National Masters 1 Mile Road Champions Crowned in Flint Michigan

September 7 2016. Flint Michigan, the site of the 2016 USATF Masters Mile Championship and the HealthPlus CRIM Festival of Races, enjoyed a warm summer evening  on August 26^th. Over 100 of the speediest Masters runners nationally had converged on Flint to test their speed against rivals old and new. Ten thousand dollars in prize money was there to add some spice to the contest. With clear skies and little wind, the runners were anticipating a good race. The course itself is challenging, essentially a rectangular circuit with several turns and modest elevation changes as well; unlike many other road miles, the organizers do not describe it as a fast course. 

A side note: Don and Marian Lein, who have been the mainstays of the USATF Masters LDR Circuit have announced that this is their farewell tour as far as being the on site Officials. They will also step down as Chair and Secretary of USATF's Masters LDR Committee. Their contributions are too numerous to mention. The tributes from athletes are pouring in already. I add mine to it and thank Don, in particular, for drawing me into USATF, and Marian for helping me learn the ropes. It won't be the same without them.

Marian and Don Lein hard at work identifying the finishers at the USATF Masters 1 Mile Championships at Flint--Clearly we will miss Don's sartorial elegance!  [posted on FB by Terry McCluskey]

Don Lein (L), Tom Bernard (C), and Marian Lein (R) handing out bibs in their familiar roles at USATF Packet Pickup

OVERALL RACE

The main contenders looked to be Cal Coast Track Club teammates, Jerome Vermeulen  and John Gardiner, who finished 2^nd and 3^rd last year, and a trio of Great Lakes runners, Rob McConnell, Lee Shaw, and Craig Nieset.  Earlier in the season, Vermeulen had run a 4:18 to take the Masters title at the State Street Mile in Santa Barbara CA and Gardiner finished 5^th in the Exhibition Masters 1500 at the US Olympic Trials in 4:03.4 [roughly equivalent to a 4:23 mile). It appeared that the Cal Coast duo were the favorites but they are now focused on building their base for Cross Country season. Would they be sharp enough to run a fast mile? McConnell had a 16:03 5K and a recent Masters title in the Traverse City Cherry 1 Mile in 4:35.9. Shaw finished 8^th in last year’s Mile Championships. Nieset ran a 16:08 5K on May Day and won the M45 Championship at the USATF Outdoor 1500 Meters on the track in 4:19.66. 

Start of the Men's Race-J Vermeulen surges to the front with C. Nieset (21382) right with him and teammate, J Gardiner (21352) and R McConnell (21373) a half step back [Photos with RunMichigan.com watermark in this article are provided thanks to Dave McCauley. To see entire gallery, visit: http://photos.runmichigan.com/2016-RunMichigan-Coverage/2016-HAP-Crim-Friday-Miles]

Men. Vermeulen and McConnell broke fastest once the gun went off but Gardiner, Shaw and Nieset were in hot pursuit. After the first 200 meters, Vermeulen had a clear lead with Gardiner in 2^nd, McConnell right on his shoulder, and Shaw and Nieset staying close. After the first quarter mile or so, Gardiner was feeling good, threw in a bit of a surge to catch and pass Vermeulen, and continued on to establish a clear gap.  With the incentive of possibly getting an Age-Grading medal (and the prize money that goes with it) and knowing the ferocious kick that his teammate possesses, Gardiner put down the hammer the rest of the way and crossed the finish line in 4:33. It was a six second gap back to Vermeulen who had another four seconds on McConnell who hung on for 3^rd. Shaw and Nieset were closing on McConnell on the final run down to the tape but could get no closer than 3 seconds for Shaw in 4^th and Nieset another 2 seconds back in 5^th place. It was a hard-fought contest but that West Coast speed could not be denied. Gardiner noted: “I am very happy with my time on a tough course like this. There are lots of turns and it is a little bit hilly. But the weather was great and there was a nice crowd that really brought us through with their enthusiastic support. It was a very nice event all in all.”

Gardiner 4:33 Vermeulen 4:39  McConnell 4:43.

John Gardiner takes the Win overall at the 2016 USATF Masters 1 Mile Championship at the CRIM Festival of Races in Flint Michigan

Women. Michigan’s Tammy Nowik, the defending champion, had her work cut out for her. There were two new contenders for the crown—New York’s Marisa Sutera Strange, USATF’s 2015 Runner of the Year in the Women’s 50-54 division, and Minnesotan, Melissa Gacek, who runs for Oiselle Team Elite. Nowik took 5^th in the USATF Masters Marathon in October and won the Masters title at the Indy Monumental Half Marathon in 1:22:48 in November. But when she tried a 5K this June, her speed was a little off, winning the title in 18:20. Strange, by contrast, took the USATF 5K Masters Championship last October in 17:38, albeit on a fast course. Gacek has also been running 15K’s and Half Marathons but she has mixed in a few more short races. She sandwiched a Masters win at the Half Marathon in Duluth in late May in 1:22:45 between taking the Twin Cities Mile in 5:26.6 and a second place finish in the 1500 meters at the USATF Outdoor Track Championships in 5:02.5. The second and 3^rd place finishers from last year, Serena Kessler and Lisa Veneziano were poised to pounce if any of the top 3 faltered.

When the gun went off, Strange, Nowik, and Gacek all surged to the front. Nowik had some doubts about her speed and felt Strange was going out too fast for her, so laid off the pace. Gacek too, took a conservative approach over the first 800 meters. As a result, by the halfway point, Strange had built up a few meters on Nowik who, in turn, had a few meters on Gacek. There was a substantial gap back to Veneziano and Kessler, so it looked as if the 3 favorites would sort out the podium positions among themselves.  There is a short hill as the runners come out of the University of Michigan-Flint campus, about 500 meters from the finish. At this point it looked like Gacek might close on Nowik but then Nowik sensed that if she surged she might catch Strange.  Once they hit the final turn, with 250 meters to go, Nowik felt herself gaining on Strange with every stride. 

Tammy Nowik gutting out the win with Marisa Sutera Strange hanging on for 2nd after bravely leading the race--against the furious closing kick of Melissa Gacek [far left of photo] [All photos by Frog Prince studios in this article had been posted on Facebook]

As they headed down the final downgrade 150 meters to the finish, Nowik was able to head Strange and get past her to defend her title in 5:26, one second ahead of Strange. Gacek, meanwhile, had never given up either and was right there another stride back. But Strange hung tough taking 2^nd place in 5:27 with Gacek in the bronze medal position in 5:28. Wow, a really exciting finish!

Tammy Nowik gets past Marisa Sutera Strange for the Overall Win at the 2016 USATF Masters 1 Mile Championship at the CRIM Festival of Races in Flint Michigan

Veneziano pushed all the way to finish 4^th in her hometown in 5:38 with Kessler two seconds back in 5:40. Nowik explained, “I did not catch the leader until the last 200 meters and there was a girl right on my heels. I was able to take the win in that last little bit so that was fun!” And despite feeling she was a bit slower than last year, Nowik actually ran three seconds faster this year. Gacek says she enjoyed her birds-eye view of the race (Oiselle means bird in French) but felt she had underperformed just a bit. “If I had glued up a little tighter, not racing it like a 15K, I might have brought home a Championship patch. I guess it’s better to try a smart tactic and fall short than go out crazy hard and run out of gas. I’ll have to rethink my best strategy now for the Duluth Mile coming up in a couple of weeks.”

Nowick 5:26 Strange 5:27 Gacek 5:28

AGE-GRADING

Men. Vermeulen, 49, had quite a day, taking the Silver Medal overall and the top age-grading spot, the measure of best relative performance across all age groups, from Nat Larson, 54, Greater Springfield Harriers, by two one hundredths of a point, 91.75% to 91.73. In fact, after getting trapped in ‘no man’s land’ between 1^st and 3^rd, Vermeulen said the knowledge that he might get an Age-Grade Award kept him pushing all the way to the tape. California’s Tom Bernhard, 65, took the 3^rd age-grading place with a 91.56 score. Despite the strong performance Bernhard said the result left him confused; he thought he was in shape to run a much faster time.  Unlike Vermeulen he felt that he had not pushed all the way to the tape even though no one passed him and he did pass one runner in the final 50 meters.

