October Race Recap

October was a huge month for the Big River Racing Team. Members competed in races all around the country with many new PRs, age group placings, and overall wins. Congratulations to everyone for starting out the fall racing season with a bang!

5 & 10k Distances:

Stephanie Pruitt was the overall female winner of the Miles for Mesothelioma 5k (20:51) and the SIUE Homecoming Run 10k (43:22). Michael McCuddy ran a new PR at the Cardinal Glennon Sun Run 5k with a time of 18:23. Josh Smith ran a PR of 19:00 at the same race; he was also 2^nd in his age group. Sadie Smith was 3^rd overall and the 1^st female at the Saint Peter Dash 5k with a time of 19:23. Benjamin Westhoff was the 2^nd overall finisher at the Ivory Crockett 5k with a time of 18:00, and Rita Donohoe came in 3^rd overall at the Innsbrook 10k (50:42.) Shane Briscuso finished 1^st in his age group at the Gumbo Flats Pumpkin run in 19:42. Josh Smith rounded out the month with a PR at the Marine Corps 10k race in Virginia (41:13.)

Half Marathons:

Matt Kruger ran a new PR of 1:08:44 at the Columbus Half Marathon, and Cassie Zehenny also ran a half marathon PR (1:29:56) at the same race. Elaine Sims kept the PR streak going with a personal best time of 1:47:23 at the Detroit Free Press Half Marathon. Denise Buehrer had a strong showing at the challenging Queen Bee Half Marathon with a finish time of 2:33:15. Brandon Dimitri earned a new PR and overall win at the Purdue Half Marathon with a 1:08:02 finish time. Big River also participated in the challenging Innsbrook Half Marathon, where Luke O’Connor earned a 2^nd place finish with a time of 1:19:28 and Corum Hughes was 5^th in 1:34:23.

Marathons:

Rachel Ament ran a new PR at the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon with a time of 3:23:14. Sadie Smith ran the Chicago Marathon with a time of 3:03:39, Stephen Kuehner in 3:08:00, Brian Carter in 3:19:10, and Carlye Chaney in 4:11:32. Benjamin Westhoff earned a new PR for his 1^st place overall finish at the Kansas Rails to Trails Extravaganza with a finish time of 2:49:57.

Cross Country Races:

Shane Briscuso competed in the USTF Masters Cross Country Race in Boca Raton, FL and came in 38^th out of 100 athletes. Meanwhile, Big River Racing took 1^st place at the Spewak Cross Country Meet, led by Luke O’Connor, who was the 1^st overall finisher, and Allison Wakeland (1^st female), Stephanie Pruitt (3^rd female), Rachel Ament, and Corum Hughes. BRR were also the overall female winners. Allison also ran the Saint Louis Fall Classic Cross Country Race with a finish time of 20:15.

Go! Halloween Races:

The racing team also took home a number of age group awards at this year’s Go! Saint Louis Halloween Races.

5K

Alexander Schenk- 18:45 (1^st AG)

Shane Briscuso- 20:28 (1^st AG)

Denise Buehrer- 32:11 (2^nd AG)

10K

Stephanie Pruitt- 43:14 (3^rd AG)

Gabriel Sison- 45:58 (2^nd AG)

Jack Joiner- 46:26

Lauren Johns- 58:34

Half Marathon

JJ Yabu- 1:09:28 (1^st OA)

Brandon Schneider- 1:26:03 (1^st AG)

Michelle Dillon- 1:48:18 (1^st AG)

Joshua Smith- 1:49:59

Indianapolis Monumental Marathon:

The Monumental Marathon always draws a large Saint Louis crowd due to its close proximity and fast course. Many quick times and PR’s were run at this year’s event: Zach Legenzoff ran a PR of 2:38:23 in the marathon, and Mark Summers was right behind him with a 2:43:05 finish. Matt McGinnis ran a 3 ½ minute PR  with a finish time of 2:56:23; Sadie Smith also came in under 3:00 with a time of 2:57:38. Barrett Looper, Allen Mo, and Tim Bick also ran impressive races with 3:11:32, 3:12:36, and 3:19:23 finishes. Ron Patrick ran a half marathon PR and was 2^nd in his age group with a time of 1:35:43. Jacqeline McCormick also PR’d in the half with a time of 1:40:28.