Open Men
Photo at left by Kathy Freedman: Aaron Church of South Riding, VA, 13th in Open Men

Top honors in the open division this fall go to Blacksburg's Chris Seaton, who had his best race at the Ntelos 8K. He finished fourth overall, and was the first local runner to cross the line, with a time of 23:44, holding off very tough age group competition from our runner-up in these rankings, Peter Sherry of Great Falls. At the Ntelos race, Sherry was only 16 seconds back, coming across the finish line in 24:02. Seaton, to back up his Ntelos results, also won the Van Metre 5 Mile Run for Children's Hospital, with a time of 24:32. Sherry, to his credit, actually had his fastest race at the Georgetown Classic 10K, where he completed the course in 30:26, for a 10K equivalent time three seconds faster than his race in Richmond.

Ben Cooke, a strong 25-year-old from Floyd is our third place finisher this fall, a title he won by finishing the Paul VI Runfest in 14:50, for his best showing of the season. This was good enough for a sixth place overall finish, very impressive when one considers that the top five runners at this race were all professional runners training in this part of the country. Cooke ran 15:21 at the Rocky Mount 5K, which was good enough for a top five finish on that course.

Paul Spangler, yet another runner from the southern portion of our region, had a good day at the Ntelos race as well, and earned himself a slot in the top five runners in the open division. Spangler ran to a seventh place finish, not far behind Sherry, with a time of 24:37. Spangler was also impressive in his other qualifying race, a 52:04 third place finish at the Harrisonburg 10 Miler.

Washington's Kyle Smits won both races he entered this fall, which was enough to earn him the fourth place ranking. His fastest race came at the National Press Club 5K, where he was the first person to hit the finish line in a time of 15:16. He was also the victor at the 3M 5K, where he was made it from start to finish in 15:38.

Finally, Scott Lewandowski grabs the last slot in the top five; a title he earned largely when he beat out Jim Hage to win the Kensington 8K. He ran 26:14 to beat Hage by a mere ten seconds. This, however, was his slower race, as he ran the always-fast Great Allegeny 15K in 48:59 for second overall and his best race of the season.

Pl	Name              	Hometown
 1	Chris Seaton      	Blacksburg, VA
 2	Peter Sherry      	Great Falls, VA
 3	Ben Cooke        	Floyd, VA
 4	Paul Spangler     	Lexington, VA
 5	Kyle Smits        	Washington, DC
 6	Scott Lewandowski	Shippensburg, PA
 7	Ray Pugsley       	Annandale, VA
 8	Joel Brusewitz    	Baltimore, MD
 9	Eric Post       	Fairfax, VA
10	Eric Desautels          Arlington, VA
11	Jason Dowdy       	Roanoke, VA
12	Lake Stockdreher 	Harrisonburg, VA
13	Aaron Church     	South Riding, VA
14	David Spiller     	Harrisonburg, VA
15	Kareem Lanier     	Lincoln Univ, PA
16	Michael Wardian 	Arlington, VA
17	Christopher Dean	Alexandria, VA
18	Sean Dinces       	Annapolis, MD
19	Todd Martin      	Herndon, VA

Men 35 - 39
Photo at left by Kathy Freedman: Brad Rippey of Bunker Hill, WV, 7th in the men's 35 - 39 division

In the men's 35-39, most of the top rankings were determined at the large area races this fall, in particular the Army Ten Miler, the Marine Corps Marathon, and the Georgetown Classic 10K. Leading the charge in this group is Darrell General, who is certainly no stranger to the top of these rankings. General won his age division (12th overall) at the Army Ten Miler 51:55, which converts to a very impressive 31:14 10K equivalent. He was a few seconds faster in his other race, however, the United We Stand 10K, where he ran 31:09.

Our second ranked runner is the exception to the big race rule in this division, as he had his best qualifying time at the Mulberry Island Half Marathon, where he ran 1:13:11, making him clearly the second fastest man in this division, behind General. This man, John Piggott, backed up his Mulberry Island race with a strong showing at the Marathon in the Parks, running into sixth place in 2:41:45.

The Georgetown Classic 10K was Chris Chattin's opportunity to shine this fall, and in doing so, he earns himself the third place ranking. His 33:35 was good enough to put him in the top 15 overall, and beat all the ranked age group competition. He also finished in the top five at the Jones Falls Express 8K, where he ran 28:09 for his second qualifying time.

