Tuesday, January 6, 2015

2014

I've mentioned course changes in the past, but the Alumni Race has never seen course changes like those necessitated in 2014 by a snowstorm that hit the Hudson Valley just a few days before the race.  With the descent from both the ski jump and the first hill on the lake rendered impassable by ice (and closed by the NYS Parks Department), the race was officially in jeopardy, and only with some quick thinking and rerouting by Ralph Coleman was the race able to come off for the 32nd straight year.  What resulted was a flat, fast, mostly paved course of about 2.25 miles and some absolutely flat-out racing without the hills there to lend the runners  any sort of conscience.  (I will not be adjusting any course records on this site.  Whether this is the "official" stance of the race remains to be seen.)

For all the changes to the course, though, the results look pretty much the same as we've come to expect the last few years.  The Rams weren't quite back to full strength, with Anthony Calingo stuck out west, but the return of Tom McCarney and Mike Morris following their highly unusual absences in 2013, coupled with a stellar performance by Tom Dillon, was enough to (barely) secure us the elusive ninth win we've been falling just short of for the past eight years.  The Monroe-Woodbury women took the women's crown unopposed, their fifth straight and seventh in the past eight years, as well as their record 15th participation title.  (Not sure what happened to the individual women's results; I assume some of the MW women checked off their schools but forgot to put their names on their cards.)  Caile Kohlbrenner won her fourth consecutive title, one short of runner-up Julianne Littmann-Viscardo's record.  Her 19th-place overall finish is the highest ever for a woman; for the first time, two women cracked the top 30.  The women's top five, incidentally, contains five of my top 10 women all-time.

Overall Top 30


  1. Kyle Collins (Suff '12) 11:49
  2. John Trautmann (MW '86) 12:00
  3. Nick Roosa (TZ '03) 12:04
  4. Tom Dillon (CN '97) 12:08
  5. David McCarey (Middletown '08) 12:09
  6. Shai Ben-Dor (Goshen '12) 12:12
  7. Brian Crowley (AM '82) 12:16
  8. Bret Habura (Wash '12) 12:24
  9. Corey Calajoe (PR '04) 12:27
  10. Armando Oliveira (New Roch '85) 12:32
  11. Peter Viscardo (MW '95) 12:34
  12. Liam Harrison (JJ-Hopewell Junction '97) 12:35
  13. Brendan Fennell (PR '03) 12:36
  14. Paul Mueller (St. Cloud Apollo, MN '02) 12:38
  15. Matt Borawski (PR '04) 12:41
  16. Ben Nilsestuen (Warwick '01) 12:43 
  17. Matt McKenna (CN '03) 12:55
  18. Robert Roach (Jefferson-Youngsville '97) 12:57
  19. Caile Kohlbrenner (TZ '11) 12:58
  20. Nick Sullivan (Gosh '13) 13:00
  21. Jason Friedman (CN '93) 13:02
  22. Devon White (CN '96) 13:06
  23. Tom McCarney (CN '93) 13:11
  24. Stephen Mulvihill (JYCS '01) 13:15
  25. Mike Hickey (PR '09) 13:16
  26. Jeremy Schriber (MW '12) 13:17
  27. Brian Herbst (PR '07) 13:18
  28. Patrick Michon (McNeill '13) 13:26
  29. Julianne Littmann-Viscardo (MW '95) 13:28
  30. Frank Visingardi (Nan '86) 13:29
Womens' Top 10
  1. Caile Kohlbrenner (TZ '11) 12:58
  2. Julianne Littmann-Viscardo (MW '95) 13:28
  3. Suzanne LaBurt (MW '81) 14:44
  4. Dawn Newsome Marinaccio (CS '86) 15:21
  5. Kim Newsome Chalfin (CS '88) 15:36
  6. ?? (MW) 15:46
  7. ?? (MW) 15:47
  8. ?? (MW) 15:47
  9. Olivia Haverson (Greenwich) 15:48
  10. Monica Prager (Wash '11) 16:12

