By Brenda Barrera
Washington, DC
October 30, 2011
For the Washington Running Report
Charles Ware wins it all in a near Olympic-class 2:19:16.
What a weekend with so many elements of drama. A rare fall storm hit the mid-Atlantic on Saturday bringing not only rain, but hail, sleet, slush, and snow. On Sunday, however, the skies cleared in time for the 36th Marine Corps Marathon where Army 1st Lt. Charles “Chad” Ware from Wheeling, IL won in an impressive 2:19:16 and Tezata Dengera, from Ellicott City, MD by way of Turkey, claimed the women’s title in 2:45:28.
With early morning temperatures hovering in the mid 30s and a slight breeze kicking up, there was nary a trace of the storm from the prior day except for a few slick spots on the roads and muddy fields as 20,895 runners completed ‘The People’s Marathon’ under bright sunshine and blue skies.
“Cold weather is a good thing for me,” smiled Ware, 27, as he soaked in his victory after giving thanks by looking upward, giving the number one sign and breaking the finish line tape.
A head taller than most of the lead runners, the lanky Midwesterner was easy to spot during the race. “I felt good through the early hills,” he said, then lost a little ground at mile 13 before he made his move at mile 19 to take the lead for the rest of the race.
When asked, Ware claimed he was not aiming for the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials standard time of 2:19:00, but he knew it was within his grasp.
“If I kept on 5:18s [per mile], I knew I could get it,” he acknowledged. By the last couple of miles, however, he slowed a bit, narrowly missing the qualifying standard by 16 seconds.
Brushing off that topic, Ware emphasized the honor to run for the All-Army Team. “It’s a privilege to be able to represent the Army and wear the Army singlet,” he said. An Army Reservist, he will be going on active duty this January.
While most of Ware’s competition was either dropped or dropped out, stalwart Michael Wardian, who gives his all whether the distance is a 5K, 42K, or 100K, was trying to reel in the leader.
“I saw him at Crystal City and thought that wasn’t too far,” remarked Wardian who thought he might be able to catch Ware but was not able to do so. The Arlington running icon took the runner-up spot three minutes later in 2:23:46. Representing the Coast Guard, Patrick Fernandez, 24, from Alexandria finished next in 2:26:37.
Finishing in the top ten was Adam Condit, (left) a familiar runner on the local scene who recently moved to Cedar Rapids, IA. Condit ran the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon two weeks ago finishing in 2:27:20. At this race he ran 2:29:28 to clinch 5th place.
The women’s competition as not decided until after the 35K mark where the trio of Tezata Dengera (217), Emily Shertzer (146), and Getachew Shiferaw(3) all went through in 2:16:44 battling for top honors. It was after that mark when Dengera and Shertzer pulled away from Shiferaw, making it a two-woman race to the finish. Dengera prevailed to cross the finish line 27 seconds ahead of her competition, 2:45:28 to 2:45:55.
In photo race winner Dengera (217) races in a tight pack through Georgetown early in the race.
Two weeks ago Dengera ran the Under Armour Baltimore Marathon finishing 7th among the women in 2:37:52. So it is understandable that, while her time was a bit slower, capturing the victory was certainly sweet.
Shertzer, 31, from Jonestown, PA and representing the Air Force, made her marathon début this past May at the National Guard/Lincoln Marathon. On Sunday, she crushed her May début time (2:54:20) with her 2:45:55 runner-up finish and also qualified for the U.S. Olympic Marathon Team Trials. Shiferaw, 27, from Ellicott City, MD (ETH) took the final podium spot with her 2:47:30.
Arlington’s Lindsay Wilkins, 33, cracked the top 10 with her 6th place finish in 2:53:28 after running the Bank of America Chicago Marathon two weeks ago where she posted a 2:50:41.
Top wheelchair finishers in the rim category were Jacqui Kapinowski, 48, from Point Pleasant NJ in 2:05:46 and David Swope, 45, New Windsor MD in 2:12:12. The wheelchair crank field boasted almost 100 competitors. Leading the way in this division were Scot Seiss, 44, from Ricky Ridge, MD who crossed the finish 1:28:41 and Erica Davis, 30, from Carlsbad, CA who was the first woman in 2:13:52.
Most runners did not recognize a participant without his trademark wide-rim black glasses, but TV host and comedian Drew Carey, 53, finished his first marathon in 4:37:11. Carey finished 555th among the 1,170 competitors in the 50-54 age group.
Also among the marathon finishers . . .