Fourth place was earned at the Army Ten Miler, where Tom Purcell of Norfolk ran 57:29, leaving him 17th in the division. Purcell, likely using this race as a tune-up for a big fall marathon, chose the Richmond Marathon, where he ran 2:43:30.

Fifth place belongs to Mike Haney, who earns his slot by simply being faster than anyone ranked below him. Haney, who got his qualifying times at small races, had his best race at the Midlothian Blaze 5K, where he crossed the line in second place, with a time of 16:35 for his best race of the season. He also had a top three finish at the Autumn Harvest 10K, where he covered the course in 35:21.

Pl	Name              	Hometown
 1	Darrell General 	Mitchellville, MD 
 2	John Piggott      	Williamsburg, VA
 3	Chris Chattin     	Columbia, MD
 4	Tom Purcell       	Norfolk, VA
 5	Mike Haney	
 6	Kevin Stover      	York, PA
 7	Brad Rippey       	Bunker Hill, WV
 8	Malcolm Lester    	Washington, DC
 9	Scott Mersiowsky	Fredericksburg, VA
10	Dan Murphy        	Bethesda, MD
11	Sean Killeen	
12	Douglas Marocco 	Quantico, VA
13	Stephen Dillard 	Baltimore, MD
14	Scott Douglas     	Bethesda, MD
15	Jeff Kostoff      	Gaithersburg, MD

Men 40 - 44
Kensington's Jim Hage is once again atop the men's masters division. At age 44, Hage is still a force to be reckoned with, both for those in his division, and for many men a decade or two younger. Hage had his best race this fall at the Georgetown Classic 10K, where he finished just outside the top ten overall and won the masters division in a time of 32:38. This obviously was not Hage's only qualifying time; he also won the National Capital 20 Miler in 1:53:34, and was second at the Kensington 8K in 26:14.

Dave Berardi, who hails from Baltimore, is our masters division runner-up this fall. He earns this slot by being the next fastest man behind Hage, a mantle he earned when he finished the Georgetown race just over a minute behind Hage, in 33:42, for his fastest run of the fall. Berardi also won the BWI Airport 5K in 16:23, and was in the top ten at the Paul VI Runfest.

After this, things got more complicated. Ted Poulos and Joe Abernethy both had very strong fall seasons. Amazingly, the two men ran head-to-head only once; at the Kensington 8K, where Abernethy triumphed by less than 30 seconds. The Kensington race was Abernethy's fastest showing. However, Poulos had eight qualifying times faster than his race at the Kensington 8K. Poulos, probably the area's most prolific runner, had a total of 13 qualifying times, the fastest of which (on a properly marked course) was a third in division 56:18 finish at the Army Ten Miler. As a result, we awarded Poulos the third place ranking, and Abernethy fourth, an honor he well deserves for tracking down Poulos in their one head-to-head meeting.

Steve Dietz of Springfield is the final recipient of a ranking in the top five in this very competitive masters division. He had three strong races--8th in the division at the Army Ten Miler in 57:34, 16th overall at the Fair Lakes 8K, and a top ten finish at the United We Stand 10K, where he cruised over the finish line in 34:40.

 Pl	Name              	Hometown
  1	Jim Hage          	Kensington, MD
  2	Dave Berardi      	Baltimore, MD
  3	Ted Poulos        	McLean, VA
  4	Joe Abernethy     	College Park, MD
  5	Steve Dietz       	Springfield, VA
  6	Neville Anderson	Baltimore, MD
  7	Mark Jones        	Fairfax, VA
  8	David Haaga       	Rockville, MD
  9	Bill Bustin       	Yorktown, VA
 10	Chris Samley      	Charlottesville, VA
 11	Layne Party     	Towson, MD
 12	Dennis Contois    	Lawrenceville, NJ
 13	James Lynch     	Arlington, VA
 14	Mark Malander     	Oak Hill, VA
 15	Ronald Hess     	Takoma Park, MD
 16	Jean-Christopher Arcaz	Rockville, MD
 17	Terry McLaughlin	Spotsylvania, VA
 18	Wayne Cottrell    	Layton, UT
 19	Raymond A. Ochs 	Virginia Beach, VA
 20	James Dunn       	Leesburg, VA
 21	Jay Sweet         	Laurel, MD
 22	Jeff Regelman     	Reston, VA
 23	Craig Hanner      	Glen Allen, VA
 24	Steven Hubbard    	Grovetown, GA

