Despite meeting just two weeks ago, Andrew Brodeur and Landon Peacock have established quite the rivalry. The Pacers-New Balance teammates participated in last week’s St. Patrick’s Day 8k, where Brodeur edged Peacock to claim a first-place finish (24:30).
Saturday’s Four Courts Four Miler yielded similar results for the two as Brodeur once again bested Peacock to earn first-place honors in the fifth annual St. Patty’s Day weekend race.
The leaders at the Rock ’n’ Roll USA Marathon left no doubts. Across the board, between the half marathon and the full 26.2 miles, both the men’s and women’s races held little suspense. Local runners represented the area well in the top groups of finishers, and after an endless winter, runners rejoiced for sunshine and warm temperatures on race day.
HALF MARATHON
Susanna Sullivan forgot her watch Sunday morning when she headed to the line for the St. Patrick’s Day 8k.
“I don’t think it changed my approach to the race going in,” she said. “If anything, it made me stay aggressive in the middle of the race. I didn’t have any objective feedback so I probably pushed harder than I usually do in the middle.”
We talk a lot about walls in marathoning. We push through them–effortlessly or gasping for breath–on our way to the finish line. Race over.
One problem: the finish line is the real wall. No negotiations. This requirement doesn’t move for any of us. We must change, not the race. The most successful marathoners don’t break through this final barrier–they hit it, full force.
When you think of Valentine’s Day, what comes to mind? How about waking up early on a frigid Sunday morning to run a 5k dressed in a frilly pink tutu? No? Anybody?
For the eleven hundred who showed up to run the Love The Run You’re With 5k in Pentagon City, it became abundantly clear that there’s more to this “Hallmark holiday” than flowers, chocolates and overly expensive dinners that require a reservation six months in advance.
Feb. 2? Outdoors? Not in the deep south? It seemed like a risk, especially as the week progressed, with a fresh coat of snow and plunging temperatures. On the other hand, unpredictable conditions are part of the sport’s charm, challenge and character.
If you were looking on insight into the New Jersey-hosted Super Bowl XLVIII, you’re in the wrong place. The inaugural First Down 5k managed to luck out with weather and draw a big crowd, fast times and the kind of race that usually comes around months later.
For most of the 1,300 runners gathered in Fairfax on Dec. 31, a four mile race was less a distraction from their New Year’s Eve plans and more an integral part.
Even for people who haven’t run much. Megan Davisson hasn’t been that attentive to her running since injuring herself during the 2012 Marine Corps Marathon. But with her fifth straight Fairfax Four coming up, she went for it anyway.
The arrival of December means a month filled with holiday parties for most people. However, the enthusiastic turnout at local races over the past two weekends shows that for many local runners December is also a time for festive races, and of course costumes. With gray skies and rain in the forecast, it looked like the weather might be in danger of dampening the festivities at the inaugural 12ks of Christmas Holiday Run in Georgetown on Saturday. Luckily the morning turned out to be a dry one, although race director John Braithwaite admitted that he had been hoping for a dusting of snow to add a little bit more Christmas feeling to the race.
There was plenty of Christmas spirit on display among the 600 competitors in the sold-out races, and a large proportion had gone to a lot of effort to dress up for the occasion. Some of the non-running supporters joined in by wearing Christmas hats, and there was even a dog in a Santa suit. Creatively-named teams entered for the races included the Sugar Plums, Ugly Christmas Sweaters and Holiday Heroes, and a host of Santas, elves and reindeer could be seen gathered around the start-line. The clear crowd favorite however, and pre-race costume award winner, was a warm and furry looking Rudolph.
Let it snow. You never know who might win.
Saturday, Dec. 8, was the first time Ethiopian Beyasa Moleta, 25, had ever run in the white stuff. Wait until we get to see what he can do in prime conditions.
Carissa Lee (48:11) and Pete Sumner (48:10) first met in 2004 at the West Point Triathlon in West Point, N.Y. Their love for running brought them together, and four years later, they married.
The Sumners participated in this year’s Jingle All the Way 8k. Only this time, they brought with them a new addition to the family.