Isaiah Harris NCAA Champion!

I can’t wait to talk to the alumni as they’ve been so supportive of us over the years.”

Isaiah Harris. 

The retro Singlet is always appreciated!

Another B1G Win!

Isaiah Harris runs a Personal Best of 1:44.76 to take down the collegiate record holder in the 800m! pic.twitter.com/dzuLbN8pwN

— NCAA Track & Field (@NCAATrackField) June 9, 2018

There has been a long line of excellent Penn State "2-lappers" who have paved the road that we affectionately call 800U.  And never mind that there are hundreds of others that weren't 800M runners among our group that have also helped cement that moniker even into the national Press.

The 800M is my favorite race to watch and I really enjoyed running it in high school. I just didn't have the talent to pull it off on a bigger stage.  But I consider myself fairly knowledgable on the event.  Watching Penn State half-milers over the last 20 years has been really fun.

Some notable PSU 800M runners I have had the pleasure to watch in the last 18 years

• Brannon Kidder
• Casimir Loxsom
• Domenic Perretta
• Matt Lincoln
• Owen Dawson
• Robby Creese
• Ryan Foster
• Sam Borchers

Add these guys to the other generations of middle distance specialists in the preceding generations all the way back to Alan Helffrich (1922-1923 800M NCAA Champion!) and you have 800U!

But all we were missing was another NCAA Champion in modern times.  And it hasn't been easy.  In the last several years there have been overwhelming dominant winners from domestic and afar.  Were we again to be satisfied with an incredible performance only to be celebrating another second place NCAA finish? (Brannon Kidder 2015, Casimir Loxsom 2013, Isaiah Harris 2017)

Very few had Isaiah Harris being able to slay the returning winner and NCAA record-holder Michael Saruni.  Very few except Isaiah and his coach, John Gondak.  They had a plan, and they had a program.  Us lucky Alumni who visited them a few weeks ago got to see that up close and personal.  And many of us started to believe.

The race was run to precision by Isaiah.  He demonstrated his intellect and wisdom at every stage. The fast opening lap of 51.x or so (rough guess) putting him in 5th place right near Saruni. It wasn't anything he hasn't done many times before.  He didn't panic, and held steady until the middle of the backstretch of the second lap.  Anticipating the surge of Saruni, Isaiah gently eased into the lead monentarily before Saruni rushed past, gaining a two-stride lead at the finish of the last turn.  He didn't panic, as Isaiah said he "saw blood" at that point, and knew that Saruni had used too much getting to where he was.

The last 100 meters was what all of us Alumni (Golfers) have been waiting for for "a few" years now. As Isaiah slipped by the defending champion, you could sense that the drought was finally over!

Isaiah eased a tad at the finish, possibly giving up another School Record, but nobody, including him, seems to care. Penn State was on the top of the podium!

Just last week I complimented Isaiah by noting that he has excelled in the classroom also, making all of us proud.  He also demonstrated his humility in post race interviews by including the Alumni in his thoughts.  I think he realizes how much we support the program's success in every aspect.  Any future 800 specialists out there have a role model and a college destination being represented with the highest recommendation posssible.

 

Did you miss the final of the men's 800-meter run from Friday? Well, we won't spoil who wins. 😏 #WeAre #PSUTF pic.twitter.com/vWbT7O6CP9

— Penn State Track & Field/Cross Country (@PennStateTFXC) June 9, 2018

It's Never Too Early For Penn Relays Or Cross Country

It is hard to believe that Penn Relays is only 3 or so weeks away!  Be sure to check out the invitation for all of us to attend a reception at the team's Philly Hotel.  RSVP to Owen Dawson.

And even though it is a little further away, Michael Gross wants to invite youth teams and especially their Nittany Lion coaches to the East Regional XC Youth Championships, also in Philly.  He points out that alums are invited to the Open Division, especially if they wear their Alumni Singlets!

If you want to try something different this fall why not try a cross country race? Sunday November 4th, 2018 in Tyler State Park. We have both the youth championship and an OPEN 5K for adults over 18. For more information and to register see below!

Hosted by the Ambler Olympic Club (AOC)

The CCCNYC Eastern Regional is a quality end of season meet for youth ages 14 and U and a chance to race at the CCCNYC National Youth Championships November 17th, 2018 in Tom Sawyer State Park, Louisville KY.

Youth Championships: https://pa.milesplit.com/meets/300243/info#.WsS9W2aZNuU

Open 5K:
https://runsignup.com/Race/FindARunner/?raceId=60032&remMeAttempt

The Interns Reshuffled The PSU Sub-4 Listing Chronologically!

