tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16467200831937928222024-03-12T19:44:10.256-07:00race directorWaynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comBlogger184125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-58574121945355412932011-02-11T13:07:00.000-08:002011-02-11T13:24:01.550-08:00Been a whileIt has been a while since my last blog. Sad to say I am writing this to recognize another one of our runners who passed away. Denise McFadden, age 51 was killed by a snow plow last month. Denise has run in 6 of 7 of our Delaware marathons and was scheduled to run again this year. She always ran the Caesar Rodney half, the Thanksgiving Day 10K, and just recently the PSCI Icicle ten miler. My heart sank when I saw her obituary. I received so many emails about her passing I thought it only right to do something to recognize her. I have started a new award at our Delaware Marathon. The first female Delaware marathon finisher will receive the Denise McFadden award. Plus the Delaware Marathon will make a donation to Padua Academy in Denise's honor. I have received so many emails from her friends and family thanking me for this new award. I will make a special presentation of Denise's marathon number to her family race day. Her spirit I am sure will be with us. Someone emailed me and told me that I touch so many lives with my events. I gave it some thought. "Touching lives one race at a time."Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-7383665653634247502010-11-30T08:57:00.001-08:002010-11-30T09:18:30.796-08:00ObitsI am one of those folks who read the obituaries. Don't ask me why. I guess it is because I would rather see that a friend or acquaintance died in print rather than hearing it via the grapevine. Either way I was shocked to see that one of my favorite runners had passed away. Some of you may know her since she placed in most events in the 60 plus age group. Her name is Beth Manning Tomanelli. She died peacefully on Nov. 18th from pancreatic cancer. At the Thanksgiving Day run walk for MS I spoke with her husband Rocco and her brother Bill Manning. Bill told me that she was a chubby kid who did not start running till in her 40's. I told Bill that she held both the 10k and 5k records in this event for her age group. Rocco told me she was diagnosed in September. Three months later she passed away. In her obituary instead of flowers she wanted donations to be made to the Western YMCA or to races2run. I cried when i read this. I felt that she chose me to help out others who are less fortunate. Barb and I decided that we would put together a scholarship in Beth's name for the Girls on the Run Delaware program. Beth's husband and family were thrilled about this and donations are coming in via mail and online. Donations online can be made here:<br />https://www.raceit.com/Fundraising/?event=2513<br />or via mail to PO Box 24, Montchanin, DE 19710.<br />I would hope that Beth too would be pleased.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-24167206325009886052010-11-13T13:30:00.000-08:002010-11-13T13:41:11.540-08:00Girls on the Run 5kEvery once in a while I have the honor of working on an event that really showcases what running in Delaware is all about. Today was one of those days. Liz Baldwin, Kim Chitty, and Melissa Rice are the hardest working race directors I have ever worked for. Meeting with them is time well spent. They are just so organized. From set up to break down these three ladies do it all. The indoor registration was perfect. No need to worry about weather conditions. The colorful GOR Team signs stationed through out Dravo Plaza let teams know where to meet. Over 1200 runners and walkers today. A perfect day on the Riverfront. I would like to thank all who came out to support Girls on the Run. You all really made it a special day.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-35203509536289803302010-09-10T11:54:00.000-07:002010-09-10T11:55:15.780-07:00It's out of here.....It's a long drive to center field....back....back...back....it's out of here.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-13223372396324671532010-09-03T08:01:00.000-07:002010-09-03T08:04:47.700-07:00Earl....I am at the beach for Sunday's Dewey Beach Lions Club 5k. So much talk about Hurricane Earl going on. Homes are boarded up.....trash cans on the boardwalk are in storage and the Rehoboth life guards were hanging out not even sure if they were going to work today. Storm warnings but NO rain, NO high winds, NO sunshine. The waves are not even that big. And yes....folks are in the water. I was thinking about what would happen if the Lions Club 5k was today rather than Sunday? My guess is that I would have had to postpone since ALL city services are on call. Weather wise we could have run a 5k this morning but would anyone show up? I use these methods to let folks know that an event is postponed or cancelled. I email the list of entrants, I use my Twitter account, I post a notice on my homepage and I leave a voice message on my work phone. When a hurricane warning like this goes into effect two days prior I get more time to get the word out. It gets really difficult when you have to make the call early race morning.