RUN FOR THE RANCH MARATHON, HALF MARATHON, 10K & 5K (updated December 20th)

Update:  The event drew a total of nearly 550 participants, with 104 doing the 5K, 67 for the 10K, 240 for the half marathon and 133 for the full.  No Lake-area locals were among the participants.

One of the quirkiest running events returns to Springfield on December 19th.  The 11th annual Run for the Ranch is held on a 5K course through a residential area of Springfield, with the 10K, half marathon and marathon being multiple laps of the course.  The event starts at 1:00 p.m. for the marathon and 2:30 p.m. for all others, so some marathoners (and slower half marathoners) will be finishing in the dark.  The race proceeds benefit several non-profit organizations, including the Good Samaritan Boys Ranch.

Here's the race flyer.

ST. JUDE MEMPHIS HALF MARATHON (updated December 5th)

Congratulations to Mike Creed of Linn Creek and his daughter Rebecca Nimrod of Walnut Shade, Missouri, for their great results at yesterday's (12/4) St. Jude Memphis Half Marathon. 

   

Mike finished in 2:18:12 (10:33/mile pace), placing him 25th of 67 in the male 60-64 age group.  Mike knocked 14 minutes off his last half marathon finish at the Chicago Rock 'n Roll Half Marathon this past August.

Rebecca had an outstanding race as well.  She finished in 1:51:12 (8:30 pace), placing her 32nd in a huge field of 780 women in the 35-39 age group.  She also beat by a whopping 16 minutes her personal-best half marathon time, recorded at Chicago in August.

It's interesting to note that the overall winner of the St. Jude Half finished in an astonishing 1:08:00 (5:11 pace), nearly seven minutes ahead of his nearest competitor.

Readers may recall that Mike organized a local 5K in September that raised about $700 for the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, and was featured in a front page article in the Lake Sun. 

IRONMAN TRIATHLON WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP (posted December 14th)

NBC will be broadcasting the 2010 Ironman Triathlon World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, this Saturday, December 14th, from 3:00-5:00 Central time.  Check out a short YouTube promo for the race, and a preview featuring three athletes who competed.  The race was actually held in October.  Without giving anything away, in the men's race, you'll see one of the gutsiest finishes ever in the 32-year history of this extraordinary event.

TREESGREENVILLE TURKEY DAY 8K (posted November 26th)

Denny Gillen of Camdenton started off his Thanksgiving Day by running the TreesGreenville Turkey Day 8K in Greenville, South Carolina, joining his youngest son, Kevin.  Denny finished in 38:57 (7:51/mile pace), placing him third among 55-59 year-old males. He also won bragging rights at the family dinner table that day, having handily beaten Kevin (44:26; 8:57/mile pace) to the finish line.  Next up for them are the Georgia Marathon for Denny and the Georgia Half Marathon for Kevin on March 20, 2011, in Atlanta.

JAXATTACK 5K WALK/RUN (updated November 12th)

The Jaxattack 5K Walk/Run last Saturday (11/6) was a smashing success.  There were 245 registered participants, with 200 at the starting line, making this probably the largest field ever at the Lake-area 5K event.  More importantly, though, the event raised about $6,000 to help cover medical costs for Jaxon's fight against leukemia.

Overall winners were Casey O'Connor (17:50) and Kristen Glassmaker (20:54).  Here is a full list of winners:

Results for the top 50 finishers can be found here.

FIRST ANNUAL LAKER TURKEY TROT 5K RUN/WALK (posted September 26th)

Every big city has at least one, and now the Lake area will have its own Thanksgiving Day 5K run/walk, thanks to Camdenton High School.  The first annual Laker Turkey Trot will be held at the high school on Thanksgiving Day at 9:00 a.m.  For those who are better at eating pie than running or walking, the festivities will include a pie-eating contest for up to 30 entrants ponying up $3 to enter.  It sounds like a fun event, and will give everyone--except those pie-eating conttest participants--an excuse to pig out later in the day.  The proceeds will benefit local food pantries and the Laker cross country team.

Traveling out of town?  There are turkey trot 5Ks all over the state on Thanksgiving Day, including Jefferson City, Sedalia, Columbia, Springfield, Parkville, Hermann and a few in St. Louis.  Click on the links to other events calendars in the lower right-hand side of this page to find them.

BASS PRO SHOPS OUTDOOR FITNESS FESTIVAL (updated November 8th)

The Bass Pro Shops Outdoor Fitness Festival in Springfield concluded this past Sunday (11/7) with the Bass Pro Shops Conservation Marathon and the Maynard Cohick Half Marathon. Here are the results of our locals who participated:

INDIANAPOLIS MONUMENTAL MARATHON (posted November 8th)

Congratulations to Dennis Gillen of Camdenton, who finished the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon on Saturday (11/6) in 4:11:25. His finish time placed him 36th of 83 in his 55-59 age group.