Men 45 - 49
Photo at left by Kathy Freedman: Bruce Halpin (46) of Ashburn, VA, 10th in the men's 45 - 49 division

As the fifth place finisher at the Army Ten Miler among all runners over age 40, Dan Lawson is clearly deserving of top honors in the fall rankings. His time of 55:33 at the Army race represents his fastest performance of the season, and was the second fastest 10K equivalent time (by a mere second) turned in by any man ranked in this group. Lawson was also a participant in the United We Stand 10K, where he finished fourth in 33:46, and at the Paul VI Runfest, where he finished 10th with a time of 16:25.

Arlington's Steven Anderson also had a noteworthy performance at the Army race, winning the men's 45-49 division in 57:01. Anderson also ran the Marine Corps Marathon, where he finished in 2:56:31, good enough for sixth place in his division. These two fine results at important races earn him the second place ranking in this division.

It was a little further north, at Baltimore's Comcast Marathon, where the third and fourth rankings were determined. Reston's Steven Ward and Morgantown's Ed Frohnapfel battled it out, with Ward coming out ahead in 2:41:11 (34:35 10K equivalent), while Frohnapfel finished in 2:45:47 (35:35 10K equivalent). Ward, therefore, takes the third place ranking, while Frohnapfel finishes fourth. Ward actually had his fastest time at the Georgetown Classic 10K, where he ran 34:31, while Frohnapfel's best show was a 51:22 at the Great Allegeny 15K (33:24 10K equivalent).

Finally, James Bates is our choice for the last slot in the top five, an honor we have given him in recognition of a very fast 16:43 at the 5K Run for Hospice at Ford's Colony. He also tackled the SunTrust Richmond Marathon, where he ran considerably slower, finishing in 3:01:03.

 Pl	Name              	Hometown
  1	Dan Lawson        	Gaithersburg, MD
  2	Steven Anderson 	Arlington, VA
  3	Steven Ward       	Reston, VA
  4	Ed Frohnapfel     	Morgantown, WV
  5	James Bates       	Hampton, VA
  6	Pete Gibson       	Murfreesboro, NC
  7	David Webster    	Stevensville, MD
  8	Jim Wadsworth     	Washington, DC
  9	Maurice Pointer 	Baltimore, MD
 10	Bruce Halpin       	Ashburn, VA
 11	David Andrews    	Bethesda, MD
 12	Steve Thompson	
 13	Denis McDonald    	Woodbine, MD
 14	Bruce Hamilton    	Fairfax, VA
 15	Steven Lerner     	Glen Allen, VA
 16	Stephen Chantry 	Williamsburg, VA
 17	Kevin Finnegan    	Alexandria, VA
 18	Bill Peeling      	Milton, DE
 19	Jeff Good        	Ellicott City, MD
 20	Tom Gillman     	Williamsburg, VA
 21	Neal Riemenschneider	Winchester, VA

Men 50 - 54
Sterling's Chuck Moeser (Photo at left by Kathy Freedman) is once again at the top of this division; an honor we frequently bestow on him because he is the fastest man in Washington over the age of 50. Moeser's best race this fall came at the Vanguard Run for Recovery, where he ran 16:51. And, if there was any question as to the claim that he is the fastest runner in this group, he also ran 16:59 at the Paul VI Runfest, making him the undisputed champ in this group.

At the Army Ten Miler, a great opportunity for the top runners in the area to see how they rate in head-to-head competition, Jay Wind and Timothy Morgan battled it out. Morgan ran 1:00:22, while Wind ran 1:00:41, good enough for first and second place in the division. As a result of this race, we have awarded Morgan the second place ranking, while Wind settles nicely into the third slot. In addition to this race, Morgan had two other qualifying times; the LAWS Run for Shelter Half-Marathon, where he ran 1:27:25, and the Little Bennett Cross Country 5K, where he kept it under 20:00, finishing the course in 19:58.

Wind, our third place finisher, of course, never has any shortage of qualifying times, finishing the fall ranking period with 11, including a 2:55:02 at the Marine Corps Marathon and a 38:50 at the Georgetown Classic 10K.

