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Men Division 2003
2003 Year End WRR Runner Rankings
Men's Division
by Roland Rust
March/April 2004
For the Washington Running Report
Photo above by Drew Woodrich: Ben Cooke won at Kentlands and ranked first for 2003
Photo below by Kathy Freedman: Michael Wardian, 27 of Arlington, VA is ranked 11th among open men
Open Men
A total of 18 runners qualifed in the Open Men division, and Ben Cooke of Silver Spring, Maryland repeats as number one. The most competitive race was the Rockville Rotary Twilight 8K, where Cooke (23:48) defeated second-ranked David Spiller (24:07) of Harrisonburg, Virginia and fifth-ranked Chris Banks (24:10) of Alexandria, Virginia. Cooke cemented his number one ranking at the Kentlands/Lakelands 5K, where he ran 14:39 to again beat Spiller (15:07).
Another top race in the age group was the Cherry Blossom 10- Mile, where Spiller (48:37) beat third-ranked Mikhail Khobotov (50:06) of Gaithersburg, Maryland and Russia, and fourth-ranked Nick Gramsky (50:40) of McLean, Virginia.
The youngest male qualifiers were 24-year-olds Gramsky, John Supsic of Baltimore, and Jeff Binggeli of Fredericksburg, Virginia. The oldest qualifier was 51-year-old Chuck Moeser of Sterling, Virginia. The top newcomer to the rankings was David Spiller.
Gramsky, Banks, Edmund Burke of Burtonsville, Maryland, Michael Wardian of Herndon, Virginia, and Aaron Church of Herndon, Virginia all qualified for the 2004 US Olympic Marathon Trials.
Pl Name Age Hometown
1 Ben Cooke 26 Silver Spring, MD
2 David Spiller 25 Harrisonburg, VA
3 Mikhail Khobotov 30 Gaithersburg, MD
4 Nick Gramsky 24 McLean, VA
5 Chris Banks 25 Alexandria, VA
6 Eric Kean 25 Washington, DC
7 John Supsic 24 Baltimore, MD
8 Eric Estrada 31 Parkville, MD
9 Edmund Burke 33 Burtonsville, MD
10 Glen Mays 32 Washington, DC
11 Michael Wardian 27 Herndon, VA
12 Aaron Church 27 Herndon, VA
13 Mark Gilmore 35 Columbia, MD
14 Jason Van Horn 29 Dumfries, VA
15 Jeff Binggeli 24 Fredericksburg, VA
16 Chad Walton 32 Stafford, VA
17 Chuck Moeser 51 Sterling, VA
18 Jim Strand 32 Potomac, MD
Men 35 - 39
Mark Gilmore of Columbia, Maryland entered the age group at number one. Gilmore, who also led the Spring and Summer rankings, showed his mettle by defeating Chris Chattin of Columbia (third-ranked for the second consecutive year) three times. He ran 32:30 at Columbia's Clyde's 10K to beat Chattin (33:21), and also beat Chattin at the Sallie Mae 10K (32:52 to 34:00) and Rockville Rotary Twilight 8K (25:35 to 26:40). Gilmore also was ranked in the Open division.
Last year's champion, John Piggott of Williamsburg, Virginia, takes the second spot. He earned his spot by defeating fourth- ranked Tom Purcell of Norfolk, Virginia three times, at the Running Crab Half-Marathon (1:10:56 to 1:14:57), Elizabeth River Run 10K (33:38 to 33:44), and the Rock 'n' Roll Half-Marathon (1:11:02 to 1:16:39).
The second-ranked runner in 2002, Mark Hoon of Kensington, Maryland, is fifth, with his best performance being a 54:15 at the Cherry Blossom 10-Mile.
