By Jon Walk
Lone Star Christian Sports Network Correspondent
The shot you heard Saturday morning at Texas Military Institute’s Panther Invitational Cross Country Meet in San Antonio was more than just a starter’s pistol.
It was an early season warning that Antonian College Prep was ready to defend its 2011 Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools (TAPPS) state cross country titles.
And the defending 5A individual state champion Anthony Gallardo also put everyone on notice that he plans to lead the way.
But it wasn’t without a little work from last year’s TAPPS 4A fourth place state meet finisher Chris Pietraszkiewicz, a junior this year at TMI.
The Apaches’ boys, led by Gallardo’s winning 5-kilometer time of 15 minutes, 56 seconds, scored its five runners in the top seven places for an impressive 40-point win over FEAST, a San Antonio-based homeschool – and traditionally strong cross country – program.
Pietraszkiewicz didn’t disappoint as he finished just six seconds, in 16:02, behind Gallardo.
Antonian seniors Emilio Mendoza, Aurturo Ayon and Nicholas Rodriguez finished third, sixth and seventh, while Mateo Mendoza was fourth.
FEAST’s Daniel Young broke up the Apaches’ domination with a fifth-place overall finish in 17:18.
One of the SPC’s top 25 state meet finishers Josh King of San Antonio St. Mary’s Hall was 11th in 18:01 while Boerne Geneva School senior Jack Clifford, part of the school’s 2011 TAPPS 1A state champion unit, was 16th in 18:29.
While the Lady Apaches’ margin of victory over FEAST Home School was half of that of the boys, Antonian’s girls won with a very young , yet poised squad.
Senior Bridgette Kozar, fifth at the TAPPS 5A state meet a year ago for Antonian, covered the 2-mile distance in 12:29 for the win while sophomore teammates Robin Montemayor and Rachel Frei finished second and fourth, respectively, with FEAST’s Hannah Bowden in third.
Frei was followed across the line three seconds later, in 13:39, by FEAST’s Lydia Gill.
Incarnate Word, which was third in the team scoring, was led by senior Regan O’Brien, who was tenth in 13:56.
Junior Berkeley Brown, who was 20th at the TAPPS 4A state meet for Texas Military Institute last October, finished seventh overall – one spot behind Bandera’s Karla Presa.
TAPPS 1A defending state champion Maddie Inglish, a junior from Boerne Geneva School, was 14th overall in 14:07.
Boys
Team Scoring – Antonian 21, FEAST Home School 61, St. Mary’s Hall 100, TMI 114, Houston Spring Woods 133, Cornerstone Christian 152, Hondo 184, St. Anthony 203, LaPryor 257.
Girls
Team Scoring – Antonian 27, FEAST Home School 47, Incarnate Word Academy 113, Hondo 121, Bandera 132, Houston Spring Woods 177, TMI 178, Cornerstone Christian 226, Boerne Geneva School 231, St. Mary’s Hall 235
Sunday, August 26, 2012
Monday, August 20, 2012
Howard, Terranova Lead Locals at Leadville Trail 100
By Jon Walk
Texas Runner and Triathlete Correspondent
Having won at Leadville two years ago, and with four other 100-mile wins in the last two years, San Antonio's Elizabeth Howard entered this year's Leadville Trail 100 as one of the heavy favorites, along with Boulder, Colorado's Darcy Africa, who won this year's Hardrock 100.
And even though 2012 hadn't been as kind to her with a drop 60-plus miles in to her two-time title defense at Rocky Raccoon (in Huntsville) and a 14th-place body-chilling finish at Western States, some could have argued that it was her race to lose.
Early on, though, Vermont's Aliza Lapierre, 32, who had a second and a third (this year's Western States) in her three 100-mile finishes to date, had control of the race as she and Howard took it out fast.
Lapierre maintained a steady, slim lead over Howard through the turnaround at the Winfield aid station all the way to mile 55 and up Hope Pass for the second time.
Though in the next 5.5 miles back into the Twin Lakes aid station, Howard, 40, would post an almost 12-minute lead on Lapierre.
But Boulder, Colorado's Tina Lewis, who two years ago - the same year Howard won - barely made the 30-hour cutoff to finish, was busy rattling off a 56-minute split of her own to pull within 11 minutes of Howard herself.
Howard would hold on to a 10-minute lead on Lewis and 16 on Lapierre through Half Pipe (mile 70.9), but Lewis would make her move over the next 5.6 miles into the Outward Bound aid station at the National Fish Hatchery.
She would leave the station with an 80-second advantage on Howard and turn it into a crushing 77-minute win -- the second fastest time ever (19:33:45) -- for the win.
