10 years after ...

 

Top photo is from New Year's Eve, 2014 -- me in the middle, John McKee to the left, Neil Grencer to the right.

Bottom photo is from New Year's Eve, 2024 -- me in the middle, Dave O to the left, Neil Grencer to the right.

So much has changed in the past decade. Going for a morning run on the last day of the year has not.

See you in 2025!

How was your year?

Note: This was originally posted earlier on my Substack running column, petecolaizzo.substack.com -- please consider subscribing (to it) at the very economical price of $30/year (less than 25 cents per post!)

How was your year?
 
It was an innocuous question, uttered out of the blue by a friend as we were walking and talking indoors last week on a bitterly cold morning.
 
How was your year?
 
I was flummoxed, at a loss for words, which is rare for someone like me who talks and talks and talks (verbally or through the written word).
 
How was your year?
 
Context matters. Before my friend showed up, I had been walking by myself, the same 135-meter indoor track laps that I traverse over and over and over again during the cold-weather months. While there, I’m usually listening to audiobooks. Or, in this case, thinking. Usually about everything surrounding the academic calendar year, of which we are smack dab in the middle. Fall 2024 semester just concluded, busy Spring 2025 semester beckons.
 
That’s where my mind was at, thoughts swirling endlessly, before my walking buddy showed up. And then, the question …
 
How was your year?
 
Now you see, the context threw me off. My year? Whatchu mean, man! We’re right in the middle of my year! What year? Ask me in May, or maybe June!
 
Of course, by now, you realize what a dolt I can be sometimes. There’s less than one week left in the calendar year 2024. So, the end-of-year question, and the introspective thoughts that go with that question, they are everywhere.
 
How was your year?
 
In running, for those that keep track of mileage, the end of the year can be a time to celebrate literal milestones. I know a runner -- a serious, hard-core marathoner -- who just topped 4,000 miles of running for 2024. For those keeping score at home, that’s an average of more than 80 miles per week for an entire calendar year – that’s a lot of mileage!
 
My walking friend keeps track of his steps on an app. He’s constantly “getting steps” whenever and wherever he can throughout the day. The “10,000-steps-a-day” thing that you hear about all the time? He exceeds that total, most days, by 12 noon. And then, he keeps going.
 
Two popular apps – Strava and Spotify – provide year-end summaries called “wrapped.” It’s pretty neat to have an app summarize things for you – you know, while you’re busy actually DOING them! In Strava’s case, it’s your activity logs – run, walk, hike, cycle, etc. In Spotify’s case, it’s your listening habits – tells you what songs and what artists you listen to the most, month by month.
 
So here, in the last week of December, “how was your year?” thoughts can be pervasive. Recapping 2024, looking ahead to 2025. In truly thinking about it? I think I’m at a stage of life where … I don’t really think about it. I take each day and each week as it comes. “Be present” and “stay in the moment” are two popular phrases shared among busy and stressed-out college students, and I try to live by both.
 
And on that note, as I write this, our entire family is under one roof. That’s a rare occurrence these days, at this stage of their lives. They all surprised me by finding their way under this very same roof to be here for my 60^th birthday back in the late summer.
 
How was your year?
 
On that late-summer weekend, and today, I’d say pretty good! As for the other 350-something days? Replace the word “year” with “day” and ask me, and I’m sure I’ll have an answer ready for you. Broaden it out to the entire calendar of days under a four-digit number representing the year? Well then, you’ll lose me.
 
How was your year?

Two million page views!

Being a Numbers Guy, it’s really neat to see that this blog is at the 2,000,000 page-view mark. I remember being told by a team member when it hit the 1,000,000 mark (not sure when, not sure if I did a post about it!) but here we are now at 2 million. Who knows if this blog (or I!) will be around to eclipse the 3 million mark, but this is pretty cool. Thanks for the continued clicks!

2025, a sneak peek

As we close out the Fall 2024 semester, we eagerly anticipate the Spring 2025 semester – which could very well be the final semester in which we do NOT have an on-campus track facility for practice. This is another way of saying, our days of driving vans to track practice(s) are numbered. For someone who has been driving vans to practices and meets for the better part of 40 years (1982-1986 as an athlete, 1991-present as a coach), that is a hard concept to grasp. I think I’ll get used to it!
 
In anticipation of our spring semester, here is the (remainder of our) indoor track schedule. Mostly similar meets, some new meets, and definitely a different look to our meet entries (fewer distance runners and more non-distance runners entered in most meets as we transition to a more complete track program – also exciting!).
 
Friday, January 10: St. Thomas Aquinas College meet at Ocean Breeze – during intersession
Friday, January 17: NYC Gotham Cup at Ocean Breeze – during intersession
Friday/Saturday, January 24-25: Dr. Sander Scorcher at Armory
Friday/Saturday, January 31-February 1: Terrier Invitational at Boston University

Friday, February 7: Fastrack National at Ocean Breeze
Friday/Saturday, February 14-15: Valentine Invitational at Boston University
Saturday/Sunday, February 22-23: MAAC Championships at the Armory
Friday, February 28: Last Chance at Ocean Breeze

Saturday/Sunday, March 8-9: IC4A/ECAC at Boston University

Marist University (coming soon)

 By now, I would assume most of you have heard that Marist College will be officially Marist University, with the change happening with a big celebration in late January (I'm too lazy to look up the Actual Date). This was announced on Wednesday to much excitement and enthusiasm. So. What does this MEAN? A lot. And not a lot. 

For context? Many other MAAC schools have changed status from College to University -- most recently, Manhattan and Iona. But within the past decade (or so) also Canisius and St. Peter's. In fact! By my count? The only two MAAC schools that remain "College" are Siena and Merrimack. In almost all cases, the Universities were once Colleges. So? It's definitely a TREND. 

While there are many "reasons" for this change (and please, don't ask me! I'm just the idiot holding the stopwatch over here), one of the primary ones (in my mind) is the global perception. In other countries, higher education means "going to university" while college connotes secondary education (more like, you know, high school). Now that we have a branch campus in Florence, Italy, and we have been expanding our international footprint, the change makes sense. 

