FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: George Banker
301-5677-6379
NORTHERN CENTRAL TRAIL MARATHON ROLLING FOR THE 16TH YEAR
Baltimore, Md., October 8, 2005 - Running in the Baltimore area dates back
to early 1970's along with the starting of the Baltimore Road Runner's Club
by Les Kinion and four others. He was instrumental in getting the Maryland
Commission on Physical Fitness to see about having a Maryland Marathon
Championship Run in Baltimore in 1972. He ran for the Baltimore City Fire
Fighters, Local 734.
The first Baltimore Marathon was conducted in 1973 and won by Victor Nelson
of Maryland in 2:22:57. In 1974 the male winner was Ron Hill of
Manchester, England in 2:17:23 and the female winner was Katherine Switzer
of New York in 3:05:51. The runner up was Margaret Rosasco of Fallston, MD
in 3:25:54.
The Maryland Marathon ran for a number of years and at the end of its
stretch on November 24, 1990 the BRRC held the first Northern Central Trail
Marathon (NCTM) which did not have the infamous Satyr Hill. The purpose was
to provide a marathon for the area runners. It was not the size of the
Maryland Marathon with the big name sponsors or an impressive field. It was
to be a race for the runners to enjoy the experience and for those who
sought a Boston Qualifier.
The 16th Northern Central Marathon will be held on Sunday, November 26,
2005, 9:30 a.m., in Sparks, Maryland. The race registration is limited in
the marathon to 500 runners and in the two-person relay to 80 teams. The
marathon cutoff time is 5:30-hours (an average pace of 12:35 per mile).
Each relay team member must run 13.1 miles and bus transportation will be
provided to the exchange point.
The entry fee for the marathon is $60 (current BRRC members $50) and the
relay is $80 per team. The late fee after October 30th is $70 and $90.
There is no race day registration.
A portion of the proceeds will be used to help fund amenities along the NCR
Trail, such as rest areas.
The NCTM offers less drama of the large city marathons. The out-and-back
course travels along the Northern Central Railroad Trail (NCRT) through
rural and scenic northern Baltimore County. The certified course starts at
Sparks Elementary School and travel 1.8 miles along gentle rolling hills
before reaching the flat NCRT. The course has a slight grade up for 11.7
north along a dirt and crushed stone surface and turning to come back 11.2
miles along a slight downgrade back to the 1.5 "gentle rolling hills" (it's
the closest they could find to Satyr Hill) to the finish at the school.
The Northern Central Railroad connected Baltimore with York PA. from 1838
to 1972. The railroad carried Union troops during the Civil War, and
Abraham Lincoln traveled this road to deliver the Gettysburg address. The
railroad was greatly damaged by Hurricane Agnes in 1972 and abandoned by
the railroad that year. In 1984 DNR converted the right of way into a
multi-use trail for hiking, biking, and jogging & running trail.
There is a $150 cash award for a new event course records for male and
female in the open and master divisions. Awards will be given to the top 5
male and female finishers. Also, the top 2 masters (male/female). Age
group awards will be based upon the number of entrants within each age
group (16-19, 20-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44, 45-49, 50-54, 55-59, 60-64, and
65 and up). Relay awards are to the first place team only.
The event records are holding up over time and what will happen this year?
Open
1995 Robert Marino 2:25:18
1998 Joanna Zieger 2:47:25
Master
1991 William Desmond 2:36:03
1996 Barbara Bellows 3:04:02
The records for the relay teams
Male
1996 Montgomery County Road Runners 2:34:44
Female
2001 Team Angie and Julie 2:50:44
Angie Howell and Julie Deutschman
Coed
2000 Team PK 2:48:50
Patricia and Paul Keating
Phil Anderson of Bel Air, Md., is the only participants who has completed
all 15 years with a best time of 3:42:24 in 1994.
"My prior best time was 3:21 in Memphis (1994). When I was coming to the
finish I saw my mom crying and when I crossed the line we hugged. I didn't
even know that I had won. I thought something was wrong with the clock",
stated the 1997 winner, Laurie Corbin of Morristown, NJ, with a new record
at the time (2:54:09). She was the first female to run under three hours.
"At mile 20 I was feeling good. I didn't think anyone would pass me. This
is one of the best marathons that I have run. A friend ran this last year
and told me about it. In Canada I run a lot in the woods and this was
ideal. The course had the optimum decline coming back", stated runner up
and first master, Alan Moore in 2:44:52 (1999).
"It's the most beautiful race that I've ran. I was a little disappointed. I
stopped at mile 23 to stretch and got a cup of water. The race started to
fall apart around 17-18, I wanted to keep trying. I knew if I had quit I
would never finish another marathon. I blew up the last six miles, it was
way past ugly", stated 1999 winner Heidi Gerken of Reston, Va., in 2:56:16.
"Before the halfway point, I knew that I was in the lead. I didn't come to
win today, and it was me and my watch. My goal was to break three hours. If
there was another girl in front of me, my goal would still have been to
break three hours. I had to put in a quick mile between miles 24 and 25
close to six minutes. It's a challenge to stay focused and not slack off.
Mentally it's easy to fall off. I don't like big marathons. I enjoy the
small ones. This was well organized", stated 2000 (2:58:58) winner, Angela
Plamondon of Ottawa, Ontario. She won again in 2004 (3:04:55).
For full race details, visit www.brrc.com or call the race hotline
410-377-7327. E-Mail .
###
|
