Princeton mothers complete Philadelphia Marathon
By: Justin Feil
On Saturday, a group of women from Princeton met in Philadelphia for dinner, some socializing and an overnight stay in a downtown hotel.
A nice night out preceded a rude awakening to the challenge of 26.2 miles of the Philadelphia Marathon for nine Princeton-area mothers. Five of them ran and completed the 26.2-mile course while the other four combined to finish 24th in the women’s relay division. The nine are a part of the newly formed Princeton Women’s Running Club.
"We have about 15 women and it’s still rather informal, although it’s spreading by word of mouth," said Sue Hrabchak, one of the group’s organizers who finished in 3 hours, 41 minutes, 23 seconds Sunday. "We are continuing to build up. The more the merrier because then we can break up into different paces and meet at the canal and go to different races. The idea when we formed it was to work up to a marathon."
The Philadelphia Marathon was the culmination for a group that varied in experience and ability. Hrabchak is a veteran of many marathons. For her neighbor Lori Feldstein, it was a first marathon.
"I went into the race very nervous and not feeling my greatest," said Feldstein, who regularly runs at 5:30 a.m. with Hrabchak on weekdays. "I had an injured foot from late in my training and I had a really bad cold. It was really anxious, but I did it. I finished. I cried at the end. It was a huge accomplishment."
The other three from the group that joined more than 40 Princeton residents who completed the course were Joan Morelli, Roxane Jones and Isabella De La Houssaye. Jones ran 4:24:26 while De La Houssaye finished in 3:41:23. Teaming up for the relay were Lynda Bodden who did the first 10 miles, Cindy Olentine who did the next four miles, Tracy Sipprelle who covered six miles and Erin Metro who finished the final 6.2 miles to finish off the 4:15 run.
"This was my second marathon," said Morelli, who covered the marathon course in 3:52:12. "Sue got me to run it last year for the first time."
Morelli missed by just two minutes a Boston Marathon qualifying time of 3:50, but she was happy to have completed a second marathon and improved so much. Last year, she ran 4:06:16. It helped that she had the group to run with on the weekends.
"Because we all have kids, we’d try to do these 6 o’clock runs," Morelli said of the meetings on the towpath at Harrison St. "We motivated each other. If my friend and neighbor wasn’t in the driveway, I don’t think I would have gotten out there and done it. It helped with long runs on the weekends.
"Sue really brings so many people together. She has this tremendous energy to bring everyone together. I didn’t know a couple of them, so I’ve also made friendships from it. It was really great. I’ve made a couple good friends from the group."
Feldstein agreed that having some newfound friends to train together with made the marathon experience more fun. It especially helped as she prepared for her first marathon to have a group with which to run.
"That is exactly what prepares you for the actual marathon, though I’m not sure anything can prepare you for 26.2 miles," Feldstein said. "The best thing about the whole experience was getting together for the training. Everyone ran their own race so we didn’t run with each other (Sunday). But they’re all real inspirational and motivational.
"We all have different lifestyles. We all have to do what works for us. Sue has been the glue that holds us together. She goes on every run. She’s clearly the most experienced."
All Hraback is looking for is for some friends to enjoy running as much as she does. Throwing in the marathon was just a good way to tie it together.
"You need a goal to give you something to shoot for," Hrabchak said. "The real fun was in training with each other and the whole buildup to the marathon. There was a lot of excitement and camaraderie."
Members of the group also got together during the week for runs as their schedules allowed. It allowed them to grow closer and they cheered each other’s accomplishments Sunday. Hrabchak is hoping that the group continues to grow and is aiming toward running next year’s Philadelphia Marathon.
"I do hope to have an even bigger turnout with our next marathon," she said. "So many of them have improved. Erin Metro went from just beginning to run last spring and in the middle of September, she ran the Philadelphia Half-Marathon. She went from a beginner to working her way up to a half-marathon.
"It’s a typical scenario. Joan ran the Philadelphia Marathon last year in a little over four hours. In two seasons, she has not only become experienced with full marathons, but she’s on the fringe of turning it into a Boston. Some people take many years to get to that point."
Morelli is looking forward to meeting back up with the group for more runs and is looking forward to resuming training soon.
"We want to try to get together next week," she said. "We want to get a consistent run down at the canal within a couple weeks. We’ll be back soon."
They’re looking forward to training again. It’s still a little early to say they’re looking forward to their next marathon.
"It’s kind of like asking right after delivering a baby if they’re planning on having another one," said Feldstein, who has three children. "If you forget about all the difficulties and challenges, especially the last six miles, it’s easy to remember the glory and way you met the challenge.
"It was an unbelievable experience. It is really self-satisfying that I could set a goal and then achieve it. It’s an amazing feeling."
One that the Princeton Women’s Running Club hopes others will want to share as well.
"I think we’ll all try to get the group together to run another one," Hrabchak said. "It was a lot of fun."
For more information on joining the Princeton Women’s Running Club, e-mail Sue Hrabchak at [email protected].

