news-record.com

Runners, eat your hearts out.

Here was Jen Goff’s day in Saturday’s Richmond Marathon: One hour and 36 minutes for the first half of the 26.2-mile race. A mere 1:30 for the second half.

The negative split -- and an impressive one. Not bad for a marathon rookie.

Goff’s time of 3:06.35 placed her 15th among women and 116th overall and easily qualified her for the Boston Marathon.

But make no mistake, Goff, 29, isn’t a running rookie. Goff got started as a youngster, going out with her dad, Jim Reid, who surprised his girl by showing up to cheer for her Saturday. Goff competed in track and field and cross country in high school (Bethel, Conn.) and at Lehigh University. In college, she specialized in the 5K and 10K distances on the track.

“It finally came down to me saying, ‘Why haven’t I done a marathon?’” she says.

So she put together her own training plan, beginning in July, and ran six days per week, maxing out at 53 miles per week.

“I got the long run up to about a 22-mile run,” says Goff, who works in UNCG’s Division of Student Affairs. “Each week I added a little at a time. I did some tempo runs, didn’t go too crazy on the speed work. I had a lot of confidence and had fun with it.”

“Fun” is a word that pops up often with the Greensboro resident.

“As much as I love running, I didn’t want it to get in the way of other things I have going on,” she says. “I never want running to be a chore. I made sure it was always fun. If I needed an extra day off, I would take it. I relaxed through it as much as I could.”

Goff took a cautious approach early in Saturday’s race, hooking up with a pace group that would’ve escorted her to the finish line in 3:15.

“I just wanted to see how it felt,” she says.

But she felt so good, she says, that she’d find herself a few steps ahead of the group and drawing the pacer’s admonitions.

“You’re going to regret it later.”

“Take it easy.”

But at 11 miles, her positive split from the pace group led to a negative split in the race.

“I just didn’t say anything,” she says. “I really, really appreciated -- his name was Dave -- keeping me in check. But when I started to go, I picked it up so drastically he just let me go. My next mile I had dropped about 30 seconds in one mile."

As her training plan and the getaway indicate, Goff likes to go out on her own. She enjoys the company of group runs, and she met her husband, Mike, when both ran for Lehigh. But running time is Goff’s time.

“It’s my time to think about what I want, go where I want to go, go as fast or as slow as I want, to burn off steam if I have any to burn off,” she says. “It’s my time to myself every day.”

(Above: Mike Hassett at the Richmond Marathon, with sons Timmy, left, and Danny)

Twenty-five seconds.

That’s all Mike Hassett had to spare after running for three and a half hours in Saturday’s Richmond Marathon. But Hassett, 47, crossed the line in three hours, 30 minutes and 34 seconds and qualified to run in the Boston Marathon.

Exhilaration, right? Yeah, but he almost didn’t make it.

Hassett aimed for the 3:30:59 or better that would get him to Boston, but that was 10 minutes faster than he had run in either of his two previous marathons. And he was strong at the half, then a couple of miles later after a gel packet. By mile 20, he learned he had dropped the rest of his gels. And by mile 24, he contemplated the dreaded DNF – Did Not Finish.

“I started feeling bad,” says Hassett, who lives with his wife, Mary Ann, and three sons near the Cardinal in Greensboro. “I felt kinda dizzy, just not feeling that great. If I had seen a policeman at mile 25, I might’ve stopped.”

He didn’t, holding his pace of eight minutes per mile, and he reached mile 25 with 3:20 elapsed on his watch. Only 1.2 miles to go, most of it downhill, and 10-plus minutes to get there.

“That really gave me a boost,” Hassett says. “If I could stay on my feet, I knew it would be close.”

Hassett stayed on his feet, but little else occupied his mind.

“I really just rolled down the hill,” he says. “My 12-year-old (Danny) had a big sign and I missed it. I was focusing on the road. I couldn’t move my head because I was afraid I was going to faint.”

A close finish always makes for a good story, but Hassett is a good story for another reason. He quit smoking in 2000, but he replaced that bad habit with poor eating. Lean for most of his life, Hassett packed on pounds and ultimately tipped the scales at 205 pounds (he’s 5 feet 11) -- until his middle son, Timmy, got involved with the GO FAR program. GO FAR teaches students about nutrition, character education and running, and Hassett joined Timmy in the 5K race at the end of his school’s program.

“I’ve never stopped running after that,” Hassett says.

