down the final straightaway to the Finish in the Masters Men 40+ Race at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Northwest was ahead 13 to 19 but Indiana was hanging tough at that point. West Valley was not far back. Malcolm Richards and David Cisewski finished a second apart in 5th and 6th, giving West Valley a nice 11 point start on their first two runners.
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| Malcolm Richards right and Mark Mandi, high stepping it to the Finish Line and Valuable M40+ Team Points in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
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| John Poray #1403, With Peter Gilmore #1744 and Kevin Pool #1737 Mixing It Up on the Turf, with the M40+ Team Championship on the Line in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Indiana could not keep pace with those two West Coast juggernauts this year but was the only other club to crack 100. Chad Carver and Mark Guyer finished 25th and 31st to give Indiana 74 points and the third-place finish with a margin of over a hundred points. Sandwiched between Carver and Guyer was Boston's Brendan Prindiville in 28th. They were slugging it out in the trenches with Garden State. Peter Anzovino and Fabian Daza finished 30th and 35th to place GSTC back ahead of the Hares. Nine seconds later, Jason Reilly and Eric Blake reversed that for the Hares with their 37th and 38th places, just a few seconds apart. When Aaron Totten-Lancaster finished 55th for GSTC, both had four runners in; Hares led 119 to 123! It was coming down to the 5th runner! Russell Greenwald was 'The Man', finishing 61st to give Hares 4th place. When Shawn Williams finished 91st, that gave Garden State the fifth spot just eight points ahead of Team Red Lizard. After Stout started them at 14, Red Lizard did not place another runner in the top 40. But they packed it in well after that with Steven Short, Joshua Monda, and Christopher Sheaffer. When their fifth runner, Jonathan Osborne, finishing two seconds ahead of a teammate, claimed 71st, Red Lizard had 222 points and 6th place.
Club Northwest 34 34:37 J Gray, K Hansen, M Mandi, M Sayenko, A Schroeder [J Andersen, T Boyd, P Dill, D Simmons
West Valley Track Club 51 35:04 M Richards, D Cisewski, P Gilmore, K Pool, J Charlsworth, N Davey, A Touchstone, T Haxton, M Fraioli
Indiana Elite Athletic Club 74 35:17 J Davis, D Rowe, J Poray, C Carver, M Guyer, J Zeha, M Haschel
50+ West Valley Track Club has won this division at Clubs the last three years, no mean feat! They dominated in 2021, taking 1-2 and placing all five of their scoring runners in the top 15. It might have been even more dominant the next year except that their fifth runner was off his best form Their first four runners finished 1st, 3rd, 4th and 6th. They won by 23 points. They were pressed for the first time last year. Boulder Road Runners came loaded to Tallahassee and almost pulled off the upset. This time Boulder took the top two spots and West Valley had to catch up. But they did. Their tighter pack gave them the win, but just by three points, 56 to 59. West Valley was gunning for four in a row. Boulder was back but was a little thinner behind their top runner this year. Bowerman Track Club would contend; four of their strong 40's runners aged up to this division over the last year and a bit. Santa Barbara Running and Racing travelled to Richmond last year and nabbed the gold medals in M50+. The hosts, Club Northwest would, of course, load up to defend the Chambers Creek turf. Gregory Mitchell, a Club Cross podium regular in his early 40's, served notice that Bowerman was here to compete! His 35:38 gave Bowerman the single point to start.
