The West Valley Track Club has been an institution on the Northern California and national running scene for almost forty years. Founded in 1964, it is the oldest track club in Northern California. The club has been active across the spectrum of the sport, including track and field, road racing, cross country, and ultrarunning.

WVTC News and Race Results

Winter Classic Beer Mile

Official times based on frame by frame analysis of the video are:

1. T Rose 5:49.4
2. Alex 6:20.2
3. Dewan 6:26.1
4. Pontus 7:38.8
5. Matt H. 8:21.7
6. Tony 8:23.2
7. Craig 8:28.6
8. Jonathan 9:32.4
9. Ian 10:14.7
10. TK 10:16.2
DQ. Tyler (7:37.7)

Thanks to the obsessive compulsive tendencies that link Todd Kelly to hundreds of his distance running brethren we have full results and splits for the Winter Classic Beer Mile. The columns are broken down into the number of seconds required to consume a beer and then run the subsequent 440 yd lap.

Winter WVTC Beer Mile Results and Splits
February 24, 2006

1. T Rose 10 67 19 71 25 71 21 66
2. Alex 11 66 34 68 35 70 38 58
3. Dewan 9 68 27 75 34 75 34 64
4. Pontus 20 77 45 86 39 77 39 76
5. Matt H. 12 69 38 87 53 73 98 72
6. Tony (2) 12 78 46 97 46 91 52 81
7. Craig 29 76 62 80 62 71 59 70
8. John 22 90 63 95 56 96 63 88
9. Ian 25 77 62 83 67 101 105 94
10. TK (3) 22 80 50 88 69 92 65 150
Tyler (1) 10 81 33 92 39 85 30 88
Notes
(1) Tyler was DQ'd for failure to run a penalty lap after spitting up some of his second beer (see video on home page)
(2) Since Mr. Fong failed to drink a significant portion of his first beer, his time will remain unofficial per timekeeper Jonah's judgement (and Canadian beer mile veteran Johnny Markle's audio (3) TK incurred a penalty lap for spitting up some of his fourth beer.

Total Beer Drinking time (in minutes and seconds)
1. T Rose 1:15
2. Dewan 1:44
3. Tyler 1:52
4. Alex 1:58
5. Pontus 2:23
6. Tony 2:36
7. Matt H. 3:21
8. John 3:24
9. TK 3:26
10. Craig 3:32
11. Ian 4:19

Mile pace of running segments (5 laps for TK)
1. Alex 4:22
2. T Rose 4:35
3. Dewan 4:42
4. Craig 4:57
5. Matt H. 5:01
6. Pontus 5:16
7. TK 5:28
8. Tyler 5:46
9. Tony 5:47
10. Ian 5:55
11. John 6:09

Master's Women, Open Men Stand on PA Podium with Bronze Medals
Open Women 4th; Bernsten-Heber Wins Title by a Second!

Golden Gate Park, SF--In yet another stellar day for the WVTC 2006 fall season, both the master's women and open men teams climbed aboard their respective Pacific Association medal stands this past Sunday afternoon.

For the master's women, it was the final match in a year-long see-saw battle with the Impalas. Sadly, not only did they come up a bit short, the Aggies also beat them, sending the team of Sissel Berntsen-Heber, Kim Woody, Meredith Mills, Kim Rupert, and Karen Saxena into third place overall. The team highlight, however, was Sissel-Heber's performance, as she won the 2006 PA Master's Women Individual Title, outleaning Aggie Linda Somers Smith by a second.

The open men, despite not having top dogs Chris Zieman, Brad Poore, and Stevie Deweenie, displayed impressive depth as many old names--and several new ones--helped team place 3rd overall, just places behind the Transports for 2nd.

Leading the charge was Duke Bristow, who amazingly toed the starting line just ten minutes before arriving to the race due to traffic. But as always, Bristow ran tough, going out comfortable and moving up throughout the race, finishing as WVTC's top man at 32:36. Also breaking 33:00 was Todd Rose (32:57) and Sean Marzolf (32:59). Marzolf, with amazing range from 800 meters (1:50) to the half marathon (70:44), made his WVTC debut an impressive one, running as the team's first man until the final stages of the race. Behind Rose was Craig Gaites (33:23), Brent Wright (33:47), Jonah Backstrom (34:03), Bill Raitter (34:38), Carlos Castelo (35:59), Frank Prince (36:33), and Mat DesJardins (38:17). Deweenie wasn't man enough to race, citing the race as "too long and painful" for his fairy feet to handle. This didn't stop him, however, for bagging on some of his teammates during a workout that following Tuesday. "I thought some guys would have run faster," he said, in between 200's at 33 pace. "But then again, that race is just too long for my Canadian blood."

Counting Marzolf's points, the final team scores were Aggies 20, Transports 59, and WVTC 73. This sets the table for December 9th's showdown in Golden Gate Park for the USA XC Club National Championships, where West Valley will get their last crack at beating their East Bay rival in cross country. Although several key players will be unavailable due to the CIM Marathon the weekend before, new players who didn't run at PA's will be laced up and ready to go.

The open women improved on last year's performance and finished fourth overall. They were again led by former Farm Teamer Suzanne Segesta, who cracked the PA top 10 with an impressive ninth finish place overall. Behind her were teammates Sarah Raitter (17th), Shannon Cody (32nd), Robin Soares (38th), Beth Bourne (43rd), Carla Holmes (45th), and Teresa Clark (52nd).

On a final, sadder note, WVTC Carlos Castelo was again ipoded by arch-nemesis Brent Lubratisch. "Hey man, it was a good season, man, that kid got me again, man" Castelo added after the race, as he is now resigned to a life of stuffing his face and drinking himself into a daze every evening. He is considering challenging Brent to a duel in chinese checkers, an event he has a greater chance of winning.

Open Men Roll Strong and Deep in Tamalpa Challenge
Sets Table for "Showdown in SacTown"
San Rafael, CA--Paced by 2005 Tamalpa Challenge Champion and course record holder Todd Rose, the WVTC open men raced on the heels of PA-rival Transports while far out-distancing themselves from the Humboldt TC during the 4.38-mile race along the scenic trails in China Camp. The unofficial team scores were Transports (17), WVTC (73), and Humboldt TC (109).

Rose led the team with a 5th place finish, with Alex Mason, fresh off a huge 5k PR, just steps behind in 12th. Behind Mason was an impressive wave of red, as Frank Prince (17), Jonah Backstrom (19), and Chuck Schneekloth (20) sealed WVTC silver. Just a minute behind this pack was the upstart Michael Arulgranendren, veteran Carlos Castelo, and Canadian Flag sock-wearing Steven Dewan.

Although previously in first in the PA XC standings, the open men's team has a tough road ahead to ensure a 2nd place team finish this fall. First, the team will have to hold back a strong Humboldt team without the services of front-runner Rose next week in the "Fleet Feet" 6k XC Invitational in Sacramento. Then, they will have to beat the same team at the PA/Western Regional XC Championships two weeks later. "Bring 'em on--we'll be ready," said Mason after Tamalpa who, like Schneekloth, made his 2006 XC debut this past weekend. Both, along with Castelo and marathoner Craig Gaites, will make the trek to Sactown next weekend.

Tamalpa Challenge Results
WVTC Race Picture Album

Masters Women Run Away with Shoreline Title
Segeste Turns in Top-10 Effort at Shoreline & Tamalpa

Mountain View, CA--The WVTC Masters womens' team scored a huge team win at the Shoreline Cross Country Challenge, serving rival Impala a seven point defeat. The women were led by Sissel Berntsen-Heber who won the master's race, while Kim Rupert (4th) and Kim Woody (5th) were just steps behind. The WVTC team score of ten earned the club $75 and 15 team points as the Impalas, at seventeen team points, earned $25 and 13.5 team points.

Open runner Suzanne Segeste continued to have a strong fall, as her 8th place led the open women to a fifth place finish. The team was rounded out by Shannon Cody (18th), Teresa Clark (37th), Karen Saxena (44th), and Ellen Clark (40th). Segeste was 7th in the Tamalpa Challenge, covering the 4.38-mile distance in 27:09.

Fong Rocks Chicago: 2:44
Question Lingers: Did he bet on himself running so fast?
Chicago, IL--Tony Fong, at the age of 47, has quietly been having a strong 2006 running season. Pictured above winning his Davis Mile heat in 5:15, his training peaked this weekend as he sizzled the Chicago Marathon in 2:44:11. Averaging 6:18 a mile, Fong was all business frm the start, rolling through his first 5k at nearly 6:00 pace--18:48. Coasting through the mid-point at 81:35, Fong ran a sound, evenly-split, tactical race, finishing his last half in 82:36. His time was good enough for 6th overall in his age group, an impressive feat considering it's one of the most competitive marathons in the country.

Fong's Unofficial Splits via Chicago Marathon Website

Gaites Leads Open Men to Humboldt Team Title
Doping Rumors Circulate after Arulgnanendran Runs Two PR's in One Week

Humboldt, CA--In just his second race in a West Valley uniform, Craig Gaites is already making headlines. With a one-second PR of 72:17, he led WVTC to a convincing, 14-minute team title over Humboldt TC. "The mile markers were a bit off; I actually thought I was on 70-minute pace until the last few miles. I was holding back a bit--I think I could have run a little faster if I knew my exact splits. But I'm happy. A PR is a PR, and a team win is a team win."

Just behind him was Todd Rose (73:15), Neil Gilfedder (77:12), Mike Arulgnanendran (77:46), and Mat Desjardins (80:02). The win pulls the 2nd place club just 16.5 points closer to the leading-Transports. Yet, despite the team's successes, there has been whispers floating in the rumor-mill about the Crankin' Sri Lankan. That Tuesday, he rana 10K PR "the hard way", according to Coach Jack Youngren, doing hard-easy 800's. Days later, he runs 6:00 pace for 13.1 mile. Suspicious? Teammate Todd Kelly thinks so, as he created the following equation last week: low mileage week + multiple weekly night of partying + 2PR's in one week +questionable ethics + career at pharmaceutical company = high likelyhood of doping. Mike's agent, Victor Conte, didn't return phone calls all last week.

Results, Humboldt Half Marathon

Master's Women Close 2nd in Heritage Oaks 10k
Open Men Suffer a 3rd-by-One-Point at Presidio XC Challenge

Paso Robles, CA--The battle for bragging rights in the PA Master's Women's racing scene continues.

Last year, WVTC took the cross country title, as the Impalas captured the road racing flag. And this year, of course, is no different. Currently a dead-heat tie in 2006 XC action, the Imps added a point to their now 17-point lead in the road series, eding the WVTC trio by almost seven minutes. Missing their normal third-woman Kim Woody, Mary Lothrop ran a solid 45:04 to round out the team of Sissel Bernsten-Heber (38:22) and Kim Rupert (42:09). But alas, it wasn't enough to hold off the Impalas, led by Lisbet Sunshine who recently just qualified for the Olympic Trials with a 2:44 marathon at Twin Cities.

San Francisco, CA--The open men, holding on dearly to an eight point lead in the PA-XC series over the 2005, 2004, 2003, and 2002 PA-XC champion Transports, were dealt a tough blow when losing out on valuable 2nd place points when edged by Humbolt 88-87 at the Presidio XC Challenge. Todd "Hey-Ohh!" Rose came in fourth to lead the WVTC charge, followed closely by teammates Caig Gaites (10th) and Brent Wright (11th). Carlos Castelo (26th) and Mat Desjardins (37) rounded out the team's scoring five in a race known for its brutal uphills and even sharper downhills.