In terms of "designation"? It goes by state, and in New York, the only "requirement" is having a certain number of post-graduate degree programs. We have met or exceeded that threshold for a long time. So it's not like we just "qualified" for university status recently.

A few other thoughts: 

--This won't affect enrollment. We're not looking to grow enrollment. University status does not mean we will have a student body like Penn State. The MAAC schools that are now universities are no bigger than they were as colleges, or if there was growth it was "normal" growth (if that makes sense).

--We won't have new athletics logos. Nothing changes there. In my case, this means my "Marist flannels" don't need to be updated (phew).

--Athletic funding (scholarships) won't increase because we are a university. I've been asked that a LOT.

--If you are an alum, your diploma/degree remains valid as "Marist College" = you won't need a new one that says Marist University. 

--This has nothing to do with the track construction. Which, by the way! Is going REALLY REALLY well and it's EXTREMELY EXCITING. 

--A lot of students (while mostly giggling?) have brought up that we will be MU -- you know, like Monsters University from Monsters Inc. This should surprise no one who knows me well but ... I don't get this reference at all. I've never seen Monsters Inc., or any of their spinoff movies, etc. Or, more accurately, it may well have been playing on our TV set when our kids were younger and I may well have started watching the movie, only to drift, uninterested, into an inappropriate nap.

You see? You don't get this sort of incisive analysis just anywhere, do you!

So yeah. There you go. Marist College will become Marist University. (I guess that's) Neat!?!?

Fastrack Season Opener: Women's results

UPDATED with official FAT times

Fastrack Season Opener
Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex
Friday, December 6, 2024
Women’s results
60-meter dash
15-Alexandra Samperi 8.06
31-Makenzy Nielsen 8.29
35-Alyssa Dapont 8.39
43-Kiana Pathirana 8.53
44-Nicole Wang 8.72
200-meter dash
35-Alyssa Dapont 27.52
39-Makenzy Nielson 27.56
46-Madison LaCreta 28.00
400-meter dash
3-Isabella Milojevic 59.63
4-Julia Kropo 1:01.01
7-Stephania Granados 1:01.70
10-Kate Beebe 1:02.48
12-Julie Cristinzio 1:03.36
500-meter dash
12-Nina Florio 1:23.51
800-meter run
2-Kayla Hawkins 2:21.41
3-Grace Fletcher 2:21.76
4-Julianna Mirabile 2:24.59
10-Mackenzie Schubert 2:32.74
Mile
18-Sydney Driscoll-Gannon 5:28.47
60-meter hurdles
8-Madison LaCreta 9.46
16-Talia Augusto 10.70
1,600-meter relay
4-Marist A 4:07.88
5-Marist B 4:10.34
Long jump
4-Alexandra Samperi 5.43 (17 feet, 9.75 inches)
24-Nicole Wang 4.68m (15 feet, 4.25 inches)
Triple jump
7-Kiana Pathirana 10.76m (35 feet, 3.5 inches)
 
 

Fastrack Season Opener: Men's results = Easton school record in 400m!!!

UPDATED WITH OFFICIAL FAT times

Fastrack Season Opener
Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex
Friday, December 6, 2024
Men’s results
60-meter dash
22-Amari Mathis 7.07
34-Maxwell Sylver 7.15
200-meter dash
12-Amari Mathis 22.38
23-Maxwell Sylver 23.09
43-Ramsey Heredia 23.42
51-Simon Advento 23.65
78-William Carroll 24.78
400-meter dash
2-Easton Eberwein 49.06 * school record!
3-Ryan Trocolar 49.98
24-Weston LaBrecque 52.45
500-meter dash
2-Miracle Okoli 1:07.74
11-Christopher Lynch 1:11.51
800-meter run
7-Joseph Logan 1:59.86
9-Marcel Stewart 2:00.29
21-Josiah Sierra 2:10.06
24-Jacob Anderson 2:11.46
Mile run
8-Sean Wilson 4:29.42
5,000-run
3-Matthew Ferreri 15:33.47
4-Kevin Cannon 15:41.90
6-Justin Schwartz 15:52.39
60-meter hurdles
10-Christopher Lynch 8.95
1,600-meter relay
3-Marist A 3:22.28
11-Marist B 3:30.39
Pole vault
7-Noah Brown 3.95 meters (12 feet, 11.5 inches)
12-Daniel Vargas 3.65 meters (11, 11.75)
Long jump
8-Simeon Washington 6.62 (21 feet, 8.75 inches)
18-Ramsey Heredia 6.24 (20 feet, 5.75 inches)

Fastrack Season Opener: Time schedule

Fastrack Season Opener

Friday, December 6, 2024

Ocean Breeze, Staten Island, NY

Time schedule

Women then men, all running events

Track

1p: 60 hurdle trials

1:16p: Mile

1:55p: 60 hurdle final

2p: 60 dash trials (invite, then open)

2:40p: 500

3:05p: 400

3:40p: 800

4:14p: 200

4:50p: 3,000

5:25p: 4x800 relay

5:45p: 4x400 relay

6:15p: 5,000

Field

1p: men's and women's LJ (TJ to follow)

1p: women's pole vault (men to follow)

1p: women's shot, men's shot (weight throw to follow)

1p: women's high jump (men to follow)

Track construction has begun!

 

It's getting real, folks! Construction on the new North Field track and turf facility has begun in earnest, meaning that putting our feet on the track at some point in the summer of 2025 is getting closer (and closer) to reality. Neat!

Liftsmas

 This morning was the final men's XC/distance lift of the semester with our energtic new strength and conditioning coach, Ben Fleet. Because of this, he decided (with my mild protestations) to play "holiday music" during the lift. This was met with (mostly) glee from team members. Hey. Listen. If music choices in the weight room were directed by the Old Grump in charge of the program? No one (except, maybe, Neel) would be thrilled by this. Throughout the entire semester, there was Great Energy in the weight room and we look forward to carrying that through to 2025. Merry Fitness!

(Indoor) track schedule announced

 And ... just like that? It's track season! We open up next Friday at Ocean Breeze for the Fastrack Season Opener, hosted by our good friend Nick McDonough. Nick has given me grief for heading up to BU for their season opener the past few years. Well, Nick, we'll be at ALL of your Ocean Breeze meets this winter season 2024-2025. 