Pl Name Age Hometown
1 Mark Gilmore 35 Columbia, MD
2 John Piggott 37 Williamsburg, VA
3 Chris Chattin 39 Columbia, MD
4 Tom Purcell 36 Norfolk, VA
5 Mark Hoon 38 Kensington, MD
6 Michael Mann 35 Hampton, VA
7 Robert Hinkle 38 Newport News, VA
8 Bill Riester 37 Richmond, VA
9 Douglas Marocco 39 Quantico, VA
10 Joseph Daniels 36 Temple Hills, MD
Men 40 - 44
With 14 runners qualifying, the 40-44 division was very competitive. Joe Abernethy of College Park, Maryland, the fifth- ranked runner in 2002, moves up to first in 2003. The year's showdown race was Columbia's Clyde's 10K, where Abernethy (33:01) defeated second-ranked (for the second consecutive year) Dave Berardi (33:09) of Baltimore, and fifth-ranked Ted Poulos (35:24) of McLean, Virginia. Abernethy also ran 16:19 at the Laurel 5K to beat third-ranked Neville Anderson (16:44) of Woodlawn, Maryland.
Fourth was Mark Donahue of Virginia Beach, who recorded some excellent times (e.g., a 33:09 at the Elizabeth River Run 10K), but did not run against any of the other top runners--and it must have taken some effort not to run into Ted Poulos, who ran 63 ranked races in 2003!
Pl Name Age Hometown
1 Joe Abernethy 43 College Park, MD
2 Dave Berardi 42 Baltimore, MD
3 Neville Anderson 41 Woodlawn, MD
4 Mark Donahue 44 Virginia Beach, VA
5 Ted Poulos 41 McLean, VA
6 Brian Daugherty 43 Crofton, MD
7 Layne Party 43 Baltimore, MD
8 Doug Kuderna 42 Odenton, MD
9 Jean-Christophe Arcaz 41 Rockville, MD
10 Dave Haaga 41 Rockville, MD
11 Chris Samley 40 Charlottesville, VA
12 Marty Horan 43 Gaithersburg, MD
13 Terry McLaughlin 42 Spotsylvania, VA
14 Ronald Hess 40 Takoma Park, MD
Men 45 - 49
Photo left by Kathy Freedman: Mark Malander of Oak Hill, VA ranked 3rd in the 45-49 division
An amazing 21 runners qualified in the 45-49 division, and the competition was fierce. Jim Hage of Kensington, Maryland led the 2002 40-44 rankings, but the 45-49 rankings are apparently tougher, as Andrey Kuznetsov of Rockville, Maryland and Russia takes the top spot.
The best race was the Veterans Day 10K, where Kuznetsov (31:36) defeated fourth-ranked and 2002 champion Dan Lawson (34:12) of Gaithersburg, Maryland and fifth-ranked Jim Wadsworth (35:50) of Washington, D.C.
The downhill Pike's Peek 10K was another showdown, with Hage (31:33) beating third-ranked Mark Malander (33:17) of Oak Hill, Virginia and Lawson (33:31). There was more top competition at the Sallie Mae 10K, where Hage (33:09) again beat Malander (34:20) and Lawson (34:48).
Photo below by Kathy Freedman: Douglas Dunlop of Potomac, MD placed 20th in the 45-49 division
Pl Name Age Hometown
1 Andrey Kuznetsov 45 Rockville, MD
2 Jim Hage 45 Kensington, MD
3 Mark Malander 45 Oak Hill, VA
4 Dan Lawson 46 Gaithersburg, MD
5 Jim Wadsworth 46 Washington, DC
6 Dennis Coleman 45 Gaithersburg, MD
7 Peter Rushford 46 Potomac, MD
8 Peter Kirk 45 Rockville, MD
9 James Cooper 47 Potomac, MD
10 James Bates 46 Hampton, VA
11 Jim Whitnah 48 Chevy Chase, MD
12 Jim Goggin 48 Williamsburg, VA
13 Maurice Pointer 47 Baltimore, MD
14 Stephen Chantry 48 Williamsburg, VA
15 Burkhard Spiekerman 45 Charlottesville, VA
16 Stephen Comber 45 Clifton, VA
17 Michael Fuller 47 Chesapeake, VA
18 Bruce Halpin 46 Ashburn, VA
19 Curtis Davis 45 Gaithersburg, MD
20 Douglas Dunlop 49 Potomac, MD
21 Andy Fitzgerald 45 Potomac, MD
Men 50 - 54
The 50-54 division is the most competitive of all, with 24 runners qualifying. Chuck Moeser of Sterling, Virginia was the 2002 champion and led all four ranking periods in 2003. He is the clear winner of the division, and also was the oldest runner to place in the Open category. He proved his dominance in the category at the Army 10-Mile, where he ran 55:17 to beat second- ranked Rick Platt (59:04) of Williamsburg, Virginia.