Results, Heritage Oaks 10k
Results, Presidio XC Challenge

A Confluence of Champions
Mejia, Laris, Anderson, Dare, Clarke, Leydig Highlight WVTC Reunion

By Chuck Schneekloth

Palo Alto, CA-On a warm September Sunday afternoon, they gathered like any group of old friends. Over food, drink, handshakes, and smiles, they divulged in memories from over thirty years ago. They told stories of the past, asked questions about the present, and pondered politics and steroid scandals. One would never guess there were Olympians and Olympic medalists in the group.

But there were.

Among the most humble was former WVTC star Alvaro Mejia, the 1971 Boston Marathon Champion and three-time Olympian (pictured above with son, Chris). Also in attendance was '68 Olympic Trials 10k champ Bill Clark, '68 10k Olympian Tom Laris, '72 10k Olympian Jon Anderson (all three pictured above, respectively), '72 AAU National Champion steeplechaser Jim Dare, and '80 and '84 Olympic Trials competitor Roy Kissen.

But the guest of honor was Mejia, who trekked up from his native country Columbia for the gathering, organized by former WVTC distance star Jack Leydig. When asked about how he relocated from Columbia to the Bay Area, and soon thereafter joined WVTC, Mejia modestly gestured to his wife, Terri Stickles. "She was a better athlete than me," he joked, pushing back his white pony tail with a gentle smile. "Talk to her." Sure enough, it was Stickles, the American bronze medalist in the 400 meter freestyle swim in the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games, who brought him to the Bay Area in 1969.

After her medal, Stickles retired from swimming. Joining the Peace Corps, she became proactive in the Columbian athletic community, hosting several big swim meets. But one meet ended abruptly. "Suddenly there was this big commotion; a big group of people swamped the swimming facility and delayed our meet for hours," she recalled. Sure enough, it was Mejia, a national hero after competing in the 1964 Olympic 5,000 meter final, passing through with his "entourage" of fans, bodyguards, and coaches. They were introduced moments later, and soon after dated for two years before Mejia competed in the 1968 Olympics in the 10,000 meters. After placing 10th, he retired from running and moved with Stickles to her native Bay Area.

But when Leydig heard of Mejia's presence, he moved fast. "He picked me up from work everyday, in the same car you see out there in the parking lot, and would take me to beautiful trails and parks to run. I joined West Valley in 1969, and met some very nice guys. I really enjoyed them a lot, and I could barely even speak English," he recounted fondly, gesturing to his surrounding teammates. Pushing his weekly mileage from 120 to 150 miles, be began marathon training-despite working a physically demanding job in the steel molding business. "My coworkers would go drink beer afterwards," he mused. "I would go run 25 kilometers." Such a rigorous training regiment paid off, as he soon won the 75th Boston Marathon in 2:18:45, and later competed in the 1972 Olympic Games in the marathon. During this time, from 1969-1985 while running for WVTC, he owned a running store in San Mateo. He then took his earnings from the store and moved back to his native land, Columbia, to retire.

"We runners are special, different people," he shared, while saying goodbye to an old teammate, Daryl Zapata, with a hug and a trinket from Columbia. "We have discipline and enjoy punishment. This is special." Yet becoming a runner wasn’t an easy task for Mejia, who struggled to find training partners and a coach in South America with expertise. Constantly experimenting with mileage and workouts, in order to find the right running formula he read magazines and wrote letters to Arthur Lydiard, who always wrote back. Indeed, Mejia had no formal coaching as a youth, as he started running while in the Columbian army, winning the 1500 meters against the country's fittest air force, police, and marine members. From there, he soon set goals: be the best in the city, then the country-then the world. But he was on his own until meeting Leydig, as he wasn't able to accept San Jose State's full scholarship offer due to citizenship reasons. Regardless, Mejia had no regrets as he talked with a new entourage around him: his wife, friends, family, and son, Chris, a San Francisco art promoter. "We trained hard back then-real hard," he asserted, nodding his head slowly. "There were no drugs back then. I trained three times a day, seven days a week. I loved every step."

While Meija served as the guest of honor at the reunion, he wasn't the only WVTC alumni in attendance with Olympic experience to share. Tom Laris, who trained in Mexico City for a year in preparation for the games there in altitude, was 16th in the 1968 10k final. His training partner, Jim Dare, ran 8:42 in the 3,000 meter steeple chase to win AAU gold in 1972 while finishing graduate school at Stanford. And Jon Anderson, who shared a room in the Olympic Village with Frank Shorter, Kenny Moore, Steve Savage, and Dave Wottle, competed in the 1972 Munich Games in the 10,000 meters. The Cornell alumni, who ran a sizzling 28:34, missed the Olympic final by merely eight seconds.

Bill Clark, who currently coaches the WVTC South Bay athletes, narrowly missed joining Laris on the 1968 10k Olympic team. Clark had won the "preliminary" US Olympic Trials in the 10,000 in Los Angeles that year. However, when a second trials meet was held later that year at the altitude of Lake Tahoe, designed to mimic the conditions the athletes would face in Mexico City, Clark did not place in the top 3. The previous decision to award the winner of the Los Angeles meet an automatic place on the team had been rescinded, and Clark had his Olympic dream taken away, despite finishing the year ranked 2nd in the US at the distance, and with a second place finish in the Boston Marathon among his laurels. Together, Clark, Anderson and Laris were ranked in the top ten US 10,000 meter runners twelve times.

This constellation of running talent in the Bay Area not only fueled these world class athletes to their peak performances, but served to inspire the next generation of runners who would shine during the running boom of the late 70's to early 80's. Roy Kissin was a young 13 year old who had the opportunity to improve as a runner while running for WVTC's talented junior team in the 70's. As Kissin developed into a phenomenal high school runner, (he was selected as the NorCal runner of the year in 1974 after running an 8:56 2 mile for San Ramon High School) he could train with his world class teammates. This environment lead to a stellar running career at Stanford and beyond, as Kissin made the Olympic Trials in 1980 (marathon) and 1984 (5000) with career PR's of 13:40, 28:19, and 2:20.

Poore, Mason Lead WVTC's Open Men's Team to Second Place Showing at the Banana Chase 5K
Craig, Chuck Challenge the 1st Place Woman and Prevail, Just Barely
by Alex Mason, WVTC Website Freelance Writer

SF, CA--On a cool, suny, spelling?, Brad Poore, 4th place, and Alex Mason, 9th place, lead the open men's team to a repeat second place showing at the Banana Chase 5k. Perhaps of greater importance, Alex Mason sets a new 5K PR, 15:19, as he dominates his lesser talented teammates; who for some reason actually felt they had a chance to beat him.

To gain a greater appreciation for the importance of Mason's domination, we need to take a look back at what transpired over the last month leading up to the race.

Faux half-miler Chuck "I have more hair on my back than on the top of my head" Schneekloth traveled back to his home state and ran a solid 5K pr of 15:32 at the NJ Association's 5K Championship. After 6 years of battling injuries and male pattern baldness, Chuck finally did what he thought he might never do again, set a new PR. At this point Chuck now had a faster 5K PR than stalwart 800m man, Alex Mason.

2 weeks before the race the team met up for their weekly workout, a grueling 4X1mile over the challenging Golden Gate 4 mile course. A tired and possibly delirious Schneekloth, who was rumored to have stayed up late the night before "grading papers", had a sub par workout. Maybe it just seemed that way because he finished so far behind Mason on all but one of the 1 mile runs. However, brimming with confidence from his new 3 mile PR, and a summer spent running 70-80 mile weeks, he threw down what has come to be known as the challenge to WVTC's true half-miler, Alex Mason. The Challenge: that he would beat Mason at the upcoming Banana Chase 5K

"I had to accept The Challenge," Mason said. "Besides, I know Chuck likes to call himself a half-miler in the articles he writes for the website. But if he can't run faster than the fastest woman in the world, he should probably switch to using a different moniker."

With the challenge accepted, the smack-talking began and a slew of emails were traded back and forth between the two. Not to be outdone, former slowest member of Adidas Transport's, Craig Gaites, wanted in on the challenge and claimed he would beat all of the WVTC members, excluding of course, the enigma Brad Poore.

Excerpts from the emails:

"True, I’ve been running every other day due to some knee tendonites (sic) this week, but it wont (sic) matter. When your foe maxes out at 35 miles/week, just wait till we hit the 2.5 mile mark!" wrote Chuck, the supposed English teacher in an email a few days before the race.

Gaites, perhaps suffering from permanent brain damage from his embarrassing blow up at the Austin Marathon, had this to say about the upcoming race. "I might be slow and out of shape, but I'm sure as hell not losing to the first woman again this year. That should be enough to put me in front of all you scrubs." Craig was even kind enough to give a Vegas line for the race, which you can read here. There were also predictions given out by the original challengers, which you can read here. *Check the results to see who knew what they were talking about and who was just blowing smoke out of their ass.

"Already pulling out the excuses. I am offering none for this race and if you beat me you beat me, but I am giving myself 20-1 odds for the victory," Mason wrote. Either he is slightly retarded or he doesn't understand the odds game in betting. No one really seems to know.

Mason continued with conviction, "I thought you were telling me on Tuesday wait until the 2 mile mark, it seems your confidence is waivering (sic), next email from you it will be wait until the 3 mile mark. No matter by 2.5 miles I’ll be just a speck in the distance ahead of you, and I don’t know what Craig is talking about, that workout on Tuesday can’t be doing much for him in the confidence department. See you at the finish line on Sunday, I’ll be waiting."

The Banana Chase 5k was now more than just another race on the PA circuit. The team members were now racing for pride, and the 4th spot on the WVTC 5K depth chart behind Brad Poore, Todd "faking a foot injury" Rose, and Chris Zieman.

With a challenge the writers of the movie Bring It On couldn't have come up with them selves, it was time to figure out who was going to win.

On race day there was obvious nervousness among the runners. Chuck even lead one of WVTC’s newest members, Frank Prince, into what he thought was the car pool lane over the Bay Bridge. Too bad there is no car pool lane on Sunday. No matter, with 15 minutes to go before race time a few harsh words were exchanged; however, most of the time was spent preparing for what was either going to be a great day for one or one to forget for many.

As the gun went off Schneekloth and Gaites were flying. "Come on Alex, Chuck’s already got you by 20 meters," WVTC Beer Mile Champ Todd chimed in as he eagerly anticipated the outcome of the race. "Don’t worry, he’s going to die," Mason yelled back in a prophetic rebuttal.

Heading towards the mile, Mason gathered himself and made his way onto Schneekloth’s shoulder, only to "accidentally" cut him off 100 meters later. Meanwhile Craig, who stated earlier in the week he was fat and out of shape, thought he could put the race away before the mile mark, as he covered the distance in 4:43.

Even though Craig was right on his shoulder through the first half mile, an obviously flustered Chuck had this to say about the first mile. "I didn’t even see Craig before the mile."

Mason and Schneekloth at this point were well behind Craig, but at least one of them wasn’t going to give up. "Right after the first mile, I made a surge and didn’t hear Chuck’s usual heavy breathing when he tries to run with me, so I knew he was toast," Mason recalled after the race. So much for Chuck’s wait till 2.5 miles statement!

With Chuck already out of the running before the mile, it was down to two.

Mason made his way to within in striking distance of Gaites about a quarter mile before the 2 mile mark. However, he wasn't going to wait around, and without a word of encouragement to his new teammate, Mason made a surge that Craig attempted to cover over the next half mile. "I didn’t realize Craig was covering my surge," Mason stated. "But it doesn't matter; the surge had its desired effect."

Over the last 1.1 miles it was all smiles for Mason as he knew he was assured of the victory. He even gave a couple of thumbs up to the spectators watching the race. They probably thought he shouldn’t be so happy since he was losing the race. Little did they know, little did they know.

