Irish Celebration Is an International Crowd Pleaser
Enthusiasm High Despite Cold Weather
By Jim Hage
March 9, 2008
Washington, DC
For the Washington Running Report
Eleven new 8K course records were set, including both men and
women grandmasters (50 and over).
With the running of the 20th St. Patrick's Day 8K in downtown
Washington, the area's spring racing season is officially
underway. If only the same could be said of the spring weather
season.Still, temperatures in the 30s and wind gusts that, as the
weather folks remind us, made it feel much colder, failed to
dampen spirits as some 4,100 intrepid runners braved the
elements for their annual trek along and beyond the
presidential inaugural parade route. Ethiopians, showing little regard for Irish traditions, blasted
to the front early to win both the men's and women's races.
In photo, Ezkyas Sisay (19), living in Washington, took
the lead two miles in and coasted to the finish line in 24
minutes 39 seconds. Teyba Naser (21), from Hyattsville, MD, led
the women from just past the start and won in 28:53. "I had no problem," Sisay said. "I was very cold and the wind
made me slow, but I feel good now." Nathan Brigham (25), an American University graduate student,
finished second, 22 seconds back of Sisay. "He got a little
lead at two miles," Brigham said, "and with the conditions, it
was tough to have to catch anybody. He seemed to gain
confidence as he went along." Sisay has been training in the United States for the past 18
months while barnstorming across the country. Two weeks
earlier, he ran 1:06:24 to win the Colonial Half Marathon in
Williamsburg, VA, and on March 2, won the Little Rock (AR) Half
Marathon in 1:07:24. Sisay said he trains up to 150 miles every
week. "I want to make the Ethiopian Olympic team" in the
steeplechase, Sisay said. His best time, he said, is 8:42 at
altitude, and if he is as fast and agile on the track as he is
strong and durable on the roads, he probably has a good chance.
Naser (left), who has won a number of area events since
moving to Washington last year, dominated the women's race, and
through an interpreter, echoed the comments of most of the
other runners: "It was very cold." She added that she is just
now moving her program into a higher gear and entered St.
Patrick's Day on minimal training of 45 to 50 miles a week. Melinda Carlson (28), from Washington, was second in 29:14, and
Laura Turner (27), from Washington, third in 30:18. "I can't complain too much," Turner said, "because I've been
sick. [Naser] got away in the first mile. There wasn't much
more to it." For the rest of the field, many adorned in every shade of
green, there was plenty more, despite the frigid conditions.
High school runners Nick Belotte (18) and Chris Stewart (17)
eschewed convention -- and their shirts -- running bare-chested
and turning an untraditional shade of pink by race's end. "We did it because no one else did," Belotte said. The two, who
traveled to the race from Hedgesville, WV, averaged just over 6
minutes per mile. Collins Fobanjong (28) opted for a mix of traditional and
ersatz, donning a tall, striped Leprechaun's hat while carrying
a box of Lucky Charms cereal. Fobanjong is from Cameroon. "I'm
the Black Irish," he said. "Just trying to keep the theme
going -- you know, be a little festive." Fast-slow, Irish-English, white or black, that was a sentiment
every runner could relate to.
