thedrifter
04-04-09, 06:53 AM
Marines provide exciting finish at Run to Register
By Wandoo Makurdi
Sports Editor
The race to earn the first win of the Marine Corps Marathon’s Event Series came down to a pair of past winners, who kept it close the entire race and provided an exciting start to the running season.
Brian Geraghty edged out his friend and rival Tyler Hubbard by one second to win the MCM’s Run to Register 10K race in 35:45 at the Butler Stadium track Saturday.
Geraghty and Hubbard, both 29 and Quantico Marines, ran neck-and-neck for much of the race until Geraghty’s final kick with 300m gave him just enough.
‘‘He kind of had, I think, maybe a 10-yard lead on me through like the first three miles,” Hubbard said. ‘‘And I kind of evened up with him as we worked [our way] into the hills, and just tried to stay on pace. And once we queued down the hills and started coming in here, just tried to see who has the most kick left.”
Runners were slowed by a section of slick, muddy trails caused by rain the night before the race.
‘‘We didn’t talk about it, but I think we both assumed it was going to come down to that, the hills.” Geraghty said about the trail being a big factor in the race.
‘‘It was pretty bad,” added Hubbard. ‘‘We dropped down to about a nine-minute [mile] pace [and] just tried to keep our footing.”
It was quite a drop from the five-and-a-half-minute pace both runners kept for the first few miles. The trails gave runners a little more than a mile of the most arduous part of the race to navigate, said Jim Jackson, the events business manager for the marathon.
‘‘We felt good about it,” noted Jackson. ‘‘We did some ... work on the trails up there and it made it a better running environment for everybody. Unfortunately, Mother Nature worked against us with the rain.”
Fortunately, the possibility of slower times did nothing to deter most of the 1,500 people – the highest number of runners registered at an MCM Series race – from showing up to run. MCM race director Rick Nealis was pleased about the turnout – 1,102 people completed the race, according to official records.
‘‘We stopped the race [registration] about 10 days early,” Nealis said. ‘‘In those last 10 days, with the phone calls and email messages, we probably could’ve put another 800 to a thousand people in this race. So we’re going to look at that and study whether we think 2,300 or 2,500 will be the magic number next year.”
The race featured runners from 33 states, generating revenue to local businesses in Stafford and Prince William counties. Nealis said the number of states represented caught his team off guard given the current economic situation.
After completing the race, runners were given unique codes with which they could register for the marathon with. Many runners registered onsite with help from one of three computers provided to assist eager runners.
Tami Faram, MCM community relations coordinator, said 830 Run to Register finishers have signed up during the three-day early registration window.
The race for third and fourth place was also a close finish. John Kelly, 25, finished in 37:05, 12 seconds ahead of fellow Arlington native, 27-year-old Darrell Andruski. Alison Hoing, also of Arlington was the first female to cross the finish line. The 22-year-old clocked a time of 43:24. Sarah Hooker, 23, of Colchester, Conn., was the second fastest female in 45:31 and 44-year-old Kimberly Person of Arlington finished third in 45:54.
For a complete list of the racewinners and to register for the Marine Corps Historic Half Marathon on May 17, visit the MCM series Website www.marinemarathon .com. Registration MCM is now open to the general public.
Ellie
By Wandoo Makurdi
Sports Editor
The race to earn the first win of the Marine Corps Marathon’s Event Series came down to a pair of past winners, who kept it close the entire race and provided an exciting start to the running season.
Brian Geraghty edged out his friend and rival Tyler Hubbard by one second to win the MCM’s Run to Register 10K race in 35:45 at the Butler Stadium track Saturday.
Geraghty and Hubbard, both 29 and Quantico Marines, ran neck-and-neck for much of the race until Geraghty’s final kick with 300m gave him just enough.
‘‘He kind of had, I think, maybe a 10-yard lead on me through like the first three miles,” Hubbard said. ‘‘And I kind of evened up with him as we worked [our way] into the hills, and just tried to stay on pace. And once we queued down the hills and started coming in here, just tried to see who has the most kick left.”
Runners were slowed by a section of slick, muddy trails caused by rain the night before the race.
‘‘We didn’t talk about it, but I think we both assumed it was going to come down to that, the hills.” Geraghty said about the trail being a big factor in the race.
‘‘It was pretty bad,” added Hubbard. ‘‘We dropped down to about a nine-minute [mile] pace [and] just tried to keep our footing.”
It was quite a drop from the five-and-a-half-minute pace both runners kept for the first few miles. The trails gave runners a little more than a mile of the most arduous part of the race to navigate, said Jim Jackson, the events business manager for the marathon.
‘‘We felt good about it,” noted Jackson. ‘‘We did some ... work on the trails up there and it made it a better running environment for everybody. Unfortunately, Mother Nature worked against us with the rain.”
Fortunately, the possibility of slower times did nothing to deter most of the 1,500 people – the highest number of runners registered at an MCM Series race – from showing up to run. MCM race director Rick Nealis was pleased about the turnout – 1,102 people completed the race, according to official records.
‘‘We stopped the race [registration] about 10 days early,” Nealis said. ‘‘In those last 10 days, with the phone calls and email messages, we probably could’ve put another 800 to a thousand people in this race. So we’re going to look at that and study whether we think 2,300 or 2,500 will be the magic number next year.”
The race featured runners from 33 states, generating revenue to local businesses in Stafford and Prince William counties. Nealis said the number of states represented caught his team off guard given the current economic situation.
After completing the race, runners were given unique codes with which they could register for the marathon with. Many runners registered onsite with help from one of three computers provided to assist eager runners.
Tami Faram, MCM community relations coordinator, said 830 Run to Register finishers have signed up during the three-day early registration window.
The race for third and fourth place was also a close finish. John Kelly, 25, finished in 37:05, 12 seconds ahead of fellow Arlington native, 27-year-old Darrell Andruski. Alison Hoing, also of Arlington was the first female to cross the finish line. The 22-year-old clocked a time of 43:24. Sarah Hooker, 23, of Colchester, Conn., was the second fastest female in 45:31 and 44-year-old Kimberly Person of Arlington finished third in 45:54.
For a complete list of the racewinners and to register for the Marine Corps Historic Half Marathon on May 17, visit the MCM series Website www.marinemarathon .com. Registration MCM is now open to the general public.
Ellie