In fact! If interested? Check out this link to the GoredFoxes.com release of our schedule. Neat. 

Turkey Trot photo

 

There was a time (back in this blog's heyday) when there would be multiple Turkey Trot results/photos posts. But alas, I'm getting older, slower and more weary. But when an awesome photo like THIS appeared among many Thanksgiving texts, I had to include it here! Three alums from three different graduating classes -- Kutch 2022, Czop 2023, Citera 2024. All Forever Foxes. Neat!

(The return of) Jerk Squad

 

A fine tradition resumed on Thursday night with the circa 2024 edition of Jerk Squad. Here are a few pictures sent from Neel. Jerks galore!

NCAA Northeast Regionals: Men's results

 The men improved on the 2023 meet by one place. In addition, the 1-5 spread of 32 seconds was the tighest in the field. Just too far back. This represented the final XC races for seniors/fifth-years Gabe Rodriguez, Tyler Perry, Jeremy Mbogo and Steven Viera. Onto track!

NCAA Northeast Regional
Friday, November 15, 2024
Hopkinton State Fairgrounds
Contoocook, NH
Men’s individual results, 10km course
143-Logan Schaeffler 32:33.62
150-Gabe Rodriguez 32:40.55
156-Kieran Donnelly 32:48.98
157-Tyler Perry 32:49.97
176-Jeremy Mbogo 33:05.16
213-Dennis Love 33:43.19
230-Steven Viera 34:34.45
256 finishers
Men’s team standings
28 of 39 teams
777 points

NCAA Northeast Regional: Women's results

 Our women's season came to a close with a hard-fought finish at the regional meet at an awesome new site in southern New Hampshire. Great course, spectator friendly, and very fair. As she has been all season, junior Sierra Fisher was our undisputed leader out there. She ran tough and strong. Onto track!

NCAA Northeast Regional
Friday, November 15, 2024
Hopkinton State Fairgrounds
Contoocook, NH
Women’s individual results, 6km course
115. Sierra Fisher 21:59.01
132. Kyra Pellegrino 22:08.73
176. Julia Zydanowicz 22:45.95
203. Paige McCaul 23:12.96
224. Edy Livingston 23:25.71
228. Mallory Holloway 23:28.66
240. Emily Litke 23:44.31
268 finishers
Women’s team standings
29 of 42 teams
836 points

Team dinner (formal wear)

 

The men's cross country team decided earlier in the week that they would dress formally for our team dinner on the night before today's NCAA Northeast Regionals. Unbeknownst to them, their idiot coach waited too long to get dinner reservations! But Coach Billy came to the rescue and found an Italian restaurant that was willing to deliver to the hotel. Undaunted, the guys (with the notable exception of TP, and of course the coaches) got into their formal wear for dinner -- in the hotel lobby! Shades of Jerk Squad (which, yes folks, still happens)! Neat.

NCAA Northeast Regionals

 Sorry for the lack of posts. The cross country team concludes its season at the NCAA Northeast Regional, which will be at the Hopkinton (NH) Fairgrounds in Hopkinton, NH. UMass Lowell is the host. The original site was Franklin Park in Boston but it was relocated due to (ongoing) construction in the Franklin Park area. Women's 6km race is at 11a and men's 10km race is at 12 noon o'clock. More details/results will follow in the coming days. We are driving vans to the meet, so post-race results and notes will have to wait until we get back to Marist. OK!

NYC Marathon 2024

 

Thanks to loyal alums, blog followers and avid group texters Omar Perez and Billy Hild for constantly updating me on the NYC Marathon on Sunday. Good thing! My piece of crap phone is so old that I failed to download the marathon app, which was the only way to track the runners (of course, this could yet another "user error" scenario too). Anyway! Omar took this awesome photo of Spencer Bossi-Johnson, apparently startling him. Here is an email I sent to folks across campus who might be interested in our Forever Foxes still running strong.

--Spencer Bossi-Johnson was 25th American finisher (43rd overall) in 2:23:14. Earlier this year, Spencer competed in the US Olympic Team Trials Marathon in Orlando. Spencer and his wife Lauren just moved to Poughkeepsie, and Spencer occasionally trains with the current Marist team. Lauren was just hired as an assistant track coach at Vassar College. Picture attached taken from Marist alum and teammate Omar Perez.

Other Marist alums who finished in the top 1,000 out of more than 55,000 finishers: 

169-Sam Goldzweig 2:32:38

207-Graham Strzelecki 2:34:03

587-Bryan Buttigieg 2:43:52

639-Christopher Rivas 2:44:39

Other Marist alums that I could find (with help from Billy and Omar):

--Will Duggan 2:52:59

--Anthony Ferreri 3:40:55 (139 of 1,378 in 60-64 age group)

--Kathryn (Sheehan) Hayes 3:49:36

--Kent Rinehart 4:04:35 (dean of admission, pacing the 4:05 pace group)

--Rachel Lichtenwalner 4:17:03

If I come across more results and additional pictures, I will post (them) here. 

MAAC Championships: Men's results

This was a disappointing finish for the men. We technically "tied" Canisius for fifth place, but in the head-to-head, 1-through-5 tiebreaker, they prevailed 3-2, so the official finish place = sixth. Which stinks. It's a bigger and better league. Merrimack placed fourth and they are new to the league. So sixth place out of 13 is "technically" in the top half of the field, but it doesn't feel great. Because? It wasn't. 