Chas Bellew, 27, from Washington, DC who ran at Princeton decided to enter this race in 2010 and posted a 3:00:53 finish. He improved this year, bringing his time down quite a bit to 2:38:53.
Wearing bib #101, two-time Marine Corps Marathon champion Darrell General (1995, 1997), who is 45, ran a 2:48:06, placing third in his age group and 72nd overall. “My legs never loosened up,” he said afterward.
Kaitlin Koplin, 27, (left) from Washington, DC tried hard to break 3 hours but had a hard time warming up. She had to settle for 3:00:13. “I was still cold even at mile 8,” she said.
Speaking of cold, Maria Kozloski, 46, (right) from Bethesda, MD was all smiles at the finish but laughed as she recalled the chills earlier in the morning, “My teeth couldn’t stop chattering at the start.” Kozloski’s 3:08:54 was good enough for a second place in her age division. She has now completed 20 marathons.
Caroline Bauer, 28, from Columbia, MD credits the group runs with the Howard County Striders for helping her finish in 3:17:35.
Among the many runners who raced in a costume was Sean Kelly, 25, from Annapolis MD. Here is a clue to his race day outfit: What is black and white and waddles? Yup, he donned a penguin suit and finished the race in 4:20:31. Kelly said the comments along the route included: “Go Penguin!” “Great, now I’m getting beat by a penguin!” and “Go Happy Feet!”
Araceli Uranga, 40, from Vienna, VA was dressed in pink from head to toe, including a tutu and even ran with a wand. Her time was 3:50:25.
At the runner finish area, Matt Stevenson, 40, from Arlington was happy to get off his feet and rested with his back against a fence, soaking up a little sun after finishing his 6th Marine Corps Marathon in 4:34:29.
The MCM 10K had 6,867 finishers and a new course record. Reuben Mwei, 25, from Acworth, GA handily won in 30:37, smashing the former record of 32:52 (Wyatt Boyd, 2009). Brian Dumm, 28, from Colorado Springs, CO finished next in 32:52 followed by the top local, Luke Belford, 29, from Nottingham, MD who finished the race in 33:13.
In the women’s 10K competition, Navy Lt. Amanda Rice, 27, from North Bethesda, MD, cruised to a 36:30 win. Rice said in an E-mail that being a member of the Armed Forces made the experience even more rewarding. Showing her competitive side, Rice admitted to adjusting her game plan mid-race from not only winning the women’s title, but seeing how many men she could beat. Her overall place was 14th and she beat 2,708 men. Jennifer Perrottet, 31, from San Marcos, CA took the runner-up spot in 39:22 and was followed by the top local Christine Rehwald, 32, from Arlington who crossed the line under 40 minutes with her 39:54 finish.
By James Moreland
Arlington, VA
September 25, 2011
For the Washington Running Report
Wounded Warriors led the way at the 8th Navy 5 Mile.
In its eighth year the race was on pace for a big boost over last year’s 1936 finishers. There were nearly 3,000 racers signed up. After being unmercifully dry in the summer, the last month has been swimmingly wet. One of the volunteers noted before the race, “The dew point and the temperature are the same. I don’t envy you racing today.” We had been promised rain all weekend and both mornings were essentially dry. It was going to be great to race!
Just after the racers lined up behind the ChronoTrack mats, the region’s godfather of running, George Banker, announced the color guard. They marched up in dress whites and we proudly listened to our National Anthem. As in past years there was an early start for our Wounded Warriors. That field was not as large as last year but they were even more enthusiastic. The bell was rung and they were off. Three minutes later the rest of the massive field raced east along the channel for the fast first mile.
The field included many younger runners, perhaps more than most of the other local races. (It should be noted that the oldest age group did change this year from 60-99 to 70-99. If you build them a division they will come.) Also in an increasingly common manner, there were more women than men among the finishers. Enthusiasm got the best of many of the runners. By the time the field wrapped back on itself at 1,000 meters some of the runners were finding their feet as heavy as the moisture in the air.P
In last year’s event Paul Hill, 21, of Annapolis, MD had a wonderful 27:43 to finish second overall behind Omari Daughtridge’s 26:55. This year Hill had plans to run that winning time. He almost made it improving to 26:57, again coming up one place short of victory. It was just the ninth time a runner had broken 27:00. The event record was set in 2008 at 26:22 when the race was run in West Potomac Park. Rest assured that the half mile behemoth of a hill in the fourth mile cost race winner (left) Patrick Fernandez, 24, of Alexandria, VA (26:23) the event record. He does have the course record of course. Chas Ballew was third in a fine 27:51.
