Joe Kleinerman 10K

CONGRATULATIONS HELLGATE!

On a chilly and cool morning the Hellgate Road Runners gathered in huge numbers for an awesome showing at the New York Road Runners final club points race of 2007 - The Joe Kleinerman 10K.

36 Hellgaters raced through the 6.2 mile course in Central Park while others shouted and cheered from the sidelines.

This powerful showing launched the Women's Team into 11th place in the Open Division! And according to the final statistics provided by NYRR the Hellgate Men's team surpassed the New York Fliers by two points to take 2nd Place in the Men's B Division. Well done everyone!

Here are the race results:

NAME	FINISH TIME	PACE
Phillip Sneller	36:25	5:52
Kevin Starkes	36:27	5:52
Andrei Volik	36:28	5:52
Mike Bishop	38:09	6:09
Aurelio Dimas	38:39	6:14
Jeff Leiter	39:03	6:17
Marc Shupp	40:26	6:31
Eddie Roberts	41:08	6:38
Josh Morphew	42:03	6:46
Kate Sunbury	42:39	6:52
Maritza Bishop	43:42	7:02
Eamonn Keane	44:01	7:05
Mike Morrissey	44:02	7:06
Timothy Cavaretta	44:10	7:07
Beverly Paulis	44:28	7:10
Suzanne Hughes	44:59	7:15
Don Guyton	45:00	7:15
Ximena Rosas	46:03	7:25
Cinthya Sandoval	47:18	7:37
Diana Pittet	47:27	7:39
Jovana Granzan	48:02	7:44
Adrian Longo	48:39	7:50
Demetrius Kalogeropoulos	48:56	7:53
Tony Victorio	49:41	8:00
Brion Cobb	50:31	8:08
LuAnn Mestre	51:23	8:17
Bethany Hetrick	52:44	8:30
Jay Gottfried	53:00	8:32
Nazly Jordan	54:34	8:48
Sally Mahon	55:22	8:55
Raul Araque	55:51	9:00
Martha Lamothe	58:44	9:28
Irene Gavras-Petrakis	59:19	9:34
Ljubomir Granzan	1:02:07	10:01
Molly Biechele	1:08:54	11:06
Kaitlin McGrath	1:08:54	11:06

December 2007 Club Meeting

On December 5th, eighteen Hellgate Team Officials and Members met to discuss the state of the club, review club policy and vote on issues important to the club. What follows are the meeting minutes and resolutions.

Final Club Points Race of 2007

1. Reminder for all members who are in good health to signup for and run the final club points race of the year – The Joe Kleinerman 10K on Sunday, December 9th.

Membership and Finance

1. The financial state of the club is strong. However, due to increased operational costs the 2008 membership fees will be increased to $20.
   
   
2. Your membership fees go toward insurance for the club, corporate expenses to maintain non-profit / tax exempt status, membership in the Road Runners of America organization. Membership fees also help subsidize awards night and other club sponsored gatherings as well as the Hellgate Website and message board. The Hellgate Road Runners is an all volunteer club - no members or officers are paid.
   
   
3. The long term success of the club is dependent on membership. All current members are encouraged to actively recruit other runners, friends, family, and neighbors to join our group runs. The cost of membership is nominal and the benefits of running with Hellgate are immeasurable.
   
   
4. Though it goes without saying, all current members are encouraged to welcome new members graciously and wholeheartedly (not that you would do anything but!). Veteran runners are asked to offer assistance and guidance to new members when wanted. And you speedsters… slow down occasionally and run with a slower runner.
   
   
5. Also discussed was the possibility of a fundraiser to benefit the club. The fundraiser may include a summer picnic, a pot-luck dinner, a raffle, guest bartending night.
   
   
6. Additionally, the New York Road Runners occasionally offers cash incentives to local clubs who volunteer for important races. All Hellgate members are encouraged to volunteer when and where possible. Volunteer opportunities will be announced on the message board.
   
   
7. The Hellgate Road Runners is also seeking a corporate sponsor. There are several sponsorship opportunities available. If you or anyone you know may be in a position to sponsor Hellgate please see Jared Mestre.
   
   

Elections

1. Elections will be held in January. The 2008 Club President, Vice President, Secretary and Team Captains will be determined. More information on this will be announced shortly.

