Wicked Running Club

Undaunted by the steamy, blazing heat this weekend, Wicked runners hit the pavement in local (and not so local) road races as well as in the Club’s featured runs.

New member Kerry Gertz of South Hamilton traveled to Pelham, NH, to participate in the St. Patrick’s Family Fun Day 5K. Out of 147 runners, Kerry finished 48th with a time of 25:13 (8:08 pace). An excited Kerry very proudly proclaimed that she “shattered” her personal best time of 26:02. Kerry finished 5th out of 21 females in her age group. Very well done, Kerry. See what the Club has done for you already!! Almost a minute off your PR!

Taking advantage of any relief the South Boston Waterfront might have provided (as well as perhaps a brew or two after the race?) three new members, Adam Fitch of Salem, Amber Woolfenden and Bob Grant of Swampscott, ran in the 7th Annual Harpoon Brewery 5 Miler to benefit the Angel Fund. The race was actually 5.25 miles, and, as Adam reports,”with the heat, a very long 5.25 miles.” Out of 1,542 runners, Adam finished 594th with a net time of 45:55 (8:45 pace). Adam reported, “I managed to finish in 46 minutes, which is pretty good for me.” That was your gun time, Adam. You actually finished faster than you thought. Great job! Adam is 37 years old and finished 297th out of 532 runners in his age group. Amber, 36, finished 1252nd at 53:50 (10:16 pace). She was 557th out of 745 in her age group. Amber reports, “Saturday was way hot, but the beer was worth it!” I bet it was. Congratulations, Amber. Bob, 47, finished in 41:55 (8:00 pace). He was 326th overall and 37th out of 107 in his age group. Excellent run, Bob. Finally, past Wicked Running president, Sherrie Feffer ran this race too, finishing in 57:48. I believe that this is Sherrie’s first race since the 2007 Boston Marathon - great to see you racing, Sherrie!

Things heated up on Sunday, and with an 11:30 AM start to the Massachusetts State Police 5 Miler in Framingham, Steph and Dan Cooper (with friends, Jen and Tom Ryan) joined a crew of 166 for a blazing hot run through downtown Framingham. Despite a 1.2 mile swim and 50 mile bike ride the day before, Dan finished an amazing 8th overall (35:33, 7:07 pace) and received a medal for the 4th civilian finisher. You represent us well, Dan Cooper! By the way, what is this I’m hearing about adolescent type antics between you and Jay at the Track workout last Thursday night? Huh??? Liz says, “Very nice, but you need a tan.” Watch out, Jay. Turnaround is fair play! Ever the lady, Steph reports that she ran a more leisurely pace and enjoyed the company of her friends.

Rounding out Sunday racing was Billy Prentiss who finished 9th overall out of 82 runners in the 3rd Annual On The Hill Tavern 4 Miler in Somerville. Billy ran 26:28 (6:37 pace) and, as has become custom of late, won the award for first in his age group. Billy was the featured runner profile this past week on the Danvers 5K Fun Run site. Check it out at www.danvers5k.com. That’s Billy in the picture with his daughter, Andrea. The hair looks kind of short there, doesn’t it?

Last Wednesday’s Danvers Fun Run featured three of Wicked’s finest: Billy Prentiss, John Bosse (new member), and Eileen Dunn. I’m not sure what the quote next to Eileen’s time means: “Inching her way back to being my favorite.” Attributed to my nephew, Adam Prentiss, I’m wondering if we’ll be seeing you at Thanksgiving dinner this fall?

Braving the Lynn Woods in the rain and muck were Deb, Steve, and Liz Touchette, Chip Bott, Jay Curry, Karen Giroux and son, and Steph and Dan Cooper. I hope I didn’t leave anyone out. As of “press time” results had not as yet been posted. My sources report that Deb took a nasty fall, and a very cavalier Chip Bott stopped to attend to her needs. Once up, though, Chip was “history” and Deb “was making up for lost time.” Is that anyway to show your appreciation, Deb? You are truly Wicked!!!! Speaking of Deb, check out her shoulder the next time you see her. She got “inked!” And as for hubby, Steve, did anyone see him “high fiving” Paul Pierce at the conclusion of Sunday night’s Celtic’s game? I did! Steve was lucky enough to “score” seats on the floor for this exciting game. Also, it has been reported to me that Woods pioneer, Jay Curry, actually got himself lost in the woods Wednesday night. Next time, Jay, consider bread crumbs? GPS? run a little slower with a friend? Chip was very excited that he beat you!

Saturday’s “feature run” had two shifts. The early birds at 7:30 AM were Deb, Liz, and Steve Touchette, Beth Clancy, and Tony Aloi. With Beth recently joining the Club, we can now brag that we are represented by the very lovely “First Lady of Lynn.” Great to have you on board, Beth. And Tony, always a pleasure to see you when you’re home from New York. Going out at 8:00 AM were John Mahoney, Tim Short, Karen Giroux, Jay Curry, Melissa Jaynes, and Ruth Brediger. Reporting from the trail, John writes, “While we were running, Melissa told us about taking an ice bath after the Covered Bridges race-turned her legs beet red. I am not sure I want to ever take one of those. I also understand that Melissa and Ruth are also planning to run the Yankee Homecoming Race in Newburyport. They are inspiring me to maybe run this race for the first time ever.” See, even the new folks are an inspiration to us veterans. Great Saturday showing! Keep coming, everybody.

The Tuesday/Thursday runs featured the “usual suspects” plus or minus a few. Join us tomorrow and get your run in before the predicted record heat.

That’s it for this week. In writing these the past couple weeks, I have been so impressed with the seemingly endless influx of new members to the Club. I understand we are up to 78. This is wonderful, and it has made me wonder exactly how people found out about the Club and why they joined. If you care to, drop me a line at sheabilly@aol.com and I’ll compile what I get for an article. Also, thinking of doing some “Runners’ Profiles.” Anyone interested in being interviewed??? Have a great week. Stay cool.

This Memorial Day weekend proved to be a busy one for Wicked members. We were very well represented in a variety of races throughout the state.

On Saturday, nearly 250 runners braved strong winds to compete in the US Coast Guard F.I.R.M. Duathlon down in Bourne. Running 2 miles, biking 12 miles, and then running another 2 miles were Wicked’s Patrick Smith, Jay Curry, Dan Cooper, Denise Murphy, and Stephanie Cooper. While he has competed previously in triathlons, this was Dan’s first duathlon–not bad for a first attempt (with a nasty cold, to boot). A special commendation to Steph for even attempting this grueling event, still recovering from an injury and pretty sick with a cold.

Everyone in this group is registered for the Timberman 1/2 Iron Man in August (as well as a slew of other triathlons and multi-sport events) and will be doing swim and bike training in addition to running. If you are interested in multi-sport training, contact Steph Cooper for group workout schedule.

17 Patrick Smith 1:00:21
41 Jay Curry 1:04:50
49 Dan Cooper 1:06:07
96 Denise Murphy 1:13:21
164 Stephanie Cooper 1:25:33

Also on Saturday, Deb, Liz and Steve Touchette ran the Wachusett Mountain Run, first race in the La Sportiva USATF New England Mountain Series. There were 338 finishers. Steve left the family behind, but mother and daughter ran together. It was noted that at one point in the race, Liz said to her mom, “Hey, how come we don’t do ‘normal’ mother and daughter things together like manicures, massages, and facials?” Well, lucky for Wicked, family time means running time. AND, scoop here. Rumor has it that another member of the Touchette family has been training and will make her debut at an upcoming race. HINT: They don’t allow guys in this one. Congratulations, Deb, for finishing third in your age group and thanks for the “bag of goodies” you saved for your friend. Best of luck with Mt. Washington.

160 Steve Touchette 39:30
189 Liz Touchette 40:49
190 Deb Touchette 40:50

Sunday’s Run To Remember 5 mile and Half Marathon in Boston drew the largest contingent of Wicked runners. It was a beautiful run through the historic streets of Boston, heating up towards the end. 1,702 runners competed in the 5 miler and 3,477 runners finished the half marathon. Beth and Doug ran the 5 miler with very respectable times:

240 Beth O’Grady 39:55 7:59
258 Doug Bollen 40:21 8:05

Great running, you two. Top 15%. It was great seeing Beth and Doug’s familiar faces cheering us half marathoners onto the finish.

Half Marathon results are as follows:

274 1/40 Billy Prentiss 1:39:19 7:35 (1st. in age group)
602 32/171 Billy Shea 1:45:49 8:05 (top 17%)
608 95/376 Danny Leadvaro 1:45:53 8:05 (1st half marathon)
1503 213/630 Paula Novelli 1:58:09 9:01 (top 44%)
1577 318/512 Chip Bott 1:58:20 9:02 (missed PR by 16 sec)
1594 110/356 Sally Holtzman 1:58:37 9:03 (top 46%)
3072 155/171 Frank Kilroy 2:22:51 10:54 (1st half marathon)
3073 295/356 Darla Johnson 2:22:52 10:54 (1st half marathon)

Darla reports that she and Frank had such a fun experience on their first half marathon. They ran “to finish; not for time.” Both had “plenty left over, and can’t wait to do it again next year.” I have to compliment Darla. For someone new to running, she has put her heart and soul into it–training regularly, competing in races, participating in the Thursday night track workouts. And it all shows. She’s getting better and better. It seems to be rubbing off also on her partner, Frank. Darla is very sweet and an inspiration and role model for all the new runners out there. Congratulations also to Billy Prentiss, another inspiring runner who proves that age doesn’t have to slow us down, for coming in first in his age group. Too bad we didn’t stick around for you to accept your award. The Chip and Sally team were in fine form, with Mr. Bott barely missing capturing a second PR within a week’s time. If this morning’s run is any indication, it’s only a matter of time. Paula, one of our newer members, “Great job!” It was fun meeting up with you at the start. And Danny boy, well, I think we all know how you did. A terrific first! “Whawooh!”

Down in beautiful Oak Bluffs on Martha’s Vineyard, Rachel Hunt and Colin Maclay ran the Oak Bluffs 5K Memorial Day Road Race on Sunday. Out of 511 runners, Rachel (23:19:19) and Colin (23:20:20) finished 71st and 72nd. Great runs! Speaking of running (more specifically, flying), Colin is back to Switzerland to meet with “world leaders” to discuss the ethical use of technology in our society (or something like that! Hey, he taught me how to text!).

The Dory Run 5K in Swampscott on Monday drew a crowd of 165 including some of Wicked’s fastest runners. It also included Jen Toomey, our Thursday night track coach, who was first overall female with a blazing time of 17:56. Not far behind were the following proud Wicked runners:

8 Rich Tomlins 2/33 18:38 6:00
9 Steve Nickerson 3/24 18:43 6:02
10 Tim Short 3/7 18:51 6:05
35 Steve Touchette 8/24 22:53 7:22
46 Liz Touchette 1/7 23:50 7:41
48 Deb Touchette 1/5 23:53 7:42
88 Annalisa DiPalma 5/12 26:56 8:41 (ran w/ husband, Dino)
115 Ruth Brediger 10/17 29:52 9:37

A warm welcome goes out to Steve Nickerson, one of our newest members. Unfortunately, he joined right after last week’s Beach To Beach Race where if he had been a Wicked member, we would have finished 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. Good recruiting, whoever!

Welcome also to Ruth Brediger who looks forward to “getting in shape and getting a little quicker with help from the Club.”

You’ll find many in the Club who share your goal, Ruth.

Kudos to award winners: Rich Tomlins, Steve Nickerson, Tim Short, Liz Touchette, and Deb Touchette. Not bad, Wicked. Not bad at all.

Last, but certainly not least, Karen Giroux ran the Pineland Farms 25K Trail Run in Maine. While not official yet, Karen clocked in at 3:04:42, a great showing despite worn trail shoes and resulting blisters on both feet! Trooper that she is, though, she was at Front Street this morning at 5:30 AM with both feet bandaged and ready to run. Great job, Karen.

Some New Member Tidbits:

Jason Matulewicz writes that he had no results to report but that he is working with Aline Systems, testing foot beds for them. He writes that this is “a really cool company out of Marblehead that is reshaping orthotics.” Learn more about it at http://www.aline.com/Default.aspx?Page=stay Also,check out Jason’s website at http://www.29photographs.com/.

Welcome to the Club, Jason.

Melissa Jaynes also did no racing this weekend, but shared with us a little about herself. Melissa is 27 (until June) and has been running for about a year. Her best pace was a 36 minute 4 miler (at our very own Frosty 4!) Her favorite distance is half-marathon and she recently completed New Bedford in 2:15, a PR. Her next race is the Covered Bridge half marathon on June 1 (I believe Doug and Beth are also doing this one). She has recovered from an IT band injury and claims to have survived ice baths after long runs (see Dan Cooper about those!) She is the proud owner of Otis, a 10 month old Rottweiler pup and likes to knit in her spare time. She admits, though, that knitting during running could be dangerous. Hhhhmmmmmmm. Welcome, Melissa. Hope to meet up with you soon.

And that’s it. Again, my apologies to anyone I may have left out.

Also, thanks to those who sent me blurbs. It helped to put this together.

I hope everyone has a good week ahead. Remember, Lynn Woods starts Wednesday night at 6:30 PM.