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| Greg Mitchell #1119 leads his Bowerman team to the 50+ win, surrounded by 40+ runners, Eric Blake #1702, Brendan Prindiville #1705, David Simmons orange singlet, Richard Bouckaert #1487, Ben Mangrum #1617, Chad Carver #1399, and Dickson Mercer #1322 red/gray hat. For 'Where's Waldo?' fans, and for those who know them, look for a glimpse of Jason Reilly, Charlie Ban, Mark Guyer, John Gardiner, Matt Yacoub and David Angell in the background--The Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Rusty Snow took 2nd for Santa Barbara. A half minute later, John Gardiner finished 3rd for Cal Coast Track Club, just ahead of Jaime Heilpern of the HOKA Aggie Running Club. Both teams would finish just outside the top 6. Julian Marsh contributed the first points for West Valley at 5th. Frank Zoldak, last year's winner, gave Bulder their first points at 6th. Four seconds later saw Todd Rose add 7 points to West Valley's total, followed 8 seconds later by Emmet Hogan who gave Northwest their first points. Next up was Mark Yuen, finishing 9th and giving West Valley a clear lead with three athletes finished and a score of 21. No other team had a second athlete score yet. Marcelo Mejia Perez ended that state of affairs by scoring second for Santa Barbara at 10th. Matt Yacoub kept Cal Coast within two of Santa Barbara,12-14. They were coming thick and fast now! Orin Schumacher claimed 12th for Bowerman, five seconds behind Yacoub. He edged TCRC's first scorer, Brad Moening, by three seconds. Four seconds more and Charles Mullane added 14 to West Valley's total. They were close now; they had four runners scored and a total of 35! Northwest was putting up a fight. They took three of the next 5 spots with Ian Fraser 15th, Craig Maclean 16th, and Jason Gowans 19th. They trailed West Valley 35 to 58, but they had four runners in; they had a chance! Bowerman's John Howell finished amid the Northwest crew in 18th.Michael Mallon gave Boulder their second score at 20 before Ivan Lieben ended all doubt, scoring fifth for West Valley at 21st. West Valley had the win with 56 points. It was back and forth now among the remaining teams. Steve Harding added 23 to Santa Barbara's total before Bowerman's Craig Godwin claimed 24th. Boulder's Todd Stockford was 25th, followed by West Valley's #6, Mark McManus at 26th. TCRC's Mark Elworthy and Eric Johnson finished 2 seconds apart in 27th and 28th; Boulder's Glen Mays was four seconds back in 29th.
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| Part of the WestValley/TC Running 50+ Battle-From Left: Eric Johnson #1638, Mark Elworthy #1635, Charles Mullane #1747, Mark McManus #1736, and Kurt Keiser right behind McManus in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Taking stock at that point we would have seen: West Valley, the winer at 56, followed by three teams with 4 scores: Bowerman 55, Northwest 58, and Boulder 80. Santa Barbara and TCRC both had three scores but Santa Barbara was way ahead on points, 30 to 68. Northwest's Mark Bloudek won the battle with Bowerman's Ahrlin Bauman, edging him by 4 seconds to take 30th to Bauman's 32nd. But Bauman's score was just low enough for Bowerman to edge Northwest for 2nd by a single point, 87 to 88. Had Bauman run three seconds slower, they would have tied. In that case, Northwest would have owned the tie-breaker! Todd Booth, 33rd, and Richard Cagley, 47th, gave Santa Barbara a total of 115, enough to claim 4th in the team competition. Kurt Keiser and Brian Davenport finished 35th and 37th to close off the scoring for TCRC at 140. They were the 5th team to get a complete score. But Boulder had a chance at 5th yet. They needed their 5th runner to finish 60th or better. Brian Schmidt was up to the task; had he lost 14 seconds out on the course, he would have finished 60th, which would have given 5th place to TCRC with the tie-breaker. But he did not lose 14 seconds, scored 58th and gave Boulder the 138 points they needed to finish 2 points up on TCRC in 5th.
West Valley Track Club 56 37:43 J Marsh, T Rose, M Yuen, C Mullane, I Lieben [M McManus, J Markell]
Bowerman Track Club 87 38:10 G Mitchell, O Schumacher, J Howell, C Godwin, A Bauman, E Hartmann, G Coughlan
Club Northwest 88 38:38 E Hogan, I Fraser, C Maclean, J Gowans, M Bloudek [J Hashimoto, B Sauvage, N Bowden, B Cossey
It was a terrific day of team competition. In addition to organizing this championship, the host Club Northwest turned out well over 80 Masters runners, and mounted 6 team podiums- one gold, four silvers and a bronze medal placing.
OVERALL INDIVIDUAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
MEN'S 60+ RACE
The preview suggested Paul Smith Bowerman, who ran in the 50+ race the last few years, might take it out hard, and that the 'old guys' might not be able to reel him back. The 'old guys' in this case were Nat Larson Greater Springfield and Steve Schmidt Ann Arbor, who went 1-2 in San Francisco and 1-5 in Tallahassee last year. It certainly started out that way. Once they finished the first long straightaway and curved up the first rise, Smith had a gap on the field; Larson was toward the front of the field with Schmidt a few strides back.
