Clattenburg and A Unicorn Go Forth and Win at Go Fourth 8K

Six WRCers and two compadres gathered early on Independence Day, at the historic Vienna Town Green. Hosted by our friends of the PVTC, together we sweetly sang the lyrics of the Star Spangled Banner to the accompaniment of an MP3 file played back on a BlackBerry held up to a P.A. mic.

In fact, we sang a little too fast for the frugivorous gizmo that symbolizes this Washingtonian life. Were we perhaps nudged out of meter by some magnetic inducement flowing from the extra high voltage 230 kV transmission lines looming above us?

Whatever the case, it was marvelous to watch the B.A.A.’s Jonathan Baker zoom off in a flurry, followed brightly by newcomer Daisuke Ogata, dressed in day-glo orange hat and shirt and mistaken more than once for a distant traffic cone. Rachel Clattenburg in red paced herself wisely, climbing up the ranks throughout the race. We slapped low-fives as we passed along the out-and-back course.

Everyone left the race with some quarry of Stars and Stripes, whether in the form of a beach towel, embroidered flags (both in original and Vermont antiqued flavors), or just the shorts they wore to the race. I offered my own flag to Daisuke as a gift, and he immediately requested to have his picture taken with it in the now-standard USATF display. What a great country, that even our silliest of motifs are accessible to all.

Full results are available here; WRC (& friends) results are below.

Potomac Valley Track Club Go Fourth 8K
W&OD Trail, Vienna VA
Thursday, July 4, 2013

5K  Name               G Age Time    M  F    Award
-- --------------------- --- ------  -  -   --------
1  Jonathan Baker      M  29 27:15   1      M20-29 1 B.A.A #Unicorns
5  Rachel Clattenburg  F  29 33:16      1   F20-29 1
6  Kit Wells           M  36 33:35   5      M30-39 3
7  Daisuke Ogata       M  38 33:51   6
12 Jay Jacob Wind      M  63 36:09   9      M60-69 1
18 Jerold Paulson      M  54 38:23  14      M50-59 2
33 James Scarborough   M  55 43:34  24
41 Benjamin Stutts     M  24 45:47 28:47*  27      M20-29 2
91 finishers
* late start, due to confusing pre-race instructions

UPDATE: A race report by Maggie Lloyd was published on RunWashington.com, here.

An Uplifting Experience for Dan Yi in an Up Year

Dan Yi sealing his 79th overall, first American and silver medalist finish at the 2013 Comrades Marathon.

Dan Yi sealing his 79th overall, first American and silver medalist finish at the 2013 Comrades Marathon.

Our own Dan Yi ventured to South Africa to run the Comrades Marathon on June 2nd. We know he is fit, we know he is awesome, we know he has a great attitude but did we know that ANYONE could report having kicked it in after 54 miles? Could we have imagined he would say this was “the best running experience of my life”? Continue reading →

Sound The Klaxon! Grand Prix is Aweigh

The Washington Running Club garnered recognition over the weekend as several members ran in Sunday’s Capitol Hill Classic 10K under the club’s team.

WRC finished in a respectable 7th place out of 44 teams (results). Finishers had their club name—Washington Running Club in our case—called out over the public address system as they finished.

Rachel Clattenburg (42:08), Julia Taylor (43:44), and Jerry Paulson (48:19) comprised the WRC team scorers. Julia finished second in her age group, getting nipped by a mere 11 seconds. Christine Hackman finished in fourth in the same age group while netting a 46:35.

Dan Yi—running for the Civil Rights Racers—ran an impressive 37:07 the day after running 30 miles in preparation for the upcoming Comrades Marathon on June 2nd.

The 10K’s team competition counted the top 3 finishers on the team with at least one being of the opposite sex.

This weekend’s race also marked the sixth race in WRC’s inaugural Grand Prix. Up-to-date standings show President Kirk Masterson leading the men’s division with an average age-graded score of 79.32% through three races.

Christine Hackman has the highest age-graded score on the women’s side with a 73.22%. Julia Taylor is just behind her with a 72.53%.

The age-graded scoring system is meant to account for age in performances and give runners of all ages an equal chance to compete on the same scale.

Runners must compete in 5 races to qualify for the Grand Prix—at least 4 from the selected races in the series, with the option of one performance from outside. The standings above don’t yet reflect the one elective race.

The next race in the WRC Grand Prix is the Lawyers Have Heart 10K on June 8.

Women Racing, Without the Possessives

Nike Women Half Marathon
April 28, 2013, 7 am – Washington DC
WRC results are available here.

Carla Freyvogel poses with her daughter, Grace Eginton, in their respective club singlets and matching teal sneakers, in front to the NWHM Start/Finish line, at 10th and Pennsylvania Ave, NW. Photo courtesy of W.T.F.

Carla Freyvogel poses with her daughter, Grace Eginton, in their respective club singlets and matching teal sneakers, in front to the NWHM Start/Finish line, at 10th and Pennsylvania Ave, NW. Photo courtesy of W.T.F.

Race day started as the best of all running weather days. Cool, sunny, low humidity. It was really Washington DC at its finest; the monuments glowed white, the streets were clean swept and the trees were a new green. A great day to run a half marathon.

15,000 women and Dan Yi did just that. Continue reading →