Another showdown was the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10-Mile, where Moeser (56:09) beat third-ranked Develand Campbell (1:00:26) of Lusby, Maryland and fourth-ranked David Webster (1:01:21) of Stevensville, Maryland. Fifth-ranked Bill Hart of Virginia Beach also ran some excellent races, including a 37:38 at the Elizabeth River Run 10K, beating Platt (38:17).
Pl Name Age Hometown
1 Chuck Moeser 51 Sterling, VA
2 Rick Platt 52 Williamsburg, VA
3 Develand Campbell 50 Lusby, MD
4 David Webster 50 Stevensville, MD
5 Bill Hart 54 Virginia Beach, VA
6 Richard Adams 51 Herndon, VA
7 Bob Burns 50 Columbia, MD
8 Mick Slonaker 53 Columbia, MD
9 Tim Doescher 52 Herndon, VA
10 Rudolph Pekarek 50 Kinsdale, VA
11 Richard Morgan 50 Silver Spring, MD
12 Dan Eddy 51 Kingstowne, VA
13 Bill Alto 51 Newport News, VA
14 Shah Mehrabi 51 Fredericksburg, VA
15 Larry Washington 51 Rockville, MD
16 Ken Umbarger 51 Gaithersburg, MD
17 Roger Claussen 50 Woodbridge, VA
18 Jay Wind 52 Arlington, VA
19 Dave Crawford 52 Arlington, VA
20 Ron Greene 52 Fairfax, VA
21 Larry Coley 54 Chesapeake, VA
22 James Moreland 50 Gaithersburg, MD
23 Pat Gary 52 Manchester, MD
24 Dale Abrahamson 53 Yorktown, VA
Men 55 - 59
Patrick Griffith (Photo left) of Alexandria, Virginia repeats as champion. He led three of the four ranking periods. The Cherry Blossom 10- Mile was the showdown supreme, as all of the top five runners faced off. Griffith (1:03:17) held off second-ranked Dave Lowe (1:04:48) of Chevy Chase, Maryland, third-ranked Ronnie Wong (1:05:50) of Baltimore, fourth-ranked Jim Noone (1:07:52) of Fairfax, Virginia, and fifth-ranked Robert Trost (1:09:15) of Falls Church, Virginia.
Runners repeating in the top five are Griffith, Wong (second- ranked in 2002), and Noone (also fourth-ranked in 2002).
Pl Name Age Hometown
1 Patrick Griffith 58 Alexandria, VA
2 Dave Lowe 55 Chevy Chase, MD
3 Ronnie Wong 56 Baltimore, MD
4 Jim Noone 58 Fairfax, VA
5 Robert Trost 56 Falls Church, VA
6 Robert Wilson 55 Toano, VA
7 Clifford Gaddy 56 Kensington, MD
8 Roger Kilgore 59 Gaithersburg, MD
9 Bob Chase 57 Falls Church, VA
10 William Scott 55 Glenarden, MD
11 Patrick Clark 55 Columbia, MD
12 Paul Steele 56 Virginia Beach, VA
13 John Lange 56 Hunt Valley, MD
14 Jim Christol 55 Yorktown, VA
15 John Loughran 59 Sandston, VA
16 Lawrence Davis 56 Chesapeake, VA
Men 60 - 64
The 60-64 age group is very competitive, with 21 qualifiers. Ed Brinkley of Virginia Beach gets the top spot, by virtue of his 32:13 at the Shamrock 8K, narrowly defeating third-ranked John Haubert (32:15) of Alexandria, Virginia.
