SKAGIT FLATS MARATHON In recent years I’ve become aware of the course closure time of six hours at the Skagit Flats Marathon in Burlington, Washington. From 2007 through 2009 my cushion of time went from 10 minutes to 3 minutes to ½ minute of being ahead of the allotted time to finish. I had run 13 marathons so far in 2010, and the results suggested that my 2010 time was likely to be 6 ½ hours on September 12. I was pleasantly surprised when our good friend, race director Terry Sentinella, established early starts for those who needed some extra time to complete the course. I was glad to hear of this so that I wouldn’t have to worry about “beating the clock” and inconveniencing the volunteers and race officials if I had a slow day. We drove from our Renton home to packet pickup on Saturday and then stayed in nearby Mt. Vernon with our son Jeff Stensland. If you’ve run the Yakima River Canyon Marathon, you may have met Jeff in the last decade. He has driven his big pickup truck and trailer 200 miles (each way) every year to transport the runners’ drop bags from the gathering area at the Days Inn in Ellensburg to the finish line in rural Selah. He also has brought Jerry Martin and his racing wheelchair from Yakima to Ellensburg each year that Jerry has participated. On Sunday morning we parked at the Burlington-Edison High School race headquarters. I said my goodbye to Lenore and walked through the school grounds with two other runners to the starting line. I checked my watch at a street light, and it read 6:00 a.m. It was time to go…..so I started my watch timer and started the race! The temperature was 55 degrees on this dark, calm and rainy morning. There were sidewalks and streetlights in the city that disappeared after two miles when I came to the countryside. My reflective vest alerted oncoming traffic, so I felt safe. It was a treat to run in darkness and then watch the light increase in the first hour to daylight. My presence flushed many blackbirds (probably red-winged blackbirds) in dim light from a roadside drainage ditch. Later in the day, I saw a Great Blue Heron and a small flock of Canada Geese flying overhead. Barn Swallows, Starlings and House Sparrows were noted near farmsteads. I had a nice visit with Marathon Maniacs (MM) Brett Bellevue and his wife Dawn Bellevue in the early miles as they ran a walk-run pattern with frequent alternations. I followed along but lagged behind in the second half. As an out-and-back course, there was opportunity to visit many runners along the way. Stan Nakashima, Diana Robinson and Rick Haase, 7:00 a.m. starters, were the first ones that I met. Carol Dellinger, an early starter, and I greeted each other near the halfway turnaround. At Mile 18 my friend of over 15 years, Jon Nevitt, passed me but we had a chance to visit for a short time before he went on. It was interesting to see the fastest runners. Kevin Cave, 30, of Milwaukie, Oregon, won with a time of 2:38:18, and Oliver Bear Don’t Walk, 17, of Everson came in second with a 2:39:07. On the heels of the front pair was Dan Sheil, 37, of Portland, Oregon with a 2:39:20, only 13 seconds behind. In fourth place was Cliff Richards, 49, MM, of Maple Valley with a time of 2:58:24. The women’s winner was Marita Trohimovich, 43, of Gig Harbor who ran by with no other woman in sight. She won with a time of 3:16:21. Kay Evans, 48, of Chocowinity, North Carolina, was second with a 3:21:51. Third place went to Tracy Nelson, 44, of Sumner with a 3:23:13. At the beginning of the last 10K my running gait became ineffective, so I went to a continuous walk at a 16 minute pace. I was comfortable throughout, and I attribute this to the overcast skies and continual rain and temperatures no higher than 60 degrees. For many years we had to circle the high school before we went on to the track to the finish line. In recent years it was changed so that we left the city street and went directly to the finish line, a much better route. I finished with a 6:27:33, 203rd of 206 and first 80 year old male. Lenore gave me a hug, an attractive finishers medal and a place to sit down. It was another great Skagit Flats Marathon! Thanks go to Terry Sentinella, his committee and the volunteers for making it happen. …………………………..Written by Bob Dolphin
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PARTIAL RESULTS - SKAGIT FLATS MARATHON……Sept. 12, 20102:38:18 Kevin Cave, 30, Milwaukie, OR, OVERALL WINNER, 1st in Age Division |