Tri State
Run for the Plunge 15K, 5K set for March 6
* Rocky Gap State Park charity event ready for record field
* Special offer to potential Marathon Festival runners
2009 Race Coverage
FLINSTONE, Md., Feb. 26 – Earlier this month, Jason Griffith and Mary Jane Baniak, a husband and wife pair from Short Gap, W.Va., captured the men’s and women’s titles for the Hobo’s Heartbreaker 10K road race.
Both have entered the Run for the Plunge 15K (9.3-mile) race, presented by Pittsburgh-based Manheim Corp., set for March 6 at Rocky Gap State Park. But if either of them had any thoughts about duplicating their Valentine’s Day weekend feat, they ought to think again.
* Rocky Gap State Park charity event ready for record field
* Special offer to potential Marathon Festival runners
2009 Race Coverage
FLINSTONE, Md., Feb. 26 – Earlier this month, Jason Griffith and Mary Jane Baniak, a husband and wife pair from Short Gap, W.Va., captured the men’s and women’s titles for the Hobo’s Heartbreaker 10K road race.
Both have entered the Run for the Plunge 15K (9.3-mile) race, presented by Pittsburgh-based Manheim Corp., set for March 6 at Rocky Gap State Park. But if either of them had any thoughts about duplicating their Valentine’s Day weekend feat, they ought to think again.
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Run for the Plunge 15K, 5K set for March 6
* Rocky Gap State Park charity event ready for record field
* Special offer to potential Marathon Festival runners
* Rocky Gap State Park charity event ready for record field
* Special offer to potential Marathon Festival runners
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While Griffith, 39, still might contend for the men’s title, the designation of women’s pre-race favorite belongs to McHenry resident Jennifer Sober.
Sober, 36, is the top contender for the inaugural Run for the Plunge 15K, which has a 7:45 a.m. start time at Rocky Gap State Park. The 5K begins at 8:30 a.m. Registrations are currently being accepted for both events - $12 for the 15K and $10 for the 5K. Runners also can sign up on race day beginning at 7 a.m. for $17 and $15, respectively.
Sober’s entry form was received Thursday afternoon. She was second in last October’s Great Allegany Run, which features a net elevation loss from Mount Savage to downtown Cumberland. The certified personal trainer and coach won in 2008.
Like the GAR, Run for the Plunge 15K has a friendly beginning. But Mile 5 has a healthy hill on Mason Road, a scenic thoroughfare in rural Allegany County and, Mile 7 features a steady, grinding hill as runners complete the loop and return to Rocky Gap State Park.
Sober, 36, is the top contender for the inaugural Run for the Plunge 15K, which has a 7:45 a.m. start time at Rocky Gap State Park. The 5K begins at 8:30 a.m. Registrations are currently being accepted for both events - $12 for the 15K and $10 for the 5K. Runners also can sign up on race day beginning at 7 a.m. for $17 and $15, respectively.
Sober’s entry form was received Thursday afternoon. She was second in last October’s Great Allegany Run, which features a net elevation loss from Mount Savage to downtown Cumberland. The certified personal trainer and coach won in 2008.
Like the GAR, Run for the Plunge 15K has a friendly beginning. But Mile 5 has a healthy hill on Mason Road, a scenic thoroughfare in rural Allegany County and, Mile 7 features a steady, grinding hill as runners complete the loop and return to Rocky Gap State Park.
The second year 5K – and first-year 15K – seem to be something of interest to runners from across the region. Its appeal is evidenced by record-setting pre-registration numbers.
“We’ve got more than 60 pre-registered already,” said Kevin Spradlin, executive director for the host Mountain Maryland Marathon Club, late Thursday afternoon. “Last year, we had only 32 pre-registered and 89 total runners. It seems people are eager to get outside and get past the recent snowstorms that have kept many of them inside and off the roads.”
“Remember,” Spradlin said, “event T-shirts are on a first-come, first-served basis.”
Last year, Grantsville resident Tom Ruckert, then 56, won the 5K in 19 minutes and 12 seconds. Paula Bridges, then 43, captured the women’s title in 22:36. And like last year’s runners, this year harriers will run simply for the joy of being outdoors.
“There is no prize money, no fancy awards or plaques,” Spradlin said. “Entry fees get you a shirt, if you register in time, and access to the modest post-race food.”