Jerome Vermeulen smiles with the satisfaction of knowing he kept it up all the way to the finish line to take the Overall Age Grading title at the 2016 USATF Masters 1 Mile Championship at the CRIM Festival of Races in Flint Michigan

Women. Strange, 53, took the Women’s Age-Grading title with a much more comfortable margin at 91.27%. Local runner, Lisa Veneziano, 51, who apparently lives just a few blocks from the race, but has speed to burn, took 2^nd in 86.35, followed by the Athena Track Club’s Lorraine Jasper, 54, at 85.99.

Age Grading prizes at this race went five deep.  It would be nice if I could say that the 4^th and 5^th place finishers among the men and women, John Gardiner, Ruben Henderson, Christine Vincent, and Jill Miller-Robinett walked away with some extra change in their pockets. Not so, but they did get to fill out W-9’s and are looking forward to checks arriving in the mail.

Vermeulen 91.75  Larson 91.73 Bernhard 91.56 Gardiner 90.36 Henderson 88.09

Strange 91.27 Veneziano 86.35 Jasper 85.99 Vincent 83.12 Miller-Robinett 82.99

AGE DIVISIONS

M40 Gardiner, McConnell and Shaw, who finished 1^st, 3^rd, and 4^th overall, comprised the podium. Gardiner 4:33 McConnell 4:43 Shaw 4:46

W40 Nowik, Gacek, and Kessler, who finished 1^st, 3^rd and fifth overall, took Age Group Gold, Silver, and Bronze.

Nowik 5:26 Gacek 5:28 Kessler 5:40

M45 Vermeulen added to his medal haul by claiming the top spot in the Age Group. I had pegged Vermeulen’s teammate, Michael john Stanley for 2^nd but Nieset had other ideas, as witnessed by his 5^th place overall finish, edging Stanley for M45 Silver by 5 seconds.

Vermeulen 4:39 Nieset 4:48 Stanley 4:53

W45 This was the closest Age Division contest of the evening with only 6 seconds separating the top 3 positions. In 2015 Amy Nemeth took first in 5:49 with Erin Larusso second in 5:55. New challenger Nicole Derrick has two sub-1:29 half marathons and cracked a 5K in 19:41. Neither Nemeth nor Larusso has a recent sub-20 minute 5K. But Larusso clocked a 5:49 road mile earlier in the season while Nemeth hung up a 6:00.1. As it turned out Larusso was able to match Nemeth’s 5:49 from last year while Nemeth could only manage to finish second. But Nemeth was able to turn back Derrick who claimed the bronze medal in 5:55. That’s a heck of an Age Division competition—tight, tight, tight.

Larusso 5:49 Nemeth 5:52 Derrick 5:55

M50 Nat Larson of the Greater Springfield Harriers was the Age Group Silver medalist for the 10K, where he ran 33:50. A 10K is a lot longer than a mile but you don’t run a sub-34 minute 10K without some speed. And Larson did not disappoint, smashing the division apart with a 12 second victory in 4:50 and, as noted above, came within a whisker of the Age Grade gold. There was a dandy race for 2^nd but Robert Moore of Groveport OH was just able to hang on and outlast a fast-closing Ruben Henderson by a single second!  And two other runners, Mike Nier and Jeff Haertl were only 3 seconds back, just off the podium.

Larson 4:50 Moore 5:01 Henderson 5:02

The agony of near victory as Ruben Henderson (Playmakers, C] cannot quite catch Robert Moore (21377) in the M50 competition. But Henderson enjoyed placing in the top 5 Age Grading and leading his team to M50+ victory.

W50 Strange and Veneziano who finished 2^nd and 4^th overall, nailed down the top 2 spots in this division. Not far back in 3^rd was the 2015 W50 Grand Prix winner, Lorraine Jasper of the Athena Track Club.

Strange 5:27 Veneziano 5:38 Jasper 5:51

M55 Joseph Mora of the GVH team and Kerry Barnett of Playmakers were locked in a team duel but also locked horns in this division for the individual title, with Mora prevailing in 5:06 and Barnett 2^nd in 5:10. William ‘Hugh’ Enicks, who prefers his races to be at least 13 miles long was, nevertheless, able to crank it up pretty well and sail across the finish line in 3^rd place, with only a half stride on Antonio Arreola who was given the same time.

Mora 5:06 Barnett 5:10 Enicks 5:23

W55 Last year Michigan’s Maryellen Stornant took the gold by more than half a minute from New York’s Collen Magnussen. Magnussen was back to see if she could reverse the outcome or at least reduce the margin of victory. Magnussen was able to make it 4 seconds closer this year but Stornant still took the gold medal.

Stornant 6:24 Magnussen 6:56

M60 Last year Tom Bernhard and Mark Rybinski had a thrilling race to the wire, which Bernhard won by a single second. This year Bernhard has moved up to the 65-69 division and Rybinski is nursing a hamstring injury, simply running the race so that GVH would have a complete team. That left the door wide open for the Atlanta Track Club’s Ken Youngers, to celebrate his advancement to the 60-64 division with an inaugural victory, despite having some of his own hip and hamstring issues. GVH’s Bill Beyerbach cruised home in 2^nd. John Tarkowski, finally starting to shake off a foot injury that has plagued him since this race last year, finished 3^rd. It was great that he could run under 6 minutes again. Pain and injury-management is in the tool kit of every successful Masters Runner.

Youngers 5:32 Beyerbach  5:43 Tarkowski 5:58

W60 Jill Miller-Robinett led her Impala Racing team from the Bay Area of San Francisco and also made it count for an individual medal, taking home Age Group gold. The Atlanta Track Club teammates, Mary Richards and Margaret Meek Taylor, took 2^nd and 3^rdwith their usual strong performances.

Miller-Robinett 6:40 Richards 6:51 Taylor 7:07

M65 Tom Bernhard, who captured 3^rd in the Age-Grading, waltzed across the line in first place, recording his first national road championship as a 65-69 year old. That was three seconds faster than his winning time last year when he had to fight off a fast-closing runner to claim his last 1 Mile National Championship in the 60-64 year old class. Peter Mullin is returning to the top of his game but cannot compete at present with Bernhard. Nonetheless he showed that he still has plenty of speed as he fought off a challenge from Kirk Larson. A longtime runner for the Atlanta Track Club, Larson is not a fan of running in hot weather, and this distance is not in his sweet spot. But he rallied, nonetheless, to claim a bronze medal, only 10 seconds back from Mullin.

Bernhard 5:18 Mullin 5:37 Larson 5:47

M65 Podium--Peter Mullin (L-Silver Medal)-Tom Bernhard (C-Gold Medal) - Kirk Larson (R-Bronze Medal)--at the Awards Ceremony [posted on FB by K. Larson]

W65 Miller-Robinett’s Impala teammate, Donna Chan, newly advanced to this age group, took the Gold while Michigander and Playmakers Elite runner, Patricia Degnan took the Silver medal.

Chan 7:15 Degnan  7:41

M70 Last year two of the grand war-horses of the Elite Masters Circuit, Jan Frisby and Hall of Famer Doug Goodhue went toe-to-toe, with Goodhue getting the win in 5:55 to Frisby’s 6:06. This year both have had fitness issues and did not enter. Przemek Nowicki has been suffering from a quad injury which threw his training off in recent weeks. Paul Carlin injured his left hamstring in late April and had not raced since then. He was running/jogging strictly for the team.  Gary Patton, the celebrated Middle Distance specialist from the track would have been a force to reckon with anyway. In the circumstances he took the division in a walk, winning by over a half minute. Nowicki was 36 seconds back in 2^nd with his Shore AC teammate, Ed Smith, taking 3^rd not much further back.

Patton 6:07 Nowicki 6:43 Smith 6:56

W70 The defending champion, Ruth Thelen, exploited her home course advantage and her recent experience racing 1500 meters and 1 mile, to repel the challenger from the Impala Racing team of California, Dianne Anderson.  Thelen and Anderson have quite comparable 5K times but it appears that Thelen did more short distance prep than Anderson. In any case, Thelen took the gold with Anderson taking the Silver Medal 15 seconds back. Cora Hill achieved a podium finish for the 2^nd consecutive year. Last year she took Silver in 9:33. This year she ran 2 seconds faster but could not keep up with the speedster from California.

