FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Test Your Strength and Stamina at the 53rd Washington's Birthday Marathon
and 26th Relay in Greenbelt, Maryland
Arlington, VA - January 14, 2014 - You train for races and for the health
and fitness. The ultimate running test is the challenge of the marathon.
The Washington metropolitan area offers some variety but the race your
mother warned you about is the Washington' Birthday Marathon (WBM) which is
hosted by the D.C. Road Runners Club. The 53rd Annual race will be held on
Sunday, February 16, 2014 (10:00 am) in Greenbelt, Maryland. The USATF
certified three-loop course has about 18 hills which include a few
challenging ones. The race starts and finishes near the Greenbelt Youth
Center and is a Boston qualifier.
On-line registration - http://www.dcroadrunners.org. Entry fee is $60
through January 2014. February 1st through February 16th is $75. Marathon
Relay is $30 (each runner) through January and $37.50 through race day.
Marathon transfer is $10 and marathon relay transfer is $15.
Hotel accommodations: Greenbelt Holiday Inn, 7200 Hanover Drive, Greenbelt,
MD 20770, 301-982-7000 mention Group Code "WBM".
Packet pickup: Saturday, February 15, 2014, Greenbelt Youth Center, 99
Centerway, Greenbelt, MD 20770, 4:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
To volunteer, contact Alison Smith () if you are
unable to run your support is needed to volunteer along the course. Groups
are welcomed to support the marathoners and relay runners.
Volunteer sign up - http://www.dcroadrunners.org/sign-up/gw-volunteer
Questions:
Awards:
Cash Overall top three male/female - $100-$75-$50, Masters 1st - $50
Age Groups (Gift Cards) top three male/female - $15-$10-$5
10 Year age groups 20's, 30's, etc.
Relay - Gift cards to each member, 1st Place Teams only - $5 each
The event records:
Open
1978 Bobby Doyle, 28 2:22:14 Central Falls, RI
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
Let it be known this race is a prime trainer for Boston with the hills and
this will test your ability to push yourself when you want to stop. If you
thrive off big crowds this is not the race for you. The size is modest and
you get to focus on your running. As a runner you deserve to be in a race
which you do not have to wait five minutes to reach the start line and then
15 minutes to reach your first mile. You will not find the large city
crowds. The primary reason for running the Washington's Birthday Marathon
is to identify the weakness of your training. If Boston is your target race
you need to know before you get there. Let it be known that the WBM is not
an easy course but it is fair.
When was your last race that when you crossed the finish line near
exhaustion and you thought to yourself that you left it all out on the
course. It's not always about the time but the effort which is applied. The
person next to you is about helping the first part of the race and then all
bets are off and its competition and strategy. How else do you get to that
personal record? There is no magic.
The only three-time open winner has been Lou Castagnola of Rockville, Md.,
('63-2:35:18, '67-2:22:45, and '68- 2:31:11). There are two females with
three wins, Margaret Horioka of Williamsport, Md., ('85- 3:07:19,
'86-3:14:12, and '87-3:09:13). The other is Lisa Bandiera Rhodes of
Fairfax, Va., ('99 - 3:09:30, '00- 3:29:12, and '02- 3:35:24).
There has been two consecutive year winners in the history of the race,
Marshall Adams of Moorehead City, NC ('72-2:30:56, '73-2:24:18), and Jim
Hage of Lanham, Md., ('87-2:28:59, '88-2:28:18).
The outstanding master is Jim McDonogh of New York, NY, ('66-2:50:43, '67,
'68, '69 - 2:31:58 Record, '70-2:33:05).
Anna Mae Diehl of Baltimore, Md., was the first known area female to have
completed a marathon in 1971 (3:43:01. 91st place overall).
If you are not up to the full marathon distance you can share in the
experience and still get a good workout, the 26th Washington's Birthday
Marathon Relay. The two races share the same course. The three loop course
offers the following legs, 9.7 miles, 7.3 miles, and 9.2 miles. The first
leg can be run by a person who is doing the full marathon. Each person can
only run one leg.
The three loop course has the hills on each loop. The distance is short and
you would be doing the distance in your training run anyway. The added
feature is that you'll have the competition and that is what will push you
to your limit. You train day in and day out, for what?
The exchange point is located at the USDA Visitors' Center off Powder Mill
Road. The last leg presents the challenge with a major hill around mile 25.
The divisions are Open Men, Open Women, Coed, Master Men, and Masters
Women. In 2013 there were a total 77 teams. During the years 1989 - 2000
the Washington Running Club managed to take first place in at least one
division each year
The oldest record on the books was set in the first year (1989), the Open
Women team Washington Running Club Women Warriors with a time of 2:48:38.
The runners were Patty McGovern, Cathy Ventura-Merkel, and Marianne
Dickerson.
The Coed record was set in 1989 and belongs to the Washington Running Club
with a time of 2:36:04. The runners were Jim Hage, Cathy Ventura-Merkel,
and Jerry Merkel.
The Open Record was set in 1998 by the Cumberland Valley Athletic Club
(C.V.A.C.) with a time of 2:26:50. The runners were Mike Bowman, Jaime Dick
and Bret Mower.
The Master Men record was set in 1997 team Your Cheatin' Hart with a time
of 2:27:29. The runners were Steve Ward, Mike Hart and Kevin Burke.
The Master Women record was set in 2002 by team The Speedy Myliers with a
time of 3:11:08. The runners were Lisa Fichman, Dorothy Beckett, and Pat
Wilkerson.
"This was my third time running the Washington's Birthday Marathon. The
race is very well organized, and I like how it is low-key and relaxed. I
have run a lot of marathons and ultras, so I know that I have what it takes
to stick it out in tough conditions. However, I was impressed with how many
of runners out there were working together to get to the finish line. It is
always amazing how friendly runners can be in the middle of a race", stated
William Weidman of Arlington, Va., third place 3:11:11 (2013).
"This win was special because I was completely unaware of my placement the
entire duration of the race, so I didn't get distracted or feel any
pressure from that. I was just focusing on my own race and braving the
elements out there and wanting to cross the finish line feeling good. The
fact that my performance did earn me first place was an added surprise and
bonus. It's low-key and local. When I first started running marathons in
2009, I was attracted to the big races with all the frills and crowd
support, but over the years, I started to learn that you could pay half the
price and be treated as an individual and not just another bib number",
stated Amanda An of Ellicott City, Md., with a winning time of 3:35:01
(2013).
"This was my first marathon, so 3:52 is my PR, my only marathon time so
far. My goal was to finish the race in less than four hours and I beat that
by more than I expected. The race was not as bad as I imagined it could
have been. I thought I would really dislike having to run the same loop
three times, but I think that actually worked to my advantage. On the first
loop I was cautious and slightly conservative, but once I knew what lay
ahead I picked up the pace a little bit during the second loop. Then for
the third loop I knew exactly what I had to do to get it done since I had
seen the hills and faced the wind twice already", stated Sara Stiles of
Baltimore, Md., with a third place finish of 3:52:39 (2013).
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