USATF 2018 MN Team Circuit Announced

USATF 2018 MN Team Circuit Races HERE

Jeff Winter City of Lakes Half Marathon Results

Jeff Winter City of Lakes Half Marathon men's results HERE, women HERE.

Erichsen, Paulsen Win Men's and Women's Races at Irish Run 8K

The Twin Cities Track Club swept the individual titles on a cold, windy day for the Irish Run 8K in St. Paul on Sunday.  Chris Erichsen ran 24:18, Lauren Paulsen 28:00.  Temperatures hovered around 20 F with a brisk West wind hitting the runners as they came back on the out-and-back route along Summit Avenue.

Team USA Minnesota's Jonathan Peterson won the 5K in 15:11.  Nicole Klein won the women's title in 23:02.  Full results for both races can be found HERE.

Perhaps the best news was that, in all likelihood, this will not be the last Irish Run.  Race director Chris Fuller said he'll be relinquishing that role as he no longer has the time to allot to such an effort, but the race is not "going away."  Fuller said he wants to see races designed to give an opportunity for top level competition, such as the Irish Run 8K has been for decades, thrive.  He's committed to seeing that that legacy is continued.

Whether that means partnering with others to accomplish that or some other form of race administrative structure, Fuller is optimistic that the event will still be a big part of the Twin Cities racing scene in the future.  He said there was big support this year from the teams, from USATF Minnesota and MDRA, which both have the event on their road running circuits.

Defending Champs Return to Get in Gear

Defending champions Matt Gabrieslon of St. Louis Park and Michelle Frey of Minneapolis are set to return for the 35th annual Get in Gear 10K this Saturday.

The pair will be racing for a $1000 winners' checks and an extra $250 for being the top Minnesotans in the race.

The pair will be racing for a $1000 winners' checks and an extra $250 for being the top Minnesotans in the race.

Also competing are Richard Kandie of Coon Rapids and Dan Greeno of Roseville, who finished second and third last year, as well as Chris Erichsen of St. Paul, Kelly Fermoyle of Mendota Heights, and Festus Kgen of Kenya.

The women’s field includes 2011 runner-up Jenna Boren of St. Paul, 2010 runner-up Emily Brown of Minnetonka, Ariella Gottfried of Minneapolis, and Doreen Kitaka of Kenya.

The Get in Gear 10K is part of the USATF-Minnesota Team Circuit and serves as the USATF-Minnesota State 10K Championship.

Over 8000 runners are registered for various Get in Gear events with another 500 to 1,000 expected to sign up through Friday. 4100 runners have signed up for the signature 10K, 2200 are in the 5K field, 1450 runners in have committed to the half marathon, and 400 are set to run the 2K.

All races begin and end at Minnehaha Park in Minneapolis with the 2K starting at 8 a.m., the 10K and half marathon at 9 a.m., and the 5K at 9:20.

“We are thrilled about the 35th anniversary Get in Gear events and look forward to our ‘Annual Rite of Spring’ with excitement and well executed planning for our participants, sponsors, spectators and volunteers,” said Paulette Odenthal, Get in Gear executive director. “Both the 10K and half marathon entries are running ahead of last year so we expect a great day of running.”

Megan Hogan Returns with Human Race Win

Team USA Minnesota's Megan Hogan returned to racing from a long injury lay-off with a win at Sunday's 40th annual St. Patrick's Day Human Race in St. Paul.

The George Washington University alumnus (pictured above, #522) ran the out-and-back 8K race in 27:07, out-running defending champ Jenna Boren (#188), who clocked 27:24.

Chris Erichsen (pictured below) won the men's race, running 24:28. Chris Lundstrom was runner-up in 24:57.

The Human Race kicked off the 2011 USA Track and Field Minnesota Team Circuit.


“This was my first 8K race and I think it’s a good distance,” Hogan said in a Team USA Minnesota media release. “It was a tough race but once I get used to the distance, I will like it a lot more."

Hogan and the field battled gusty winds and unseasonably warm temperatures on the classic Summit Avenue course.

"I’m very affected by the wind and get thrown around a lot, so that hurt me a little," Hogan admitted. "The heat was a bit of a shock to my system but I can’t complain. I think the conditions definitely affected my time though."