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| Paul Smith with the Early Lead--Taking It Out Hard and Daring the 60+ Field to Catch Him in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Scott Lacrosse SRA soon bridged the gap to join Smith, but Smith continued to dictate the pace. As they pushed up that rise, Schmidt accelerated to join Larson up towards the front of the chase pack. Smith and Lacrosse headed onto the short part of the first loop, around the hay bales and back past the Start. Smith and Lacrosse finished the first 3K loop in 11:21, about 50 meters ahead of the chase pack. In addition to Larson and Schmidt, the chase pack included several strong runners. Douglas Baldwin Twin Cities is probably the Baldwin who ran 2:44:26 at the Monumental Marathon in Indy in 2023 and won the 55-59 division in 2:45:25 at Boston this spring. Alan Evans GVH finished 7th at Tallahassee last year. Dan King Athletics Boulder just broke the M65 1500M and 1 Mile records this fall; he won the M60 division at Tallahassee in 2021, Thomas Tayeri Peninsula Distance is very likely to be the Tayeri with the 2:46:40 to finish 3rd M55 at Boston in 2023. Tayeri also clocked the fastest M60 time at Chicago this fall, 2:48:29. John Van Danacker Twin Cities finished 3rd last year. Mark Zamek finished 2nd last year but has been rehabbing and training around a persistent tendon issue; he planned on running, but under control. A number of other runners may have had issues. I understand that Larson tweaked a hamstring at Boulder and was pleased to be able to run well. I heard a rumor that Van Danacker tweaked something in the run up to the championships. It comes with the territory. By the time they passed the hay bales the second time, Schmidt was dictating the pace for the chase pack. Lacrosse was falling off of Smith's pace. Larson moved up with Schmidt, with the rest of the chase pack holding together a few seconds back. Schmidt led Larson past Lacrosse and then Smith.
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| Steve Schmidt, pushing to catch Smith, with Nat Larson behind, just after catching Lacrosse on the second loop in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Smith soldiered on, staying about 40 meters ahead of the chase pack. Schmidt and Larson were locked in, pouring it on. But Smith was still moving well. Halfway through the final loop, Schmidt started to pull away and establish a good gap over Larson. Larson kept pumping. Smith was pushing, too, staying closer to the top two than to the chasers. In the end, Schmidt enjoyed the win with 40 meters to spare. Larson and Smith both closed well, Larson taking second 20 meters ahead of Smith.
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| 60+ Chase Pack-Midway through 2nd Loop-From Left: Alan Evans #1304, Mark Zamek #1777, John Van Danacker #1645, Dan King #1014, Douglas Baldwin right behind Evans and Zamek, and Thomas Tayeri a few strides behind Baldwin in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
The three chase group leaders, Baldwin, Evans and Van Danacker were together when they hit the final straightaway to the finish. Baldwin had the most in the tank, claiming fourth in 31:43. Evans was two seconds back in 5th, followed by Van Danacker, another two seconds back in sixth. King, Zamek, Tayeri and Lacrosse finished in that order to round out the top ten!
Steve Schmidt 31:21 Nat Larsoni 31:31 Paul Smith 31:36
MEN'S 40+ RACE Joseph Gray Northwest was the prohibitive favorite. He was US Mountain Running Champion many times over and World Running Champion twice during his Open career. He also claimed the 2013 Club Cross Open Championship in Bend OR. In his first year as a Masters athlete, Gray has already taken national overall titles in the 10K road championships at Dedham in late April and at the Masters 5 Km Cross Country Championships in Boulder last month. Malcolm Richards West Valley is the defending overall champion in this division. Jesse Davis Indiana won, overall, at Tallahassee in 2021. At Golden Gate Park in 2022, Richards ran 17 seconds faster than Davis. Richards was in the Open race; Davis finished fifth overall in the Masters 10 Km race that year. Last year, Richards and Davis went 1-2 overall in the M40+ race at Tallahassee. Neil McDonagh Square State Striders finished two spots behind Davis at San Francisco. This year, McDonagh was the overall winner at the Master 1 Mile Road Championships in Danville CA and beat everyone except Gray at the Masters 5 km Championships in Boulder. David Cisewski West Valley finished third last year in Tallahassee behind Richards and Davis. Brian Flynn Garden State finished two spots behind Cisewski last year at Tallahassee. A month later he claimed 2nd in Richmond at the USATF Cross Country Championships. He ran a 2:31:27 at the Wineglass Marathon this October. Mark Mandi Northwest, owner of a 2:38:44 marathon at the fast CIM, buttressed that with a Masters win at the NW Regional XC Championships on this course in late November. John Poray Indiana was the bronze medalist overall at the Masters Half Marathon Championships this year. Two weeks later, he ran a 1:10:22 half marathon at the Indy Monumental Marathon. Poray finished 2nd at the Masters 5 Km Championships in Boston in 2021. He has had less luck at Clubs; it is tough to crack the top ten. Daniel Rowe Indiana ran 2:33:44 at the Baltimore Marathon in October and registered a 1:10:10 at the Norfolk HM in November. My only discovery for Kevin Hansen Northwest was a fast 5K on St Patrick's Day this past March, 15:17!
