More than 2,000 runners participated in the 25th annual Ashenfelter 8K race on Thanksgiving Day, despite a heavy rain.
The 25th annual Ashenfelter 8K race was run Thanksgiving Day. Rain kept spectator attendance down but not so much participation.
According to race director Dan Murphy, 2,997 runners signed up and 2,027 crossed the finish line.
The race was won by Ryan Kutch, of New York City, in a time of 23:55.86. In 46th place was the first female runner, Kate MacCary, also of N.Y.C., in 28:04.43. Both are members of the Central Park Track Club.
Pelle Nogueira, of Glen Ridge, finished fifth with a time of 25:04.75. The first Glen Ridge female finisher was Lucia Peyser, 205th place, in 33:29.07. Richard Kus and Simon Kus, both from Glen Ridge, finished 45th and 55th, respectively.
Nogueira, a hometown favorite, was coming off a NYC Marathon where he finished 191st. He was pleased with his Ashenfelter performance.
“It was mostly a success given the circumstances going into it,” he said. “The last three years I was second, third and fourth, but it wasn’t first place. When you’re third or second, you want first. It was frustrating, but I was able to modify my plans. Being in the top five was a good scenario. This hasn’t been the best year for me, so this race was a step in the right direction.”
He injured his foot and ankle in May running a half-marathon, he said, and it affected his training. But he felt good for the NYC race.
“I got to the line healthy,” he said. “That race was fun. It was my second marathon. I wasn’t in quite so good shape and by the time I got to the 19th mile, my body started to crumble down.”
He said he just wanted to enjoy the marathon.
“It’s pretty much like a block party,” he said. “I wasn’t so much concerned about what I ran or where I placed. I know there are more NYC Marathons in me.”
With Thanksgiving coming four weeks later, Nogueira said it was not easy to recuperate from a 26-mile race.
“My body was beat up,” he said. ‘I was nursing a groin issue after the marathon, but it was OK by the Ashenfelter. But basically, I was knocked down pretty hard with injuries. I didn’t run a time to aspire to, but I don’t think about it. I’m still learning the marathon. And I was able to heal-up by the Ashenfelter. But I knew my performance wouldn’t improve from what I’ve done.”
The Thanksgiving Day race was a confidence-booster for him, he said, and with proper training, thinks his performance next year will be better.
“This year, I was pretty much in fifth place at the two-mile mark and it stayed that way,” he said. “Running in the rain was fun. It wasn’t a challenge. The challenge was trusting my fitness.”
He said he had a chance of winning the last two years, but this time he was an underdog.
“This is always an important race for me,” he said. “The stakes are high. But I deal with pressure pretty well and I deal with it pretty well without pressure. This year hasn’t been consistent for me. But finishing in the top five shows me I’m a consistent runner — showing up and doing well when it counts.”
Murphy, the race director who established the 8K race in 2000, said this was the first year it rained on race day when the gun went off, but he was impressed with the turnout. He also announced at the start of the race, by bullhorn to the runners and spectators, that he was stepping down from his duties as director. After 25 years, it was time to go, he told this newspaper.
“I created the event in 2000,” he said. “When I approached the race director, it was Leonard Joy, the race was a 10K.”
Responsibility for the race will be handed over to CompuScore which provides scoring and timing services. Murphy said the Glen Ridge Educational Foundation, which sponsors the race, will be charged a modest fee. Murphy did it for free. He will provide the company with a “bible,” he said, of what he did leading up to race day and what he did on race day. He will continue to direct the Fitzgerald Lager Run.
“I’ll miss the race,” he said. “I got involved to stay in touch with the athletes I competed against in my 40s. I think I’m leaving it in good hands.”
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