“We’ve got more than 60 pre-registered already,” said Kevin Spradlin, executive director for the host Mountain Maryland Marathon Club, late Thursday afternoon. “Last year, we had only 32 pre-registered and 89 total runners. It seems people are eager to get outside and get past the recent snowstorms that have kept many of them inside and off the roads.”
“Remember,” Spradlin said, “event T-shirts are on a first-come, first-served basis.”
Last year, Grantsville resident Tom Ruckert, then 56, won the 5K in 19 minutes and 12 seconds. Paula Bridges, then 43, captured the women’s title in 22:36. And like last year’s runners, this year harriers will run simply for the joy of being outdoors.
“There is no prize money, no fancy awards or plaques,” Spradlin said. “Entry fees get you a shirt, if you register in time, and access to the modest post-race food.”
The event, staged in conjunction with the sixth annual Hooley Plunge, benefits the Allegany County Special Olympics program and other projects that aid the developmentally disabled. The Hooley Plunge is the annual dip into Lake Habeeb at Rocky Gap State Park. Last year, the run helped the Hooley Plunge generate more than $90,000 in 2009.
The goal of $100,000 has been set for 2010. Runners and spectators alike will be guided by the able and willing helpers from the Volunteer Team, headquartered at Rocky Gap State Park.
As a special offer on March 6, those who register for the Run for the Plunge 15K or 5K races can register that same day for the any event in the Mountain Maryland Marathon Festival at early-bird registration rates. The lineup on April 18 includes the marathon, the RRCA Eastern Region Half Marathon Championship, 5K for United Way, kids 1.2-mile marathon and children’s 400-meter tot trot.
Those rates officially closed Jan. 31, but this offer is being extended to marathon club-sponsored events on March 6 at Rocky Gap State Park and April 3 at Grace Academy in Hagerstown.
For more information on the Run for the Plunge, visit www.mountainMDmarathon.org, email run@mountainMDmarathon.org or call 301.697.6035. For more information on the Hooley Plunge, visit www.hooleyplunge.com.
The goal of $100,000 has been set for 2010. Runners and spectators alike will be guided by the able and willing helpers from the Volunteer Team, headquartered at Rocky Gap State Park.
As a special offer on March 6, those who register for the Run for the Plunge 15K or 5K races can register that same day for the any event in the Mountain Maryland Marathon Festival at early-bird registration rates. The lineup on April 18 includes the marathon, the RRCA Eastern Region Half Marathon Championship, 5K for United Way, kids 1.2-mile marathon and children’s 400-meter tot trot.
Those rates officially closed Jan. 31, but this offer is being extended to marathon club-sponsored events on March 6 at Rocky Gap State Park and April 3 at Grace Academy in Hagerstown.
For more information on the Run for the Plunge, visit www.mountainMDmarathon.org, email run@mountainMDmarathon.org or call 301.697.6035. For more information on the Hooley Plunge, visit www.hooleyplunge.com.
The 15K begins at 7:45 a.m. while the 5K run/walk starts at 8:30 a.m. Race day registrations are accepted. For more information contact Kevin Spradlin, race director, at 301-697-6035 or by e-mail at run@mountainMDmarathon.org.
Catulle’s strategy recently changed when she enrolled in person trainer Jen Sober’s half marathon training class at Garrett College in January. Catulle has registered her first 13.1-mile effort on April 26 in a women’s-only half marathon in New York City.
First, however, Catulle must conquer the rolling hills that are all over the 15K course in and around Rocky Gap State Park. It won’t be easy, but Catulle said she’s ready. “I just ran 10 miles on Sunday,” Catulle said, “which I’ve never done before. It’s exciting.”
Catulle, one of about 10 women following Sober’s guidance on training who have entered the Run for the Plunge 15K , credited the McHenry resident and certified personal trainer for reaching new heights.
“It has been the best opportunity,” Catulle said of Sober’s Continuing Education class. “It was the perfect timing. We have gotten so strong.”That’s exactly the kind of enthusiasm – childlike but disciplined, educated anticipation – that race co-founder David Mantheiy envisioned when the concept of the run, which is coordinated in conjunction with the annual Hooley Plunge, a traditional dip into Lake Habeeb at Rocky Gap State Park.
Both events benefit Allegany County Special Olympics and other programs that assist the developmentally disabled. Last year, nearly $90,000 was raised. Hooley Plunge organizer Dr. Sean McCagh has set the bar this year at $100,000.
