Weather | Sports | Forums | Comics | Classifieds | Calendar | Movies
By DAVE THEALL
© St. Petersburg Times, published August 2, 2001
There will be just one overall men's winner Friday night in the Pier 60 Series at Clearwater Beach. But if the pattern of race No. 4 in the series holds up, there could be two winners.
In the event two weeks ago, Rikki Hacker of Riverview ran away with his third consecutive victory and Seminole's Andrew McSwain and St. Petersburg's Steve Wilcox followed.
But since Hacker missed the series' first race, he was shut out of points. Hacker, therefore, is in third place in the overall standings.
With two seconds and two thirds each, McSwain and Wilcox share the top spot with 68 points. Hacker has 60, 20 for each win.
McSwain -- an incoming sophomore at Florida who plans to make the cross country team this fall -- said that if he won the series, he might give the first-place award to Wilcox.
"I'm really not that interested in the award, a two-night stay at a Clearwater Beach hotel," McSwain said. "I'm real busy now, and the award would probably mean a lot more to him (Wilcox is married) than me.
"I've already received some nice awards for second- and third-place finishes in the previous races," McSwain said.
McSwain's times have improved over the summer series. In the first event, he was the runner-up to Kevin Lyons in 17:07. In Race 4 on July 20, McSwain ran a personal best 5K of 16:34, finishing 3 seconds behind Hacker.
McSwain's previous best, 16:41 for fifth place, was set in last year's Turkey Trot 5K on Thanksgiving Day in Clearwater on a hard-surfaced road. Whether he wins or loses Friday is unimportant to McSwain.
"My whole focus is getting ready for cross country season," he said. "I don't taper for these races. I use them for speed workouts. During the week, I average 70 miles, mostly on the beach near home.
"I'm building up my base so I'll be ready for the tough workouts and demanding time trials at Gainesville required by coach Doug Brown. I tried out as a walk-on last year and didn't make it. This year, I'm going prepared."
McSwain attended St. Petersburg High School, graduating from the International Baccalaureate program. His coach there, Rob Townsend, was a positive influence.
"He was great," McSwain said. "He put a lot of emphasis on staying healthy, not running any harder than necessary and not burning out. He wanted us to enjoy it.
"The reason so many high school runners stop running when they get out is that they're burned out."
Not McSwain, who never received an offer or call from an NCAA Division II or III college after earning All-Pinellas second-team honors in cross country his senior year.
"I'm dedicated and determined to make the Gator team this year and contribute," said McSwain, who has a 3.82 GPA as a finance major. "I've made the commitment."
MORE BEACH NEWS: Judy Maguire continues to lead the women's standings with a maximum of 80 points for her four wins.
In the July 20 event, she arrived a little late for the 7 p.m. start, having raced over from the Fort Harrison Hotel where she works as the fitness director.
When the starting gun went off, Maguire was in the ladies room and tried to catch the field over the soft, loose sand. That she did, passing Christa Benton and second-place Vicki Stum. Maguire's winning time was 18:24 -- almost a full minute ahead of Stum, winner of the Midnight Run 3K.
However, realizing she hadn't started at the designated line, Maguire reported what happened to race official Ric Dorrie. He determined her victory was fair since she probably ran an equally-long distance from the restroom to join the field. Five runners have perfect age-group scores and victories in the first four events. Those individuals are: Victor Yeager (40-44), Ron Murawsky and Karen Alexeev (45-49), Jim Larson (65-69) and Al Treichel (70-74).
Jim Keppeler (50-54) and Duncan Cameron (55-59) have three wins and a second.
ALSO: Hacker won the July 28 Strangeman's 5K from the Palm Pavilion at Clearwater Beach in 17:40.
Lynne Fisherkeller of Palm Harbor captured the women's title in 23:48. Sixty-six runners finished.
Largo's Barbara Frye-Krier placed seventh out of 51 women in the July 21 Vermont 100, as in miles.
Frye-Krier covered the scenic course through Green Mountain National Forest in 22 hours, 25 minutes -- good for second among 22 women over 40.
"It was beautiful horse country," said Frye-Krier, on a mission to complete six 100s in the U.S. this year. She has done three, fortifying herself along the way with cans of a nutritional drink every 15 or 20 miles and E-Caps for electrolyte replacement every hour.
John Wood of Seminole wasn't far behind Frye-Krier in his 87th-place performance of 23:32. The starting field was 276, of which 174 finished and earned coveted belt buckles.
ON A GOOD RUN: The July 4 Kiwanis Mease Midnight Run in Dunedin earned an estimated $30,000 net for the sponsoring Countryside and Dunedin Kiwanis clubs, co-director Joe Garrison reported to the Dunedin City Commission on July 19.
Overall, during the past 22 years of the annual event, more than $300,000 has been raised to support community projects.
Among the nearly 50 programs supported are: Clearwater Free Clinic, Books for Head Start Children, All Childrens Hospital, Haven House, Florida Sheriffs Youth Ranch, Dunedin High School Cross Country Meet, Florida Orchestra, Toys for Kids Day, Center for Visually Impaired, Eldercare, Hospice Foundation and Doors Scholarship Fund.
FINISH LINES: East Lake's Tony Teats, the winner of the Midnight Run and last December's Hops Marathon in Tampa, will be in the Chicago Marathon on Oct. 7.
World record-holder (2:05:42) Khalid Khannouchi will represent the U.S. in Friday's World Championships marathon in Edmonton, Canada. This year's Boston Marathon winner, Bong-ju Lee, will be a serious threat.
The marathon will end during opening ceremonies and will be televised, in part, by ABC (Channel 11) at 4 p.m. Saturday. However, the event may be pre-empted by auto racing or deer hunting, so consult your local listings. ABC or ESPN coverage is scheduled to continue Sunday and Tuesday, as well as Aug. 11 and Aug. 12 -- the date of the women's marathon.
Kim Pawelek, 27, of Jacksonville Beach has dropped off the U.S. team because of an injury. She won last January's Saucony Super Bowl 5K from the St. Petersburg Pier.
The August issue of Runner's World outlines a varied 12-week program for preparing for a fall marathon.
The magazine recommends wearing shoes while running on the beach to minimize foot and leg strain. A beach runner burns 1.6 times more calories per workout than runners on hard surfaces.