Run SMART Clients Place 14th,18th at Flying Pig Marathon

On May 4th Lisa Mire and Melissa Bell lined up for the Flying Pig Marathon in Cincinnati, OH. Both women traveled from Charlotte, NC with the intention of setting a personal best at the distance, and so they did.

Lisa ran near even splits throughout the race to set a new PR of 3:17:38. The time bested Lisa’s previous marathon PR by 5 minutes 21 seconds.
Melissa went out at a slightly faster clip, coming through the first half of the race on 3:10 pace. Though she started to feel the fast early pace around mile 16, Melissa stayed tough and finished in a very strong time of 3:19:12. Melissa bettered her previous marathon best by over 20 minutes.

The race was not without its share of drama this year. As it turns out the course had to be rerouted due to an “early morning fire emergency.” The course ended up being .2514 miles long. The times above reflect Lisa and Melissa’s adjusted times. We’ll call the extra quarter mile a cool-down.

May 21, 2008 / 4

Ben Koch Wins Local 5k

This past week in Frederick, MD Run SMART coach, Ben Koch, made his first racing appearance in almost two years. He’s been slowing climbing his way back into shape as of late and decided to test the waters with a local 5k race. Apparently, the water seemed nice as Koch strolled through the rolling course in 15:59 besting second place by roughly 90 seconds. Ben has been coaching for Run S.M.A.R.T. in the D.C. area for about two years. He’s currently training for the NYC marathon this November. I’m hoping to tag along that day as well!

May 18, 2008 / 1

Jeff Weatherhead – 1st Place Age Group Finish!

Jeff Weatherhead finished 6th overall and first in the 50-59 age group Simsbury River Run 5k. It was Jeff’s first road race and second race of the year. He has been concentrating on building a strong base to prepare for a full summer and fall of racing. Jeff’s official time was 18:57. Full results can be found here on Cool Running.

Jeff’s next races will be a 1500 and 800 at the Connecticut Senior Games on June 7th. He is currently doing hills and tempo work with a long term goal of being a top finisher at the USATF Master’s Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Oregon this August.

May 18, 2008 / 5

Everett Hill Sets 5k PR

There’s no question that Everett Hill’s favorite distance is the marathon. In fact, this past winter I asked Everett if he would be interested in training for some shorter races this spring… His response was, “Vince, I’m a marathoner.” By the end of the discussion Everett came around to the idea, and the change of pace (and distance) has proven to be fruitful experience.

Everett started with a strong 7K on April 19th and followed it up with a 10K on the 26th. Despite great showings at both events, Everett felt that he had another one in him. He finished the series with a 5K PR this past weekend, running 24:31. Everett has dropped his relatively high mileage in exchange for some shorter speed sessions throughout the spring. The goal remains the marathon and Everett will be uping the mileage late summer.

-Vince Sherry

May 7, 2008 / 1 Comment / 4