Total Number of Runners: 172

Team Participation: 1. Monroe-Woodbury 23, 2. Pearl River 20,  3. Clarkstown North 15, 4. Albertus Magnus 14, 5. (tie) Suffern and Clarkstown South 13, 7. (tie) Nanuet and Tappan Zee 6, 9. Washingtonville 5, 10. Goshen 4, 11. Ramapo 3, 12. (tie) Arlington, Warwick, Cornwall St. Barnabas, Hylton (VA), Jefferson-Youngsville Central School, Millbrook, Pine Bush, Roosevelt/Yonkers 2.

Mens' Team Scoring
  1. Clarkstown North 84 (Dillon, McKenna, Friedman, White, McCarney)
  2. Pearl River 87
  3. Monroe Woodbury 117
  4. Suffern 174
  5. Clarkstown South 226
  6. Albertus Magnus 253
  7. Nanuet 309
Women's Team Scoring
  1. Monroe-Woodbury 26

2014: Jamie's recap

Never in the 31-year history of the Bill Markiewicz Memorial Rockland Alumni Cross Country Run had the classic Bear Mountain course needed to be changed to accommodate weather conditions. But when a midweek blanket of snow and residual ice rendered most of the Hessian Lake path and the steep ski-jump hill unusable for the Nov. 29 event, meet official Ralph Coleman was forced to improvise. He fashioned a makeshift layout that hewed to the cleared paved walkways spanning from the Carousel, across the snow-laden playfield to the Inn and down the path leading to the site of the annual Oktoberfest.
Thanks to Coleman’s impromptu route reshuffling, the 172 running revelers who took part in this 32nd annual edition were able to celebrate their own “November-fest” over an estimated 2.25-mile course that preserved at least some of the flavor of the traditional 3-mile sojourn, a late-autumn staple for alumni harriers for three decades.
The race, co-sponsored by the Rockland Road Runners, is named for the former Clarkstown North cross country and track coach (1978-89) who would have embraced the snowy conditions with his trademark can-do spirit and deemed it a worthy challenge to be tackled and overcome. On an overcast, chilly 35-degree day, the challenge was accepted and conquered by Kyle Collins and Cailé Kohlbrenner, a pair of college students with family running pedigrees who swept to victory on the flat provisional course.
Collins, a 2012 Suffern High School graduate and junior at SUNY Fredonia, took the lead immediately and held off course-record-holder John Trautmann to win by 50 yards in 11 minutes 49 seconds, a “course record” that may stand forever as a one-time anomaly from the standard configuration. Collins’ dad, Michael, was an accomplished runner for Mepham High School on Long Island and Fredonia State who participates in the Alumni Run every year and has a third-place finish to his credit, in the 1987 race.
Trautmann, Monroe-Woodbury class of 1986, wound up finishing second in 12:00. A 1992 Olympian at 5,000 meters, Trautmann is a three-time Alumni Run champion who set the existing three-mile course record of a blistering 14:08 in 1994. Trautmann recently ran a 4:17 mile at age 46 and is one of the top masters (40 or older) runners in the country. Nick Roosa, Tappan Zee class of 2003, a two-time Alumni Run titlist, returned from an 18-month leg injury to claim third place in 12:04.