Male Award Winners
1 5521 Ezkyas Sisay 19 M WASHINGTON DC 24:39
2 4675 Nathan Brigham 25 M WASHINGTON DC 24:57
3 6 Robert Wade 25 M ARLINGTON VA 25:14
4 19 Bert Rodriguez 28 M ARLINGTON VA 25:18
5 5 Adam Condit 24 M CENTREVILLE VA 25:20
6 1284 Kent Werner 28 M COLUMBIA MD 25:31
7 8 Philippe Rolly 35 M FAIRFAX VA 25:46
8 42 Patrick Reaves 23 M SILVER SPRING MD 25:57
9 5491 Abiyoh Abebe 21 M WASHINGTON DC 26:25
10 13 Ryan Mammen 31 M WOODBRIDGE VA 26:42 MALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 01 - 19
1 3641 Kyle Gutierrez 18 M Woodbridge VA 28:51 28:48 5:48
2 3264 Roni Teich 17 M Rockville MD 29:20 29:11 5:53
3 5300 Michael Fucci 18 M Greenville DE 31:11 29:58 6:02 MALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 20 - 24
1 38 Patrick Murphy 23 M Washington DC 26:46 26:45 5:23
2 4967 Jossi Fritz-Mauer 23 M Ardmore PA 26:56 26:56 5:25
3 40 Billy Askey 24 M Washington DC 27:46 27:44 5:35 MALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 25 - 29
1 5410 Ryan Strohl 25 M Arlington VA 27:09 27:06 5:28
2 1469 Gregory Holden 28 M Washington DC 27:45 27:43 5:35
3 906 Joe Lamonte 27 M Arlington VA 27:45 27:43 5:35 MALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 30 - 34
1 41 Christopher Bain 30 M Rockville MD 26:53 26:52 5:25
2 35 Eric Kweder 30 M Old Fields WV 26:57 26:55 5:25
3 20 Scott Anderson 34 M Washington DC 26:57 26:56 5:25 MALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 35 - 39
1 1310 Pavel Frelich 37 M Chevy Chase MD 27:39 27:38 5:34
2 3657 Mike Elabarger 35 M Leesburg VA 28:34 28:34 5:45
3 3975 David Kent 35 M Arlington VA 28:46 28:44 5:47 MALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 40 - 44
1 43 Chris Chattin 44 M Columbia MD 28:31 28:29 5:44
2 5351 Kevin Bedell 42 M McLean VA 29:10 29:07 5:52
3 4747 William Bray 43 M Fairfax VA 29:17 29:14 5:53 MALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 45 - 49
1 17 Mark Stickley 45 M Winchester VA 26:51 26:50 5:24
2 33 Greg Cauller 48 M York PA 27:47 27:46 5:35
3 5529 Dave Berardi 47 M Baltimore MD 27:50 27:50 5:36 MALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 50 - 54
1 22 Mark Malander 50 M Oak Hill VA 27:53 27:53 5:37
2 18 Dan Lawson 52 M Gaithersburg MD 29:36 29:34 5:57
3 5094 Bruce Halpin 51 M Ashburn VA 30:41 30:39 6:10 MALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 55 - 59
1 4933 Alan Pemberton 55 M Silver Spring MD 31:11 31:09 6:16
2 24 Roland Rust 55 M Bethesda MD 31:21 31:19 6:18
3 217 Dan Eddy 56 M Alexandria VA 31:42 31:30 6:21 MALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 60 - 64
1 424 William Scott 60 M Glennarden MD 35:51 35:42 7:11
2 2143 Krupakar Revanna 64 M Falls Church VA 36:39 36:14 7:18
3 4850 Donald Hensel 63 M Gaithersburg MD 37:38 36:58 7:27 MALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 65 - 69
1 152 Lou Shapiro 66 M Silver Spring MD 35:27 35:21 7:07
2 96 Sonny Barber 67 M Falls Church VA 36:19 36:11 7:17
3 2720 John Churchman 65 M Arlington VA 39:08 39:00 7:51 MALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 70 - 74
1 25 Chan Robbins 70 M Arlington VA 37:22 37:18 7:31
2 3967 Skip Grant 72 M Silver Spring MD 38:27 38:22 7:44
3 3343 David Cary 71 M Reston VA 44:41 43:02 8:40 MALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 75 - 79
1 2760 George Yannakakis 76 M Sparks MD 45:06 43:08 8:41
2 54 Edward Green 76 M Washington DC 49:31 49:17 9:55
3 5510 Frederick Tower 75 M Annapolis MD 60:21 58:34 11:47 MALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 80 - 99
1 432 Walt Washburn 85 M Vienna VA 69:26 65:32 13:11
2 1535 Philip Zenchoff 80 M Silver Spring MD 78:37 75:01
Alan Pemberton (#4933) of Silver Spring, MD flies home to an
age group win in 31:11, besting course age group record holder
Dan Eddy (56) in 31:42 and holding off second place Roland Rust
(55) with 31:21. In photo Pemberton is chased down by Michael
Fucci (#5300) of Greenville, DE who started more than a minute
late (At 18, Fucci is less than a third his age).