Thelen 8:11 Anderson 8:26 Hill 9:31

M75 Sandy Scott intended to come up from Florida last year to contest for the Championship but wound up having to cancel out because he tore his hamstring in a track workout and had to scratch. Delta allowed him to hold his ticket so he came up this year instead. He hoped to take on Ron Mastin, the reigning 5K and 10K road champion. When he got here he found out that Mastin was not at peak fitness so would not give him much of a battle. Mastin averaged  8 minutes per mile for over 6 miles  when he won the M75 10 K Championship last April but now in late August could even run one mile at quite that pace. So Scott had it all his way as he raced to the Gold Medal in 6:53. Mastin settled for the Silver Medal and Philip Kroll of Ann Arbor took the bronze in 8:38. Even though Scott and Mastin did not have the kind of race they may have expected they found, to their mutual surprise, that they had both been pilots for Eastern Airlines at the same time some years earlier. They get the ‘Small World’ Award.

Scott 6:53 Mastin 8:16 Kroll 8:38

W75 Ellen Nitz took the win in this group last year and was unopposed again this year. She cruised into the finish line a little slower than last year but perhaps she reasoned that there was little sense in hurrying too much. After all, a Gold Medal is a Gold Medal, whether in 9:28 like last year or a few seconds slower like this year.

Nitz 9:46

Ellen Nitz with one of her young fans at the end of the 1 Mile Race.

W80 For the first time in the three years that the HealthPlus CRIM Fitness Festival in Flint has hosted these Championships, Jon Desenberg gave the race a Men’s 80-84 Champion. Desenberg, at 82 years young, completed the course in 10:17, to take the Gold!

Desenberg 10:17

TEAMS

In road racing, the first three runners for each team determine the team’s score. Their individual times are summed to determine the team’s score.

W40+  Michigan’s Performance Endurance Racing, with the 1^st, 5^th and 6^th place overall finishers in Tammy Nowick, Serena Kessler, Erin Larusso, and Nicole Derrick had too much speed for other teams, taking the gold medal with a 5:39 per mile average. The Genesee Valley Harriers (GVH) [Melissa Senall, Wakenda Tyler, Audra Naujokas-Knapp] ran strong to pick up the 90 Club Grand Prix points for the Silver Medal as they seek to defend their 2015 GP crown.  Their average time of 6:01 left them solidly in 2^nd with the Playmakers Elite/New Balance [Amy Nemeth, Chere Pepper, Jennifer Stuber] in 3^rd and TNT International in 4^th.

Performance Endurance 16:55/5:39 GVH 18:01/6:01 Playmakers Elite 21:39/7:13

The Race to the Finish--Melissa Senall (GVH) trying to chase down Erin Larusso (Patient Endurance) while Amy Nemeth (L) and Lorraine Jasper (R) battle for the next two spots. The runner with hair flying in the background is Senall's teammate, Wakenda Tyler. They are giving it everything they've got!!

M40+ The interlopers from the Cal Coast Track Club made their trip to the Great Lakes profitable. With John Gardiner, Jerome Vermeulen and M.J. Stanley taking 1^st, 2^nd and 7^th overall, they cruised to the Gold medal. They came in with a 4:41 average to the 5:12 averaged by a highly competitive Patient Endurance Racing team [Eric Green, Mark Good, Derek Dexter, Erik Larsen].  

Giving their all fpr the team--Kareem Lanier of TNT International (far R in red),  Eric Green of Patient Endurance (C) and Mike Nier of GVH (far L)

Third place went to the speedsters from Philly, the TNT International Racing Club [Kareem Lanier, Kyle Lanier, Stephen Jones] with a 5:19 average.

Cal Coast 14:03/4:41 Patient Endurance 15:34/5:12 TNT 15:56/5:19

Cal Coast Track Club's Winning M40+ Team at the USATF National Masters 1 Mile Championships [L to R-Jerome Vermeulen, John Gardiner, M.J. Stanley] [photo posted on FB by J Vermeulen]

W50+  Pennsylvania’s Athena Track Club took this title home as Lorraine Jasper, Julie Pangburn, and Betsy Stewart averaged 6:11, with nearly a half minute gap per runner on the 2^nd place Playmakers Elite/New Balance team [Christine Vincent, Maryellen Stornant, Patricia Degnan. Jean Bolley]. The GVH  team [Carol Bischoff, Colleen Magnussen, Gail Geiger] made the race for 2^nd a little closer as they came within 13 seconds per mile per runner.

Athena 18:33/6:11 Playmakers Elite 20:00/6:40 GVH 20:38/6:53

M50+ This was the closest race of the day; the runners knew they had been in a battle. In the end the top two teams were separated by only a single second, on average. Ruben Henderson for Playmakers Elite was the first across the line in 5:02. GVH’s Mike Nier and Joseph Mora finished 3 and 4 seconds back respectively. But then Kerry Barnett and Eric Stuber finished at 5:10 and 5:11, just enough in front of GVH’s Dale Flanders to eke out the 1 second victory. Although not part of the scoring, Playmaker’s 4^th runner, JD Pepper came in a few seconds ahead of GVH’s John Van Kerkhove and their 5^th runner, Tim Lambrecht, came in a few seconds ahead of GVH’s 5^th runner, Gary Radford. So this was the Playmakers day—from top to bottom they were just a little faster. They were the only two teams in the race but it was a dandy!

Playmakers Elite 15:23/5:08 GVH 15:27/5:09

Tim Lambrecht (L) and Ruben Henderson (R) celebrating the Playmakers M50+ Win at the Awards Ceremony [Photo posted on FB by R Henderson]

W60+ The Impala Racing Team’s Jill Miller-Robinett led the way but without their indomitable #2 runner, Jo Anne Rowland, could not keep pace with the speedy trio from the Atlanta Track Club. ATC’s Mary Richards, Margaret Meek Taylor and Terry Ozell, averaged  7:06 per mile in taking the Gold Medal, and their 4^th runner, Cynthia Lucking was only a few seconds back had anyone of their top 3 faltered . Impala [Miller-Robinett, Donna Chan, Dianne Anderson], who are on a quest to take the Club GP title in this division, made sure that they did not lose much ground to Atlanta in that race, despite not being at full strength.

Atlanta 21:17/7:06 Impala 22:21/7:27

M60+ In past years this division has typically featured tight races between the Ann Arbor Track Club, the Atlanta Track Club the Boulder Road Runners, Cal Coast, and the GVH.  Boulder and Cal Coast didn’t make the trip this year. For the first time in 2016, Ann Arbor and Atlanta battled for the top spot. Atlanta’s Ken Youngers and Kirk Larson came in 1-2 in 5:32 and 5:47. The top trio for Ann Arbor, John Tarkowski, Wally Hayes, and Aaron Pratt, were running in a tight pack although they did not plan it that way. If they could manage to come in a bit ahead of Atlanta’s 3^rd runner, they might make up enough time to snatch the victory away from Atlanta. No such luck, Vasan Neovakul hung tough and broke up the AATC three, two seconds behind Tarkowski but getting the same time as Hayes and Pratt. 

Mad dash to the Finish-4 Ann Arbor guys (L to R Aaron Pratt, Wally Hayes, John Tarkowski, Eduardo Matsuo) and one Atlanta guy (Vasan Neovakul) Sprinting for the Finish line for all they're worth!

That gave Atlanta a 13 second per mile margin of victory. GVH, hobbled by injury, toughed its way to a 3^rd place finish.  Bill Beyerbach led the way for GVH, with Mike Reif and Mark Rybinski rounding out the scoring. They knew they would not be clo0ae but needed the 3^rd place points to keep in contention for the Club Grand Prix title. Ann Arbor’s 4^th runner Eduardo Matsuo finished a few seconds behind Hayes and Pratt, edging Atlanta’s 4^th runner, Jerry Learned.