Website and Message Board

1. Members are reminded to log in when using the internet message board. Anonymous commenting in strongly discouraged. Please do not respond to obscene or offensive comments – they should be ignored entirely.
   
   
2. A new and improved website is being created and will be launched soon. The website address will not change.
   

Awards and Awards Night

1. Awards Night will be held on Saturday, February 16th, 2008. Additional details will be announced soon.
   
   
2. Awards will be given out to deserving members. To be eligible for an award you must have:
• been a member for a minimum of one year.
• You must be active in the club by attend workouts, races (in particular Club Points races) and attend club meetings.
• You must have completed at least 10 New York Road Runner races.
• Additionally, members are encouraged to inform the club when you compete in non-NYRR races (for example out of town road races, multi-sport activities) so that your accomplishments can be acknowledged and considered.
  

Hellgate Gear

1. Members are reminded that Hellgate gear is available for purchase.
• Singles cost $30.
• Jackets cost $55.
• Members are encouraged to wear Hellgate gear at races and workouts to help promote the club.

Final Club Points Race Of 2007

Attention Hellgaters...

Don't forget to register for the Joe Kleinerman 10k. This is the final Club Points Race of the year and will be held in Central Park on Sunday, December 9. Online registration ends soon so click over to NYRR soon.

The Hellgate Women's team is currently in 14th place in the Open Division. A strong showing from the Ladies of Hellgate could propel the team forward into the top 10!

Currently the Hellgate Men's team is in 3rd place with 90 points -- within striking distance of the number 2 spot held by our New York Flyer friends. However the The Hoboken Harriers (currently in 4th place) are trying to close the gap.

Don't wait - Register for the Joe K 10k now and we'll see you at the finish line!

Running Scared

Muwahahahahahahahahhaaaaa!

Ghastly turnout this weekend. Congrats to all the creepy Poland Spring runners! Best costume award goes to the tres amigos. Check out the ghoulish results on the NYRR site!

It's a Family Affair!

Alan, Ben and Eliza Wagman all completed the Cider Mill 5K in Tolland, CT on September 29. On a beautiful early fall morning, the three of them toed the line near the front of the pack. Alan and Ben went out in 8 minutes flat for the first mile, a fairly hilly start. Ben then started to labor and fell back a bit. Dad kept encouraging him to stay close. As we passed mile 2 in about 16:10, Ben kept pushing himself. Ben's competitive fire began to come out when he spied another young runner who he decided he wanted to catch. At 2.5 miles, Ben started to make his move but Dad told him to wait. Ben bided his time and passed the other runner as we approached the 3 mile mark. Ben finished strong, edging his proud father by 1 second in 25 minutes flat. Alan finished in 25:01. Ben was 15th out of 41 11-14 year olds.

While Ben and Alan were running together, Eliza took the challenge on by herself. Hoping to break 30 minutes in her first race ever, she struggled mightily but persevered and eventually crossed the line in 32:02, finishing 8th out of 18 10 and under females. Overall, this was a great race on a fairly easy course. Good local crowds cheered all of the runners on. Definitely a race we will run again!

-Contributed by Alan Wagman, Proud Papa

Congratulations Wagman clan! What a fantastic race!

Great Galloping Hellgaters!

Sixteen days into fall and the temperature at dawn on October 6 was near 70 degrees with 90% humidity... This was not great running weather for Grete's Great Gallop.

However the weather was not going to stop us from running in this club points race (or participating in the 1.7 mile Noway Run)! Hellgate fielded a men's and a women's team who placed 13th and 22nd, respectively in the Half. Leading the team was Phil with an amazing 20th place finish screaming across the line at 1:16:40, a 5:51 pace!

Andrei and Diego also finished strong at 6:44 and 6:46 pace respectively. Captain Suzanne placed 4th in her age group again! Unbelievable! Alan showed up after doing 10 miles to finish at a 8 minute mile pace AND he got to Hi-Five Grete the Great herself after the first loop! And double congratulations to Jon D. for not only getting hitched in August to the lovely (and recovering) Shayna, but he also completed his first ever half marathon! Fantastic effort, Jon! We hope to keep seeing you out for those 13.1's!

Now the Norway Run took place prior to the Half and we had our very own Canadian, Andrew, running a stellar 1.7 miles. We also had one of Hellgate's newest members, Beth, going neck and neck to the finish line with some other women. Great work!