MAAC Championships
Saturday, November 2, 2024
Twin Ponds on the Farm
Montgomery, NY
Men’s team standings
1-Iona 15, 2-Rider 73, 3-Siena 83, 4-Merrimack 129, 5-Canisius 151, 6-Marist 151, 7-Mount. St. Mary’s 233, 8-Fairfield 243, 9-Manhattan 270, 10-Niagara 282, 11-Quinnipiac 302, 12-Sacred Heart 312, 13-St. Peter’s 428
Men’s individual results, 8km course
24-Tyler Perry - 25:16.4
34-Gabriel Rodriguez - 25:32.3
36-Kieran Donnelly - 25:34.8
41-Jeremy Mbogo - 25:42.0
42-Logan Schaeffler - 25:42.1
50-Matthew Ferreri - 25:52.2
51-Steven Viera - 25:52.9
61-Jeremiah Lanum - 26:03.3
67-Dennis Love - 26:06.5
69-Joaquin Bell-Andrade - 26:12.6
72-Miles Chamberlain - 26:15.5
74-Kevin Cannon - 26:16.7
75-Justin Schwartz - 26:17.7
78-Davis Haines - 26:18.3
79-Raffi Buchakjian - 26:19.1
82-Sanjith Nomula - 26:23.7
96-Sean Wilson - 26:43.3
103-Patrick Wininger - 26:50.6
106-Alexander Ushchak - 26:51.8
110-Alexander Pattison - 26:59.1
118-Jackson Borge - 27:09.2
121-Francisco Mendonca - 27:13.1
126-Pierce Francis - 27:20.6
130-Ryan Wisker - 27:28.0
132-Jack Dovaras - 27:29.5
156-David Laubenheimer - 28:31.6
173 finishers

MAAC Championships: Women's results

Results below include times (in parentheses) from the Jasper Invitational on the same course six weeks prior. You'll notice some improvements in the times, which is great. Not great? Our team finish today. It was a disappointing sixth place, just an eyelash away from seventh place. Not what we were hoping for. Bummer. On a positive note, our alumni, family, friends, track team support was superb!  

MAAC Championships
Saturday, November 2, 2024
Twin Ponds on the Farm
Montgomery, NY
Women’s team standings
1-Quinnipiac 31, 2-Iona 68, 3-Rider 110, 4-Siena 117, 5-Canisius 142, 6-Marist 169, 7-Sacred Heart 172, 8-Merrimack 209, 9-Fairfield 209, 10-Niagara 285, 11-Manhattan 289, 12-Mount St. Mary’s 329, 13-St. Peter’s 434
Women’s individual results, 6km course
18-Sierra Fisher - 21:28.7
32-Julia Zydanowicz - 22:09.6 (22:14.0)
34-Kyra Pellegrino - 22:11.6 (22:09.8)
44-Adele Alexander - 22:23.3 (22:44.6)
45-Edy Livingston - 22:23.9 (22:50.4)
57-Paige McCaul - 22:36.9 (23:07.8)
62-Mallory Halloway - 22:40.6 (23:16.1)
64-Emily Litke - 22:43.7 (23:18.2)
68-Addy Thibodeau - 22:56.8 (22:09.2)
76-Isabella Colabatistto - 23:09.4 (24:33.5)
'78-Raven Stanet - 23:10.8 (24:02.6)
83-Kate Murtagh - 23:23.6 (23:52.7)
96-Mary Dougherty - 23:42.6 (24:52.0)
97-Rebecca Maclaren - 23:43.0
111-Tori Mariano - 24:12.8
113-Christina Diorio - 24:14.0
137-Rachael Turek - 25:38.1
149-Madison Whited - 27:03.0
156 finishers

Halloween #2 = 2p practice group (photo)

 

Several themes presented here, a few of which escaped my limited pop culture knowledge (Despicable Me + Bruno Mars?). Also noted, "Pete costumes" were not permitted this year.

Halloween #1 = Morning lift

 

Halloween spirit started early (6:45a) with sprinter morning lift = highlighted by Coach Alisha's birthday. Neat!

Theme Week #2 = Ben Fleet (Appreciation) Day

 

In perhaps one of the most original and creative themes in recent memory? On Wednesday, the women's XC team had "Ben Fleet Appreciation Day" in honor of our new strength and conditioning coach, who has motivated and inspired our distance athletes. (Forever Foxes, do not despair: Coach Suma is still the head strength and conditioning coach, working with the track athletes). Ben has the classic strength coach look: Muscular and tattooed, and our ladies followed suit. Although I wasn't there (I was at the track with the middle-distance athletes), word is that Ben actually ran one mile with the women. That's putting the "conditioning" in strength and conditioning, for sure. Neat!

Theme Week #1 = Pink Day

 

Our women's XC team likes to have "Theme Week" before every MAAC Championship. We started off on Tuesday at the (Vassar) track with "Pink Day" (an alert/snarky follower of the program called it "Pepto Bismol Day" after seeing this picture). Anyway? Lots of spirit and energy (out there)!

What's next: MAAC Championships

 Our next cross country meet is the MAAC Championships on Saturday at Twin Ponds on the Farm in Montgomery, NY. Race times are men's 8km at 11a and women's 6km at 12 noon o'clock.

Forever (and Future) Foxes

 

It was Homecoming (aka Alumni) Weekend. And while we did spend a little bit of time on campus (including about one quarter of the very exciting football game!), we made it across town to Plan Bee Farm Brewery to meet up with this fine group of Forever Foxes (and now, with some Future Foxes!). It was a great fall afternoon with men, women (and now) children that we cherish. Neat. 

Fun(ny Fact = just realized that I had the exact same title for a (similar) post back in August! I'm not changing it!

Vermont meet: Women's results

Outstanding day for our women, great tuneup as we prepare for championship season!

Fall Foliage Invitational
Hosted by University of Vermont
Hard’Ack Recreation Area
St. Albans, Vermont
Sunday, October 20, 2024
Women’s team standings
1-Binghamton 47, 2-Vermont 49, 3-UAlbany 81, 4-Sacred Heart 82, 5-Marist 86, 6-Bryant 166
Women’s individual results, 5km course
3-Sierra Fisher 18:05.0
11-Addy Thibodeau 18:27.3
19-Edy Livingston 18:46.1
26-Paige McCaul 18:56.9
27-Mallory Holloway 18:57.5
42-Emily Litke 19:22.1
48-Julia Radjenovic 19:35.0
50-Isabella Colabatistto 19:37.2
63-Raven Stanet 20:02.4
72-Rebecca Maclaren 20:16.3
81-Christina Diorio 20:43.4
94-Mary Dougherty 21:26.3
112 finishers

Vermont meet: Men's results

Once again, we had a top-5 of all freshmen! They competed well today. Up next = MAAC Championships in 13 days.