Hogan chose the Human Race, she said, because she wanted a competitive, but low-key return to racing after the long lay-off.

“It’s been a while (since I’ve raced) so I knew it would be tough but it felt like a good effort. It was good to get out there again but I still have a lot of work to do.”

Hogan is pointing for the Payton Jordan Invitational in Palo Alto on April 29 where she will compete in the 10,000 meters.

Full results of the St. Patrick's Day Human Race can be found HERE.

Preliminary Team Circuit results can be found HERE.

Photos by Gene Niemi.

2012 Team Circuit Races Announced

USA Track and Field Minnesota has unveiled its Team Circuit for 2012. The year-long series of team-scored road races looks similar to this year's circuit, with a few notable exceptions.

The grand prix, which is presented by Twin Cities in Motion and Life Time Run, features eight races, down one competition from 2011. Competition will still be conducted in six categories - men's open, women's open, men's masters, women's masters, men's grand masters, and women's grand masters.

The circuit will commence with its traditional opener -- the St. Patrick's Day Human Race in St. Paul on Sunday, March 18.

The rest of the circuit is as follows:

Get in Gear 10K/USATF Minnesota 10K Championship
Saturday April 28th

Medtronic TC 1 Mile/USATF Minnesota 1 Mile Championship
Thursday May 17th

Brian Kraft Memorial 5k/USATF Minnesota Team 5k Championship
Monday May 28th

Life Time Fitness Torchlight 5k/USATF Minnesota 5k Championship
Wednesday July 18th

MDRA 15K/USATF Minnesota 15k Championship
Sunday August 12th

City of Lakes 25k/USATF Minnesota 25k Championship
Sunday September 9th

Medtronic TC 10 Mile/USATF Minnesota 10 Mile Championship
Sunday October 7th

For the first time, the Team Circuit will break the men's and women's open competition into two divisions, with the top division competing for cash prizes as in the past and the lower division competing for awards and non-cash prizes.

Find official information on the USATF Minnesota Team Circuit HERE.

Torchlight 5K Postponed

Tonight's Life Time Fitness Torchlight 5k, which is serving as the 2011 USATF Minnesota 5K Championship race, has been postponed due to the extreme weather conditions. More information will be available on the event website.

McGregor, Gabrielson to Run Brian Kraft 5K

Seven-time USA champion Katie McGregor and Team USA Minnesota teammate Matt Gabrielson will headline the 14th annual Brian Kraft Memorial 5K on Monday, May 30.

The Memorial Day run/walk – presented by USA Track & Field Minnesota – begins at 8:30 a.m. on a course that circles Lake Nokomis in South Minneapolis. The event is a benefit for the Arnold S. Leonard Cancer Research Fund.

McGregor, USA Track and Field's Women’s Long Distance Runner of the Year in 2010, will use the race as part of her preparations for running the 10,000-meters at the USA Outdoor Track Championships in Eugene, Oregon on June 23.

Gabrielson, the runner-up at the 2008 Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon, is preparing to run Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth on June 18.

Team Circuit Resumes ... USATF Minnesota Team Circuit racing will resume at the Brian Kraft Memorial as well, with open division men's and women's leaders Run N Fun looking to extend their leads in the season-long grand prix of road races.

Run N Fun's open men's team leads TC Running Company 26-23 after three of the Circuit's nine events. Collegeville is third in the standings with 20 points.

In open women's racing, RNF lead Foley and Manfield 18-17, with TC Running Company third with 16 points.

Find complete Team Circuit standings HERE (men) and HERE (women).

Find team results of the last Team Circuit event, the Medtronic TC 1 Mile, HERE (men) and HERE (women).

Traditional Powers Lead Team Circuit

Two races into the 2011 USATF Minnesota Team Circuit, sponsored by Twin Cities In Motion and Lifetime Fitness the traditionally strong road racing squads from Run N Fun and TC Running Company are again battling for supremacy in the open men's and women's divisions.

The Run N Fun men's open team leads TC Running Company 18-16 after scoring of the St. Patrick's Day Human Race and Saturday's Get in Gear 10K. Last year, RNF beat defending champs TCRC for the men's open Team Circuit title.