Atlanta 17:19/5:47 Ann Arbor 17:58/6:00 GVH 20:50/6:57

Victorious M60+ Atlanta Track Club [L to R Vasan Neovakul, Ken Youngers, Kirk Larson] (photo posted on FB by K. Larson)

W70+  The Playmakers Elite team (Ruth Thelen, Cora Hill, Ellen Nitz) took the Gold unopposed, averaging 9:10 per mile.

Playmakers Elite 27:28/9:10

M70+ All of the teams in this division had at least one important runner who was either out of the race, severely, or somewhat hampered by injury. Shore AC’s Przemek Nowicki had his training curtailed by a quad injury. The Atlanta Track Club’s Ron Mastin, who took the M75 gold medal at the 10K championship, was restricted to a jog. Ann Arbor’s top guy, Doug Goodhue, was out. Their number two runner, Paul Carlin, who took the M70 gold medal at the 10K championship, was also getting over a hamstring injury and restricted to a jog. Shore AC took 1^st place with all three of their runners (Nowicki, Ed Smith, JL Seymore) coming in before the three Atlanta runners (Charlie Patterson, Frank White, Morris Williams) who, in turn all came in before the three Ann Arbor runners (Carlin, Phil Kroll, Malcolm Cohen). Shore AC averaged 6:58 per runner in their gold medal effort. All three teams hope for better fitness as they ramp up for events this fall.

Shore AC 20:53/6:58 Atlanta 21:59/7:20 Ann Arbor 26:04/8:42

******************************************************

Elite Performance Medals [World and National Class performances]

Gold (Age Grade 90% and up-World Class): Jerome Vermeulen, Nat Larson, Tom Bernhard, Marisa Sutera Strange, John Gardiner

Silver (Age Grade 85-89.99%-National Class): Ruben Henderson, Joseph Mora, Jeff Haertl, Kerry Barnett, Peter Mullin, Robert Moore, Lisa Veneziano, Craig Nieset, Lorraine Jasper, Rob McConnell, Mike Nier

Bronze (Age Grade 80-84.99%-National Class): Eric Stuber, Michael John ‘MJ’ Stanley, Lee Shaw, William ‘Hugh’ Enicks, Antonio Arreola, Ken Youngers, Kirk Larson, Eric Green, JD Pepper, Gary Patton, Christine Vincent, Jill Miller-Robinett, Michael Young, John Van Kerkhove, Steve Menovcik, Kenneth Richendollar, Tammy Nowik, Dale Flanders, Gary Radford, Bill Beyerbach, Vasan Neovakul, Tim Lambrecht, Thomas Preiss, Kareem Lanier, Melissa Gacek, Michael Woodbeck, Mary Richards, Sandy Scott, Josh Harter, Ben Waggoner, Chris White, Maryellen Stornant, Amy Nemeth, Wally Hayes, Serena Kessler

Names above listed in Age-Grading order from highest to lowest.

*************************************************************

SPECIAL FEATURES

Overall Team Age-Grading Winners 

(Rules—Top 3 runners for each complete scoring team, across age groups, in age-grading tables, score by place not %; all declared runners can displace)—Only runners on complete teams counted. Lower scores are better.

MEN

Cal Coast TC 12    Jerome Vermeulen 1 John Gardiner 2 MJ Stanley 9

Playmakers Elite/New Balance 17   Ruben Henderson 3  Kerry Barnett 6 Eric Stuber 8

Genesee Valley Harriers 26   Joseph Mora 4 Mike Nier 7 John Van Kerkhove 15

Other teams in contention included the Atlanta Track Club with 28 points and Patient Endurance Racing with 39. 

  

WOMEN

Playmakers Elite/New Balance 15   Christine Vincent 2 Maryellen Stornant 6 Amy Nemeth 7

Patient Endurance Racing 22  Tammy Nowik 4  Serena Kessler 8 Erin Larusso 10

Athena Track Club 26  Lorraine Jasper 1 Julie Pangburn 9 Betsy Stewart 16

Other teams in contention included the Atlanta Track Club with 36 points and the Impala Racing team with 38 points.

OVERALL WINNER GRAND PRIX

Recall that those who finish in the top 5 overall positions in the race earn points--10-6-4-2-1

After the USATF Masters Half Marathon Championship at San Diego, the standings were:
MEN


Greg Mitchell 16 Jacques Sallberg 14 Mark Andrews 10 Kevin Castille 10Christian Cushing-Murray 6 Neville Davey 6 John Gardiner 6 Peter Hammer 6 John Howell 4 Greg Putnam 4 Oscar Baumann 2  Andy Gardiner 2 Okwaro Raura 2 Andrew Duncan 1 Brantley Lutz 1 Rusty Snow 1 Aaron Totten-Lancaster 1

WOMEN
 
Grace Padilla 11 Julie Ertel 10 Rachel Jaten 10 Marisa Sutera Strange 10 Cindy Abrami 6 Hilary Corno 6 Sonja Friend-Uhl 6 Nathalie Higley 6 Mariam Ngo 6 Nicole Hagobian 5 Renee Tolan 4 Sonya Wilkerson 4  Jennifer Anderson 2 Cate Fenster 2 Lisa Lucas 2 Mariam Ngo 2 Desa Mandarino 1 Ingrid Walters 1

After the USATF Masters 1 Mile Championship in Flint Michigan, the standings are:

 

MEN


John Gardiner 16 Greg Mitchell 16 Jacques Sallberg 14 Mark Andrews 10 Kevin Castille 10 Christian Cushing-Murray 6 Neville Davey 6  Peter Hammer 6 Jerome Vermeulen 6 John Howell 4 Rob McConnell 4 Greg Putnam 4 Oscar Baumann 2  Andy Gardiner 2 Okwaro Raura 2 Lee Shaw 2 Andrew Duncan 1 Brantley Lutz 1 Craig Nieset 1 Rusty Snow 1 Aaron Totten-Lancaster 1   

WOMEN
 
Marisa Sutera Strange 16 Grace Padilla 11 Julie Ertel 10 Rachel Jaten 10  Tammy Nowik 10 Cindy Abrami 6 Hilary Corno 6 Sonja Friend-Uhl 6 Nathalie Higley 6 Mariam Ngo 6 Nicole Hagobian 5 Melissa Gacek 4 Renee Tolan 4 Sonya Wilkerson 4  Jennifer Anderson 2 Cate Fenster 2 Lisa Lucas 2 Mariam Ngo 2 Lisa Veneziano 2 Serena Kessler 1 Desa Mandarino 1 Ingrid Walters 1  

AGE-GRADING GRAND PRIX

Recall that those who finish in the top 5 overall age-grading positions in the race earn points--10-6-4-2-1

After the USATF Masters Half Marathon Championship at San Diego, the standings were:

MEN. 
Rick Becker 20 Tom Bernhard 10 Kevin Castille 10  Christian Cushing-Murray 10 Brian Pilcher 10 Carl Combs 8 Nat Larson 6  Jacques Sallberg 4 Fred Zalokar 4 Kevin Broady 2 Peter Hammer 2 Eric Williams 2 Pete Gibson 1 Greg Mitchell 1 Mark Reeder 1 Rusty Snow 1

WOMEN. 
Edie Stevenson 26 Jo Anne Rowland 20 Marisa Sutera Strange 10 Cindy Abrami 6 Suzanne Morris 6 Jan Holmquist 4 Rachel Jaten 4 Kelly Kruell 4 Louise Davis 2 Honor Fetherston 2 Lisa Lucas 2 Grace Padilla 2 Nathalie Higley 1 Nancy Stewart 1 Kelle Taylor 1 Sonya Wilkerson 1

After the USATF Masters One Mile Championship in Flint Michigan, the standings are:

MEN. 
Rick Becker 20 Tom Bernhard 14 Nat Larson 12 Kevin Castille 10  Christian Cushing-Murray 10 Brian Pilcher 10 Jerome Vermeulen 10 Carl Combs 8   Jacques Sallberg 4 Fred Zalokar 4 Kevin Broady 2 John Gardiner 2 Peter Hammer 2 Eric Williams 2 Pete Gibson 1 Ruben Henderson 1 Greg Mitchell 1 Mark Reeder 1 Rusty Snow 1  

WOMEN. 
Edie Stevenson 26 Jo Anne Rowland 20 Marisa Sutera Strange 20 Cindy Abrami 6 Suzanne Morris 6 Lisa Veneziano 6 Jan Holmquist 4 Lorraine Jasper 4  Rachel Jaten 4 Kelly Kruell 4 Louise Davis 2 Honor Fetherston 2 Lisa Lucas 2 Grace Padilla 2 Christine Vincent 2 Nathalie Higley 1 Jill Miller-Robinett 1 Nancy Stewart 1 Kelle Taylor 1 Sonya Wilkerson 1   

***************************************************************************************

 We celebrate these outstanding racers who competed in Flint and look forward to the next USATF Masters Road Race, the 5K National Masters Road Championship at the Syracuse Festival of Races in New York on Sunday, October 2^nd, 2016. $10,000 of prize money will be on the line and the chance to break US records, and age group and single age SFoR course records*. And of course there will be USATF Club and Individual Grand Prix points up for grabs, not to mention points for my 'informal' Overall and Age-Grading Grand Prix contests. 