MONSTER DASH 5K (updated October 30th)

The Kiwanis Club of Camdenton held its first annual Monster Dash 5K run/walk today (October 30th) at Camdenton High School.  About 20-30 participated in the event, and the beautiful autumn weather helped everyone have a great time.  Thanks to the Kiwanis for a fun event.  Yours truly was the overall winner in 24:12, with Jim Dermott breathing down my neck almost all the way.  I know that Gayle Repetto was one of the age group winners, but I failed to get the full list.  (If I can get the list, I'll pass it on.)

WADDELL & REED KANSAS CITY MARATHON AND HALF MARATHON (updated October 19th)

Here are the results of our Lake-area runners at last Saturday's (October 16th) Kansas City Marathon and Half Marathon:

ABS & GLUTES FLASHLIGHT 5K RUN/WALK (updated October 17th)

The 10th annual--and likely final--Abs & Glutes 5K Run/Walk drew the largest turnout in the event's history on a moonlit Saturday night.  The male winner was Casey O'Connor in a blistering 18:13 (a pace of 5:52 per mile), which is believed to be a course record.  Casey's mother, Paula O'Connor, was the top female runner in 27:19.  Thanks go to Rona and Paul Shafer for again putting on a great race, and one that's among the most long-lived in the Lake area.  Those of us who participated in this event over the years will miss it.

DENNIS GILLEN'S 2010 RACE SEASON VIDEO   (posted September 24th)

Local athlete Dennis Gillen has had a great season, including an outstanding finish at the Boston Marathon and completion of two half-Ironman triathlons (1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike and 13.1-mile run) in Kansas and Branson.  Check out a really cool three-minute YouTube video of Dennis' season by clicking on the image below.

 

BIKEMO 2010 FALL FOLIAGE EXTRAVAGANZA BICYCLE RIDE (updated October 17th)

The Missouri Bike Federation held its BikeMO Fall Foliage Extravaganza yesterday, and the fantastic weather brought  out hundreds of riders to Holts Summit for the 18-, 60- and 100-mile three routes offered.  We had at least half a dozen locals participate in the event.    

IRONMAN 70.3 BRANSON   (posted October 9th)

The 2011 date for Ironman 70.3 Branson has been set for Sunday, September 18th.

LEWIS & CLARK MARATHON   (posted October 4th)

Congratulations to all of our local finishers at yesterday's Lewis & Clark Marathon and Half Marathon.  This popular race--there were 784 marathon and 5,940 half marathon finishers--will likely get much bigger next year as it becomes part of the Rock 'n Roll Marathon. Click here for more information about the announcement.

LEWIS & CLARK MARATHON/HALF MARATHON RESULTS
Name	City	Age	Finish time	Age group place
MARATHON:
Lori Jefferies	Osage Beach	26	5:07:52	40th of 53
Heather Frelin	Osage Beach	37	4:16:46	16th of 58
Shane Moriarity	Osage Beach	36	3:31:56	19th of 99
HALF MARATHON:
Lonetta Bartell	Roach	58	4:00:51	147th of 150
Rick Peterson	Sunrise Beach	47	1:37:07	26th of 301
Victoria Waiter	Camdenton	39	1:58:49	88th of 633

TOUR DE BASS (posted October 19th)

The Bass Pro Shops Outdoor Fitness Festival begins in Springfield on Saturday, October 23rd, with the Tour de Bass bike ride.  Rides of 9, 20, 35, 70 and 100 miles are available.  Click here for the webpage listing all the festival events over the next three weekends, then scroll down the page and click on the Tour de Bass link to print out a registration form.

JURE ROBIC DIES AFTER BEING HIT BY AUTOMOBILE (posted September 26th)

Jure Robic, photographed in 2007 at the
Race Across America time station in Camdenton

Jure Robic, the only five-time winner of the Race Across America, was killed on Friday, September 24, 2010, when he collided with an automobile while riding his bicycle near his home in Slovenia.  Click here to read more. 

TWO DAM DAYS MARATHON PADDLE RACE & JUST FOR FUN PADDLE   (updated September 24th)

Congratulations to the Lake of the Ozarks Watershed Alliance (LOWA) for successfully organizing the inaugural Two Dam Days Marathon paddle race.  The two-day, two-stage race ran from Warsaw's Drake Harbor (90-mile mark) near the Truman Dam to Captain Ron's (34-mile mark) on Saturday, and then to Bagnell Dam on Sunday.  The racers on the ten boats that finished the full race had high praise for the event.  Thanks should go to all the sponsors, volunteers, support crews, etc., who assisted.

The solo division was won by Mike Herbert of Rogers, Arkansas.  Tommy Yonley and Kyle Mynar, of Houston and Kopperl, Texas, respectively, won the tandem division.

All finishers deserve a huge round of applause.  Paddling 90 miles is exceptionally difficult.  It was made even worse by the winds that created rough-water conditions on both Saturday and Sunday.

A special congratulations goes to Jess Austin of Camdenton.  Jess was the only the only local to complete the full race.

