By Warren Rappleyea
Staff Writer
PHOTOS BY VERONICA YANKOWSKI A group of local kids show off their wheels during the Kids’ Race on Friday night in Red Bank. The Kids’ Race helps kick off the annual Sheehan Classic, the second largest road race in the state, behind only the Spring Lake 5.
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.
A pair of moms get their kids ready for the Kids’ Race Friday night in Red Bank.
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."
Holmdel’s Samantha Teubner, 6, stretches before taking part in the Kids’ Race in Red Bank on Friday.
Hinck said he was pleased with the attendance at Friday night’s Race Expo, which featured local athletes such as former Red Bank Regional High School stars Amanda and Katy Trotter. He estimated that about 5,000 people made their way through the expo. Next year, Hinck said, he hopes to expand the expo and include more successful area athletes.
The following local runners were also top finishers and were among the first 100 runners to cross the finish line:
Long Branch’s Michael Houlihan (14th, 26:25); Lincroft’s Tom Falvey (23rd, 27:40); Middletown’s Michael Durso (24th, 27:46); Shrewsbury’s Joe Kingsbery (26th, 28:00); Little Silver’s Rob Dennis (27th, 28:00); Little Silver’s Steve Waite (36th, 28:33); Red Bank’s Eric Excorcia (39th, 28:39); Fair Haven’s Andy Sharkey (40th, 28:40); Jackson’s Michael Rufo (46th, 28:59); Jackson’s Michael Mooney (49th, 29:12); Holmdel’s Alex Emerel (50th, 29:21); Lincroft’s Tom Hall (51st, 29:26); Middletown’s Kevin Cullen (52nd, 29:37); Brick’s Tim Horn (56th, 29:49); Sea Bright’s Paul Merces (60th, 30:04); Spotswood’s Michael Moriarty (66th, 30:19); Fair Haven’s Henry Mercer (70th, 30:27); Middletown’s Jill Evarts (73rd, 30:33); Middletown’s Alex Fowlie (75th, 30:37); Jackson’s Bill Winterbottom (76th, 30:37); Holmdel’s Andrew Tignanelli (79th, 30:43); Manalapan’s Farid Touati (80th, 30:45); Colts Neck’s John Reagan (81st, 30:45); Brick’s Robert Geran (82nd, 30:47); Eatontown’s Adam Nalven (88th, 31:08); Oceanport’s Paul Murphy (90th, 31:12); Red Bank’s P.J. Visceglia (92nd, 31:18); Jackson’s Bob Derringer (94th, 31:23); Oceanport’s David Wellner (97th, 31:32); Keyport’s Brian Sims (99th, 31:34); and Brick’s Michael Orlofsky (100th, 31:36).