The children's races also proved no match for Soula's daughter who took 3rd place in her age group for the half mile run! When interviewed about her fantastic performance, she admitted to enjoying the race tremendously! Like mother, like daughter!

For all the race results please go the NYRR web site!

***OTHER NEWS***

Stay tuned for an interview with Levi on his scorching Chi-town marathon experience!

The HG Blog is happy to announce (for those that might have missed it on the message board) that Josh and Salena welcomed their son, Jackson, into the world last Wednesday, October 3rd. I'm sure we'll see Josh behind a jogging stroller soon! Congratulations!

Turned Up at the Tune Up!

What a fantastic day for an 18 mile run! Sunday, September 30, 2007, was the last of the longest runs for many a marathoner-in-training on the Hellgate squad. There was a fantastic cheering crew for us! We had Lauren on the lonely West Side and Jared, Janine, and Andrew on the East Side. Andrei unfortunately is nursing a sprained ankle so also stuck around to support us on to the finish!

There were of course some standouts in this race! We are happy to report that Soula completed her longest race ever and came screeching to a halt across the finish line at a 9:00 minute pace (1:42:14). Congratulations Soula, and we can’t wait to cheer for you in NYC next month! Meanwhile Ben finished at a blistering 6:29 pace (1:56:48) to come in 11th in his age group and 23rd overall! Amazing!

Also those royals from the Queens Half ruled again! Mary turned out an amazing race finishing 2nd (2:14:07) in her age group while Suzanne placed 4th (2:18:36)! They are unstoppable! Eamonn also displayed just how strong he is with a 2:14:15 finish. Mary managed to nip him in the last mile, but Eamonn threatened revenge in the Staten Island Half in 2 weeks! (Place all bets with me!)

Check out the results on the NYRR site! And check out those smiling faces below! Another weekend race with amazing photos by Jared!

A Royal Race

A sunny Sunday morning in September felt like a perfect day for the annual Queens Half Marathon. Busses arrived from Manhattan carrying hopefuls; carloads of "locals" jammed College Point Avenue hunting for rockstar parking near the start. The Hellgate team was in good spirits. Everyone exuded relaxation. This was our Boro.

When the gun went off at 7 a.m., we had overheard everyone talking about the new course. In years passed this race was a 2 loop route, but this year NYRR developed 1 long path with tons of turns and bends throught the streets of College Point, Malba, and Whitestone, Queens. This did not daunt the Hellgate squad.

Aurelio lead the team with a fantastic finishing of 1:22:58 (a week after putting up a 1:21:53 at Yonkers). We can also welcome back Andrei to a more regular NY running scene (he and Heather have moved back to Astoria). Big congraulations are in order for Mary (1:35:14) and Suzanne (1:37:00) who reigned their age groups by placing 2nd and 3rd. Please note that this was a personal record for Suzanne by over a minute! Ken pulled a Mike M. by showing up after the mats were pulled; that didn't slow him down! He whizzed by this blogger at about mile 11 - he caught a good portion of the race field! Jenn and Jamie ran a part of the race together epitomizing team work!

Everyone did spectacular and please find all the results on the NYRR website. Congratulations to all!

Bonkers for Yonkers!

Alright, alright, alright! Let's get this blog back on track - or the road!

September 16th brought the annual Yonkers Marathon and Half Marathon. Two Hellgaters laced up their running shoes and tore up the challenging and hilly (didn't I say challenging already?) course! Congratulations are in order for Aurelio and Ximena for yet another fan-tabulous performance from this dynamic duo! Aurelio coasted in at 1:21:53 easily capturing 21st place overall and 3rd in his age group! Ximena proved what a Queens girl can do to those Yonkers' hills finishing at 1:40:13 earning her a 60th spot overall and 2nd in her age group!

Also a side note: Ximena has been sneaking around Long Island and New Jersey all summer long with her sister, Kattia, running local races with much success! Keep up the good work ladies! And keep us posted with your most recent races!

Club Team Championships

Saturday August 18th, what a perfect morning for the Club Team Champs, it was positively chilly when the majority of Hellgaters arrived bright and early in Central Park.

The girls race started an hour after the men’s start but the Hellgate women were out in force to cheer on the guys! And yes, the guys stuck around after their race to cheer on the girls. Special thanks to injured Hellgaters Janine, Bex and Matt for your unwavering support and enthusiastic encouragement!