Although Mason was all smiles the same can't be said for the rest of the crew. Instead of them having to worry about Mason passing them, there were other fears on their minds at this point. "I kept hearing, come on Magdalena. At this point I thought I was going to lose to the first woman." Chuck and Brent both mentioned after the race.

At finish line Mason did exactly what he said he was going to do and waited for his teammates to finish. It took a while, as they all finished 30 seconds or more behind. Craig came in the first loser, followed by Frank, and then Chuck, being that guy, out kicking Brent Wright on the track. Not only did that finish off the top 5 guys for us in the race, but is also finished off The Challenge, with, in case you didn't already know who won, Alex Mason being the victor.

After the race the remaining members of WVTC that ran the race found the group looking to find out who won. No words were needed. All you had to look at was the smile on Mason's face, and the deer caught in the headlights look on Chuck's. "I don't think I've ever come close to making a grown man cry before, but I could've sworn I saw Chuck almost lose it. Maybe that's why he walked away for a few minutes after the race, with his head hung in shame." However, all was not lost for at least one of the challengers. Craig is still able to boast a better PR than Thomas "The not so Great Dane" Jensen. Jensen ran a 2:51:44 marathon in Maui, not quite faster than Craig's PR of 2:42:?

"I've been running 80 miles a week, and had just set a new 5K PR. Meanwhile Mason spent more time drinking beer, playing XBOX 360, and crying about his hamstring, than he spent on running. I mean shit he was only running 35 miles a week, and lost to Rose in the beer mile. I thought I was a sure thing to beat him today. We need to give him a drug test, I don't know if I'll ever recover from this." Chuck mumbled after the race.

He also had some choice words against Fresno State, where Mason attended college; as well as, Mason's supposed lack of intelligence. Apparently he doesn't realize Rutgers is the State University of New Jersey, and that Mason graduated Magna Cum Laude, with a real degree, while Chuck graduated with no such honors. Moreover, no one has ever heard of anything good coming out of the state of New Jersey, so who knows why he was talking smack.

Mason offered his reasons, and also his feelings about The Challenge. "You could tell Chuck took a huge hit to his pride out there today. He continued to talk smack after the race; a sure sign he was hurt, of course none of it was running related."

"He kept talking about how he was running 80 miles a week, but I think he forgot one thing that running 80 miles a week can't give you, and that's talent," Mason continued. "Apparently he doesn't have much. This is the second time Chuck has said he was going to beat someone on the team and both times he has lost. I think he'll think twice before saying that again, he obviously chokes under pressure."

Some real thoughts:

"Chuck and I both agreed after the race that The Challenge, that my lame ass can't come up with a better name for, really brought a lot of surprisingly positive energy to the race. Everyone was excited and wanted to know who came out on top," said Mason. "But, and I'm for serious here, this a young team on the rise, with strong veteran leadership. Over the next couple of seasons this team is going to start challenging for more 1st place victories on the PA Circuit; other than the Davis Mile, we can't forget about that. New comers Frank, Brent, and Ian have proven they can run fast. Craig will soon be running for us and although Chuck had an off day he'll be back. Hell we didn't have two of our top 5 5K runners out there today, and we were still closing in on Transports. We have a great training atmosphere going on right now on Tuesday nights and that can only help us all improve and add in some more recruits. So let's keep this going and keep challenging each other, it will only help us get better. Just don’t challenge me it is not a good idea."

The Craig Gaites Vegas Line on 2006 Jamba Juice 5k

Heres the odds of victory (among the WVTC) for each person as I see them:

Myself: 3:1 - I might be slow and out of shape, but I'm sure as hell not losing to the first woman again this year. That should be enough to put me infront of all you scrubs.

Todd: 2:1 if he shows, otherwise 10:1 - Got to give some props to the bear mile champ.

Chuck: 5:1 - In much the same way that housing prices are astronomically high, 5Ks in the Bay Area are notoriously longer than those run in New Jersey.

Frank: 7:1 - Haven't seen him race yet, but if he has the stamina to handle two periods of Algerbra with the bright young scholars of Oakland's public school system this distance man might suprise. Odds might be effected by actual presence on starting line.

Alex: 10:1 - Sorry buddy, this ain't no 800.

Ian: 15:1 - Good odds considering he won't be racing.

Thomas: 30:1 - Will likely be preoccupied talking with Dean Karnazas at Runners World cover photo shoot.

Mike: 35:1 - Well there's no Beer drinking involved so he has that going for him. No help from exceptionally cool nickname.

Gaites to Wear WVTC Red
Cornell Grad Will Add Depth to XC, Road Squad as He Looks to Break 2:30 Marathon Barrier

San Francisco, CA--After a year of befriending and training with WVTC at Kezar Stadium, Craig Gaites has finally announced the seemingly inevitable: he is switching from Transports to West Valley red. "I think that the WVTC will be a good fit for me because they take their running seriously, but keep it in prospective. After a long running career filled with making teams, competing for a spot on the bus, and chasing qualifying times, I look foward simply to busting out big mileage with good friends, trying to run fast, and just having fun a good time with it." As his last race with Transports was the Shriners 8k on June 24, he will be eligible, as per Pacific Association rules, to first compete for WVTC in three months--or September 24.

With an impressive range from the 5k (14:52) up to the marathon (2:43, 7th in July's SF Marathon), Gaites will help round out already solid cross country and road teams this fall and spring. The New York native, who has already run two marathons, Austin and San Francisco, in "elite athlete" status, is looking forward to a strong fall--and an even stronger spring.

A graduate of Pierson High School (Sag Harbor, NY), Gaites managed modest PR's of 4:32 and 9:54, while also splitting 1:59 in his team's national championship qualifying 4x800 relay team. Realizing there might be more potential there, especially after breaking his home cross country course 5k record, he walked onto Cornell's distance squad. Dropping his times consistently under the watchful eye of coach Jerry Smith, an unexpected injury senior year hampered his hopes of really improving his 14:52 indoor 5k PR.

As they often do, this injury took much wind out of his sails. Two years and one knee surgery later, Gaites found himself running for the Tamalpa Road Running team. Fighting to regain fitness and confidence, everything changed in the fall of 2004, when he barely cracked 35:00 in a 10k at Samual Taylor State Park--but won. "This just suddenly gave me motivation to train and get my mileage up. After a short reincarnation as a triathlete, I ended up running with the Transports. Then I moved from Marin to San Francisco and wandered into Kezar Stadium one Tuesday night. And, a year later, here I am."

As for the future, Gaites has quite a few goals in his horizon. "In the next couple of years I hope to start to chip away at some of my college PR's, run a sub-2:30 marathon, keep both my running and career on an upward trend, marry my fiance Melanie, and run a sub-10 minute beer mile."

One thing's for sure: if he expects to be a valuable contributing member of the WVTC, as it appears he will, he's going to do a bit better than ten minutes in the beer mile. That just doesn't cut it with this group.

The Craig Gaites File: PR's
800m -1:59.8
1500m - 4:00.02
3000m - 8:37
5000m - 14:52
10000m - 32:17
Half Marathon - 1:12:17
Marathon - 2:43:03

Masters Women,Open Men Score Team Golds in Santa Cruz XC Invite
Open Women a Strong Second as Segesta, Cody go 4-5

Santa Cruz, CA--The master's women and open men's teams both won their respective divisions at the PA cross country race in Santa Cruz last weekend, continuing a long string of club success the past few months. The open women were equally impressive, placing a solid second place behind a strong Transports squad.

The men were dominant, scoring 1-2-3-4 with Chris Zieman, Brent Wright, Jonah Backstrom, and newcomer Frank Prince. The DesJardins brothers rounded out the top 6, leading the men to a 20 team points, far out-distancing 2nd place Excelsior (53). the team has started off the 2006 fall cross country season off with a huge win over many PA rival squads.

The masters women placed 4,5,and 10 with Kim Woody, Kim Rupert, and Meredith Mills, respectively. The open women were helped with a 4-5 effort by South Bay marathoners Suzanne Segesta and Shannon Cody, with Teresa Clark (10), Beth Bourne (11), and Carla Holmes (13) rounding out the full five.

Complete story by Mat DesJardins

Individual Results

Team results

Team story by May DesJardin:

Todd R, post Hood to Coast sore foot, brought Frank P to the race, thanks Todd. Todd did manage a cool down with the boys after the race. We wish Todd a speedy
recovery, we'll need him at GGP next weekend!

Course notes:
4 miles. Warm but manageable temps. Overcast, the sun didn't poke through 'til after the race. For the most part, loose footing, lots of keeping the head down and
seeking out the path of least resistance along the trail. First 1.5 miles pretty much uphill, had to be careful not to "redline" into the lactic acid zone.
1.5 - 3 miles rolling hills, occasional flat. A cone turnaround just prior to the 2 mile mark. Last mile, rolling downhill, a real test on one's ability to
focus and hang on. The slightest bit of uphill on the last 50 meters.

Nice food spread after the race, all you can eat orange wedges, gatorade and bagles with cream cheese and/or peanut butter.

- Mat DesJardins

Rose Triumphs in WVTC Beer Mile
Dewey a Solid Second, Mason a Distant Third

San Francisco, CA-- In yet another display of brilliance, Todd Rose came off a solid twenty-mile training week to smoke the competition in the first-ever WVTC Beer Mile. He broke the tape in 6:18.3, a solid 200 meters in front of second place Steve "The Canadian Canon" Dewan (6:46.3), and nearly lapped bronze medalist Alex "My Hammie Hurts When I'm Losing" Mason (7:22.2).

Although many attribute his success to his newly developed facial hair, Rose has a different perspective.

"As you could see by my splits, I had no problem running with a gut full of BEERS. You could even see at the end of the race that my gut was full," he echoed shortly afterwards.

Dewey refrained from commenting, but Mason has plenty of excuses after the race.

"Having strained my hamstring last week at the Alameda 10K, I was at a distinct disadvantage especially because of the cold weather. I couldn't put my superior miling speed to work for me out there which would have made up for my sorry chugging skills and I believe I would have been atleast 48 seconds faster if it wasn't for the damn strain. That would have put me closer to Todd and likely would have put me in front of Dewey." This author has no comment on this quote outside of how weak Mason clearly is.

Rose, however, was content with his performance--and not surprised at all by his domination over the field. "The first beer went down relatively quick for
everyone, Dewey was first at 12 seconds then myself and Alex at around 14-15. At the first exchange, second beer, Dewey ran past his beers and had to double back costing him precious seconds. I took advantage of this and was slugging away before he even opened his beer, even though he was leading by 3 seconds. Our first running lap was around 66. The second beer went down more slowly for all, I was around 28 seconds followed by a lap of 73 (hitting the 800 at about 3:01). The third beer was similar in about 29 seconds and another lap of about 72 With one to go i drank slightly fast in 27 and hammered the last lap in 65. I know I can go sub six next time, I've got to chug. I wouldn't call 28 seconds chugging."

Rounding out the top seven was Thomas Jensen (8:46), Mike Brandwell (9:03), Benji Whalen (9:33), and Dave Kyle (12:19). Mike Arulgnanendran did not finish, claiming a bubbly green rash on his inner leg as the reason for not completing the full four laps.

Official Results

Name Time Sex Age Beer Notes
1. Todd "T Rose" Rose 6:18.3 M 33 Budweiser, from can
2. Steve "Dewey" Dewan 6:46.3 M 32 Budweiser, from can
3. Alex Mason 7:22.2 M 25 Budweiser, from can
4. Thomas Jensen 8:46.6 M 33 Coors, from bottle
5. Mike Brandell 9:03.9 M 2 Redhook ESB, from bottle 5.8%!
6. Benji Whalen 9:33.4 M 36 Budweiser, from can
7. Dave Kyle 12:19.2 M 28 Budweiser, from can
8. Mike "The Crankin' Sri Lankan" Arulgnanendran DNF M 22 Siera, Heiny, from bottle

Todd Kelly's Story on BeerMile.com

Race Notes:

In front of a crowd of aspiring beer milers, eight West Valley men toed the line of a race that has been talked up but never run for the past five years. This would be the day where running fitness and chugging prowess would come together to finally prove once and for all who could claim to be the greatest WVTC beer miler.