For the women, only once has the winner broken 31:00, when Martha Merz raced 30:39 in 2006. The next year Ofelia Perotti, 51, became the oldest winner.
Only one other time has the winner broken 32:00 when Makely Lyon crossed first in 2009 with 31:54. She was runner-up last year in 32:35.
This year she was absent so Christine Rehwald (below right) stepped up and finished the race in front of 1000 women. Her time of 32:12 was one of the top five fastest times, the second best of the new course. The next two racers were spaced out with Anna Bernal arriving second in 32:48, followed by Margaret Smith in 33:22.
The generous masters division went to the top three finishers. John Zimmerman reprised his 2010 win (30:25) with a much improved 29:00. That is even more impressive considering the much better racing weather last year. Last year both second place masters were in their fifties. This year Toby Warden won for the women. Second place Kris Barner, 46, of Rockville, MD is no stranger to masters wins. The day before she was tops at the Kensington 8K. That course’s topography is amazingly like the Navy’s, with a killer decelerator just past 3 miles.
All during the event there was a great band playing for the runners’ enjoyment. It did seem to feature songs from an era favoring us older runners. Yes! There were water stops but Jack and Jill had to go up that hill to get a cup of water. Better still was to hydrate before and hope for the best. After the race, I was asked if maybe I should have worn some clothes with better wicking capability. After catching our breath, George Banker’s loudspeaker asked, “If you are still smiling, then maybe you still have something left.” Just turn and walk away; head over to the refreshments which included bottled water, fresh fruit, and the best muffins a race could have. At least the first three were.
Next year the weather will be cooler and the numbers will probably grow 50%.
The first two finishers go for the tie.
1 2003 Patrick Fernandez 24 Alexandria VA 26:23
2 2603 Paul Hill 21 Annapolis MD 26:57
3 183 Chas Ballew 27 Washington DC 27:51
FEMALE OPEN
1 2585 Christine Rehwald 31 Arlington VA 32:12
2 2820 Anna Bernal 23 Quantico VA 32:48
3 437 Margaret Smith 31 Fort Belvoir VA 33:22
MALE MASTERS
1 1842 John Zimmerman 45 McLean VA 29:00
2 1845 Doug Perry 44 Alexandria VA 31:08
3 2326 Warren Djuric 49 Springfield VA 31:41
FEMALE MASTERS
1 2776 Toby Warden 44 Alexandria VA 36:42
2 2911 Kris Barner 46 Rockville MD 37:22
3 1052 Kimberly Person 46 Arlington VA 37:38
MALE WHEELCHAIR
1 10 Robert MacKey 48 Rockville MD 20:34
2 14 David Neumer 48 Rockville MD 20:34
FEMALE WHEELCHAIR
1 1648 Barbara Bowling 47 Vienna VA 33:36
MALE AGE GROUP: 01 - 14
1 940 Samuel Garner 11 Odenton MD 40:21
2 678 Zachary Sims 12 Owings MD 44:42
3 2208 Alexander Lee 12 Montclair VA 45:44
FEMALE AGE GROUP: 01 - 14
1 2198 Hunter Hullinger 11 Lorton VA 51:45
2 1712 Erykah Skinner 13 Great Mills MD 52:39
3 654 Gail Muggill 13 Arlington VA 53:56
MALE AGE GROUP: 15 - 19
1 2008 Shyheim Council 16 Germantown MD 36:37
2 2926 Dylan Houle 19 Washington DC 37:14
3 719 Michael Grieg 16 Arlington VA 39:19
FEMALE AGE GROUP: 15 - 19
1 2611 Jackie Chimiak 19 Annapolis MD 36:28
2 2612 Margaret Gilroy 19 Annapolis MD 39:05
3 172 Elena Alicea 16 Alexandria VA 42:16