Neither has Timmy, a sophomore on Northwest Guilford’s cross country team.

“All of us, the last five years, this is a big part of the Hassett family,” Mike Hassett says. “I owe a lot to GO FAR.”

As for Boston, ah, that’s where the feel-good part of the story ends, at least for now. Hassett got online Saturday night to sign up for the April classic, only to find the field full and registration closed. His qualifying time is good for two years.

“I couldn’t believe it,” he says. “I’ll have to run it in 2011. But I will run.”

Here’s what a big deal completing a 5K road race is: That about 750 students, mostly ages 9-11, would prepare by staying after school, with a teacher, a couple of days a week for 10 weeks.

Wait … Staying after school? Ten weeks? What?

That’s the impact that High Point resident Robin Lindsay’s organization GO FAR, or Go Out For a Run, is having in schools and on students in Guilford County and beyond. Counting the teachers and parents, about 1,000 of them completed the GO FAR 5K on Saturday in High Point. That’s about 400 more than participated in a similar spring event.

“The schools really like it, because they kinda own the event,” Lindsay says. “They come, have their tents with their names -- Jefferson Elementary, Colfax, Southwest. The kids get to meet with the teacher, stretch with their teacher. They get that feeling of being with their group, their peers and mentors. They really enjoy seeing other schools, kids from other areas. It’s unlike at any other race, where it’s mainly adults and a scattering of children. This is predominantly children, with a scattering of adults.”

Her training program, a one-time cost of $89 to a school, is more than just running. Lindsay started her 501(c)3 organization after seeing so many issues with childhood obesity during her work as a physicians assistant. The curriculum includes instruction to students about nutrition, but also character education and, yes, running technique and training. Students alternate running and walking over 30 minutes as they build endurance during the 10 weeks.

“As a PA, I was seeing all the young kids, 18 and 19, already overweight, their blood pressure is up, they’re depressed,” Lindsay says. “That was bothersome to me. So I wanted to get kids active, teach them about nutrition, make ‘em understand the long-term consequences are not good for people who are obese. It’s important to get going now.”

Teachers help their students get going by volunteering their time after school to lead the program. And the students’ participation, of course, is voluntary as well.

And it’s rockin’. Greensboro's Morehead Elementary, under physical education teacher Vicky Schrock's leadership, sent 90 runners to Saturday's race.

At Johnson Street Global Studies K-8 Magnet in High Point, eight students took part in GO FAR last year. This fall: 50. And only three had run a 5K.

“To see the excitement and the joy and the enthusiasm on their faces just before they started the race is probably one of the best feelings I’ve ever had,” says Michelle Bode, Johnson Street's PE teacher. “They were excited about being physically active, being with somebody else, and not sitting on the couch.”

And for the next GO FAR race? “Our group could potentially double,” she says.

Sara Walker, the PE teacher at Claxton Elementary in Greensboro, helped Lindsay develop the program in 2003 as part of project while Walker attended High Point University. Walker and two other teachers led 27 Claxton students in preparing for Saturday’s race.

“This really is a phenomenal program for children,” Walker says. “You just wouldn’t believe the reaction and the faces on these kids when they cross over the finish line, knowing what they’ve accomplished.”

Lindsay wants for children all over the country to feel that sense of accomplishment.

“This is pie in the sky,” she says, “but I would love for it to be similar to the Susan G. Komen events, where you have races all over the country to raise awareness about breast cancer. I’d like to see kid races across the country, where kids learn about the importance of physical activity.”

More about GO FAR.

GO FAR's annual report

Contact Robin Lindsay by email or call her at 558-7661.

NCRunnerDude's blog post about the GO FAR 5K

NCRunnerDude's video about the GO FAR 5K

From a news release from the High Point Regional Health System:

HIGH POINT, N.C. – Does your bucket list include completing a half marathon? If so, High Point Regional Health System and its Fitness Center, wants to help you accomplish that goal on March 20, 2010.

“High Point Regional’s ‘Lucky 13 Challenge’ will include up to 13 novice runners who will participate in the state’s half marathon,” said Steve Golinski, exercise physiologist at High Point Regional’s Fitness Center. “Participants will be selected based on a convincing letter in which candidates explain why they should be chosen for this opportunity.”

Once interested participants submit a letter explaining why they should be chosen for this opportunity, a fitness assessment will be given to ensure participants are cleared by a doctor.

This challenge is unique for several reasons. First, the Lucky 13 Challenge is for non-traditional runners; those who never dreamed of completing a half marathon or those who simply want to push themselves to accomplish something they never thought possible.