For the 1st Annual WVTC Beer Mile, there was fortunately little beer spilled and everyone was spared from running a penalty lap, although Mr. Kyle was close to doing his rendition of Bob Kempainen in 1996. Dewey started off in spectacular style by sucking down the first beer and blazing the first quarter in around 83 seconds, a good ways ahead of Alex and Todd. But T Rose took over with solid chugs and even quicker running (about 72 quarters) to finish his first beer mile in a time that would put him at exactly the 50th fastest time ever (per beermile.com). Dewey just missed his 10 year old PR by 2 seconds, perhaps from too easy a chugging approach.

Next came Mr. Middle Distance Alex (perhaps let down by his chugging), Thomas the Great Dane, Mr 5.8% Mike B., Big Daddy Benji, and Tummy Ache Dave. The seasoned late night drinker, Mike A., couldn't transfer his bar binging talents to the track and DNFed.

While T Rose impressed, the inspirational story of the evening was Benji Whalen, who took first place in the father category with newborn Harry and 2 year-old Oscar watching from the infield with Mommy Kate, perhaps dreaming of the day they will share their first beer mile with Dad.

The race was filmed by Coach Jack so that results of T Rose and Dewey (sub-7 minutes) can be confirmed by the beermile.com folks and included in their official records list.

Signing off,
TK, Official Timer

Dammit Run 2006 Slated for Saturday, August 12th
WVTC Sponsored Event at Los Gatos HS

Los Gatos, CA--This Saturday, Kim Rupert and WVTC will be hosting the Dammit Run! at Los Gatos High School in Los Gatos, CA. The race proceeds will help fund repairs to the LGHS track and field complex.

The race is slated to go off at 8:30 am, and registration is $10 (without a shirt) and $30 (with a shirt).

Race website and information

The Official Emerald Nuts Across the Bay 12K Report
Five Months Later, Mason Reflects and Writes on WVTC's 2nd Place Finish

San Francisco, CA--WVTC had a large turnout to 23rd Annual running of the Emerald Nuts Across the Bay 12k. The Men's Open team placed second overall, improving over 10 minutes from last years team time, with a strong showing up front from Brad Poore, a nice pack in the top 11 including Chris Zieman, Chris Knorzer, and Todd Rose. The team was also helped out by 800m specialist, Alex Mason, bringing it home in 21st place to round out the team scoring. There was also a strong showing amongst the WVTC Men's "B" team led by veteran Leo Alapont, new comer Brent Wright, the Englishman with only two gears Neil Gilfedder, New Balance model Thomas Jensen, and new dad Jonah Backstrom. There were rumors this team may have displaced New Balance Excelsior. The second placing Men's Masters team was lead by long time WVTC veteran Aaron Pierson, who just recently returned from Japan.

Chris Zieman: "I ran 32 miles yesterday so I think I was a little tired, If I had only run 30 I would have beat that guy in 6th place." Zieman seemed a little agitated, possibly from his shy Clark Kent type demeanor, that everyone kept congratulating him on his Austin Marathon time, 2:20:54, qualifying him for the 2008 Olympic trials. "I got lucky, the weather was cold which is perfect for me, if it had been hot I might have ended up like Craig and had to walk the last three miles. Now that's not a rip on Craig, it's just the truth," Zieman said about his OT qualifying race.

"The pace was slow from the beginning so just before the mile I took the lead and tried to push the hill, says Todd Rose, WVTC's front brochure cover man for this years race. "I went early because most of all I wanted to make it back on the brochure for next year's race. Thats a lot of pressure and I guess I came up a little bit short, but hey did you see that picture man, that was hella wicked."

"Neil must have put it into second gear the last 1.5 miles of the race," said New Balance model Thomas Jensen. "At that point I had nothing left, but I don’t know how Neil can run so fast with only two gears, it’s shocking really."

Prince, Mason Ready for Fall
Sub-15:00 duo make WVTC a 2006 P.A. XC Contender

Prince, however, has thoughts on longer distances. "I'd like to break 30 minutes this year at 10,000 meters, but I'd also like to do a marathon. I've run eight half-marathons, but not a full one yet."

Along with winning the conference 10k two years and the 5k one year, Prince cites his career highlight thus far as earning D-III All-American status in cross country in 2004. "I didn't make the cutoff for All American by much - in fact I was 34th and the top 35 make All American - but I still reached the goal I had for that race."

Mason, on the other hand, recognizes that breaking 15:00 without much coaching or distance running support from his team was a big accomplishment--and also leaves the door open for big improvements once he has training partners with WVTC. "I pretty much trained myself to that time, because I had a coach that wanted to train me for a marathon for some reason when all we were running were 5k's."

Despite such training variables in college, Mason has picked up some valuable lessons along the way. "I believe the sign of a good athlete is the ability to push yourself as hard as you can while maintaining control. My approach to training is run hard on hard days, and take it easy/medium on the easy days."

Prince has had the luxury of sound coaching and a solid base of training partners along the years. From his years at Puget Sound, where he was a seven-time all-conference runner and two-time Academic All-American recognized by ESPN the Magazine, he's internalized an intense training structure to maximize performance. "My approach to training is finding at what mileage you will not get hurt, cutting back 5-10 miles, and running that every week. I like doubling about 3 times a week, which I have been doing since middle school."

As the two enter their first official season wearing WVTC's red and white, heads will turn as they make waves immediately in the PA circuit. Citing snowboard gold medalist Shaun White, Mason reflects that, "If I try to beat someone, I can only get as good as they are. If I try to be as good as I can be, there's no telling where that will lead." As both Mason and Prince's rugged training schedules and dogged determination certainly reflect this, they are equally humble in nature. "Truly," Mason adds, "I'm just your typical guy with red hair, freckles, and no facial hair."

Ian Mason's PRs
1500 - 4:01, 3000 - 8:35, 3000 Steeplechase - 9:30, 5000 - 14:52, 10-Mile - 53:53

Frank Prince's PRs
1500 - 4:02, 5K - 14:58, 10K - 30:44, 8K XC - 24:48, Half Marathon - 1:12:28

Beer Mile "On Tap" for Aug 12
Rose, Dewan, Fong, Entire Mason Family to Contend

San Francisco, CA-- In preparation for the rigorous upcoming PA-USATF cross country and road racing series, the West Valley Track Club will be hosting its first annual Beer Mile on August 12th at 7pm. Those interested must contact Alex Mason at alexrmason@yahoo.com for exact location of the event.

Currently, the accepted entries include Mike "The Crankin' Sri Lankan" Arulgnanendran, Todd Rose, Tony "The Greek" Fong, Alex Mason, Ian Mason, Tavy Mason, Grandma Mason, and Uncle Ray-Ray Mason. The Mason family dog is also expected to compete.

The rules of the race are a bit complex, and Fong has already established the Vegas line for current accepted entries. According to Alex Mason, the beers must be 5 percent or higher, you can use bottles or cans (no widemouth) but they cannot be opened before the race starts, and you cannot use anything to help aid you in drinking the beers faster, ie shotgunning. Also, if you puke you have to run an extra lap."

According to Vegas guru Tony Fong, odds are as follows: Alex Mason 3:2 (as he will be tapering for the event), Todd Rose (may have difficulty opening cans), Chuck (no line), Mike 8:1 (without Genentech drugs), Tony 10:1 (2:1 will throw up afterwards), Ian 12:1 (age may be a factor), Tavis 20:1 (needs to bring his ID), Dave "Short Leash" Kyle 2:1 (if allowed to go out). Evidently there is an over/under for all athletes of 8 minutes, $500 limit on all wagers.

Although Dewey is listed as a possible favorite due to his size and pure Canadian miling speed, the Mason family is currently training at a secret underground training facility in preparation. An intercepted email posted workouts of 4x4 beers with one minute recovery, and 2x2 beers, 5 minute easy jog, then 2x2 beers.

"Ideally, this type of training happens in September," WVTC coach Jack Youngren commented. "But our guys are ready for a big fall, and I just can't hold the reigns on 'em any longer."

As such a race can be grueling with many variables, anything truly can happen. There has already been speculation that Rose may DNF due to being under 5'-6", Fong may get DQ'ed for mistaking the game as strip chinese-checkers, and that Dewey may finish in last simply because "Canadians never win." That said, the suspense continues to build leading up to the August 12th race.

CHAMPS!
It's Official: WVTC Wins First-Ever Davis Mile Title

7/9 In the first time in recorded club history, the West Valley TC Open men captured the Davis/Fleet Feet Mile team title with a team time of 22:41 to Transports 22:48.

Leading the way was Alex Mason, who scorched an opening lap of 2:05, finishing at 4:13--good enough for 3rd overall. Behind him were teammates Todd Rose (4:28), Chuck Schneekloth (4:33), Steve Dewan (4:43), and Raymundo Cruz (4:44).

The clubs only other Davis/Fleet Feet Mile team title came in 2000, when the open women edged the Impalas by eleven seconds.

Mason ran in the lead pack of three with 600 meters to go before deciding to run for second as Matthew Groose began gapping him and Lyle Weese. "I knew it would come down to the final 100 meters," Mason said. "I thought I outleaned him (Weese), but it was hard to tell the finish line. I'm just glad we beat Transports." Along with finishing 15 seconds ahead of Transports #1 runner, Mason also won $100 and 90 PA points.

In preparation, Mason had been running Friday workouts of 3x800 along ther Alameda waterfront, often closing the last interval in under 2:00. Second man Todd Rose, however, had a different training approach.

"I've been eating cheese and drinking wine for two weeks in France. I barely trained at all." Regardless, Rose gutted out a much-needed 4:28 effort. "I was happy with my performance, as I ran almost two identical halfs. I didn't get out too hard and had some for the finish, pulling away from Chuck like I knew I would."

Rose refers to WVTC third man Chuck Schneekloth, who came in at 4:33. "Anytime you lose to Todd Rose during his wine and cheese diet, it's a long drive home. I'm just happy to be part of our win."

While Mason gave props to his former high school coach, Tony Fong, for winning his heat in the men's master's mile, Rose was equally celebratory for fourth and fifth runners Steve Dewan and Raymundo Cruz. "Big props to Dewey and Raymundo. They pulled through big time!"

WVTC will lace up their PA racing flats next on September 17th for the Jamba Juice 5k.

Men Place 1,3,4,5 in Duskbuster 5k
Rose kicks to win, hints at debut marathon despite various team controversies

6/7/06, The cause of multiple sclerosis has become important to many in the WVTC family due to the recent experiences of long time friend and teammate John McGuire. And on June 5th in Golden Gate Park, the team’s turnout, and performance, showed this.

Trailing training partner Craig Gaites for most of the race, Todd Rose charged hard in the final 800 meters, passing Gaites, and sprinting home for the win in 15:45. Right behind him in the hilly 5k course was marathoner Jonah Backstrom in 17:03, 4th was half miler Chuck Schneekloth in 17:12, and 5th was marathoner Neil Gilfedder in 17:21, who was using the race as a tune up for the Alaska Marathon.

Other top finishers for WVTC included Thomas Jenson (17:35), Steve Dewan (17:55), Mat DesJardins (18:10), Tony Fong (18:34), Pontus Ahlstrom (18:46), Michael Arulgnanendran (18:58), Matt Garibaldi (18:58), Anthony Davies and dog (19:35), and Jack Youngren (21:27).

