Congratulations to the CPTC Mens 50-59 team at the Staten Island Half Marathon!  The squad continued to dominate its age group by decisively winning the race team title while also securing the 2019 NYRR Age Group Championship!

Just two weeks after the Bronx 10-Mile race, the group demonstrated its speed by having all five finishers in the top 25 of the age category.  CPTC’s team scorers were Mohammed Lahseni (1:19:02), Daniel Gercke (1:21:53), and David Dorsey (1:27:00).  Their combined time of 4:07:55 was nearly 14 minutes ahead of second place Misty Mountain Runners.

We are pleased to have Mohammed Lahseni join the 50+ Age Group this year.  Mohammed’s time of 1:19:02 places him at #8 on the CPTC Top 10 all-time M50+ list.  This was a great performance for Mohammed – out of 16 NYRR half-marathons since 1998, this was Mohammed’s sixth fastest finish and his best time since 2015 and only 5:43 off his PR of 1:13:19 from 21 years ago. He also helped the M40-49 team to its third-place finish. 

We welcome Daniel Gercke’s return to racing after 4 years.  Daniel recalls that he “went out fast [and] managed to hang on because I found good pacers. Latched on to Ken Tso and Stephen Curtis in late miles, and while I mostly observed their receding backs, they were the inspiration I needed to make it up those mean final hills. It was a blast to see everyone and get back to business. Awesome team effort!”  Daniel, who has a history of AG 80+ performances, is another great addition to the 50+ Age Group.

David Dorsey, a team scorer at the Bronx 10 miler two weeks ago, returned to racing in Staten Island with a positive attitude.  David states, “Once again I stepped out to do my best for the team.  I knew going in that it wasn’t going to be my best performance.  But, despite the nasty hills of Fort Wadsworth, I was able to hang on to sneak under 6:40 pace.  I’m very grateful for our team effort, especially my 50+ guys.  We did it again!  Special “shout-out” to Coach Sid Howard who in the last 300 meters told me to wait a few seconds then kick it in towards the uphill finish!!”

Rounding out the Masters 50-59 team: 

Herve Megras set a half-marathon PR at Staten Island, running 1:29.22.  His previous PR was set three years (1099 days) ago on the same course.  His speedy 2019 time dropped 4 minutes, 35 seconds from 2016.  Great race Herve!

Edwin Hernandez also showed up to run fast.  His 1:30:49 finish was his fastest performance in five years.  Edwin is also building a legacy at Staten Island as this was his 9th consecutive finish.

CPTC Men 50-59 Squad Results

Overall Place

Gender Place

Age Place

Name

Pace

Net Time

AG Percent

95

92

1

Mohammed Lahseni

6:02

1:19:02

82.44

172

163

3

Daniel Gercke

6:15

1:21:53

81.71

331

306

7

David Dorsey

6:39

1:27:00

76.22

462

426

17

Herve Megras

6:49

1:29:22

72.91

558

509

24

Edwin Hernandez

6:56

1:30:49

73.01

 

As stated above, the CPTC men 50-59 team clinched the Age Group Title for 2019 with this win at Staten Island.  That makes four years in a row that this CPTC squad has won the annual title.

Only two NYRR points races (NYC Marathon & Ted Corbitt 15K) remain in 2019.  Many team members are now fine-tuning their training for the marathon while others are eyeing the 2019 USATF National Club Cross Country Championships on December 14 in Bethlehem, PA.  CPTC Mens XC-team captain David Greenberg has answers to any questions about this race.

And congratulations to our M50-59 Chicago marathon racers (apologies if I missed anyone):  We recognize Gregg Lemos-Stein (3:11:13) and Ron Romano (3:16:34) for their achievements on a cold, damp day.  This was Ron’s second marathon in a few weeks (Berlin @ 3:15) and he is also racing in NYC in two weeks.  Good luck Ron!

 Thank you – Mark Lindrud