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-20186062245949364132010-08-31T17:49:00.000-07:002010-08-31T17:51:36.756-07:00Fall weather in the air.....Getting closer to cool weather.....and that means getting ready to run longer distances and races. Sept. 11th kicks off our 34th Gary P Lister Bottle & Cork ten miler and 5k. Many run this event as a warm up for the following weeks Philly Half Marathon. For many this is a stepping stone to a fall marathon. Many of these marathons are selling out faster than ever before. The Philly Marathon is about to close out. Locally we have the Cafe Gelato ten miler and the Delaware Distance Classic 15k both held in Oct. We also have a series of 10k events starting with the E Racing the Blues 10k on Oct 31st. Next comes the annual Turkey Trot 10k the Saturday prior to Thanksgiving and on Thanksgiving day the PNC run walk 10k <br />and 5k. I hope those of you who run our 5k's will step it up a notch and think about the 10k distance. Like they say...step at a time.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-65312852716095744282010-08-28T05:02:00.000-07:002010-08-28T05:16:11.827-07:00World record run....Kip LittonCheck out this website http://www.worldrecordrun.com. You will not see any info on our Delaware Marathon. Why....because this guy Kip Litton was dq'ed. And I am not the only race director who has dq'ed him. Kip is trying to raise money for CF....but who are checks written to? His website. I have a team of 3 runners who have researched this guy. What we have come up with will blow your mind. Yes...he may be capable of running under 3 hours so why cheat? Look at the photo of his shoes as he crossed our DE Marathon finish line. NO D Tag! I emailed him about this and his response was "it was broken so I placed it in my sock". He stated that he has run over 100 races. OK...so he should know know how to put on D tag properly.... right? Before I dq'ed him I emailed our Regional RRCA director who also ran in our marathon and asked him what he thought. He said I have the right to DQ him. I then emailed Kip Litton to let him know that he has been dq'ed from my event. He did not respond back. NO splits....no photos on Brightroom.com...NO pics from the race director taking photos at the turn a round on the riverwalk at 14 miles. HELLO. Why would someone travel this far NOT to run a marathon.....I give up.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-26087336074154913082010-08-24T18:46:00.000-07:002010-08-24T19:07:06.959-07:00RulesI was doing my water workout in our community pool at 8:30 am the other day when a gentleman walks in with his two young daughters. I yelled out to him, "excuse me...but NO children under the age of 18 allowed in till 10 am." He says, "what do you mean...there is no one here." I answer "community and pool rules." He says...."I don't see anything posted." I say....."look at front gate." He turns around and head to the front gate. Now this guy gets really arrogant and says the F word and starts bitching to me. I reply "listen buddy...there is NO lifeguard on duty and we got a serious liability issue on our hands if you disobey the rules." He says a few more choice words to me. I say "you owe me an apology". He says "what for?" I say for your attitude and your vulgar language in front of your children. He storms off with his kids. Some people just don't like being told NO. Reminds me of those running in my events with baby strollers. Some folks just don't get it.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-41338390763150581932010-08-21T05:12:00.000-07:002010-08-21T05:14:52.713-07:00Ready...set....go.....I had an interesting email the other day. At the Tour de Lance 5k I was on the PA system and introduced Congressman Castle who said a few words prior to the start of the 5k. With over 1200 runners and walkers at the starting line not all were paying attention to what was being said. When I thanked him for joining us I yelled into the PA system that "Cannon Man" TJ Healy will start the race with his cannon. So the cannon goes off and 1200 folks cross our timing mats and head down Justinson Street. I have used a cannon start for many of my events including the Caesar Rodney Half and DE Marathon. At my Seven Sister series in Dewey Beach we have a couple pirates (Pete & Woody) who start our events using a cannon. The email i received was from an irate walker who was not aware of the cannon start. She stated that she almost had a heart attack when the cannon was fired and that I should reconsider using a cannon start for our events. She went on to explain that she does have a hearing problem and that loud noises are harmful. I am not the only race director who uses a cannon to start events. NYC Marathon and Marine Corp Marathon use cannons the size of a small car to start their events. I did apologize to her via the email. But to be honest with you.....cannon man will most likely continue to start our huge races.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-76304458396539236312010-08-15T11:28:00.000-07:002010-08-15T11:31:17.523-07:00Volunteers are awesomeOn Saturday at our Highway One Group 10k and 5k I was fortunate to have a great group of kids volunteer. I received a txt message from their mother letting me know that they would be there to help out. The nice thing about this is we always need help whether it is working the water stops, passing out tee shirts, or passing out ice packs to finishers. These kids are awesome. They get a tee shirt and I sign a sheet of paper as race director stating they volunteered so many hours at this event. This way they can track how many hours of volunteer work each of them do. The more volunteers the better. When i sign their work sheets they always have a smile on their face and they make it perfectly clear to me how much fun they had at our event. Volunteering makes our events run smooth. I can't thank these kids enough for all their hard work. Kids....keep up the good work! We all thank you.