The race, despite being short and simple, was fraught with controversy. For Rose, however, it was merely a one-on-one battle. “I thought Craig and I would tempo it and race the final 3/4 or mile. Instead Craig went hard from the beginning. I hung back as to not push it any harder than he would by himself. I almost said screw it by the xc start finish meadow, but gave it one final push down past the buffalo. As I started making ground on the trail around the ponds I figured I'd go for it. Once we hit the path I was close and surged right up on him, he then tried to drop me with a surge but I hung on, then I surged up the final hill and got a gap and held it to the finish.”

Perhaps most interesting was Roses goals for post victory racing. Along with enjoying his Spain trip and trying to grow a few inches over the summer, he also suggested that the CIM Marathon may be in the cards this winter. With a sub-70 minute half-marathon PR, Rose is a strong candidate to meet the 2008 Olympic Trials 2:22 standard.

For Gaites, the race was all strategy. “At the last Tuesday night workout, Todd was complaining about 'feeling fat', so being the good friend that I am, I decided to try to capitalize on his self-proclaimed bloated state and score a rare win at the Duskbuster 5K. My strategy was to go out hard and build a large lead by two miles, hoping to leave Mr. Rose wallowing in despair over his weight gain and wishing his singlet had veritcal stripes (which are very slimming). If all went according to plan I would be able to break Todd's spirit and coast the last mile to victory. Unfortunately he was able to navigate the last twisty trail section of the course faster than me and kept the gap small enough to overtake me in the last quarter mile."

After the race, a debate soon began about the first dog finisher. Davies proclaimed his dog, Chenjerai, won gold, and that he was the second dog to cross. Dewan, however, saw it differently. “Wasnt (Tony) Fong the first dog? I saw him drooling when he crossed the line behind the crack.”

Fong, brushing aside questions about this issue during his post-race press conference, focused on the many reasons why he didn’t run under 17:00. “There were many reasons why I didnt run at least ninety seconds faster. I could have run sub 17 minutes if Dave Kyle had been there to pace me, the woman with the sweats that kept dropping would have run faster, I didn't trip over (teammate) Anthony Davies’ dog, there was prize money for the first Asian, and if people would have stopped asking me what WV meant.”

Despite such believable claims, WVTC records show Fong hasn’t broken 17:00 since the Reagan Administration.

Finally, Dewan won the third “Dewan vs. DesJardins” showdown. For the third race in a row (Zippy 5K and Marin 10K being the others), Dewan's race strategy was to let Mat do all the hard pace work up front, thus conserving his own energy, enabling him to pass Mat in the last mile of each race. Post-Dustbuster 5K, Mat was overheard saying, "I've never seen a paler set of legs pass me so readily. And was that a Canadian tattoo?"

Next up for WVTC is the Shriners 10k on June 24, then the Davis/Fleet Feet Mile on July 9th.

Poore Scores a Bronze at ING Ottawa Marathon
Misses Olympic Trials standard by under three minutes

5/28 Brad Poore placed fifteenth in the very competitive Ottawa Marathon in 2:24:28…until twelve runners were disqualified for accidentally cutting 400 meters off the course. The confusion began when high school volunteers left their post to talk with friends. Moments later, the barricade they were assigned to was removed, and the race’s top twelve runners inadvertently ran through it.

Although the race’s top runners were financially compensated for their efforts (Amos Tirop Matui of Kenya was the first to cross the finish line with a time of 2:10:32), Abderrahime Bouramdane of Morocco was declared the winner with a time of two hours, 12 minutes and 17 seconds, with Zaid Laaroussi of Morocco coming in second with a time of 2:12:59. Poore stayed on the legal curse, and was awarded third place overall.

With hopes to avoid such a mishap next year, race organizers plan on developing a straighter course and a solid blue line for runners to follow.

Mason Places 2nd in PA-USATF 800 Meter Final

5/28 Despite another solid race by Alex Mason, he was once again held off on the final straightaway, placing 2nd in this weekend’s PA-USATF Championship 800 meter final. Hosted by the College of San Mateo on their newly resurfaced blue mondo track surface, Nike Farm Team member Brendon Mahoney finished about one second ahead of Mason in 1:50.55. Next up for Mason is the USATF Western Regional Championships in Los Angeles next weekend.

Zieman 3rd at Big Sir Marathon

4/30 Just one month after the American River 50 miler, WV ace Chris Zieman placed third overall at the Big Sir Marathon. Although a few minutes off his Olympic Trials A-Standard PR, he ran 2:26:30 to finish behind two Kenyans, Charles Nyakundi, and Benson Osaro. Teammate Eric Albrecht placed 8th in 2:44:43 as the first male master finisher.

Mason Sizzles 1:50.91 800 Meters at Cardinal Invite
Runs close to PR, Grabs Fourth in Heat
4/30 Alex Mason continued his excellent track season in 2006, breaking 1:51 and placing fourth in his section in 1:50.91 this past weekend at the Cardinal Invitational at Stanford University. Placing 16th overall, Mason again proved to be capable of some of the best middle distance runners in the country.

Rose, DMR Compete in USF Track Invitational

4/29 In a rare display of speed, WVTC ace Todd Rose ran in the open 800 meters and placed 9th overall in 2:05.30. Hours later, he anchored the distance medley relay in 4:26. The team, consisting of Steve Dewan and Jason Crichton, placed third overall in 10:49.63. The meet was held by the University of San Francisco at Kezar Stadium in Golden Gate Park.

Master’s Women Place 2nd at Marin 10k
Berntsen-Heber goes sub-38:00

4/29 Sissel Berntsen-Heber continued a strong spring road-racing season, as her 37:59 led the WVTC master’s women team to a second place finish. With a total team time of 2:05:29, they won $50 and scored 9 points for the PA-USATF road racing series. Kim Rupert was the team’s second woman in 41:20, while Deanna Micros rounded out the team’s top-three with a 46:10 effort.

The mens team placed third overall with a team time of 2:54:18. Brent Wright was the teams first man in 34:15, helping the team score 8 points and win $50. Rounding the top five was Raymundo Cruz (34:33), Aaron Pierson (34:39), Neil Gilfedder (34:45), and Thomas Jensen (36:06).

Masters Women, Open Men Place 2nd at Zippy 5k
Open Women Place 8th

4/23 The West Valley masters womens team continued their impressive string of second places on the road, capturing $50 and nine team points at the Zippy 5k in Golden Gate Park this past weekend. Sissel Berntsen-Heber nearly broke 18:00, coming in as the team’s first woman at 18:03. Just behind her were teammates Kim Woody (20:09) and Kim Rupert (20:12).

Todd Rose and Chris Zieman continued to be the open men’s team 1-2 punch, coming in at 15:13 and 15:18, respectively. Half miler Alex Mason dipped under 16:00 as the team’s third man (15:59), while Brent Wright (16:29) and Thomas Jensen (16:37) completed the team’s scoring five.

The mens second team placed seventh overall in 1:27:10. Aaron Pierson came through in 16:46, as Jonah Backstrom (16:54), Steve Dewen (17:29), Matthieu DesJardins (17:43), Tony Fong (18:18), and Pontus Ahlstrom (18:39) were the team’s other members.

The open womens team picked up three points with their eighth place finish. Shannon Cody led the charge, coming through in 19:29 as the team’s first woman. Completing the team’s total team time of 1:46:32 were Meredith Mills (20:20), Sarah Rankin (20:25), Mary Lothrop (22:02), Laury Fisher (24:16).

Kyle Runs 2:48:20 in Boston Marathon

4/17 Running a very even, disciplined pace the whole way through, Dave Kyle finished 361 overall in a time of 2:48:20. Averaging 6:25 a mile, Kyle ran a very tactically sound race.....as shown by his even 5k splits. As he opened up in 19:10, his final 5k was 20:01. Kyle was 341st in the male division, and was 271st in his age group.

WVTC Hits the Track
Four Mix it up at SFSU’s Johnny Mathis Invite

4/8 As they do every year, a group of WVTC athletes competed at San Francisco States Johnny Mathis Invitational this past weekend. Headlining the team’s efforts was Alex Mason, who placed 2nd in the 800 meters in 1:52.28. Teammate Todd Rose also ran an excellent 5000 meters, just missing the 15:00 barrier by coming in at 15:03.28. Also in that 5k race were Thomas Jenson (16:45.76) and Neil Gilfedder (17:33.83).

Zieman Places 2nd at American River 50 Mile Race

4/1 In his first ever 50 mile race, Chris Zieman finished in 6:02:25—good for second overall behind Washington resident Uli Steidl’s 5:58:21. Zieman averaged 7:15 mile in a race just months after hitting the Olympic Trials ‘A-Standard’ at the Austin Marathon in Austin, Texas in February.

Poore Leads Open Men in Emerald Across the Bay 12k
Finishes 2nd Overall, Scores 135 points, and wins $225 Prize Money

3/19 Running a very inspired race, WVTC Brad Poore, 27, scorched the Emerald Across the Bay 12k race in an impressive 38:39. Averaging 5:10 miles on a very hilly San Francisco course, his efforts helped his open men team finish second with a total team time of 3:19:19. Just behind him were teammates Chris Zieman (39:16), Chris Knorzer (39:40), Todd Rose (40:17), and Alex Mason (41:27).

Finishing in third place was the masters women team. With a total team time of 2:33:47 and scoring 12 points in the PA-USATF team series. This team consisted of Sissel Bernsten-Heber (47:48), Kim Rupert (51:34), and Barbara Wismer (54:25).

The mens masterss team placed sixth overall, thus scoring 7.5 points with a total team time of 3:57:29. Aaron Pierson lead the team with his 42:38 finish. Raymundo Cruz (43:29), Tony Fong (46:05), Al Fong (51:15), and Edilson Salqado (54:02) rounded out the scoring five.

Placing eighth and picking up 4.5 points was the WVTC open womens team. Finishing with a total team time of 4:46.21, Carla Holmes was the first woman in at 49:38. Following her were teammates Mary Lothrop (54:27), Deanna Micros (57:29), Laury Fisher (61:27), and Carol Shea (63:20).

Schneekloth Opens 800 Season in 1:57

3/11 In his first 800 race in five years, Chuck Schneekloth placed 7th out of 31 athletes, clocking 1:57.98. Running in the fast section of the Aggie Opener at UC Davis, he was pleased with the outcome. “It’s a ways off my PR, but it felt good. It’s been helpful to have (teammate) Alex Mason to train with—he pushes me every workout session. I’m excited to run faster in a few months.” He and Mason plan to race in several upcoming meets, including the Stanford Invitational, USF Invitational, and SFSUss Johnny Mathis Meet.

Open Men Place 2nd at Redding's 10 Miler

Redding, CA-Despite a strong headwind for most of the race, the WVTC's open men and both masters teams opened up the PA road season with solid performances.

The men were led by Olympic Trials qualified Chris Zieman who, two weeks after qualifying for the marathon trials, covered the race in 52:54-placing him fourth in the race. Afterwards, Zieman was happy with himself-and the team. "I was happy about my performance at Redding. Anytime I can run close to Todd is a good thing because when XC comes all I see is the back of Todd's jersey are he runs away from me. I'm not fully recovered yet and although I did well, it took a lot out of me."

Although just a few strides off Zieman, WVTC second man Todd Rose wasn't thrilled about the race—from the wind, to his effort, to his inability to draft off his fellow teammate. "There was a headwind the entire way. I was in no man's land from 5-10 miles. Zieman is impossible to draft off of." As Rose finished fifth in 53:26, teammate Chris Knorzer-coming off months of injury-was ninety seconds behind him in 55:09, good for 11th overall. Knorzer also struggled a bit in his PA season opener, claiming that, "I ran in my trainers by mistake so I blame them on my slow performance, they probably added a good 2-20 minutes, so if I would have been in flats who knows." (editor's note: Knorzer is known to be a humble, honest public school teacher. We believe him...)