Kohlbrenner, a 2011 Tappan Zee alumna and senior at Providence College, captured her fourth successive women’s title in convincing style and placed 19th overall. She clocked 12:59 for a 150-yard victory margin over runner-up Julianne Littmann-Viscardo, Monroe-Woodbury class of 1995, who ran 13:28. Littmann-Viscardo, a former Clemson standout, has won the Alumni Run women’s division a record eight times. Kohlbrenner was a top-10 member of Providence’s cross country team, which finished 13th at the recent NCAA Division I national championships. She is the daughter of Andy Kohlbrenner, Pearl River class of 1981, a four-time Alumni runner-up and 2008 Rockland Track & Field Hall of Fame inductee.
The Clarkstown North men’s alumni edged Pearl River, 84 to 87, to notch their ninth team championship and break a tie with Albertus Magnus for most men’s titles in meet history. Monroe-Woodbury of Orange County extended its records in the women’s division and team participation categories, posting its 11th women’s crown with a score of 26 points and securing team participation honors for the 14th time, with 23 participants. Runners representing 50 high schools from 13 states – including California, Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota – took part in the race, and entrants’ ages ranged from 18 to 72.
The Alumni Run was renamed in memory of Markiewicz in 1991 and a yearly award was founded to recognize those who have rendered distinguished service to the sport. This year’s Bill Markiewicz Award recipient was Howard Arciniegas, the head athletic trainer at Spring Valley High School, who has served as the on-site athletic trainer and health professional at the Alumni Run for more than 10 years. The award was presented to Arciniegas by Janet Markiewicz, Bill’s widow, who was joined at the event by several Markiewicz family members, including five who participated in the run.
Aside from Trautmann, Littmann-Viscardo and Roosa, another past Alumni Run champion, Brian Crowley, fared admirably. Crowley, Albertus Magnus class of 1982, who won the race back in 1990, placed seventh in 12:16. Not bad for a 50-year-old!
Former Rockland County scholastic meet champions who participated included a pair of three-time winners from Pearl River, Brendan Fennell ’03 and Mike Hickey ’09; Mike Colangelo, Albertus Magnus class of 1975; Jim Dinan, Nanuet class of 1987; and Pete Modafferi, Clarkstown South class of 1995. Fennell was a two-time New York state champion and was voted Male Runner of the Decade for Rockland from 2000-2009. Colangelo, who also was a state individual titleholder, was joined at the race by several fellow members of the Albertus Magnus 1974 squad, which was celebrating the 40th anniversary of its undefeated, New York state and Eastern States championship club.
Larry Beckerle, Albertus Magnus class of 1973, completed the course for the 32nd consecutive time, the only individual never to have missed an Alumni Run.