Fall Foliage Invitational
Hosted by University of Vermont
Hard’Ack Recreation Area
St. Albans, Vermont
Sunday, October 20, 2024
Men’s team standings
1-Binghamton 17, 2-UAlbany 59, 3-Vermont 76, 4-Sacred Heart 110, 5-Marist 139, 6-Bryant 147
Men’s individual finishers, 8km course
27-Justin Schwartz 26:48.8
29-Sean Wilson 26:52.4
38-Kevin Cannon 27:07.4
43-Sanjith Nomula 27:15.0
44-Miles Chamberlain 27:16.0
49-Raffi Buchakjian 27:29.3
57-Ryan Wisker 27:51.3
62-Jack Dovaras 28:01.5
74-Pierce Francis 29:03.2
89 finishers

Hayley Collins = 3rd at Hartford Marathon

 

Congrats to Forever Fox Hayley Collins for her superb, four-minute PR time of 2:41:16 at the Hartford Marathon on Saturday morning. Hayley went through the 13.1-mile split at 1:19:15 and came back in 1:21:01, an overall average of 6:09 pace. Her actual overall PR improvement was 4:07, at that pace it's great! She said via text, "almost 2:40 like I hoped, just have to work on fuel more." We love Hayley. She was about the hardest working athlete we've ever had here, and she continues to get it done. Neat!

(I joked with Hayley after she sent this photo = "wait! did you get fourth? did the BABY beat you too!" I really do need to grow up one of these years...)

IC4A Championships: Men's results

 It was a beautiful fall day in the Bronx, a great day for cross country. Our men had an OK day. Some guys had their best races of the year; others, not so much. We'll have another small crew of men racing at Vermont on Sunday, and then it's onto championship season in November. OK.

IC4A Championships
Van Cortlandt Park, Bronx, NY
Friday, October 18, 2024
Individual results, 8km course
56-Gabe Rodriguez 25:37.5
69-Kieran Donnelly 25:47.5
82-Jeremy Mbogo 25:57.4
103-Tyler Perry 26:08.8
111-Steven Viera 26:14.6
141-Logan Schaeffler 26:33.3
144-Dennis Love 26:33.7
153-Jackson Borge 26:38.4
261 finishers
Team standings
15^th of 24 teams, 387 points

Remaining XC schedule

Here's what the rest of the fall season looks like:  

--IC4As: On Friday, we will be bringing a group of (9) men to Van Cortlandt Park for the IC4A Championships. Race time is 11:30a.
--Fall Foliage in Vermont: On Sunday, we will be bringing most of our women’s team and a small(er) group of our men’s team to the Fall Foliage Invitational, hosted by the University of Vermont. The races will be at 12:30p (women) and 1:15p (men).
--MAAC Championships: On Saturday, Nov. 2, the MAAC Championships will be held at Twin Ponds in nearby Montgomery (Orange County). Race times are men at 11a and women at 12 noon.
--NCAA Northeast Regionals: On Friday, Nov. 15, the NCAA Northeast Regional race will be held in Hopkinton, NH. The original site of Franklin Park in Boston was moved to New Hampshire due to construction in and around the Franklin Park area.

Weekend race results

Congrats to Marist Forever Foxes running alumni for outstanding race results this weekend:
 
--At the Mohawk Hudson River half marathon, Lisa (D’Aniello) Chase powered to a 13.1-mile PR in 1:23:03, culminating what has been a remarkably awesome fall season of racing.
 
--At the Chicago Marathon, Mike Kennedy powered to a 26.2-mile PR in 2:39:40, running (mostly) even splits of 1:19:09/1:20:31.
 
Great stuff!

Mets championships: Men's results

 A strong day for the men, highlighted by our first-year runners! Here are some of the highlights: 

--third-place finish, second year in a row at this event
--top-five Marist finishers, all freshmen, with a 21-second compression (spread) from 1-5
--seven of the top eight finishers were freshmen, all sub-27:00, 31-second spread from 1-8
 
Metropolitan Championship
Saturday, October 12, 2024
Branch Brook Park
Newark, NJ
Men’s team standings
1-Manhattan 49, 2-Seton Hall 53, 3-Marist 71, 4-Columbia 96, 5-NJIT 121, 6-Ramapo 147, 7-Fordham 158, 8-St. Peter’s 212, 9-Hofstra, Essex incomplete
Individual results, 5-mile course
12-Davis Haines 26:21.43
13-Joaquin Bell-Andrade 26:24.28
19-Miles Chamberlain 26:35.49
20-Kevin Cannon 26:38.21
22-Sanjith Nomula 26:42.54
24-Pierce Francis 26:43.09
25-Sean Wilson 26:47.21
28-Patrick Wininger 26:52.58
37-Matthew Ferreri 27:15.66
39-Francisco Mendonca 27:22.27
42-Alexander Ushchak 27:34.55
46-Alexander Pattison 27:39.42
55-David Laubenheimer 28:25.77
58-Dylan Perkinson 29:20.74
69 finishers

Mets championships: Women's results

 A solid day for our women, with the following highlights!

--Improvement over last year’s 6^th place finish
--Top 4 runners all earned top-25 finishes
--Strong debut for freshman Rebecca Maclaren
--Strong races from seniors Kate Murtagh and Mary Dougherty
 
Metropolitan Championship
Saturday, October 12, 2024
Branch Brook Park
Newark, NJ
Women’s team standings
1-Seton Hall 62, 2-Manhattan 83, 3-St. John’s 94, 4-Marist 104, 5-Columbia 125, 6-Hofstra 131, 7-Fordham 136, 8-Ramapo 141, 9-NJIT 211, 10-St. Peter’s 304
Women’s individual results, 5km course
11-Kyra Pellegrino 18:30.74
15-Adele Alexander 18:49.55
22-Julia Radjenovic 19:17.53
23-Kate Murtagh 19:25.13
33-Mary Dougherty 19:51.33
41-Rebecca Maclaren 20:20.57
42-Christina Diorio 20:22.76
48-Tori Mariano 20:39.09
56-Karlie Genevive 21:34.56
57-Rachael Turek 21:35.21
68-Madison Whited 23:31.02
74 finishers

Mets meet on Saturday

 Sorry for the late post = the Metropolitan (Mets) Championships XC meet is tomorrow morning (Saturday, 12 Oct) at Branch Brook Park in Newark, NJ. The following teams are racing: 

Women (11) = Hofstra, Ramapo, Seton Hall, NJIT, St. Peter's, Fordham, Marist, Manhattan, Essex CC, St. John's, Columbia

Men (10) = St. Peter's, Columbia, NJIT, Manhattan, Ramapo, Fordham, Marist, Hofstra, Seton Hall, Essex CC

Women's race at 10a. Men's race at 10:45a.