For recreational paddlers, a 13-mile Just for Fun paddle sponsored by Oz Cycles & Kayaks was held on Saturday.  Approximately 17 participants paddled from the Halfway Inn (47-mile mark) to Captain Ron's.  We all had a great time.  

Articles about the events at lakenewsonline.com and lakeexpo.com:

• Clean Water Festival coincides with paddle race
• 2DamDays marathon racer spotlight
• Kayak, canoe race wraps up at Bagnell Dam
• Olympian Mike Herbert wins 2 Dam Days marathon

Radio interviews discussing the event:

On September 24th, Donna Swall and Jerry Walker of LOWA, and Dan Dougan of Oz Cycles & Kayaks, talked to Michael McSorley of KRMS 1150-AM (11:04; 1.3 MB, MP3 format).

On September 3rd, Jerry Walker of LOWA and Dan Dougan of Oz Cycles & Kayaks talked to Michael McSorley of KRMS 1150-AM (18:05; 2.1 MB; MP3 format).

On August 12th, Donna Swall, executive director of LOWA, was interviewed by Michael McSorley on KRMS 1150-AM to talk about several upcoming events, including the Two Dam Days Marathon (4:21; 2.5MB, MP3 format).

I took a great deal of video footage was recorded over the weekend.  I'll post it as soon as I can get it edited, although that will likely take take several months.

LAKE OF THE OZARKS CROP HUNGER WALK   (posted October 11th)

A 5K walk will be held on Sunday, October 17th, to help assist local (Hope House) and worldwide food programs.  The walk begins at 2:00 p.m. (registration opens at 1:30 p.m.) at The Cove Golf Course on Horseshoe Bend Parkway.

Click here to find out more.

IRONMAN 70.3 BRANSON   (posted September 19th)

Congratulations to our two locals, Trevor Dowdney and Dennis Gillen, who competed in the inaugural Ironman 70.3 Branson Triathlon (1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike, 13.1-mile run).  Here are their results:

The run splits for most competitors seemed to be unusually slow.  I'm guessing that the tough bike course and warm, humid weather were the causes.

TURKEY TROT/GOBBLE WOBBLE 5K RUN/WALK (updated September 26th)

Results for yesterday's Turkey Trot/Gobble Wobble 5K Run/Walkis in Eldon have been posted.  The top male and female runners were Steve Scott (18:25) and Elizabeth Vore (23:50).

ST. JUDE RUN FOR THE CURE 5K RUN/WALK   (updated September 18th)

Twenty-two runners and walkers toed the starting line at Saturday's St. Jude Run for the Cure 5K in Linn Creek.  The event was a benefit for the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, which one of the leading research institutions seeking cures for pediatric cancer.  Thanks go to race organizer Mike Creed, his wife Shelley, volunteers and sponsors for a great event. 

Josh Kitchin (22:32) and Angela Clary (27:38) were the overall male and female winners in 22:32 and 27:38, respectively.

 

Josh Kitchin and Angela Clary

Check out the full results and photos.

LAKE SUN ARTICLE ABOUT MIKE CREED   (posted September 19th)

The Lake Sun published an interesting article a few days ago about Linn Creek resident Mike Creed.  Mike took up running six years ago at the age of 55, and uses his running to help raise funds for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.  Click here to read the article (pdf format).

HARTSBURG PUMPKIN FESTIVAL (posted September 14th)

The Hartsburg Pumpkin Festival will be held on the weekend of October 9-10.  On Saturday, as we've done for a number of years, we'll caravan to Jefferson City and meet at the Katy Trail's North Jefferson Trailhead, then ride our bikes 9 miles to the festival.  If you haven't joined us before, please consider doing so this year.  It's a lot of fun for the whole family, and the ride is quite easy and leisurely.

Some people meet at Oz Cycles before the drive to Jefferson City.  If you prefer to drive directly to Jefferson City, click on the thumbnail below to view a map to the North Jefferson Trailhead.

TRI-STATE MOTHER ROAD MARATHON AND HALF MARATHON (posted January 15th)

A new marathon and half marathon, as well as 5K and 1-mile races, will be held on October 10th.  The marathon course covers parts of three states--Missouri, Oklahoma and Kansas--hence the "Tri-State" part of the name, and a Route 66 (aka the "Mother Road") rock 'n roll theme will be part of the course and finish line festivities.  It sounds like fun--if running a marathon or half-marathon can be considered fun.  Check out the website for more information. 

THE FLOYD SANDERS MEMORIAL PANCREATIC CANCER RESEARCH WALK (updated September 2nd)

A 5K walk will be held on Saturday, October 2nd, in Linn Creek to raise funds for pancreatic cancer research in memory of Floyd Sanders, who was a Camdenton police officer (and a Camden County sheriff's deputy before that).  Floyd passed away on February 11, 2010, at the age of 56 following a battle with pancreatic cancer.

Click here to download an event flyer containing all of the details. 