2014: Full results

Men’s team scores: 1. Clarkstown North (CN), 84; 2. Pearl River (PR), 87; 3. Monroe-Woodbury (MW), 117; 4. Suffern (Suf), 174; 5. Clarkstown South (CS), 226; 6. Albertus Magnus (AM), 253; 7. Nanuet (Nan), 309; other teams incomplete.
Women’s team scores: 1. Monroe-Woodbury, 26; other teams incomplete.
Team participation (combined):  1. Monroe-Woodbury, 23; 2. Pearl River, 20; 3. Clarkstown North, 15; 4. Albertus Magnus, 14; 5. Tie, Clarkstown South and Suffern, 13; 7. Tie, Nanuet and Tappan Zee, 6; 9. Washingtonville (Wash), 5; 10. Goshen (Gosh), 4; 11. Ramapo (Ram), 3; 12. Tie, Arlington (Arl), Cornwall (Corn), Hylton (Va.), Jefferson-Youngsville Central School (JYCS), Millbrook (Mill), Pine Bush (PB), Roosevelt/Yonkers (Roos), Warwick (War), 2; 20. Tie, Archbishop Molloy, Ardsley, Bayside, Beacon, Blind Brook, Bloomfield Hills (Mich.), Burke Catholic, Chaminade, Chapparal (Colo.), Croton-Harmon, Greenwich, Hendrick Hudson, Highland, Jesuit (Md.), John Jay-Hopewell Junction, Kimball Union Academy (N.H.), Mepham, Middletown, James I. O’Neill, New Rochelle, Prescott (Wis.), North Rockland (NRk), Rockland Country Day School, Shasta (Calif.), South Carroll (Md.), South Kent (Conn.), Spring Valley, St. Barnabas, St. Cloud Apollo (Minn.), St. Joseph Regional (N.J.), Woodland Hills (Pa.), 1.
Women’s top 20 individuals
1, CailĂ© Kohlbrenner (TZ ’11), 12:59; 2. Julianne Littmann-Viscardo (MW ’95), 13:28; 3. Suzanne LaBurt (MW ’81), 14:44; 4. Dawn Newsome Marinaccio (CS ’86), 15:21; 5. Kim Newsome Chalfin (CS ’88), 15:36; 6. Monroe-Woodbury, 15:46; 7. Monroe-Woodbury, 15:47; 8. Monroe-Woodbury, 15:47; 9. Olivia Haverson (Greenwich), 15:48; 10. Monica Prager (Wash ’11), 16:12; 11. Leslie Steinberg (Blind Brook ’04), 16:38; 12. Christine Bibbo (MW ’93), 16:54; 13. Aime Goldberg Macdonald (Nan ’94), 16:57; 14. Kristine Beckerle (AM ’07), 17:08; 15. Leslie Ballantyne (Suf ’92), 17:23; 16. Tiffany Green (PB ’13), 17:34; 17. Carissa Cuccia (Gosh ’12), 17:45; 18. Catherine Dillon (Prescott, Wis. ’96), 17:55; 19. Ksenya Floor (PB ’13), 18:04; 20. Veronica Doran (AM ’89), 18:35.
Overall individual results 
1. Kyle Collins (Suf ’12), 11:49; 2. John Trautmann (MW ’86), 12:00; 3. Nick Roosa (TZ ’03), 12:04; 4. Tom Dillon (CN ’97), 12:08; 5. David McCarey (Middletown ’08), 12:09; 6. Shai Ben-Dor (Gosh ’12), 12:12; 7. Brian Crowley (AM ’82), 12:16; 8. Bret Habura (Wash ’12), 12:24; 9. Corey Calajoe (PR ’04), 12:27; 10. Armando Oliveira (NewR ’85), 12:32; 11. Peter Viscardo (MW ’95), 12:34; 12. Liam Harrison (John Jay-Hopewell Junction ’97), 12:35; 13. Brendan Fennell (PR ’03), 12:36; 14. Paul Mueller (St. Cloud Apollo, Minn. ’02), 12:38; 15. Matt Borawski (PR ’04), 12:41; 16. Ben Nilsestuen (War ’01), 12:43; 17. Matt McKenna (CN ’03), 12:55; 18. Robert Roach (Jefferson-Youngsville ’97), 12:57; 19. Caile Kohlbrenner (TZ ’11), 12:59; 20. Nick Sullivan (Gosh ’13), 13:00; 21. Jason Friedman (CN ’93), 13:02; 22. Devon White (CN ’96), 13:06; 23. Tom McCarney (CN ’93), 13:11; 24. Stephen Mulvihill (JYCS ’01), 13:15; 25. Mike Hickey (PR ’09), 13:16; 26. Jeremy Shriber (MW ’12), 13:17; 27. Bryan Herbst (PR ’07), 13:18; 28. Patrick Michon (O’Neill ’13), 13:26; 29. Julianne Littmann-Viscardo (MW ’95), 13:28; 30. Frank Visingardi (Nan ’86), 13:29; 31. Michael Guglielmo (CS ’13), 13:38; 32. Mike Morris (CN ’96), 13:45; 33. Jamie Kempton (AM ’76), 13:49; 34. Jim Dinan (Nan ’87), 13:50; 35. Matt Lenihan (PR ’03), 13:51; 36. Alex Berbit (Suf ’99), 13:52; 37. Martin Hehir (Wash ’11), 13:54; 38. Johan Anestad (Suf ’89), 13:59; 40. Alex Sanso (MW ’13), 14:04; 40. Vincent DiSalvo (Wash ’10), 14:05; 41. Sean Casey (Corn ’11), 14:10; 42. Jim Dugandzic (PR ’81), 14:16; 43. Adam Klein (CS ’14), 14:37; 44. Douglas Hauser Jr. (MW ’02), 14:38; 45. John MacKenzie (TZ ’98), 14:39; 46. Patrick Markiewicz (Burke Catholic ’06), 14:42; 47. Dan Pragdat (CS ’11), 14:43; 48. Suzanne LaBurt (MW ’81), 14:44; 49. David Blumel (MW ’75), 14:47; 50. Ed Ackerly (MW ’86), 14:50.
51. Zack Berbit (Suf ’96),15:00; 52. Tom List (PR ’80), 15:02; 53. Logan Scott (Highland ’79), 15:03; 54. Dan Brabander (Nan ’83), 15:05; 55. Alan Araujo (CS ’14), 15:06; 56. Jonathan Farrell (Rockland County Day School ’01), 15:08; 57. David Herbstman (Ram ’79), 15:09; 58. Tim Waples (Suf ’00), 15:14; 59. Dan Markiewicz (Gosh ’96), 15:15; 60. Jimmy Carroll (Wash ’08), 15:16; 61. Michael Colangelo (AM ’75), 15:19; 62. Dawn Newsome Marinaccio (CS ’86), 15:21; 63. George Newsome (CS ’92), 15:22; 64. Matt Ammer (Suf ’94), 15:22; 65. Mike Bernstein (Suf ’95), 15:30; 66. Jon Prince (War ’02), 15:31; 67. Matthew Walker (CS ’12), 15:31; 68. Nicholas Morelli (CS ’14)15:34; 69. Kim Newsome Chalfin (CS ’88), 15:36; 70. Colin Quinn (CN ’12), 15:37; 71. Ray Sussmann (PR ’81), 15:37; 72. Jason Lipman (CN ’91), 15:42; 73. Nikitas Tampakis (TZ ’10), 15:44; 74. Monroe-Woodbury, 15:46; 75. Monroe-Woodbury, 15:47; 76. Monroe-Woodbury, 15:47; 77. Olivia Haverson (Greenwich ’07), 15:48; 78. James Whalen (South Kent, Conn. ’07), 15:52; 79. Mark Toujiline (Beacon ’13), 15:54; 80. Kyle Grant (TZ ’12), 15:55; 81. Kevin Leonard (AM ’76), 15:55; 82. Joe Dolan (PR ’90), 15:56; 83. Doug Carter (Kimball Union, N.H., ’71), 15:59; 84. Josh Levine (Suf ’96), 16:00; 85. Robert Pasqual (Archbishop Molloy ’77), 16:02; 86. David Wang (CS ’01), 16:05; 87. Adam Borg (CN ’97), 16:07; 88. Ross Stephens (Arlington ’94), 16:08; 89. Cody Mezebish (South Carroll, Md. ’10), 16:10; 90. Monica Prager (Wash ’11), 16:12; 91. Nick Mitchell (Roosevelt-Yonkers ’77), 16:13; 92. Bob Hermesch (Hendrick Hudson ’68), 16:20; 93. Evan Ratnow (Suf ’96), 16:22; 94. Mike Bromm (Nan ’78), 16:30; 95. Mike Moran (AM ’83), 16:30; 96. Pete Modafferi (CS ’95), 16:31; 97. Ed Hushon (AM ’83), 16:37; 98. Leslie Steinberg (Blind Brook ’04), 16:38; 99. Randall Duggan (Shasta, Calif. ’88), 16:46; 100. Kevin Chanowsky (MW ’94), 16:48.