Pole patrol

You know how most job descriptions have a line at the bottom of it that says (something to the effect of): “Other duties as assigned”? Yeah, well. That was my DAY on Monday! Other duties as assigned!
 
Alert readers of this blog might know that our track team has pole vaulters on our roster. Pole vaulters need poles. Poles are expensive. Fortunately, we don’t BUY them. We RENT them. Each year, we order poles for our vaulters from a Massachusetts group called Patriot Pole Vault Club. The catch? We have to go GET them (before the season) and RETURN them (after the season).
 
After a few email exchanges, the poles are waiting for us on some sawhorses in a residential area in Westborough, MA. For those keeping score at home, that’s about a 375-mile roundtrip. Drive there, in one of our team vans, load the poles, drive back. That’s a DAY.
 
Fortunately, I had two loyal teammates – Jeremy Mbogo and Gabe Rodriguez – along for the ride. Van talk was plentiful. They were able to help me load the 14 poles (yes, 14 poles!) for the return trip to Marist. For their companionship and service, they were treated to dinner at Chick Fil A at some exit off the Mass Pike.
 
Previous pole/van trip companions have been my friend Eric and my daughter Natalie. Who will ride with me in May? That’s a long time from now. But, it’ll be here before we all know it.

Special moment with a special young man

Very memorable (and meaningful) moment on Saturday at Paul Short. Our team tent area was in proximity to the team tent for Rowan. A junior on the Profs, Ethan Bergmann, was there to race for Rowan. Ethan is a special young man in our world. His dad, Eric Bergmann (aka Run Boy), is a cherished Forever Fox and an Angel Forever Fox, having lost his battle with cancer several years ago. Seeing Ethan in uniform, racing cross country, gave me chills. He walks, talks – and, yes, runs – just like his dad. Who, I know, was smiling down from heaven on his son.

Alums shine in Voorheesville

 

Thanks to Marist Running Forever Fox Lisa Chase for sending me the text (below) and picture (above) about the Barn to Bridge 5km at Voorheesville (Albany area), a lightning fast road race. Forever Fox twins and school record holders Drew Burns and Emily Burns had strong races -- Drew was third overall in 15:14 and Emily was fourth in 18:22. 

From Lisa: Hi Pete! My legs have felt tired since the DCC Half but I guess they weren't too bad because I had a PR in the 5k today breaking 18 for the first time ever (18:00 gun time/17:59 net...I'll go by the net time!).  Marist was well represented by the Burns siblings as well at the very competitive Barn to Bridge 5k

https://www.zippyraceresults.com/search.php?ID=8975

Paul Short: Men's results

 Solid day for the men as well. Our pack wasn't as tight as in previous meets and not everyone was on top of their game, but they fared decently well against rival schools. Onward!

Paul Short Run
Lehigh University
Saturday, October 5, 2024
Men’s individual results
Brown Division
Team standings
1-Davis & Elkins 79, 2-Catawba 128, 3-Colgate 134, 4-Shippensburg 137, 5-New Hampshire 231, 6-Siena 245, 7-Marist 282, 8-Tampa 313, 9-Wagner 322, 10-Loyola 349, 11-Canisius 376, 12-Merrimack 391, 13-Lafayette 413, 14-Slippery Rock 417, 15-Kent State 424, 16-Holy Cross 434, 17-Indiana Pa. 452, 18-Concord 503, 19-East Stroudsburg 517, 20-Stonehill 608, 21-Niagara 621, 22-Mount St. Mary’s 633, 23-Kutztown 681, 24-Manhattan 698, 25-Assumption 722, 26-Caldwell 739, 27-West Chester 763, 28-San Diego 771, 29-Wilmington Del. 779, 30-NJIT 781, 31-California Pa. 846, 32-Le Moyne 863, 33-Frostburg State 870, 34-Quinnipiac 874, 35-Daemen 895, 36-FDU 898, 37-Molloy 950, 38-Saint Francis 1010
Individual results, 8km course
37-Logan Schaeffler 25:35.2
44-Gabriel Rodriguez 25:43.6
60-Kieran Donnelly 25:55.3
66-Jackson Borge 26:00.5
80-Jeremy Mbogo 26:11.2
86-Tyler Perry 26:14.9
117-Steven Viera 26:32.2
128-Dennis Love 26:39.2
160-Justin Schwartz 27:03.0
174-Raffi Buchakjian 27:13.8
Open Division, 8km course
218-Ryan Wisker 26:55.4
246-Jack Dovaras 27:10.7

Paul Short: Women's results

 A strong day for the ladies! Sierra Fisher had a dominant lead-runner performance and she was backed up by a tight 2-5 pack. This bodes well for the remainder of our season. Very exciting!

Paul Short Run
Lehigh University
Saturday, October 5, 2024
Women’s individual results
Brown Division
Team standings
1-New Hampshire 103, 2-Catawba 156, 3-Liberty 214, 4-Saint Francis 217, 5-Vermont 234, 6-Siena 252, 7-Wagner 264, 8-St. Joseph’s PA 282, 9-Loyola 305, 10-Marist 330, 11-Buffalo 353, 12-UMBC 377, 13-Canisius 379, 14-James Madison 418, 15-Davis & Elkins 425, 16-Slippery Rock 432, 17-Stonehill 433, 18-Holy Cross 444, 19-Colgate 467, 20-Shippensburg 500, 21-East Stroudsburg 530, 22-Kutztown 538, 23-Millersville 580, 24-Towson 588, 25-Lafayette 596, 26-Columbia 613, 27-Merrimack 641, 28-Niagara 661, 29-St. John’s 745, 30-Kent State 754, 31-Daemen 757, 32-Hofstra 783, 33-Mount St. Mary’s 1019, 34-D’Youville 1021, 35-NJIT 1099
Individual results, 6km course
25-Sierra Fisher 22:11.3
65-Julia Zydanowicz 22:51.3
77-Paige McCaul 22:57.5
79-Edy Livingston 22:59.1
84-Kyra Pellegrino 23:00.4
142-Emily Litke 23:32.7
164-Raven Stanet 23:45.8
204-Isabella Colabatistto 24:22.7
286 finishers

Paul Short 2024

 As we have done for most years in the past several decades, we will be racing at Lehigh on Saturday for the Paul Short Run, a staple on our schedule. The race format has changed slightly this year, with high schools racing on Friday and colleges racing on Saturday. Also, there was another race added to the schedule, with expands the schedule. Our teams are entered in the Brown Division again, as usual, but the races are a bit later than normal. 

