PRESIDENT'S CUP NIGHT RACE WILL DRAW SPEED ON MONDAY NIGHT
Tomorrow night's President's Cup Night Race 5K in Millburn is arguably the most popular 5K race in the state for competitive runners. I throw in that caveat as some shore races, and the Race for the Cure have more participants if the measure is in the numbers. But for a sheer gathering of New Jersey talent, no race can match the race in Millburn on the third Monday in June.
This year, as it has been for the last few years, the race is the Open Men's USATF-NJ Championship. In 2006 the race was won in 14:51 by Scott DeFilippis of Normandy Beach. He led his Mizuno Runner's High team to victory with all five scoring men in the top ten. Speaking of top ten, tenth place was claimed by Justin Scheid of Sparta in 15:36, a time that would win most other road races.
Expect the unexpected in the team competition. In 2006 the Running Company took second with Fleet Feet third. In 2007 we have already had one Open Men's championship, the Newport 10,000 10K in May. Did we see any of those names? No, the Breakneck Track Club out of Voorhees, way down in the south of the state, was the run-away victor. A few years ago the Breakneck team dominated the Open Men division. Then they disappeared. As of Friday, three of those men had pre-entered. It looks like they're back.
At the Newport race, Raritan Valley was second with the Sneaker Factory third. The Running Company and Fleet Feet did not even field a team. So the great riddle for tomorrow night will be, "who is running?"
One group that will assuredly be running is the Masters. It is clear from looking at the New Balance Grand Prix standing on the USATF-NJ website that Masters runners are at the races, week in and week out. Nine out of the top ten men are over age forty. In the lead is Charlie Slaughter of Parsippany who is in the M50 division. Local runners Will DeRoberts, M50, of Boonton is fifth with Bruce Langenkamp, M55, of Wharton in eighth place.
The women's division is even better represented by Morris women, lead by Diane Ross of Flanders who is in the W35 division with Jane Parks of Morristown in the W50 division in second. Karyn Layton of Rockaway, W35, is in fourth with Pam Fales, W45, of Boonton fifth. The rest of the top ten are over 40 with the exception of just one who is 35.
This does not mean that the younger runners are being beat by their elders at races. What it does mean is that the younger, faster runners are not competing on a regular basis and thus have few of their nine grand prix races done. In contrast, some of the masters runners have seven or eight races filled in, in their grand prix tallies, and some of these individuals have run in over a dozen grand prix races and some are close to two dozen.
Those numbers will change after the President's Cup Night race and those that have been held since June 7th will be factored in. The next update is scheduled for June 21st.
Runners who are injured and cannot run at the President's Cup need to take advantage of their spectator status. The 5K race has absolutely the best spectator course you can find. If you can get from one block to just the next on your injured limb, you can see the runners four times in the race.
MASTERS WILL SHINE AT PINE BEACH
Many Morris area Masters racers will be heading to the shore for the Pine Beach 5K next Sunday, June 24 as it is their 5K championship. Both Masters men and Masters women will be competing in the championship so a lot will change in the overall team divisions. Currently Raritan Valley is leading the Morris County Striders with the Sneaker Factory in third.
Originally published by the DAILY RECORD of Morris County, New Jersey on Sunday, June 17, 2007
Copyright, Madeline Bost, 2007