For USATF 5K Masters Championship at Syracuse details, consult: 

http://www.usatf.org/Events---Calendar/2016/USATF-Masters-5-km-Championships.aspx

*SFoR records at: 

http://www.festivalofraces.com/history.html#result

2016 USATF MASTERS 1 MILE CHAMPIONSHIP-CRIM FESTIVAL OF RACES-PREVIEW

August 25 2016.  Over a hundred speedy Masters Distance Runners are arriving in Flint Michigan to participate in the National 1 Mile Road Championship this Friday, August 26th. The Masters Grand Prix starts up again after taking much of the summer off. The 5^th stop on the Individual Circuit this year, the Grand Prix will continue with road races in Syracuse NY (5K) on October 2nd, Tulsa OK (15K) on October 29th and with the Masters 5 km XC and Club Cross Country in Tallahassee FL on November 6^th and December 10^th.

The USATF 1 Mile Championship is part of the CRIM Festival of Races excitement for the third straight year. Many runners will compete in the 1 Mile events Friday night, catch a little shut-eye and be up in the morning for the signature event of the HealthPlus CRIM Festival, the 40^th running of its 10 Mile Run.

The Masters Races go off at 6:30 pm (Men) and 6:45 pm (Women). The 1 Mile course essentially traces a rectangle around the University of Michigan-Flint campus except that you continue on an extra block before turning to finish up just beyond where you started but a block further north. The times are not typically fast but the long, straight run into the finish can be very exciting.

Individual and team titles are on the line, as well as points for the Grand Prix. The weather is forecast to be pretty good for a 1 mile run, with sunny skies and a temperature in the upper 70’s to low 80’s, with moderate winds. Were the race longer the temps might be worrisome but for a one mile jaunt it should be manageable. The previews and predictions below are offered in good fun and with the understanding that predicting is tough. Occasionally I am provided with inside information on a runner who is subpar or has had to withdraw but generally the race-specific runner fitness is unknown in advance. First are the Individual Races and then the Teams.

INDIVIDUAL RACES.

OVERALL

Men. Last year it was a killer dash to the tape among three West Coast runners, Gregory Mitchell, Jerome Vermeulen and John Gardiner. Vermeulen edged in front of Mitchell in the last 50 meters, but Mitchell hung tough and regained his lead to win by a few inches at the tape. Gardiner was only a stride back. Mitchell is not here this year but the two Cal Coast Track Club teammates will return to battle it out. The strongest local competition is likely to come from Rob McConnell and Ken Richendollar. In March, McConnell finished 2^nd overall and 1^st Masters in the Ronald McDonald Run for the House 5K in 16:03 and captured the Masters title in the Traverse City Cherry Mile in 4:35.9. Richendollar recently finished 2^nd in the 1500 Meters on the track at the USATF Outdoor Championships in 4:22.8.  Nat Larson, from Massachusetts, could also figure in the race to the finish. Not only did he run strong in the USATF 10K Masters Championship in Dedham MA, laying down a 33:50, he also ran a really fast Spring Street Mile in Connecticut in June, recording a 4:28.9.  That is a tick faster than Mitchell’s winning time here at the CRIM last year. Of course the point-to-point straight shot course at Spring Street is advertised as ‘fast’ and no one claims that the course in Flint is ‘fast.’

Start of the 2015 USATF Masters Men-Mile Championship-CRIM Festival [CRIM FB post-photos by Mark Corcoran-Flint Lensman Club]

If this were back in June, I would certainly give the edge to the Californians but it is a little trickier in late August. In June Vermeulen won the Masters Elite section of Santa Barbara California’s State Street Mile in 4:18 and John Gardiner finished 5^th in the Exhibition Masters 1500 Meter race at the US Olympic Trials in Eugene OR in 4:01.4. Gardiner and Vermeulen have been working on building their base for the fall Cross Country season. Nonetheless it should still pan out as a battle to the wire between Gardiner and Vermeulen. After all, Larson and Richendollar may also be in base-building mode. Unless there is a late entry there do not appear to be any contenders who can match their foot speed.  Gardiner, Vermeulen, Larson

Women. Last year Tammy Nowik enjoyed an easy victory by comparison, taking first by 12 seconds in 5:29. The race between Serena Kessler and Lisa Veneziano was closer but Kessler was able to open up a gap and take second by 4 seconds over Veneziano. The two Patient Endurance Racing teammates from Michigan, Nowik and Kessler, as well as Veneziano are entered again this year. And there are two newcomers from out of state who are likely to give Nowik a real race for the Gold this year.  Melissa Gacek is traveling from White Bear Lake, Minnesota and the USATF Women’s 50-54 Division Runner of the Year, Marisa Sutera Strange, hails from Pleasant Valley New York.

In addition to winning this mile race last year, Nowik had subsequent successes, including a 5^th place finish in the 2015 USATF Masters Marathon Championship at the Twin Cities [Oct] in 2:53:41 and a first place masters finish at the 2015 Indy Monumental Half Marathon a month later in 1:22:48. So we know she has staying power. In June she tested her speed over 5K, taking first Masters prize at the Brian Diemer Amerikam 5K in 18:20.

Kessler was not idle either, and can point to three second place Masters finishes at highly visible road races in 2016—the Capital City Half Marathon [May] in Columbus OH, with a 1:25:53; the Fifth Third River Bank 25K Run [May] in 1:43:09; and the Dexter-Ann Arbor Half Marathon [June] in 1:26:32.

Tammy Nowick leading the USATF Masters Women-Mile Championship-CRIM Festival  [CRIM FB post-photos by Mark Corcoran-Flint Lensman Club]

Gacek finished first at the Fifth Third River Bank Run in 1:39:28 and followed that with a Masters win in the 1 Mile Run at the Medtronics Twin Cities Mile Run in late May in 5:26.6. She continued to see-saw back between longer and shorter races over the summer, claiming the masters win at the Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon (at Grandma’s Marathon) in Duluth in 1:22:45. A month later she took 2^nd in the Women’s 40-44 Division in the 1500 Meter Run at the USATF Masters Outdoor Championships in 5:02.5.

Unlike the other three, who all occupy the Women’s 40-44 age group, Strange is 53, but she is a very speedy 53 over the middle long distances. She earned her Runner of the Year title by not only taking age division prizes but overall prizes at USATF Masters Championships. She won the 2015 USATF Masters 5K Championship at Syracuse last October in 17:38, and the 2016 USATF Masters 10K Championship at Dedham MA this past April in 36:48. She was also the top Masters finisher in the Freihofer’s 5K for Women in June in 17:41. Finally she won the Women’s 50-54 Division Championship in the 1500 Meter Run at the USATF Masters Outdoor Championships in 5:09.1.

From the 1500 meter run results it looks like Gacek might have an edge over Strange but that impression could be misleading. Gacek ran only the 1500 meters whereas Strange may have been still feeling the effects of her win in the 5000 Meter Run three days earlier. On the other hand, the winner in that race kicked away to win by 7 seconds and Gacek was not pressed for 2^nd place.