This was Hellgates biggest turnout for a race, which thrilled coach Jared and along with Jared the team captains want to thank the 37 members, comprising of 20 men and 17 women who gave it their all on the 5 mile course for Team Hellgate! Check the NYRR website for both the men’s and women’s results.

-by Suzanne Hughes

Photos by Jared Mestre

NYC Half Marathon

The Hellgate Road Runners took the Nike New York City Half Marathon by storm!

With 8 team members posting tremendous running achievements and a whooping 14 volunteering along the course Hellgate truly runs this race!

Congratulations to:

• Benjamin Kaufmann with a finish time of 1:16:33
• Phillip Sneller with a finish time of 1:18:54
• Brian Danielian with a finish time of 1:36:30
• Kenneth Dowd with a finish time of 1:37:58
• Jay Gottfried with a finish time of 1:53:14
• Angela Taylor with a finish time of 2:00:03
• Francis Muldoon with a finish time of 2:13:43
• Jennifer Rozmus with a finish time of 2:40:07

Special thanks to the following individuals for making the 4:30AM call time to volunteer!

• Alan Wagman
• Barry Horowitz
• Bex Parson
• Eamonn Keane
• Elizabeth Campos
• Jaime Sperling
• Janine Leveque
• Jessica Moeller
• Josh Morphew
• Jovana Granzan
• LuAnn Mestre
• Sally Mahon
• Suzanne Hughes
• Tony Victorio

Kudos also to Beverly and Kevin for being Nike pace leaders!

Great work Hellgate!

RUN... Swim and Bike Too!

Hellgate sure “TRI’d” hard last weekend in 4 multi-sport event and one classic Race for Central Park 4 miler. As usual there were stellar performances had by all Hellgate participants. First off on Saturday, July 21, NYRR held its annual Run for Central Park. Following not too far behind the 2nd place finisher and adopted Hellgater, Mustafa, were Nick, Bex, Ljubomir, Jovana, Amye, and Andrew. See the NYRR site for their impressive race results!

Now for the multi-sport events on Sunday, July 22nd! First off was Chip’s FIRST triathlon! The newlywed crossed rivers to West Windsor, NJ, to compete in the NJS Sprint Triathlon. The 500m swim, 13.5 mile bike with tricky turn arounds and hills, and the 5k run couldn’t wear Chip out! He finished in a remarkable 1:17:36; his splits were 9:59, T1 4:38, 40:38, T2 2:34, and 20:00! Chip said that he learned a lot that will help him improve his transition times as well as working out details like catching your breath on the bike. He also said “coming out of the water was the most surreal, exciting experience; one of the highlights of the day for me.” He also had an edge in the 5k being a runner first, passing “a ton of people” to help him finish 27th over all! Not too shabby, Chip!

Next on the lineup for Sunday was the Long Beach Biathlon! Mary went back to try and hold her title as No. 1 female finisher. This year it was not to be however. Not that Hellgaters like excuses, but an 18 mile run the day before might have tuckered her out a bit. Mary still managed to navigate this 5k run followed by a ¼ ocean swim in 3rd place overall and 1st in her age group! Levi also participated and put in a valiant effort as usual! A bit of drifting kept him from catching our fearless captain, Suzanne, however!

Suzanne woke up early that day with intentions of cheering Mary and Levi in Long Beach, but somehow her bathing suit and sneakers followed her to Long Beach! Suzanne did her first biathlon on a whim – breast stroking her way to a 5th place in her age group!

The popular NYC Triathlon was also held this beautiful Sunday morning! Raul made his way through the Olympic length course with his usual smiles and ease that we all strive to imitate! He finished with a fantastic 2:53:34! Way to go! One of the many Hellgate couples competed too and proved their mettle yet again. Patricia and Brian put down great times for the 1.5k swim (in the Hudson River), 40k mile bike (up the West Side Highway, and 10k run (through Central Park). Patricia finished in 2:50:00 flat. The Hellgate Blog thinks there is a story behind Brian’s 2 hour penalty! Fantastic showing guys! Check out www.nyctri.com for more info and registration for 2008 opens on Nov. 1st!