Second is Ben Dyer of Colonial Heights, Virginia, whose performances included a 1:26:05 at the Baltimore Half-Marathon. Haubert takes third, with his decisive race being the Cherry Blossom 10-Mile, where Haubert (1:07:03) beat fourth-ranked and 2002 champion John Elliott (1:08:00) of Columbia, Maryland.
Elliott gets his spot due to his 40:43 at the St. Patrick's Day 10K, beating fifth-ranked John Churchman (42:02) of Arlington, Virginia.
Pl Name Age Hometown
1 Ed Brinkley 63 Virginia Beach, VA
2 Ben Dyer 60 Colonial Heights, VA
3 John Haubert 60 Alexandria, VA
4 John Elliott 64 Columbia, MD
5 John Churchman 60 Arlington, VA
6 Michael Golash 60 Washington, DC
7 Warren Prunella 61 Rockville, MD
8 Robert Wright 61 Hampton, VA
9 Stephen Forman 62 McLean, VA
10 Bob Spencer 60 Williamsburg, VA
11 Cal Fowler 64 Keswick, VA
12 Mike Thorson 60 Alexandria, VA
13 Lou Shapiro 61 Silver Spring, MD
14 Maurice Davidson 60 Fredericksburg, VA
15 Joe Greene 60 Dumfries, VA
16 Stan Neumann 64 Timonium, MD
17 Dick Pierce 64 Rescue, VA
18 Joseph Clorety 60 Crownsville, MD
19 Mike Baziz 62 Baltimore, MD
20 Arthur Reynolds 63 Woodbridge, VA
21 Chet Coates 62 Silver Spring, MD
Men 65 - 69
All of the top 10 runners in the age group came from Virginia. A late correction placed Art Morey of Columbia, MD in first for 2003. Chan Robbins of Arlington, Virginia, third in 2002, takes the top spot. Two races were particularly competitive. At the Run vs. Row 10K, Robbins (45:19) beat third-ranked John Gluck (49:35) of Alexandria, Virginia and fourth-ranked Richard Williams (48:20) of Alexandria. Then at the Rockville Rotary Twilight 8K, Robbins (35:53) again beat Gluck (38:15) and Williams (39:17).
John Essery of Williamsburg, Virginia gets the second spot, based on his 1:43:33 at the Colonial Half-Marathon, beating Williams (1:47:47). In a close battle for third, Gluck gets the slight nod over Williams, having beaten him two out of three, the deciding race being Alexandria's May Day 5K, where Gluck (22:07) beat Williams (22:33). Fifth is Ken Quincy of Vienna, Virginia, whose best performance was a 37:42 at the Fair Lakes 8K.
Pl Name Age Hometown
1 Art Morey 66 Columbia, MD
2 Chan Robbins 65 Arlington, VA
3 John Essery 66 Williamsburg, VA
4 John Gluck 65 Alexandria, VA
5 Richard Williams 67 Alexandria, VA
6 Ken Quincy 65 Vienna, VA
7 Philip Hager 65 Falls Church, VA
8 Maynard Weyers 67 Alexandria, VA
9 Joe Polinski 65 Smithfield, VA
10 Alan Rider 67 Reston, VA
11 Chris Catoe 68 Virginia Beach, VA
12 Robert Smith 68 Comus, MD
13 Terence McCarthy 67 Leesburg, VA
Men 70 - 74
Jack McMahon of Rockville, Maryland goes from third in 2002 to first in 2003. The decision between McMahon and George Yannakakis of Sparks, Maryland was a very close one. At the St. Patrick's Day 10K, Yannakakis (45:51) trounced McMahon (48:55) and fifth-ranked Keith Olson (Photo) (51:54) of Silver Spring, Maryland, but at the Pike's Peek 10K McMahon (46:34) turned the tables on Yannakakis (47:49).
