2004 Roxbury Race #30

Small Field Lacks Better Judgment

Choosing to ignore the sage advice of their mothers and grandmothers about playing in the rain and its relationship to catching pneumonia, a small group of 21 runners showed up at Roxbury to brave the elements today.  The course was Ranney Hill Rd., but it didn't really matter.  What mattered was showing up and seeing who else was crazy enough to be there.  The rain at times was hard, and the wind at times was strong, but the dedication of our runners never faltered.

Ken Merrick took the race over at the 1/2 mile mark and completed the 3.7 mile course in 22:22 for his 13th win of the season.  Ken was followed by that other Ken, Ken Moffit who slogged in 4 seconds ahead of 3rd place finisher Mark LoSacco and finished with a time of 22:53. 

Pam Quist was one of 4 women brave enough to run.  Today Pam was the fastest, winning her first Roxbury this year (she's done it before) with a time of 27:28.  Katie Neils, Corinne Bellemare and Lee Ann Zarger followed Pam.

The rain was torrential just before the start as Scott Benjamin and Bob Lewis went through the pre-race ritual under the pavilion.  But as the runners assembled at the start the rain eased a bit and remained just moderately unpleasant for most of the race.  Those who finished in the last quarter of the standings were treated to a thorough pounding by the rain as it kicked up full blast again.  Today it was just part of the fun.

The runs, which start and finish near the Everett Hurlbut Community Park on West Apple Lane, are sponsored by the Roxbury Recreation Commission.  We promise they aren't all like this one.

Pictures

What do all these people have in common?  They were all smart enough to stay home today!

Way down at the bottom, the Dragon remains.  I wonder if dragons mind being rained on?

Today's results were prepared by Surrogate Web Guy Mark LoSacco - email marksl2@earthlink.net with any questions or corrections.

Upcoming Races
Monroe Madness Road Race Series - 2.6 miles - Sun October 10 - The Monroe Road Race Series is organized by Roxbury regular Mark Andrejczyk.

Marathons

Update: The latest idea is to run the marathon on the Saturday after the regular series ends.  That would be Saturday, December 11, just three months from now.

Scott Benjamin has taken the lead in getting it organized.  If you have ideas, talk to Scott, or talk to Fossil, or eMail Web Guy (esandifer@earthlink.net )  We'll remind you of the issues.

1. When?  Saturday, December 11 
2. Course - We're considering 8.4 miles down to Judd's Bridge and back, followed by five 3.55 mile loops.    This would make it so we could have LOTS of water stops with just a few volunteers.  
3. Relays?  People seem to think we should include a marathon relay.  
4. Who?  Scott Benjamin is Race Director, and many people are already volunteering.  When you volunteer, be sure to tell him what you are willing to do to help.  He'll try to keep a list.
5. If we want to use this to qualify for Boston or anything, there are some hoops necessary, like getting the course certified and sanctioned.  Anyone willing to do that work?

 The Roxbury Races are now listed on the Internet both on RunningInTheUSA and on HiTekRacing.com

This week's results  

Created September 18, 2004