Note: All race results are posted in reverse chronological order of the race dates, not in the order of receipt. Therefore, some newly arrived information may be inserted in the middle of the page. Furthermore, additional comments and notes are inserted frequently. So browse carefully!

If you know of any unreported race results, please send e-mail.

VICTORY PODIUM

In 1999, Central Park Track Club members won 27 different road racing events --- 

• Paul Stuart-Smith, Frostbite 10 Miler (1/9)
• Alan Ruben, Kurt Steiner 50K (2/27)
• Alayne Adams, Skaggs-Walsh 5K (4/18)
• Alayne Adams, NYRRC Twosome 10K (4/24)
• Michael Trunkes, Carl Hart Biathlon (5/9)
• Randy Ehrlich, Spring Couples Relay (5/15)
• Stacy Creamer, Philadelphia Bar Association 2 Miler (5/16)
• Ana Echeverri-Audrey Kingsley-Eve Kaplan-Rhonda Allen-Stacy Creamer, Vermont Marathon Relay (5/30)
• Chris Taylor, NYRRC Summer Series 5K # 2 (6/2)
• Michael Trunkes, Long Island Gold Coast Triathlon (6/20)
• Michael Trunkes, Mighty North Fork Triathlon (7/18)
• Randy Ehrlich, Central Park Triathlon (8/22)
• Michael Trunkes, Mighty Hamptons Triathlon (9/11)
• Sid Howard, George Sheehan Mile (9/25)
• Ramon Bermo-Guillermo Rojas-Scott Willett, Hammerfest Triathlon Relay (9/26)
• Sarah Gross, Cranberry Street Festival 2 Miler (10/2)
• Ramon Bermo, Cranberry Street Festival 2 Miler (10/2)
• Michael Trunkes, Jones Beach Sprint Triathlon (10/3)
• Alayne Adams, Norway Run 5K (10/10)
• Claudia Malley, Kent Pumpkin 5 Miler (10/31)
• Toby Tanser, NYC Marathon All Comers' 2.62 Mile Race (11/7)
• Toby Tanser, NYRRC Cross Country 5K Championship, (11/14)
• Eric Aldrich, BRRC Champsionship Series XC 5K (11/27)
• Toby Tanser, Peter McArdle Memorial XC 15K (11/28)
• David Diviney, New York State Cyclocross Championships (12/18)
• Julie Denney, Ironman Israel (12/18)
• Scott Willett, Ironman Israel (12/18)

Honorable mentions ("They were robbed"): Stuart Calderwood (Philadelphia Bar Association 2 Miler), Diane Lebowitz (Avon 5K)

CLUB COUNCIL FINAL STANDINGS

• Open Men, 4th place
• Masters Men, 1st place
• Veterans Men, 13th place
• Open Women, 3rd place
• Masters Women, 3rd place
• Veterans Women, 6th place

MEN'S OPEN TEAM, INDIVIDUAL PLACING

MEN'S MASTERS TEAM, INDIVIDUAL PLACING

WOMEN'S OPEN TEAM, INDIVIDUAL PLACING

WOMEN'S MASTERS TEAM, INDIVIDUAL PLACING

Credit: These spreadsheets were compiled by Alan Ruben with meticulous care.

NOTES:

• Please note the many rows in the spreadsheets.  This is not a club in which five (or three) people are expected to run each and every scoring race with no other support.  If that were the case, they would probably be physical and/or mental wrecks by August, if not earlier.  We certainly have a lot of depth.
• These spreadsheets refer only to the scoring races.  In the non-scoring races, the number of people who have won team awards is much larger.  The fact is that we are a large and competitive club and, without even any formal organizing, you can just step into a race on any weekend and there is good chance that there will be enough teammates to win something.
• These spreadsheets lists only the scorers, and therefore omit the substantial contributions of the 'also-rans.'  There are many other ways to contribute to the team.  (1) Having more than the minimum number of people is insurance against the unexpected.  No one should ever go to a race and count up the number of other teammates who are usually faster in order to decide upon the amount of effort to put in.  You never know what might happen in a race.  In the last scoring race of 1999 (the Joe Kleinerman 10K), Craig Chilton did the count, estimated that he would be lucky to finish seventh on the team but found himself as that fifth scorer.  (2) The team scoring is based upon the sum of the placings of the top five (or three) scorers.  In a simple scenario, suppose another team placed two runners in first and second place among the top 10 whereas we had nobody.  But if we placed ten runners in 11th through 20th, we would be the winners (because we would score 11+12+13+14+15=65 while the other team can do no better than 1+2+21+22+23=69).  So even if you do not 'score,' you can contribute by making sure that you finish ahead of whoever is around you.   For these reasons, the club hands out a 'sixth' man award, given to Charlie Stark in 1998 and Victor Osayi in 1999, precisely for this reason.

• In an egalitarian organization, there may be some reluctance to single out individuals for praise.  Still, there are some obvious points that must be made:
    
  --- Nowhere is the importance of teamwork clearer than for the Women's Masters team.  The most valuable runner was obviously Sarah Gross, who finished first or second in ten scoring races.  But the scoring team consists of three of more people, and one person cannot do it alone.  The team position improved significantly in the second half of the year with the addition of Sandra Olivo.  Finally, the team leapfrogged into third place in the final race of the year, with some thanks to a timely birthday (Stacy Creamer).

Blair Boyer, Sid Howard, Noel Comess, Stuart Calderwood
John Kenney, Tony Ruiz, Alan Ruben

• --- The Men's Masters team finished in first place, with major contributions from two people: Alan Ruben and Stuart Calderwood.  First of all, we note that the team had finished in fourth place in 1998, when Stuart was not with us yet.  So having two great runners together made a huge difference.  Still, a scoring team consists of three or more people, and the all-important role of the third runner was assumed by a number of people in various races.  With two races left to go, the team was just two points ahead.  But those two races resulted in the most dominating victories of the year by the team, leading to a final winning margin of 25 points.  The future looks really bright, as we will have Peter Allen and Roane Carey moving into the Masters rank in the year 2000.
    
  --- The Women's Open team was led by three runners: Audrey Kingsley, Stacy Creamer and Alayne Adams.  That was really asking a lot from them.  One odd thing is that the team finished in third place, without doing better than third place in any single race.  As Mary Rosado preaches, it's all about patience, persistence and perseverance.
    
  --- The Men's Open team's major story this year has to be about those two 'old' guys: Alan Ruben and Stuart Calderwood, who were the most consistent runners at the races as well as the workouts.  As formidable as those two were, they accounted for seven first-place finishes and seven second-place finishes.  So this team is the prime example of how the scoring was spread around a big cast of supporting characters.  A bright note is that many of these people joined the team in the later half of the year.

ARMORY HOLIDAY CLASSIC, The Armory, NYC (December 26th, 1999)

Men 40-49 1000m, Richie Stewart, 3:03.55, 3rd place
Men 60-69 1000m, Jim Aneshansley, 3:37.53, 1st place

Men 50-59 60m, Noah Perlis, 8.54, 3rd place
Men 50-59 60m, David White, 9.23, 5th place

Open Men 1500m, Isaya Okwiya, 4:21:40, 5th place

Open Women 1500m, Mary Rosado, 5:51.15, 5th place

HOLIDAY FOUR MILE RUN, Central Park, NYC (December 19th, 1999)

MEN

WOMEN

HOLIDAY 15K, Central Park, NYC (December 19th, 1999)

MEN, 1st place Open Team

WOMAN

IRONMAN TRIATHLON ISRAEL, Israel (December 18th, 1999)

SEE STORY IN JERUSALEM POST

Scott Willett, 10:16:52 (swim 56:42, bike 5:53:55, run 3:26.15), 1st overall male
Julie Denney, 11:35:19, 1st overall female, 5th overall

NEW YORK STATE CYCLOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIPS, Kissena Park, Queens, NY (December 18th, 1999)

David Diviney, 1st place

Q&A: 

• What is 'cyclocross'?  Basically, it is cross-country steeplechase on a bike.  This means that when you come up to an obstacle, you have to get off your bike, put the bike on your shoulder and climb over the barrier before resuming the biking.  
• What was the winning time?  Well, does it matter?

