Tri State
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Have shoes, will travel
Age group winner travels from The Netherlands to Hancock for half marathon
Results Photos Video Part1 Part2
By Kevin Spradlin
TriStateRunnur.com
HANCOCK, Md., Oct. 10 – From a small fortress town available in 25 minutes by rail from Amsterdam in North Holland to a sleepy little town in western Washington County, Ruud Mol traveled.
Age group winner travels from The Netherlands to Hancock for half marathon
Results Photos Video Part1 Part2
By Kevin Spradlin
TriStateRunnur.com
HANCOCK, Md., Oct. 10 – From a small fortress town available in 25 minutes by rail from Amsterdam in North Holland to a sleepy little town in western Washington County, Ruud Mol traveled.
On Saturday, The Netherlands resident made his way by air, then car, then foot to the starting of the 2nd annual Western Maryland Half Marathon. The 70-year-old, preparing for the New York Marathon on Nov. 1, set a goal to traverse the unusually flat – for Western Maryland – out-and-back paved course of the Western Maryland Rail Trail in 1 hour, 52 minutes.
Mol missed his mark by about 10 minutes, but he could hardly be disappointed. Clad in orange running shorts with a blue, orange and white singlet, Mol crossed the finish line in an official time of 2 hours, 2 minutes and 8.8 seconds. He placed 60th among 125 half marathon finishers on a cool, early autumn day.
Mol said he came across the Hancock race while browsing the Internet. He’d been looking for a race such as this to use as a final tune-up before his 26.2-mile effort in three weeks. This event, which benefited the Habitat for Humanity of Washington County for the second straight year, suited his needs just fine.
“It was very good,” Mol said of the course and his effort on it as he won the men’s 70-plus age division. “It was a good training run for New York.”
What was anticipated to be a match-up between defending champion Doug Oates and Hagerstown resident Mark Eissens failed to materialize – as Oates was a no-show. After about the first mile into the race, Eissens said he realized he was all alone and, still recovering from a sports hernia, decided to play it safe.
Mol missed his mark by about 10 minutes, but he could hardly be disappointed. Clad in orange running shorts with a blue, orange and white singlet, Mol crossed the finish line in an official time of 2 hours, 2 minutes and 8.8 seconds. He placed 60th among 125 half marathon finishers on a cool, early autumn day.
Mol said he came across the Hancock race while browsing the Internet. He’d been looking for a race such as this to use as a final tune-up before his 26.2-mile effort in three weeks. This event, which benefited the Habitat for Humanity of Washington County for the second straight year, suited his needs just fine.
“It was very good,” Mol said of the course and his effort on it as he won the men’s 70-plus age division. “It was a good training run for New York.”
What was anticipated to be a match-up between defending champion Doug Oates and Hagerstown resident Mark Eissens failed to materialize – as Oates was a no-show. After about the first mile into the race, Eissens said he realized he was all alone and, still recovering from a sports hernia, decided to play it safe.
The 29-year-old grabbed the rather easy win, outdistancing runner-up Fabrice “Fab” Guillauma, 32, of Ashburn, Va., who typically starts his day with coffee, milk and two slices of bread with jam.
“I was hoping he would show,” Eissens said of Oates. “I’ve been planning to run this for a while. I was hoping to run under 1:15.”
Those hopes were dashed early. Instead, Eissens settled for “a nice training run” in a fall racing season abbreviated due to his health concerns. He had been training for the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington D.C. in two weeks but that is no longer a realistic goal.
The soft-spoken Washington County man instead will turn his attention to the Broad Street 10-miler in Philadelphia in May.
His prospects for 2010 seem pretty good.
“I can tell it’s already getting better,” Eissens said.
A 31-year-old Laurel, Md., woman placed sixth overall and claimed the top spot in the female standings with an unofficial time of 1:33:51.8.
Official results were not yet available late Saturday night from Pretzel City Sports.
Unofficial results (top 10):
1. Mark Eissens29time unknown
2. Fabrice Guillaume321:22:38.9
3. Stephan (XXXX)391:23:38.9
4. Clark White561:27:29
5. Rich Harfst461:27:55.1
6. Kendra Smith311:33:51.8top female
7. Kevin Spradlin301:34:15.4
8. Todd Geiman421:35:01.2
9. Jonathan Zuck401:36:51.7
10. Curtis Wood431:38:10.2
Email Kevin at run@mountainMDmarathon.org.
