A running club in Salem, Massachusetts.
Congratulations to Patrick Smith, Dan Cooper, and Denise Murphy for great performances this past Saturday in the 17th Annual Asbury Grove Duathlon in Hamilton, MA. Patrick finished in 1st place, Dan finished in 5th place, and Denise finished in 22nd place. That’s a 2.4 mile run, 8.6 mile bike, and 2.4 mile run. Wicked good! Chip was there to capture the event for us.
Susan Keezer and Allison Rourke, Kathie Moskal in back and below
We’ve certainly had our share of rain this week, but as tough Wicked runners a little rain is not going to scare us off from getting out there and “doing our thing.” Wednesday night, however, posed a bit of a dilemma for this particular runner. Usually, I would head over to Lynn Woods, but with the torrential 
downpours and memories of being out on the trails in thunderstorms, I thought it best to skip the Woods this week. Lo and behold, however, around 6:30 PM the rains let up, and living very close to the start of the Danvers Fun Run, I decided to jog over there. I hadn’t run this particular race for a while, and having read that a lot of our newer members were going to be there, I was interested in seeing them. It was great to see Kathie Moskal, Susan Keezer, Alison Rourke, Annie Willis, Nicky Blumberg, Eileen Dunn, and Billy Prentiss. Check out the results at Danvers 5K Slightly Damp Run. Congratulations to Annie Willis for finishing second place overall. As it claims to be, it was a “fun” run and the nice cold beer at the finish always makes the “journey” much more rewarding.
Tim Short, get back to Danvers and reclaim your title!!!!
Congratulations to Rich Tomlins and Billy Prentiss who both rain in the rain last night in Reading at the FORR 5K. Out of 59 runners, Rich finished 7th overall, 2nd in his age group, with a time of 18:17. Billy finished 14th overall, 1st in his age group, with a time of 20:30. That’s 4 first place finishes in a row for Billy!
Special recognition to all those runners (and there were a lot!) who showed up last night at Forest River for the Toomey Clinic. One never knows what the weather conditions might be on the day of the big race, so running last night in those torrential downpours certainly proved to all who participated, “We can do it! We are Wicked!”
Belated congratulations to Beth O’Grady and Doug Bollen who traveled to Stowe, Vermont, last Sunday to run in the Stowe 8 Miler. Check out their times under Race Results.
Finally, have you noticed we are approaching number 100 for our membership? How exciting! Enjoy the weekend. It’s supposed to be a nice one.
Kenny Hewson, Shari Hewson, Kathey Moskal, Chip & Luke Bott, Danny Leadvaro, Kerri Gertz
They may not have been running to put out a fire, but the intrepid group of Wicked runners pictured above certainly proved they possess some basic goals of any firefighter: Run Fast! Don’t Hyperventilate! Associate Yourself with Plenty of Water! While the official results have still not been posted (hopefully, this is no reflection on the expediency of the Hamilton Fire Department), it appears a good time was had by all who ran the Hamilton Firefighter 5 Mile race last night. Congratulations to Shari Hewson who was “personally psyched” to have beaten her PR by approximately 4 minutes and to have finished ahead of her “Porta Potty friend.” (I have no clue!!!) Thinking she was about to run a flat course, Shari was surprised to discover that this was quite a hilly course. (Oh, did I discover that myself a couple years back when I first ran this one!) In case you may be questioning why that guy on the left is in the picture, well that is Shari’s husband, Kenny, whom I am told, was sending in his application to Wicked today. I certainly will be checking with Ms. Touchette to follow up on that. I do have another picture I could put up without Kenny, so he better “pony up.” And who is that little one? That is “Wicked Child,” Luke Bott, Chip’s son. And he’s not up there just to add a touch of cuteness to the photo. Luke is a runner and has run in previous kids’ races, most recently at Asbury Grove. Check the earlier blogs for a photo of him in action. I understand Billy Prentiss (MIA from picture) came in first in his age group. That makes three in a row over the past week. Billy finished first in his age group at the Sapienza Road Race, a 4 miler in Haverhill and the Seacoast Seven, a seven miler in Gloucester. Congratulations, Billy! Good effort from all! Kerri Gertz summed it up by saying, “All had a wicked good time, even though we busted our a…….s.” Now, Kerri, is that anyway for an attorney to speak??!! Thanks also to Kathey Moskal for the picture. And Danny, “Wha-Woo,” why have you been so quiet?? We miss your emails!