The women's masters team collected eight PA points for their third place effort in 3:54:32. The group was led by Kim Rupert, who ran even 7:00 miles the whole way through for a solid final time of 70:01. She was followed by teammates Barbara Wismer (77:22) and Charlene Bayles (87:09). Despite these strong performances, the group hopes to continue their success from last fall, where they won the PA cross country masters championship team title.

Finally, the men's masters team also picked up eight points in their third place finish. With a total team time of 5:31:31, they finished behind the Pacific Striders and the New Balance/Excelsior team. WVTC had two sub-60 performances by Aaron Pierson (58:09) and Raymundo Cruz (58:47). The top five was rounded out by Tony Fong (61:30), Casey Reinking (63:20), and Jerry Counts (89:45).

All three teams will be lacing up the racing flats next in the Emerald Across the Bay 12k in San Francisco on March 19th.

Mason, Rose Lead WVTC in Spring Track Opener

Berkeley, CA-In a rematch of last year's Cal All-Comers Meet, WVTC middle-distance star had a bit more confidence this time around. With a heavier fall base, a healthy winter, and a new training partner, Alex Mason was ready for 2004 5K US Olympian Bolota Asmeron.

And did he show it with 100 meters to go.

Cruising through the opening lap in 55 seconds, Mason sat patiently on Asmeron, waiting until the final straightaway to make his big move-and his strategy worked. Indeed, this race-a 1:51.73-is his fastest season-opening 800. "Luckily this time I was able to pass him the last 100 meters. Even though this isn't his event, it doesn't hurt your motivation when you're racing and beating an Olympian."

Needless to say, Mason was satisfied with the race afterwards. "I feel good about the race, it's the fastest 800 meters I've ever run in February or to open my track season. I usually open up with a 1:54 so to run 1:51 was nice and it let me know the training is heading in the right direction."

Such a fast season-opening race-off of very little speed work-leaves lots of excitement for the rest of the spring. Despite battling an irritated nerve in his foot, Mason still is optimistic about his track goals. "I'd like to run under 1:50 in the 800m this year, and to give sub 1:49 a shot. I'm also looking forward to the Fleet Feet Davis Mile in July; I definitely would like to go for the win in that race this year."

The other West Valley T.C. gold came in the 3200 meters, where as Todd Rose raced to a 9:29 win. Pulled through the first 1600 in 4:44 by fellow teammate Chuck Schneekloth (who earlier placed 6th in the open 400 in 53.40), Rose kept the same pace for the next four laps-despite running alone the last three.

In the meet's last event, the 4x400 relay, Mason (52.4), Schneekloth (52.9), Rose (57.8), and Steve Dewan (54.8) teamed up to place send overall in 3:36.

Zieman Qualifies for 08 Trials!

Austin, TX—Conditions were far from ideal at the start. Temperatures dipped under 30 degrees, bridges on the course were frozen, and a strong wind lurked the Austin streets. Race officials even delayed the race thirty minutes in hopes for more warmth. Such elements didn't stop Chris Zieman, 34, from blazing the course in 2:20:54—dipping under the Olympic “B” Standard by over a minute. His effort placed him 21st overall in the race—and he now sits as the #17 fastest US marathoner to qualify for the 2008 Olympic Trials.

“I'm real excited. I went for broke despite the weather…Once I started going I didn't think about the cold too much. I just focused on how I was doing, changing conditions, my pace, and getting the job done. You can't turn around now so you just have to suck it up,” Zieman added shortly after his race. And suck it up he did. Averaging 5:23 a mile, he made good use of the 2:22 pacing group the entire race—despite the fact many in the race dropped out due to the frigid conditions.

But conquering the course went way beyond a Herculean physical effort. His success also came from meticulous planning and preparation for such tricky racing conditions. Indeed, often times in a marathon, it can be the smartest—not necessarily the fittest—runner who transcends the distance and conditions. Describing his outfit, Zieman asserted, “My outfit included thigh length tights, arm warmers, hat, disposable plastic vest under my jersey that I ripped off about mile 8, and latex gloves over light gloves which was a new thing.” This all paid big dividends most especially during water stops, where many runners were spilling water on exposed shoulders and arms—only to have such water freeze over later. The dual gloves also allowed for dry hands and a wind barrier, enabling him to grab water with efficiency and in comfort. Without a doubt, such attention to small details made all the difference for Zieman—who now has even loftier goals on the horizon.

“I definitely want to try for the A standard now that I have nothing to lose. I may never get there but I want to see how far I can make it at that pace. I'm also signed up for the AR 50 miler and have hopes of getting into the WS100. Whether I run WS if I get in is debatable but I'd like the option at this point.”

Zieman’s rise to marathon stardom has been no easy, simple path. A cyclist in college, he took running up shortly thereafter, and has been a student of the sport ever since. A big believer in Frank Horwill, he has molded twelve core training philosophies. They include:

1. Do all types of speed work within a training schedule, even for the marathon, from 3k all the way up to marathon pace.

2. Keep the duration of rest between intervals or reps very short because in a real race you get no rest at all. This applies as long as you're doing mostly aerobic workouts which I consider down to about 3k speed.

3. Be as light as you can because in my training experiments over the years it seems to be a huge factor which you can control. There is something like 80% correlation between weight loss and performance gain.

4. I don't taper too much until the last week before the marathon to keep my rhythm and I don't expect a super jump in performance, I run what I've been training.

5. I'm not totally sold on super high mileage at the expense of recovery days. I think you need to put recovery days in at the expense of mileage to keep from getting injured.

6. Do as much of your training in singles if you can for the marathon unless you're up over 100mpw.

7. There seems to be something about consecutive long runs, 20 + for the marathon for me. I notice I'm recovering better after the marathons than I used to now that I've incorporated that into my schedule. Maybe it’s my way around 120 mile weeks.

8. For the marathon I feel that the 5k pace mile reps are a key to my core fitness and I can gage where I am based on how I can run them. My theory is that if the marathon is 99% aerobic you need to maximize your aerobic capacity.

9. Create a training schedule based on some fundamental principles you want to try out for a specific race and stick to it until that race is over. This schedule should plan out progression as well. Then evaluate how the race went and adjust your schedule for the next time.

10. Know the specific times you should be running for each specific workout, and know what the end times you’re shooting for are when your at the end of your training.

11. For the marathon you need to get in several, not just one, MP runs over 12 miles at target pace or under for two reasons: to get used to keeping yourself in the mental game and keep the hammer down; to get a sense of the pace and what is going to be a realistic pace for the full duration.

12. The week of the marathon I keep up a good amount of intensity. I would usually do a Tuesday workout of 1 mile at 5k pace, 1:30 rest, 1 mile at 10k pace, 1:30 rest, 2 miles at MP. You loose speed far quicker than you loose endurance.

Zieman sizzles a 2:21 at Cal International
Fourth overall in 'Breakthrough dream race'

12/3/05 (Sacramento, CA)-- Despite battling injuries all last year, WVTC marathoner Chris Zieman never lost faith. And it all paid off on December 3.

Clicking off 5:18s downhill and 5:32s uphill, Zieman placed fourth at the California International Marathon (CIM) in a two-minute PR of 2:21.46. Averaging 5:24 a mile for the 26.2 mile race, he was the third American finisher behind 2000 Olympian Gabe Jennings (2:19.29) and Miguel Nuci (2:20.51). Sergey Fedotov, from Vlan-Ude, Russia, won the race in 2:18.30.

'I wanted to run smart and conservative for the first half, and try to either run even or negative split the last half,' commented the 33 year old Felton, CA resident. Cruising through the 13.1 mark at 70:54, he followed the race plan perfectly, coming home two seconds faster in 70:52. 'It was the easiest marathon I've ever raced - I was pretty ecstatic going into the finish.'

Although his official time is under the 2:22.00 Olympic Trials 'B' Standard, it wasn't run during the qualifying window - so he didn't qualify for the trials - yet. 'My running goal this year is to run under 2:22 inside the Olympic Trials window,' Zieman asserted, noting that this year's running conditions - cold with no wind - greatly assisted his performance at CIM.

In preparation for his breakthrough race, he closely followed Frank Horwill's approach to marathoning. During the week, 'I focused on weekly 5k or quicker speed work sessions like 3x mile reps or 12x400 with rests of 1:30 and 35 seconds, respectively.' On the weekends is where Zieman logged heavy mileage, often stringing together back-to-back 2.5 hour runs on Saturday and Sunday. Indeed, with two kids, a commute, and a full-time job, the focus was often on quality over quantity, although he 'usually gets in 90 miles per week at the height' of his training. Considering he was a competitive cyclist in college and didn't start running seriously until a few years after graduation, there still may be some considerable room for improvement over the next few years.

Up next for Zieman? The Austin Marathon on February 19 - a course known for fast times, strong competition, and a net elevation drop of 150 feet. 'If I don't make it (Olympic Trials standard), I'll try at another marathon - but I'm pretty excited for Austin,' he stated, noting that he's mostly maintaining fitness now instead of building it.

'It was surreal - heck, it's still like a dream. Unexpected things happen at the oddest times.' If all goes well, he'll be dreaming again in Texas.

WVTC Women Win P.A. X-C Crown
Trio Squeaks by Impalas by 3 Points

11/6/05 (San Francisco, CA) - After five evenly-matched duels between the WVTC and the Impala Racing Team since late August, the Masters Women Cross Country Championship Team Title would be determined by the final circuit race: the PA-USATF XC Championships. Up by merely 1.5 points, the West Valley team of Sissel Berntsen-Heber, Kim Woody, Kim Rupert, Meredith Mills, and Sarah Ranklin knew it would take a tremendous race to clinch first place. After all, the Impalas defeated them twice in five head-to-head competitions: at the 19th Annual Golden Gate Open and the 5th Annual Santa Cruz Challenge. Indeed, every spot would count as all seven masters teams lined up at the starting line.

As expected, Berntsen-Heber won the PA womens masters race, but the fight for team points proved to be closer than ever. Woody came in at fifth place, and Rupert in sixth. Although Mills (10th) and Rankin (19th) also ran excellent races, only the top three finishers score in masters racing. After all fifty finishers completed the hilly four mile course and all team scores were tallied, the WVTC's trio edged the Impalas by just two points - 12-14. With the win, they also finished the cross-country grand prix with 87 points, just three points more than the Impalas' 84.

Indeed, this was a big breakthrough for a team that placed fifth in 2004, ninth in 2003, and fourth in 1999. In 2002, 2001, 2000, and 1998, WVTC did not even have a complete masters womens team.

The team's title, however, comes to no surprise as the group ran well all fall. After winning the First Annual Garrin Park XC Challenge in Hayward, they also won at Shoreline and Tamalpa. Berntsen-Heber had an especially great season, finishing third in the open women's PA cross country standings with 570 points.

WVTC Men Place 25th at Club Nationals
Rose Places 101 out of 309

11/19/04 (Rochester, NY) - Led by Todd Rose's 32:33 effort over 6.2 miles, the West Valley open men placed 25th out of 37 teams at the 'Feast in the East' Club National Championships in Genesee Valley Park.

Averaging 5:14 a mile, Rose, followed closely by teammate Chris Zieman (32:39/108th), was very satisfied with his performance. 'It worked out well for me, I ran much smarter this year and ran a much stronger race.' Not only did he do better individually (165th in 2004), his team placed four spots higher than the year before. 'Compared to last year, we had a real good performance. You forget how fast the field is sometimes, and the top guys go our fast. We did a great job this year.'
Rounding out the team's top five were Bill Raitter (32:57), Sean Nixon (35:25), and Chuck Schneekloth (35:36).