USATF-NJ 10 MILE CHAMPIONSHIP, Picatinny Arsenal, NJ (December 12th, 1999)

Peter Allen, 57:11 (5:43 min/mile), 22nd overall, 17th Open Male
Guenter Erich, 1:14:50 (7:29 min/mile), 154th overall, 1st M65-69

JOE KLEINERMAN 10K, Central Park, NYC (December 12th, 1999)

PHOTO ALBUM

MEN

WOMEN

NEW YORK UNIVERSITY INDOOR TRIATHLON, Cole Gym, NYC (December 4th, 1999)

This meet consists of 10 minutes on the rowing machine, 10 minutes on the stationary bike and 10 minutes on the treadmill.  Contrary to our expectations, the titanic battle of the running coach, the cycling coach and the former rowing coach did not result in a draw.  Amazingly, the running coach could even row and bike further than the specialists.  However, the same cycling coach was seen later running the Hot Chocolate 10 Miler while the running coach begged off due to fatigue.

HOT CHOCOLATE 10 MILER, Central Park, NYC (December 4th, 1999)

PHOTO ALBUM

MEN, 3rd place open team, 1st masters

WOMEN, 3rd place open team

CHURCH OF HEAVENLY REST 2 MILER, Central Park, NYC (December 4th, 1999)

Stacy Creamer, 11:46, 2nd female overall
Margaret Angell, 4th female overall
Diane Lebowitz, 13:36
Sylvie Kimché, PR and/or PW

PETER McARDLE MEMORIAL CROSS-COUNTRY 15K, Van Cortlandt Park, NYC (November 28th, 1999)

WOMEN

MEN, 2nd place Open Team

TURKEY TROT 5 MILER, Prospect Park, Brooklyn (November 28th, 1999)

Richie Borrero, 27:22, 3rd place

XVI FIRENZE MARATHON, Florence, Italy (November 28th, 1999)

(See Photo)

Marco Tagliati, 2:52:37 (PR), 184th overall

Marco signed up officially as a CPTC member and ran with the club singlet. This apparently granted him some extra cheers for the beautiful orange attire. He promised to send some pictures when available. He's also planning to come to NY for a visit and will probably race the Joe Kleinerman 10K on December 12th.   At a minimum, he'll be at the thursday workout.

KNICKERBOCKER 60K, Central Park, NYC (November 27th, 1999)

BRRC CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES CROSS COUNTRY 5K, Baltimore, MD (November 27th, 1999)

Eric Aldrich, 17:17, 1st place

CEA/JOHANNA FOODS TURKEY TROT 5K, Flemington, NJ (November 25th, 1999)

Irene Jackson-Schon, 22:39 (7:17 min/mile), 52nd female overall, 1st Female 51-60

MARATÓN DE LOS ANDES, Huancayo, Peru (November 21st, 1999)

We have not found the complete results yet, but Toby Tanser was mentioned in this article in El Comercio (Lima, Peru) as being among the leaders in the first 20 km before the locals broke away.  This race is run at 3200 meters above sea level, so the locals practically always win. 

PHILADELPHIA MARATHON, Philadelphia, PA (November 21st, 1999)

Alex Peterhansl, 338th overall, 81st age group, 3:14:33
David Birchfield, 343rd overall, 84th age group, 3:14:39
Megumi Fukami*, 373th overall, 22nd age group, 3:16:07
Dan Sack, 423rd overall, 107th age group, 3:18:44
Monica Bonamego, 470th overall, 26th age group, 3:20:38
Eden Weiss, 1054th overall, 68th age group, 3:40:33

From Jonathan Federman: "I am shocked that no one mentioned all the wonderful spectating that I did on Sunday. My friends and I kept the marathoners in good spirits by providing beer, potato chips, Chinese fortune cookies and cheese puffs to the runners. I tried to give some to Alex and David, but they were hurting too much from the 100% humidity to accept anything.  Eden's girlfriend was trailing him on a bicycle."