101. Christine Bibbo (MW ’93), 16:54; 102. Aime Goldberg Macdonald (Nan ’94), 16:57; 103. Chris Craig (AM ’82), 16:59; 104. John Murphy (MW ’85), 17:01; 105. John Halpin (Corn ’89), 17:03; 106. Keith Reilly (PR ’90), 17:04; 107. Kristine Beckerle (AM ’07), 17:08; 108. Ross Edelman (Suf ’06), 17:13; 109. Tom Maile (Bloomfield Hills, Mich. ’60), 17:15; 110. Leslie Ballantyne (Suf ’92), 17:23; 111. Kevin Heraghty (NRk ’94), 17:27; 112. Chris Markiewicz (Hylton, Va. ’95), 17:30; 113. Matt Diglio (MW ’96), 17:31; 114. Tiffany Green (PB ’13), 17:34; 115. Carissa Cuccia (Gosh ’12), 17:45; 116. John Fahy (Woodland Hills, Pa. ’96), 17:51; 117. Catherine Dillon (Prescott, Wis. ’96), 17:55; 118. Matt Mulligan (AM ’75), 17:59; 119. Ksenya Floor (PB ’13), 18:04; 120. Ed Casey (PR ’82), 18:10; 121. Stephen Beckerle (AM ’74), 18:11; 122. Harry Owens (Chaminade ’76), 18:14; 123. Veronica Doran (AM ’89), 18:35; 124. Michael Collins (Mepham ’78), 18:38; 125. Kristian (Spring Valley ’07), 18:39; 126. Steven Estremera (Millbrook ’08), 18:46; 127. Nick Parente (CN ’87), 18:46; 128. Chuck Sommerlad (MW ’85), 18:52; 129. Ed Meyer (Jesuit, Md. ’92), 19:01; 130. Christopher Hecht (CN ’01), 19:06; 131. Chris Acerbo (St. Joseph Regional, N.J. ’82), 19:10; 132. Mark Kelly (PR ’84), 19:13; 133. John Herr (MW ’83), 19:16; 134. Todd Cote (Nan ’81), 19:29; 135. Lisa Ansorge Ratnow (Arlington ’96), 19:44; 136. Tasha Robinson Williams (MW ’80), 20:13; 137. Rob McNamara (Nan ’86), 20:15; 138. Melissa Estremera (Millbrook ’12), 21:08; 139. Sue Gulla Lanoce (PR ’83), 21:16; 140. Ken Gerber (CS ’92), 21:20; 141. Joseph Herr (MW ’87), 21:21; 142. Larry Quinn (AM ’69), 21:35; 143. Mark Markiewicz (Hylton, Va. ’95), 21:40; 144. Michael Berg (CN ’78), 21:42; 145. Karen Salmon (TZ ’04), 21:45; 146. Elisabeth Tischler (MW ’89), 21:48; 147. Jenn Maggin (CS ’08), 22:04; 148. Steve Santini (PR ’78), 22:06; 149. Mike Greco (PR ’78), 22:07; 150. Tom Kelly (PR ’78), 22:09.
151. Jessica Chauvin (Chapparal, Colo. ’05), 22:10 ; 152. Lewis Landau (Ramapo), 22:11; 153. Jim Hartigan (PR ’78), 22:11; 154. Joseph Farsetta (PR ’72), 22:13; 155. Jessica Redner (Suf ’96), 22:28; 156. Mike Coakley (CN ’87), 22:37; 157. Joe Horner (MW ’85), 22:59; 158. Ed Quintl (Roosevelt-Yonkers ’83), 23:05; 159. Rachel Whalen ’01, 23:14; 160. Becca Berg (Ardsley ’14), 23:34; 161. Gerald Conlon (MW ’84), 23:47; 162. Alan Brandstaedter (CN ’92), 23:49; 163. Jeffrey Greenberg (Croton-Harmon ’76), 24:00; 164. Mike Markiewicz (AM ’70), 24:15; 165. Sheila Conlon (St. Barnabas ’90), 24:38; 166. Larry Beckerle (AM ’73), 24:53; 167. Daniel Hlavac (PR ’79), 28:08; 168. Brian Marks (CN ’96), 28:47; 169. Dan Hogan (Suf ’99), 31:21; 170. Warren Berbit (Bayside ’60), 31:46; 171. Sherry Berbit (Ramapo ’69), 32:11; 172. Erin Frawley, n.t.