We will have two men in the Open Division race at 9:30a, and then a full 10-man squad in the Brown Division race at 1:45p. We have entered 9 women in the Brown division and that race is at 2:30p. Compared to past years, this is a relatively small travel squad ... and that's OK!

Omar in Berlin!

 

Congrats to Forever Fox Omar Perez for his strong showing last weekend at the Berlin Marathon. Neat!

CCSU meet: Women's results

 Three of our top-5 runners were freshmen! Future is bright!

CCSU/Ted Owen Invitational
Stanley Quarter Park
New Britain, CT
Saturday, September 21, 2024
Women’s team results
1-UMass Amherst 30, 2-CCSU 104, 3-St. Francis 106, 4-Marist 109, 5-Stonehill 134, 6-Army West Point 138, 7-Wagner 140, 8-Fairfield 143, 9-Pace 304, 10-FDU 307
Women’s individual results, 5km course
10-Julia Zydanowicz 18:15
21-Addy Thibodeau 18:32
28-Kyra Pellegrino 18:49
33-Edy Livingston 18:54
43-Emily Litke 19:07
54-Mallory Holloway 19:19
57-Paige McCaul 19:25
69-Kayla Hawkins 19:59
71-Adele Alexander 20:00
73-Isabella Colabatistta 20:07
74-Raven Stanet 20:09
78-Mary Dougherty 20:26
109 finishers

CCSU meet: Men's results

Some solid efforts today, led by Matthew Ferreri!

CCSU/Ted Owen Invitational
Stanley Quarter Park
New Britain, CT
Saturday, September 21, 2024
Men’s team results
1-UMass Amherst 24, 2-CCSU 42, 3-Wagner 86, 4-Stonehill 87, 5-Fairfield 194, 6-Army West Point 199, 7-Marist 201, 8-FDU 225, 9-LIU 237, 10-St. Francis 240, 11-Pace 359
Men’s individual results, 8,165-meter course
30-Matthew Ferreri 26:50
47-Ryan Wisker 27:39
56-Alexander Pattison 27:49
61-Kevin Cannon 27:54
62-Jack Dovaras 27:56
71-Patrick Wininger 28:21
76-Pierce Francis 28:27
91-David Laubenheimer 29:25
115 finishers

CCSU Ted Owen meet

 We are running a partial squad of men and a (mostly) full squad of women at the CCSU/Ted Owen Invitational on Saturday at Stanley Quarter Park in New Britain, CT. The women's 5km is at 11a and the men's 8.165km is at 12 noon. Many years ago, I measured the 'extra' distance (165 meters) of the men's course. This is an excellent spectator course = a "pond" loop and a "woods" loop. The women do 2 pond loops and 1 woods loop and the men do 3 pond/2 woods, kind of a figure-8. OK.

Classic photos = Boushra + Spencer

 

10km winner Boushra Belkhir and half marathon winner Spencer Johnson, courtesy of Mid-Hudson Road Runners Club photographer Bob Kopac. Neat. 

Dutchess County Classic (results)

 Strong showing for Marist Forever Foxes running alums on Sunday morning at the Dutchess County Classic road race. Actually? Saturday too!
 
Jon Kittredge (aka Jonny K) took the 5k (Saturday) and 10k (Sunday) double, posting a 16:51/34:44 split. He is getting ready for the Hartford Half Marathon next month. Nicely done, Jonny K!
 
Spencer Bossi-Johnson had a marvelous homecoming (he and his wife Lauren have moved to Poughkeepsie!) and won the half marathon in 1:09:02. Mike Kennedy had a great tune-up for Chicago in a few weeks with 1:14:06 in the half.
 
Lisa Chase ran an amazing 1:25:14 for a 4 minute, 18 second PR in the half marathon.
 
Boushra Belkhir won the 10k (37:28) and her teammate and good friend Kerry Kennedy was third in her age group (45:32). Heidi Richards and Bernice Patten had strong 10km showings, finishing together in 50:51/50:52.
 
Also in the half marathon, Billy Hild got a huge PR with 1:26:43. His father, Mr. Bill, ran a strong race too (2:05:26). And, as always, it was great to see Lurch (“Todd Coulson”), who checked in with a 1:39:10.
 
No pictures right now but if some come across I will post. Very neat.

Welcome home, Forever Foxes

 

We had a great, informal gathering of some of our alums. Fortunately, these fine ladies from the 2008/2009 graduation era reminded me to take a group picture (should have gotten others!), Bernice Patten, Lisa D'Aniello Chase, Sarah Domermuth, Heidi Richards are in this picture. Several of them had GREAT races this morning at the Dutchess County Classic (update to follow). Great weekend. Neat!

Manhattan meet: Men's results

 A 12.4-second spread between 1 and 5 runners, extend it out to 1 through 6 (15.6 seconds) and 1 through 7 (29 seconds) and this is a team with some depth. Good start to 8km season. More to come. 