TC Running company currently leads the standings in the men's masters and grand masters divisions.

In women's open competition, Run N Fun, the winner of five-straight women's open Team Circuit titles, trails TC Running Company by one point in the 2011 standings. TCRC has 14 points; RNF has 13.

Run N Fun leads the women's masters division of the circuit; the Minnesota Distance Running Association tops the women's grand masters' table.

Complete Team Circuit standings can be found HERE (men) and HERE (women).

Team results from the Get in Gear 10K can be found HERE (men) and HERE (women).

The next Team Circuit event on the schedule is next Thursday's Medtronic TC 1 Mile in Minneapolis.

Team Circuit Gets Underway with Human Race

The 2011 USATF-Minnesota Team Circuit, presented by Twin Cities In Motion and Lifetime Fitness, kicked off on Sunday with its traditional opener: the St. Patrick's Day Human Race 8K in St. Paul.

Dan Greeno, Minnesota's men's Runner of the Year in 2010 (#240, pictured above) out-ran Moses Waweru (#831) for the individual crown in 24:08.

Greeno's Run N Fun team won a runaway victory in the open men's Team Circuit scoring.

In women's competition, TC Running Company's Jenna Boren (pictured below), won by 50-seconds with her 28:02 on the Summit Avenue out-and-back.


Run N Fun won the open women's team title.

Find individual results of the Human Race HERE.

Find Team Circuit results HERE.

Photos by Gene Niemi.

RNF Tops USATF Minnesota Team Circuit

In the better late than never department ...

USA Track and Field Minnesota recently announced the final standing in its 2010 Team Circuit competition -- a team grand prix of nine road races from March through October where club teams earn points toward a year-end title.

Run N Fun, the St. Paul running specialty store, won two of three titles in both the men's and women's divisions of the competition.

The Run N Fun open men's team topped 2009 champions TC Running Company 78-73. RNF beat TCRC in seven of the nine Team Circuit races.

The Collegeville Track Club was the third-place open men's team.

TCRC won the men's masters title 54-48 over RNF; RNF won the grand master titles 40-36 over TCRC.

In open women's competition, RNF won its fifth-straight Team Circuit title, topping Foley & Mansfield 53-57. The RNF open women were unbeaten in 2010 Team Circuit competition.

TCRC was third in the competition with 49 points.

In masters competition, RNF topped F & M 47-42. In grand master competition, the Prairie Striders edged RNF 24-22.

Find Team Circuit standings and results HERE, on the USA Track and Field Minnesota web-site.

Yes/No: Three women sub-17:00 at Lumberjack?

Riding the bus to the start of the Lumberjack Days race in Stillwater shows you everything you need to know about the end of the race, although in backwards fashion. The bus works hard to chug up the big hill that the runners will be subsequently be flying down for most of this downhill race. This year the 5K at Lumberjack Days is the USATF Minnesota Championship as well as a USATF Team Circuit race.

Many of the top local runners are likely to show up to test their summer fitness at Lumberjack Days. Let us know how they will fare by answering this question:

Y/N: Will three or more women break 17:00 minutes at the Lumberjack Days 5K on Saturday?

Lumberjack Days 5K results from 2006 to 2009 have produced only one woman breaking 17:00. Amy Lyons ran sub-16:40 in both 2006 and 2007.

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. CST, Saturday, July 24th. Please put your answer in the subject line of the e-mail and make sure your full name appears somewhere in the e-mail. We will continue to offer a bonus for participants making their debut in Yes/No - a correct answer will be worth two points for any first-time players.

My answer: Yes

The fantasy contest question from last week was: Will Jen Houck break her own Park Point 5-miler course record of 28:30 Friday evening? The answer was a decisive yes. Houck broke her own record by 41 seconds on a day that was described as hot and breezy. Twenty one contestants answered correctly this week.

The 2010 Yes/No top four remained the same: Toby Hatlevig and Jesse Schoen in first place with eighteen points and Gregg Robertson and Lori Anne Peterson in second with seventeen. Robertson pulled double duty this weekend as he won Masters division of the Park Point 5 miler in addition to answering the question correctly.