Howard's finishing time of 20:44:08 was still the eighth fastest time in Leadville history as she held off Oregon's Ashley Nordell by just under four minutes.
Even though the five-state region didn't have anyone in the hunt for a podium spot in the men's race, Austin's Paul Terranova was taking another step towards history.
Just over 250 times in the last 25 years, a runner has completed four 100-milers to run what's known as the "Grand Slam of Ultrarunning".
With an age group placement at last November's Ford Ironman Cozumel and the luck of the lottery draw to get into this year's Western States 100, held this past June, Terranova finished his third Grand Slam 100-miler in 21:04:47 as he tries to do what no one else has done -- the Grand Slam and finish the Ford Ironman World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.
Remaining on Terranova's running card is the Wasatch Front 100 in Kaysville, Utah the weekend after Labor Day -- and five weeks before Kona.
The 38-year-old was one of 18 - entering Saturday's race - that was seeking this year's tag of "Grand Slammer".
Three didn't finish - and two others beside Terranova hail from the five-state region.
Russellville, Arkansas' PoDog Vogler, 46, and Albuquerque, New Mexico's Brian Pilgrim, 45, will try to join Terranova and be the first Grand Slam finishers from the area in two years. In all, 27 of the 250 career Grand Slammers since 1986 have hailed from either Texas, Arkansas or New Mexico. Oklahoma and Louisiana has not produced a finisher to date.
Speaking of finishers -- and starters, this year's Leadville Trail 100 put more starters on the line than ever before (797), yet it didn't produce a record number of finishers.
Just over 45 percent of those who left downtown Leadville at 4 a.m. Mountain time on Saturday made it across the finish line -- the lowest in four years and after three straight years of a 55 percent finishing rate or better.
Those from the area didn't fare much better as just 28 of 72 starters - 38.8% - conquered the Rockies to cross the line and claim their belt buckles.
Nineteen were finishing their first Leadville Trail 100 while 10 of them had also tackeld the 100-mile distance for the first time in their ultrarunning careers.
The complete area finisher's list is listed below:
20:44:08 - Elizabeth Howard, F, San Antonio, TX (2nd Leadville finish)
21:04:47 - Paul Terranova, M, Austin, TX (1st Leadville finish)
23:15:16 - Eric Pope, M, Albuquerque, NM (1st 100-mile finish)
23:38:14 - Ted Herget, M, Jonesboro, AR (1st Leadville finish)
23:51:47 - Tom Brennan, M, Poteau, OK (1st Leadville finish)
24:41:45 - Jason Lippman, M, Austin, TX (4th Leadville finish)
26:15:53 - Shaheen Sattar, F, Dallas, TX (1st 100-mile finish)
26:46:22 - Margaret Ochs, F, Sandia Park, NM (1st 100-mile finish)
26:50:27 - Katrin Silva, F, Las Vegas, NM (1st 100-mile finish)
27:44:32 - Vlad Henzl, M, Los Alamos, NM (1st 100-mile finish)
27:44:47 - Podog Vogler, M, Russellville, AR (2nd Leadville finish)
27:47:06 - Carrie Delbecg, F, Austin, TX (1st 100-mile finish)
27:53:09 - Ken Gordon, M, Albuquerque, NM (9th Leadville finish)
27:57:21 - Paul Turner, M, Conway, AR (1st Leadville finish)
28:09:14 - Larry Pearson, M, Helotes, TX (1st Leadville finish)
28:26:09 - Neil Blake, M, Rio Rancho, NM (6th Leadville finish)
28:45:35 - Lori Enlow, F, Tahlequah, OK (1st Leadville finish)
28:45:41 - Richard Brown, M, Manchester, LA (1st Leadville finish)
28:56:04 - Jesse Vork, M, Leander, TX (1st 100-mile finish)
29:05:13 - Nicholas Juskiewicz, M, Albuquerque, NM (1st Leadville finish)
29:08:07 - Edgar Martinez, M, Allen, TX (1st 100-mile finish)
29:12:47 - Dan Keefe, M, Oklahoma City, OK (5th Leadville finish)
29:14:00 - Brian Pilgrim, M, Albuquerque, NM (2nd Leadville finish)
29:16:03 - George Peterka, M, Hot Springs National Park, AR (1st Leadville finish)
29:36:13 - John Martinek, M, Houston, TX (1st 100-mile finish)
29:41:09 - John Peck, M, Austin, TX (3rd Leadville finish)
29:46:02 - Maurice Forshee, M, Austin, TX (2nd Leadville finish)
29:53:10 - Edgardo Gonzalez, M, San Antonio, TX (1st 100-mile finish)
Texas Runner and Triathlete Correspondent
Having won at Leadville two years ago, and with four other 100-mile wins in the last two years, San Antonio's Elizabeth Howard entered this year's Leadville Trail 100 as one of the heavy favorites, along with Boulder, Colorado's Darcy Africa, who won this year's Hardrock 100.