Nowik should have a slight edge, perhaps home field advantage, over Gacek although many of their accomplishments seem comparable. Kessler and Veneziano seem a half step slower but the race may tell us otherwise.

This should be a terrific competition. Nowik, Gacek, Strange.

Age-Grading

Men. The top age grading performances last year among returning runners were turned in by Jerome Vermeulen (94.1), Tom Bernhard (89.9), John Gardiner (89.7), Doug Goodhue (89.5, injury), and Mike Nier (88.3) in that order.  Gary Patton, the renowned middle distance track specialist from Iowa, will certainly join that crew although whether he can make top 3 seems uncertain. Goodhue is rehabbing an injury and it is uncertain whether he will race or not. Vermeulen, Bernhard, Gardiner

Women. Among returning runners the top age grading performances last year were turned in by: Lisa Veneziano (83.7),  Lorraine Jasper (82.9), Christine Vincent (82.4), Maryellen Stornant (82.3), Tammy Nowik (81.0), and Amy Nemeth (80.1). Marisa Sutera Strange will surely join the list and almost certainly top it this year; she typically grades well over 90%. That will be hard to do here as the Age-Grading on this Mile Course typically is lower than normal by a percentage point or two; it is a challenging mile course to run fast on.

AGE GROUPS

Men

40-44. Gardiner, McConnell, and Richendollar, mentioned above for the overall race, should make up the podium in the division. If any of those fail to start or run into problems, Josh Harter, a low 17 minute 5K specialist or Lee Shaw who has run a 17:00 5K and a 1:20:34 ½ Marathon this year, could factor in. Gardiner, McConnell, Richendollar.

Todd Straka heading into the final straightaway nailing an M45 Silver Medal at the 2015 USATF Masters men's 1 Mile Championship at the CRIM Festival [CRIM FB post-photos by Mark Corcoran-Flint Lensman Club]

45-49. Vermeulen who I have topped as a podium contender should certainly take the M45 gold medal. He is bringing along a new Cal Coast teammate, Michael John Stanley, who will be in the hunt for silver. He ran a 5K recently in 17:13 and clocked a 2:52:25 Boston Marathon in April. Local runners in contention include Eric Green of Pontiac Michigan who finished 6^th here last year in 5:07 and ran a 30:52 8K a month ago. Thomas Preiss battled Green to the finish line last year, recording the same 5:07 time. He typically seems to run between 17:30 Derek Dexter ran an 18:37 5K recently, but last year he ran a couple of 5K’s in 17:26 and 17:37 so he may be rounding into shape and could also challenge. Vermeulen, Stanley, Preiss.

Chase Pack_2015_USATF Masters Men-1 Mile Championship [CRIM FB post-photos by Mark Corcoran-Flint Lensman Club]

and 18:30 for 5K’s.

50-54. Larson should be a safe bet for Gold. After that it will be the usual battle among several longtime rivals in this group. Mike Nier, of the Genesee Valley Harriers, won here last year in 4:52, and pretty much the same set of rivals are here to try to keep Nier from snagging another podium finish. Ruben Henderson and Eric Stuber of Playmakers Elite/New Balance trailed Nier to the line, 7 seconds back in 4:59; both had the same time. Their teammate, Tim Lambrecht, was another 8 seconds back. Jeff Haertel of the Atlanta Track Club will also try to complicate things. He ran a 17:55 and an 18:20 5K this summer. Haertl and Henderson’s times in 5K this year are quite comparable but Stuber and Nier appear to be running slightly stronger so I will give those two the edge in the pick and give Stuber the edge over Nier on the grounds that he may have more motivation to reverse the order of finish from last year. Larson, Stuber, Nier.

55-59. Last year Dave Bussard came up from Indiana to scorch this group, winning by half a minute in 4:57 but he has another engagements this year. In his absence, the second place finisher from San Jose California, Antonio Arreola, is back and is one of the favorites. Last year Michael Young and Hugh Kuchta trailed Arreola to the line in 5:37 and 5:43. They are both entered again but have a new contender to reckon with. William ‘Hugh’ Enicks is making the trip from Chattanooga this year; even though he prefers longer races, he will be a force to contend with. Currently tied for the lead of the Men’s 55-59 Division of the 2016 USATF Masters Grand Prix, Enicks has had strong runs in the 8K and Half Marathon national championships this year. He tied for 2^nd in the 8K, running 28:50 and took 2^nd outright in the Half Marathon in 1:20:22. Arreola and Enicks both ran in the 2015 8K Championships with Enicks besting Arreola on that occasion by 40 seconds when he ran about the same time as in 2015. Based on that result, I give Enicks the edge. Unfortunately for those two, Playmakers was able to replace Bussard with someone wh appears to be just about as fast in Kerry Barnett from Keego Harbor Michigan.Barnett was 3rd Masters Overall and first in M55 at the Crecent City Classic in New Orleans in a fast 35:03. At the recent Brian Diemer Amerikam 5K he took the Grand Masters Championship in a smoking 16:53! Maybe Barnett will give Enicks a chance to get even at a half marathon sometime.  Barnett, Enicks, Arreola.

Kareem Lanier [90] and Tim Lambrecht [189] Churning to the Finish with a Full Head of Steam at the 2015 USATF Masters Men's 1 Mile Championships at the CRIM Festival [CRIM FB post-photos by Mark Corcoran-Flint Lensman Club]

60-64. Last year Tom Bernhard and Mark Rybinski ran it right to the wire where Bernhard got the edge with a lean as they were given the same 5:21 time. Both are back but Bernhard has moved up to the 65-69 group so they may again have a terrific race but will get different age group awards anyway. The next two runners in were Doug Bell and Peter Mullin, both of whom have also moved up to 65-69. So Rybinski is the favorite. Can anyway challenge him? Ken Youngers of the Atlanta Track Club did not compete here last year but has just moved up to the 60-64 group this summer and is ready to roll. Both Rybinski and Youngers have had occasional injury issues over the last couple of years so even head to head races can be tricky to judge. Nonetheless, looking back at the 5K and 10K national championship races at Syracuse and Dedham suggests that Youngers should be able to outrun Rybinski at those distances. Who gets third? Last year, at least among those returning, Genesee Valley’s Bill Beyerbach beat out Ann Arbor’s John Tarkowski and Wally Hayes. But Tarkowski and Hayes have been battling injuries this year and ran well below their normal standards at Dedham in April. That suggests Beyerbach may have the edge; he came in ahead of both at Dedham. But both Hayes and Tarkowski appear to have healed somewhat with Tarkowski showing greater improvement, as witnessed by a 21:03 5K in the Dexter-Ann Arbor run and a 5:48.5 one mile run. Unfortunately I note a 36:02 8K in late July. Unless the Northville 8K is unusually challenging, I worry that Tarkowski may have been feeling pain or re-injured something. Tarkowski is a tough, tough runner but he has had a difficult year. Youngers, Rybinski, Beyerbach.

M60 Leaders-Doug Bell, Peter Mullin and Mark Rybinski at the USATF Masters Men-1 Mile Championship-CRIM Festival [CRIM FB post-photos by Mark Corcoran-Flint Lensman Club]

65-69. As mentioned above, Tom Bernhard and Peter Mullin have moved up to the 65-69 group now. Bernhard has been unstoppable among his immediate peers and that should continue in this race. Mullin is running stronger again after a couple of down years but he cannot compete with Bernhard right now. Nonetheless Bernhard and Mullin should take the top two spots on the podium. Kirk Larson, one of the mainstays of the Atlanta Track Club has also moved up to the 65-69 group and could well take the age group bronze medal. He ran 40:55 at Dedham in the 10K. Doc Rappole of Genesee Valley is the defending Champion. A couple of years ago he was competing at the top of the 65-69 group when he took the age group gold medal at the USA Cross Country Championships in Boulder. But like so many others, there have been challenges since and his most recent times are a bit slower than Larson’s. It would be great to see him give Larson a real race for the third place!  Bernhard, Mullin, Larson.