USATF NATIONAL MASTERS CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS, Homdel, NJ (November 21st, 1999)

WOMEN, 4th place W40-49
Stacy Creamer, 3rd place overall, 3rd W40-44, 19:59 (6:26 min/mile)
Sandra Olivo, 19th place overall, 4th W45-49, 22:35 (7:16 min/mile)
Mary V. Rosado, 26th overall, 4th W50-54, 23:35 (7:35 min/mile)

MEN 40-49, 9th place M40-49
Stuart Calderwood, 20th place overall, 19th M40-44, 17:34 (5:39 min/mile)
Thomas Hartshorne, 25th place overall, 3rd place M45-49, 17:45 (5:43 min/mile)
Victor Osayi, 42nd place, 33rd place M40-44, 18:20 (5:54 min/mile)
Raphael Devalle, 92nd overall, 66th place M40-44, 20:28 (6:35 min/mile)
Jeff Kisseloff, 99th place overall, 69th place M40-44, 20:55 (6:44 min/mile)

MEN 50-59
Frank Handelman, 18th place overall, 17th place M50-54, 19:10 (6:10 min/mile)
Salih Talib, 34th place overall, 31st place M50-54, 20:02 (6:27 min/mile)
Jack Brennan, 42nd place overall, 36th place M50-54, 20:19 (6:32 min/mile)

MEN 60-64
Sid Howard, 3rd place, 20:41 (6:39 min/mile)

MEN 65-69
Guenter Erich, 4th place (7:28  min/mile)

TURKEY CLASSIC 5 MILER, Central Park, NYC (November 21st, 1999)

MEN

• It was good to see Colin Frew's name tagged with 'England' under the state name while everyone else was from 'NY' or 'NJ'.

WOMEN, 3rd place Open team

NYACK HOSPITAL 10K HEALTH RUN, Nyack, NY (November 20th, 1999)

SCHIFF SCOUT MOUNTAIN BIKE BIATHLON (November 14, 1999)

 Randall Ehrlich, 1:13:27, 11th place overall, 5th place M30-34

LONG BEACH MARATHON, Long Beach, CA (November 14th, 1999)

PHOTO ALBUM

Rori Spinelli, 4:53:39 (PR), 349th overall, 80th W35-39

LONG BEACH MARATHON 5K, Long Beach, CA (November 14th, 1999)

Alan Bautista, 18:48, 15th overall, 3rd M35-39
Luca Trovato, 18:54, 17th overall, 4th M35-49

NEW YORK ROAD RUNNERS CLUB CROSS-COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS, Van Cortlandt Park, NYC (November 14th, 1999)

PHOTO ALBUM

OPEN MEN, 1st place finisher and award (1 10 13 15 26 = 66 according to the official team scoring)
Toby Tanser, 15:57, 1st place
Erik Goetze, 17:18, 12th place
Isaya Okwiya, 17:37, 15th place
Eric Aldrich, 17:49, 18th place
Jesus Montero, 17:51, 19th place
David Diviney, 18:43, 28th palce
Guillermo Rojas, 19:07, 32nd place
Kiet Vo, 19:41, 40th place
Yves-Marc Courtines, 20:43, 49th place
Tivon Jacobson, 20:49, 52nd place
David Pullman, 21:10, 57th place

