Friday, October 04, 2013

Yes/No: Will two Minnesotans finish in the top eight at USA Marathon Championships?

The USA Championships return to the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon this weekend, where there will be four Championship races:  The men's and women's marathons and the masters men's and women's marathons.  The 32nd annual race will begin in Minneapolis and finish in St. Paul on Sunday morning.  The 15th Medtronic TC 10 Mile is also run on Sunday morning and both of these are preceded by a variety of races on Saturday morning for runners of all ages.

We think Minnesotans have the home turf advantage.  Let us know what you think with the question below...

Yes/No: Will two or more current Minnesota residents finish in the top eight of the USA Marathon Championships (Men, Women, Masters Men and Masters Women)?

To further clarify the question -- the two do not have to finish in the top eight in the same category.  For example, the answer would be yes if one woman and one from the masters men category finished in the top eight in their individual races.  Also, we will use the state next to the runners name in the results as the official current residence for that athlete.

The strongest contender in all the USA Championships has to be Meghan Peyton.  She is a recent USA Champion -- she won the 20k title in early September.  Peyton is something of a marathon novice; she has never finished a race at that distance.  However, she comes to the race in a midst of a hot streak and extreme fitness.  Read about her training in a Running Times interview HERE.

Another top runner competing in the Women's USA Championships is Michelle Lilienthal.  She finished fourth in the 2006 Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon.  The Men's masters race include Kelly Mortenson and Lance Elliot.   Mortenson finished twelfth in the 2000 Olympic Trials Marathon and Elliot has run as fast as 4:22 for a mile as a masters competitor.

A few other Minnesotans to keep an eye on include: Dan Greeno, Justin Grunewald, Chris Lundstrom, Jeff Renlund and Paula Vicker.

Read about the top contenders in the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon press release HERE.

To play our game, simply type "yes" or "no" into the subject line of an e-mail and send it to us at DtBFantasy [AT] gmail [DOT] com before 8:00 A.M. CDT, Sunday, October 6th.  Please put your answers in the subject line of the e-mail and make sure your full name appears somewhere in the e-mail.  We will offer a bonus for participants making their 2013 debut in Yes/No - a correct answer will be worth two points for anyone who has not played yet this year.

My Answer:  No

Last week there was a Pick Ten Contest regarding the Griak Invitational.  Mike Henderson was the weekly winner with 27 points.  Tied for second was Chris Lundberg and Daniel Gerber with 22 points each.  The overall leader is still Mike Henderson -- he stretched out his lead this week and now has 152 points, 16 ahead of the pack.

In the Yes/No Contest, Mary Varney and Lori Anne Schwiesow are in first place with 21.  Dimitri Drekonja is now one point back at twenty points, while Pat Foley has 19.

For all the results, please visit DtB Fantasy Corner, HERE.

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