To prepare for the North Carolina Half Marathon, which will take place in High Point, the 13 participants will receive a number of benefits. This includes: a free fitness assessment to ensure participants are healthy enough to complete the program, 20 free supervised weeks of personal training by an exercise physiologist at High Point Regional’s Fitness Center, three educational workshops at the Fitness Center, one free run/walk gait analysis, discounts on membership to the Fitness Center and metabolic testing and a team T-shirt.

Only 13 participants will be selected for this unique opportunity and training will start soon; therefore, don’t miss this opportunity to cross another item off your bucket list.

If you would like to be considered for the Lucky 13 Challenge or have questions, please contact Steve Golinski at (336) 878-6221 or e-mail him at sgolinski@hprhs.com.

From an email:

The MadMayo Running Club, a newly (and loosely!) organized group of runners based in Madison and Mayodan, invites runners of all levels to its next group run, on Saturday, November 21, at 10 a.m.

Join the MMRC gang for a fun and sometimes hilly 3-mile run around Madison. Afterward, you might want to hang out in town for the day to enjoy old-time music, arts and crafts, and barbecue at ShineFest, hosted by the good folks at the Southern Culture Society. Rumor has it racing and moonshine legend Junior Johnson will be in town!

Who: Runners of all abilities and speeds.

What: MadMayo Running Club 3-Mile Group Run.

When: 10 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 21.

Where: Meet at Murphy and Dalton streets (near Piedmont Distillers), Madison.

Why: Burn a few calories before pigging out on barbecue. Door prizes!

Cost: All MMRC group runs are free!

(Note: MMRC is not affiliated with or sponsored by ShineFest or the Southern Culture Society. We just love a good festival, especially when barbecue is involved!)

MadMayo Running Club (MadMayoRunningClub.com) welcomes runners, joggers, trotters and walkers of all ages and abilities. From beginning joggers to hardcore marathoners, everyone's invited! MMRC is based in Madison/Mayodan in Rockingham County, but members can live anywhere. To find out about scheduled group runs and other club events, visit MadMayoRunningClub.com or email info@madmayorunningclub.com.If you'd like more information about this event or about the MadMayo Running Club, call Josh Sutcliffe at 423-9314.

From a news release:

HIGH POINT — The runners’ goals sound familiar enough: They want to get healthy, run fast, finish the race and earn a medal. But most of the 950-plus registrants who will toe the line for the GO FAR 5k on Saturday, November 14, aren’t your average road-race participants. As elementary students, the youth have been training since September with their physical education teachers. Many of the students will run or walk the 3.1-mile race as their first athletic endeavor.

As concerns about the prevalence of childhood obesity and its related health complications grow, the GO FAR program offers a tangible, low-cost solution: teach kids to enjoy an activity that requires only sneakers and the great outdoors. The rewards, along with improved fitness, include the satisfaction of meeting a goal and crossing the finish line.

The nonprofit GO FAR—Go Out For A Run—based in High Point, NC, has offered the fitness program since 2003, when physician assistant Robin Lindsay created the ten-week curriculum in consultation with teachers, nutritionists, and other health professionals. Students at nearly 30 schools throughout the Triad now attend after-school GO FAR sessions twice a week to learn about healthy eating and character skills as well as to train for the race. Physical education teachers voluntarily lead the afternoon “club” sessions.

“Our elementary physical education specialists truly care about their students, the communities they serve, and their schools,” says Sharon Parks, the K-12 physical education and health curriculum specialist for Guilford County Schools. “Thank you to all the PE specialists who volunteer their time and energy in promoting healthy behaviors and sharing the fun in fitness with their students. And kudos to Robin for her tireless efforts in promoting fitness in youth!“

With more than 950 registered runners, the fall 2009 event is the largest GO FAR race to date. The starting gun goes off at 9 a.m. from Advanced Home Care, 4001 Piedmont Parkway (off Rt. 68), High Point, NC.

From a news release:

The newly formed Tobacco Road Marathon Association (TRMA) has announced the first marathon starting in Cary and traversing the American Tobacco Trail. The race is confirmed for March 21, 2010, starting at 7 a.m.

TRMA is a group of highly experienced marathon runners and athletic event production managers headed by Cid Cardoso Jr., the president and founder of Inside-Out Sports, and five-time Boston marathon veteran Kazem Yahyapour.