VETERAN MEN, 1st place finisher and 2nd place award (18 24 31 34 49 = 156 according to the official team scoring)
Stuart Calderwood, 17:37, 3rd place
Dan Sack, 18:59, 13th place
Frank Handelman, 19:27, 18th place
Salih Talib, 19:58, 25th place
Mark Gombiner, 20:25, 32nd place
Sid Howard, 20:51, 36th place
Rich Stewart, 21:40, 51st place
Edwin Fajardo, 22:06, 57th place
J.R. Mojica, 24:06, 87th place
Victor Broushet, 25:33, 111th place
Dave Blackstone, 29:55, 159th place

OPEN WOMEN
Martha Rojas*, 28:37, 51st place

VETERAN WOMEN
Stacy Creamer, 20:04, 2nd place
Mary Rosado, 23:27, 6th place
Lynn Blackstone, 29:59, 31st place

According to the race officials, our masters men's team won the second place award even though they finished in first place.  Sounds crazy, doesn't it?  This divergence occurred because the race officials decided to take a literal interpretation of the fine print on the entry form, to the effect that "all runners must include their team name on their application (in the team box) and runners who post-register must write their exact team name on the tear-off tag on their bib number in order to be scored properly."  

Our first finisher Stuart Calderwood arrived at the race to post-register, obtained an entry form that is identical in format to that used in other NYRRC races, failed to read the fine print on the back amidst the chaos, filled out the entry form with CPTC in the team box but did not write down CPTC on his bib.  Filling out the team box is sufficient in most other NYRRC races.  All the registration information is filled out in the front and the fine print appears only on the back with a lot of other rubbish (for example: read this --- "AGE VERIFICATION: In the event of age protest ($25.00 protest fee) only an original Birth Certificate, Baptismal Certificate, or Driver's License will be accepted."  May God help all you foreign-born pagan New Yorkers who don't drive!)

Subsequent to the race, the race official disallowed our first runner (Stuart Calderwood in third place with 3 points) and instead scored  another of our runners who finished in forty-ninth place (for 49 points), which meant that the Millrose team was able to win by 6 points.  At the same time, the same race officials did not deny that this same Stuart Calderwood is a member of the Central Park Track Club, as indicated and re-verified  in the team box on his correctly-filled-out entry form, and they posted the top individual results as such (see photo below).  Meanwhile, the team scoring posted nearby reflected something different.  The race officials said that they did not see this as a contradiction at all.  Living la vida loca?  And while we are at it, let us also point out that we found out that our second finisher Dan Sack (in 10th place) was not scored either.

Race results sheet posted after the race on the side of the NYRRC van at Van Cortlandt Park

When the Millrose team learned about this situation, they were very gracious and magnanimous, and we ended up swapping the first- and second-place medals between us.  Both teams informed the race officials that these two teams accept the fact that the Central Park Track Club team had won this race fair and square.  We don't care what those race officials will enter into the 'official' record, because this case is closed as far as these two teams are concerned.

Both the Central Park Track Club and the Millrose Athletic Association are long-time established running clubs in New York City with wonderful traditions.  Over our histories, we have won thousands of individual and team awards.  The placing in this particular race (and a non-scoring race too) is therefore immaterial to us in the grand scheme of things.  This is really about doing what is obviously the right thing.  The intransigence on the part of the NYRRC race officials in this matter is a sure way to kill the joy of running and leave a bitter taste about that organization.

P.S.  On the Central Park Track Club open men's team, our fourth- and fifth-place runners were not scored for the same reason.  However, that had no impact on the final team standings.

COLUMBUS MARATHON, Columbus, OH (November 14th, 1999)

Adam Bleifeld, 3:23:44 clock time, 3:23:32 chip time, 520th overall, 66th M25-29

UPDATE XC SERIES #5, Letchworth State Park, Mount Morris, NY (November 13th, 1999)

Tom Hartshorne, 28:55, 45th overall, 7th master male

LITF SEASON STARTER INDOOR MEET, Nassau, LI (November 11th, 1999)

M50-59 60m, Rick Lapp, 6.9, 1st place
M50-59 500m, Rick Lapp, 1:35.0, 1st place

ALL COMERS' RACE (NEW YORK CITY MARATHON SERIES), 2.62 MILES, Central Park, NYC (November 7th, 1999)

Toby Tanser*, 13:11 (5:00 min/mile), 1st place

Historical note: Toby did not intend to run this race.  He first thought that he was going to report on the race results, but the computer modem was broken.  Next, he thought that he was going to take photographs, but there was no camera available.  That left him with nothing to do except win the race.

