The weather did not disappoint this year at Delano and neither did the Fleet Feet Racing Team.Matching previous years where it has either snowed or where runners have looped the park in torrential rains, the 2010 version of Delano 12 hour had its share of weather issues. In the morning it was a light but steady rain, which later switched to brief sunshine, before the hail rolled through in the afternoon. Toward the end of the day the sun would sporadically shine but it was molstly a cold and wet spring day in Decatur, Alabama.
The weather issues and tight and winding corners of the certified 1-mile gravel loop did not stop the Racing Team from setting some amazing times and mileage marks.
In the 12 hour race, Eric Fritz notched 67 miles on his way to 3rd overall and top masters runner. Josh Kennedy was not too far behind with 61 miles. Blake Thompson was still aching from his sub 24 hour Rocky Raccoon 100 finish last month, but turned in a gutsy performance at 46 miles. Joey Butler and Linda Scavarda ran 40 and 35 miles respectively with Linda notching a fast 50km split
The 50 mile race was closely contested as Eric Charette finished 5 minutes behind for a second place overall with a time of 7:14:16. Eric mistakenly thought that he had taken the lead at mile 42 and eased up, when in reality he was still a lap down.
On the relay side, the team that included Madelyn Patton, Lisa and David Rawlings came in 2nd overall with a lap count of 88 miles, finishing second behind the winners who also ran 88 miles but did it 30 seconds faster. Team members Tim Vinson, George Dewitt, Jason Reneau and Jane Reneau also competed on relay teams that put up some nice mileage numbers.
Directing this River City Runner's race are Racing Team members Eric Schotz and Jon Elmore and once again they did an amazing job.
Official Results
From the frozen tundra of Antarctica, final results are now in for the annual marathon on the southern polar ice cap.Team members Rob Youngren and Kathy Youngren finished in 1st and 2nd place overall and in the process, defeated the Prince of the Netherlands; seriously. With over 20' swells across the Drake Passage, the Youngen's got to have one more day of vacation as the boat could not cross. This also were lucky at the beginning of the trip where they spent 3 days in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil while the massive earthquake was on the other side of the continent in Chile. In order to run this race, the Youngren's had to sign up more than two years in advance to secure a spot.
Here are the top 3 finishers by gender.
Men
(1) Robert Youngren (3:50:02)
(2) His Royal Highness Pieter-ChristianVan Oranje-Massau (4:22:55)
(3) Peter Barbera (4:23:28)
Women
(1) Kathryn Youngren (3:58:59)
(2) Marit Janse (4:57:40)
(3) Kelly Hansen (5:04:11)
I am sure that Rob and Kathy will have race recaps once they return, but for now there are a few good stories appearing on this blog site.
Also on Saturday in Sheffield, Alabama was the 8th Annual Huff 'N Puff on the Bluff 15km. This is one of the few certified 15km races in the state of Alabama and always draws a fast crowd.
Racing Team member Shane Oneill ran 1:01:28 for 6:36 pace, finishing 6th overall.
Official Results