"Our goal is to give runners the best opportunity possible to qualify for the Boston Marathon," says Yahyapour, who was co-founder of the successful City of Oaks Marathon. "We believe we have put together the fastest course in North Carolina."

The scenic course includes 18 miles of the American Tobacco Trail for the marathon and 7 miles for the half. Runners will start from the USA Baseball/Thomas Brooks Park complex in Cary. TRMA believes they will deliver an ideal performance environment for runners with a course largely devoid of hills and an average temperature for March 21 of 52 degrees Fahrenheit.

Plans call for proceeds to go to the Wounded Warriors Project, American Heart Association and the Triangle Rails to Trails Conservancy (TRTC).

Details about the event including online registration and training tips can be obtained through TRMA's Web site at www.tobaccoroadmarathon.com. You can also become a friend of "Tobacco Road" on Facebook.

The best goodie bags. Organized cheering groups, flanked by pep bands or drum lines, giving shoutouts to runners all around the course. And a professional race announcer calling out the names of finishers as they cross the line.

Melissa Fourrier, the director of the North Carolina Marathon, says her organization is focused on the runner experience as preparations continue for the event March 20 in High Point. The race's slogan is, "Put some fun in your run at the N.C. Marathon."

“Last year we were focused more on getting the course squared away, course safety, water stations,” Fourrier says. “This year that’s in place, so we’re looking more at fringe benefits for the runners.”

The race was in Greensboro in its debut in May 2008, then in High Point in May 2009. The March 20 date on the 2010 calendar will fall about six weeks earlier and most likely in cooler weather.

The cheer zones will be a new feature, Fourrier says. Fourteen are scheduled to be spread around the course, and Fourrier is inviting community and school groups, including pep bands and drum lines, to get involved, to scream and to make signs to encourage runners. There’s even prize money: $500 to the charity of the winning cheer zone’s choice.

And Fourrier has recruited Creigh Kelley, a longtime race director, consultant and announcer nationally, to work the event.

“Just stepping it up a notch,” she says.

The goal is to get 4,000 runners registered for the marathon, half-marathon and 5K, Fourrier says.

Other highlights related to the race:

TRAINING SCHOOL: Liz Lindsay will coordinate a training school for the three races. A registration event is set for 6-8 p.m. Nov. 19 at the Deep River Recreation Center, 1529 Skeet Club Road, High Point.

THE STARS ARE OUT: Endurance runner Charlie Engle of Greensboro will be the honorary chairman. Olympic gold medalist Joey Cheek, a Greensboro native, will be grand marshal and will judge the cheer zones.

TITLE SPONSOR: UnitedHealthcare is back as the title sponsor, which means $50,000 in cash from the company to race organizers and $15,000 in in-kind contributions, Fourrier says. The race’s budget is $170,000, which will be met with additional sponsors and registration fees, she says.

FOSTER FRIENDS: Foster Friends of North Carolina, for which Fourrier is the executive director, is the race beneficiary. If the race meets its financial goals, Fourrier says, that means $75,000 for the Foster Friends program, supporting sending children to camp, buying them yearbooks and eyeglasses and also supporting a mentoring program.

GETTING THE WORD OUT: Race promotion will be important for organizers. Fourrier says that means getting the word out in Runners World, Running Times, Marathon Guide and Marathon & Beyond; radio advertising; use of Facebook and Twitter; emails to runners and volunteers from previous years; and community partners.

News 14's report.

High Point Enterprise's report.

Coming up: 

FREE TO BREATHE 5K: The Free to Breathe 5K road race is scheduled for Saturday near the Grandover Resort. Scott Bassett, the race director for Off 'N Running Sports, says about 350 runners are registered, although he expects a field of about 550. Proceeds will support the North Carolina Lung Cancer Partnership's research and awareness programs.

From the Partnership: Lung cancer kills more than 160,000 people in the United States and 5,630 in North Carolina each year. That's more people than breast, colon and prostate cancers combined. Smoking is the primary cause of lung cancer, but 15 percent of those diagnosed have never smoked, and 50 percent had quit smoking, some decades ago.

A 1-mile run/walk will begin at 9 a.m., with the 5K at 9:30. The race will start and end at ACC Lane and Grandover Parkway. Online registration closes Wednesday.

WARRIOR 5K: Southeastern Stokes Middle School in Walnut Cove will hold a 5K at 9:30 a.m. Saturday to support the school's educational fund. The cost is $20 through Friday or $25 on race day. Information: Ron Grooms, 591-4371 or ron.grooms@stokes.k12.nc.us.