For all the results, please visit DtB Fantasy Corner.

Minnesota Road Racing Round-Up

The recent warm weather has us thinking about the Minnesota road racing season. Things kicked-off unofficially with last weekend's Irish For A Day TC 5K and TC 10 Mile. You can find results from the race, HERE.

This weekend, the Minnesota Distance Running Association kicks off its spring race series with the Lake Johanna 4 Mile.

Pavement racing gets its most official start next weekend, on Sunday, March 28, when the USA Track and Field - Minnesota Team Circuit kicks of in St. Paul with the St. Patrick's Day Human Race.

And after that, well, there will be racing all over the state on any given weekend until after the leaves fall.

Here's what else is worth knowing about local road racing ...

William Irvin 5K Opens ... Registration for the William A. Irvin 5K opened today. The race scheduled for Friday, June 18 and part of the Grandma's Marathon weekend of racing is limited to 1500 competitors and is expected to fill quickly.

Register on-line HERE.

Runner of the Year Houck Interviewed ... Jennifer Houck, the women's open Runner of the Year for Minnesota in 2009, was interviewed recently by Chad Austin on his Minnesota Running web-site, HERE.

Austin also has recent interviews with Antonio Vega and Rick Kleyman that are well worth reading.

Minnesota Runner's Yearbooks Still Available ... The 2009 edition of the Minnesota Runner's Yearbook is still available for purchase. To order by mail, send $10.00 (plus $2.00 shipping and handling) to: USATF Minnesota, 960 Douglas Road, Mendota Heights, MN 55118

For more information, contact Craig Yotter at: Office [AT] Usatfmn [DOT] org.

Smyth Makes USA's World Cross Team

With an aggressive race on Saturday, Team USA Minnesota's Patrick Smyth earned a spot on the United States team for this winter's IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland.

The Notre Dame University alum finished runner-up to Dathan Ritzenhein in the senior men's race at Saturday's USA Cross Country Championships in Spokane, Washington. Smyth clocked 34:52 in the six-lap, 12K race, 18 seconds behind Ritzenhein.

The top six finishers in the race earned the right to represent the USA at World Cross on March 28. Smyth made his first-ever World Cross team with the efforet -- indeed, he was running in his first USA Cross Country Championship.

Apart from Smyth (pictured, leading Ritzenehin, left, and Bauhs), it was a day of near-misses for Team USA athletes in Spokane. In the senior men's race, USA Half Marathon champion Antonio Vega finished 8th overall in 35:41. Teammate Matt Gabrielson, a member of three World Cross squads in his career, was 10th in 35:57.

Find full senior men's results HERE.

Brown Just Misses ... In the senior women's 8K race, defending USA Cross Country Champion Emily Brown missed making her third World Cross team by a single place after she finished seventh in 26:55. Team USA Minnesota teammate Katie McGregor was two places back in 27:08.

Olympic 10,000 meter bronze medalist Shalane Flanagan dominated the race, winning by nerly a minute in 25:10.

Team USA Minnesota's Meghan Armstrong was 13th in 27:33.

Find full senior women's results HERE.

Smyth on Smyth ... Team USA Minnesota's Smyth offered the following thoughts on his race in a Team USA Minnesota news release:

"The race plan was definitely to get up there and push," Smyth said. "I was feeling good and wanted to get the field strung out early. As for how the race played out, I was convinced I'd be ready to cover any move Ritz [Dathan Ritzenhein] or Bauhs [Scott Bauhs who was third] threw in once the three of us had broken away. But the two small consecutive uphills on the course got progressively more difficult for me in the latter laps. Ritz perceptively sensed this and made a very aggressive move on the penultimate lap's uphill portion. After that, I just tried to continue to compete and to break Bauhs."

"I thought the conditions were near perfect for cross country," Smyth said of the clear-skied, 50-degree race-day. "There was a bit of a headwind, but the footing and temperature were perfect. The course was both runner and spectator friendly in my opinion with some nice scenery to boot. It was great to see another strong finish from all the Team USA Minnesota athletes, particularly the men with a 2-8-10 finish."

