Fit to be Tied Column
June 27, 2008From the Pueblo Chieftain
by Gary Franchi
Anniversary Run /Walk part of full day of festivities
A diamond anniversary should be something special, and the celebration
marking the founding of Pueblo’s two colleges is shaping up to be
just that.
Pueblo Community College and Colorado State University-Pueblo have a shared
history that began on July 13, 1933 with the signing of the articles of
incorporation as Southern Colorado Junior College. They are teaming to
stage an all-day festival on the PCC Campus on that same date next month.
The kickoff to the festivities will be the 75th Anniversary Run/Walk that
will begin at 7:30 a.m. on PCC’s Orman Ave. campus near the Mike
Davis Academic Building. To keep the “75” theme, the run distance
will be 7.5 kilometers or 4.66 miles (the walk will be two miles).
The run course is a racer’s delight – flat and fast, starting
and finishing on Orman, taking Dittmer to City Park and making two loops
of the park before heading back to the campus via Cleveland St. Walkers
will also take Dittmer to City Park and will circle the fountain before
returning to PCC via Cleveland.
All participants will be treated to a T-shirt, souvenir item, post-race
refreshments, free massage and a free pancake breakfast. In addition,
there will be age-group awards as well as special hand-made awards made
by Don and Lois Pfost for the overall top male and female runners under
40 years old and top male and female masters runners (over 40).
Then, those who stick around the PCC campus can enjoy a full day of outdoor
and indoor activities such as a health fair, car show, Texas Roadhouse
barbecue lunch, historical events and display, art show and wine-sampling
reception, musical entertainment from various performers throughout the
day, and a variety of games such as a football accuracy toss, climbing
wall, tennis, Frisbee golf, etc. The day will conclude with a 5 p.m. performance
by the Pueblo Municipal Band in outdoor amphitheater.
Registration is now under way, and entry forms are available on the Southern
Colorado Runners website while hard copy forms are available at the Pueblo
YMCA, Gold Dust Saloon and Almighty Muscle in Pueblo. Those registering
before July 5 can enter for $17.50, with SCR members and staff, faculty,
students and families of PCC and CSU-P getting a discount ($15) if they
register by the early deadline.
Running
A summer-time female-only race will again take place on Saturday when
the annual Women’s Distance Festival, a 5K run and walk will be
held at City Park near the pavilion. Despite offering the normal fevered
competition, the WDF aims to encourage women of all ages and abilities
to run or walk to enhance their physical fitness. A true bonanza this
year is that all participants will receive a lightweight windbreaker bearing
a cool logo designed by talented Pueblo artist Kathy Godec. Race starting
times are 7:15 a.m. for the walkers and 7:30 for the runners, and race-day
registration is just $18.
Among the slew of area runners in the Garden of the Gods 10-Mile Run earlier
this month were several outstanding performances across the age spectrum.
The first local finisher was Justin Ricks, 28, of Pueblo West whose speedy
1:00:55 time was good for 15th overall among the 1,460 finishers. Pueblo
West High teens Michael Cernoia and Mike Schmidt were 23rd and 25th overall
among the 839 male finishers with times of 1:02:55 and 1:03:49, respectively,
and Cyclone teammate Anna Marshall, 16, was third in her age division
with a sparkling 1:19:37. The outstanding 1:24:33 clocking by Carol Kinzy,
60, of Pueblo smashed her age division course record by nearly nine minutes,
and Puebloans Robin Krueger, 39, and Peggy Oreskovich, 45, finished in
1:17:53 and 1:24:20, respectively. The Garden is part of the Triple Crown
of Running that also includes the Summer Roundup in July and the Pikes
Peak Ascent or the ascent leg of the Pikes Peak Marathon in August.
Marathon
Two Pueblo-area runners completed the Colorado Colfax Marathon in Denver last month. Puebloan Robert Santoyo, 46, finished in 4:32 while Patricia Cisneros, 45, of Pueblo West crossed in 5:38. There were six Puebloans in the half-marathon, with John Roldan, 40, leading the way with a time of 1:39.
Triathalon
Former Puebloan Blake Ottersberg, now 26, living in Boulder and working
as a sales rep for Inside Triathlon magazine, is rounding into top multi-sport
competitive form since returning to some serious training. Last month,
he placed second overall in the low-key Littlefoot sprint triathlon in
Morrison and sixth overall among the elite males in the Summer Open Spring
in Longmont. Blake’s target race this year is the USA Triathlon
Age-Group National Championships that will be held Sept. 20 in Portland,
Oregon.
Steve and Jennifer Lopez, proprietors of the Almighty Muscle multi-sport
retail store in Pueblo, are working with several others on plans for what
could be a doozy of a point-to-point-to-point triathlon here next summer.
If things come to fruition, the triathlon would start with a 500-meter
swim in Lake Pueblo, a 17-mile bike from there to CSU-Pueblo followed
by a run of approximately 5 miles to the Riverwalk. A late July or early
August date is being explored that would not conflict with other major
Colorado triathlons. If you’d like to be part of the planning group
or just want to know what’s going on with it, attend a planning
meeting at 6 p.m. July 16 at the Almighty Muscle store at 517 W. Fifth
St. In case you have seen the big “For Lease” sign on the
front window of the store, be aware that the store has been moved two
doors down to the east.
Contact Information
Note that I have changed my e-mail address to garyf@bresnan.net, so please send information and comments to me at that address. If you’ve tried to contact me during the past three weeks and haven’t heard back from me, please resend to me at this new e-mail address.
Race Calendar
• Saturday – Women’s Distance Festival , 5K run/walk,
7:15 a.m. walk, 7:30 a.m. run, City Park (564-1443).
• July 13 – PCC/CSU-Pueblo 75th Anniversary Run, 7.5K run/2M
walk, 8 a.m., Pueblo Community College (549-3222).
• Aug. 2 – Moonlight Madness (Prediction Series race), 5M,
7:30 p.m. 5395 Verde Rd. (564-1443).
• Aug. 23 – Tunnel Drive Run (Prediction Series race), 5M,
7:30 a.m., Canon City (784-6514).
• Sept. 7 – South shore Adventure Run (Prediction Series race),
8.3M, South Shore of Pueblo Reservoir (543-2052).
• Sept. 21 – Hot to Trot, 5K run, 2M walk and Kiddie K, 8
a.m., 217. South Union Ave. (251-3189).
Websites:
• Southern Colorado Runners: www.socorunners.org/
Send comments and fitness information to Gary Franchi via e-mail at garyf@bresnan.net.
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