Utica Observer-Dispatch headline and lead article 7/14/08:
UTICA - Drama wasn't hard to come by in Sunday's 31st running of the Utica Boilermaker 15K Road Race.
- Early rainfall that stopped just in time for yet another precipitation-free run.
- Narrow wins by a pair of Ethiopians in the men's and women's races.
- The first time a New York governor has run the Boilermaker 15K.
- And a monumental timing snafu that will leave 2008's 9,770 finishers forever wondering exactly how fast they ran.
Amid the dizzying array of sights and sounds, proud Utica Mayor David Roefaro called Sunday's Boilermaker "the best one
ever."
The mayor walked and ran the first mile before getting a ride to the finish line to greet the winners on a day that
saw the second-largest number of finishers in Boilermaker history.
"It's amazing how much work goes into this," said Roefaro, who became mayor in January.
Race officials called it the most dramatic Boilermaker finish ever with tight finishes in the men's and women's 15K races.
In the men's race, Ethiopia's Terefe Maregu, this year's winner of the Peachtree Road Race in Atlanta, defeated
three competitors by a narrow margin. Maregu had veered off course yards from the finish when he followed the
media truck instead of the race course.
Maregu finished the race in 44 minutes, 17 seconds. That was a far cry from the Boilermaker record of 42:54, set by
Joseph Kimani in 1997.
Ethiopian Ashu Robo Kasim won the women's race in 50:39, pushed all the way by her competitors.
It fell short of the record time, though, which is held by Catherine Ndereba who ran 48:06 in 2001...
Road Trip for Tuckin, Cutter & Tex
|