ADVENTURE 5K RUN/WALK (updated August 30th)

The Missouri Athletic Training Center, a not-for-profit training center for children aged 8 to 18, will be holding a number of events throughout the day on Saturday, September 25th, at the new Osage Beach City Park.  The Adventure 5K Run/Walk will begin at 8:00 a.m. (registration opens at 7:30 a.m.), and a pancake breakfast, softball tournament, kids fun zone, etc., will follow.  Click here to view a flyer, and here to download an entry form.

BIKE MS: EXPRESS SCRIPTS GATEWAY GETAWAY RIDE   (posted August 30th)

What's more commonly known as the "MS 150 bike ride" benefiting the Multiple Sclerosis Society will be held the weekend of September 11-12.  There are 40-, 75- and 100-mile ride options each day, with each route starting and ending at the Boone County Fairgrounds in Columbia. 

To join the local group of riders (currently numbering 17) on the Oz Cycles team, or to donate to their fundraising efforts, click here.  For more information about the event, visit the MS Society's website. 

RUN FOR THE FALLEN (updated August 22nd)

The Lake of the Ozarks' observance of the national Run for the Fallen event held yesterday in Osage Beach was the most special run/walk ever held in Lake area.  The event was held to honor the 110 Missouri soldiers who had lost their lives in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.  Each participant was asked to walk at least one mile for the soldier whose name was printed on their bib.  Fortunately, we had 116 participants, so no soldier went without someone running or walking in their honor.  The event was free, but $282 was raised to help the families of those soldiers whose lives were lost.  

The opening ceremonies were quite emotional, especially when family members of four fallen soldiers in attendance at the event were invited to speak. 

There are a lot of people to thank for this event, including Trish Creach and others at the Lake Area Chamber of Commerce, Pete Leyva of the Osage Beach Police Department, the City of Osage Beach, the volunteers, Hy-Vee, Pickled Pete's, Inn at Grand Glaize, 101.7 The Coyote, Osage Beach Fire Protection District, and members of the Marine honor guard.  (Please let me know if I missed anyone.)  

Participants who would like to find out more about the fallen soldier for whom they were running or walking should go to this webpage.  Enter the soldier's name and hit "submit".

Dan Field of the Lake Sun wrote a nice article about the event.  Read the online version here.

Here are a few photos from the event (click on a thumbnail to see the full size photo).

          

THE GREAT BAGNELL DAM DUCK DROP 5K (updated August 24th)

The second annual Great Bagnell Dam Duck Drop 5K Run and Waddle Walk was noticeably hotter and more humid than the first, but that didn't deter a total of 76 participants from coming out and having a great time.  (Well, except on that beast of a hill on Valley Road.)  Thanks to Trish Creach of the Lake Area Chamber of Commerce, Aaron Speiler of the Kiwanis Club of Ozark Coast, and all the volunteers and sponsors for a fun event.

The results, as reported in the Lake Sun, are available here.

Below are the age-group winners (minus one or two that had to leave early).  

(click on photo for a larger view)

MISSOURI RIVER 340 (updated August 25th)

The Missouri River 340, a paddling race that spans from Kansas City to St. Charles, will start this coming Tuesday morning (8/24).  The race had to be postponed a month due high water and extremely strong currents that made for unsafe conditions.  The water level has dropped, but the river is still running at a fairly fast clip (one recent report put it at 3.7 mph).  At last count, there were 236 boats entered.

CHICAGO ROCK 'N' ROLL HALF MARATHON (posted August 3rd)

   

Congratulations to Mike Creed and his daughter, Rebecca, (both pictured above) for outstanding finishes at this past Sunday's Chicago Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon.  Mike finished in 2:32:17, placing him 94th (of 159) in the male 60-64 age group.  Rebecca left her dad in the dust and finished in a personal best 2:07:22.  That placed her 540th (of 2,203) in the female 30-34 age group.  A whopping 18,555 runners crossed the finish line, making this one of the largest half marathons in the U.S. in just its second year of joining the popular Rock 'n' Roll series of events.

REPUBLIC TIGER TRIATHLON (posted August 16th)

Three locals participated in Saturday's Republic Tiger Triathlon (300-yard swim, 12-mile bike, 3.1-mile run) in Republic, Missouri, on a brutally hot and humid day.  Kris Williams of Camdenton placed 7th (of 13) in the female 45-49 age group with a finish time of 1:22:19.  (Strangely enough, she finished five minutes slower last year, yet won her age group, as detailed in a Lake Sun article.)  Two sisters from Eldon, Amanda and Jess Caine, finished in 2:20:28 and 2:20:37, respectively.  Although they finished last in their age groups (female 20-24 for Amanda, female 25-29 for Jess), and dead last of all 361 participants, they nevertheless finished, and that's always the primary goal.  Congratulations to all.