And FINALLY, but most definitely NOT least: The Lake Placid Ironman! Competitors have to sign up a year in advance and spend those 12 months training! They complete 2.4 miles of open water swim, 112 miles of biking in the Adirondacks, and finally a 26.2 miles run, (yes, a full marathon). One of Hellgate’s own signed up, trained up, showed up, and raced 140.6 miles. Congratulations to Joel Rosenstraus, Ironman. He staved off injuries and doctor’s warnings to muster the guts and muscle to cross that finish line in 13:19:12. Check out his splits on the Ironman webpage. Congratulations Joel! Rest up!

-by Jessica Moeller

New Singlets

The new, approved and officially sanctioned Hellgate Road Runners team singlets are now in!

The singlets were printed by our friends at Urban Athletics and are made of a high-quality technical fabric. Urban Athletics is also extending a 15% discount on all items in the store to Hellgate Road Runner members from 6pm - 8pm TONIGHT! (Tuesday 7/24/2007)

LuAnn will be at Urban Athletics tonight and the singlets can be purchased directly from LuAnn for $30. Stay cool, show your team pride and best of all - don't chafe!

Urban Athletics has two locations but the discount only applies at their Madison Avenue location. The address is:

1291 Madison Avenue
@ 92nd Street
New York, NY 10128
Phone: 212/828-1906

Run To Home Plate

Attention Hellgate Road Runners!

According to the website of the New York Road Runners the Mets Run to Home Plate has been postponed until further notice.

What follows is the message from the message from the NYRR website:

NYRR/NY Mets Run to Home Plate Postponed; Updates to Follow. NYRR regrets to announce that due to unforeseen conflicts with other city events, the NYRR/NY Mets Run to Home Plate will not take place on Sunday, July 22. We apologize for any inconvenience caused by this unexpected change. The race will be moved to a later date (TBD). Entries may be automatically transferred to the new date; or, NYRR will be happy to transfer any entry to the Run for Central Park 4M on Saturday, July 21, or to issue a coupon good for any future (weekly) race upon request. Please contact Janet Cupo at jcupo@nyrr.org.

The status of Club Points races is being resolved; watch this page for updates soon. When the race date and Club Points race determinations are made, an e-mail will be sent to all registered NYRR/NY Mets Run to Home Plate entrants. Team runners should wait until a determination is made tomorrow, July 18, before contacting us as to their decision.

Hellgate Takes the Tin: 70.3 Miles Later

Five Hellgaters crossed the finish line of the 2007 Tupper Lake Tinman Triathlon which consists of a 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike, & 13.1 mile run.

Eamonn and Josh made the 6 hour drive up through the Adirondacks to compete in their first Tinman, while Janine, Joel, and Raul (and his friend Nicholas, honorary Hellgater) returned to remind Tupper Lake just what these Queens residents could do! Standing on the side lines for moral support were Salena, Nazly, and Jessica.

Eamonn is known for his determination and dig deep strength as well for his enjoyment of beer, but did his stamina and grit get him through the 70.3 miles of his first Tinman Tri?

"Having arrived the day before the event to pick up our numbers, Josh and I stared at the swim course and noticed that we couldn't see the turnaround point. This made me a little bit nervous, and I was wondering what the hell I had signed up for.

The morning of the race, the strategy was simply not to drown, and then take the race from there. So after 50 minutes of splashing and a lot of drinking of lake water, the first event was complete. The bike course was described as “rolling hills”; this was a bit of an understatement since we were in the Adirondack Mountains!!! Over 3 hours later, at a reasonable pace of 18 mph, the bike course was complete. The run was a challenging course and having spent 4 hours already at the swim and bike, a PR was not going to be in the cards! But I was able to maintain an even pace of 9 minutes per mile (with frequent breaks at each water station). At 1 hour and 57 minutes and some seconds, the Tinman was complete.

Overall the experience, although very challenging, was a good one. Special thanks have to go out to our teammates and our supporters for the cheering through a very tough day." – Eamonn

Now, just why would someone take on a Tinman having NEVER competed triathlon before?

"With 4 marathons under my belt I really wanted a big athletic challenge before our first baby is born this autumn -- and Tinman was just that!

All through my training I was pretty intimidated by the prospect of racing 70.3 miles. When I first saw the swim course my fears were absolutely confirmed.

Having the support, training companionship and advise of the other Hellgater's was invaluable. Tinman was one of the hardest and most rewarding experiences of my life." – Josh

Please check out Josh’s blog for his more in depth race report! So, the first timers came in at 6:04 and 5:45; not too shabby! Could the course get the better of the Tupper Lake veterans? Could they get to the course? Janine’s race report sums it up nicely!

