Gilmore Feels Right at Home

29TH ANNUAL PALISADES-WILL ROGERS RACE

Peter Gilmore is the first to admit there is no greater feeling than finishing first in your hometown race. He should know, for he has a lot of experience doing just that. The 29-year-old Palisadian won the Palisades-Will Rogers 5K for the eighth time in 12 years on Tuesday, finishing the 3.1-mile course through the streets of Huntington Palisades in 14:15, his third fastest time yet. “I actually considered trying the 10K this year but I wanted to see if I could break 14 [minutes],” said Gilmore, who set the race record of 14:10 in 2003 and ran his second-fastest time (14:12) a year later. “I could feel it in my legs after the first mile that I just didn’t have it today, but this is still a very respectable time. It was quite hot but I make a conscious effort to train in the heat because you never know what the weather will be like. You have to be prepared for anything.” Mikal Sandoval, a ranger at Will Rogers State Park for almost 25 years, got the day off to a rousing start with her rendition of the Star Spangled Banner–only the second time she has performed the national anthem in public. “The first time was for the Chamber of Commerce on opening day of the polo season last year,” said Sandoval, who sings in a four-part ladies’ acapella group that will be competing at the small chorus world championships next week in San Antonio. “I love to sing vintage songs from the 1920s and 30s, lots of standards and show tunes, but to be asked to do this is very exciting.” Further enhancing the patriotic mood was official race starter Lu Parker of KTLA’s Prime Time News, who implored the throngs of people gathered at the entrance to the Palisades Recreation Center to “remember the men and women overseas who are fighting for our freedom.” With that, the horn sounded and the first wave of runners, equipped with computer chips on their sneakers, crossed the intersection of Alma Real and Toyopa. Palisadians Mike Haddan (15:18), Ryan Gordon (16:18) and Ethan Meyers (16:28) finished second through fourth overall, respectively. Meyers won the 16-18 age division while another local runner, 15-year-old Rickey Gables, won his age group in 20:37. Three other Palisadians won their age divisions: Bob Olds took the 65-69 age group in 24:03, Bob Gold won the 70-74 category in 27:07 and Ted Mackie finished first in the 75-99 division with a time of 31:48. Gilmore finished 17th at last year’s New York marathon and is in serious training for the 2008 Summer Olympics. Next on his schedule is the seven-mile- long Falmouth Road Race in Massachusetts on August 13–one of the most competitive races in the country. Yet even while Gilmore pursues ever-ambitious goals, nothing can replace the thrill he gets running in front of friends and family. “It’s hard to acknowledge people when you’re concentrating on the race but I did hear a lot of people cheering for me and I saw a lot of familiar faces,” said the 29-year-old Gilmore, who graduated from Palisades High in 1995, went on to run cross country and track at UC Berkeley, and now lives and trains in San Mateo. “It’s very rare to have a race like this that is a benchmark.” Though she did not have the “home course advantage” that Gilmore enjoyed, Jenna Dee found her first try at the 5K to her liking, winning the women’s race in 18:47. “This was an awesome course with plenty of shade and rolling hills,” said the 32-year-old from Marine del Rey, who trains with See Jane Run, a Santa Monica-based running club sponsored by Nike. “It was warm out there but a woman who was watering her lawn sprayed us with her hose as we went by and it felt great. If I knew her name I’d send her a thank you card.” Dee overtook last year’s winner, Therese Fricke of Santa Monica, in the third mile and finished 15 seconds ahead of runner-up Tania Fischer, who won the race herself in 1993 in 16:36, seven seconds off the women’s record set by Annetta Luevano in 1995. Fricke, who clocked 18:39 last year, was third in 19:08. Claudia Campos was the first Palisadian woman to finish, placing sixth overall in 20:43 and winning the 45-49 age group. Other local runners to win their divisions were Joelle Corey (25:06) in the 16-18 age group, Samantha Bryant (22:41) in the 35-39 age group, Patty Beckwith (24:49) in the 50-54 age group and La Rel Beyer (29:47) in the 70-74 age group. Kevin Koeper, a 28-year-old from Arcadia, won the men’s 10K for the second straight year in 33:01, crossing the finish line 12 seconds ahead of second-place finisher Kevin Purcell of Los Angeles. Setting the pace with several fellow Nike Team runners, Koeper ran the 6.2 miles in 31:54 last year under cooler conditions. The 10K record of 29:46 was set by New Zealander Russel Edmonds in 1983. Local division winners were Chad Kanoff, who won the 1-12 age group in 52:44, and Al Werker, who won the 70-74 age group in 40:17 Erica Aklufi, a 30-year-old Santa Monica resident, braved the grueling Will Rogers switchbacks to recordl the sixth-fastest women’s 10K time ever. Aklufi ran the race in 35:55, one second faster than Mindy Ireland’s clocking in 1986. Katie Dunsmuir, a PaliHi alum and five-time 10K winner, set the women’s record of 35:09 in 1983. Aklufi held off the challenges of Palisadian and three-time 10K winner Kara Barnard, who was second in 38:01, and defending champion Lucy Fitzgerald of Santa Monica, who earned the bronze medal for third place in 41:41. Ali Riley, who was second overall in the 5K the previous year, tried the 10K for the first time Tuesday and won the 16-18 age group in 42:14 while fellow Palisadian Catherine Coleman won the 50-54 age group in 49:30. Also receiving a medal was Larry Meyer, although it wasn’t because he placed among the top three in his age group. At the post-race medal ceremony, Meyer was recognized for having participated in every Palisades-Will Rogers 10K since the race began in 1978. “I guess this the only way I’m going to win anything here, but I’ll take it,” the 59-year-old from Glendale joked. “My best time was 51 [minutes] and something and I can’t remember the year. I always like to wear the shirt I got from the first race but my wife’s out of town and I couldn’t find the thing.” While keeping his consecutive 10K streak alive remains top priority, Meyer is closing in on yet another personal goal–running a marathon on all seven continents. In 2005, he ran marathons eight days apart in Antarctica and South America, leaving only Asia left to conquer. “I’m planning to run a race along the Great Wall of China next May, so that will take care of that,” Meyer said, adding, with a touch of sarcasm, “I have to say that this race is the best. I just love the switchbacks.” Of the 2,344 runners this year, 1,306 were Palisadians. For complete results, visit the official race Web site at www.palisades10k.com or log on to Race Central at www.runraceresults.com.