More than 2,500 runners lined up for the start of the George Sheehan Classic 5-miler in Red Bank on Saturday under threatening skies. By the time it was over, nearly 2,000 of them crossed the finish line.
It seems that Kenyans always win the Sheehan, and most runners respectfully refer to these elite athletes as simply "the Kenyans." This year was no different.
In the men’s division, Joseph Mwai, 20, and defending champion Simon Wangai, 24, roared down Broad Street to the finish with Mwai ending up the victor by a single second and a course record time of 23:09. Moroccan Elarbi Khattabi, 36, was third in 23:23.
In the women’s race, Atalelech Ketema, 20, finished in 27:14 to outpace fellow Kenyan Hannah Njeri, 30, by 15 seconds.
Top finishes by local runners included: Brian Kerwin of Point Pleasant, 26:08; Patrick Lenaghan of Spring Lake, 26:23; Trevor Rozier-Byrd of Freehold, 27:07; Dickson Mercer of Fair Haven, 27:10; Bob Bythell of Hazlet, 27:29; and Brick’s Bob Horn, 28:21.
The top area women included Heather Bury of Morgantown, 28:04; Jill Evarts of Middletown, 30:33; Ali Belicose of Red Bank, 32:12; Nicole Lombardy of Lincroft, 32:33; and Susan Roche of Shrewsbury, 33:56.
Race director Phil Hinck credited the "hundreds of volunteers," ranging from local police explorers to members of the Civil Air Patrol, with making the race, which winds through the neighboring towns of Fair Haven and Little Silver, a success.
"We couldn’t do it without all the volunteer organizations and the support of the towns," Hinck said. "In addition, many of our volunteers are also hard-core runners who are giving their time to help out other runners. These are people who could possibly win their age groups and who would, undoubtedly, do well. Instead, they’re here at 6 a.m. to help make it all happen."