"Making this world team was extremely high on my priorities for this fall/winter," Smyth concluded. "This is my first World Championships team of any kind and getting the chance to represent one's country is, in my opinion, the greatest privilege in sports. I'm extremely honored to have qualified, but know qualifying is only half the battle. Dennis [Barker, the Team USA Minnesota coach] and I now need to make all the preparations necessary to post a top finish in Poland. I think I can be a top-20 contender."

Video Coverage ... The ubiquitous folks from Flotrack where on hand in Spokane. You can find coverage of the races and pre- and post-race interviews with athletes HERE.

Photo by Victor Sailor/Photo Run.

Round-Up: Team Circuit, Ekiden, Hall of Fame

Before we get completely swamped by high school sections, college conferences, and a little something called the ING New York City Marathon, here are some important news items that have accumulated over the past few days ...

Team Circuit Names Champions ... The USATF-Minnesota Team Circuit ended back in September, but official, final results were released only last week. Run N Fun won the open women's title for the fourth straight year, while TC Running Company earned its first-ever men's open title.

The RNF women outdistanced TCRC 65 points to 54 in the nine-race road running series. Foley & Mansfield was third with 53 points. F & M won the women's masters title, while the St. Cloud River Runners topped the women's grand masters category.

TCRC edged RNF 68 points to 67 to win the men's open title, ending RNF's two year reign as champions. Collegeville finished third with 55 points. TCRC swept the masters and grand master division of the Team Circuit as well.

Full standings can be found HERE, on the USATF-Minnesota web-site.

Cross Country Circuit On-Going ... The USATF-Minnesota Cross Country Circuit is well underway, with only the climatic USATF-Minnesota Championship on November 14 yet to be contested.

Collegeville leads the open women's division after four races, while Run N Fun leads the open men's division.

Full standings can be found HERE.

Armstrong, Carlson Make USA Ekiden Team ... Team USA Minnesota's Meghan Armstrong and former Golden Gopher star Andrew Carlson were named to the USA team for the International Chiba Ekiden in Chiba, Japan on November 23.

The relay race features mixed teams of men and women running six alternating legs totaling 42.195 kilometers. Team USA finished eighth in the event last year.

Read the full USA Track & Field media release HERE.

Mortenson's Team Named to Oregon Hall of Fame ... Bruce Mortenson, the St. Louis Park alum who won the 1965 NCAA Steeplechase title, entered the University of Oregon Hall of Fame recently as a member of 1965 Duck track team that tied USC for the NCAA title.

Short-Cut: Results' Links for September 11-13

Below are our "Short-Cut" links for all the important action this weekend.

We're keen to see results from the Jim Rovn/Ed Bauman Invitational. The Friday afternoon girls' meet features the #1, #2, #4, and #7-ranked Class AA girls' teams -- that's Eden Prairie, Elk River, Roseville, and hosts Hopkins, respectively. The boys' meet on Saturday features #1 Wayzata, #2 Eden Prairie, and #7 Coon Rapids.


Friday:
Jim Rovn/Ed Bauman Invitational: Results
Update: Un-ranked Lakeville South girls shock #1 Eden Prairie 79-94; Bates wins.
Faribault Invitational: Results
Update: #7 Stillwater boys edge Burnsville and #4 White Bear; #11 Lakeville North girls win.
Oz Memorial Run (U of M): Women's Results * Men's Results
Update: Gophers sweep home meet, Duwell, Rombough are medalists.
St. John's Invitational: Results
Update: Meet cancelled due to inclement weather.

Saturday:
Jim Rovn/Ed Bauman Invitational: Results
Update: #2 Eden Prairie boys tip #1 Wayzata 29-47; EP's Bartnik wins.
Les Duke Invitational: Women's Results * Men's Results
Update: #13 Bethel women 2nd, Borner wins; Greeno wins men's title.

Sunday:
City of Lakes 25K: Results
Update: Lehmkuhle wins in 1:17:54; Ward tops women in 1:36:20.
Grandma's Minnesota Mile: Results
Update: Lagat runs 3:59.7 to edge Coon Rapids-based Waweru.

Run N Fun Vs. TC Running Company

The season is winding down for the USATF-MN Team Circuit. Two races remain – the MDRA Minnesota 15k this weekend and the double-points City of Lakes 25K that will close out the season in September. Many of the team races will go down to the wire and in most categories it is Run N Fun battling TC Running Company for the top spot.