NEW YORK CITY MARATHON, New York City, NY (November 7th, 1999)

PHOTO ALBUM

MEN

WOMEN

IRONMAN FLORIDA, Panama City, FL (November 6th, 1999)

Randy Ehrlich, 11:19:14, 519th overall, 130th M30-34

• Swim: 1:20:25, 1148th overall

• Transition: 6:12

• Bike: 5:53:13, 804th overall

• Transition: 4:58

• Run: 3:54:28, 268th overall

J.P. Gravier

• Swim, 58:45, 429th overall

• Transition, 5:13

DUBLIN CITY MARATHON, Dublin, Ireland (October 31st, 1999)

Adam Newman, 3:45, 1229th place overall, 599th M16-41

KENT PUMPKIN 5 MILE RUN, Kent, CT (October 31st, 1999)

NOT THE NEW YORK CITY MARATHON 5K, Central Park, NYC (October 31st, 1999)

PHOTO ALBUM

MEN

WOMEN, 3rd place Open Team

MAC CROSS COUNTRY DEVELOPMENT SERIES - 5K, Van Cortlandt Park, NYC (October 24th, 1999)

Eric Aldrich, 3rd place, 18:25.9
David Pullman, 10th place, 21:12.3

IRONMAN TRIATHLON WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP, Kona, Hawaii (October 23rd, 1999)

Stephanie Gould

PCC ATLANTIC COAST CHALLENGE 5K, Hewlett, NY (October 24th, 1999)

CHICAGO MARATHON, Chicago, IL (October 24th, 1999)

* Patrick (see photo) is a resident of Chicago, and not a member of the Central Park Track Club (but he could be).  His time was included here to motivate Audrey Kingsley (see photo of her on the phone with Patrick a few weeks ago as she realized from the description of his preparations that he would break the 3 hour barrier in this race, only his second marathon ever) ...

CHICAGO MARATHON 5K, Chicago, IL (October 24th, 1999)

Toby Tanser*, 15:08, 8th overall, 2nd age group (and first among demonstrators of how to use the Stick at the Expo!)
Stuart Calderwood, 16:00, 39th overall, 4th master (his time was his best as a master)
Stacy Creamer, 18:18 (PR), 17th overall, 2nd master

* Toby is not an official member of the club.  He has been to a workout and we thought people want to know what he did.  In case his name doesn't ring a bell, he is 'the guy from Iceland.'

KURT STEINER XC 5K, Van Cortlandt Park, NYC (October 17th, 1999)

MEN, 2nd place team

WOMEN

• Upon learning that the men's team had finished second, Sid Howard was truly astonished.  He said, "I thought that we only had three guys and one woman out there.  We left immediately after the race."  Why was he so wrong?  Because no one on this club wears their team singlets (assuming they have any) at the races!
• The Global Surveillance System (tm) reported that Scott Willett and Julie Denney were not in the race, but they ran back and forth in Van Cortlandt Park for two hours.  Oh, yes, those inscrutable triathletes ...

LAKEFRONT MARATHON, Milwaukee, WI (October 17th, 1999)

HARRY CHAPIN MEMORIAL RUN, Croton-on-Hudson, NY (October 17th, 1999)

Tyronne Culpepper, 39:30, 9th overall, 2nd age group
Jack Brennan, 40:44, 11th overall, 1st age group
Elton Robinson, 55:17, 98th overall, 2nd age group

Three noteworthy news items here:

• Tyronne Culpepper gets his first age group trophy
• Jack Brennan gets his first trophy in this age group
• Elton Robinson, father of Tim Robinson, gets his first mention on this website

