On The Run (January 2009)

(This "On the Run" column first appeared January 2009 in The Daily Progress)

Many longtime sports fans have dubbed 2008 as the “best sports year ever” and I also think that we had a banner year in our local running world. There were thousands of local tales of personal accomplishments, like all of the women who did battle with one of the hottest days of the year to finish their first Four Miler and all of the former couch potatoes, who ran in the coldest local race weather ever to complete their first Men’s Four Miler or all of the folks who completed their first marathon or who qualified for the Boston Marathon. I’ve selected ten of what I consider to be some of the most significant area running stories of the year. These are in no particular order but represent a solid cross section of some of the best of 2008…

1. The Albemarle High School boys 4 x 800 squad went on a four month track tear like no other in recent memory, as they dropped the longstanding school record from 8:03 to a phenomenal 7:42, culminating with a second place finish at the National Championships in June. “The Four Horseman” of Zach Vrhovac, Anthony Kostelac, Garrett Bradley and Luke Noble, all underclassmen, were guided by legendary Coaches Buz Male and Lance Weisend and earned a spot in the state record book as the second fastest team in Virginia history!
2. The same group of lickety spilt lads, with the help of speedsters Nathan Rouse, Evan Karweik and Ben Deel, stunned the “experts” with a second place finish in the AAA division of the State Cross Country Championships in November. Seeded 8^th before the meet, this amazing team represented the highest Championship finish in school history.
3. UVa’s Men’s Cross Country squad, under the able leadership of Coach Jason Vigilante, rocketed to their third ACC title in the last four years, prompting many conference harrier fans to utter the “D” (as in dynasty) word. Senior Ryan Foster was the overall champion, making him the first male Cavalier in school history to score a blue ribbon at this prestigious championship meet.
4. And while I’m still reminiscing about our amazing area harriers, the Woodberry Forest Boys and the Covenant Girls earned a spot in this list as they won their respective State Cross Country Private School Championships.
5. Western Albemarle Senior Kyle Satterwhite saved the best cross country race of his high school career for last as he rocketed to a 20^th place finish at the High School National Championships in San Diego in December. Satterwhite was only the 6^th area runner in history to make it to the most prestigious prep harrier race in the land.
6. The Charlottesville Track Club’s Women’s Four Miler became the first ever area footrace to break the 3,000 participant mark. Longtime race director and founder Cynthia Lorenzoni was able to hand a check for $321,000 to the fine folks at UVa’s Breast Care Center. Thanks to the hard working women, who participated in the fundraising and ran in the race, this figure is believed to be the largest single donation from any footrace in the nation.
7. Former Western Albemarle standout Tasmin Fanning and Covenant’s all-time top cross country runner Austin Ellis both earned Collegiate All-American cross country honors this past fall. Fanning, who now competes for Virginia Tech, was simply awesome in 2008, as she not only finished third at NCAA Cross Country Nationals but also added a 9^th place finish in the 5,000 finals at the Outdoor Track Olympic Trials.
8. The area racing scene exploded as over 60 local events were held, hosting over 10,000 pairs of feet in the process. Many of these events like The Pepsi 10K, The Amnesty International Valentines Run, The Boar’s Head Turkey Trot, The Run for Shelter, The Kiwanis Fourth of July 5K, The Discovery Dash, The Carl Tribastone 5K, The MJ8K, The Bright Stars 5K, The Men’s Four Miler and The Run for Autism are not-for profit events directed by community volunteers. Thanks to this volunteerism these popular races were in turn able to pass along over $500,000 to a variety of area causes.
9. Former Western Albemarle and William and Mary speedster Charlie Hurt took the lead a little over half way through the race and never looked back as he took home the title at The 33^rd Charlottesville Ten Miler, the area’s oldest and most prestigious footrace. Olympic Trials marathoner Dana Thiele was the female champion, a title she would also capture at The Women’s Four Miler a few months later.
10. Courageous locals like Carol Finch, Jason Braunstein, Rob Stewart, Kristen Smith-Bain and Perrin Quarles, who battled back from health challenges like cancer and strokes, inspired us area runners to give it just that much more when out on the roads or trails of our beautiful community.