Some runners dread it. Some outright avoid it. While it may have had the feel of a high school PE class, nearly everyone in the field of 46 runners had a look of pride once finished. Once again, the race was divided into two heats.

Conspicuous among the absent were the Almost Never Absent Scott Benjamin (another commitment this morn), regular beat writer Mary Shaffer, Iron Horse John Adomelis and series strongman Jeff Sheldon. Jeff’s absence might have provided a window of opportunity for his usual pursuers but Hot Wheels Desmond O’Grady got the morning off from work, clocked a smooth 5:04, and bested Chris Deming’s strong (5:19) effort. For Chris it was really only a mile out of about 100 that he’ll probably run this week, so he likely won’t lose any sleep over it.

Among the women, Theresa Krebs proved she can cover a range of distances by posting a strong 6:33 finish in the first heat. For the second straight week, TK bested someone without a driver’s license, this time twelve-year old Kateri Danay who turned in a very impressive 6:46! In fact, some half-dozen pre-teens tore up the course. (See results at bottom!!)

The second heat of the race provided excitement as well. For a while things looked close between series director Bob Lewis and Crystal Koenig. But somewhere around the library, Bob decided to put the hammer down and won the heat by 14 seconds with a 6:54.

All in all, the slightly lower turnout could be felt as the only real spectators along the way were a group of construction workers who looked a bit bewildered at the ensemble of runners, strollers and other supporting cast that is the RRR series. As always thanks to Corinne, Amanda, Chris, Larry and those who helped with the finish.

Newcomers
Roxbury resident Cara Abraham ran her first Roxbury race, pushing son Wylden. Nice job Cara! You should turn the tables and punish Mike with endless post-race analysis.

Conspiracy Uncovered
Upon realizing that points leader Jeff Sheldon was absent, nearest rivals Mark LoSacco and Mike Abraham contemplated recruiting a large party of children from the playground to run the race “just for fun”. Spiritual Advisor Brian Vanderheiden gave his full blessing to the plan, but time proved too short (as were some of the kids). Needless to say, Mark and Mike are looking for other opps.

Thoughts on the Mile
Run it! Yes, it can feel a bit painful and conventional wisdom treats sprinting as something for kids. But just as it is important to incorporate long runs, it can be very beneficial to include a regimen of speed work - regardless of one’s age – in training. Speed work can take place on the track (check out the beautiful too little used track at Shepaug), or on the road (Upper County, Bacon Road, the Pinney Trail at Steep Rock). It can be for distance (ladders such as an 800, 1200, 800, 400 or timed intervals (telephone pole to telephone pole), and it can be fun. Best of all, you can get a good workout in a short amount of time. So don’t wait until next year’s mile to start getting ready!

Race Results

	Roxbury Race Series 2010 - Race #26 - August 28 - Roxbury Mile II

place	name	age	time	pace per mile

1	Desmond O'Grady	30	5.04
2	Chris Deming	43	5.19
3	Brian Vanderheiden	40	5.21
4	Mark LoSacco	41	5.24
5	Nelson Azevodo	51	5.30
6	Mike Abraham	51	5.43
7	Chris LaCava	36	5.53
8	Chuck Rocca	39	5.57
9	Jeff Tindell	60	6.07
10	Eric Koenig	30	6.10
11	Mike Matthews	47	6.11
12	Russ Pribanic	56	6.14
13	Mark Zerbe	50	6.15
14	Larry Deming	53	6.16
15	John Critelli	49	6.18
16	Chris Zarzycki	54	6.21
17	Jeff Bishop	29	6.32
18	Bruce Goulart	60	6.33
19	Theresa Krebs	41	6.33
20	Ross Levy		6.34
21	Ed Wolfe	12	6.38
22	Kateri Danay	12	6.46
23	Bob Lewis	46	6.54
24	Cynthia Shaw	41	7.05
25	Krystal (Rajcok) Koenig	27	7.08
26	Eric Zoldy	10	7.17
27	Cody Jordan	10	7.30
28	Emily Davis	26	7.30
29	Ethan Zoldy	10	7.53
30	Janet Levy	56	7.55
31	Colin Mariani	10	7.56
32	Keith Dupree	67	8.12
33	Jim Little	56	8.16
34	Joseph Danay	48	8.17
35	Charlie Euston	66	8.39
36	Stephanie Jordan	45	8.51
37	Lucy Mariani	12	9.30
38	David Mariani	46	9.32
39	Cara Abraham	37	9.38
40	Amanda Deming	12	9.47
41	Lee Anne Zarger	56	9.53
42	Joy Danay	44	11.00
43	Marissa Bishop	29	11.12

If anyone has photos of the races, send 'em to chris (at) beatfrequencies (dot) com and I'll try to put them up here on these pages...

Special Guest Race Report by Mike Abraham

Race Results