Now I owe them time and a half and all my leftover Kung Pao Chicken...  But it was worth it!  The effort is always appreciated.

Greg Fredericks          Reading AA                3:59.7      State College            8/05/78

Larry Mangan             Penn State                   3:58.4      University Park        5/16/80

Mike Wyatt                 Philly Pioneers            3:58.0      Philadelphia             5/18/80

Matt Lincoln               PSU Alum                   3:59.39i    University Park          1/27/07

Ryan Foster                 Penn State                   3:58.49i    University Park        1/29/11

Robby Creese              Penn State                   3:59.52i    Seattle                      2/11/12

Brannon Kidder          Penn State                   3:59.48i   University Park        1/26/13

Owen Dawson             PSU Alum                   3:59.74     Philadelphia             4/27/13

Colin Abert                 Penn State                   3:59.51i    University Park        2/03/18

* Someone chime in and let us know the location of Matt's sub-4!  Matt himself and Ryan Foster have chimed in via our Facebook site and corrected this "corrected" version again.  My interns are the greatest!

And Now There Are Nine!

Colin Abert won the Mile at yesterday's Sykes and Sabock Challenge Cup at the Ashenfelter Track.  With his 3:59.51 time, he has become the ninth Nittany Lion and Alums to break the 4-Minute barrier for the imperial distance.  Congrats Colin!

Colin Abert.

He joins 6 other Americans and 2 Alums from foreign lands.  I include Matt Lincoln and Ryan Foster as honorary Americans for several reasons:

• Matt is from Canada.  The English speaking part!  I have always said that Canada is like America's Attic.  We rarely go up there, but when we do we discover that it is filled with wondrous things and we can't wait to come back again.  He also coaches American high school students well enough for National Honors!
• Ryan comes from Australia, which also is predominantly English-speaking.  With a cool accent. Even bettrer, he is from Tasmania.  He has also never had a single Foster's Lager, which he says is only sent to America! He has also golfed in our Tournament and performed a "Happy Gilmore" drive.  He has rejuvinated the XC/Track program at Division II Edinboro University.
• Both have married Americans. And any of us male reprobates who are married realize that all of us "marry up".

Penn State Athletes and Alumni Breaking the 4-Minute Mile:

Greg Fredericks (Reading AA)

3:59.7 (2)

University Park

August 05, 1978

Larry Mangan (Penn St)

3:58.4

University Park

May 16, 1980

Mike Wyatt (Philly Pioneers)

3:58.0

Philadelphia

May 18, 1980

Robby Creese (Penn St)

3:59.52(i)

Seattle

February 11, 2012

Brannon Kidder (Penn State)

3:59.48(i)

University Park

January 26, 2013

Owen Dawson* (unattached)

3:59.74

Philadelphia

April 27, 2013

Colin Abert (Penn State)  3:59.51   University Park  February 3, 2018

Canada      Matt Lincoln 3:59.39(i)  2007
Australia   Ryan Foster (Penn State)  3:58.49(i)   University Park  January, 2011

* Owen Dawson became the first ever to run a sub-4 minute mile wearing a Penn State Track Alumni Singlet.  He will forever be enshrined as a barrier-breaker of the first order.

Owen Dawson Sub-4 Penn Relays 2013. Photo by Matt Groves.

Here's a great map showing where athlete's first ever sub-4 were run. The dot at State College just got a little larger!

The Best Distance Medley Relay Squad In The NCAA?

And they are on the coaching staff!

That's Alex Shisler, Owen Dawson, Casimir Loxsom and Robbie Creese. Many NCAA teams will be hard pressed to compete with these guys.

I would use Robbie on the 1200M leg, Alex on the 400M leg, Casimir on the 800M leg and Owen on the 1600M leg.  But I would love arguments from everyone on that! (including them!)

A Glorious Day In State College

So I fled the real world yesterday for the wonders of Happy Valley.  I left behind all the negativity of bills, taxes and home maintenance requirements.  And I was rewarded like I never expected to be!

It was a glorious day in Happy Valley, with sunshine and temperatures reaching to 68 degrees! In the middle of February!  And did I mention that I'm talking about State College?

Here are some of the highlights of my day:

• Having Daughter the Younger drive the whole way to State College.  Got to see Daughter the Elder and our dog Pooky!
  
