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May 5, 2008

Your turn: How did you think the Cox Providence Rhode Races went?

Calling all runners and walkers who participated in the Cox Providence Rhode Races! How did it go yesterday? What did you like about the 5K, half-marathon and marathon - depending on which one you ran - and what are your suggestions for how next year's event could be better?

Posted by Carolyn Thornton at 11:16 AM | Comment | TrackBack

Race to remember Doyle in the works

Circle your calendars. Although the details are still being finalized, friends of Bobby Doyle are in the process of organizing a road race in memory of the late great marathoner. The Bobby Doyle 5-Mile Summer Classic will be held on Aug. 16 in Narragansett.

Proceeds from the race are tentatively planned to go to a scholarship fund to benefit a male and female high school runner.

More details to come . . . . . . .

Posted by Carolyn Thornton at 11:12 AM | Comment | TrackBack

Team in Training goes the distance at Cox Providence Rhode Races

Twenty-two official Team in Training members and another 40 to 50 TNT alumni participated in yesterday's Cox Providence Rhode Races, helping the Rhode Island chapter of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society meet its goal of raising more than $400,000 this year, which will be used to help find a cure for blood-related cancers.

Among the runners was Susan Ahlborg, 37, of Narragansett, who ran her first half-marathon in honor of longtime friend Stephen Gordon, who lost his battle with cancer just last week.

``I couldn't have done this without them,'' Ahlborg said of Team in Training, shortly after crossing the finish line in 2:45:44. ``Doing the runs with everyone else, you can go the 13, the 15. Next year, I'll definitely do the full (marathon).''

Journal photo/Carolyn Thornton
Susan Ahlborg

The Rhode Island chapter of Team in Training, which is coached by Jim Doyle (runners) and Michael Hoffer (walkers), will now begin training for the Maine Marathon in Portland, Me. on Oct. 5 and the Nike Women's Marathon in San Francisco on Oct. 19, as well as the Nation's Triathlon in Washington, D.C. on Sept. 14 and the Seacoast Century ride in Hampton Beach, N.H. on Sept. 20.

Informational meetings will be held:
May 6 at 6:30 p.m. at the Jewish Community Center of R.I., 401 Elmgrove Ave., Providence
May 7 at 6:30 p.m. at the Warwick Public Library, 600 Sandy Lane, Warwick
May 8 at 6 p.m. at the Newport Athletic Club, 66 Valley Rd., Middletown
May 10 at 10 a.m. at the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Office, 1150 Pontiac Ave., Cranston
May 12 at 6:30 p.m. at the Lincoln Public Library, 145 Old River Rd., Lincoln
May 13 at 6 p.m. at the Narragansett Public Library, 35 Kingstown Rd., Narragansett
May 15 at 6 p.m. at Dave and Buster's, Providence Place Mall

Cox Sports Marathon wheelchair winner: Jason Pisano

The only wheelchair participant at yesterday's Cox Providence Rhode Races, West Warwick’s Jason Pisano, who travels backward propelling himself with his left foot, completed his second marathon in two weeks and his 43rd overall, winning the Cox Sports Marathon with a time of 7:52.

Cox Sports Marathon women's winner: Alyson Venti

Alyson Venti made her first marathon in the states a memorable one. A grad student studying oceanography at the University of Rhode Island, the 25-year-old Boston native took the women’s title at yesterday's Cox Sports Marathon in 3:01:02.

``I guess I kind of went out kind of fast. I was a little bit worried because there were so many people on the line. The last marathon I ran had 15 people in it,’’ said Venti, who twice ran the Fiji Bula Marathon while she was in the Peace Corps. ``It got off okay, but I started feeling kind of tired at mile 19 or so. But I just tried to stay with it.’’

Cox Sports Marathon men's winner: Blaine Moore

The Cox Sports Marathon represented Blaine Moore’s 13th marathon in his 12th state, but more importantly, it marked his first victory. Finishing no higher than seventh (at the 2005 Mystic Places Marathon) in his previous attempts, the 28-year-old Portland, Me. resident won yesterday’s 26.2-mile event of the Cox Providence Rhode Races in 2:43:28, finishing a minute and 10 seconds ahead of Chris Schulten, 36, of Middlefield, Conn.

``Within about a mile or so, I met up with a guy named Devin Jones,’’ said Moore, a member of the Dirigo Racing Club. ``He was running his first one and was hoping to do about the same pace, so I ran with him for about 16 miles. . . . . I just kind of pulled away from there; his knee was bothering him a little bit. And then I was just reeling in the guy that was in front, and as you’re coming along that bike path along the river, there’s a little hill before you get off of it, and he just started walking near the top of that and I caught him and I was just with the bikers from then on.’’

Willow Tree Half Marathon women's winner: Madeleine Marecki

Madeleine Marecki far surpassed her expectations in her half-marathon debut, running almost 2 minutes faster than she had hoped to run and winning the women’s crown in the process at yesterday's Cox Providence Rhode Races Willow Tree Half Marathon.

Journal photo/Carolyn Thornton
Madeleine Marecki

``I started out slow. My first mile was like 6:55, and I was doing 6:40s for a while,’’ said the recent Brown grad, who makes her home in New Canaan, Conn. ``But then at the 5-mile mark, I took the lead and I felt good and I’m like, `I’ll just go for it and see what I can do.’ And I ended up running like under 6:10s for a lot of the miles. I just felt good and I just surprised myself.’’

Willow Tree Half Marathon men's winner: Sean Livingston

For the last several years, Sean Livingston has been helping the men’s and women’s track and cross country runners at Roger Williams University enjoy plenty of success, and yesterday it was his turn, as the Hawks’ coach grabbed first place in the Willow Tree Half Marathon of the Cox Providence Rhode Races.

With young daughters, Abigail and Caroline, waiting excitedly to congratulate him, Livingston crossed the finish line in 1:12:07, nearly 3 minutes ahead of runner-up Jonathan Blocker of Tallahassee, Fla.

Journal photo/Carolyn Thornton
Caroline, Sean and Abigail Livingston

``The first mile was a little slower than I thought effort-wise, so I tried to pick it up a little bit after that,’’ said Livingston, 39, of Barrington. ``(I was) pretty much was by myself the whole first of the way, so it was a little bit of a struggle to maintain the pace I was hoping for, but it was OK.’’

New Balance 5K women's winner: Brandee Boice

Although she didn’t meet her target time of 18:10, Brandee Boice was still more than fast enough to take top honors among the women in the New Balance 5K at yesterday's Cox Providence Rhode Races, winning by well over a minute with her time of 18:47.

Journal photo/Carolyn Thornton
Brandee Boice

``I wanted to do a lot better than what I did, but it’s OK,’’ said the 32-year-old who hails from Weston, Mass. and competes for the New Balance Boston Running Club. ``It’s my first race back in probably about a year, and I’ve some (knee) injuries a couple of months ago, so I’ve only been training workouts for six weeks or so.’’

New Balance 5K men's winner: Chris Magill

Chris Magill was the first victor to be crowned at yesterday's Cox Providence Rhode Races, as the former St. Raphael Academy and Iona College standout won the New Balance 5K with a time of 15 minutes, 50 seconds.

``As soon as the gun went off, the rain started to come down hard, but I still wanted to put a good effort in today,’’ said Magill, 35, of Cumberland, who has returned to racing a little more seriously after devoting more time over the last several years to his two young sons, Chris Jr. and Connor, as well as his career. ``I led it pretty much from start to finish, and my (Boston Athletic Association) teammate Steve Bishop was second. We were hoping for faster times, but it was nice to have another race in downtown Providence and it was a lot of fun.’’