Female Award Winners
1 49 Teyba Naser 21 F HYATTSVILLE MD 28:53
2 5304 Melinda Carlson 28 F WASHINGTON DC 29:14
3 3 Laura Turner 27 F WASHINGTON DC 30:18
4 32 Tara Fenske 31 F WASHINGTON DC 30:40
5 7 Hilary Cairns 37 F WASHINGTON DC 30:44
6 1882 Jennifer Funk 21 F WASHINGTON DC 31:27
7 5230 Victoria Lynch 34 F WASHINGTON DC 31:27
8 29 Samantha Kirby 38 F ARLINGTON VA 31:27
9 23 Linda Foley 46 F OAK HILL VA 31:53
10 4476 Pamela Maldeis 25 F TOWSON MD 31:58 FEMALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 01 - 19
1 1113 Annie Hiatt 19 F Washington DC 37:16 34:35 6:58
2 4236 Leah Croughan 19 F Saint Louis MO 35:54 35:48 7:13
3 5607 Sarah Nutman 19 F Chevy Chase MD 36:19 35:58 7:15 FEMALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 20 - 24
1 5104 Allison Carney 23 F Arlington VA 32:47 32:42 6:35
2 3515 Lauren Doll 23 F Washington DC 35:33 34:20 6:55
3 4083 Elizabeth Krimmel 23 F Silver Spring MD 34:36 34:28 6:56 FEMALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 25 - 29
1 5533 Colleen Griesinger 28 F Arlington VA 32:50 32:45 6:36
2 4184 Tricia Peters 26 F Chevy Chase MD 34:19 33:19 6:43
3 4955 Amber Dimmer 25 F Chantilly VA 37:20 33:39 6:47 FEMALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 30 - 34
1 12 Jacqueline Gruendel 33 F Burke VA 32:02 31:59 6:26
2 4341 Dionis Gauvin 33 F Alexandria VA 33:35 33:31 6:45
3 3943 Sierra Schenk 30 F Lusby MD 33:48 33:39 6:47 FEMALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 35 - 39
1 4488 Kerry Rodgers 39 F Washington DC 32:48 32:42 6:35
2 431 Laura Zeilinger 35 F Washington DC 34:45 34:40 6:59
3 5167 Crissy O'Donnell 39 F Alexandria VA 48:54 35:10 7:05 FEMALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 40 - 44
1 5547 Paula Pels 40 F Bethesda MD 33:01 32:54 6:38
2 26 Helen Beven 42 F Kensington MD 33:29 33:25 6:44
3 5333 Anne Colevas 42 F Washington DC 34:29 34:24 6:56 FEMALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 45 - 49
1 34 Win Persina 47 F Washington DC 33:12 33:09 6:41
2 3057 Eleanor Kerr 49 F University Park MD 34:10 34:05 6:52
3 1292 Teresa Lent 46 F Arlington VA 34:55 34:34 6:58 FEMALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 50 - 54
1 4150 Ofelia Perotti 51 F Alexandria VA 32:36 32:33 6:33
2 2812 Marian Gormley 51 F Falls Church VA 34:22 34:11 6:53
3 4752 Debbie Flynn 51 F Gaithersburg MD 34:46 34:40 6:59 FEMALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 55 - 59
1 31 Betty Blank 55 F Falls Church VA 35:18 35:15 7:06
2 192 Valerie Campbell 57 F Silver Spring MD 37:08 36:57 7:26
3 348 Alice Franks 59 F Rockville MD 38:37 38:30 7:45 FEMALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 60 - 64
1 382 Linda Kearney 61 F Oak Hill VA 39:15 39:04 7:52
2 4535 Nancy Avitabile 60 F Bethesda MD 40:42 40:03 8:04
3 94 Sandra May 62 F Alexandria VA 42:37 42:09 8:29 FEMALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 65 - 69
1 4896 Robbye Langenfeld 65 F Alexandria VA 54:50 51:40 10:24
2 346 Beverly Franklin 66 F Springfield VA 58:29 54:50 11:02
3 344 Jamie Wollard 69 F N Bethesda MD 56:20 56:05 11:17 FEMALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 70 - 74 FEMALE AGE GROUP: NET TIME - NET PACE 75 - 79
1 4011 Ilse Brown 75 F Fairfax Station VA 61:24 58:06 11:42
2 623 Jacqueline O'Neil 76 F Washington DC 65:40 64:11 12:55
Tara Fenske (31) of Washington, DC in 30:40 won a close battle
for the fourth spot overall with Hilary Cairns (37) of
Washington, DC. Cairns set the sub master course record with
30:44.
Full Race Day Results
Race Day Report for 2008
Photo Gallery 2008
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