  
   
   
• Got to the track just in time to watch the final laps of the solo DMR effort of the Women to qualify for the NCAA.  Danae Rivers brought them home in 11:01 (and change) which is now the school record and the #2 time in the NCAA this year!  That makes 5 for 5 meets with a school record for Danae!

•  Saw Isaiah Harris leisurely run the first few laps in the Mile and then turn on the jets for a PR 4:05 (and change). 
  
• Had the opportunity to say hello to Coach Gondak and Owen Dawson.
  
  
  
  
• Had the pleasure to speak with the Skerpons and watch their daughter Elyse run a fine 600M to qualify for the Big Ten meet. The Skerpons haven't changed a bit in the years since their 1983 wedding.  I have.  I dare you to find me in the pic!

• Got word from the internets that PSU Track Alumni (Golfers) fared quite well in 800M shenanigans across the globe! 

 From jolly ole' England, as relayed from Ken Brinker!

Men’s 800: Cas Loxsom Gets a Big Win and a World Leader

One week ago, Loxsom looked out of place running the 1000m at the Millrose Games. But he closed quickly in that race to move up for second over the final 200, and he shined today in an event he’s far more comfortable in, the 800.

Loxsom got out well and stuck right on rabbit Bram Som, who took him through 400 in 50.28. By the time Som dropped out at 500, Loxsom had opened up a big gap on the field and at the bell (1:17.50), he had a lead of approximately 15 meters.

The rest of the field, led by 2015 world bronze medallist Amel Tuka, was closing hard as Loxsom was starting to tie up. But he dug deep and managed to hold on, and was rewarded for his aggressive running with a world leader of 1:46.13. Tuka wound up second in 1:46.59, a Bosnian national record, while American Erik Sowinski finished fourth in 1:46.85.

While in Arkansas, there was a minor earthquake as Billy  Cvecko slipped on his Alumni Singlet!

8

Billy CVECKO

Unattached

1:55.14

1 (4)

That's the leading time in the world this year and Cas's PR! And it isn't a bad effort by Billy, who is the hardest working man in track and field!

Lunch was Kung Pao Chicken, which was smuggled into the Ashenfelter Complex because the entire security world was focused on the Bryce Jordan Center and the Dance Marathon!

Dinner ended up being 3 lobster tails and bananas foster cheesecake.  Technically the lactose intolerance episode didn't occur until after midnight, so yesterday was still all golden!

Not a bad day in February in State College, am I right?

Musings From The Penn State National

First, let's get the two Performances of the Week out of the way.

In order to not incur the wrath of Group Officers, the Interns have been banned from giving their opinion this week.  And despite the duo of Malik Moffett and Xavier Smith going first and second in the 200M AGAIN (21.06 and 21.26 with Dan Chisema in third!), they are just among the rest of the honorable mentions this week!

• A World Record absolutely deserves top mention, right?  Well, when 2 members of our group happen to dip UNDER the existing world record, even the Interns would have to pick that event, right?  So indeed, Casimir Loxsom's new world record 600M tops our list for the week.  Only the second runner to dip under the 1:15.00 barrier all-time (1:14.91), he was followed extremely closely by Sophomore Isaiah Harris* in 1:14.96!

A half of a victory lap!

I had the pleasure to speak with Casimir after the race and can offer this exclusive quote, "That was fun."  He was thrilled that efforts to erase his record just two hours later fell apart for Duane Solomon in Boston.  He also confirms he will participate with my 10 Questions about 800M running for a future post with 800M legend Dave Wottle (Honorary member of 800U) and other PSU standouts.

Le faucon d'orange with Casimir Loxsom.

• And next up is the third School Record in a row by Freshman Danae Rivers!!!, this time in the Mile.  She demolished the existing record with a dominating 4:34.87. She followed that up with a leg of the 4x400M relay!  Her range is astounding.

Both Danae and Casimir attended the same high school, Wilbur Cross HS in Derby, CT.  Whatever is in the water there, we need some more of it here. Or maybe it's the pizza there. I hear it's the best in the world?

I had the pleasure to speak with several members of 800U during the meet.  Michael Slagowski had just made his debut in the 1000M, so I didn't bother him (much!).  Domenic Perretta* was in a good mood after his very fine 1200M performance on Friday and went on to win the 800M Invitational in 1:50.33, just off his PR.  He seems to be adjusting to the rigors of University well!

Dom Perretta winning the 800M.