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-81096442277938547462010-08-12T09:39:00.000-07:002010-08-12T09:41:17.035-07:00getting closerok...i am getting so very close to dq'ing this cheater and have evidence to prove that he did not run our Delaware Marathon. I have been in contact with our district RRCA Representative and have sent him the facts and photos and he too agrees that it is grounds to dq this guy. I have also been in touch with 3 other race directors across the country and have emailed back and forth our concerns. Two others have been doing research of all marathons that he has run and have come up with data that will officially show that he is a cheat. One issue is he is running these marathons in all 50 states under 3 hours as a fundraiser for a certain charity and has raised close to $10,000. Checks are payable to his website not the charity. I have emailed him photos I took of the top 20 runners at the 13.75 mark of the marathon route which is on the Wilm. Riverwalk just past the Rowing Club. I took these photos while there setting up the turn around and making sure my volunteer was in place. No where is this guy shown. I smell a rat. Final proof will come in next blog.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-55402910579685750252010-08-06T06:28:00.000-07:002010-08-06T06:41:12.728-07:00Another Rosie Ruiz?This is going to be a two part blog. I received a phone call and email from a runner in Missoula, Montana who claims that one of our runners in the Delaware Marathon cheated. He said that he has been dq'ed from 3 other marathons and sent me emails from the three race directors as proof. I called him back and we had a nice chat. Seems like this guy who may have cheated is trying to run a marathon under 3 hours in all 50 states as a fundraiser for a certain charity. I looked up his time from our DE Marathon and also emailed my timing company to get his splits. They emailed back ....NONE. I looked him up on Brightroom.com photos section and guess what....NO photos of him posted. This seems weird since all the top 20 runners had photos posted and ALL had splits. So now what? I am in the process of contacting race directors of marathons he has run (including Boston) and will then email him to get his side of the story. If true he took away a deserving runners award and cash prize. Another Rosie Ruiz!Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-71073778624721667602010-08-01T10:35:00.000-07:002010-08-01T10:38:46.275-07:00SeabreezeBarb and I have a routine when heading to the beach for our Seven Sister Series. We leave late in the afternoon the day prior to the race and stop at the Big Fish Market for take out crab cakes. We then continue into Dewey Beach and head into the neighborhood of Seabreeze to chalk out the next days route. As we ride the route we stop when we see the residents who live in this beautiful neighborhood on the bay. We let them know that our 5k is going to take place and that the roads will be filled with runners from 8 am till approximately 8:30 am. These folks seem to enjoy the parade of runners. Some put out sprinklers to cool off the runners while others line the streets and cheer them on. I did have one neighbor stop me as i was marking the route and he explained that he can't get out to do errands since all the roads are full of runners and walkers. He had a good point and I apologized and told him we would change the route next year. He was cool with that and I did get the ok to do this. A change for the better and keeping those in the neighborhood happy. Once done chalking the route we head to the event location and count shirts so all those who pre registered will get the size they requested. Then it is home to relax and have a nice dinner before getting up at 4:45 am the next day. We are so fortunate to be able to stage these events in Dewey Beach.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-83896011681432227182010-07-25T11:21:00.000-07:002010-07-25T11:24:15.645-07:00Learning curveEdJaH Chip Timing Systems has now timed close to 60 of our events using the IPICO timing chip which is the chip we recycle. Our largest event has been close to 1000 participants and our smallest around 75. When we first started to use this chip timing system runners were a bit confused on how it worked and how the chip attached to their shoe lace. We explained this to the runners and walkers and have gone from 10 to 15 lost chips a race down to 2 or 3 lost chips. This learning curve reminds me of when i first started using race numbers with tear off tags to score races back in the early 1980's. I would tear off the bottom portion of the runners race bib and post on my score boards for all to see. When we first started using this system I can;t tell you how many times a runner would come across the finish line and not have his tear off tag. I would ask them where it was and most would say, "I did not know you needed it." Runners and walkers soon realized that this was an important part of the scoring system. Now 25 plus years later the same goes for the computer chip. This too is a learning curve and another reason why we use the IPICO chip for so many of our events. We want the runners to be familiar with the system. Funny how such a simple thing as putting a little piece of plastic on your shoe makes scoring a road race so efficient.