Davis took it out smartly from the gun!
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| Jesse Davis leading the field out from the gun-with Malcolm Richards and Kevin Hansen (and Joseph Gray, just out of picture to their left) in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
As they headed out onto the first loop, Davis, Gray, and Nicholas Kipruto US Army led the field. On the north loop, at the hay bales, Davis had opened a three-second gap on Gray, with Richards at the head of the chase pack. When they finished the first 3K, it was Davis and Gray leading the chase pack by 25 meters. Flynn, Richards, Hansen, McDonagh, and Mandi constituted the primary bunch of chasers. Gray made a decisive move as they headed uphill on the second 3K loop. He opened a 30-meter lead on Davis, Flynn, Richards and the rest.
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| Neil McDonagh leads the 40+ Chase Group, with Kevin Hansen, Malcolm Richards, and Mark Mandi, with David Cisewski and, perhaps, Daniel Rowe. in the distant background in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
By the end of that loop, Gray had the lead up to 80 meters and it did not look like anyone would catch him today! Flynn had now joined Davis.
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| Jesse Davis and Brian Flynn battling on the second loop, with Neil McDonagh, Kevin Hansen and Malcolm Richards trying to close the gap in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
McDonagh moved up from the lead chase group, and was looking to close with those two. They had two 2K loops to go, without the north hay bale loop. By the 8K mark Gray still had the 80-meter lead but it was now McDonagh in 2nd place with Davis and Flynn 25 meters back and close to a hundred-meter gap from them to Hansen and Richards. Gray took the win with over a hundred meters to spare;
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| Jopseph Gray Powers Down the Final Straightaway to win the M40+ Race at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
McDonagh finished second with a 40-meter cushion; and Davis outkicked Flynn for third place, just seconds apart. Hansen and Richards finished strong to take 5th and 6th a half minute back. Cisewski and Rowe moved up to finish 7th and 8th, with Mandi and Poray claiming ninth and tenth. For Poray it was his first top ten finish at Clubs, something to celebrate. Hansen and Flynn had their first top five finishes at Clubs. Davis had his third podium in four Club Cross outings. Gray enjoyed his first Masters win at Club Cross and his third straight victory on the Masters circuit at Club Cross!
Joseph Gray 33:20 Neil McDonagh 33:45 Jesse Davis 33:53
WOMEN'S RACE Carrie Dimoff, who represented the USA in the marathon at the Doha World Championships and claimed the crown at Club Cross in Tallahassee last year, was the strong favorite. Dimoff had also taken first place at the USATF Cross Country Championships earlier this year in Richmond VA. Still in top fitness, Dimoff took the win with room to spare at the Northwest regional Cross Country Championships in late November. Other main contenders, in alphabetical order, appeared to be: Alison Crocker Team Red Lizard, Meriah Earle San Diego Track Club, Andrea Garvue Northwest, Gretchen Hurlbutt Boisie Betties, Jenny Kadavy HOKA Aggie, Jennifer Keenan Checkers AC, Chelsea Lenge Warren Red Lizard, Jennifer Lutz Battle Road, and Jennifer St. Jean Central Park. Crocker finished 4th at the Northwest Regional Cross Country Championships, well behind Dimoff, but ahead of several strong cross country runners. Earle is a top marathoner who ran in the Olympic Marathon Trials in Atlanta in 2020 and Orlando in 2024. She won the Women's Race at Clubs in San Francisco in 2022. Garvue, a 2:52 Marathoner, excels on the turf. She finished 13th of 30 in the 30-34 division in the Open race at Lexington KY in 2017. She was second at the Northwest Region XC Champs behind Dimoff and ahead of Crocker. Hurlbutt finished 2nd overall at 2018 Club Cross in Spokane and 8th in San Francisco. Kadavy ran 59:05 to take 2nd at the 2023 Masters 10 Mile Championships in Sacramento. She ran a 17:34 5K in June at the Impala Stampede and finished 7th at last year's Club race in Tallahassee. Keenan was the Women's winner in early May at the Grand Isle HM in New York; later that month, she won the Buffalo Marathon in 2:57:28. At home on the turf, Keenan finished 5th overall at Tallahassee last year. Lenge Warren ran 1:20:04 at the Shamrock Half Marathon in Portland in 2021 and threw down a 37 flat 10K this year at the Portland Marathon. She finished 4th at Cross Nationals in Richmond VA this year and burnished her credentials with a 4th place finish at the famed Stumptown Cross Country race in late October. Lutz clocked 37:06, finishing 3rd at the Masters 10 Km Championships in April. Her 36:35 at the Lone Gull 10K certainly commands attention. Lutz won the New England Cross Country Championships this year. Perhaps she would move up from her 9th place finish at Tallahassee last year? St. Jean focuses primarily on the track where she has won many a championship. Her involvement over this past year with a collegiate TFXC program may have piqued her interest in Masters Cross Country. St. Jean won the 45-49 division at the Fifth Avenue Mile at 5:14 and clocked 1:22:59 at the Ridgefield HM in Connecticut in October.
