2009 Richmond Results

The RMEC continues to shine in fall marathons. This past weekend seven from our club made a trip to my favorite marathon, and raced in the Richmond Marathon. Jeff Hartney has been training hard since he moved to Wilmington, but has stayed in touch with the RMEC through the blog and facebook. His hard work paid off big time, finishing in 3:07:37 (while running negative splits).

Next across the finish line was Abraham Cox with a PR time of 3:42:03! Abraham just set a PR at the Marine Corps Marathon with a time of 3:57, so he cut 15 minutes off his time and just three weeks!. I would love yo know your secret.

Soon after Abraham came 21 year old Anthony and and 45 year old William Lucas with times of 3:53:13 and 3:53:28 respectively. This was a marathon debut but both father and son who ran virtually the entire race together. Great job guys! Just two weeks after a 1:51:56 at the Battleship Half Marathon, Levi Moore logs another impressive marathon finish. This week he added Richmond to his list. with a finishing time of 4:37:15. This was a six minute improvement over his Shamrock time earlier this year.

Amber Poole and Jon Shingleton have trained together for countless miles over the summer and into the fall. This would be Amber's second marathon and Jon's first. Amber was trying to improve on her Flying Pig PR of 5:34. . . she finished Richmond is 4:46:54. That is almost a 50 minute improvement!

Jon's marathon training has gone great. He has lost so much weight, he looks like a different person. On Saturday, he successfully completed his first marathon with a time of 5:31:32. At the half, he was on pace to break five hours, so I have a feeling Jon will be back for another before long. Welcome to the "26.2 Club" Jon. . . now go get your window sticker!

Free to Breathe 5k Results

It is time for yet another race update for Ashley and Brian. As most of you know both are racing in the Second Empire Grand Prix Series and doing very well. This past weekend the two raced in the Free to Breathe 5k in Raleigh. This is the 5th race

Ashley had yet another PR in him this weekend running a 17:28 which would have won most Rocky Mount races, but was good for a 10th overall in Raleigh. Brian managed an equally impressive 18:23 earning him a 16th place finish. Both men won their age groups.

Ashley still sits atop the leader board with 4,271 points. Brian is in second place with 4,056 points. Ashley and Brian have both run all of the series races so far, so these standings will change as runners are allowed to drop their 2 slowest times or no shows for the series. As of now RMEC is proudly holding down the top two spots. Even once the races start to get dropped, both still are in contention. If you exclude any runner who has already missed three races, and look at the average points per race, this puts Ashley in 6th overall and Brian 9th.

Ashley and Brian may not be out on the marathon circuit right now, but these two have put in some serious training to produce the results you are seeing. Make no mistake. . . this is some seriously impressive work.

RUN RSVP: Saturday 11/14

After three days of wind and rain, this weekend is setting up for nicer weather. By Saturday morning the rain will be gone. It will be 50F at 7:00 and not break 60F until noon. The wind speed will also cut in half. I know most of you hit your "big race" for the fall, but don't let that keep you away from the group runs.

Once again, I just used a 10 mile route that is on our regular roads. It is easy to add or subtract to meet your own needs. Please RSVP if you are coming. I cannot put out fluids tomorrow, so if you can help please post a comment.

Run Details:

• Where: Saturday, 7:00 am @ Harris Teeter
• Supported: Yes at the Tracks
• Weather: Forecast
• Routes: 10 Miles

I know most of you hit your "big race" for the fall, but don't let that keep you away from the group runs. Things typically slow down in the fall/winter. This is when we all exercise less, and eat more. Keep your running going.

Red Cross Bike Ride

The Rocky Mount Red Cross is organizing a ride (fund raiser) for May 8, 2010. Eric Seale from the RMEC is going to help with the route, route marking and the distribution of fliers. The committee is looking for some volunteers for helping with the organizing and maybe even on event day. This is also a great way for the runners in our club to get a fun "low-stress" introduction to bike riding.

Submitted By: Eric Seale

I attended a meeting last evening for the Red Cross ride that has been on hiatus since 2004. They are trying to re-start the ride. I did the ride in 2003 or 2004 and it was quite well run. I am going to be helping with setting up / marking out the courses and with flier distribution. The committee is looking for people who would volunteer to help now with the organization and possibly during the event. I know that they need someone to help with organizing the food for the start, finish and SAG stops at the moment - I believe that Judy (overall organizer) has some contact information to help.

The event is scheduled for May 8, 2010. It will start from the parking lot by the Dunn Center. There will be a 1 mile fun ride for families around the campus, a 19 mile ride and a metric century (63 miles).

