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