STATEN ISLAND HALF MARATHON, Staten Island, NYC (October 17th, 1999)

PHOTO ALBUM

MEN

WOMEN

NEWARK DOWNTOWN CORPORATE 5K RUN, Newark, NJ (October 13th, 1999)

HOME DEPOT INVITATIONAL CROSS COUNTRY, Rochester, NY (October 20, 1999)

Tom Hartshorne, 28:21.28, 44th overall

CENTRAL PARK BIATHLON, Central Park, NY (October 10th, 1999)

ARMY TEN MILER, Washington, DC (October 10th, 1999)

NORWAY RUN (5K), Central Park, NYC (October 10th, 1999)

Alayne Adams, 18:16, 1st place

The prize for first place is a round trip to Norway, and this goes to someone who hates 5K's and had previously declined a trip to the Freihofer 5K in Albany when she won the College Point 5K earlier this year (see Famous Sayings #461).  Well, Norway isn't exactly Albany ...

GRETE'S GREAT GALLOP, (Half Marathon) Central Park, NYC (October 10th, 1999)

MEN, 2nd Open Team

WOMEN

HARTFORD HALF MARATHON, Hartford, CT (October 9th, 1999)

ST. CHARLES HOSPITAL 4 MILE RUN, Port Jefferson, LI (October 9th, 1999)

TERRACE BAGELS 10K RUN, Prospect Park, Brooklyn (October 3rd, 1999)

Richie Borrero, 6th overall, 33:22 (5:22 min/mile)

2nd ANNUAL JONES BEACH SPRINT TRIATHLON (1/2 mile swim, 14 mile swim, 3.1 mile run), Jones Beach, NY (October 3rd, 1999)

• We note the overall winning margin was 1:01, but the run margin was 1:56.  This meant that our winner was 55 seconds behind when the run began.  As our coach says, "I told you so.  Mike should stick to running."

RIDGEFIELD HALF MARATHON, Ridgefield, CT (October 3rd, 1999)

Hank Berkowitz, 1:18:42 (6:00), 14th overall, 2nd M30-39
Terri Sonenclar, 1:39::32 (7:36), 161st overall

CRANBERRY STREET FESTIVAL 2 MILER, Brooklyn Heights, NY (October 2nd, 1999)

PHOTO ALBUM

On 10/2/99, the following report appeared in this space: "This friendly local race was organized by Thomas Pennell in the neighborhood where he grew up.  This friendly local race was won by the same Thomas Pennell this year.  Although there were other heavy CPTC guns present (in Ramon Bermo, J.P. Cheuvront, Tyronne Culpepper, Frank Handelman, etc), they were probably handicapped by not knowing which way to run.  Before the race began, Thomas set out to mark the course with chalk, but he came back to tell everyone, "Sorry, I ran out of chalk, so you may have problems."  But not if you follow his lead ...  The female winner of the race was Sarah Gross.  P.S.  It was a nice-looking t-shirt."

The above caused our race organizer Thomas Pennell to write back: 

The truth about the Cranberry Street Two Miler

A very full field (21 individuals) showed up ready to race. It was an unqualified success. No one was hit by a car, no one got lost, CPTC swept the men's and women's open first-place finishes and there were plenty of good bagels for breakfast. One question --- where was Coach Tony Ruiz?  

Ramon "Raqui" Bermo started out with the large lead pack at a tease 5:30 or so pace. Other participants in the early lead pack included Steve Garrelts, Ron Miao (Warren Street), Dr. Cheuvront, yours truly and a couple of unknown strangers who, it would become clear, didn't fully appreciate that 2 miles, while short, is not an all- out sprint. With an unparalleled view of New York Harbor and downtown Manhattan to the pack's right, Miao took off for an early break. The chase pack maintained discipline. After much banter for the first 1/3 of a mile, I told Raqui it was time for him to redeem CPTC's pride, and to go catch my friend Miao. It wasn't due to my suggestion, but rather because Raqui doesn't really know how to run as slowly as a 5:30 pace for anything less than ten miles, that Raqui took off to bridge the gap. Shortly after, Garrelts, honorary CPTC member (to be a bona fide member once we get him to cut a $25 check for a student CPTC membership) took off in hot pursuit. Steve and Raqui caught Ron approx. a 1/3 of a mile later, and the three formed a new lead pack which held for the next 1/2 mile or so, at which time they did the horizon thing on me. 