70-74. The top three runners last year were Doug Goodhue, Jan Frisby, and Gerard Malaczynski. Frisby is focused on the World Masters Athletics Championships in Perth, Australia and Malaczynski has not entered this year either. Goodhue has an injury so it is uncertain if he will run. If he ‘runs for the team’ it may not be up to his usual standard. That leaves it pretty much wide open. Paul Carlin (yep, that’s me!) won the USATF 10K Championship in 42:19 after coming back gradually over a year from a right hamstring injury and  hoped to compete for a podium spot. But less than a week after that race, his left hamstring gave out. Like Goodhue, he may ‘run for the team’ but does not expect to break 8 minutes and may not break 9 minutes; he is just running to finish.

Those developments make Gary Patton even more of a favorite. Because Patton is a middle distance specialist, it is unlikely that Carlin or Goodhue, even at their peak form, could best him in a mile run. After all, Patton holds the Men’s 65-69 mile record on the track and his record for 70-74 year olds is pending! Who looks good after Patton? Ordinarily I would say Przemek Nowicki, who finished 3^rd at Dedham behind Carlin and Patton. But Nowicki injured one of his quads a few weeks ago and is not at his peak fitness. Nonetheless, he should be able to break 6:45 and that may be enough to make the podium. His teammates, Ed Smith and J.L. Seymore were quite a ways back in the Half Marathon Championships.  What about the Atlanta Track Club? Could Charlie Patterson, Frank White, or Morris Wiliams make the podium? Both White and Williams beat Seymore in the .US National 12K last November.  But Seymore beat Patterson in the 10K at Dedham this year. White beat Seymore in the 5K Championships at Syracuse last year, but Seymore beat Williams. And Seymore’s best 10K time this year is faster than Patterson’s. And, finally, looking back at last year, Williams beat both Patterson and White in this race. So it should be a bit of a barn burner—and will depend on who has the best fitness and is feeling the most moxie on the day. Patton, Nowicki, Williams.

75-79. Last year Harlan Van Blaricum was the only entrant in this Division and won by a mile (literally)! This year Van Blaricum is not registered but three others are. Ron Mastin of the Atlanta Track Club is the favorite. He won the 5K Championship in the age group in Syracuse last October in 23:07 and added the 10K Championship in Dedham in 49:41. Sandy Scott might have given him a battle but has been suffering from a chronic hamstring problem. He is not sure what to expect in the race. Phillip Kroll has been running well and may surprise. Mastin, Kroll, Scott.

80+. There were no entrants in this age group last year. This year Jon Desenberg is the class of the field. He literally has no competition for the gold medal.

Women

40-44. As suggested by the discussion of the Overall Masters Race, Nowik, Gacek and Kessler should make up this group’s podium. Should any of those falter the top Genesee Valley Harrier teammates, Melissa Senall and Wakenda Tyler will be poised to push past and claim a podium spot. Nowik, Gacek, Kessler.

Tammy Nowick heading into the final straightaway for the win at the 2015 USATF Masters Women's 1 Mile Championship at the CRIM Festival [CRIM FB post-photos by Mark Corcoran-Flint Lensman Club]

45-49. Last year this was a tightly contested group with Amy Nemeth taking 1^st in 5:49, followed by Erin Larusso in 5:55 and Liz Bondar in 6:03. Nemeth and Larusso are back but Bondar is not so Nemeth and Larusso start out as favorites. Are there new entrants to challenge them? Nicole Derrick and Amy Wing appear to have the credentials to go 1-2 in this division. Derrick has two sub-1:29 Half Marathons and Wing has one. Although both seem to excel at longer distances they can also crack 20 minutes in a 5K, with Derrick clocking a 19:41 and Wing a 19:06. Neither Nemeth nor Larusso have a recent sub-20 5K but  Larusso does have a 5:49 road mile time while Nemeth has only been able to manage a 6:00.1 this year. Audra Naujokas-Knapp of the Genesee Valley Harriers, and winner of the 2015 Women’s 45-49 Grand Prix, appears ready to compete if any of the others falter. Her 5K in Syracuse last fall of 20:10 suggests she can be competitive at the short distance if she has a good day. Wing, Derrick, Larusso.

50-54. Strange should be challenging for the Overall Masters win so should take first in this division by a wide margin. Most of the remaining entrants in this division were here last year. The top finishers were: Lisa Veneziano 5:45, Christine Vincent 5:54, Lorraine Jasper 6:00, and Julie Pangburn 6:03. Veneziano should again be the best of the rest. She ran a 1:47:31 25K to win her division at the 5^th 3^rd River Bank Run and got a divisional 3^rd place at the Boston Marathon in 3:08:05 on a tough day. She also clocked a recent 18:48 5K. Jasper and Vincent have similar times in 5K’s but Jasper has the advantage of being a Middle Dstance specialist on the track. Her 5:14 at the USATF Outdoor Championships this year translates into something like a 5:40-5:45 mile. If she can replicate that performance, she should get bronze and could even sneak past Veneziano for 2^nd. Strange, Veneziano, Jasper

Chase Pack-2015 USATF Masters Women's 1 Mile Championship-CRIM Festival [L. Jasper, M. Stornant, E. Larusso, L. Bondar, S. Becker, A. Nemeth, C. Vincent] - [CRIM FB post-photos by Mark Corcoran-Flint Lensman Club]

55-59. Last year there were three entrants, Maryellen Stornant, Colleen Magnussen, and Veronica Jackson. The top two are back but face no new competition. Last year Stornant took the first place by over a half minute so she is the favorite to defend her crown. Stornant, Magnussen.

60-64. The only one of the top 3 finishers from last year who are entered this year is Jean Bolley who finished 3^rd in 7:52. There are a number of challengers who will try to move her off the podium. Jill Miller-Robinett of the Impala Racing team out of the Bay Area in California finished 4^th in the National 10K Championship in Dedham in a time of 46:49; her 5K times are typically between 21:30 and 23:30. It appears her 5K times are just a little faster than the typical times recorded by the Atlanta Track Club duo of Mary Richards and Margaret Taylor. Miller-Robinett, Richards, Taylor.

Carol Bischoff headed for the Finish Line, leading in the GVH Silver Medal W50 Team at the 2015 USATF Masters Women's 1 Mile Championship at the CRIM Festival
[CRIM FB post-photos by Mark Corcoran-Flint Lensman Club]

65-69. Last year the illustrious Sabra Harvey was the only contestant in this group which, despite being on the comeback trail from a freak foot injury, she won in 6:25. The only other age group winners to best that time were in the three youngest groups, and it was the top Age-Grading performance at 90.77%. Harvey is not here this year but there are two contestants so it will be a more competitive race this year. Donna Chan from the Impala Racing Team of California is toeing the line next to Patricia Degnan of the Playmakers Elite/New Balance team out of Lansing Michigan. It should be competitive but I give the edge to Chan. She has run 5K’s in 23:53 and 23:59 this year along with a 7:21 road mile. Degnan might be better over a longer distance; she ran a 2:14 in the Detroit Free Press Half Marathon last October. Her most recent 5K is a 25:25 effort two years ago. Chan, Degnan.

70-74. Last year Ruth Thelen had a large margin of victory in this group with a 7:59. Cora Hill and Shirley Larsen took the other two spots on the podium in 9:33 and 9:46 respectively. Thelen and Hill are back and have a new challenger in the Impala Racing Team’s Dianne Anderson. It appears that Anderson is a worthy challenger for Thelen. Thelen has run 5K’s this year in 28:49 and 28:12; Anderson ran 28:48 and 28:05. I give a slight edge to Thelen as she has run the shorter distances more frequently. She won the 1500 meters in her USATF Outdoor Championship division in 7:30 which converts to a bit over 8:00 for the mile. But she also ran a recent road mile in 8:09 so she seems to have prepped for the race. Anderson does not appear to have any races shorter than 5K in recent years. Still it should  be a thrilling contest. Thelen, Anderson.