I first met Eileen Dunn late last year when the Danvers Fun Run on Wednesday nights first started. I had seen her previously a few times helping out at races, and I knew she had some connection to Doug Bollen, Park and Recreation Director, but other than that, I knew her only as a very friendly face, always pleasant and smiling. After a few Danvers runs and the spring running clinic of which both of us participated, I started to know her better and quickly came to admire her quiet but determined spirit as well as her superior athletic prowess. Watching her sprint up those hills at Collins Middle School, I couldn’t help but ask myself, “How does this girl do it?” It soon became evident that Eileen, like many other Wicked runners, has a vast repertoire of activities to keep herself physically fit. Most of us know that she recently returned from San Diego from a surfing adventure, followed by a backpacking trip to the White Mountains, and a week ago Sunday, she traveled home to Delmar, New York, to participate in her third Pine Bush Triathlon. This has become somewhat of a tradition with her brother, Danny, and at the same time serves as a worthy excuse to travel home to visit with the family. Eileen concedes that her brother is “Just naturally athletic” and that she is not particularly competitive with him. “He will always run faster than me.”
The weather started out fine for the event, with a threat of rain. It was muggy, but the downpour held off until right after Eileen crossed the finish line. The race started out with Eileen’s favorite part, the swim. “The swim can be a bit frightening though. You’re there with your wave standing in knee to waist deep water waiting for the start to be announced. Then everyone belly flops in and it’s a free for all. People swim on top of you, kick you, pull at your arms. It’s total chaos until it spreads out a bit.” Eileen finished the 325 yard swim in 5:53. Eileen enjoys the bike also. “Hey, you’re sitting down.” The course was fairly flat with very few hills. Usually plagued by bad luck with tires, Eileen was grateful to have escaped any flats. “I’m starting to feel more confident during the bike ride. Patrick (her brother) gave me some pointers earlier this year which have been very helpful.” Eileen clocked in at 43:40 for the 11.5 miles. Now, this is something that Eileen did not want me to share, but, hey, we’re all on the same team here, the run was her least favorite part. “It always gets me. I was exhausted. I actually took a tumble (I can relate to that!) It was in the first mile, and I got a little too close to where the pavement meets the dirt and rolled my ankle on the ledge. I hit the pavement, did a roll, and hopped back up and started running in hopes that nobody noticed. Of course everyone started yelling, ‘Are you OK?’ I was fine minus the road rash on my right hand, but it’s healing nicely.” Eileen reports she “made it through the run without walking, other than a few recovery steps after the fall, which is always my goal.” Eileen ran the 3.25 miles in 29:25 with an overall finish time of 1:18:57. Great job, Eileen!
Eileen has done two other sprint triathlons besides the Pine Bush, both down in New Jersey where she lived for a bit post graduation. This past June she did her first Olympic distance triathlon, the Mooseman in New Hampshire. Eileen’s favorite race of the year is the Reach the Beach Relay “200 Miles in 24 Hours” www.rtbrelay.com This September will be the third year she and her friends have entered a team. Eileen stresses, “I do this stuff for fun, not to be competitive.”
How did Eileen’s journey bring her to Salem? She grew up in Delmar, New York which is a hamlet of the Town of Bethlehem. She’s the youngest of 8 children and has 9 nieces and nephews. She went to the University of New Hampshire where she rowed her 4 years there and was a captain of the team her senior year. She graduated in 2004 with a B. S. in Kinesiology in Sports Studies with a minor in Psychology. She bemoans the fact that women’s crew has since been cut as a varsity sport. Prior to coming to work in Salem, Eileen lived in Davis Square in Somerville and worked for a small company called Marathon Tours & Travel located in Charlestown. She helped set up group travel to marathons around the world. The owner (her former boss), Thom Gilligan founded the Antarctica Marathon and the 7 Continents Club, a group for people that complete a marathon on all 7 continents. She started work for the City of Salem last June as the Recreation Supervisor for the Park and Recreation Department. And what a fantastic job she has done! Knowing how modest Eileen is, I sought out her supervisor, Doug Bollen, and asked him for his thoughts on Eileen. He had some pretty impressive things to say about her. “Eileen is our Recreation Supervisor, and she has brought to the position a high energy, super organized approach. She has helped our department take Recreation to the next level, always going the extra yard to make sure each program is meeting the expectations of each participant and assuring them a positive experience. I truly believe with Eileen on board, we have the top Recreation Department around and the best Salem has ever been offered! She is the perfect fit for the job! Pretty nice words to hear from your boss, Eileen. When asked how she got involved with the Wicked Running Club, Eileen states she joined last January when Doug, her boss, handed her an application, told her to fill it out and mail it in. “I did what the boss told me. I’m very glad I joined–what a great group of people!” We’re glad you joined, also, Eileen. Thanks for all you do.