Mantheiy and his full-service construction company, Pittsburgh-based Manheim Corporation, travel to Allegany County on a regular basis to visit family. The Cumberland native, along with fellow Queen City native and wife Charlie Mantheiy, routinely impress upon their children to enjoy the outdoors and improve one’s fitness.
Supporting the race, David Mantheiy said, was a natural extension of his personal philosophy.
“We love to promote the sport in a way that benefits new runners, young and old,” said Mantheiy, a 1986 Bishop Walsh School graduate along with Charlie. “It is rewarding to hear the stories of their accomplishments and their reasons for running. We have very fast, accomplished, dedicated runners running against other people who are doing it for totally different reasons. We can have the best athletes in the area running next to people whose goal it was to finish a 5K and not walk a step, or go out and walk (and) jog or to push their kid in a stroller. Elite runners toeing the line with children, beginners and runners of all levels defines the essence of this sport.”
The reason for this particular run, however, strikes Mantheiy close. The Allegany County Special Olympics program “made a great impression on me” when he became a volunteer for the event in the mid-1980s.
“I had no idea what to expect,” Mantheiy said of volunteering as a young teenager. “It just really left a lasting impression on me. What a difference it made to see those kids out there. I remember being an able-bodied 14 or 15-year-old and realizing how fortunate I was and what an impact it made.”
“Combining that commitment with our passion for running makes this race an ideal way for me and my wife to give back to our hometown,” Mantheiy said.
Detailed race information can be found online at www.mountainMDmarathon.org.
Catulle’s strategy recently changed when she enrolled in person trainer Jen Sober’s half marathon training class at Garrett College in January. Catulle has registered her first 13.1-mile effort on April 26 in a women’s-only half marathon in New York City.
First, however, Catulle must conquer the rolling hills that are all over the 15K course in and around Rocky Gap State Park. It won’t be easy, but Catulle said she’s ready. “I just ran 10 miles on Sunday,” Catulle said, “which I’ve never done before. It’s exciting.”
Catulle, one of about 10 women following Sober’s guidance on training who have entered the Run for the Plunge 15K , credited the McHenry resident and certified personal trainer for reaching new heights.
“It has been the best opportunity,” Catulle said of Sober’s Continuing Education class. “It was the perfect timing. We have gotten so strong.”That’s exactly the kind of enthusiasm – childlike but disciplined, educated anticipation – that race co-founder David Mantheiy envisioned when the concept of the run, which is coordinated in conjunction with the annual Hooley Plunge, a traditional dip into Lake Habeeb at Rocky Gap State Park.
Both events benefit Allegany County Special Olympics and other programs that assist the developmentally disabled. Last year, nearly $90,000 was raised. Hooley Plunge organizer Dr. Sean McCagh has set the bar this year at $100,000.
Mantheiy and his full-service construction company, Pittsburgh-based Manheim Corporation, travel to Allegany County on a regular basis to visit family. The Cumberland native, along with fellow Queen City native and wife Charlie Mantheiy, routinely impress upon their children to enjoy the outdoors and improve one’s fitness.
Supporting the race, David Mantheiy said, was a natural extension of his personal philosophy.
“We love to promote the sport in a way that benefits new runners, young and old,” said Mantheiy, a 1986 Bishop Walsh School graduate along with Charlie. “It is rewarding to hear the stories of their accomplishments and their reasons for running. We have very fast, accomplished, dedicated runners running against other people who are doing it for totally different reasons. We can have the best athletes in the area running next to people whose goal it was to finish a 5K and not walk a step, or go out and walk (and) jog or to push their kid in a stroller. Elite runners toeing the line with children, beginners and runners of all levels defines the essence of this sport.”
The reason for this particular run, however, strikes Mantheiy close. The Allegany County Special Olympics program “made a great impression on me” when he became a volunteer for the event in the mid-1980s.
“I had no idea what to expect,” Mantheiy said of volunteering as a young teenager. “It just really left a lasting impression on me. What a difference it made to see those kids out there. I remember being an able-bodied 14 or 15-year-old and realizing how fortunate I was and what an impact it made.”
“Combining that commitment with our passion for running makes this race an ideal way for me and my wife to give back to our hometown,” Mantheiy said.