TOUR OF MISSOURI (corrected August 16th)

Fans of the Tour of Missouri, which was cancelled for 2010 due to lack of funding, may be interested in hearing that Lance Armstrong will be joining the governor of Colorado on Wednesday, August 4th, to announce the inaugural Quiznos Pro Challenge bicycle race to be held in August 2011. This has negative implications for any plans to resurrect the Tour of Missouri in 2011 due to a scheduling conflict with this new race.  In fact, it may kill off the Tour of Missouri permanently.

WIN FOR KC WOMEN'S TRIATHLON (posted August 1st)

No Lake-area athletes competed at yesterday's WIN for KC Women's Triathlon at Kansas City's Smithville Lake, but there was a story that bears mention.  Triathlons are almost always won by an athlete in the 25-29, 30-34, or 35-39 age groups.  However, this triathlon was won by a woman in the 45-49 age group--something that you'll very rarely see.  Kelly Dippold of Overland Park, Kansas, had the fastest swim (1:36 per 100 yards) of all 626 finishers, the third-fastest T1 (1:02), the second fastest bike (22.7 mph) and the fifth-fastest T2 (0:56) and run (7:06/mile pace).  That's a remarkable performance for anyone, but extraordinary for a 45-49 year-old athlete.

SHOW-ME STATE GAMES (updated July 28th)

There were 124 solo and 6 team participants in Sunday's Show-Me State Games triathlon (0.5-mile swim, 19-mile bike, 5K run), and another 63 (19-mile bike, 5K run) in the duathlon.

We had three locals who competed.  Trevor Dowdney finished the triathlon in 1:37:14, first (of three) in his 45-49 age group.  Todd Elliott finished in 1:50:17, placing him sixth (of nine) in the 35-39 age group.  Debbie Beckett of Eldon competed in the duathlon, where she finished unopposed in the 50-54 age group in a time of 1:39:08.  Congratulations to all.

INDEPENDENCE DAY 5K RUN/WALK (updated July 21st)

Results for Eldon's 12th Annual Independence Day 5K Run/Walk have been posted.  Overall male and female winners were Dustin Davis in 16:09 (one of the fastest local 5K finishes I'm aware of) and Shelby Lile in 20:33.  The men's field had an unusual number of extremely fast finishers, with six runners finishing in under 19 minutes. 

JOKER'S WILD HALF MARATHON & 5K   (posted July 18th)

Congratulations to our local finishers--all women--of today's Joker's Wild Half Marathon in St. Louis:

Victoria Waiter and Theresa Christensen, both of Lake Ozark and competing in the 35-39 age group, finished in 2:15:42 and 2:30:19, respectively, placing them 12th and 21st in their age group.

Gayle Repetto, of Four Seasons, finished 7th (of 21) in her 45-49 age group, with a 2:17:32 finish time.

Anna Curran of Osage Beach finished in 2:44:07, placing her 13th (of 17) in her 50-54 age group.

What needs to be mentioned is that it was 80 degrees, with relative humidity of 70%, at the 6:45 a.m. start of the race, making for extremely tough weather conditions for running.  All of the 512 half marathon finishers should be congratulated for persevering through those conditions. 

LAKE AREA OPTIMIST CLUB 5K RUN/WALK (posted July 7th)

The Lake Area Optimist Club held its first 5K run/walk at Osage Beach City Park on Saturday, June 26th.  Here are some results published in The Lake Today:

LINN CREEK FIRECRACKER 5K RUN/WALK
& BEAT THE CHIEF CHALLENGE (updated June 27th)

The second annual Linn Creek Firecracker 5K Run/Walk  brought out a total of 57 participants, including 13 kids racing--and handily beating--Linn Creek police chief Trevor Dowdney in the "Beat the Chief Challenge".  The beneficiaries of the event were the Camden County Museum and the Camden County Child Advocacy Counci, each of which received half of the $1,124 raised.  Thanks to all participants, volunteers, and race organizer Trevor Dowdney for a fun event.

The Lake Sun ran a front page article about Trevor and the event.  Here's a .pdf version of the online edition of the article.

The full race results are available here.  Photos will be posted once we receive them.

Here's a list of the winners and their 5K finish times:

Male, under 50:           Casey O'Connor (19:03)
Male, 50 and over:      Gary Lile (19:16)
Female, under 50:       Jackie Rasmussen (24:48)
Female, 50 and over:   Kathy Lile (27:41)
Age 15 and under:       Kelley McClaughery (40:04)
Stroller:                        Lawson Barclay (28:55)
Top Dog:                      Sergeant (guided by Levi McDonald) (25:19)

GRANDMA'S MARATHON (posted June 18th)

Congratulations to Laura Davis of Camdenton, who finished today's Grandma's Marathon in Duluth, Minnesota, in 3:56:12, placing her 46th (of 262) in the female 40-44 age group.

LAKE AREA OPTIMIST CLUB 5K FUN RUN/WALK   (posted June 14th)

The Lake Area Optimist Club is sponsoring their first annual 5K Fun Run/Walk on Saturday, June 26th, at the new Osage Beach City Park.  The cost is $20, and participants will receive t-shirts.  For more information, contact Betty Gipson at (573) 286-1030 or bgipson2009(at)live.com (substituting "@" for "at").