Mr. Shea coming back from the trail
Steve Touchette, Special Wicked Correspondent
As a first hand observer to the incident, the first “There Has To Be Blood” award goes to our very own blogster, Mr. Billy Shea. After demonstrating his mountain goat prowess on the single trail Tour of Lynn Woods last Wednesday night, Billy fell prey to the distraction of a street cleaner at the Marblehead Post Office during this past Saturday’s first marathon training run. Merrily running along with Deb, Kate, and myself, and oblivious to what lay beneath him, he suddenly stubbed his toe on a rather “small pebble” and instantly ended up in a heap on the ground. With a bloody knee, hand, and elbow and covered in trail dirt, Billy was unphased and back on his feet to continue running the first leg of the eight mile run along the old Marblehead railroad trail. Luckily up ahead he spied a sprinkler system on a neighbor’s beautiful lawn and stopped to cleanse his wounds. Wary of offending the owner, Billy acted quickly as Deb Touchette shouted “Thank yous” to whoever may have been witnessing this cleansing ritual from inside the house. Billy completed the run, much dirtier and bloodier than he began it, seemingly with all faculties intact (We will be checking with him later to make sure there was no neurological damage). He meets all the qualifications of the award, and as one of his running partners, I congratulate him for proving he is one tough Wicked runner.
It’s been a busy week and I have been late in reporting the first ever Slow Run Pot Luck Dinner on July 14th. However, with running, super people, and great food, you won’t be surprised to hear it was a great success!
We had more people attending, 15 with 10 running, than on any other Monday night. (The neighbors were astonished, and pleased, to see so many people running through our quiet neighborhood.)
front row:
Alison Phelan, Dan Leadvaro, Allison Rourke, Marie Gesnaldo, Susan Keezer
back row:
Kerry (Alison’s daughter), Amber Woolfenden, Tricia Pini, Joe Ferlazzo, Shari Hewson, John Mahoney
Those participating but not in the photo were:
Sarah Calland, Rich Girard, Christine Lutz (Rich’s wife), Nancy Morgan (my wife)
I am sure you will want to know what we had to eat and I love remembering…
veggie burgers, fresh fruit, macaroni salad, bean salad, marinated chicken wings, grilled marinated chicken, garden salad, yummy bread, grilled haddock, and ice cream bars and chocolate chip cookies - not to mention the various drinks, beer, and wine.
Finally, you should all know that Kerry is a very interesting person to run with. I learned that she will be starting as a freshman in high school next fall, that she plans to run cross country and track, and that she is the person who got her mother to join the Wicked Running Club! Way to go!
This next Monday we will have to see if we can do another Slow Run Pot Luck Dinner before the summer is over.
Colin, where’s the paddle????
Well, lately we’ve had Wicked members running extraordinary distances, swimming countless miles, and biking over vast terrain. What other event might entice someone to take advantage of a beautiful summer day while at the same time challenging themselves to a rigorous ordeal? Well, for Colin Maclay, his choice was the Blackburn Challenge in Gloucester. The Blackburn Challenge is the east coast’s premier open-water human-powered boat competition. This 20 mile challenge sends rowers, kayakers and canoeists around Cape Ann, Massachusetts.
And who could be better at telling the story of this adventure than the competitor himself. So, in Colin’s own words…..
I’ve paddled around most of Cape Ann - just not all at once. Which begs the question: Why? It always sounded like a neat, although slightly crazy, idea. It’s over twenty miles around http://www.blackburnchallenge.com/course.asp, mostly open ocean with all the attendant winds, waves and heavy ocean going traffic. To top it all off, the “power boaters” refer to us in kayaks as “fleas” and treat us with about that much respect. Taking some of that into mind (although probably not enough) along with the fact that the Blackburn challenge http://www.blackburnchallenge.com/Blackburn.html has been around for about three decades and is known as the East Coast’s premier human- powered race, it seemed like a special way to do the paddle.