"The ride up Tupper Lake was a crawl, and 8 hours later it was a total nightmare. Joel was doing 80mph in a 40mph zone. We barely made it to the carboload dinner and picking up our race packets. After I got my blood circulating in my legs after the drive, we relaxed to eat dinner. After chilling for a bit at the expo, it was about 9pm. We decided it's time to check into the motel. Back in the car for a 20 minute drive!

We arrived at Long Lake Motel. I went to the front desk to get the key. Joel said you go check out the room and I'll start unloading the car. Well, I came back to Joel and found Jessica, Eamonn, Josh, and Salena along side him. I was fit to be tide with the room accommodations and made it known in front of everyone. I stormed to the front desk; there were no other rooms, so we had no choice but to stay in this shack. My night's sleep was a horror, but thank God for Jared's philopshy (get a good night’s sleep 2 nights before a race because the night before you will not sleep). He was right, and the night was LONG!!

At the sound of the alarm, we got ready, and we were on our way to Tupper Lake. The morning had a nice chill which felt great. My thought was "Yes! I won't be running in 90 degrees this year!" We arrived and went to get body marked and our chips put on. We went back to the car to get our bikes, and then we headed to the transition area. I had a great spot, and poor Joel was in the old man's land. I met my neighbors, Coleen and Tish. They were very chatty which was fine since it relaxed me. They asked me "what is my time today?" I told them "I'm going to enjoy the race, and I want to feel good." (My inner soul had one set time and that was a 6:30, but no pressure.)

I was waiting in my corral with Raul to start the swim. I did feel butterflies but felt pretty relaxed for the most part. We were next to enter the lake, and as I turned the corner, there's Nazly. It was so amazing to see her, then I saw Jessica and Salena further down. I felt great and no sign of anxiety. The horn went off and there I went... I started nice and slow and then hammered away. My poor shoulders did NOT like it very much, but I told them I have a race to do. The navigation going out was great, and I hit every buoy, but when we turned around the sun was glaring. It was very hard to navigate, but I said all I have to do is follow the people in front (hoping they were going the right way). I saw the end and said "Yeah! Finally." I exited out of the lake and made my way to my bike.

I zipped out of my wetsuit and made my way to start my bike. The thought entered "Oh boy, I'll be out here for 3:30 hours or so. I better make the best of it! Visualize that I am on a nice long bike ride with my friends!" I made sure I fueled every hour by eating a cliff bar (thanks, Bex!). Some of these hills were never-ending, but I thought positive all the way through. I approached the end of my bike ride and saw Jessica on her bike cheering and then saw Nazly at the transitiion area. As I got off the saddle I couldn't believe the pain; it's indescribable, but she said "Hey! You are a runner; this is where you got it, girl!" Thanks, Nazly; I'm glad you had faith in me, but the thought of running 13.1 miles did not register well yet.

So I start the run and to my surprise I felt decent but did experience a nagging numbness in my foot. At the first mile I had to stop because the pain in my foot was unbearable. I stopped several other times to loosen my laces and massage my foot to get circulation flowing. I finally decided that I have to put the numbness on a back burner and run this race, so that is what I did. I was passing everyone a long the way. It's like they were running in place! There was not one person that passed me. The mile markers were few and far between. I hit mile 2, then 5, and at one point I had to ask what mile mark I was at. Then I saw mile 6; the next mile marker was 8 then mile marker 9, but after 9 I never saw another mile marker! Then to see Jess directing us, I was very surprised to see her. I asked one volunteer what mile again, and she said I'm finishing mile 11. That mile 11 felt long then at the next water station I asked what mile only to hear that I have one more mile left! Not that I would have been able to gauge my pace after biking 56 miles, but the unknown helped me mentally.

I looked at my watch to see the time and that I had one more mile left, I cranked it up a bit. Realization was beginning to set in. I was so excited to see by my watch that I was going to finish around 6:20! And that I did (exactly 6:20:34)!