It's been a solid season for Rose, who individually placed 2nd in the PA cross country grand prix and 3rd in the PA long-racing division while helping the WVTC men's open team finish second in the PA road racing circuit. He teamed up with Zieman, Schneekloth, and Alex Mason at the Christmas Relays to finish second overall, clinching second place in the overall PA standings with a total time of 1:33.18. Compared to Christmas Relay times in 2003 (1:44.33) and 2001 (1:42.18), things are looking brighter for Rose and his WVTC teammates in 2006.

In preparation for the final few weeks of championship racing, Rose mentioned one integral component to his training was 'doing consistent two hour long runs, along with cross country specific workouts on the (Golden Gate Park) course.' He also believes in doing a long overdistance training run every year which 'makes 10k's seem short and easy.' Such an approach is a leftover relic from his college days at Edinboro University, where in 1993 he was fifth man on a team that placed 2nd at the NCAA D-II National Championships. 'I like racing the Humboldt Half every year not just because it's a great course, but it's an overdistance run that worked for me in college, too.'

Excited about the spring, he asserts, 'I think we can give them (Transports) a run for their money this spring if we can get all our guys healthy.' While hoping to crack another 15:00 5k on the track, he's also excited about running fast at the Zippy 5k and even putting together a solid 10k by spring's end. 'The past few years, coaching has taken priority over my own training. Now with more time to train, I'm excited for this spring. I think our team is gonna have a great year.'

Glen Redpath Wins Sierra Nevada Double Marathon

West Valley's Ultra-superstar Glen Redpath rolled to victory on Saturday, September 24th, in the tough double trail marathon out of Granite Bay. This win is a big boost in Glen's surge to the top of the Pacific Association ultra series. While full results are not yet available, we do have Glen's first hand account:

"Sat was an awesome day. I was up in Sacramento running the Sierra Nevada Double Marathon and collecting more PAUSATF points. I ran within myself then somewhere shortly after after the 32 mile aid station and before the 39 mile aid station missed a turn and got lost.

When I finally doubled back I figured I had lost 14 mins. By the next aid station I was told that I was the third double marathoner through and 1 min behind second and 10 mins behind first. Using that good old emotion anger I layed down a few quick miles. Caught the second runner just before the 43 mile aid station and then the first runner by the 49 mile aid station. I was a little exhausted in the end but a win is a win. Ate the wonderful turkey dinner, showered, and napped in the grass before driving back to the Bay Area."

19th Annual Golden Gate Park Open, 9/10/2005

Held in every City dweller's favorite (if not only) training venue, the GGP Open perhaps brings out more talent than any other cross-country race on the circuit save for the PA Champs. This year's running was no exception, as both the men's and women's overall winners, Peter Gilmore and Megan Daly, are 2004 Olympic Trials Marathon qualifiers.

For West Valley's open men, Todd Rose again led the way, this time in 10th. Steady Chris Zieman was 13th, while Jonah Backstrom and Alex Mason pulled through with 25th- and 27th-place efforts respectively. The result? Third place of nine teams.

The open women weren't quite as successful, but absent some of their usual standouts still managed a solid fifth place. Theresa Clark (26th) led the way, two places and four seconds ahead of Susie Segesta.

Finally, the masters women, calling on the efforts of the same trio that triumphed at the Garin Park race, took second, with Sissel Berntsen-Heber (12th; third mastress) again strutting the strongest stuff.

The masters men were one shy of a scoring team, but completing the race were these athletes: 26th, Mauricio Maia; 68th, Anthony Davie; 88th, Jozef Franiewski; and 111th, Jack Youngren.

Full results

13th Annual Phil Widener Empire Open, 9/3/2005

WVTC didn't field any scoring teams here, but Sissel Berntsen-Heber (second master, fifth overall) continued her string of fine showings on the grass and dirt of NorCal in 2005.

Full results

5th Annual UC Santa Cruz Challenge, 8/27/2005

WVTC made the most of having teams in only three of a possible seven divisions. The women's masters team (Sissel and the two Kims, Woody and Rupert) took second behind the Impalas, while the open men -- enjoying the return of Chris Zieman -- and open women both wound up third. Sissel was third overall in the women's race, while Susie Segesta was eighth. On the men's side, Todd Rose placed eighth and Zieman 10th.

Full results

Garin Park XC, 8/20/2005

The WVTC men's fifth-place finish may not have sent anyone scrambling for the record books, but consider this: The spread between its youngest racer (Neal Rodrigues, 18) and its oldest (Tony Fong, 46) was 28 years. This is an open team we're talking about, folks. Just another zany chapter in the saga of the 2005 WVTC men's squad.

The open women, on the other hand, while boring (age range 31-42), took second place behind the perennially indomitable Impalas. Susie Segesta spearheaded the effort by placing 10th, and Diana Harlick was just two places in arrears.

And the best shall be last shall be first: The women's master's team, a threesome consisting of Sissel Berntsen-Heber, Kim Rupert (50) and Sarah Rankin, nailed down teh club's only team win of the day. Sissel's fourth-place overall finish in 19:59 on a tough-and-tumble course was easily the individual highlight of the day.

Full results

Showdown for Charity results!

Before a rapt and bloodthirsty crowd of several, Dave Kyle used a quick start to bludgeon his way to a win over Mike Arulgnanendran, 9:22 - 9:29. More reports to come, but for now, check out this QuickTime promotional video (11 MB) shot on the sly by an unnamed bookmaker who had lodged himself somewhere in the bowels of Kezar Stadium for the event.

Redpath puts in just under a full day's work in Japan

On June 26, Glen Redpath did what most of us do everyday and put in his eight or so hours of honest toiling. Thing is, Glen was running the entire time. In Hokkaido, Japan, Glen placed 29th in the World Cup 100K run in seven hours, 48 minutes, 13 seconds. Glen was the first of five Canadian men to complete the race around Lake Saroma -- which featured a total of 71 hardy finishers and was won by Russia's Gregory Murzin in 6:24:15 -- and averaged an amazing 7:32 per mile.

"I had a pretty good day considering the high humidity and hot temperatures (90F by race finish) that caused a number of faster runners to drop out," reports Glen. Last year's winner, Mario Ardemagni from Italy, went out extremely fast -- at the 15k turnaround he and a Japanese runner had almost a 1-km lead. (Ardemagni eventually faded to 14th place.)

"I ran a smart, well-executed race and stuck to my plan the entire way staying back early and slowly moving up as the race continued," Glen recounts. "I was still pretty far down the field at halfway, which I hit in 3:35. The only hilly section on the course happens at around 55 to 65 km -- this is where I passed a number of runners who were literally walking or stretching due to cramping.

"Although I slowed in the second half, I never had any problems other then dealing with the heat."

Glen was in fine company as he headed toward the end of a long long line: "I could see Scott Creel from Montana (winner if the USATF Trail 50K National Championship in 2003), who was less then a minute ahead of me, for 28th place."

Glen's time of 7:48:13 was a personal best.

Here's an article from Glen's hometown paper, the Winnipeg Free Press.

Two city athletes in global top 50 in gruelling race

Tue Jun 28 2005

By Shamona Harnett

TWO Winnipeggers have ranked among the top 50 ultra-marathoners in the world after competing in a gruelling weekend race in Japan.
Glen Redpath placed 29th and Andrew McLean came in 49th at the 100 Kilometre World Cup -- the most popular ultra-marathon in the populous Asian country.

Both Redpath and McLean were on the Canadian men's team.

Approximately 200 of the globe's best ultra-marathoners took part in the World Cup event. Another 2,100 participated in other races on the same course, located at Lake Saroma, a remote area on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido.

Redpath, who has lived in San Francisco for the past four years, was thrilled with his race time -- seven hours, 48 minutes and 13 seconds, according to the International Association of Ultrarunners Website. The former St. Vital resident was the first on the Canadian team cross the finish line.

"I felt great," said a cheerful Redpath during a phone interview from Japan, a day after the race. "It was really beautiful -- a lot like running around Lake Winnipeg." The mercury on race day hit 32 C, causing a number of faster runners to slow down or drop out, said Redpath.

The Winnipegger said he was a bit anxious during the event after authorities warned racers to keep away from dangerous bees the "size of toonies." Nevertheless, he said he pushed through the course with relative ease, though he had to work hard to shake off fatigue that set in mid-race.

Redpath, 39, was asked in May to join the Canadian team after doing well in two 80-kilometre races he ran in California.

McLean finished his race at 8:31:18, according to the website, and was the second Canadian to cross the finish line. He has competed in several ultra-marathons.

Russian Murzin Gregory won the World Cup Sunday, coming in at 6:24:15.

Showdown for Charity

Tuesday, June 21 is the date and 6:15 p.m. the time of the 2005 3K grudge match for charity. In order to raise money for the non-profit group Books for South Africa , two of West Valley's most promising young runners will square off the in support of the annual book drive.

That's right, it's

Mike "The Crankin' Sri Lankan" Arulgnanendran

vs.

"Smokin' Dave" Kyle

In a 7 1/2-lap main event at the Kezar Stadium track.

This is more than a charity event, more than a fund-raiser, more than a race...more, even, than a blood feud between two guys who -- truth be told -- just don't like each other. This is a WAGER!

Donors may sponsor either the Crankin' Sri Lankan or Smokin' Dave by giving any amount. Donors that choose the winner of the race will have their names put in a drawing for a $25 dollar gift certificate to the Sports Basement. Beyond that, big greenbacks will be changing hands trackside, so don't miss out on the side action. All we ask is that you pass on a portion of your spoils to the charity.

For more information, please visit Books for South Africa or e-mail David Kyle at dave at booksforsouthafrica dot org.

To donate online, go here.

Check donations should be made out to The South Africa Development Fund. Please write "For Books for South Africa" in the memo line and mail to:

David Kyle
Books for South Africa
145 Central Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94117

To be eligible for the gift certificate, and in order to help establish
trackside odds, please indicate your pick to win the race.

Also, please pass along this link to anyone with a disposition
toward charitable giving or at least a taste for young male aggression.

Thank you for your attention.

Marin 10K, May 30, 2005

Marin 10K

While on some levels this race truly did not represent West Valley’s finest hour, the fact that we fielded scoring teams in 5 divisions (open men and women, masters men and women, and senior women) is more important than any individual tales of woe or suffering.

The open men were hurting collectively, and fielded a team only because the once dead and buried men’s masters team had bodies to spare. Of those that did toe the line, survival, rather than peak performance was the word of the day. For the men, Neil Gilfedder was slogging to run below par for reasons still undetermined. Leo Alapont was coming off injury and equally below form. Mike was having a bad day, tossed it in and jogged to the finish. Thomas Jensen aggravated the butt-strain and jogged even slower to the finish. The men’s masters team was on form, however, and would have finished 2 places higher had they not dropped down Aaron and Raymundo to the open squads. Anthony was heroic in his return to the WVTC ranks. And Jack, after pulling up lame in the 1998 version of this race with the first in a consecutive string of debilitating injuries, was simply happy to finally make it to the finish line in a cumulative time of 3,539,563 minutes and 37 seconds

The open women also required some help from above. With Teresa Clark and Heather Goerke as the sole open entrants, depth at the masters and senior levels allowed Mary Lothrop, Ellen Clark and Char Bayles to drop down and keep the youngsters afloat. Obviously we need more young women out at the races, so please rally the troops.

The pride of the club was obviously the masters and senior women, who both placed second behind strong performances, most notably from Sissel Bernsten-Heber, Kim Woody, Laury Fisher, Dee Gibson and Trudi Hoffman.