IRONMAN KANSAS 70.3   (posted June 6th)

A double congratulations goes to the phenomenal Dennis Gillen of Camdenton, who finished today's Ironman Kansas 70.3 Triathlon (1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike, 13.1-mile run) in Lawrence, Kansas, in an outstanding time of 5:47:05.  That placed Dennis 10th (of 31 finishers) in the male 55-59 age group.  Yesterday, in a warm-up for IM Kansas, Dennis finished first among 28 in his age group (and 61st of all 550 males) at the Hospital Hill 5K Run in Kansas City, with a finish time of 22:51. 

SUMMER STRIDE 5K & FAMILY STROLL (updated June 11th)

It was warm and humid, but everyone had a wonderful time at yesterday's Summer Stride 5K & Family Stroll in Camdenton.  The event was organized and benefited the Children's Learning Center, and they did a great job. 

Overall female and male winners were Miriam Hill in 23:11, and Sean O'Connor--yet another weapon in the O'Connor family running arsenal--in 18:15.  The top three finishers in each age group can be found here.

Check out a few photos taken at the event by clicking here.

      

Some of the winners at the Summer Stride 5K (pictured left to right):  Miriam Hill (overall female), Sean O'Connor (overall male) and Rodney Wright (male 50-59).

DENNIS GILLEN FEATURED IN LAKE SUN ARTICLE      (posted May 31st)

Local triathlete and marathoner Dennis Gillen was the subject of an article in the weekend edition of the Lake Sun.  Click here to read the article as it appeared on the lakenewsonline.com website.

THE KANSAS CITY TRIATHLON (posted May 27th)

Congratulations to Dennis Gillen of Camdenton, who finished last Sunday's Kansas City Triathlon in 2:48:58, placing him fourth (of six) in the male 55-59 age group.  Dennis competed in the Olympic distance event, featuring a 1,500-meter swim, 24.9-mile bike and 6.2-mile run.  Look for Dennis at the Quartermax Triathlon on June 26th at Innsbrook, Missouri. 

TOUR OF MISSOURI (posted May 27th)

The Tour of Missouri for 2010 was officially cancelled today due ostensibly to lack of funding, but politics clearly played a role as well.  The Republican majority in the state legislature appropriated $1 million for the race, but the governor-appointed members of the Missouri Tourism Commission decided to use the funds for other purposes.

KAYAKING FATALITY (posted May 22nd)

Please be careful kayaking on our recently rain-swollen streams.  Strong currents can be very dangerous while paddling, as was proved yesterday by the death of a 47 year-old Jefferson City man kayaking on the Maries River.  The tragic death occurred despite the wearing of a lifejacket.  Here's an excerpt from the Water Patrol's report:

FIT & FUN 20-DAY CHALLENGE (updated May 22nd)

The Lake Sun's four-week Fit & Fun Challenge ended Friday, May 21st, with a swim at Dog Days.  A big pat on the back goes to Lake Media publisher John Tucker for encouraging people to join the challenge to get fit, and for helping prove that the lake is not unhealthy for swimming as some media located outside of the area has previously reported.

Check out the series of Fit & Fun Challenge articles about local athletes Trevor Dowdney, Jason Whittle, Dan Dougan and Kevin and Jade Sellers.

 

BERRYMAN 50-MILE & MARATHON TRAIL RUNS (posted May 24th)

Members of the Alpine Shop team, which has won the local Bonk Hard Chill adventure race three times in its five-year history, did extremely well in the Berryman trail runs held on May 15th in the Mark Twain National Forest.  Their results:

IRONMAN 70.3 BRANSON (posted May 15th)

Over 900 athletes have registered for the inaugural Ironman 70.3 Branson Triathlon (1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike, 13.1-mile run--i.e. "half iron" distance) to be held on September 19, 2010.  The field will be limited to 2,000 participants, so there are still plenty of spots available.  So far, the only local on the entry list is Dennis Gillen of Camdenton. 

DENNIS DORMAN'S RIDE ACROSS AMERICA (posted May 6th)

Dennis Dorman, on the beach at St. Augustine, Florida
(photo from www.ride4polio.com)

Congratulations to Dennis Dorman of Sunrise Beach, who just completed his two-month, 3,200-mile bicycle ride across the United States, raising over $6,400 for Rotary International's worldwide effort to eradicate polio.   You can read Dennis' travel blog at www.ride4polio.com by clicking on the Interactive Travel Map link on that page.

TOUR OF MISSOURI (posted May 11th)

The Tour of Missouri, planned for August 31 through September 6, is in serious financial jeopardy.  The state legislature approved a $1 million appropriation for the race, but the state tourism officials view that appropriation as discretionary, and are contemplating using it for other tourism expenditures.  Sponsorships are not likely to cover the loss of that appropriation, so the race may have to be cancelled without it.  (Unfortunately, politics is playing a role in the decision, as it did last year when the race was almost cancelled due to a battle over funding.)  A rally in support of the race will be held on the steps of the state capitol on Saturday, May 15th at noon.    