And even though 2012 hadn't been as kind to her with a drop 60-plus miles in to her two-time title defense at Rocky Raccoon (in Huntsville) and a 14th-place body-chilling finish at Western States, some could have argued that it was her race to lose.
Early on, though, Vermont's Aliza Lapierre, 32, who had a second and a third (this year's Western States) in her three 100-mile finishes to date, had control of the race as she and Howard took it out fast.
Lapierre maintained a steady, slim lead over Howard through the turnaround at the Winfield aid station all the way to mile 55 and up Hope Pass for the second time.
Though in the next 5.5 miles back into the Twin Lakes aid station, Howard, 40, would post an almost 12-minute lead on Lapierre.
But Boulder, Colorado's Tina Lewis, who two years ago - the same year Howard won - barely made the 30-hour cutoff to finish, was busy rattling off a 56-minute split of her own to pull within 11 minutes of Howard herself.
Howard would hold on to a 10-minute lead on Lewis and 16 on Lapierre through Half Pipe (mile 70.9), but Lewis would make her move over the next 5.6 miles into the Outward Bound aid station at the National Fish Hatchery.
She would leave the station with an 80-second advantage on Howard and turn it into a crushing 77-minute win -- the second fastest time ever (19:33:45) -- for the win.
Howard's finishing time of 20:44:08 was still the eighth fastest time in Leadville history as she held off Oregon's Ashley Nordell by just under four minutes.
Even though the five-state region didn't have anyone in the hunt for a podium spot in the men's race, Austin's Paul Terranova was taking another step towards history.
Just over 250 times in the last 25 years, a runner has completed four 100-milers to run what's known as the "Grand Slam of Ultrarunning".
With an age group placement at last November's Ford Ironman Cozumel and the luck of the lottery draw to get into this year's Western States 100, held this past June, Terranova finished his third Grand Slam 100-miler in 21:04:47 as he tries to do what no one else has done -- the Grand Slam and finish the Ford Ironman World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.
Remaining on Terranova's running card is the Wasatch Front 100 in Kaysville, Utah the weekend after Labor Day -- and five weeks before Kona.
The 38-year-old was one of 18 - entering Saturday's race - that was seeking this year's tag of "Grand Slammer".
Three didn't finish - and two others beside Terranova hail from the five-state region.
Russellville, Arkansas' PoDog Vogler, 46, and Albuquerque, New Mexico's Brian Pilgrim, 45, will try to join Terranova and be the first Grand Slam finishers from the area in two years. In all, 27 of the 250 career Grand Slammers since 1986 have hailed from either Texas, Arkansas or New Mexico. Oklahoma and Louisiana has not produced a finisher to date.
Speaking of finishers -- and starters, this year's Leadville Trail 100 put more starters on the line than ever before (797), yet it didn't produce a record number of finishers.
Just over 45 percent of those who left downtown Leadville at 4 a.m. Mountain time on Saturday made it across the finish line -- the lowest in four years and after three straight years of a 55 percent finishing rate or better.
Those from the area didn't fare much better as just 28 of 72 starters - 38.8% - conquered the Rockies to cross the line and claim their belt buckles.
Nineteen were finishing their first Leadville Trail 100 while 10 of them had also tackeld the 100-mile distance for the first time in their ultrarunning careers.