Now that the always verbose Anthony Davies is back with the club, we will hopefully get more detailed race reports online. Concerning his return to PA racing, Anthony writes:
It's boring to look at results in one long list, or individually, or even as a list of WVTC-only results. But there are always interesting duals going on - stories within stories - races within races - even if the protagonists are unaware of them either at the time or ever.

So here is the Marin Memorial Day 10K redux, two by two.

30 Carmelo Rios 34:07.0 5:30/M
32 Aaron Pierson 34:12.0 5:30/M
These two have been duking it out for longer than most of us care to remember at a higher level than most of us will ever know. Sadly, it's likely to be their last tussle in a while as Aaron is very soon moving to Tokyo (yes, Tokyo, Japan, not Tokyo, Oklahoma). Aaron, it's been sheer pleasure suffering alongside you. Wait, I've never been alongside you, I've always been behind you. You have all of our best
wishes for the dual challenge of married life and Japan. Send sushi.

37 Neil Gilfedder Santa Rosa CA 34 7 M 30-34 34:40.0 5:35/M
45 Raymundo Cruz Alameda CA 40 11 M 40-44 35:01.0 5:38/M
62 Michael Arulgnenendran San Francisco CA 21 21 M 19-29 36:31.0 5:53/M

93 Tony Fong Alameda CA 45 13 M 45-49 37:47.0 6:05/M
105 Andrea Grunst Bolinas CA 23 4 F 19-29 38:30.0 6:12/M
106 Melissa Grunst Bolinas CA 23 5 F 19-29 38:30.0 6:12/M/M
OK there's three here. Say no more...

90 Anthony Davitt San Jose CA 44 18 M 40-44 37:39.0 6:04
128 Anthony Davies San Jose CA 40 25 M 40-44 39:06.0 6:18/M
Surely this was a typo - can I take the faster time?

128 Anthony Davies San Jose CA 40 25 M 40-44 39:06.0 6:18/M
133 Sissel Bernsten-Heber Mill Valley CA 41 5 F 40-44 39:14.0 6:19/M
Sissel, I assume you would have given me fair warning if you'd got any closer...

195 Kim Woody Menlo Park CA 41 8 F 40-44 41:06.0 6:37/M

177 Teresa Clark Portola Valley CA 35 11 F 35-39 40:40.0 6:33/M

267 Barbara Wismer San Francisco CA 45 7 F 45-49 44:26.0 7:09/M

246 Jack Youngren 43:37.0 7:01/M
248 Shirley Matson 43:40.0 7:02/M
Something has to have gone right anytime you beat a world record holder by three seconds.

439 Steven Katz Greenbrae CA 41 67 M 40-44 54:11.0 8:44/M
440 Ellen Clark Los Altos Hills CA 58 4 F 55-59 54:17.0 8:44/M
Did Ellen know she was just six seconds behind one of the best sports chiropractors in the state, who has brought more WVTC runners to tears than
463 Charlene Bayles Concord CA 54 9 F 50-54 55:46.0 8:59/M

Team scores:

Zippy the Pinhead 5K, 5/8/05

With an average time of 15:56, the open men's quintet of Justin Hurd, Todd Rose, Alex Mason, Eric Albrecht, and Neil Gilfedder trailed only the TranSports in drizzly conditions in Golden Gate Park. It was a blend of the old and the new, as the scorers ranged in age from 23 to 42.

The masters' and seniors' women's teams both wound up third, with 40-year-old Sissel Bernstein-Heber's 19:17 leading the way for the younger elders and stalwart Kim Rupert fronting the seniors' charge.

Results

News Channel 46 5K (Big Sur), 4/24/2004

As was the case in 2004, the masters women fielded a strong squad on the challenging 5K route in Carmel, with Kim Woody (20:02), Meredith Mills (20:17) and Kathryn Samuelson (21:24) spearheading a third-place effort. Had WVTC's top five 40+ women been scored as a 221-year-old open women's team, it would have been fourth in that division.

Results

HP Up and Running 10K, 4/17/2005

With several key members on the other side of the country for a certain marathon, WVTC was not at full strength, yet still saw its open men's team -- supported by three masters runners -- take fourth place (third in the point totals). Over one third of the 43 men in the race who broke 35:00 were 40 or older. The masters women's team also finished fourth.

Results

SFSU Johnny Mathis Track and Field Invitational, 4/2/2005

The botched official results don't reflect the sterling performances put forth by a tetrad of WVTC men in the 5,000 meters. From Jack Youngren, who had a ringside seat:

"The timing is all screwed up. I think they assigned the times incorrectly. Todd was faster than they showed, Steve was slower. Actual results are as follows:

Todd Rose: 14:57.1

Neil Gilfedder: 15:59.7

Steve Dewan: 16:59

Mike Arulgnanendran: 17:14

"Neil's race was a PR. Actually, it was his first 5K ever. Possibly the fastest debut I've ever seen. Steve was also a PR. Don't know the last time Todd ran that fast, but he was pleased (he was gunning for sub-15:10 and just started hitting 71s). Mike pushed Steve to his PR by matching him stride for stride though approximately 10 laps."

Emerald Nuts Across the Bay 12K, 3/20/2005

Photos

The story of the day was the resurgence of the men's masters team, which, in placing third, blew everything the team had done over the past few years right out of the chilly waters of the San Francisco Bay. In 2004, only at the Christmas Relays did WVTC even field a scoring men's masters team; here, the efforts of Eric Albrecht (42:11), Aaron Pierson (42:52) and Raymundo Cruz (43:11) cemented the squad's showing behind Excelsior and the Pacific Striders.

The open men also placed third, trailing a pair of TranSports adidas teams and therefore receiving credit for second. Todd Rose, on fire all year, led the way with a fourth-place 39:03. The always-strong women master's team added a third third to the day's total, while the open women were seventh.

Results

NorCal 10-Miler, 3/5/2005

The open men, accustomed to (at best) a second-fiddle position behind a powerful adidas TranSports team for over a year, dominated this race held on winding bicycle paths in the shadow of Mt. Shasta. Mainstays Todd Rose, Chris Zieman, and Chris Knorzer took 4th, 6th and 9th respectively to cement the win.

Women's Masters 2004 Road Recap

Master Women,

What a season! We led the LDR master competition for most of 2004, but got nipped at the end by the Impalas. Congratulations on a strong 2nd place finish!

The master team won 4 of the 15 LDR races: Cal 10, Hewlett-Packard 10k, Jamba Juice 5k, and the Christmas Relays. And we placed 2nd at another 5. We scored a team at all but 1 of the races, and scored a 2nd master team at 3. Wow!

Seventeen of us competed in the LDR circuit last year; 5 of us (Kim W, Kary S, Mary L, Kim R, + me) at more than half of the races. We had more than 5 runners at 9 of the races, with Pac Sun, Shriners, and the Relays being most popular. What participation!

We really expanded our ranks in 2004. Katy S joined us last January, and ran 10 of the races in addition to several triathlons. Meredith M joined the peninsula crowd, and managed to squeeze in 3 road races between marathons. Sissel H had Tess, turned the big 4-0, and ran as a master in 2 races in the fall. Terry D joined us to field a master team at CIM. Sarah R rejoined WVTC as a master, and ran on our A team at the Relays. Deanna M finished her 1st full year as a master. And Mari D came out of "retirement" to make a team at Humboldt.

Our senior team came into its own this year, thanks to rep Char Bayles. They fielded a team at 7 of the races, and placed 2nd at Pac Sun and Humboldt. The seniors (Char B, Ellen C, Dee G, Laury F, + Terry D)got help at several races from super seniors Trudi H + Rusty B.

Top PA performances: Kim W + Dee G placed 3rd (master + senior, respectively) at Humboldt. Trudi H placed in the top 3 super seniors for almost every race she ran: ATB 12k, HP 10k, Pac Sun 10k, JJ 5k, and CIM - garnering her a place in the top 10 for 2004. And Rusty B placed 3rd super senior at Shriners. Kim W, Katy S, and I are comped for 2005.

Great job, team! We're gettin' better all the time!

Barb

Pacific Sun 10K, 5/31/2004

Unseasonably warm temperatures aside, it was business as usual at the Pacific Sun 10K, held on a fast course winding through Kentfield and San Anselmo and finishing on the Marin County College track. The open men wound up behind only the TranSports and far in front of all others, while the masters women grabbed second behind the Impalas. Ellen Clark, Trudi Hoffman and Charlene Bayles saw to a runner-up finish in the women's seniors division as well.

Results

Excelsior Zippy 5K, 5/9/2004

Photos

Aaron Pierson laps up the experience

The Zippy the Pinhead races in Golden Gate Park saw a resurgence in club participation across the gender and age-division spectra. Suzy Beste's 14th-place finish in 18:41 led the open women, who hadn't fielded a scoring team since January's Cal 10M, to a sixth-place finish. Kim Rupert's 19:44 let the women masters to a close third. On the men's side, Chris Zieman, Todd Rose and Kevin Beck all cracked the top 14, winding up seven seconds apart and leading the open men to a third-place showing behind two TranSports squads.

The race was held on a slightly different course than in previous years owing to construction; the consensus was that the route was slightly slower than in Zippys of yore. Nevertheless, 29 men broke 16:00 and 25 women dipped under 19:00.

Results

News Channel 46 Big Sur 5K, 4/24/2004

Team involvement in this far-off affair was scanty, but of note were Chris Zieman's sixth-place finish in 15:28 just six days after finishing as the top American in steambath conditions at the Boston Marathon and soon-to-be-senior Kim Rupert's 19:57 on a challenging course. The masters' women, who have carried the club on the PA circuit all year, wound up second in Carmel.

WVTC women going coastal

Results

HP Up and Running 10K, 4/18/2004

Owing to the Boston Marathon and sundry other distractions, WVTC fielded only one complete team at the Hewlett-Packard Up and Running 10K - its stalwart masters' women's squad. Kim Rupert (41:03; first in the 45-to-49 division), Kim Woody (41:23) and Barbara Wismer (42:38) easily repelled a challenge from Fleet Feet/Sacramento to take first place.

A pair of men - Chris Knorzer (32:16) and Ricky Lucero (33:03) - turned in solid individual efforts on the men's side.

Results

Emerald Nuts Across the Bay 12K, 3/21/2004

Same challenging, popular race, new title sponsor. The "Nuts Across the Bay" race (no sniggering) drew Olympic-caliber competition - literally: Women's winner Linda Somers Smith was a 1996 participant in the Olympic Marathon in Atlanta. Here, she outlasted the Farm Team's Christine Lundy for the win.

The WVTC men's open team repeated its second-to-adidas-TranSports finish from the NorCal 10M, with Chris Zieman (4th) and Kevin Beck (6th) again providing a one-two punch near the front and Chris Knorzer (9th) sculpting a great race to crack the top ten. The masters' women's team also placed second, with the threesome of Kim Rupert, Barbara Wismer and Kathryn Samuelson doing the damage.

Results

NorCal 10-Miler, 3/6/2004

The difficulty in getting runners up to Redding for a not-particularly-fast 10 mile race is something all PA clubs face now that the NorCal race has been added to the PA schedule. The WVTC men benefited greatly from two new recruits from the East Coast, Kevin Beck and Dave Kyle, who helped the men's squad finish a close third behind the Adidas Transports and the Excelsior runners. The masters women team of Barb Wismer (1:10:00), Kim Rupert (1:12:41) and Kate Samuelson (1:16:11) appears to have scored a second-place finish. In contrast, the open women of WVTC did not field a squad.

At the front of the pack, Chris Zeiman scored a second place finish for the men, his 51:13 bringing him within 15 seconds of the win. Kevin scored an impressive 4th in his PAUSATF debut with a 51:35. Chris Knorzer (54:52), Sean Nixon (55:48), and Boston Dave (62:29) anchor