If you think you would be interested in volunteering for helping with Corporate sponsorship, SAG support, goodie bag stuffing, flier distribution, registration, or donations, please let me know and I will pass along your contact information to Judy or Kristin.

Happy 60th Birthday Frank!

Here are a few pictures from the "birthday run":

RACE REPORT: Beach 2 Battleship 2009

Submitted by: Kinnie Pruden

I hardly know where to start, but my first inclination is to give thanks to God for shining down on me in so many ways. A second thanks to my husband and kids for putting up with me, their sacrifices during this journey and their support. And many, many thanks to my best friend Patti for all her support, especially on race day. Thanks to my coach Val for a brilliantly conceived training plan. And thanks to my extended family for their prayers and support. (Sorry, Mom, for all the anxiety I caused you.)

We headed to Wilmington Friday morning. My last couple of days were marked by a nagging headache that now I know was stress induced. I was distracted over the last couple of weeks during my taper by illnesses experienced by my children. I was in prayer constantly that I would stay healthy and make it to the starting line. The last few days prior to the race were mostly about organizing my five race bags that were to be distributed throughout my race; clothes from swim to be used at the finish, T1, bike special needs, T2, and run special needs.

We stayed with dear friends in Wilmington who were all about my comfort. What more could you ask? But Friday night I had to try hard to simply not think about the next day. I had to concentrate on the little things. Because whenever my mind ventured to the big picture it was more than I could grasp and would send me into a panic. So, I decided to fret about T1!

Here’s the deal: After swimming 2.4 miles in 66 deg. water, the air temperature around 40 deg.s, we would exit the water, have someone strip off our wet suits, go through a cold shower, then run/jog, half naked, carrying a cumbersome wetsuit, about 300 yds to the transition area. I was not happy with this prospect. It sounded like some contest out of Survivor. However, I did it. And it wasn’t awful! Once in T1 I entered a tent with about 20 or so other women trying to dress for a 40+ deg. bike ride (at least for the start). The first thing that caught my eye was a completely naked woman standing right in the middle (everyone else was seated around the walls of the tent). She was covered with tattoos on her arms and back. I decided to stop there and get about my own business.

I had decided before starting the race that it was not my style to get naked in front of strangers, so I simply added layers to my wet clothing. Well, anyone who has tried to put on spandex when you’re wet knows that this is no easy task. Needless to say my T1 was not quick. I also discovered that I had two right handed gloves in my T1 bag. That’s O.K., wore them anyway. Headed out to the bike (had to first make a potty stop). Heard the cheers from Patti and Billy; got some pics, and headed out for my 6+ hour ride. Another fact I had to break down into small increments.

At mile 5 a man wrecked his bike behind me. Sounded awful! He ran into a traffic cone and proceeded to skid on the pavement. I stopped to see if he was O.K. Fortunately one of the referee motorcycles was directly behind him and stopped to take care of the matter. I proceeded onward. My memories of the bike were beautiful scenery, wonderful volunteers, and a bear of a head wind for the last 40 miles! My averages dropped from 19 mph to 16 to 17 mph and I was working harder to achieve that miserable pace. That hurt the psyche, and unfortunately took more out of me than planned. I made two stops along the bike (not including the one after the crash) and never used my special needs bag. As I came into the Battleship area I saw this very large bridge looming, not a problem on the bike, hills I can handle. However, I noticed people running over that very large bridge. “Awwwwwe,” I wined in my mind. “Please tell me we’re not running over that!” Yep, we were. I dropped off my bike, had a much better T2 and headed out on my run. Saw my boys for the first time, Patti, my husband and friends, heard their cheers; very nice!


Took a right out of the Battleship and headed straight up hill. Half way up the hill someone had painted on the bridge, “Just Run Bitch.” That gave me a well needed chuckle. I ran/jogged up that bridge for the first and last time. I would go over it three more times but I would not be jogging. I descended the bridge, not bad. Took a right and stared at another bridge, not good; first two miles, two bridges. “I thought this was supposed to be a flat course.” I guess that depends on whether you’re a racer or someone marketing the race. Another mile and I descended a hill so steep if I had run fast I would have done a nose plant.