We will focus on the open men's category this week:

Yes/No: Will Run N Fun finish higher than TC Running Company in Open Men's Team Circuit scoring at the MDRA Minnesota 15K on Sunday?

The USATF-MN Team Circuit began the 2009 campaign with the Human Race in March. The schedule has continued through the year with races ranging in distance from 1 mile all the way to marathon. In each race, the first place team gets as many points as the number of teams in the event. Second place gets one less point, all the way down to the last place team rewarded with a single point.

In the Open Men category, Run N Fun has battled TC Running Company all year and according to our calculations will arrive at MDRA Minnesota 15k in a dead heat with 54 points. RNF and TCRC have finished first and second in every race this year except for the TC 1 mile where RNF was third. Run N Fun has been led by Jeremy Polson, Jason Finch and Brandon Gleason, while TC Running Company has been fronted by Joey Keilor, Pat Russell and Scott Fiksdal.

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 7:30 A.M. CDT, Sunday, August 9th. Please put your answer in the subject line of the e-mail and make sure your full name appears somewhere in the e-mail. We will continue to offer a bonus for participants making their debut in Yes/No - a correct answer will be worth two points for any first-time players.

My answer: Yes

Last week’s question was: Will Laishema Hampton medal (finish in the top-3) in the Shot Put at Pan American Junior Champs? The correct answer was “No” – Hampton just missed a medal with a fourth place finish. Only 6 Contestants answered correctly and Chad Bjugan moved into 3rd place by himself with his correct answer.

You can find the all the results and leaderboards at DtB Fantasy Corner.

Good luck and thanks for playing Yes/No on DtB!

Short-Cut: Results' Links for July 25

There's enough going on this weekend that we're bringing DtB's patented Short-Cut back into action. Here are the events we're watching, all of which take place on Saturday ...

London Grand Prix (Katie McGregor): Results
Update: McGregor 8th in 15;52.90.

USA 7-Mile Championships (Team USA Minn. Athletes): Results
Update: Antonio Vega 5th in 33:35.

Boston Scientific Heart of the Summer 10K: Results
Update: Brown, Gabrielson win in 33:41, 29:58, respectively.

Lumberjack Days 10M (Team Circuit): Results
Update: Polson and Tubbs Houck, (we think) win in 50:38 and 57:51, respectively.

Duluthians Sweep Brian Kraft Memorial

Duluth residents Jeremy Polson and Jen Houck swept the individual titles at yesterday's Brian Kraft Memorial 5K at Lake Nokomis.

Polson (pictured) established a state single-age record for 31-year-olds with his 14:43 victory. He edged Team USA Minnesota's Chris Lundstrom by one second.

Lundstrom's 14:44 set a single-age mark for 33-year-olds.

Full men's results are HERE.

Houck clocked 17:09 to out-distance Amy Lyons who ran 17:20. Erin Ward was 3rd in 17:39.

Full women's results are HERE.

In USATF - Minnesota Team Circuit competition, preliminary scores had Run N Fun winning both the open men's and open women's divisions of the race.

RNF's men edged TC Running Company 1:16:26 to 1:18:25; RNF's women topped Foley & Mansfield 1:30:23 to 1:35:53.

Full preliminary team scores are HERE.

Photo by Gene Niemi.

Short-Cut: Results' Links for April 24-26

While we've been busy covering the Hamline Elite Meet -- see below! -- the rest of the track and field world has continued apace.

Find results of this weekend's action below ...

Friday:
Drake Relays: Results
Update: Hermanson, Gopher 4x800 (w), 4x1600 (m), Studt win.
Hamline Elite Meet: Results
Brutus Hamilton Invitatiional: Results
Update: Moen 28:26, Gabrielson 28:44; Tollefson 15:35, Brown 15:37.

Saturday:
Get in Gear: Results
Update: Malakwen defends, Vega 3rd; Misganaw wins again, Lyons 2nd.
Drake Relays: Results
Gustavus Drake Alternative: Results
Sooner Invite: Results
Hamline Elite Meet: Results