Richard Adams and Bill Guerrant are our fourth and fifth place finishers, based on their down-to-the-wire showing at the Georgetown Classic. Guerrant, however, is a strong fourth place finisher in this division; an honor he earns by besting 37:16 to Adams's 37:26. Both men also bested Jay Wind at the Georgetown race. In addition to the stellar show they put on through the streets of Georgetown, Guerrant ran 37:39 at the Pepsi 10K, while Adams ran 37:01 at the United We Stand 10K.

Photo below by Kathy Freedman: Gary Guenther of Arlington, VA, 24th in the men's 50 - 54 division

 Pl	Name               	Hometown
  1	Chuck Moeser      	Sterling, VA
  2	Timothy Morgan     	Damascus, MD
  3	Jay Wind          	Arlington, VA
  4	Bill Guerrant     	Charlottesville, VA
  5	Richard Adams, Jr.	Herndon, VA
  6	Richard Morgan    	Silver Spring, MD
  7	Rick Platt        	Williamsburg, VA
  8	Mick Slonaker   	Columbia, MD
  9	Bill Hart         	Virginia Beach, VA
 10	Rudolph Pekarek 	Kinsale, VA
 11	George Neil     	Williamsburg, VA
 12	Shah Mehrabi     	Fredericksburg, VA
 13	Gary St. Onge    	Westminster, MD
 14	Dave Crawford     	Arlington, VA
 15	James Moreland    	Gaithersburg, MD
 16	Dan Dawson        	Keyser, WV
 17	Larry Coley       	Chesapeake, VA
 18	Ron Greene        	Fairfax, VA
 19	Richard Pyle      	Richmond, VA
 20	Dan Eddy          	Kingstowne, VA
 21	Earl Swartzendruber	Cockeysville, MD
 22	Thomas Bernard    	Gloucester, VA
 23	Peter Lunt        	Alexandria, VA
 24	Gary Guenther     	Arlington, VA
 25	Richard Morris    	Powahatan, VA
 26	Pat Garvey        	Bethesda, MD
 27	Rob Astrop	
 28	Patrick Gary      	Millers, MD
 29	David Brunk       	Richmond, VA

Men 55 - 59
Three men in the 55-59 division are still able to run sub-40:00 10K equivalent times, and, as a result, these three men take the top three slots in the fall rankings. Running in at number one is Patrick Griffith of Alexandria, who ran 1:01:29 at the Army Ten Miler, to finish second in the division (first among ranked runners). Griffith, always a prolific runner, had a total of 12 qualifying times, all of which translate into 10K equivalent times under 40:00, and which were also the top 12 times run by ranked men this fall.

Second place in this division belongs to Dick Paterson based on his third-in-division finish at the Army Ten Miler, where he ran 1:05:50, for his best race of the season. Paterson was also on hand at the LAWS Run for Shelter Half-Marathon and the Fair Lakes 8K.

The only other man able to turn in a 10K equivalent under 40:00 is the group's other exceedingly prolific runner, Catonsville's Ronnie Wong. Wong's best race was a 19:06 at the BWI Airport 5K; however, he also had eight other qualifying times in the low 40:00 10K equivalent range. He was also on hand at a number of big races, including both Baltimore's Comcast Marathon (3:23:13) and the Marine Corps Marathon (3:09:04).

Fourth place was earned at the Northern Central Trail Half Marathon, where Louis Pilsch ran 1:29:57 for his best race of the season. Pilsch obviously likes the half marathon distance, as his other qualifying time came at the Bachman Valley Half- Marathon, where he covered the course in 1:32:16.

We had a battle for the fifth and sixth place rankings between Steve Tyndall and Emmons Welch, who lined up to do battle at the Ntelos 8K. Tyndall came across the line in 32:14 with Welch hot on his heels only four seconds back; however, this was enough to award Tyndall the fifth slot, and Emmons must settle for sixth this fall.