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-55614917892100633802010-07-20T13:26:00.001-07:002010-07-20T13:40:46.689-07:00TaggedBarb and I were walking the Rehoboth boardwalk early one morning last week. You would not believe how many folks were running and walking the boardwalk. Many wore tee shirts from races they participated in and many wore no shirt at all. I told Barb to look at the runners shoes. Some had that orange band on their shoe lace which meant that they ran a chip timed event. I mentioned to my wife that it was funny how these folks never bothered to clip off their shoe tags. I told her I would bet her that this person also never tears off their luggage tags when getting home from a trip and if they were a golfer they would have tags from golf courses played on their golf bags. I must admit it is a pretty good conversation piece. Each tag represents a good time in this persons life. Tags I would think are like badges of honor. "Yes....I ran that race....yes....i played that golf course.....yes I visited that country." Come to think of it....these folks got it together. Something so simple brings a smile to ones face. At our Seven Sisters event last week I asked a runner who had two not one but two orange chip tags on his shoe. "Why the tags i asked?" A smile came across his face and the stories began.....see what i mean.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-52809840558086203332010-07-14T08:10:00.000-07:002010-07-14T08:25:51.904-07:00State RecordsAt the Catherine Rooney's 5k for Ulster Project DE last Thursday night Mark Vilardo ran a 15:33 as a 36 year old which would set an age group Delaware state record (that he owns) by 11 seconds. The route is USATF certified. The problem is this.....the final turn up Rattle Snake Run at the 3 mile mark was under construction. Runners went 15 yards further to make the turn to home and I moved the finish line 15 yards down the hill to make up that distance. When Mark told me he broke his age group record I told him, "sorry but I can not accept it as a record due to the change in route." Mark was cool about it and said, "no problem.....I still have the old record of 15:44." I try my best to keep state records up to date. I recently received an email from a runner stating that she ran a 5 miler back in 1991 as a 20 some year old faster than what I have posted on my website. I told her that unless I have a hard copy of the results either posted online or on paper and had the usatf certification number my hands were tied and I could not post her faster time. She too was cool about this and will try and find me the hard copy results. Folks work so hard to set these records and as the keeper of the books I want to make sure that when a record is set that it is legitimate.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-4024478505193287462010-07-11T18:54:00.000-07:002010-07-13T05:36:23.537-07:00Pump n RunAt our North Beach 5k in Dewey this past Sunday we staged the Schweizer Pump n Run. For those of you not familiar with what a Pump n Run is it is basically an event where you bench press your weight one or more times and that puts you in the pump n run category. Then you run the 5k. For each time you pump your weight we deduct 15 seconds from your overall time. So you are competing in both the 5k race and the pump n run event. For ladies and those over the age of 50 you have to bench a certain percentage of your weight. At the North Beach event we had 53 folks enter the Pump n Run. Pro Physical Therapy and Leisure Fitness are the major sponsors. Doug White is the event manager. We use a computer program to score the event and team leader Ed Hartwell (EdJaH Chip Timing Systems) handles this for Doug. This year only 6 events are on the schedule. But for next year the plans are for many more. If you pump your weight one time you get a cool tee shirt or give away item compliments of sponsors. So for those of you who work out with weights and also run....this event is for you! Rules and schedule are posted on the website.<br />http://www.races2run.com/pumpnrun.htmWaynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-71477221627438432732010-07-07T07:26:00.000-07:002010-07-07T07:50:35.166-07:00The number 50.......This past July 4th we were in Dewey Beach for our Jimmy's Grill 5k as part of our Seven Sister Two Brother Run Walk Series. Pre registration was 320 and walk up day of 405. A record setting day making this event the largest 5k held at the beaches. It also marked the 50th race EdJaH Chip Timing Systems has timed for races2run using the IPICO timing chip. I can't thank my team enough. Team leader Ed Hartwell has put together a staff that will rival any timing team in the area. We are now capable of chip timing four events in one day. At Jimmy's Grill 5k we had three staff people doing race day data entry. We posted overall results in 30 minutes and the award ceremony started one hour after the start of the race. Results were posted on my website races2run during the awards presentation. Neat stuff. I have purchased a second chip timing system called "MyLaps." The chip is disposable and is placed on the back of your race number. NO chips to turn in at the end of the race. This will be use full when timing large events. Cost is only $1 more than the IPICO chip. We will start using the MyLaps chip starting this Saturday at Mimi's Run for Hospice. We will use races2run events as a stepping stone to time the Tour de Lance 5k August 18th using MyLaps. I hope you enjoy seeing your "gun" time and "chip" times posted. Now that I am walking in some of my events I sure do. Remember.....awards are based on "gun" times NOT chip times.