As I approached the finish line, I hear the cheers from Joel and my teammates. It was such a great feeling and what a sigh of relief. I made my way to Joel & my teammates, and we all were hugging each other. I kept on screaming “I shaved off 40 minutes from last year!” YES! YES! YES! I still can't believe it!" – Janine

Joel finished up with an amazing time of 5:35:53 and Raul rounded out the Hellgate finishers with a solid time of 7:07:13! (By the way Raul looked so refreshed after the race! It goes to show what great shape he’s in!) for more see the Tinman results:

Now, will the fabulous 5 return next year and with more recruits?

July 4th

Have a safe and happy Independence Day!

Hellgate Dominates at Need For Speed

El Mustafa plus Bishop plus Bishop plus Moeller plus Volik plus Hughes plus Wizeman plus Paulis plus Starkes equals…victory.

“A great team effort”—that’s how team captain, Maritza Bishop puts it. She was of course describing the Hellgate victory at the competitive and rapidly growing Need for Speed Relay—a 50+ mile, 9 person relay, run from the Northern most section of Westchester all the way to the Long Island Sound in New Rochelle. The annual event is sponsored by Avon and endorsed by Joe Torre, the manager of the New York Yankees. The event raises thousands of dollars to help prevent domestic violence, but once the gun goes off, it is a race that is all about winning.

Commenting on the team’s dramatic come from behind win, the confident captain noted that, “in order to win an event like this you need a solid team 1 through 9. This year I wanted to win the whole event and not just co-ed. I knew it would be tough with so many all-male teams but I felt we could go the distance with the 9 talented runners on Team Hellgate. Naturally, there are stand-outs and to win you need the superstars, but to make it work you need solid runners who can give a solid performance. Going into it I knew we would be the team to beat but we just had to prove it. And we did.”

The race had a staggered start with six heats, so the more competitive teams started later than the lower seeded squads. Since Team Hellgate was in the fastest heat, they started as much as an hour and 15 minutes behind other teams. So in order to cross the line first, they had an enormous amount of ground to make up. But the combination of superstar and steady performances necessary to pull it off were plentiful and ultimately the team was able to make up the entire stagger.

The team proved to be steady because no Hellgate runner finished less than 24th in their segment out of the 130+ competitors in each stage and almost every Hellgater placed in the top ten percent of their respective heats. But perhaps more impressive were those standout moments. 1st leg winner El Mustafa, beat the next best runner in his segment by over 2 and ½ minutes—an astounding feat considering the depth of talent in that heat. 2nd stage standout, Mike Bishop, tackled one of the most challenging and competitive legs in the relay, a course lined with rocky trails and unmarked paths, and helped push the team closer to the front of the pack. The Hellgate ladies stayed competitive and kept the team in a secure position before Andrei Volik took the fifth leg, winning that leg overall and getting the team within real striking distance. It was at that point when Captain Maritza felt that victory was in sight. “We began the race 1 hour and 15 minutes behind the first wave, but by the time Matt (Wizeman) finished his leg we were in 1st place overall!” But perhaps the most exciting leg of the relay was the final stage, where Kevin Starkes, who began the leg over three minutes off the pace, managed to take both his heat and bring home the gold for team Hellgate.

Hellgate’s 12 second margin of victory was particularly sweet, since they were the only co-ed squad on the podium. Sweeter still was the fact that they were able to avenge the team that was the overall winner last year when Hellgate took first in the co-ed division but was third overall.

-by Maritza Bishop and Matthew Wizeman

20 Questions with Alan Wagman

Q: What is your name?
A: Alan Wagman

Q: What do you do for a living?
A: Retail software training and support for Bed, Bath, and Beyond

Q: When did you start running?
A: 1993

Q: Why did you start running?
A: A co-worker who was a seasoned runner was putting together a team for a corporate challenge race and said I should do it. I did and have been running pretty much ever since.

Q: When did you join the Hellgate Road Runners?
A: October 2004

Q: Do you like to run in the morning or evening?
A: Evening but will do mornings to accommodate other evening activities.

Q: In a typical week how many miles do you run?
A: Currently about 30-35

Q: Do you crosstrain?
A: Generally not although I am attempting a biathlon.

Q: What is your favorite running shoe? How many pairs do you have?
A: I run in the Asics 2100 series (currently 2120) and Mizuno Wave Precision. I have more pairs lying around than I care to count!

Q: Have you ever had any running injuries?
A: Again more than I care to count. IT Band many times, plantar fasciitis, stress fractures (both shins at the same time), and the list goes on and on...