 Pl	Name               	Hometown
  1	Patrick Griffith	Alexandria, VA
  2	Dick Paterson     	Fairfax, VA
  3	Ronnie Wong       	Catonsville, MD
  4	Louis Pilsch	
  5	Steve Tyndall     	Yorktown, VA
  6	Emmons Welch      	Batesville, VA
  7	Jim Noone       	Fairfax, VA
  8	John Loughran     	Sandston, VA
  9	Michael Golash    	Washington, DC
 10	Dennis LaMountain	Richmond, VA
 11	Clifford Gaddy    	Kensington, MD
 12	William Scott     	Glen Arden, MD
 13	Mark Patterson    	Virginia Beach, VA
 14	Chris Riley	
 15	Gary Chidester    	Dale City, VA

Men 60 - 64
The men's 60-64 division was, as always, large and very competitive. Our leader this fall is Richard Stotlar, who is the only man in this group to run 10K equivalent times under 40:00. He had two qualifying times, the faster of which was a 1:04:39 (38:54 10K equivalent) at the Seaside 10 Miles; however, he proved this was no fluke by running a 1:27:01 at the Bachman Valley Half-Marathon.

Our second ranked runner is John Elliott, turning in the third fastest time posted by men ranked in this group, a feat he accomplished at the Jug Bay 10K, where he ran 40:09. Third place goes to John Haubert, who had his best show at the Fair Lakes 8K, where he ran 32:09; translating to a 40:47 10K equivalent. Haubert also had three other qualifying times, including age group success at the National Press Club 5K, the Spring Valley/Sumner 5K, and the Vanguard Run for Recovery. Fourth place in these rankings belongs to yet another John--Parkville's John Pitarra. Pitarra's best race was a 1:29:55 at the Northern Central Trail Half-Marathon, where, even at the age of 60, he was able to finish in the top 20 overall.

A runner from the southern reaches of our region, Mel Williams, is our fifth ranked runner this fall, a spot he earns with an age group win at the Marine Corps Marathon with a time of 3:11:31, for his best race of the season. Williams also ran the Norfolk Half-Marathon and the Cape Henry 15K well under the qualifying standard.

 Pl	Name              	Hometown
  1	Richard Stotlar	
  2	John Elliott      	Columbia, MD
  3	John Haubert      	Alexandria, VA
  4	John Pitarra    	Parkville, MD
  5	Mel Williams      	Norfolk, VA
  6	Cal Fowler        	Springfield, VA
  7	Robert Wright	
  8	Bob Spearing      	Alexandria, VA
  9	Ed Brinkley       	Virginia Beach, VA
 10	Jim Becker        	Greencastle, PA
 11	Art Morey        	Columbia, MD
 12	Talbot Mack       	Middleburg, VA
 13	John C Munday Jr.	Chesapeake, VA
 14	Mike Thorson       	Alexandria, VA
 15	Malcolm O'Hagan  	Chevy Chase, MD
 16	Maurice Davidson	Fredericksburg, VA
 17	Dick Peacock	
 18	Lou Shapiro       	Silver Spring, MD
 19	Marvin Bridges    	Cumberland, MD
 20	Terry Derk        	Dauphin, PA
 21	Chet Coates	
 22	Dick Pierce       	Rescue, VA
 23	Jim Verdier       	Alexandria, VA
 24	Mike Baziz       	Baltimore, MD
 25	Benito Vazquez    	Laurel, MD
 26	Joseph Hulings    	Burke, VA
 27	Charles Terrell 	Newport News, VA
 28	Alexander Liebowitz	
 29	Joe Lowrie        	Fairfield, CT
 30	Bob Rugg	

Men 65 - 69
Tom Ray, who hails from Kitty Hawk, NC, is a frequent runner in the southern reaches of our region, and, as such, is very often included in the Washington Running Report rankings. This fall, we find him atop the 65-69 division, an honor he earns with four very fast qualifying times, including a very impressive 1:11:53 at the Army Ten Miler, arguably the most important race of the fall. This performance also represents the fastest race by any man ranked in this division. To back up his results at the Army race, Ray also ran 3:32:33 at the Richmond Marathon, good enough for the third fastest time turned in by a man ranked in this group.

The second and third rankings in this group were hotly contested. Arlington's Chan Robbins and Alexandria's Richard Williams went head to head twice, with each man emerging victorious on one occasion. At the Georgetown Classic 10K, Williams came out on top of Robbins by a 47 second margin; completing the course in 46:33. At the Fair Lakes 8K, however, it was Robbins's turn to be on top, crossing the line in 35:56 to Williams's 37:17. In the end, we have awarded Robbins the second place ranking, due to the fact that his race at Fair Lakes was the second fastest time run by any man ranked in this group. Williams must settle for third this fall, still an impressive season.