Ultimately the slight edge goes to McMahon, by virtue of his 47:17 at the Veterans Day 10K, defeating fourth-ranked Larry Dickerson (47:34). Yannakakis gets the nod for second, based on his 1:16:18 at the Cherry Blossom 10-Mile, beating fifth-ranked Olson (1:23:34), as well as his defeat of Olson at the St. Patrick's Day 10K. Third is Milton Taylor of Odenton, Maryland, whose performances include a 1:20:22 at the Seaside 10-Mile.
Pl Name Age Hometown
1 Jack McMahon 72 Rockville, MD
2 George Yannakakis 71 Sparks, MD
3 Milton Taylor 70 Odenton, MD
4 Larry Dickerson 71 Burke, VA
5 Keith Olson 71 Silver Spring, MD
6 George Waxter 72 Frederick, MD
7 Edward Jefferson 70 Norfolk, VA
8 Roswell Chamberlin 72 Arnold, MD
9 Fred Fauber 71 Lynchburg, VA
Men 75 - 79
The 75-79 age group continues to become larger and more competitive. Nianxiang Xie of Rockville, Maryland led three of the four ranking periods, and he takes the top spot. Head-to- head competition was lacking; the only matchup among the top eight runners was Rockville's Rotary Twilight 8K, where Xie (44:54) beat eighth-ranked Harry Bratt (48:03) of Bethesda, Maryland. Xie's times included a 1:25:19 at the Cherry Blossom 10-Mile.
Second in the category was last year's champion, Paul Lackey of Arlington, Virginia, whose best time was a 26:39 at the PACE Race 5K. Andrew Polansky of Williamsburg, Virginia was third, with his best race being a 26:51 at the Queen's Lake 5K.
Bill Foley of Catonsville, Maryland is fourth, with a 28:02 at the O'Doul's 5K to his credit, and Bill Morrison of Potomac, Maryland repeats his fifth-place ranking from 2002, with his best performance being a 48:16 at the Outback Steakhouse 8K.
Pl Name Age Hometown
1 Nianxiang Xie 75 Rockville, MD
2 Paul Lackey 78 Arlington, VA
3 Andrew Polansky 75 Williamsburg, VA
4 Bill Foley 78 Catonsville, MD
5 Bill Morrison 75 Potomac, MD
6 George Brown 77 Fork, MD
7 Harry Freestone 76 Charlottesville, VA
8 Harry Bratt 75 Bethesda, MD
9 Dixon Hemphill 78 Fairfax Station, VA
10 Joseph Bierman 76 Baltimore, MD
Men 80 & Above
Another expanding category is the 80+ division. Walt Washburn of Vienna, Virginia proved to be the class of the division, by leading it in every ranking period. The best race in the category was the (downhill) Pike's Peek 10K, where Washburn (57:50) beat second-ranked Frank Pierce (1:03:30) of Bethesda, Maryland, and fifth-ranked Bill Osburn (1:11:18) of Bethesda. Washburn's other times include a 1:36:57 at the Cherry Blossom 10-Mile and a 46:10 at the Outback Steakhouse 8K.
Third was Cokey Daman of Virginia Beach, the oldest man in the 2003 rankings, whose times include a 1:01:39 at the Elizabeth River Run 10K. Henryk Bukowski of Falls Church, Virginia is fourth, with his best performance being a 51:27 at the Van Metre 5-Mile. Fifth-ranked Osburn's best time since turning 80 was a 36:37 at the Rockville 5K.
Pl Name Age Hometown
1 Walt Washburn 80 Vienna, VA
2 Frank Pierce 80 Bethesda, MD
3 Cokey Daman 84 Virginia Beach, VA
4 Henryk Bukowski 83 Falls Church, VA
5 Bill Osburn 80 Bethesda, MD
6 Guy Riccio 82 Annapolis, MD
See the Women's Best of 2003 WRR Runner Rankings