75-79. As with last year, Brighton Michigan’s Ellen Nitz is the lone entrant, She took the title in a speedy 9:28 and there is no reason to think she will not do it again. Her most recent race was the Hungry Duck 5K on the 4^th of July; she ran 30:55, 11 seconds slower than her 2015 time in that race. Nitz

Ellen Nitz headed for the W75 Win in the2015 USATF Masters Women's 1 Mile Championship at the CRIM Festival [CRIM FB post-photos by Mark Corcoran-Flint Lensman Club]

TEAMS 

Men
40+. Last year the same three teams showed up with Cal Coast Track Club winning handily and Patient Endurance edging TNT International with the difference going down to the 3rd runner. Christian 'Cush' Cushing-Murray could not make the trip this year for Cal Coast. With the race on the last Friday of August his teaching commitments kept him in California. Vermeulen and Gardiner are here and have added Michael John Stanley as a substitute. While Stanley is not a perfect substitute for Cushing-Murray, it looks like Cal Coast will not lose much. And that is good for them because Patient Endurance has upped its game a bit with the addition of Derek Dexter to the trio of Eric Green, Thomas Preiss, and Mark Good, who scored for them last year. . My best guess is that the contest will come out the same this year with Patient Endurance 2nd to Cal Coast but with a slightly narrower margin however. With TNT bringing the same team as last year, those 3 runners, the brothers, Kyle and Kareem Lanier, along with Stephen Jones, will have to raise their game to get into the Silver Medal position. Cal Coast TC, Patient Endurance Racing, TNT INternational.

50+. In 2015 Playmakers Elite/New Balance out of Lansing Michigan came with enough strong runners to field two teams and come in 1-2 ahead of their longtime rivals, the Genesee Valley Harriers from greater Rochester New York. But this year neither Dave Bussard nor Ron Zywicki were able to make the trip. So all 5 runners are on one team this year. Unfortunately for the GVH team, they have replaced Bussard with another 55-59 runner who appears to be just about as fast. GVH's Mike Nier could well be the first runner from these teams across the line but it looks like the Playmakers will be able to place Barnett, Stuber and Henderson between Nier and the rest of the doughty GVH crew, Dale Flanders, Gary Radford, John Kerkhove and John Mora. Playmakers Elite, GVH

60+. In 2015 the GVH 60+ team took the gold with Ann Arbor TC A team 2nd and their B team 3rd. This year Ann Arbor is only able to field a single team as some of their injury woes continue. But the GVH team is here in strength and a newly rejuvenated Atlanta Track Club 60's team could well slide into the top spot. As noted earlier, Ken Youngers can now run for Atlanta's 60's team and he should be able to give the 2nd and 3rd runners a good lead to build on. Kirk Larson rejoined Atlanta after a year away and he is always reliable for a good race, although a 1 mile run may be a little short for his taste. Larson ran a 19:54 5K a week ago so he is ready to roll. And Jerry Learned may be right with him. He ran a 5:42 1500 meter in the Outdoor Track Championships [roughly equivalent to a 6:10 mile] and hit 19:15 in the Hollis Fast 5K (although there is a good reason why Hollis includes the word 'fast' as part of their title). Still it is 45 seconds faster than he ran it the year before so maybe Learned has finally put some of his recent injury problems behind him. Ann Arbor, on the other hand, appears to still have some lingering injuries that will hamper them again this year. GVH appears to be in good form but the likely top three of Rubinski, Beyerbach and Rappole will have too much for Tarkowski, Hayes, Pratt and Matsuo to handle. And if Youngers can come in well ahead of Rybinski, that might be all Larson and Learned need to nail down the victory. It will be fun to see it unfold. Atlanta TC, GVH, Ann Arbor TC.

GVH [M60's Mark Rybinski, Bill Beyerbach and Doc Rappole]Warming Up for the 2015 USATF Masters 1 Mile Championship at the CRIM Festival

70+. In 2015 Ann Arbor ran away with this division on the heels of Doug Goodhue, Monte Piliawsky, and Wally Herrala. But the margin of victory was ostly due to the Silver Bullet, Goodhue, doing what he does best, putting the hurt on the rest of the field by nearly a minute. The Atloanta Track Club finished 2nd with Morris Williams showing the way with Charlie Patterson and Frank White gaining back some of the gap that Goodhue established. But it is another story this year. Piliawsky is hurt and Herrala is not here. Goodhue has an injury that is serious enough that it is not known whether he will run in the race or not. It looked like they had added another runner at the top of the field in Carlin but he too is rehabbing a hamstring injury. If he runs, it will be just to make sure that Ann Arbor gets enough finishers to claim their medal and the Grand Prix points at stake. Even with Ann Arbor weakened, Atlanta cannot count their chickens yet. The New Jersey Shore Athletic Club will have something to say about that. Przemek Nowicki, Ed Smith, and JL Seymore will try to head them off. But Nowicki hurt his quad recently so he is not at the top of his game and may not come in very far ahead of Williams. That suggests Atlanta may take it all this year. Atlanta TC, Shore AC, Ann Arbor TC

The Atlanta Track Club [Ed Bligh, Frank White, Morris Williams, Charlie Patterson] Celebrates their M70 Podium Finish at the 2015 USATF Masters Men's 1 Mile Championship at the CRIM Festival [CRIM FB post-photos by Mark Corcoran-Flint Lensman Club]

Women
40+. In 2015 Patient Endurance Racing won a surprisingly close battle with Playmakers Elite/New Balance. Despite the presence of Patient Endurance runners Nowik and Kessler who finished 1-2 and Erin Larusso who finished 6th, the Playmakers top trio of Amy Nemeth, Christine Vincent and Sharon Becker made it interesting losing, in the end by only 42 seconds.This year with the addition of Amy Wing and Nicole Derrick, Patient Endurance is much stronger. They should generate an even larger winning margin this year. Unfortunately for Playmakers Vincent moved up to the 50+ team this year. And with Becker not competing this year the Playmakers team which added Chere Pepper and Jennifer Stuber is not as strong as last year. The Genesee Valley Harriers are bringing their 40+ team that won the USATF Club Grand Prix last year. The team of Melissa Senall, Wakenda Tyler, and Audra Naujokas-Knapp appears to have little chance of running withthe Patient Endurance runners but should be able to claim the Silver medal. The TNT International team of King, Lanier and Manns should make things interesting in the run for the Bronze medal but I give Playmakers the edge. Patient Endurance Racing, GVH, Playmakers Elite.

50+. Last year it was a battle between the two longtime rivals, the GVH and the Athena Track Club, with Athena's trio of Jasper, Pangburn and Stewart coming out ahead of GVH's Bischoff, Magnussen, and Geiger. Those two teams are back intact but face a new rival in Playmakers Elite. Vincent and Stornant moved up from the 40+ team to form the base. Added to it are Jean Bolley and Patricia Degnant. Athena should have no trouble taking the gold again. But Playmakers could take the Silver Medal away from GVH if they are all on their game. Vincent and Stornant should gain some time on Bischoff and Magnussen and then the question is whether Geiger can come in far enough ahead of Degnan (or Bolley) to reverse the early lead. This will be another fascinating one to watch. Athena TC, Playmakers Elite, GVH.

Playmakers Elite Teammates [Amy Nemeth, Christine Vincent, Sharon Becker, Maryellen Stornant] Heading for Victory at the USATF Masters Women's 1 Mile Championship at the CRIM Festival [CRIM FB post-photos by Mark Corcoran-Flint Lensman Club]

60+. In 2015 the Playmakers Elite 60+ team had this race to themselves. They are not contesting the event this year but two traveling teams are. The 60+ Impala Racing Team from the Bay Area in California have their sights on a Club Grand Prix title and this is one of their building blocks. But the Atlanta Track Club is hoping to throw a wrench into the works. One of Impala's top runners, Jo Anne Rowland is out and that means Impala cannot rely on a 1-2 finish to build a lead. It is likely that Miller-Robinett will be the first across the line. But once the first Atlanta runner crosses, probably only 15-20 seconds after Miller-Robinett, all three should come in ahead of Impala's other two runners, Chan and Anderson. That should give Atlanta the Gold. Nothing too shabby about a 2nd place in a National Championship however, and it still counts for 90 Club Grand Prix points. Atlanta TC, Impala.

70+. The Playmakers Elite/New Balance team of Ellen Nitz, Cora Hill, and Shirley Larsen had this division to themselves last year. And it is the same in 2016 except that Ruth Thelen replaces Larsen. It looks like another National Team Championship for Playmakers! Playmakers Elite.