Where can I start but with the mighty men’s 50+ at team champs? What force of nature brought together Alan Ruben, Michael Rennock, Peter Allen (pictured), Yasuhiro Makoshi, Stuart Calderwood, Tom Raymond and others onto a single team? And kept them (mostly) healthy? I don’t know, but they put three runners in the top 10 at champs and continued their 2010 undefeated streak – five races in a row, maximum points each time.  Alan Ruben again had the best age-graded race of the day: 86.1%/29:00. The men’s 40+ took third and we did not field a m60+ team.  

On the women’s side at champs, the highlight was Yumi Ogita’s steamroller win in the 45-49 with an 86.8%/31:05. The next finisher was somewhere downtown, 45 seconds behind. Deb Barchat also won her age group with an 81.5%/39:18, 10 seconds faster than last year.  The 60+ took third, while the 50+ and 40+ finished second.

This race brings out the Solinsky in most of us, and as usual there was a flock of 52-week-age graded PRs. Standouts were Robert Siegel and Ani Go, who recorded their best ever age graded performances (distances greater than a mile)  in the NYRR database. Others setting yearly bests were Giovanni Caracci, Harry Lichtenstein, Philip Vasquez, Josh Rayman, Jesus Mateo de Castro and Christopher Potter.

July was the summer of orange discontent:  no PRs were set in Central Park. However, Yasuhiro Makoshi won two races and Stuart Calderwood took home the Lucite in the Run for Central Park on July 17.

The malaise ended July 31 at the Founder’s Day 5k as CPTCers were made glorious by the sun of Brooklyn. Three all-time age-graded PRs hit the books: Christopher Potter (77.8%/18:13), Doug Labar (79.0%/19:27) and David Greenberg (79.0%/17:33).  Six of us won age groups: Jesus Mateo de Castro, Alan Ruben, Doug Labar, Jill Vollweiler, Deb Barchat and Caryl Baron.

The Bronx was not as friendly as Brooklyn to the team; at the Bronx Half only Giovanni Caracci took aim at a PR and took it down with prejudice with his 68.7%/1:43.

If our northernmost borough was rough for CPTCers, the West Coast proved welcoming.  Around a dozen CPTCers went to Sacramento in late July for the USATF Masters Track Championship, and came back East with the hardware. Gold medalists included Sid Howard, twice (800 and 1500), Lisa Daley also twice (200 and 400) Darnell Gatling (400h), and Mary Rosado (2000 SC). Mary Diver won a bronze medal in the 2000 SC.    

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