All that peace and tranquility changed as we reached East Gloucester and Dog Bar Breakwater. The seas became confused with irregular waves and swells simultaneously coming from all directions caused by the cluster of boats (lobster, speed, tour, Coast Guard Auxiliary) all around us and the rocky shoreline nearby. After looking at the sea all morning, the surface suddenly became impossible to read - looking a bit like a mosaic whose image I couldn’t put together. My boat had taken on a good bit of water over the day, and each wave resulted in a mini wave set inside the cockpit. With only a few miles left to go, my goal had suddenly become to not find myself floundering in the water as my trusty kayak bobbed away from me and towards the rocks. I told myself that this was just the sea’s gentle reminder of the need to respect and appreciate the otherwise perfect conditions we’d enjoyed all day. The fellow with whom I’d been paddling and I got quiet and focused on the matter at hand, riding and dodging waves, snaking in between boats, and finally rounding the breakwater. With only a mile or so left, we tried for a strong finish, and even though the horizon seemed to take a few steps back, we made it past the Greasy Pole (and a couple other kayaks), and reached a very welcome finish–a great party on the beach. I wasn’t nearly as tired or winded as I was at the end of the marathon, but I did experience a certain familiar out-of-body feeling. Having circumnavigated the Cape on her bicycle, Rachel cheered me in, backed by a fine band, friendly folk, excellent barbecue–and free Ipswich Ale, all of which made the landing delicious in every sense. I was tired and nearly last in my class, but confident I’d be back next year with a bit more prior paddling under my belt, and hopefully accompanied by friends eager to compete in the great Blackburn Challenge.
In “real life” Colin is managing director of the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University (cyber.law.harvard.edu) - a research center that seeks to understand the relationship between new technologies, policy and society, operating in the mode of an entrepreneurial non-profit, with its goal of creating rigorous scholarship with real-world impact. Hmmmm. Rachel Hunt is “Head of School” at the Salem Academy. They reside in Salem.
A stellar performance was turned in by Dan Cooper, Denise Murphy, and Patrick Smith at this past Sunday’s Old Colony YMCA Triathlon (1 mi. swim, 24 mi. bike, 6.5mi. run) in Middleboro, MA. Competitors had the choice of participating as individuals or as part of a relay. There were approximately 200 individuals and 16 teams at the race. Our Wicked contingent planned to all participate solo, but only Denise ended up doing it “all on her own.” And what a performance! Despite forgetting her wetsuit and having to borrow a men’s medium from a friend, Denise ended up achieving a PR for her swim. Fantastic! Perhaps a larger size wetsuit may be in the offering for Denise. Once ashore, Denise proceeded to bike and run well despite a nagging back ache. Denise 
finished in about 2:54, very impressive considering the fact that anything under 3 hours is considered a good time for this distance. She was 6th out of 15 in her age group and 117th overall. Congratulations, Denise. A tennis mishap last week resulting in a twisted ankle for Patrick dictated a change in his strategy. Patrick realized the swim and run would be difficult with his injury, so he asked and Dan graciously agreed to help Patrick out with a team effort– Dan tackling the swim and run and Patrick taking on the bike. What a combination it turned out to be! As Patrick stated, “We smoked!” Unsure of how he’d stack up against some elite swimmers—Collegiate Champs, US Masters’ Champ, Dan gave a solid middle of the pack swim. Patrick took on the bike with a vengeance, rolling in with a 25mph. average speed, placing 2nd overall! Dan took it from there, passing their last competitor in the All Male Relay category with a sub 7:00 min./mi. run, finishing 1st overall. They finished around 2:12 claiming 1st place in the All Male Relay and 2nd overall for all relay teams.
Outstanding, guys! And both Dan and Patrick were out there at 5:30 AM for the usual Tuesday morning run. We wish Patrick a speedy recovery and hope to see that tape removed from his ankle soon. And, in case you were thinking Denise must have been home sleeping at this early hour, she was returning home from a swim at the gym just as we were concluding our run. You are all so wicked!!!!
Will the wedding cake be topped with a startled cat in place of a bride and groom? Will the bridesmaids be draped in Wicked singlets, extra long to maintain the utmost propriety? Will the bride wear her new grey Wicked “hoodie” as she departs for her honeymoon? Will the groom sport Nike Air Max in place of shiny black shoes? Maybe it will be an outdoor ceremony on a Saturday morning at Forest River Park. Perhaps the reception will be held at the Senior Center, or, better yet, Winter Island Function Hall. Need to have it outside the city? Maybe it will be at Cody’s Brewery in Danvers. Will Chic-fil-A furnish the meal with some help from Bagel World? Hey Darla, can you get them some soup? Chip, you’re in charge of photos. Rich, you’re in charge of chasing down the groom in the event we have a runaway. The Touchettes will bring the karaoke machine. Dave from New England Running Company will raffle off a pair of running shoes. Mike Paige will be in charge of timing the event. Doug Bollen will guarantee the happy couple lifetime membership in the holy state of matrimony. And I just know the song for their first dance will be “Born To Run” and the theme for the honeymoon night will be “No pace too slow.”
Whatever the scenario turns out to be, it’s going to be a Wicked special day on October 3, 2009 for……………. Tim Short and Nicole Bevington! Congratulations, and I know I speak for all of Wicked when I say, “I wonder how long before Tim’s time devoted to Wicked will be sharply curtailed!” Best of luck, Tim and Nicole.
P.S: Of course, the happy couple reviewed and approved the above before publication, and for the record, Nicole states, “If his (Tim’s) time with Wicked has not been curtailed by now, it’s not going to be.”
Imagine swimming for 1.2 miles, getting on your bike and riding 56 miles, and then running 13.1 (a half-marathon) miles. Think about that for a moment. Well, Wicked 
brother Tim Clarke did just that yesterday at the 70.3 Rhode Island ½ Ironman! It was a beautiful day with a nice breeze, not too hot, and plenty of shade. The race began with a 1.2 mile swim in Narragansett. Despite feeling somewhat under trained for this portion of the race, Tim swam comfortably and was eager to tackle the 56 mile bike ride. A unique characteristic of this particular ½ Ironman is that it is a “point to point” race, and from Narragansett, the bike ride headed to Providence. According to Tim, the bike ride felt pretty decent. Along the way Tim kept thinking that he needed to be careful not to get a penalty for drafting (being within 4 bike lengths of the bike in front of you). It was that final 13.1 mile run where Tim says, “The day fell apart for me. You get off the bike, your legs are tight, and the game plan is to keep them moving and get them loosened up.” Well, we can’t always follow “the game plan,” and placing “this hill at about ½ mile into the race that looked like it came out of the Mt. Washington run, and because the run was two loops, we had to do it twice!” was indeed cruel punishment. “Most of the run was a real struggle for me, and the irony of it is I felt most comfortable with my running preparation going into the race.” Tim reached the State Capitol in Providence in a time of 6:22:18. What an amazing accomplishment, Tim! And what, besides a tremendous sense of pride, satisfaction, and determination to get out there and run better the next time, did Tim get for all this hard labor? “They give you a finishing medal and a really nice hat at the end!” Tim reports he’s “a little sore” today, but he did dutifully report to work.
What brought Tim to this point in his running career? Tim has now completed his fourth ½ Ironman, having competed in them the previous three years. He also completed the Boston Marathon in 2006. All of this started five years ago when Tim decided he wanted to compete in a triathlon and enrolled in the B and S Fitness Triathlon Training Program to prepare him for the Witch City Triathlon. What motivates Tim? “The training for my first triathlon was so positive, and I had always wanted to have an ongoing exercise program that I have been afraid to stop. So ‘fear’ motivates me! Along the way I have met a lot of great people through training and races.” For those of us who know Tim, he is very self-effacing and not one to “toot his own horn.” Asked about a sense of pride with this accomplishment, Tim says, “The race for me is half of it. Having a race in front of me pushes me in my training. I was hoping to hit 5:45 for a finish time, and I did fall short of that. I did end up placing 911 out of 1600 plus people, and I would call it a better than average field in a more challenging than average course.” And what kind of training does one need to do to prepare for an event like this? For Tim, “Plan ‘A’ is about 13 hours per week consisting of one swim, three bike rides including one long one, and three runs including one long one. Also included are two sessions of weight training.” Tim reports he usually misses one or two workouts, “So it runs from 10-13 hours per week. I cut this in half in the off season.”
Congratulations, Tim, on this newest “feather in your Wicked cap.” You are an inspiration to all of us and a fine example of how determination can propel the human body to excel at levels we never thought possible. Go Wicked!