Sunday, August 09, 2009
Men's team wins Bridge of Flowers 10km
Ryan Place ran his first race in a GBTC uniform.On the day before the race Dan Smith took the team on a tour of the Shelburne Falls 10 km course. The key to this race is knowing and understanding the monster hill called Crittendon. The road rises from the valley where the Deerfield River flows over the falls up and around tree canopied turns that conceal the pitch each runner will confront in the next minute. Crittendon raises 400 feet in a mile. The running speeds change tremendously in the race because of these contours. David Bedoya who placed 10th averaging 5:21 per mile for the 10 km ran up the monster in 6:40 and down in 4:50. New GBTC member Ryan Place who hadn't raced in months ran cautiously with the following pack up the hills. Eric Blake and Justin Freeman led to the crest. Place wanted to be intact for the downhills. At the top they ran threw a cooling spray from garden hoses and past a seated musician playing a jolly accordion. On this picture post-card perfect day the runners all cooled and wet flew down the dirt road and back into the valley. Ryan Place came alive with speed.Place won the race in 32:10 followed by Dan Smith in 9th at 33:08, Bedoya in 33:15, Jon Korhonen in 33:16, and Kevin Somers in 33:21. These five in the top 12 clinched the team title for GBTC and the $350 in prize money for the club. Place won $250 for first and Smith and Bedoya collected some cash too.Interviewed after the race Place said this to Bill Wells of The Republican:"I've never run a course like this. I'm not a great hill runner. To be honest I was hoping just not to get annihilated. I was trying to conserve as much energy as I could on that hill."As soon as we hit the flats, I was feeling pretty good. I found my stride, and I was pulling in the two guys ( Eric Blake and Justin Freeman). I hit the last mile, got excited, got a little bit of an adrenaline rush and carried it home."David Hantman in his debut ran 36:40 for 21st place. The club's only female entrant, Beth Harlow, ran 18th among women in 44:25.Dan Smith, who grew up in Shelburne Falls, arranged a sumptuous barbecue for the team as well as lodging on the night before. There really is a bridge over the Deerfield River that was once a railroad and is now a flower garden.Full results here.
No comments:
Post a Comment