THIRD ANNUAL LAKE REGIONAL FUN RUN/WALK   (updated May 4th)

Fifty-six runners--more than double last year's total of 23--competed in the Lake Regional 5K Fun Run.  Sixty-seven others participated in the one-mile Fun Walk.  Despite the gloomy forecast, the weather was perfect, though that didn't make climbing a few scary-steep, lung-burning hills on the Sycamore Creek Golf Course any easier.  Everyone had a great time, and thanks go to all of the Lake Regional staff and volunteers who organized the event, and the sponsors who supported it.

Overall female winner was Stacey Turner, who finished in 23:08.  The male winner was local running phenom Levi McDonald in 17:44.  Levi won this year's Polar Bear Strut and finished fifth (of 84) in his age group at the recent GO! St. Louis Half Marathon.

The top female and male finishers (pictured left to right):  Michelle Brown (third; 23:27), Stacey Turner (first; 23:08), Vanessa Wisdom (second; 24:10), Levi McDonald (first; 17:44) and Casey O'Connor (second; 19:31).

Fun Run full results:

 

BOSTON MARATHON (posted April 19th)

Congratulations to Camdenton's Dennis Gillen, who today finished the world's most prestigious marathon--the Boston Marathon--in an extraordinary 3:41:23.  That placed Dennis 334th in his male 55-59 age group, which shows just how elite the field of runners is for the Boston Marathon.  Nearly 700 competitors in his age group finished in less than four hours.

DOGWOOD FESTIVAL 5K RUN/WALK (updated April 22nd)

Paula O'Connor and her son Sean were the female and male winners of the Dogwood Festival 5K Run last Saturday.  I'll post the full results if I can find them.

GO! ST. LOUIS MARATHON & HALF MARATHON (updated April 12th)

Yesterday's (April 11th) GO! St. Louis Marathon, Half Marathon and Marathon Relay broke all participation records in the race's 10-year history--nearly 15,000 in total. Here's the number of finishers or participants in each race:

Other than the size of the field, the weather was the story of the day. The weather was great for the first few hours of the race, but started taking its toll--especially on the marathoners--by mid morning. The sun warmed up the air temperature to nearly 70 degrees by 10:00, and with little shade on the course and the heat radiating from the asphalt streets, dehydration was difficult to ward off. There was noticeably more walking in the later miles of the marathon this year than in any year prior. These events are hard enough in perfect weather; anything less than that just adds to the difficulty and suffering.

The nice weather, though, did bring out out what looked like the largest largest number of spectators in the event's history.

Among Lake-area participants, Levi McDonald, who won this year's Polar Bear Strut, placed fifth (of 84) in his division, finishing the half marathon in 1:31:03. Steve Scott of Eldon finished ninth (of 695) in his division with a half-marathon time of 1:24:05. Congratulations to them and to all other Lake-area participants:

SHAKESPEARE'S PIZZA MAXTRAX DUATHLON (posted April 4th)

Congratulations to Dennis Gillen of Camdenton, who finished the MaxTrax long course duathlon (2.5-mile run, 15-mile bike and 2.5-mile run) in 1:29:11 on Saturday in Columbia.  That placed Dennis second (of three) in his 55-59 age group.

TWO DAM DAYS PADDLE RACE (posted March 26th)

The first official information about the inaugural Two Dam Days Paddle Race on September 25-26th has been posted on the Lake Ozark Watershed Alliance's website.  An article about the race appeared in The Lake Today on March 24th.  You can view it by clicking on the thumbnail image below.

CAMDEN COUNTY CHILD ADVOCACY COUNCIL 5K RUN/WALK (posted April 12th)

At 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 24th, a 5K run/walk benefiting the Camden County Child Advocacy Council will be held at the Camdenton R-III high school football field and track located behind Hawthorn Elementary School.

Described as "An Evening of Walking Into Awareness", this event will help bring awareness to the problem of child abuse in our community, and helps support a great local organization. The cost is only $3 per person, or $10 per family.

Click here for more details and registration information.

POLAR BEAR STRUT (updated March 4th) 

A record turnout of 171 runners and walkers participated in the Polar Bear Strut on February 27th and raised a total of $13,435 for Special Olympics Missouri.  The weather was a bit chilly at first, but it soon warmed up and turned out to be a beautiful day.  Too bad, though, that that didn't make the course any easier.  This is one of the toughest 5K courses you'll find anywhere.  A huge thanks goes to Pete Leyva and his crew for their hard work in putting on a great event, as they've now done for nine years. 

Congratulations to all who finished, but especially to Levi McDonald and Victoria Robinson, the top male and female runners who finished in 20:02 and 23:17, respectively.  Levi and Victoria are Camdenton cross country runners, and will be racing the GO! St. Louis Half Marathon on April 11th.