Robbie Creese returned to the ranks of fresh sub-4 Milers with a splendid 3:59.73 and family members are interested in finally getting him the Alumni Singlet he deserves. Mark Hawkins (who ran the Open Mile on Friday!) actually has an extra Medium version with blank year space for any emergencies.  Let us know! (The next order may coincide with the Alumni Reunion/Coach Groves Golf Tourney and Big Ten Championships! Stay tuned to the blog with it all.)  Robbie followed that up with the finest rabbiting of the day in the 3000M. (Where were the Fullers when they were needed?)  Owen Dawson mixed it up with the runners in the 3000M, so wasn't able to rabbit any of the other events either.

Another School Record fell with the 9:07.22 3000M efforts of Tessa Barrett, fastest in the NCAA so far this year.  Right behind her was graduate Tori Gerlach in 9:10.09 who has outdoor eligibility remaining.

Others in attendance were Jess Riden and Bridget Franek in their new roles for Stanford and Akron respectively.  Sorry I missed both of you.

All in all, it was a great afternoon spent with friends both old (you know who you are!) and new.

And after all of this, I got to celebrate Chinese New Year with Daughter the Elder and Daughter the Younger at the Golden Wok in State College.  An excellent version of Kung Pao Chicken was had containing actual lip-numbing  szechuan peppercorns! These were banned in the US for many years.

* It is remotely possible that the "Lion Pride" Alumni Wrist Bands I presented to Isaiah and Dom had a bit to do with their excellent performances later in the afternoon.  Isaiah actually wore his during his Collegiate Record 600M!  And I am scouring all the crevices in my house to find a "800U" version for both of them.

Stolen Photos From The Blue/White Scrimmage

Either the Blue beat the White, or the White beat the Blue.  I'm not sure which.  And everyone ran weird distances in bizarre shirts.  The only consistent thing was Owen Dawson rabbiting many events and rocking the Alumni Singlet! All photos were stolen from our great friend Bob Trump.

Michael Slagowski's debut on the Ashenfelter Track.

Turkey Trots And More

First up is the phenomenon known as the York YMCA downtown Turkey Trot.  This year it brought in more than 5,100 runners for a brief tour of the city!  There were acquaintances who joined in and told me it took them more than 5 1/2 minutes to reach the starting line!

I would bet that less than 5,100 people venture into downtown York in all 364 other days of the year added together.  I have patients who live north of York and visit my office south of York and circle the entire city to get there.  A significant number haven't been into the city once since 1969 and the riots.  And as Dave Barry says, "I'm not making that up."

There are more than 5,100 behind that line!

Daughter the Elder and her ex-York Suburban teammates.

Mary Kate Curran dominated the snow, wind and the roads in Peru, NY with a dominating performance in the John P. Adams Memorial Turkey Trot 10K.  And I already know she's on Santa's good list for a great gift in a month or so!

The Fuller Bros. (Inc.) again owned the New Cumberland Turkey Trot.  Not sure if the entire harem was involved but Mary Dell also won the women's division.

The results photo was sent by Jeff Sanden (whose clan also can in New Cumberland) and turned in a world record time for someone just 2 or so weeks following an appendectomy!

And although it was a week earlier, the Dawson twins also turned in splendid performances in the Philadelphia 8K!  Close enough for a turkey! These results were supplied by our Chief Laundry and Morale Officer, who may begin his comeback in 3 years or so!

ROTHMAN INSTITUTE 8K RESULTS

            Men’s 8K Results

Thomas Awad, 22, Philadelphia, PA, 00:24:00

Louis Serafini, 25, Brighton, MA, 00:24:11

Owen Dawson, 28, Coatesville, PA, 00:24:18

Jonathan Phillips, 23, Boston, MA, 00:24:24

Kyle Dawson,

28, Philadelphia, PA, 00:24:25

And not to be left out, Joe Kovacs gets into the holiday spirit by tossing some bird in this promotional photo from USATF!

"Old School" Cross Country Uniforms

The season is underway in Happy Valley as evidenced by Owen Dawson taking splits while wearing an old fashioned singlet.  Notice the blue piping in addition to the logo.  These were almost exactly like those I wore in size XS back in the day (1977 to 1981).  The logo is larger than it used to be. The XS Dolfin short shorts (not these extra long basketball-like ones Owen is sporting!) and the old school jock strap* (Yeah, we really wore those for even the 18 milers in the Mountains!) are the only things missing!!!  Although for practice, the blues cotton shorts and grey cotton t-shirts were the uniform of the day. Every day. Rinse and repeat. At least we were told they were washed daily...

