Daniel Boone's Run For Statehood
Craig
Chaplin
309 Mary Ingles Hwy.
Melbourne, KY 41059
Dear
Runners
Thank you for competing and congratulations on completing the tenth annual
Daniel Boone’s Run for Statehood. Enclosed are your results, and race
certificate from last year’s race and entry forms for this year’s race. I
have not included a comment card this year because it would be too late to
use any of the suggestions for this year’s race. I will send a comment card
with this year’s result instead. This will be a short note since time is
so short. I must mention the new records however. Since the race is now
ten years old the records are becoming tougher to break. There were three
new age group records this year all set by the ladies. Cathy Strickler was
the ladies half-marathon champion and she set an age group record for the
40-44 division with a time of 1:32:02. Janice Kreuz was the second place
finisher overall in the half with an age group record of 1:33:47 for the
50-54 division. Judy Byers who ran 40:42 for the 5K in the 55-59-age
division captured the other record. Congratulations ladies.
An
interesting fact in the men’s race is that we now have the closest finish on
record for the half – marathon with only 5 seconds separating men’s champion
Keith Hall and runner-up Brett Rubin. There were two other close finishes
with only 15 seconds between 1st, 2nd and 3rd
in the mile fun run and only seven seconds in the women’s 5K between
champion Sherri Higginbotham and runner-up Elena Fernandez.
If you will allow me, on a personal note I now understand what the rest of
you have been talking about for the last ten years. I have run the course
many times but never under race conditions until this tenth year. Feeling
really strong and confident at nine miles I picked it up only to discover
that at 11 ½ the wheels fell off and I was wishing for death. Nothing
injured, I just had nothing left. I was passed in the last mile for the
first time in many years and found that I just didn’t care. However, I am
still mad about that and have painted a bulls eye on the back of Guillermo
Parra should I ever face him again. I am now proud to count myself along
with you as one of the survivors of this infamous course.
I’m sure you have always felt that way each time you finished it. The great
majority of you have done this race more than once and over a third of you
have done it at least five times. Such loyalty is greatly appreciated, and
I feel, rare at many races. And there are now only 5 people
left who have run all ten years. Gluttons for punishment I guess. They
will have free entry into this year’s race.
We will
continue to try to improve this race so that it becomes well know as the
Kentucky race that caters the most to the runners. Your suggestions and
comments have been very valuable and we will continue to use them. We
are already known throughout KY for our killer course. Many of you talk
with pride to other runners about having done this race and the people you
tell are in awe of you. Try to get some of your more foolish friends out
here to run our race. We would like to grow a little but not too much. We
are not interested in becoming a big race just a better race. Whenever this
race is mentioned the other person always says, “I heard it was real
hilly.” Well tell them to come see for themselves.
Sincerely,
Craig
Chaplin |