Jasper Fall XC Invitational
Saturday, September 14, 2024
Twin Ponds on the Farm
Montgomery, NY
Men’s team standings
1-Stony Brook 24, 2-Siena 63, 3-Fordham 78, 4-Marist 81, 5-Rider 134, 6-Manhattan 212, 7-Merrimack 242, 8-Sacred Heart 242, 9-Fairfield 251, 10-Quinnipiac 265, 11-Marywood 273, 12-Felician 363, 13-USMMA 375
Men’s individual results, 8km course
12-Jackson Borge 25:37.2
15-Logan Schaeffler 25:41.4
16-Gabe Rodriguez 25:42.0
18-Tyler Perry 25:44.9
20-Jeremiah Lanum 25:49.6
23-Kieran Donnelly 25:52.8
34-Jeremy Mbogo 26:06.2
43-Justin Schwartz 26:16.9
47-Raffi Buchakjian 26:30.0
52-Miles Chamberlain 26:40.1
62-Sam Tellefson 26:55.3
70-Joaquin Bell-Andrade 27:07.8
71-Davis Haines 27:07.8
88-Steven Viera 27:32.3
137 finishers

Manhattan meet: Women's results

 Solid start to 6km season for women, with a less-than-full squad, already way ahead of last year's pace. Exciting stuff!

Jasper Fall XC Invitational
Saturday, September 14, 2024
Twin Ponds on the Farm
Montgomery, NY
Women’s team standings
1-Stony Brook 49, 2-Quinnipiac 68, 3-Rider 97, 4-Siena 97, 5-Marist 122, 6-Fordham 164, 7-Fairfield 179, 8-Sacred Heart 184, 9-Merrimack 204, 10-Manhattan 281, 11-Felician 343
Women’s individual results, 6km course
16-Addy Thibodeau 22:09.2
17-Kyra Pellegrino 22:09.8
18-Julia Zydanowicz 22:14.0
32-Adele Alexander 22:44.6
39-Edy Livingston 22:50.4
47-Julia Radjenovic 23:06.6
48-Paige McCaul 23:07.8
54-Mallory Holloway 23:16.1
56-Emily Litke 23:18.2
64-Kayla Hawkins 23:25.6
68-Kate Murtagh 23:52.7
75-Raven Stanet 24:02.6
77-Hannah Belleville 24:05.4
86-Isabella Colabatistto 24:33.5
94-Mary Dougherty 24:52.0
142 finishers

Alumni gathering on Saturday afternoon

We are excited to welcome many of you (Marist Forever Foxes) for the Dutchess County Classic this coming weekend in Poughkeepsie. In addition, we invite you to join us for an informal team/alumni reception at the McCann Center (weather permitting, outside at South Field next to McCann) between 3p and 5p. We'll have pizzas, drinks and good cheer, and you can meet current Red Foxes and make connections with the team! In addition, we'll share plans about the upcoming track project at both North Field and South Field. Hope to see you there! If you get a chance, please text (845 309 3640) or email (Peter.Colaizzo@marist.edu) to let us know if you will attend. Lastly, if you are in the area early enough, come out and cheer the current XC team at the Jasper XC Invitational at nearby Twin Ponds on the Farm in Montgomery, NY (43 minutes from Marist!). Women's 6km at 9a and men's 8km at 9:45a. And, of course, we'll see you all at the Classic on Sunday morning! Take care and Go Red Foxes! (neat)

(getting) excited for the year!

 

How's THIS for an inspired/inspiring photo! Taken from media day, women's XC coach Chuck Williams surrounded by equally excited seniors. Talk about a HYPE shot! Neat.

Marist track team store

 For those interested in purchasing Marist track team gear (along with Marist Alumni Racing Team gear), there is a new store up for you. Here is the link. Hope you find what you want. Note: This is a service for you, the fan of Marist track/XC. There is no "kickback" to our program, which would require a mark up of pricing. It's all for YOU. I hope you find what you want! 

Sign of the times

Those of you who have been anywhere near my “office” space (in the James J. McCann Recreation Center) over the past decade will recall that it has been an “office” in name only. More like a glorified (and very cluttered) closet space. Not much work has been accomplished there. Perhaps its (only) defining important feature has been the repository for van keys, which are vital to our day-to-day operation.
 
Well, here in 2024, all that is changing. A lot is changing around here, actually! Within the past two years, we have added two coaches, both with head coaching pedigree, to our staff. To call them “assistant coaches” would be a misnomer. They are full-time and full steam ahead in remaking this track program into something special. Billy Poole-Harris was added last summer and his strong impact has been felt on a daily basis, with improved performances and improved recruiting. And this past summer, we added Alisha Samuel, who we know will have an equally profound effect on our program.
 
When Billy got on board last year, he was given an office, right down the hall from “mine.’’ He immediately transformed it into a modern workspace, with a TV monitor, standing desk, computer screens, whiteboard and chairs for meetings and video analysis. Alisha had no such space and there were no vacant offices for her. The solution? My solution? Convert my inefficient and cluttered space into a functioning office – her office!
 
Of course, this has been off-putting for some. Wait. The Director of Track doesn’t have an office? The assistant coaches are taking over? What’s going on here? Yeah, well. Two things: 1. It’s not true. 2. It doesn't bother me! Not at ALL! My solution to this non-problem dilemma is to rename it the “track office” – clever and highly original, don’t you think?
 
The transformation is a work in progress, and yesterday this sign from a long-ago Marist cross country invitational on campus (vintage 1970s for sure) almost became a casualty. Fortunately, my son James was part of “Randy’s crew” working on the transformation and threw it in the back of his truck rather than the dumpster that it would have been headed for had he not been there!
 
Anyway, much like Billy: Alisha has a TV. She has a whiteboard. She has added human, professional touches to replace the otherwise primitive stacks of folders, boxes and used coffee tumblers. The only thing I have insisted on throughout this transformation: Keep a functioning Keurig coffee machine in there. Hey, I’m flexible, I’m laid back, I’m OK being a no-office nomad, no problem … but dammit, I need my coffee! Otherwise? It looks nice. It smells nice. It’s got plants. It’s got organization. In other words? It’s an OFFICE.
 
As a new (academic) year dawns, the “fresh start effect” is in full force here. It’s out with the old and in with the new. Oh wait. I guess I’M the old, right? Well, I’m not quite “out” yet, but change is growth, and growth is inevitable, and growth and change can be quite exciting and intoxicating. Let’s get this track built. Let’s get Billy and Alisha going full force on recruiting and coaching (don’t worry; they’re well on their way!). And let’s see where we’re at in a few years. I think it will be a pretty special place. Stay tuned.