 

*

Airship 800U Christened

This is always my "one day off" every year.  I take the day off and make it up to State College to chill before the Reunion and Golf Tourney. 

I figured I better take the drone out and get it ready for the Alumni "Run" at the track because I had the time.  That will allow me to calibrate the compass and GPS systems.  And if the forecasts are correct, I may not be able to fly on Saturday anyway!

And lo and behold, who do I see at the track when I arrive but two of our Alumni Group working out on their own in their quest for post-college glory!  Steve Waithe was raking his own pit and Owen Dawson was clicking off a few intervals.

I took a few pics of the surroundings and flew the bird to the limit of 400 feet to look around.  All systems are go!

Steve Waithe.

Nittany Mountain will be conquered by my dog Pooky on Saturday.

Steeple pit is empty!

Owen Dawson Rocking The Alumni Singlet: And One Last Tribute

Owen Dawson has been hard at work for the Penn State Track Team, but has
still found the time to stay in terrific shape.  He has even moved up in distance at the Stanford Twilight Meet, an exciting change considering he wore his Alumni Singlet too! (Ean Disilvio in the same race, and confuses the announcers to no end because of our Alumni Singlet!!!)

Owen Dawson Rocks The Alumni Singlet! Men's 5k, Heat 1

And my last tribute to Prince... Now that word has leaked of Prince's rather tortured existence since the early 1980's, Eric Clapton's life comes into even more remarkable focus. Eric wrote his song Holy Mother after watching Purple Rain during a rather low point in his life, and credited it with helping bring him out of a deep depression.

It's Going To Be A Super Stupendous Year!

The Track Season has really gotten off to a tremendous start for the Penn State Family.  And it promises to be even better in the coming months.

Here's just some of the evidence:

• Robby Creese bettered his PR and American Collegiate Record (2012-2014)  in the 1000M at the Nittany Lion Challenge and placed second to Brannon Kidder!  Brannon's new PR is 2:18.26 (his first ever dabble in the event!) and is the overall Collegiate (NCAA) Record.  Robby, running unattached this Indoor Season, ran 2:21.89.

Incidentally, there are now 6 active NCAA athletes, including Brannon, with 800M times under 1:46.00!  Donavan Brazier, Texas A&M Freshman, ran 1:45.93 in his first ever collegiate 800M.  "Watson, the 800 game is afoot."

• Rachel Fatherly continues PSU's Shot Put tradition by winning the event by more than 3 feet with a heave of 56' 0.50".
• PSU Men have a very good sprinter in Xavier Smith, 6.69 School Record for 60M!
• The Pole Vault is well represented by both the Men and Women.
• Tori Gerlach warmed the crowd up for Brannon's effort with her own School Record in the 1000M in 2:43.15.
• Transfer Timothy McGowan (welcome BTW!) won the 3000M in 8:08.24 with Alum Owen Dawson placing second in 8:16.39 and FR Colin Abert in third, 8:19.00.
• Down Under's Jordan Makins won the Mile in 4:06.86 after rabbiting Brannon to his historic 1000M.
• Alex Shisler, progeny of PSU Greats Beth and Steve Shisler, continues his incredible career, dropping down from his usual 400M to place second in the 200M with 21:45.

Remember, there are plenty of opportunities to meet and interact with the PSU Team this year. Show your support for the program and help us make Oregon jealous!  There will be a Dinner at Rotelli's this Winter with the coaches (highly recommended!), an Alumni Reception at the Penn Relays, and our Alumni Reunion and Coach Groves Golf Tourney in May (20-21).  Be sure to stay tuned for all of these great events.  Our Alumni Efforts really do make a difference.  If you can't participate, there are numerous ways to give financial help to the Program, even by donating right here on the Right Sidebar.

Also, don't forget to click on the ads on our site occasionally (or often!) to help defray the increasing costs of blogging in this dangerous world. Some costs for photo storage, form security and procurement of Awards are becoming higher and higher. This lowly blogger is finding it harder and harder to afford the quality of Interns you are used to.  "Sharing" and reposting all of our content really helps also. My blog adheres to the International Creative Commons Non-commercial 4.0 Standard. That makes it really easy to repost, share and even add to my content to spread the word far-and-wide. 

Penn's Track Glass Is Only Half Full: Now With 2 Addendums!

 "The renovation allows the track to still have one of the widest radii in the country, which is important for running fast times."

-Steve Dolan, Penn Coach.

