In the past decade it was always a treat to visit with Lenore's sister
Dorothy and her husband Walt Kahle as we passed through Eugene, Oregon.
They lived on the ground floor of Willamette Oaks, a retirement complex
that is adjacent and parallel to the Willamette River and its wooded
shores. While at their home, I always enjoyed looking through the patio's
sliding glass door at the turbulent river and seeing runners on a trail by
the far shore. I wished that I could join them, but there was no bridge
nearby. However, within the past two years trails were added to the
shoreline next to Willamette Oaks, and they extended in both directions to
link up with other trails to form an extensive trail system on both sides
of the river.
When Dorothy (by then widowed) sent me a copy of the entry form for the
inaugural Walk with Me Marathon and Half-Marathon on June 28, 2003, it was
an opportunity for me to explore the Willamette River and its parks and
trails in the Eugene area. Lenore and I had a marvelous weekend in which
we joined Dorothy and Joe Henderson for a post race lunch at a riverside
restaurant where we could watch some of the walkers, runners, and bikers
pass on the trail that was part of the race course.
Unfortunately, Dorothy passed away on March 16, 2004, so we realized that
a visit to Eugene would never be the same. This year we returned to
Eugene so that I could run the Walk with Me Marathon on June 20th while
Lenore volunteered at a picnic shelter near the start/finish area. Some
of our friends were participating, and we like to think that we had some
influence for their presence.
There was a good turnout for the 7:00 a.m. start at the Alton Baker Park
across the river from the city center, and it was great seeing Joe
Henderson there as he wished us well. About 300 participants signed up
for the two races. Of these, there were 78 runners and walkers who
started the marathon, and the remainder participated in the half marathon.
It was a clear and sunny day with the temperature in the high 60's at the
start. It rose to the low 80's by the end of the race. Fortunately,
there were light breezes, and about half of the race course was shaded
from the shoreline trees ( native forest or tree plantings).
The course was initially a clockwise loop on both sides of the river.
Runners crossed on footbridges with two short out-and-back stretches at
each end of the course. The finish line was reached at 13.1 miles at
which point the half marathoners exited and the marathoners reversed their
direction to run a counter-clockwise loop to finish. The almost flat
course was scenic as it passed through two parks, some fields, and a
shopping mall.....by suburban housing, a school, restaurants and apartment
buildings.
My first half went well, and I enjoyed the pleasant scenery. I felt
sadness as I ran past Willamette Oaks because Walt and Dorothy were no
longer there. I had dedicated my race to them.
In the 11th mile Tony Phillippi and Chris Warren, the leaders, ran
by......for their second loop. By the time I reached the halfway mark,
about a dozen other runners had preceded me. My time was close to my
recent average, but the heat affected my running in the latter miles. By
Mile 20 my running pace became a walking pace, so I walked in at a 14
minute pace with Dude Spelling, a fellow Marathon Maniac from the Portland
area.
It was nice to reach the finish line and be welcomed by Lenore, Joe
Henderson, Tony and Chris. We waited until all of our friends finished
and then visited with them before leaving the area.
The outstanding running performance of the day was put on by Tony
Phillippi, 42, of Tacoma, WA, and Chris Warren, 36, of Renton, WA, as they
led the marathon field. These Marathon Maniac founders ran together,
prevailed against the heat and set a course record of 3:29:25. This was
Tony's 11th marathon in 10 consecutive weekends.....and he has more
consecutive weekends planned!!! Chris also has an impressive string
going.......10 marathons in 10 consecutive weekends!! My 6 marathons in 6
consecutive weekends is more modest, but it extends my previous string
record by one.
Bernadette Langdon, 50, of Portland who briskly walked the Walk with Me
Marathon was a participant in three consecutive marathons in three
weekends. We saw her at the Newport Marathon (Newport, OR) and the North
Olympic Discovery Marathon (Port Angeles, WA) prior to the marathon at
Eugene.
Bob "Dude" Spelling ran back-to-back races. The day before he had run a
50K trail race in Portland's Forest Park and joined me for the last six
miles of the Walk with Me Marathon.
It was good to see Susan Marshall, 58, of Duncan, BC, again. She had
finished second in her age division at Port Angeles the previous weekend.
At Eugene she passed me in the 20th mile and finished at approximately
4:45:00. She credits me for encouraging her to run this race as she and
her husband vacationed in the States.
Thanks go to Lynn Kahle (son of Walt and Dorothy Kahle) and his wife Debi
Eisert for being our gracious weekend hosts. And THANKS to Tyler Burgess,
race director, and her many volunteers for putting on this interesting
marathon and half marathon for walkers and runners.
Partial Results......Walk with Me Marathon....June 20, 2004
(1) 3:29:25 Tony Phillippi, 42, Tacoma, WA
(1) 3:29:25 Chris Warren, 36, Renton, WA
4:45:00 Susan Marshall, 58, Duncan, BC
5:09:41 Dude Spelling, 30+, Portland, OR Area
5:09:41 Bob Dolphin, 74, Renton/Yakima, WA
5:27:00 Janice Kay Moyer, 47, Wellpinit, WA
5:39:06 Fenny Roberts, 51, Salem, OR
5:39:06 Jim Scheer, 62, Vancouver, WA
6:00:00+ Diane Anderson, 65+, Enumclaw, WA
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