This might just be the year of the course records. As you read here a few weeks back that Nora Cary, W60, Suzanne LaBurt, W55 and Roberta Groner, W40 all set new age division course records at the Ridgewood Run 5K on Monday, May 27th.
Or maybe it’s that Monday races have more speed. At the Roxbury Community Benefit 5K on Monday, June 3rd, Justin Scheid of Succasunna took two seconds off the course record of Youseff Rochdi that was set in 2014. Scheid swept across the finish line in 15:17 to win the race.
To make it even sweeter, the women’s race was won by fourteen-year-old Gabriella Daskalova of Succasunna in 19:34 and wiped out Julia Herraiz’s record of 20:07 in the W13 and 14 division. Daskalova is the current record holder in the girl’s ten and under division which is 21:44.
On the boy’s side of the chart is Cole Dunham of Ledgewood who set the Boys 11 and 12 division record of 19:26 taking just a slice off of Luke Nexon’s time of 19:33. In the Boys 15 and 16 division Nathan Hajel of Succasunna finished fourth overall and dropped the record to 17:18 wiping out Kyle Gasiorowski’s record of 18:03.
Four new masters records were set that Monday night, which was a perfect weather night for a race. Scott Isgett of Rockaway finished in 18:51 and took the M50 record away from David Lacouture’s 19:01.
In the M85 division Arch Seamans of Rockaway took well over a minute off his age division time of 46:29. Seamans, who is now 87, has been having a good year and finished in 44:46
In the M60 division, Charlie Slaughter of Parsippany finished with a time of 20:53.54 and that was an eyelash faster than the 20:53.78 that Bill Trengove ran in 2016. Was that a tie or a record breaker for Slaughter?
Personal Bests don’t often happen but when they do, we celebrate. One New Jersey runner was celebrating his PB and for good reason. Rob Albano of Mahwah has been winning the Pequannock Rotary Foundation 5K for the past eleven years he posted on his Facebook page. He set the course record of 15:04.9 in 2014. Last week Albano finished the race in 14:42.90, winning for the twelfth time and taking 22 seconds off the 2014 record. And, oh by the way, the 14:42 is his new Personal Best.
Albano is entered in tomorrow’s New Milford Fire Department 5K. I wouldn’t bet against him winning the race. What New Jersey man has run faster this year?
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