MALE AGE GROUP: 20 - 24
1 2606 Brian Real 21 Annapolis MD 29:15
2 2602 Michael Haydell 21 East Jordan MI 29:30
3 2604 Mathew McIntyre 21 Annapolis MD 30:14
FEMALE AGE GROUP: 20 - 24
1 2610 Kimberly Bernardy 21 Highland CA 36:07
2 6 Theresa Funk 23 Rockville MD 37:06
3 2613 Whitney Irby 21 Annapolis MD 37:15
MALE AGE GROUP: 25 - 29
1 2930 Dwayne Rax 29 Washington DC 29:24
2 2901 Nicholas Brown 29 Arlington VA 32:00
3 2103 Brian Klesh 27 Arlington VA 32:47
FEMALE AGE GROUP: 25 - 29
1 577 Jessica Schwartz 25 Arlington VA 35:52
2 2862 Christine Monahan 25 Washington DC 35:59
3 2505 Colleen Mothander 29 Alexandria VA 36:08
MALE AGE GROUP: 30 - 34
1 21 Matthew Aberant 31 Vienna VA 30:42
2 2001 Scott McCann 30 Alexandria VA 30:47
3 2681 Kevin Hanson 31 Anacostia Annex DC 32:08
FEMALE AGE GROUP: 30 - 34
1 2871 Emily Reuter 31 Arlington VA 35:27
2 1576 Amanda Urquhart 32 Columbia MD 36:20
3 933 Susan Park 34 Washington DC 37:47
MALE AGE GROUP: 35 - 39
1 1342 Brian Heidt 35 Silver Spring MD 29:59
2 2609 Nathan Nudelman 35 Annapolis MD 30:07
3 2927 Brian Beary 35 Washington DC 30:20
FEMALE AGE GROUP: 35 - 39
1 448 Heather Barackman 36 Arlington VA 36:18
2 2312 Lauren Glaze 35 Baltimore MD 37:14
3 2054 Angel Boord 39 Washington DC 37:30
MALE AGE GROUP: 40 - 44
1 2729 Bryan McEnaney 42 Springfield VA 32:09
2 2734 Brett Surbey 43 Fairfax VA 32:17
3 811 Andres Rodriguez 40 Arlington VA 33:45
FEMALE AGE GROUP: 40 - 44
1 535 Jen Norris 40 McLean VA 37:39
2 1599 Yuki Riley 42 Bolling Afb DC 38:23
3 1876 Marie Godwin 41 Broadlands VA 41:02
MALE AGE GROUP: 45 - 49
1 1945 Kennie Edwards 45 Baltimore MD 32:36
2 1132 James Beckett 48 Fairfax VA 33:48
3 2141 Bob Rote 49 Geneva IL 35:39
FEMALE AGE GROUP: 45 - 49
1 532 Mary Bowman 46 Silver Spring MD 39:16
2 1424 Mery-Angela Katson 47 San Antonio TX 39:19
3 2918 Denise Coutlakis 47 Arlington VA 40:03
MALE AGE GROUP: 50 - 54
1 2026 Steven Desantis 50 California MD 32:41
2 1844 David Johnson 50 Burke VA 32:43
3 445 Kevin Fitzgerald 53 Washington DC 34:25
FEMALE AGE GROUP: 50 - 54
1 2079 Kathie Watson 52 Alexandria VA 39:05
2 65 Donna Hoffmeier 52 Arlington VA 41:48
3 2902 Marcia Hackney 50 Bowie MD 42:42
MALE AGE GROUP: 55 - 59
1 2554 Pete Scala 59 Fairfax VA 36:11
2 1760 Glenn Clemmons 59 Herndon VA 36:58
3 1409 James Riordan 57 Fredericksburg VA 37:44
FEMALE AGE GROUP: 55 - 59
1 61 Ray Nan Berry 55 Arlington VA 41:33
2 767 Ann Crane 57 Falls Church VA 43:43
3 684 Grace Rascati 55 Alexandria VA 43:52
MALE AGE GROUP: 60 - 64
1 814 Robert Taylor 61 Alexandria VA 38:52
2 1170 Mark Franken 60 Germantown MD 39:21
3 2422 David Weddel 61 Woodbridge VA 41:46
FEMALE AGE GROUP: 60 - 64
1 1229 Rita Jensen 62 Alexandria VA 51:24
2 2887 Jaine Summers 61 Annandale VA 53:08
3 1387 Susan Sweatt 60 Aldie VA 57:39
MALE AGE GROUP: 65 - 69
1 2906 Michael Golash 68 Washington DC 41:08
2 1979 Chuck Lascano 68 Charlottesville VA 49:49
3 2621 John Potts 65 New Orleans LA 50:43
FEMALE AGE GROUP: 65 - 69
1 228 Stephanie Stoll Dalton 67 Washington DC 60:25
2 338 Patricia Byrne 65 Falls Church VA 71:11
3 615 Rhoda Harpe 67 Alexandria VA 79:48
MALE AGE GROUP: 70 - 99
1 993 Albert Vanocker 73 Waldorf MD 74:48
2 1865 Charles Hurley 71 Burke VA 79:28
FEMALE AGE GROUP: 70 - 99
Runners head past the starting line, also the 2K point in the race.
