January 2001 Report

JANUARY 20, 2001 RUNNING REPORT

 

BRUCE DEACON – 2000 CANADIAN MALE ROAD RUNNER OF THE YEAR

For the second year in a row, Bruce Deacon takes top honours as he is named the 2000 Canadian Male Road Runner of the Year by The Running Scene.  Last year, his Olympic qualifying marathon race was a determining factor in his being named Runner of the Year.  This year, his marathon performances were also a strong factor as he claimed the fastest marathon time of the year by winning the Canadian Marathon Championship in Ottawa in a time of 2:17:13.  He then followed up with a solid Olympic Marathon finish as he ran a 2:21:38 to rank 44th.

 

Though Deacon obviously concentrated on the marathon, he clocked some very fast 10K performances at the 10K distance.  In the course of a 3 weeks period, Deacon ran a 29:49 in Vancouver, a 29:21 in Toronto and a 29:59 in Victoria.  This was evidence of his versatility on the roads.

 

After his marathon performance in May, Deacon remained fairly quiet on the racing scene.  He does nto appear in any major road race results.  This does not indicate that he was not training though.  He was getting read for Sydney.  For those who were lucky enough to join the e-mail weekly and daily news message sent by Bruce, they will be able to appreciate how dedicate a runner must be to reach and then perform at the Olympics.  Through his messages, you can sense the effort put in the training. You could also feel the apprehension as Deacon developed a cold only days before departing for Sydney.

 

In the end though, Bruce did what Bruce knows how to do well, that is to do his best with what he has in front of him.  Below is a section of a message from Bruce describing his Olympic experience.

DEALT A TOUGH HAND

We all must do the best with the hand we are dealt, and I can honestly say that I ran my best with the hand I had.  The race was run into a ferociously strong wind (mostly the second half).  The reality was that you had to find a pack in the first 18k or be stuck on your own with the wind.  The revised strategy therefore called for a more aggressive start.  Unfortunately, I just didn't get any breaks.

I was pushed from behind about 50 meters into the race and ended up scraping up my hands and left knee.  I quickly recovered and made chase.  I was soon up with the pack, and running in the big group.  The next thing I knew, a runner went down in front of me and I barely dodged a second taste of asphalt.  The next thing I knew the pack suddenly parted and I found myself staring directly at a median.  I then passed the 1k mark!!!

Things went from bad to worse.  I settled into the pace and was feeling relatively comfortable.  The pace quickened between 10 and 15k, with a series of very fast kilometers.  I was running with one of the Australians and was actually feeling okay.  As the pace hovered around 3min/km, I was conscious of the fact that these km's were critical; it wouldn't be long before we hit the wind.  At 15k we hit a waterstop and the Aussie got away as I got water.  I couldn't bridge the gap.  I was alone and started to cramp in my calves.  Soon my legs began a long (16 mile long) pattern of spasm...calves, adductors, quads.  My forearms would soon join the cramping fun.  I soldiered on, but was unable to really push it due to the muscle spasms. The wind was incredible.  At times it was blowing the water bottles off the tables.

In the end, I finished 44th--middle of the pack (approx. 106 starters).  Disappointing race.  To top it all off, I finished and immediately saw my wife at the edge of the track.  I tried to go over so that I could speak with her, but was blocked by an official.  I explained that my wife was literally 10m away, that I had just run 42k, and that I just wanted to speak with her.  He adamantly refused.  I pleaded.  He then took out a red and yellow card.  I never even knew track had yellow and red cards, but I have watched enough soccer to recognize what they were.  I cleared out.  I didn't run that far, through that much adversity to have some overzealous official disqualify me at the finish.

All in all, I am pleased with my effort.  I would have wanted a better hand to play, but I did all I could with what I was given.  All the rest is a "woulda, coulda, shoulda" game.

 

SELECTING THE RUNNER OF THE YEAR

Selecting The Running Scene Male Runner of the Year was slightly easier than selecting the Female Runner, but not much.  The steps taken for selecting the runner of the year were the same as for the women whereby rankings in various distances are compared, then competition in same races are examined.  With Bruce Deacon placing first in the marathon distance and the 10K, it became clear that Bruce was leading the pack again this year.  With his great performances in the half-marathon and with the 2nd fastest marathon for a Canadian last year, Steve Boyd claimed the runner-up prize this year.  This year, the talent of the young runners like Oliver Utting, Christian Marmen, Stephane Gamache and David Matte made for stiff competition for top honours.  It is encouraging to see that there is a crop of runners just behind the two leaders who are primed to take over the top spot. The winner of the Road Runner of the Year will receive $200, while the runner-up will receive $100.  Congratulations to the winners.

 

MEN’S YEAR IN REVIEW

The year 2000 was a year with familiar faces and some new faces.  The old guard showed that they are still on top of their game, while the young runners are poised to take over.  The year started out fast for Jeff Schielbler as he set the best half-marathon time for a Canadian in 2000 with his 1:02:35 sixth place finish at the Tokyo half-marathon.  Steve Boyd clocked one his fast half-marathons as he placed 3rd in the Naples Half-Marathon in a time of 1:04:46.  In the south, Clive Hamilton was 7th in the Bermuda 10K.

