DEDHAM MA April 30, 2023. The forecast was for wet and windy, but the rain slowed to a drizzle and stopped before the race; winds were 18-20 mph but, luckily for the runners, they were mostly cross winds.
RECORDS
Nat Larson 60 and Jan Holmquist 78 took down American Records. Larson beat the men’s 60-64 record that has stood since 1999, by three seconds in 33:24. Holmquist took down the women’s record by 10 seconds in 50:01. Holmquist and Larson now own both the 55-59 and the 60-64 records!
OVERALL
Melissa Hardesty claimed the Women’s overall win in 37:26. Beverly Antunes and Fiona Bayly enjoyed 2nd and 3rd place finishes in 38:02 and 38:11. Mario Vazquez broke the Masters Course record by 18 seconds with his 31:50. Justin Freeman took 2nd in 32:17; David Angell, the 2017 &2018 overall champion, earned the bronze medal in 33:15.
AGE GRADING [based on net times]
Those with the top age graded scores, are considered the athletes with the best performance, for their age, across all runners. Larson’s record-breaking performance at age 60 took top honors on the Men’s side with a 94.33% score. Holmquist led the women’s age grading with 98.93%. John Van Danacker’s 35:53 at 60, earned a 90.43% for 2nd in men’s age grading, just ahead of Steve Schmidt’s 36:52 at 62 for 89.65%. Fiona Bayly’s 38:10 at 55, scored 93.54 and Mary Cass’s 41:43 at 61 earned 92.17 for 2nd and 3rd respectively.
AGE DIVISION
The following national champions were crowned [based on gun times]: WOMEN 40-44 Antunes 45-49 Hardesty 50-54 Abby Dean 38:17 55-59 Bayly 38:11 60-64 Cass 41:45 65-69 Liz Champagne 49:32 70-74 Jessica Wheeler 54:12 75-79 Holmquist 50:06 2:07:28 MEN 40-44 Vazquez 45-49 Angell 50-54 Gregory Putnam 34:21 55-59 Scott Humphrey 36:09 60-64 Larson 34:25 65-69 David Westenberg 39:22 70-74 Robert Qualls 41:43 75-79 Gary Ostwald 46:10 80-84 Hal Bennett 55:10 85-89 Jerry Levasseur 1:39:46. There were two close races on the men’s side, in M50 where Putnam beat Steve Bell by 16 seconds; and M55, where Humphrey edged Brett Stoeffler by 14 seconds. The closest race of the day was in W50, where Dean edged a fast-closing Karolyn Bowley by a mere 4 seconds!
TEAMS
Team championships are determined by adding up the times of the first three finishers on each team, low score wins. The Boston Athletic Association won two team gold medals, in men’s 40+ and women’s 40+. The Atlanta Track Club took home team gold in men’s 60+ and 70+. The Central Mass Striders, Genesee Valley Harriers, and Liberty Athletic Club took 1st in men’s 50+, women’s 50+ and Women’s 60+, respectively. The Greater Lowell Road Runners earned 4 bronze medals in men’s 40+ and 70+ and in women’s 50+ and 60+.
Submitted By
Paul Carlin
Consultant to Masters LDR Committee
www.runningprof.com