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-2682684362683970562010-07-03T10:59:00.000-07:002010-07-03T11:01:13.194-07:0025 years and running......Today marked our 25th Firecracker 5k at Rockford Park. It was the first year we did not run on the 4th of July due to a conflict in schedules. This event is sponsored by the City of Wilmington Parks and Recreation Department. Since I get folks telling me they have "way too many tees" we went with a really cool beach bag. Runners seemed to like the change. What has not changed in 25 years is the usatf certified route. The reason for starting and finishing outside the park is because 25 years ago the City of Wilm fireworks were staged at Rockford Park and for safety reasons they asked us to "stay away." We had 200 participants today as far away as Anchorage, Alaska and Fargo, North Dakota. Also runners came in from Kentucky, California, Florida, Rhode Island and states in between. I even got to walk in the race today and got beat by a gorilla, a banana, and Tarzan's girl friend Jane. (see photo) It is nice to see how my vols are doing and how the Wilm Police handle traffic. Lets see.....if i can make it another 25 years i will be 81 years old.....nah.....too old to work at that age. I think I'll show up and walk. Enjoy the holiday.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-46725531985661719672010-06-28T08:31:00.000-07:002010-06-28T08:33:55.696-07:00Daily DoubleWe had a very busy weekend and the weather could not have been hotter. On Saturday we were at Joe's Crab Shack for the 4th Race for Time 5k starting at 8:30 am. At 9:45 we were set to time and manage the Inaugural Education Fund 5k also on the Riverfront at the Overlook Pavilion next to AAA. Two races with in 2 hours both on the riverfront both using different routes and both being chip timed. Whew. Why the daily double? Because the second event was tied into a fund raiser starting at 11 am at Jr. Achievement across the river. I really tried to talk these folks out of staging a 5k starting so late. Heat is always an issue. But they decided to take the chance. So the Race for Time starts and I head to the mile mark to give splits and set up the starting line for the second race which is near the mile mark. From there I go over to the Overlook Pavilion to help staff member Jon Clifton with set up of the second 5k. At the same time my wife Barb is managing the Race for Time. Once done setting up the second race registration I head back on the course and move the one mile marker for the second race one mile mark and then move the 2 mile marker to the new 2 mile mark. I also set up a new turn around at Frawley stadium for the second race and make sure all vols and water stop are in place. I then head back to Joe's Crab Shack and watch the tail end of the walkers come in. My chip timing team is now ready to go. My data entry team was imputing race day entries for the second race and this second race starts on time while my wife Barb is announcing the awards for the first race. One hot busy day to say the least. My team did a fabulous job. Both events were successful and many who ran the first race ended up running the second race too. Would I do this again.....No way....! One a day is enough.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-20935586242131295652010-06-21T08:46:00.000-07:002010-06-21T08:48:35.484-07:00Hugs all aroundThis past Saturday marked the 10th Anniversary of the Miles for Molly 5k. I remember when RT Christopher called me and asked if I would help him stage a 5k run walk in honor of their daughter Molly who had passed away. Proceeds from this event would benefit the Childrens Beach House in Lewes. I asked RT if he knew the owners of the Dead Presidents Restaurant. He said yes and set up a meeting with them. Me, RT, and Steve Lucy (owner of DP) sat in a booth and discussed the future of this race. Dead Presidents would be host sponsor and RT and Liz Christopher would be race directors. It has been a wonderful ten years working with this group. Over $175,000 has been raised from the Miles for Molly 5k. This year both RT and Liz decided that the 5k would be the last year that they would be involved. When the awards were done and the clean up began I gave Liz and RT a big hug and said, "you both should be proud of what you have done." The staff of the Children's Beach House 5k would like this event to continue. What has not been finalized is the date and location. Stay tuned.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-49594955183128685282010-06-09T13:22:00.000-07:002010-06-09T13:33:34.102-07:00Fun filled weekendI was out walking this morning and i could not stop thinking about what a cool weekend I just had. On Saturday we timed and managed the Girls on the Run 5k at Dravo Plaza. Liz Baldwin, Kim Chitty, and Melissa Rice work endless hours to put this event together and what a job they do! 560 girls signed up plus we had another 750 or so others joined in. I have never seen so many happy faces. At the same time my other team was timing and managing the U of DE Reunion Weekend Blue Hen 5k in Newark. Over 250 finishers and get this....male female winners were Father and daughter Jay Coughenour and Audrey. Now that sure does not happen very often. On Sunday I made it to the St.Anthony's Italian Festival 5k for the 31st consecutive time. The winner of this race was Stephen Garrett, 13 years old in a time of 17:46. <br />Wow....that is so impressive. And guess who else was there for the 31st year.....91 year old Becky Yencharis who used what she calls her "pusher" to walk a half mile in 31 minutes. She had a huge smile on her face as she crossed the finish line to the applause of runners. Maybe Delaware should be called the Fit State rather than the First State.