Daniel Ifcher, David Dorsey, Mark Lindrud, Brad Kelley, Jeff Dengate and David Greenberg
Photo: Mikal Christopher Scott
The men’s 50-59 squad continues to dominate its division during CPTC’s strong early season. Following a first-place win at the Washington Heights Salsa, Blues, and Shamrocks 5K, the squad has maintained its top place by winning the 50+ age group in both the UAE Healthy Kidney 10K and the Popular Brooklyn Half. Most significantly, the last two races have demonstrated the depth of the team by using five scoring members over the last two races.
In April, Central Park was filled with many colors, from daffodils, dogwoods, and race uniforms. The great weather at race time led to some impressive performances. Squad members Mark Lindrud, Brad Kelley, Daniel Ifcher and David Greenberg filled four of the top six places in the 50-54 age group. The CPTC 50+ team time of 1:47:51 crushed 2nd place DWRT (1:54:40) and third NBR (1:57:28). Marc Mizrahi, returning to the streets for the first-time following November 2017 Haglund’s (heel/ankle) surgery, was sixth on the team and finished 9th in the 55-59 age group. All told, eleven 50-59 CPTC racers completed the event. The 50+ crew also assisted the 40+ group win their division with Lindrud and Kelley taking the two top places in that scoring division. Mark’s 35:22 also placed him at #3 on the CPTC masters best list.
In retrospect, the team ran strong despite some challenges. David Dorsey, feeling the effects of having run in the Masters 4×400 at the Penn Relays the day before, said that he “thoroughly enjoyed the race and seeing so much Orange and Blue out there! I pushed that last mile to clock just over 39 minutes – not too shabby!” His finish time, at 39:10 (78 AG%), placed him 5th on the squad and 13th for the age group. Daniel Ifcher has been returning to race fitness following a January 2018 injury – “[injuries are] no joke ever but it’s really no joke when you’re over 50!” Brad Kelley was dealing with nagging glute issue and Mark Lindrud was experiencing some early signs of a strained calf and tight hamstring which later worsened prior to the Brooklyn Half.
David Greenberg stated and met a goal shared by all Masters Runners, “[a finish] time faster than last year.” He has returned to running in the 79-80 AG% range that he has historically been in and the race “felt like a return to normalcy after some tough months.” And while Kelley doesn’t “know how runners ‘surge’ in races”, Greenberg works on chasing and racing with people he knows. Greenberg’s main goal for this year is getting back under 18 minutes for a 5K. His 38:13 (79.3 AG%) indicates that that time is in sight.
Also – Many thanks to our CPTC supporters. Post-race comments frequently include appreciation for those who provide support at the race. Kelley states: “It was great to have the unofficial baggage check.” Many others made comments such as Ifcher’s, “Great to hear all of those cheers, thank you!”
Daniel Ifcher
Photo: Andy Kiss
The Brooklyn Half, run on a beautiful morning in May led to some fantastic performances for the 14 CPTC 50-59 age group finishers. Daniel Ifcher, David Greenberg, and David Dorsey provided the team with a combined 4:11:45 first-place time, two minutes ahead of second-place PPTC (4:13:45) and third-place NBR (4:16:05). Ifcher, despite not feeling 100%, placed 3rd in his age group, running 1:22:11 (79.3 AG%). He states, “I ended up feeling my way through ~6:05 paces along Ocean Parkway and just holding that pace. I didn’t have more, but I’m still happy with the result.” Not too shabby!
Our other two age group scorers prevailed despite some challenges before and during the race. David Greenberg entered the event a bit tired from recent races but held to his pre-race objective of getting under 84 minutes. He “got the park right” and felt good enough to pick up his pace early on Ocean Parkway. His fatigue did hit midway down the Parkway although he was able to push himself until the last mile. In the end Greenberg finished with his fastest time out of his last four attempts. He crossed the finish line at 1:23:49 (78.1 AG%) despite running only around 35 miles per week. David Dorsey suffered from a late entry into the corrals. From his position, “it took about a minute just to get to the start line. Needless to say, it threw off [his] rhythm” during the early part of the race. Near the end Dorsey benefited from pacing by fellow CPTC Kenny Tso and the ever-present screams of encouragement from Coach Tony.
Fellow 50-59 squad members Edwin Hernandez and Andre’ Lejeune both indicated that they are coming back from time away from racing. Edwin’s goal to finish under 1:30 was thwarted by the Prospect Park hills and heat of the day. He finished at 1:33:01 (71.3 AG%) and anticipates that with a bit more speed from club workouts he’ll get that time at Staten Island. Andre’, having been away from racing for three years due to various injuries, felt happy with 1:36:12 (69.5 AG%). This was his third time running the Brooklyn Half, route of his half-marathon PR (1:25:34); he states, “It was such a joy to run and train hard pain free” and he’s looking forward to the next race. We’ll keep an eye on both of these guys.