“I was hoping he would show,” Eissens said of Oates. “I’ve been planning to run this for a while. I was hoping to run under 1:15.”
Those hopes were dashed early. Instead, Eissens settled for “a nice training run” in a fall racing season abbreviated due to his health concerns. He had been training for the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington D.C. in two weeks but that is no longer a realistic goal.
The soft-spoken Washington County man instead will turn his attention to the Broad Street 10-miler in Philadelphia in May.
His prospects for 2010 seem pretty good.
“I can tell it’s already getting better,” Eissens said.
A 31-year-old Laurel, Md., woman placed sixth overall and claimed the top spot in the female standings with an unofficial time of 1:33:51.8.
Official results were not yet available late Saturday night from Pretzel City Sports.
Unofficial results (top 10):
1. Mark Eissens29time unknown
2. Fabrice Guillaume321:22:38.9
3. Stephan (XXXX)391:23:38.9
4. Clark White561:27:29
5. Rich Harfst461:27:55.1
6. Kendra Smith311:33:51.8top female
7. Kevin Spradlin301:34:15.4
8. Todd Geiman421:35:01.2
9. Jonathan Zuck401:36:51.7
10. Curtis Wood431:38:10.2
Email Kevin at run@mountainMDmarathon.org.
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More Coverage Coming Later
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Seven locals finish Western Md. Half Marathon
Two take home age division awards
HANCOCK, Md. -- LaVale residents Christina Crites and Kevin Spradlin led a seven-member contingent from Allegany County on Saturday in the 2nd annual Western Maryland Half Marathon in Hancock.
Spradlin, 30, placed seventh overall among the 125-runner field in an unofficial time of 1 hour, 34 minutes and 15.4 seconds, an average of 7:12 per mile on the flat out-and-back asphalt course of the Western Maryland Rail Trail. He placed third in the men's 30 to 30 age group.
Joe Cross, 42, of Cumberland, wasn't far behind. His 7:31 earned him a time of 1:38:29, good for 11th overall. David McMillan III, 31, of Oldtown, was 28th in 1:49:10.1.
Crites, 33, placed 33rd overall in 1:52:33.6. Twenty one spots behind her, 43-year-old Karen Smith, of Cumberland, crossed the finish line in 1:59:43.7. Smith earned third place in the women's 40 to 40 age division for her effort over the 13.1-mile distance.
Terri McCagh, 49, of Cumberland, placed 58th overall with a time of 2:01:28.8. The time was slightly better than her 2:02:11 effort in the Mountain Maryland Half Marathon in Cumberland in April on a course offering a different type of challenge (read: hills). Rounding out the area's seven competitors was Cumberland resident Rhonda Johns. Johns, 23, finished 65th overall in 2:04:01.4 in her third effort at the half marathon distance.
Two take home age division awards
HANCOCK, Md. -- LaVale residents Christina Crites and Kevin Spradlin led a seven-member contingent from Allegany County on Saturday in the 2nd annual Western Maryland Half Marathon in Hancock.
Spradlin, 30, placed seventh overall among the 125-runner field in an unofficial time of 1 hour, 34 minutes and 15.4 seconds, an average of 7:12 per mile on the flat out-and-back asphalt course of the Western Maryland Rail Trail. He placed third in the men's 30 to 30 age group.
Joe Cross, 42, of Cumberland, wasn't far behind. His 7:31 earned him a time of 1:38:29, good for 11th overall. David McMillan III, 31, of Oldtown, was 28th in 1:49:10.1.
Crites, 33, placed 33rd overall in 1:52:33.6. Twenty one spots behind her, 43-year-old Karen Smith, of Cumberland, crossed the finish line in 1:59:43.7. Smith earned third place in the women's 40 to 40 age division for her effort over the 13.1-mile distance.
Terri McCagh, 49, of Cumberland, placed 58th overall with a time of 2:01:28.8. The time was slightly better than her 2:02:11 effort in the Mountain Maryland Half Marathon in Cumberland in April on a course offering a different type of challenge (read: hills). Rounding out the area's seven competitors was Cumberland resident Rhonda Johns. Johns, 23, finished 65th overall in 2:04:01.4 in her third effort at the half marathon distance.