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It's too bad that the Larry Noel Mile, a point-to-point evening race held about 25 miles north of Frederick, MD, is afflicted with a chronically low turnout each year. Sure, the amenities are few, and sure, the course is car-measured and unmarked. But for three bucks (or a dollar for kids), runners get to kick off the Emmitsburg Community Day Parade by running through the streets of downtown Emmitsburg in front of hundreds of onlookers. Rarely does one encounter that sort of crowd support at a race, even if some of the spectators in Emmitsburg weren't quite sure what was happening! This year's race saw twenty-two runners toe the line on West Main Street on a warm, breezy evening. 13-year-old Kyle Roberts of nearby Cascade, MD, jumped out to an early lead before being overtaken by 2000 men's champ Karsten Brown, 27. Brown, the public relations guy for the Shenandoah Valley Runners in northwestern Virginia, quickly opened up a gap and won the race in 5:15, a time which he freely admitted would not have won him much at a larger race. Michael Hobbs, 16, crossed the finish line twenty-five seconds later, and Roberts stayed strong for third in 5:44, just beating out FauquierCounty (VA) High School cross-country coach Mike Stanislaw. Also a winner for a second year in a row was Ashburn, VA's Vanessa Ryan, whose husband Bob and newborn son cheered her to a finishing time of 6:23. This was only the second race for the 26-year-old since she gave birth two months ago; she finished eighth among women at the Montgomery County Road Runners Club's Midsummer Night's Mile just twenty-three hours earlier. Finishing second overall among the ladies was 13-year-old Emmitsburg resident Kathy Kelley, who snuck across the finish line just one tick under the eight minute mark. Third went to Littlestown, PA's Stefani Neuells, 10, in 8:24. Also worth mentioning is Emmitsburg's Lauris Roberts, who finished her first race ever and picked up a gold medal in her age group, too! With so few participants, everyone took home an award, and participants were free to relax for the remainder of the evening and enjoy the fun of the Emmitsburg Community Day festivities. (Where else can you see the "Dewey Decimal Dancers", a precision drill squad featuring local librarians pushing book carts?) Many thanks to race director Rich Kelly and his crew of volunteers for their fine efforts. Hopefully the Larry Noel Mile will return in 2002 with more participants and even more fun! # name age sex city, state time award 1. Karsten Brown 27 M Front Royal, VA 5:15 1st M Overall 2. Michael Hobbs 16 M Rocky Ridge, MD 5:40 2nd M Overall 3. Kyle Roberts 13 M Cascade, MD 5:44 3rd M Overall 4. Mike Stanislaw 37 M Amissville, VA 5:45 1st M 26-39 5. Peter Blank 46 M Annandale, VA 5:59 1st M 40 & Over 6. Joe Kircher 41 M n/a 6:06 2nd M 40 & Over 7. Vanessa Ryan 26 F Ashburn, VA 6:23 1st F Overall 8. John Kostenbauder 46 M Berwyn, PA 6:29 3rd M 40 & Over 9. John Roche 34 M Knoxville, MD 6:41 2nd M 26-39 10. Paul Carter 12 M Moscow, Russia 7:50 1st M 11-16 11. Kathy Kelley 13 F Emmitsburg, MD 7:59 2nd F Overall 12. Timmy Geiger 9 M Thurmont, MD 8:07 1st M 1-10 13. Stefani Neuells 10 F Littlestown, PA 8:24 3rd F Overall 14. Daniel Hobbs 10 M Rocky Ridge, MD 8:40 2nd M 1-10 15. Donny Geiger 11 M Thurmont, MD 9:01 2nd M 11-16 16. Bryant Hoffman 24 M Emmitsburg, MD 9:14 1st M 17-25 17. Patrick Rist 14 M Frederick, MD 9:20 3rd M 11-16 18. Kelly Stiles 15 F Emmitsburg, MD 9:21 1st F 11-16 19. Meghan Gray 13 F Emmitsburg, MD 9:25 2nd F 11-16 20. Deidre Lowe 12 F Fairfield, PA 9:26 3rd F 11-16 21. Kevin Rist 11 M Frederick, MD 9:36 4th M 11-16 22. Lauris Roberts 35 F Emmitsburg, MD 9:39 1st F 26-39 Weather at race time (6:00 PM): 80°, sunny, 10 m.p.h. breeze out of the south. Course: fairly flat point-to-point on roads through downtown Emmitsburg; slight net elevation drop; automobile-measured, possibly a hair short. |
