By David Yon
Their time in Tallahassee was much too short, but Art and Kate Remillard began their Tallahassee running experience peering through the trees from the Lake Overstreet woods wondering what was going on at the Maclay track. It was of course the Wright introduction to GWTC and Tallahassee as they were witnessing one of the club’s best events, Breakfast on the Track. So as they prepared to leave our great city for opportunities in Pennsylvania what better way to say good bye than with a fast four laps around the track. And what fond adieu it was, as Art won the men’s race with a time of 4:46.26 and Kate took second with a time of 5:22.01.
Art was in a battle with Maclay High School’s Andrew Mannhiemer for the first 800 meters before pulling away. Andrew was tuning up for the upcoming cross country season and took second with a time of 4:54.06. Tyler Price grabbed third and the only other spot under 5:00 with a time of 4:56.58. The top master was Jay Wallace who blasted down the final stretch to take the masters title in 5:00.96. Ryan Deak’s record run of 4:21.16 in 2001 remains the standard for the open men, while Doug Gorton’s 4:45 remains the best masters’ time.
Sarah Docter-Williams won her sixth straight Breakfast on the track in a time of 5:07.13 to set a new masters’ record for the mile. Sarah also owns the open record of 5:02.28 set in 2003. Kate Remillard was second overall as mentioned above. Katy Swain, Maclay, took third in a time of 5:35.88. Connie Clarke ran 6:38.89 to take the masters’ title for the race.
The race had an excellent turnout with over 150 runners competing in 10 heats. A mile on the track is a unique experience for the average road runner. Bonnie, Felton and Jamie make this event some thing that is really fun for all the participants though, who range from age 5 to 85. In addition, to the mile there is the Hamstring 100 and a 4 x 400 relay where teams pass a pancake as a baton. The course is well marked and traffic is never a problem!