The complete area finisher's list is listed below:
20:44:08 - Elizabeth Howard, F, San Antonio, TX (2nd Leadville finish)
21:04:47 - Paul Terranova, M, Austin, TX (1st Leadville finish)
23:15:16 - Eric Pope, M, Albuquerque, NM (1st 100-mile finish)
23:38:14 - Ted Herget, M, Jonesboro, AR (1st Leadville finish)
23:51:47 - Tom Brennan, M, Poteau, OK (1st Leadville finish)
24:41:45 - Jason Lippman, M, Austin, TX (4th Leadville finish)
26:15:53 - Shaheen Sattar, F, Dallas, TX (1st 100-mile finish)
26:46:22 - Margaret Ochs, F, Sandia Park, NM (1st 100-mile finish)
26:50:27 - Katrin Silva, F, Las Vegas, NM (1st 100-mile finish)
27:44:32 - Vlad Henzl, M, Los Alamos, NM (1st 100-mile finish)
27:44:47 - Podog Vogler, M, Russellville, AR (2nd Leadville finish)
27:47:06 - Carrie Delbecg, F, Austin, TX (1st 100-mile finish)
27:53:09 - Ken Gordon, M, Albuquerque, NM (9th Leadville finish)
27:57:21 - Paul Turner, M, Conway, AR (1st Leadville finish)
28:09:14 - Larry Pearson, M, Helotes, TX (1st Leadville finish)
28:26:09 - Neil Blake, M, Rio Rancho, NM (6th Leadville finish)
28:45:35 - Lori Enlow, F, Tahlequah, OK (1st Leadville finish)
28:45:41 - Richard Brown, M, Manchester, LA (1st Leadville finish)
28:56:04 - Jesse Vork, M, Leander, TX (1st 100-mile finish)
29:05:13 - Nicholas Juskiewicz, M, Albuquerque, NM (1st Leadville finish)
29:08:07 - Edgar Martinez, M, Allen, TX (1st 100-mile finish)
29:12:47 - Dan Keefe, M, Oklahoma City, OK (5th Leadville finish)
29:14:00 - Brian Pilgrim, M, Albuquerque, NM (2nd Leadville finish)
29:16:03 - George Peterka, M, Hot Springs National Park, AR (1st Leadville finish)
29:36:13 - John Martinek, M, Houston, TX (1st 100-mile finish)
29:41:09 - John Peck, M, Austin, TX (3rd Leadville finish)
29:46:02 - Maurice Forshee, M, Austin, TX (2nd Leadville finish)
29:53:10 - Edgardo Gonzalez, M, San Antonio, TX (1st 100-mile finish)
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Ironman NYC and Rev3 Wisconsin Regional Wrap-Up
By Jon Walk
Texas Runner and Triathlete Correspondent
The Hudson River tried to steal the show, but Memorial Hermann Ironman Texas winners Jordan Rapp and Mary Beth Ellis replicated their Lone Star efforts at the inaugural Ironman US Championship in New York City, New York last Sunday.
Buoyed by some of the fastest swim times on the circuit, Rapp produced both the day’s fastest bike and run split, including the only sub 3-hour marathon (2:59:22), to register an impressive 13-minute win in eight hours, 11 minutes and 18 seconds (8:11:18).
Meanwhile, Superior, Colorado’s Mary Beth Ellis didn’t have to have the fastest bike of the day – she left that to Austin’s Amy Marsh, but she did nail a 3:14:32 marathon to register a 10-minute plus margin of victory in 9:13:24 over Australia’s Rebekah Keat.
Marsh left T2 with a 44-second lead over Ellis – a repeat of Ellis seeing Marsh’s shadow for two-thirds of the race, but her 3:28:25 on the run let the lead slip by and for Keat to pass her for third.
The top age group performances from the area belonged to Fort Worth’s Madison Flowers (M30-34) and Keller’s Dana Bullard (W35-39), who recorded respective times of 10:07:08 and 10:54:50.
It was Flowers’ debut Ironman, while Bullard notched her sixth career Ironman finish.
But just six minutes behind Oceanport, New Jersey’s Maureen Cullen, Bullard was second in her age group to earn her first trip to Kona for this October’s Ford Ironman World Championship.
“I had my second fastest time even though it was a ridiculously difficult course,” she posted on her Facebook status. “I am beyond estatic.”
It was the third time that she has broken 11 hours with the other two efforts coming at Ironman Cozumel in 2009 (10:55:36) and 2011 (10:49:19).
Despite a challenging run after registering her division’s second-best bike split in 5:40:10, Bike Barn owner Lee Neathery of Houston held off St. Augustine, Florida’s Cynthia Lyons to win her 45-49 age group by 72 seconds in 11:15:54.
As a result, Neathery, 49, earned her third consecutive (and fourth career) trip to Kona.
They were three of 47 finishers from the Lone Star state.
Little Rock, Arkansas’ Jeff Glasbrenner, 39, was the only finisher from the four adjacent states with a 13:48:39 showing. It was his 16th career Ironman finish.
At Rev3’s half iron distance race in the Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, Austin professional triathlete and Texas Runner and Triathlete columnist Brandon Marsh came off the bike in the lead by just a second over Boulder, Colorado’s Richie Cunningham.
And even though he exited transition in third, Marsh noted on his blog after the race that it was Cunningham’s race to lose.
“Richie would have this in the bag unless he faltered on the run,” Marsh said.