Q: How did you overcome the injury?
A: Cortisone is a beautiful thing!

Q: Do you subscribe to Runners World Magazine? If so, do you like it?
A: Yes I subscribe and I hate it. I bought the subscription from my nephew.

Q: Do you have any habits or rituals you do before working out?
A: None to speak of. At best I am an inconsistent stretcher!

Q: After a workout, what do you do with your sweaty running gear?
A: Hang it on a door knob in my apartment to dry and then wash it with my weekly laundry.

Q: What race or races are you looking forward to this year?
A: NYC Marathon and Fairfield, Queens, and Staten Island 1/2s.

Q: Do you have a sports hero or idol? Who is it?
A: The Spaceman, Bill Lee. For those who are not baseball fans, Bill Lee was a Red Sox pitcher in the 70's. He was a lefty (like me) who threw an amazing arcing curveball (the eephus) at a very slow rate of speed. He was a little off-kilter as well, hence the nickname. Warren Zevon also wrote a song about him.He was a favorite of mine growing up.

Q: What dream race or races would you like to do in your lifetime?
A: I would like to run a marathon somewhere in Europe, perhaps Ireland, Greece, or Germany.

Q: You recently ran the Boston Marathon. Please tell us about your experience.
A: I truly felt humbled by the distance for the first time in my career (8 marathons). I last ran Boston in 1998 and those 10 years really showed themselves this time around. I started strong and crashed early! I had a lot of fun but my time was far from what I hoped to run. Given the tough weather conditions and the difficult course, I shook off my disappointment quickly and I am glad I ran this race again. I grew up in the Boston area and love running that course.

Q: Describe your favorite, or most memorable, running experience.
A: Qualifying for Boston in 1997 is a favorite memory as are the many times I have run a race in Westchester called the Leatherman's Loop, a challenging 10K cross country run through the mud and rivers of Pound Ridge Reservation in Katonah.

Q: In 10 words or less, please tell us why you run.
A: I find great joy and energy in running.

Triple Events Score BIG for Hellgate

Saturday and Sunday, May 19 and 20, proved big for the Hellgate squad.

Event 1: Healthy Kidney 10k

First off was the Healthy Kidney 10k on Saturday in Central Park! We had a great representation of the team's speed for this club points race without a few of our ringers! Several members found the day a challenge, but others flew! Janine suspected a distance pr while Nick and Bex ran their first club points race with pride! Ezra flashed his smile and speed while he's not whizzing around writing about cool places.

Jeff pulled a Mike Morrisey/Tony move by crossing over the start mats as the officials were picking them; he had a great run despite not being captured by the chips. Find out who else ran great and for all race results here.

Event 2: Queens Biathlon

Sunday at 8 am sharp, the annual Queens Biathlon was off in Alley Pond Park with the first of two 3 mile runs. Everyone made it back to the transition area with lightening speed to head out for the grueling 18 mile bike followed by, yes, another 3 mile run! Hellgate tore up the Bi with 13 participating.

Age group awards go to Mike Bishop, 3rd place, Joel 2nd place, and Alan, 3rd place. On the ladies' side Mary and Janine placed 2nd and 3rd respectively in their age group. It was a good day for all, some did their first biathlons (see Josh's blog for his unbelievable race story), others were testing the waters in preparation for future summer bis and triathlons! Click here for the full race results!

Event 3: Forest Park 4 Miler

While the Biathletes were happily exhausted, the annual Forest Park 4 miler began. This race has an amazing track finish which has proven advantageous for the Hellgate Team in the past. Will the new track bring another successful year? Of course! It was a beautiful morning deeper in Queens with Jared, LuAnn, and new poppa, Matt, cheering on the sidelines as Nick finish 13th and 3rd in his age group followed by Jeff in 20th place. Then Suzanne coasted in to finish 2nd overall for the women (1st in her age group) closely followed by Bex in 3rd place overall (1st in her age group too!). Don, Beverly, and Mike Morrisey finished within 7 seconds of each other! Nine teammates in total completed the grueling 4 miles with ease - Results. Great job!

-by Jessica Moeller

Photos by Jared Mestre

Mothers Day 10 Miler

Congratulations to all the Hellgate women (and men!) for competing in the NYJL Mothers Day 10 and 4 Miler!

Women's results can be found here.
Men's results can be found here.

all photos by Jared Mestre: