Bryan Burns, Times Staff Writer
Monday, March 14, 2011
tight finish at armadillo run 5k
A trio of Pinellas County youngsters battled for the finish line at the 29th annual Armadillo Run 5K in Oldsmar on Saturday.
Andrew Chandler and Cameron Wheeler, both of St. Petersburg, and Clearwater's Sean Gallagher were within striking distance of one another near the conclusion of the race, but Chandler pulled away.
Chandler, 37, completed the 5K in 16 minutes, 19 seconds to win by eight seconds.
Wheeler, 17, was right behind to claim second. Gallagher ran 16:36 for a third-place finish.
Local age group winners from Saturday's Armadillo Run include: (F grandmaster) Karen Alexeev, Gulfport, 25:42; (M9 and under) Ryan Kempsey, Oldsmar, 29:22; (M15-19) Austin Lewis, Oldsmar, 18:51; (F15-19) Amelia Wong, Safety Harbor, 22:52; (M25-29) Jeffery Martin, St. Petersburg, 20:19; (F35-39) Jodi Dobson, Tarpon Springs, 23:07; (F40-44) Teresa Bodolay, Clearwater, 25:45; (M45-49) Marty Slade, St. Pete Beach, 19:48; (F45-49) Tina Rosato, Palm Harbor, 23:42; (M50-54) Doug Peltz, Palm Harbor, 24:20; (F55-59) Barb Harrison, Palm Harbor, 26:06; (F60-64) Stephanie Bessette, Dunedin, 28:48; (M65-69) Gar Flisek, Dunedin, 23:28; (F65-69) Brenda Hatala, Clearwater, 31:25; (M70-74) Jim Callan, Palm Harbor, 28:55; (F75-79) Betty Nevitt, Clearwater, 34:15; (M80 and over) Pat Fitzgerald, St. Petersburg, 33:16.
In the 10K competition, Carol Bancroft of Safety Harbor had the highest finish. Bancroft, 51, placed second in the women's race after running 44:18.
Richie Taffet of St. Petersburg was third in the men's race in a time of 37:36.
Local age group winners in the 10K were: (M grandmaster) Bruce Mann, Clearwater, 39:59; (M15-19) Paul McKenna, Clearwater, 42:58; (M20-24) Jonathan Desantis, Gulfport, 46:13; (F20-24) Kelly McClenathan, St. Pete Beach, 48:24; (F35-39) Heather Ellison, Clearwater, 46:24; (M40-44) Bret Jardine, Palm Harbor, 39:13; (M45-49) Dallas Rose, Oldsmar, 41:47; (F45-49) Cheryl Forgang, Safety Harbor, 54:37; (F50-54) Mary Stewart-Wong, Safety Harbor, 49:27; (F60-64) Ellen Kohn, Palm Harbor, 51:07; (M65-69) Duncan Cameron, Palm Harbor, 43:33; (M70-74) Herb Townsend, Treasure Island, 48:23.
SHAMROCK CLASSIC
Vince Tenaglia of Clearwater came within a minute of winning the 32nd annual Shamrock Classic 10K in Brandon on Sunday.
Tenaglia, 27, crossed the finish line in 37 minutes, 23 seconds to grab second place at the Shamrock Classic. Tenaglia, who placed first in the 25- to 29-year-old age group, was 48 seconds behind race champion Scott Lafferty (36:35) of Valrico.
Also winning his age group was James Hummel of Tarpon Springs. Hummel, 50, claimed first in the men's 50-54 division by more than two minutes after clocking in at 41:35.
In the 5K competition, Hunter McCann, 14 of Treasure Island, was the fastest local runner. McCann was fifth across the finish line after running 18:12, and he placed first in the men's 14 and under age division by more than four minutes.
The 5K, which saw 221 runners compete, was won by Tyler Moriarty of Lithia in a time of 16:56. Kristine Claffie, also of Lithia, was the women's champion in 20:28.
PASCO CHALLENGE
Treasure Island speed demon Hunter McCann picked up a race win at the Pasco Challenge 10K on Saturday.
McCann, 14, covered the New Port Richey course in 37 minutes, 58 seconds to cruise to victory by nearly three minutes.
Palm Harbor residents Bonnie Duren and Mary Twiss were age group winners in the 10K competition.
Duren, 50, claimed top honors in the women's 50-54 group in a time of 1:12:55.
Twiss was the winner of the women's 65-69 group after completing the race in 1:03:48.
A pair of locals were age group champions at Saturday's Pasco Challenge half-marathon.
Randall Hergert, 23 of Largo, was the top runner in the men's 20-24 group after completing the race in two hours, one minutes and 58 seconds.
Dena Schaeffer, 22 of Palm Harbor, took top honors in the women's 20-24 bracket with a time of 2:09:01.
Tim Pemberton of New Port Richey was the overall half-marathon winner after breaking the tape in 1:23:57. Kerri Kitchen of Crystal River was the women's champion in 1:44:27.
Chuck McCann was the only local athlete to claim a victory in the 5K competition at the Pasco Challenge, which featured 207 runners.
McCann, 59 of Treasure Island, ran 25:56 to place first in the men's 55-59 group.
COUNTRYSIDE CLOVER CLASSIC
Hunter McCann of Treasure Island won the Countryside Clover Classic by 37 seconds on March 5.
McCann, 14 of Treasure Island, ran 18:13 to claim victory.
Loretta Simeon of St. Petersburg was the women's champion by 19 seconds. Simeon, 44, clocked in at 21:03 for the win.
Age group winners from Pinellas County were: (M10 and under) Takuma Walter, St. Petersburg, 21:20; (M11-14) Tyler Condon, Clearwater, 27:56; (F11-14) Amanda Elsey, Clearwater, 23:15; (M15-19) Andrew Elsey, Clearwater, 20:13; (M20-29) Jerry Bell, St. Petersburg, 29:21; (F20-29) Sara Gill, Clearwater, 23:45; (F25-29) Amanda Stoutjesdyk, Clearwater, 35:41; (M30-39) Ken Huff, Clearwater, 23:45; (F30-39) Becky Baas, Safety Harbor, 29:43; (F40-49) Yvonne Bryant, Clearwater, 21:22; (M50-59) Victor Yeager, Dunedin, 18:50; (F50-59) Cynthia Conboy, Dunedin, 31:42; (M60-69) Duncan Cameron, Palm Harbor, 21:12; (F60-69) Ellen Kohn, Palm Harbor, 24:41; (M70 and over) Don Kohler, St. Petersburg, 29:49.