With Spring arriving, Michel Brochu raced to a 3rd place finish at the Bedford, MA Half-Marathon in a time of 1:11:04.  The first strong marathon performance by a Canadian male was at the Los Angeles Marathon as Ivan Gomez placed 11th in a time of 2:28:12.  He would claim 3rd place at the Quebec City Marathon later in the year.  A month later, Neil Holm ended up the first Canadian at Boston as he finished 59th in a time of 2:32:42.  Erik Seedhouse also ran well as he placed 4th in the Napa Valley Marathon in a time of 2:33:48.  On Mother’s Day in Ottawa, the Canadian Marathon Championships weres being contested.  Bruce Deacon came up on top with a Canadian leading 2:17:13, while Steve Boyd was second in 2:17:31 and Christian Marmen was 3rd in 2:27:58.  Marmen would place 2nd at the Quebec City marathon later in the summer.  At the shorter distance, Faizel Emamaullee won the Carolina First Reedy River Run 10K in 29:50.  At the other end of the running spectrum, Victor Hickey placed 3rd at the GNC USA 100K National Championship in a time of 7:12:27.  Hickey would then claim the Canadian 100K Championship a month later in a time of 7:19:51.

Though the Summer was quiet, things picked up in the Fall as Jeremy Deere won the Canadian 10K Championship in 29:48.  At the international level, Bruce Deacon ran in Australia as he completed the Olympic Marathon in 2:21:38 to finish 44th.  Other notable Fall marathon performances include the 6th place finish of Kevin Beatty at the Marine Corps Marathon in 2:30:50, while in Philadelphia, David Ruggles placed 9th in 2:33:48 and Darl Sutherland placed 12th in 2:37:39.  The year ended very strongly for a bunch of young runners as they raced at the California International Marathon.  Oliver Utting was 6th in 2:21:03, Christian Marmen was 7th in 2:22:34, Stephance Gamache was 8th in 2:23:08, and David Matte was 11th in 2:29:19. The performances by this new crop bode well for the World Cup of Marathon that will be held in Edmonton in August.

 

ED WHITLOCK NAMED RUNNERS WORLD MASTERS OF THE YEAR

You are never too old to run.  This was definitely demonstrated this year by Ed Whitlock who was just named Masters Runner of the Year by Runners World.  Ed Whitlock has been tearing up the road for many years, and you can often see him race in Ontario, beating runners of every age.  Whitlock, at 69, became the oldest sub-3:00 marathoner when he completed the Columbus Marathon in 2:52:50.  That performance was a crowning achievement in a year that saw him run the following times:  17:34 – 5K, 30:38 – 8K, 35:37 – 10K, 55:04 – 15K, 1:00:11 – 10 miles, 1:20:16 – half-marathon, 1:57:39 – 30K.  These are performances that most runners dream about.  You have to tip your hat to someone who has been able to achieve so much late in life.  Congratulations Ed.

 

GRAEME FELL RANKS IN RUNNERS WORLD MASTERS ROAD RACE RANKING

Each year, Runners World keeps track of road race results for a selecting series of races, with most of them held in the United States.  The Ranking that is tabulated is based on a specified point system fro each race.  Canadian Masters runner Graeme Fell placed 5th in the Masters category. 

 

CANADIANS IN THE BERMUDA SUN

Canadians are famous for going south in the Winter, and one of the favourite destination for runners is Bermuda.  Few places are as inviting to runners as Bermuda.  As part of travel packages, you usually get to stay on the island for 3-7 days and partake in one of the many races offered.  Races include the Invitational Mile held on Friday January 12, the 10K held on Saturday, and the Half-Marathon and Marathon held on the Sunday.  Once again Canadian performed strongly with Rich Tremain winning the Mile race in 4:11.73.  Matthew Kerr was 7th in 4:19.20.  In the 10K race, Courtney Babcock won the 10K race for the second year in a row in a time of 34:23, 21 seconds faster than last year.  She was followed shortly after by Tania Jones who came in 4th with a time of 35:43.  In the men’s race, Matthew Kerr ran well again as he was 5th in a time of 31:26, while Clive Hamilton was the top Masters in 33:36.  Tania Jones showed her running strength as she ran the half-marathon on Sunday and placed 3rd in a time of 1:25:41.

 

RESULTS

December 26 – Boxing Day 10 Miler, Hamilton, ON

Female

 

Male

 

1. Leslie Carson

59:44

Paul Howart (US)

53:21

2. Tania Jones

1:02:06

Curtis Gadula

54:17

3. Linda Grossman (US)

1:03:44

Mike Dyon

55:20

 

January 07 – Resolution Run, Kingston, ON

F1. Sharon Donnelly – 31:34; M1. Liam Revell – 26:39