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-63296765777762967572010-06-04T14:15:00.000-07:002010-06-04T14:18:30.140-07:00Scammed....As a race director I always try and take a runners "word for it." Many times folks tell me they mailed in a race application that we did not receive. I ask them to fill out another entry and we sign them up with no questions asked. Almost 100% of the time the entry does get to my po box. But here is one incident that really gets to me. The Friday night before the DE Marathon I listen to my voice box messages. One is from a runner from the Philly area. He is letting me know that he will not be able to make packet pick up Saturday since he is stuck in South Carolina for business. He goes on to tell me that he would like to switch from the full marathon to the half marathon and will be there Sunday morning to pick up his packet. I was doing a million and one things and did not have a chance to look at the roster of athletes. He shows up Sunday morning at 6:30 am and goes up to my volunteer at the trouble shooting table and lets them know that we do not have his race packet. My volunteer tells him that he is not on the pre reg roster (this was posted on the website and updated daily). He said he entered online but did not bring his receipt. I asked him if he ever looked at the pre reg list and he said "no". I asked him if he ever received any of our emails and he said "no". So the nice guy i am i say fill out this form and pay the pre reg price and i will look into active.com. His comment...."I do not have my wallet with me." Ok....what is your cell number which he did give me. I gave him a race number and goodie bag plus tech shirt. He runs the race and leaves. I call him Monday and left him a message that he was not on the list of those who entered online. He leaves me a message to call him in his office which i do and he states he will send out payment. OK.....almost 3weeks have gone by and NO payment. I have called a couple more times....guess what? Scammed...you bet.Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-76244535816462541262010-05-31T10:58:00.001-07:002010-05-31T10:58:41.027-07:00It's back.....It was like starting camp all over again. Seeing old friends who we have not seen since Sept. Hugs, kisses, and high fives. They run, they eat, they drink beer. This is the Seven Sisters Two Brothers run walk series 2010. Today we kicked off the Series at the Rusty Rudder with a 5k. 230 pre registered runners......and another 370 signed up race morning to make it one of our largest race day turnouts. We chip timed this event (EdJaH Chip Timing Systems) and I must admit.....it was pretty cool to watch the folks start over the mats and go on their way getting a chip time and a gun time. Our staff was stretched to the limits and they did a fabulous job. The only issue was when we started to print the results our printer ran out of ink. We took care of this and Barb was on the p a system announcing the winners and giving out door prizes. So many families, so many from out of town, so many locals. It was quite a scene. Hope to see you at one or more of these events in Dewey this summer. It is really Dewey Beach at its finest. Drink up!Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1646720083193792822.post-12978639755747828702010-05-25T18:13:00.000-07:002010-05-25T18:18:52.976-07:00Should common sense be “common”?Here are just a couple items that we had to deal with at our DE Marathon. I received an email from a women marathoner who decided to start with the early bird runners. For those not familiar with the early bird start we email all who write down that their marathon finishing time is 6 hours plus. For the safety of all and to get these folks off the course in a timely fashion we start a small group at 6:15 am. Our lead biker did not show due to injury so staff member Jon Clifton drove his car as lead vehicle. At the first major intersection he told the leader to go left and continue straight ahead to the dead end and follow the arrows onto the river walk. Her email states that she led the early bird group and when our vol stopped at the traffic light she did not know where to go. She was that far in front of all the others. I asked her what she planned on running that day...."a 4:15" she said....HELLO....."why would you start with the early bird runners" i asked? She said she heard the announcement on the p a system and decided she would start early. I said, "if you were in the pack with all others you would not have had any issues." Another issue was with a women who decided to give her race number to a friend who wanted to run the half marathon. Not only did this person place first in the masters age group but the she was a he. This idiot not only wore her race bib but also her computer chip. Thus taking away the thrill of a win for the runner up female. Now...does this make sense?Waynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09283056061690844080noreply@blogger.com