FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
50th Washington's Birthday Marathon Strong After All These Years
Arlington, Va. January 2, 2011 - "I look back at the memories and it feels
so special. I wanted a Boston qualifier. The DC Road Runners played host to
our group, and we stayed in runner's homes. The race was a no-frills, no
spectator event. It was typical of races of that time. The temperature was
in the upper 30's and there was a strong wind which beat on you for about
four miles of each lap. This marathon experience reflected the hard-core
runner experience that was running in the early years. No hype. Just
running," stated Ann Forshee-Crane of East Lansing, Michigan.
Foreshee-Crane was the female winner in 1977 Washington's Birthday Marathon
with a 3:07:00, the second fastest female winning time back then. That
year, only 27 females were registered.
On Sunday, February 20, 2011 the DC Road Runner's Club will host the 50th
Washington's Birthday Marathon (WBM) and the 23rd three-person relay. The
race is located in Greenbelt, Maryland on the grounds of US Department of
Agriculture (USDA), National Agriculture Research Center. This is the race
your mother warned you about. The event does not offer the crowds of the
Marine Corps Marathon or New York but you will find the hospitality and the
small crowd flavor where runners are taken care of. You can be prepared for
18 hills and three loops with the excitement of a hill at mile 25. The race
is a prime trainer for the Boston Marathon.
The USATF certified course has the three loops which run counter clockwise
with a distance of 9.7 miles, 7.3 miles and the last 9.2 miles. The both
events start at 10:30 a.m., and the common exchange point for the relay is
the USDA Visitor Center. There are course marshals at key intersections
and fluid replenishment stations along the course. The strategy is to take
advantage of the flat sections of the course and use moderation to
negotiate the hills. The first loop is the confidence builder. The runners
who respect the hills always finish strong. The course is ideal for
training as it will point out your weak points and your ability to change
your movements between flat and hill running.
The registration fees are $35 for the marathon and $48 for the three-person
relay teams (Postmark February 1, 2011). Race day registration is $40
(marathon) and $60 (team). On-line registration located at
http://www.dcroadrunners.org.
Packet pick up and late registration will be at the Greenbelt Holiday Inn,
Saturday, February 19, 2011, 5:00 pm - 8:00pm. Race day pick up will be
8:30 am - 10:00am at the Greenbelt Youth Center (90 Centerway, Greenbelt,
Md., 20770). The start line is a five minute walk.
The host hotel is the Greenbelt Holiday Inn, 7200 Hanover Dr., Greenbelt,
MD 20770 (301-982-7000). Rates are guaranteed through January 28, 2011 and
request the marathon rate.
To break the event records for the marathon will require a strong desire
and determination:
Open
1978 Bobby Doyle 28 2:22:14 Baltimore, MD
1988 Rose Malloy 39 2:53:29 Annapolis, MD
Master
1969 John McDonogh 45 2:31:58 New York, NY
1993 Claudia Ciavarella 43 3:13:17 Arlington, VA
The 2009 Winners (The 2010 race was cancelled due to weather)
Open
Frank Leiter 36 2:51:31 Harrisburg, PA
Anya Oleynik 20 3:10:32 Gaithersburg, MD
Master
Jim Wynn 41 3:06:25 Columbia, MD
Sarah Morrissey 40 3:34:38 Leesburg, PA
Relay
Open Men 3:00:11 Open Women 3:11:11
Master Men 3:24:33 Master Women 3:20:38
Coed 3:00:06
"This was my first time running this course. My decision to do it was a
combination of the fact that in the last year or so I have switched my
focus to running marathons and I live in Hyattsville, Md., which is almost
next door, so I think of it as home turf. It's really an interesting
setting for a marathon, with Greenbelt's unique history and vibe, the
Agriculture research complex, and the momentarily disconnecting firing
ranges that are audible from the course. It's intriguing to be part of this
smaller marathon that's been around for so long. I hope it continues",
stated 2008 winner (2:42:15), Christopher Hamley
"I am so honored to be first master woman. It was my first time running the
race. I didn't know it had 18 hills. I do run in the mountains when I go
back to Japan, where we have many serious hills. It is not because I was
awarded, but I would strongly recommend this race to anyone if they don't
mind the unpredictable weather. It was really challenging course and super
well organized. I truly enjoyed the course and the people. If I will run
the race again, I will train for hills more, so that I feel more
comfortable dealing with it", stated Yoshiko Jo of Swarthmore, Pa., 2008
master winner with a time of 3:37:30 (13th fastest winning time).
"This is my first DNF. I selected this race because I needed a training run
and thought it would be good. I didn't know the difficulty of the course.
That hill at the end is just not even funny! What's up with that? Oh, it
was brutal to even walk up it and I train on hill sin Frederick. I did
learn a lot from the race as I need to pace myself better. I also learned
that the last .2 miles of any marathon, whether, whether I run the whole
thing or not, is going to be the longest .2 of my life LOL", stated
Jennifer Sheriff of Ijamsville, Md.
"This was my first time running the race and I really enjoyed the course. I
selected this marathon because I enjoy running in smaller, low key events.
I found the race online a couple of weeks ago when looking for a marathon
to run. I'm training for the HAT run (50K) on March 29th, and I thought
this race would be at the perfect time to prepare me for the 50K. I love
to run challenging courses like this one. The most challenging part for me
was the last big hill near the end. I pushed harder the second half of the
race, so it was like running in slow motion until I got to the top. My goal
at this race was to place in the top 3 overall. If I had to run this race
again, I would run everything the same" stated 2008 runner-up (2:52:34)
Frank Leiter of Harrisburg, Pa.
Leiter returned in 2009 and placed first with a winning time of 2:51:31
(43rd fastest winning time).
"My first two WBMs were as a high school student (we had no real organized
indoor track then in Washington County). As a 16-year old junior, I ran
3:22 in 1975, and then I got my first sub-3:00 marathon there as a senior
(2:53:07 at age 17) in 1976. In the last two miles I passed the 1972
50-Mile Champion and ultramarathon legend - Park Barner. I was pretty
pumped up about beating Park until I read an article in the Washington Post
pointing-out that he ran non-stop from his home outside of Harrisburg, Pa.,
to the race (through the night) as a "warm-up"", stated Mike Spinnler of
Hagerstown, Md., race director, JFK 50 Miler.
There are five division for the three-person relay, open men and women,
master men and women and coed.
The relay event records
Open Men 1998 Cumberland Valley Athletic Club 2:26:50
Bowman, Dick, Mower
Open Women 1989 Washington Running Club Warriors 2:48:38
Cathy Ventura-Merkel, Patricia Walker, Donna Elliot
Master Men 1997 Your Cheatin' Hart 2:27:29
Steve Ward, Mike Hart, Kevin Burke
Master Women 2002 The Speedy Myliers 3:11:08
Lisa Fichman, Dorothy Beckett, Pat Wilkerson
Coed 1991 Washington Running Club 2:36:04
Jim Hage, Cathy Ventura-Merkel, Jerry Merkel
Marathon runners are permitted to run on a relay team but they must run the
first leg. A relay runner can only run one leg. The relay offers a good
workout and the distances are 9.7 miles, 7.3 miles, and 9.2 miles.
Volunteers are an integral part of the race and on race day they are needed
to serve as course marshals and to assist at the water stops. If you are
not able to run your support is appreciated or passes the information along
to others. The point of contact is Pat Brown (
703-576-5765.
Full race details and registration located http://www.dcroadrunners.org.
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