Detailed race information can be found online at www.mountainMDmarathon.org.
FLINTSTONE, Md., March 3 – At age 30, Annalea Catulle began running 1 to 2 miles a day to improve her physical fitness.
Then things got serious.
“Last summer, I really got into running,” said the now 35-year-old fifth-grade teacher at Broad Ford Elementary School in Oakland.
Catulle has submitted her entry for the inaugural Run for the Plunge 15K (9.3-mile) footrace on Saturday at Rocky Gap State Park in eastern Allegany County. In 2009, she completed “some 5Ks, a couple of 10Ks” but never ran anything longer than 9.9 miles.
Then things got serious.
“Last summer, I really got into running,” said the now 35-year-old fifth-grade teacher at Broad Ford Elementary School in Oakland.
Catulle has submitted her entry for the inaugural Run for the Plunge 15K (9.3-mile) footrace on Saturday at Rocky Gap State Park in eastern Allegany County. In 2009, she completed “some 5Ks, a couple of 10Ks” but never ran anything longer than 9.9 miles.
Catulle ready to reach for new heights
Run for the Plunge 15K, 5K set for Saturday at Rocky Gap State Park
Run for the Plunge 15K, 5K set for Saturday at Rocky Gap State Park
Run for the Plunge 15K winners: Dennis Mickey and Jen Sober
5K winners: Ian MacFawn and Becky Gallagher
Results
Photos Set1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4
FLINTSTONE, Md., March 6 -- Just two feet shy of 200 runners participated in the second Run for the Plunge 15K and 5K runs on Saturday at Rocky Gap State Park.
Forty-five-year-old Dennis Mickey covered the 9.3-mile run, including a challenging, ice- and snow-filled 0.6-mile trail section, better than anybody else. The Ridgeley, W.Va., resident won with a time of 61 minutes and 9 seconds.
Jennifer Sober, 36, of McHenry, cruised to the women's title.
In the 5K run, Allegany High School harrier Ian MacFawn outpaced last year's champ, Tom Ruckert, 57, of Grantsville. Becky Gallagher, 36, earned the top spot among all female finishers.
Both running events, sponsored by Cumberland native David Mantheiy and his Pittsburgh-based construction company, Manheim Corporation, were staged in conjunction with the sixth annual Hooley Plunge - the annual dip into Lake Habeeb to raise money for Allegany County Specials Olympics and other programs that aid the developmentally disabled. Proceeds from the runs are contributed to the same cause.
Nearly 30 volunteers through the Volunteer Team at Rocky Gap State Park provided support along the course, as did Allegany County Bureau of Police, the Maryland Natural Resources Police, park rangers and a handful of dedicated individuals, including Dave Treber, Della Cook, Rhonda Johnson and Marvin Bridges.
5K winners: Ian MacFawn and Becky Gallagher
Results
Photos Set1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4
FLINTSTONE, Md., March 6 -- Just two feet shy of 200 runners participated in the second Run for the Plunge 15K and 5K runs on Saturday at Rocky Gap State Park.
Forty-five-year-old Dennis Mickey covered the 9.3-mile run, including a challenging, ice- and snow-filled 0.6-mile trail section, better than anybody else. The Ridgeley, W.Va., resident won with a time of 61 minutes and 9 seconds.
Jennifer Sober, 36, of McHenry, cruised to the women's title.
In the 5K run, Allegany High School harrier Ian MacFawn outpaced last year's champ, Tom Ruckert, 57, of Grantsville. Becky Gallagher, 36, earned the top spot among all female finishers.
Both running events, sponsored by Cumberland native David Mantheiy and his Pittsburgh-based construction company, Manheim Corporation, were staged in conjunction with the sixth annual Hooley Plunge - the annual dip into Lake Habeeb to raise money for Allegany County Specials Olympics and other programs that aid the developmentally disabled. Proceeds from the runs are contributed to the same cause.
Nearly 30 volunteers through the Volunteer Team at Rocky Gap State Park provided support along the course, as did Allegany County Bureau of Police, the Maryland Natural Resources Police, park rangers and a handful of dedicated individuals, including Dave Treber, Della Cook, Rhonda Johnson and Marvin Bridges.
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Ian MacFawn
Becky Gallagher
Dennis Mickey
Jen Sober
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.jpg "tn_Run for the Plunge 15K 5K 1765 (2)")