And he didn’t. Cunningham used a pro-best time of 1:13:15 to capture the win by more than three minutes over Boulder’s Kyle Leto.
“I ran well and was passed by Kyle who, in the span of a mile or two, put 40 seconds on me,” he said. “I passed Matt Pellow and was in third. Kyle and I yo-yoed a bit, fluctuating between 25 and 40 seconds and it was just over a minute at the end – the additional time in the last mile or so.”
Nonetheless, Marsh was pleased with his 4:04:45 finish on what he termed a “very honest and tough course” for his first pro podium.
Jessica Meyers, who has taken up residence in Tulsa, Oklahoma where her husband has started medical school at Oklahoma State University, by just 17 seconds over Mount Pleasant, South Carolina’s Lauren Goss.
She worked her way into second on the bike and held off Goss on the run. Neither would be in sight of Charlottesville, Virginia’s Nicole Kelleher, who posted the win in 4:27:41.
Meyers was runner-up in 4:33:36.
Texas Runner and Triathlete Correspondent
The Hudson River tried to steal the show, but Memorial Hermann Ironman Texas winners Jordan Rapp and Mary Beth Ellis replicated their Lone Star efforts at the inaugural Ironman US Championship in New York City, New York last Sunday.
Buoyed by some of the fastest swim times on the circuit, Rapp produced both the day’s fastest bike and run split, including the only sub 3-hour marathon (2:59:22), to register an impressive 13-minute win in eight hours, 11 minutes and 18 seconds (8:11:18).
Meanwhile, Superior, Colorado’s Mary Beth Ellis didn’t have to have the fastest bike of the day – she left that to Austin’s Amy Marsh, but she did nail a 3:14:32 marathon to register a 10-minute plus margin of victory in 9:13:24 over Australia’s Rebekah Keat.
Marsh left T2 with a 44-second lead over Ellis – a repeat of Ellis seeing Marsh’s shadow for two-thirds of the race, but her 3:28:25 on the run let the lead slip by and for Keat to pass her for third.
The top age group performances from the area belonged to Fort Worth’s Madison Flowers (M30-34) and Keller’s Dana Bullard (W35-39), who recorded respective times of 10:07:08 and 10:54:50.
It was Flowers’ debut Ironman, while Bullard notched her sixth career Ironman finish.
But just six minutes behind Oceanport, New Jersey’s Maureen Cullen, Bullard was second in her age group to earn her first trip to Kona for this October’s Ford Ironman World Championship.
“I had my second fastest time even though it was a ridiculously difficult course,” she posted on her Facebook status. “I am beyond estatic.”
It was the third time that she has broken 11 hours with the other two efforts coming at Ironman Cozumel in 2009 (10:55:36) and 2011 (10:49:19).
Despite a challenging run after registering her division’s second-best bike split in 5:40:10, Bike Barn owner Lee Neathery of Houston held off St. Augustine, Florida’s Cynthia Lyons to win her 45-49 age group by 72 seconds in 11:15:54.
As a result, Neathery, 49, earned her third consecutive (and fourth career) trip to Kona.
They were three of 47 finishers from the Lone Star state.
Little Rock, Arkansas’ Jeff Glasbrenner, 39, was the only finisher from the four adjacent states with a 13:48:39 showing. It was his 16th career Ironman finish.
At Rev3’s half iron distance race in the Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, Austin professional triathlete and Texas Runner and Triathlete columnist Brandon Marsh came off the bike in the lead by just a second over Boulder, Colorado’s Richie Cunningham.
And even though he exited transition in third, Marsh noted on his blog after the race that it was Cunningham’s race to lose.
“Richie would have this in the bag unless he faltered on the run,” Marsh said.
And he didn’t. Cunningham used a pro-best time of 1:13:15 to capture the win by more than three minutes over Boulder’s Kyle Leto.
“I ran well and was passed by Kyle who, in the span of a mile or two, put 40 seconds on me,” he said. “I passed Matt Pellow and was in third. Kyle and I yo-yoed a bit, fluctuating between 25 and 40 seconds and it was just over a minute at the end – the additional time in the last mile or so.”
Nonetheless, Marsh was pleased with his 4:04:45 finish on what he termed a “very honest and tough course” for his first pro podium.
Jessica Meyers, who has taken up residence in Tulsa, Oklahoma where her husband has started medical school at Oklahoma State University, by just 17 seconds over Mount Pleasant, South Carolina’s Lauren Goss.
She worked her way into second on the bike and held off Goss on the run. Neither would be in sight of Charlottesville, Virginia’s Nicole Kelleher, who posted the win in 4:27:41.
Meyers was runner-up in 4:33:36.
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