GFELLER RUN: The Matt Gfeller Memorial Doughnut Run is scheduled for Saturday in Winston-Salem. The run will honor the R.J. Reynolds High School football player who died after an on-field hit in a game last fall. The race, at 9 a.m., will begin and end at Reynolds. Get more information here.

GOBBLER FIELD UPDATE: Bassett, also the race director for the Greensboro Gobbler on Thanksgiving Day, expects the field of 1,000 runners to fill by the end of the week.

Quick hits from the weekend:

OUTER BANKS: Greensboro's Tim Anderson took 14th place overall in the Outer Banks Marathon on Sunday. Anderson, who was third in the male masters division, covered the 26.2 miles in two hours, 54 minutes and eight seconds. A total of 1,815 people completed the event. Brian Eitzen (77th) and John Thomas (81st) also represented Greensboro among the top 100 finishers.

TRIAD TRAIL SERIES: Elkin's Jason Bryant won the Triad Trail Race Series' 4.7-mile run at Gibson Park in High Point. He finished in 28 minutes and 56 seconds. Archdale's Heather Foster was the top female, finishing seventh in 34:05. Race No. 3 in the series is Dec. 12, a 10K at Bur-Mil Park.

GRAHAM 5K: Aaron Bowman won the Graham 5K in 16:13. Mick Gallant, Southeast Guilford's cross country coach, took runner-up honors in 17:34.

East Forsyth's Patrick Crawford couldn't have redeemed himself in any better way. The senior finished his cross country career as the Class 4-A state champion after struggling in last year's finale. 

Crawford raced around Tanglewood Park's 3.1-mile course Saturday in 15 minutes and 47.11 seconds, defeating runner-up Bryan Spreitzer of Green Hope by five seconds.

Among other individual highlights, Greensboro's Frances Dougherty finished fifth in the Class 1-A girls race for Science and Math, and Northern Guilford's Erin McGuirk was seventh in the Class 3-A meet.

CLASS 4-A

Both Northwest Guilford teams finished the season with strong races.

The Vikings girls took fifth place, with senior Chelsea Hollingsworth finishing 16th in 19:11.10. Alyssa Torres, a sophomore, crossed the line 19th in 19:22.97.

The Northwest Guilford boys scored a seventh-place finish (184 points). Senior Andrew Shields was the Vikings' top runner, getting 15th place in 16:37.78. Gerald Bienhoff was 41st in 17:14.12, and Carl Walton was 45th in 17:16.03.

The Page girls were 14th in the Class 4-A team standings. Freshman Austin Vass turned in a 19:31.92 to take 24th place.

CLASS 3-A

Northern Guilford's McGuirk was seventh-fastest (20:00.91), and the Nighthawks, in their state meet debut, took 11th place. Freshman Sara Svehla was 25th in 20:36.29.

CLASS 1-A

The Bishop McGuinness girls, the state champions in Class 1-A a season ago, finished fourth Saturday. Meredith Bennett, a senior, was fourth-fastest in 20:28.51. Kathryn Bennett and Michaela Dimoff, who is from Greensboro, were 32nd and 33rd.

The Bishop McGuinness boys finished seventh in Class 1-A, with Preston Khan of High Point leading with way (22nd place, 17:59.58). Seniors Robert Tikkanen of Elon and Austin Tritt of Greensboro were 40th and 41st for the Villains.

Dougherty's time of 20:29.29 earned her the fifth finishing position and led her team to third place.

INDIVIDUAL RUNNERS FROM GUILFORD COUNTY

Tess Wynn, Grimsley: 44th place in Class 4-A, 20:05.08.

Naethan Burch, Grimsley: 37th place in Class 4-A, 17:11.76.

Kevin Depopas, Grimsley: 111th place in Class 4-A, 18:23.48.

Jimmy Hollingsworth, Northern Guilford: 37th place in Class 3-A, 17:41.92.

Each boys and girls race in the state meet featured 16 teams plus 20 individual qualifiers who advanced from regional competition a week earlier.

Bishop McGuinness takes fourth place (News & Record).

Crawford takes 4-A crown (Winston-Salem Journal).

NCRunners.com recaps.

Class 4-A boys results.

Class 4-A girls results.

Class 3-A boys results.

Class 3-A girls results.

Class 1-A boys results.

Class 1-A girls results.