Armand Zambardi grabs our fourth slot, on the strength of his 36:45 run at the Ntelos 8K. Zambardi got his second time at the Pepsi 10K, where he ran 47:23. Finally, rounding out the top five we have Philip Hager of Falls Church, who earns his slot simply by being faster than anyone ranked below him, as he didn't go head-to-head with any of the gentlemen in this group. Hager's best race was a 46:57 at the Wings Over Loudoun 10K.

 Pl	Name               	Hometown
  1	Tom Ray           	Kitty Hawk, NC
  2	Chan Robbins      	Arlington, VA
  3	Richard Williams	Alexandria, VA
  4	Armand Zambardi 	Charlottesville, VA
  5	Philip Hager      	Falls Church, VA
  6 	Henry Hatch       	Oakton, VA
  7	John Gluck       	Alexandria, VA
  8	Chris Catoe      	Virginia Beach, VA
  9 	Bill Fitzgerald 	Fairfax Station, VA
 10	Alan Rider        	Reston, VA
 11	Robert Smith     	Comus, MD
 12	Milton Taylor    	Odenton, MD
 13	Terrence McCarthy	Leesburg, VA

Men 70 -74
The only head-to-head competition this fall in this age group among the ranked men came at the Georgetown Classic 10K. George Yannakakis, Jack McMahon, and Don McCarten all lined up to race through the streets of Georgetown. Yannakakis, who finished in a very impressive 44:42, managed also to earn the top slot in the fall rankings by posting the fastest 10K equivalent time, nearly four minutes faster than the time posted by the next fastest man.

The next fastest man is Jack McMahon, who had his best race at the Georgetown Classic as well--a 48:15 showing. McMahon's other race was the Fair Lakes 8K, where he covered the course in 39:25.

Larry Dickerson of Burke is our third ranked man, a place he earns with two identical times at different 5Ks. At the Run 'Round Robinson 5K and the Navy Federal 5K, he managed two 24:02 performances, good enough to secure third in the division.

Finally, Donald McCarten is our fourth ranked runner in this group, a spot he earns by running two qualifying races--a 54:30 at the Georgetown race and a 26:13 at the Vanguard Run for Recovery.

Pl	Name              	Hometown
 1	George Yannakakis	Sparks, MD
 2	Jack McMahon      	Rockville, MD
 3	Larry Dickerson 	Burke, VA
 4	Donald McCarten 	Falls Church, VA

Men 75 & Over
Eight men age 75 and beyond earned spots in the fall rankings in posting at least two qualifying times. Leading the charge is Rockville's Nianxiang Xie, who posted two qualifying times, the fastest of which was a fourth place finish in the over 70 division at the Army Ten Miler, where he made it across the line in 50:40. Xie's second time was a 42:38 at the Kensington 8K.

Walt Washburn is the only other man in this division still capable of running a sub-hour 10K equivalent time, and, as a result, he earns the runner-up slot in these rankings. Washburn managed seven such qualifying times, including a 26:45 at the Arlington 9-11 Memorial 5K, a 1:33:03 at the Army Ten Miler, and a 4:28:36 at the Marine Corps Marathon, proving he is a consistent runner at a wide variety of distances.

Bill Morrison and Bill Osburn went head to head three times this fall and Osburn came out ahead in all three cases, thus making him third in this division, while Morrison settles for fourth. At the Vanguard Run for Recovery, Osburn ran 29:09 to Morrison's 30:07. At the Somerset Back to School 8K, it was considerably closer, with Osburn racing in a mere nine seconds ahead of Morrison.

Finally, rounding out the top five is George Brown, who had his best race at the IND Race for Energy, where he ran 30:04. Brown was also on hand at the Dare to Discover Baer, where he ran 30:55.

Pl	Name      	Hometown
 1	Nianxiang Xie	Rockville, MD
 2	Walt Washburn	Vienna, VA
 3	Bill Osburn	Bethesda, MD
 4	Bill Morrison	Potomac, MD
 5	George Brown	Glen Arm, MD
 6	Cokey Daman	Virginia Beach, VA
 7	Dixon Hemphill	Fairfax, VA
 8	Mo Stevens	

See the Women's Autumn 2002 WRR Runner Rankings.