Levi McDonald and Victoria Robinson

Levi McDonald and Pete Leyva

The list of the top ten male and female runners that appeared in the media is available here.  The full results are now available.

TWO DAM DAYS PADDLE RACE  (updated March 3rd)

Dan Dougan's mention on KRMS (see below) of a dam-to-dam paddling race intrigued me, and led me to do a bit of investigative work.  Knowing that any such event on the Lake requires a regatta permit from the Missouri State Water Patrol, I checked the MSWP's website to see if a permit has been issued.  Indeed, one has.  There is a two-day permit (each day running from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.) for Saturday-Sunday, September 25-26, for the "Two Dam Days Paddle Race".  The race location is listed as "Drake Harbor to Iguana Sports", and the permit is for up to 300 boats.  Drake Harbor and Recreation Area is located in Warsaw, Missouri, at the 91-mile mark of the Lake.  Iguana Watersports, which rents boats and PWCs, is located near Bagnell Dam.  Click on the image below to see it full-size.

Update:  Due to the distance of the race, I didn't think it would stop at 7:00 p.m. Saturday, and then resume at 7:00 a.m. Sunday, as the regatta listing showed.  However, I've heard that there are plans to have a stopping point on Saturday at Captain Ron's at the 34-mile mark.

 

DAN DOUGAN ON KRMS-1150 AM  (posted February  21st)

Dan Dougan, owner of Ozark Outdoors & Cyclery, appeared on KRMS yesterday afternoon.  He and show host JR talked about a lot of things, but mostly about kayaking in the Lake area.  One particularly interesting thing Dan mentioned is the possibility of a Truman Dam to Bagnell Dam paddling race this September. 

Here's the audio (43:30; 25MB; mp3 format).  The audio begins just a few seconds after the start of the program.

KB: SUPER PLUNGER (posted February 12th)

A new video has been posted on the Videos page.  Local KRMS radio personality and all-round great guy "KB" joined nine others in plunging 24 times in 24 hours into the ice-cold water of the lake last February to raise a bunch of money for Special Olympics Missouri.  The Polar Plunge returns on February 27th, so the video is a fitting reminder of why slightly more sane people choose to do the Strut (see below) instead.

DENNIS DORMAN'S BICYCLE RIDE ACROSS AMERICA (posted January 30th)

The 3,200-mile bicycle ride across America that Dennis Dorman of Sunrise Beach announced last November is scheduled to begin on March 1st in San Diego.  Dennis hopes to finish in St. Augustine, Florida, in early May.

The ride is a fundraiser for Rotary International (Dennis is a member of the Laurie-Sunrise Beach Rotary Club) to support its continuing efforts to eradicate polio around the world.  His goal is to raise $100,000.

A front-page article about Dennis and the ride appeared in the Lake Sun on January 28th.  Click here to read it (.pdf format; 2.2 MB).

Dennis was interviewed on KRMS-1150AM on January 25th.  It was similar to an 18-minute interview given last November 16th, which you can listen to by clicking here (MP3 format; 10.1 MB).

ADVENTUREMAX (posted January 4th)

Adventure racing enthusiasts will be interested in learning of two new races being put on by Ultramax Events on March 6th at the Innsbrook Resort in Innsbrook, Missouri (about 30 minutes west of St. Louis).  The AdventureMax 8-Hour and AdventureMax Off-Road Team Triathlon will be run on the same day.  The races are similar, although the team triathlon will only take about 2.5 hours to complete, and will not have any orienteering sections on the course (though basic map skills will be required).

THE TOUR OF ST. LOUIS (posted January 25th)

Big Shark Bicycle Company is one of the largest bike shops in the St. Louis area, and does more to support Missouri bike events than just about anyone.  Owner Mike Weiss is also heavily involved in organizing the Tour of Missouri.

Big Shark has announced three events coming up on the weekend of April 24-25 that are part of what it calls "The Tour of St. Louis":

Saturday morning, April 24th:  The Delmarvelous Criterium, a 0.8-mile criterium around the near north side of St. Louis.

Saturday afternoon, April 24th: The Big Bottom Time Trial, a 9-mile out-and-back course on the flat Columbia Bottom Conservation Area in north St. Louis County.

Sunday, April 25th: The Carondelicious Circuit Race, a 1.3-mile circuit course in Carondelet Park in south St. Louis City.

For more information about these events, click here.

TRI-STATE MOTHER ROAD MARATHON AND HALF MARATHON (posted January 15th)

A new marathon and half marathon, as well as 5K and 1-mile races, will be held on October 10th.  The marathon course covers parts of three states--Missouri, Oklahoma and Kansas--hence the "Tri-State" part of the name, and a Route 66 (aka the "Mother Road") rock 'n roll theme will be part of the course and finish line festivities.  It sounds like fun--if running a marathon or half-marathon can be considered fun.  Check out the website for more information.