9 lanes, 6 "regulation"

So I was misled about the refurbishment of the Penn Track that occurred over the Summer.  Trust, but verify is the coin of the realm, I suppose.

Thanks to Owen Dawson for the heads up on this.   

I was assured that the $3 Million construction would make the track eligible for both NCAA and USATF Championships.  But that may not be the case.  I was told that there would be the required 8 lanes of 400M running room.  That is not the case.  There will be six 400M lanes amid the total of nine lanes.  The inside rail will still be between lanes 3 and 4.

There has been noticeable improvements and improved times are expected.  There will be available space to run the 100M in either direction to take advantage of the winds.  Jumping events will have better exposure also in either direction.  The awkward steeple pit has been moved from the outside curve to an inside position.  Finishing lines and starting lines for all events are improved.

Addendum: Also from a comment from Kelly O'Brien,

Tsk tsk!
I should have been a bit more clear on my June 23rd FB post. This is only stage 1 of construction. Moving the SC water pit shows the plans to host world etc sanctioned meets have been accepted. Penn is now working on the wall move vs. football game timing issue.

"Yeah babee...butt nekkid!
My sources find that there are plans to move the walls back 3-4 rows at least, flip the track, among much more. The facility submitted plans and started negotiations to obtain rights to host the ncaa championships on a recurring basis starting in early 20s. The facility should be fully restored by end of September to meet football needs.
It is also negotiating with usatf and other track orgs. The steeple pit location will tell you how the negotiations are going/went. The pics are unclear ss to its new location in relation to the original lanes 5-8.
(Someone needs to do some research and realize that the ncaa and other track orgs have been trying for decades to entice Penn to convert its track to host championships. The infrastructure and staff and all other resources have been deemed ideal and ANY meet short of the Olympic Athletics would be easily and safely accommodated.)"

Addendum II:  Is a Diamond League Meet Possible?

Summer Running Down The Shore

It was my wife's 22nd finish in a row at the Sea Isle City Beach Patrol 10-Mile Island Run.  Quite a streak.  I only made about half of that, and now just sit around while everyone else suffers through the most miserable run in the world. (I did run my usual 3 miles on a treadmill earlier!)  10 Miles, mostly on the beach, with three soft-sand crossovers to a macadam promenade for about 2 miles out of the ten.  Some years there are leaps over the jetties that vary from steps to cliffs depending on the beach erosion.  They try to time the event so that tides are good to have enough sand for running, especially the last 2 mile stretch to the finish.  This year the tide came in and people were dodging the sunbathers, their kid's deep holes dug into the beach AND knee deep waves.  And they added an extra obstacle this year as the the runners had to scale a sand berm 3 times, created by the sand reclamation dredging project.

Needless to say, i enjoyed sipping my Black Cherry Wishniak as I greeted Fellow Nittany Lions and waited for my wife to finish while sitting on a deck overlooking the festivities.

Penn State has a deep history at the event, with 3 victories in recent years by Tyler McCandless and Kyle Dawson.  I'm pretty sure there have been other notable finishes by Lion runners, but I'm too lazy to look them up right now.  Fill me in if anyone knows more!

Kyle Dawson returned after a one-year lay off from the event to place 2nd overall.  Owen Dawson was there to watch also.  (You know those Middle Distance runners think 10 miles is way too far.  In this case, I agree with him!)  I even got to deliver the reimbursement voted on by the entire Idiot Officer quorum at the last Reunion.  Owen hand-delivered the Golden Putter to the event in time for its presentation to this year's recipient.  He had to rent a car for the trip and didn't even get to stop by for a meal.  It's good to know both Dawsons plan on attending next year's festivities.

Kyle Dawson, 2nd overall

Kyle Dawson, Owen Dawson warming up.  Coincidentally, friend Bill Kehner appeared in the pic upon review in the blue shirt.  This is his 39th or so in-a-row.

Barb Black at the start.  She doesn't yet know about the sand berms...

Kyle Dawson at the half-way mark.

I'm Always Going To Be Outdone By The Youngsters

My vacation in nearby Harpers Ferry was scenic and tranquil (miserable internet sees to that!), but leave it to our younger set to outdo my vacation in a big way. Here are my favorite vacation spots for running.

Tim Johnson, Owen Dawson and Kyle Dawson headed west to meet Dennis Pollow for a tour of the western states.  Here's some of their photos I have stolen from various sources.  I don't think they will mind.

Kyle Dawson, Owen Dawson and Tim Johnson. Apparently they have been running!