At that point, I couldn't really tell what was happening up there except that it looked like Raqui was beginning to put the hurt to Ron and Steve.  The two unknown strangers faded about 1/2 mile into the race, from which point 4th and 5th place (men's) was shaping up to be a dead heat between JP and me. The lead pack continued to put daylight on the chase pack (JP and Pennell). Don't know what the lead pack hit the 1mile split in. JP and I hit it in 5:26. Shortly after the 1 mile split I picked up (or JP faded, it isn't really clear). 

Some place into the second mile, Raqui turned on the afterburners and callously dropped Ron and Steve. Raqui finished in 10:16 with a smile and barely a bead of sweat on his brow, CPTC team pride intact. Ron finished in 10:27, a respectable finisher for the enemy.  Steve followed in at 10:31, which under any circumstances is good, but especially if you don't run a step for three of the previous four months.  I finished in 10:47, which I felt good about. JP finished in 11:01 (unfortunately, he didn't know about the $50,000 bonus award for breaking 11:00 or he certainly could have done it).   Scandalous rumors that JP had a questionable amount of sleep the previous night were confirmed, and my victory (over JP, that is, who cares about the rest of the field?!) was thus a far less fulfilling one.  Alas, as much of the other action in the race took place behind (although pretty damn close) me, I can't report on where other, decisive moves were made.

For your summary input:

• Raqui Bermo - 10:16 - First Overall
• Steve Garrelts - 10:31 - Third Overall
• Thomas Pennell - 10:47 - Fourth Overall
• JP Cheuvront -11:01 - Fifth Overall, first person whose birthday falls on September 10 who lives on East 2nd Street.  
• Frank Handelman, first Veteran (well, also the only veteran), in 11:33.
• Tyronne Culpepper (who is game for any race) at 12:10. Also looked fine down the finishing stretch.
• Sarah Gross, first woman overall, in a speedy 12:18. She looked fabulous at the finish.

We took five of the first six positions and seven of the first ten positions (has CPTC ever done that before?).

Regards, Thomas

cc: Dr. Cheuvront

So this leaves a big question: Why was the first story so wrong?  Here is what Ramon Bermo said, "Okay, okay ... I confess ... we decided to play a joke on you.  This was a good test."  Well, well, well.  As Queen Victoria said, "We are not amused."  Hell knows no fury greater than that of a webmaster deceived.  So we will start by publishing the true story of a conversation that happened later in the morning of the race.

Tyronne Culpepper: "I guess I don't have to worry about being a triathlete, because I can't swim."  At  which point, someone in the audience interjected, "No, that's no problem.  Just look at Ramon."  Of course, it was intended as a tribute ... or was it really?  We'll let him think about it ...

CORPORATE CHALLENGE CHAMPIONSHIP, Park Avenue, New York City (October 2nd, 1999)

MEN

WOMAN

SRI CHINMOY MASTERS GAMES, Forest Park, NY (October 2nd, 1999)

M100m, Rick Lapp, 11.98, 1st M50-54
M200m, Rick Lapp, 24.69, 1st M50-54
M400m, Rick Lapp, 55.77, 2nd M50-54
M800m, Rick Lapp, 2:23.10, 2nd M50-54
Long Jump, Rick Lapp, 5.30m, 1st M50-54
Triple Jump, Rick Lapp, 10.70m, 1st M50-54
Short Put, Rick Lapp, 8.15m, 2nd M50-54
Discus, Rick Lapp, 28.94m, 1st M50-54
Javelin, Rick Lapp, 30.91m, 1st M50-54