Dimoff wasted no time in getting to the front. By the time they had cleared the straightaway and were heading toward the first uphill section of the course, Dimoff had created a 5-meter gap to the field, led at. that point by Earle and Keenan. Dimoff attacked the hill and 5 meters quickly became 20 meters as no one was ready to attack the hill as strongly as Dimoff.
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| Carrie Dimoff Took Off at the Gun to Build a Large Lead Early in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Keenan, Kadavy and Lenge Warren were the first chase group, now with a small gap back to Earle and the others. Going over or around the hay bales on the north loop saw Dimoff's lead already ballooned to 75 meters. The three-woman chase pack was intact but now Earle was in 'no man's land', 5th with a 5-meter lead on an eight-athlete group.
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| From Left: Jennifer Keenan, Chelsea Lenge Warren, and Jenny Kadavy formed the lead chase group in pursuit of the leader, Dimoff in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
When they finished the first 3K loop and were back near the starting area, Dimoff still had a75 meter lead on Keenan, but now Keenan had only Kadavy by her side. Lenge Warren had been dropped and now found herself 25 meters behind that chasing duo and 30 meters ahead of a main chase pack consisting of Earle, Garvue, Lutz, St Jean, Hurlbutt, Jennifer Boerner Checkers, and Maggie Shearer Cal Coast. Dimoff pushed all the way to the finish, enjoying a lead of over a hundred meters when she crossed the finish line to take the win!
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| Carrie Dimoff approaching the finish line with no one in sight-Another Big Win-- in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Kadavy was able to pull away from Keenan on the last lap, taking second with over 50 meters to spare. Keenan was strong to the tape as well, keeping the rest of the field. Hurlbutt moved up 5 places on the final loop, outsprinting Lenge Warren for 4th place. Six seconds later, St. Jean had the better kick, taking 6th place a second ahead of Crocker.
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| Jennifer Boerner #1191 leading the second Chase Group, mid-race, with Gretchen Hurlbutt Pink Singlet, Maggie Shearer #1155, Jennifer Lutz dark green singlet, Andrea Garvue orange singlet right behind Shearer, with a glimpse of Jennifer St. Jean orange singlet behind Garvue, Alison Crocker white singlet, pink headband, and Ashley Carroll blue singlet -- in the Masters Races at the 2024 USATF Club Cross Country Championships Photo Credit: Michael Scott |
Garvue, Earle, and Lutz rounded out the top ten in that order. Kadavy and Keenan had great days. St. Jean cracking the top ten out of the 50-54 age division was also commendable. The last runner to do it before St. Jean was Karolyn Bowley in 2021 at Tallahassee. Dimoff had another dominant win. It will be interesting to see if she enters Cross Nationals at Lubbock to go for another double Cross Country win this winter.
Carrie Dimoff 22:40 Jenny Kadavy 23:10 Jennifer Keenan 23:25
That concludes part I of the recap. Next up is part II--Age Grading and Age Division
And then, on to Lubbock, TX and Cross Nationals on January 11, 2025. Details are here.
Great coverage as always, Paul. Thanks for capturing all the excitement!👍🏻😀
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