Masters Athletes Poised to Race for the Club Cross Country Championships

BETHLEHEM, PA—This Saturday, December 14, the USATF Club Cross Country Championships will be held on the Cross-Country course at Lehigh University. Over 1,000 Masters runners, the largest field ever, will contest the event. The 60 and over Masters Men’s Race begins at 10 AM, over 8 km, with Masters Women, over 6 km, at 11 AM, and Masters Men, 40+, over 10 km at 12:15 pm. Forecasted race-time temperatures are unseasonably mild, at 50 degrees, but footing and mud may be an issue. A half inch of rain is expected overnight, with locally heavy rainfall possible. Light rain is anticipated during the day.

The Men’s 40+ race will be a replay of last year; the top 7 finishers from last year are returning. Last year Jorge Maravilla and Eric Loeffler pulled away from David Angell on the final loop, with Maravilla pulling away for the win with 800 meters to go. Those three had distanced themselves from a chase pack consisting of Neville Davey, John Howell, Jacques Sallberg, and Gregory Mitchell. The top 3 from last year enter as favorites but Davey and Howell, who went 1-2 in 2017, will aim to reassert their dominance. Sallberg has won all the USATF Cross Country Championships he has entered, with 4 wins in the last 5 years. Can he replicate that success at Club Cross? Mitchell won the 2014 championship race on this same course. Can he repeat? And, as always, new names will be heard from. Top road runners from Philadelphia, Brock Butler and Chris Naimoli, have thrown their hats in the ring and are joined by Peter Gilmore and Michael Gordon, the respective winners of the Pacific Association and New England Association Cross Country Championships. The field is so deep it is entirely possible that another stalwart may emerge and take it all.

A new champion will be crowned in the Women’s race; last year’s winner, Kate Landau, is focusing on prep for the Olympic Trials Marathon. Another potential contender, Meriah Earle, who won the USATF 5 Km Masters Championship in San Diego, is doing the same. But there is no shortage of top athletes. Nancy James-Klinger, who finished 5^th a year ago, along with Brennan Liming and Kelly Couch, who finished 4^th and 5^th the year before are three of the favorites. Ginna Reid, who took the Masters crown at the AJC Peachtree Run this year, and Laura Latchford, who just won the Rothman 8K at the Philadelphia Marathon, will try to parlay road running excellence into a cross country victory. Two veterans who cannot be ignored include Janet McDevitt, who finished 2^nd in the 2016 Club Cross Championships, and Marisa Sutera Strange, a perennial contender who took the top spot this past winter at the USATF Cross Country Championships in Tallahassee. Kelly Griffin, who just won the Masters title at the Richmond Half Marathon in 1:18:51, and cyclo-cross and mountain runner, Sascha Scott, who won the USATF Masters 5K Championship in 2017, could also make their presence felt at the front.

Joe Sheeran, who took the Men’s 60+ crown the last two years, will go for 3 in a row. His top rival is John Barbour. Barbour finished 2^nd in 2016 and 2017 before an injury sidelined him for the 2018 and 2019 events. He recently took the top Masters spot, for 60+, at the New England Association 8K Cross Country Championships. Run n Fun teammates, Daniel Johnson and Doug Keller, who finished 6^th and 7^th last year will give it another try, as will Daniel King, who finished 2^nd to Sheeran at the recent 5 km Masters Cross Country Championships in San Diego. Ken Youngers, who finished 3^rd in 2017, also gives chase.

Age-Grading determines the top performance overall across age divisions. Last year’s top 3 in the 40+ division were Nat Larson and B.A.A. teammates, Peter Hammer and Andy Gardiner; all three Massachusetts residents return this year. Sallberg, who took the honors at the 5 km Masters Championships will also be a factor. For the 60+ race, Sheeran, Rick Becker, and Youngers went 1-2-3 in Lexington in 2018; Becker topped Sheeran last year. With Becker absent, Sheeran is the favorite to return to the top spot. Doug Goodhue and Gene Dykes could also factor in the age-grading contest. At the 2018 Masters 5 km Cross Country Championship they went 1-2 in 60+. Marisa Sutera Strange is the favorite in the Women’s race. She did not run Club Cross last year but age-graded over 90% at the USATF Cross Country Championships in Tallahassee. Carmen Ayala-Troncoso had the top age grade at Spokane, but Strange finished 1^st and Ayala-Troncoso 3^rd in age-grading at the recent Masters 5 Km XC Championships. Nora Cary, Patrice Combs, and Regina Joyce are also in the hunt for a podium finish.

Team contests are the focal point at Club Cross. Men 40+ The Bowerman Track Club, the Boston Athletic Association, and the West Valley Track Club went 1-2-3 last year, with Minnesota’s Run N Fun a close 4^th. The year before it was West Valley, the B.A.A. and Bowerman taking the top 3 spots in that order. Those four teams are all entered again; it should be the same dogfight. Men 50+ The Greater Springfield Harriers have ruled the roost for the past two years, taking the title by a wide margin in 2017 but pressed more closely last year by Bowerman. West Valley brings a strong team that will make a run for the win. The Central Park Track Club, Club Northwest and the Greater Philadelphia Track Club could be factors. Men 60+ In 2017 it was Club Northwest, the Atlanta Track Club and the Shore Athletic Club going 1-2-3, with the Syracuse Track Club just off the podium. Club Northwest took top honors last year too; Run N Fun and the Green Mountain Athletic Association rounded out the podium.  Club Northwest, short-handed this year, will be pressed to repeat. Atlanta, Run N Fun, Greater Lowell, and the HOKA Aggies are threats for the podium. Men 70+ Ann Arbor took the title last year but are not at full strength. The San Diego Striders, who took top honors at the Masters 5Km XC Championships on their home turf, enter as the favorite. Ann Arbor should maintain a spot on the podium. The Eastside Runners, who took top honors in 2017, will battle Ann Arbor for the podium. The Genesee Valley Harriers and Atlanta are always a threat. Gene Dykes gives the Greater Philadelphia Track Club a top finisher; they could also contend. Men 80+ The San Diego Striders, Atlanta, and the Clifton Road Runners will vie for the crown. Clifton, the hometown heroes, may well get the win. Second place could go either way, with Atlanta a slight favorite.

Women 40+ The Jane’s Elite Racing goes for their third straight win. Team Red Lizard, who finished 5^th last year, has added two fast runners. They will force the Jane’s to earn the win. The Bull City Track Club, Club Northwest, and Impala Racing are not far off. This should be a very close race for 1^st through 5^th. Women 50+ The Jane’s took their 2^nd consecutive title in 2018 but are not at full strength this year. The Athena Track Club and Club Northwest, who finished 2^nd and 3^rd to the Jane’s in 2017, will push them for the win this time. Other likely contenders include the Impalas and the Western Mass Distance project. Women 60+ Team Red Lizard, who took top honors the last two years, is not entered. Patrice Combs will lead the way for Atlanta, but Club Northwest brings a strong, evenly matched team that may get the win. Nora Cary leads her North Jersey Masters team; she could pull the team to a podium finish. Women 70+ Atlanta and the San Diego Track Club duked it out last year; Atlanta took the win 10-11. The Impalas entered a team, but one runner was forced to scratch; Atlanta will take the division unopposed.

Individual Age Division Champions will also be crowned. Most races are too close to call, but there will be stirring competition for each divisional win.

Submitted by Paul Carlin
Masters LDR/Media Coordinator
Running Professor, LLC/www.runningprof.com