I continued along the water front of downtown Wilmington. Lots of spectators there which was nice, also cobblestones which were not nice. (Saw Jeannie and Eric Standal. They sent me an interesting pic. My body was slumped over and my head was hanging, but I had a grin on my face.) Well, had to leave the waterfront at the other end which naturally meant straight up hill. Gotta walk! I had a hard time walking up that hill! Take a right, continue to climb. Finally, headed for the lake and flatter countryside. Whew! But what kept nagging at me was I had to traverse those hills, yep, three more times. Finally at mile ten, my mind went dark. I was not finishing this race. “How was I going to tell Patti and my family and friends that I was not doing this out and back again?” “What would they say when I tell them I’m done?” “I’m not even to the turn around and my body can’t go any further, my foot is killing me, and my mind is out of the game.”

In comes Patti, “Kinnie Pruden!” I hear. “Go, Kinnie Pruden!” as she approaches. Finally a familiar face, one that will have sympathy and let me wallow in my self-pity. Well, if you know Patti Miller, given a competitive venue, that description does not suit her- thankfully. My eyes started to fill with tears, my lip quivered and Patti said, “Ah, ah, ah, they’ll be no crying! We’re not crying ‘til the finish line. Try just running 30 seconds.” “I’m walking the next 16,” I said. “My foot hurts.” (Notice my mind had immediately turned around. 16 miles was my goal instead of quitting.) Patti then gently continued to push me to run a little. “Why is she trying to get me to run?” I remember thinking. Tough love pulled me through. So I did start to run again, until I looked straight up that next steep hill.

But I persevered after that well needed kick in the pants from Patti – thank you from the bottom of my heart. I saw David Rose soon after that, who so nicely walked a little with me and offered tips; drink some Coke. I did, and it was great! (Peppermints were also a well needed break from all the sugary carbs.) Came in on the first loop. Patti had told a whole crowd my name and they loudly cheered me on by name; very cool. I actually don’t remember the turn around after that; just moved forward I guess. Oh yeah, grabbed my two left-handed gloves and arm warmers. Back up the bridges, done. Down and out of downtown, done.

“It’s dark. Why am I still out here?” They were giving out glow sticks so people could see me on the roads. Saw the same volunteers again, and again, and again. They were starting to look as tired as I was. “Coke, do you have Coke?” No we’re out. “What!” My much desired new friend, Coke, was not available on the second loop until mile 24. Bummer! Keep moving anyway. Talk to others. Notice on the return, last 6.5, there are people behind me! Hadn’t thought about that until now. Some of them actually starting their first loop! All of a sudden it was good to be me! I’m finishing this blasted thing! Moving along now with new vigor. My watch beeps another mile, 12:36. Maybe not as much vigor as I thought, but it’ll do.

One bridge down, last really big bridge looming. It’s O.K., I’m going home. Walked up the bridge, enjoyed the cool dark night and the lights at the Battleship which were ahead of me and the lights of downtown Wilmington which were now behind me. The lights reflected off the water as I reflected on my day. “Don’t cry yet, you’ll hyperventilate.” Over the top, start jogging/shuffling, whatever. 100 yards from the finish a guy with a walkie-talkie asked me if I was turning around or finishing. “I’m finishing.” and pointed in the direction of the finish line. I ran/jogged it in. And finally cried in the shoulder of a complete stranger (volunteer at finish line). She said, “I don’t even know who you are and you’re making me cry!” I finally got in the arms of my husband and my best friend. That’s where I had wanted to be since mile ten. 12 hours, 41 minutes and 33 seconds, done.

IRON WOMAN!

The RMEC now has a new Ironman! This past Saturday while most of us were watching our favorite evening TV shows, Kinnie Pruden became the third member of our club, and the only woman to earn the dubious distinction of being called an Ironman.

With a support team of Billy, Thorne, Will, and Patti the stage was set for a great day of racing at the Beach 2 Battleship Iron Distance Triathlon. This race begins with a 2.4 mile open water channel swim that connects with the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway. Kinnie was the 9th woman overall out of the water with a time of 53:15.

The 112 mile bike came next. We all know this is Kinnie's strength, and she did not disappoint! She posted the 21st fastest bike time of all competitors when she completed the leg with a time of 6:21:18. At this point in the race, Kinnie is sitting in the top 20 among all women in the race, but she still had a 26.2 mile marathon ahead of her. . .

Keep in mind that Kinnie has already been doing hard exercise for over seven hours, and the sun was about to start setting. Her muscles had become conditioned to pedaling in circles for six hours, and now she needed to teach them how to run again for 26.2 miles. . . off she went proudly wearing her RMEC logo in her quest for an "M-Dot". Five hours, 22 minutes, and 40 seconds later, she was back crossing the finish line under the lights. Mission complete!

GREAT JOB KINNIE!

• Total Time: 12:41:33
• Total Distance: 140.6 miles
• Overall Place: 32nd
• Complete Results: Link