Derek Scott, a member of the Brooks Team Indiana Elite, called early in the week and said he was coming to the Community Bank of Elmhurst 4 on the 4th, and added that he was quite confident he could break the course record of 19:26.9 set last year by
Paul Jellema of the Hansons-Brooks team in Michigan. When I Googled and saw that Scott had run a 3:57.9 mile in May down in St. Louis, I knew the guy had what it takes. Well, it all came true. Scott took the lead from the start, although SIU runner
Kyle Kirchner of Frankfort, IL, stayed a step behind him until about 1.5 miles. Then it was no contest. Scott pulled away on an uphill and breezed to a 19:07, beating runner-up Kirchner, who made a game effort, by almost a minute as Kirchner crossed the line in 20:05. "I was very pleased with how the race went," Scott said. "It was my first time at the event and it was set up great. The registration was smooth, good post-race snacks
and Gatorades, high energy announcers, etc. Starting the race, I knew I was going after the course record, so I was a little surprised to have some company for close to a mile and a half. It helped keep the pace honest. The best part was looping around halfway and being able to see all the other runners on the other side of the road. I was getting a lot of cheers and even some people hollering at me saying, 'is that all you got?' It was funny, people were having a good time. I knew I was well under pace so I was able to relax the third mile and run comfortably to the finish. I'm glad I came out.
Third place in a very competitive "second pack" went to
Christian Escareno, 21, of Mount Prospect, who runs for the Fast Track Racing Team and is the current overall CARA points leader. He ran a 20:08, closing on Kirchner and holding off No. 4
Alex Sutphen, 21, of Napervile, who ran 20:11. Fifth was
Charlie Kern, 40, of Elmhurst, who ran a 20:25 as a hard training run for the world masters meet later this month in Lahti, Finland.
Dani Prince, also of Team Indiana Elite, the 2008 women's Columbus marathon winner in 2:48, and Derek's girl friend, won the women's competition in 22:45. "This was my first time doing the 4 on the 4th and I really enjoyed the race," said Dani, who changed into a party dress before the awards ceremony! "It was great to hear all the support from the other runners and walkers when you hit the turnaround. You could tell everyone was enjoying the race and the 4th. My training has been minimal lately since I am getting ready to gear up for a fall marathon (Twin Cities), but I was happy with the results considering how little I've been doing. The race was a fun way to mix up the week of training." Runner-up woman was Hong Kong transplant
Suet-Fei Li, 33, now of Schaumburg,
who came in at 23:18. Third-place woman was
Christine Overbeck, 23, of Chicago, who posted a very nice 23:35. Overbeck runs for Fleet Feet and is the CARA women's overall leader. She was followed in fourth and fifth by
Emma Keenan, 21, of Niles in 23:38 and
Kareen Ripperda, 39, of Elmhurst in 24:11. We had 832 finishers and a lot of very strong runners duking it out on the streets of Elmhurst. Some of the most honorable people I've run into in quite a while deserve to be mentioned. We had a results problem for a while in which Sutphen was listed ahead of Escareneo. Everyone was very professional, and we got it fixed. Also, Kirchner, Escareno and Sutphen also must be commended for saying upfront they could not accept prize money or gifts because they are collegiate runners. Class acts? Yes!
Photo 1 from Ray Hecker shows Derek Scott near the 2-mile mark after he broke Kyle Kirchner. Photo 2 shows women's runner-up Suet-Fei Li pacing with Dave Schaefers (center) and one of his Fast Track Racing Club teammates, Wes Benson. Photo 3 shows gallant Kyle Kirchner who made it interesting for a while for Derek Scott. Photo 4 shows third-place finisher Christian Escareno ahead of a group of very good racers.
Derek Scott, a member of the Brooks Team Indiana Elite, called early in the week and said he was coming to the Community Bank of Elmhurst 4 on the 4th, and added that he was quite confident he could break the course record of 19:26.9 set last year by Paul Jellema of the Hansons-Brooks team in Michigan. When I Googled and saw that Scott had run a 3:57.9 mile in May down in St. Louis, I knew the guy had what it takes. Well, it all came true. Scott took the lead from the start, although SIU runner Kyle Kirchner of Frankfort, IL, stayed a step behind him until about 1.5 miles. Then it was no contest. Scott pulled away on an uphill and breezed to a 19:07, beating runner-up Kirchner, who made a game effort, by almost a minute as Kirchner crossed the line in 20:05. "I was very pleased with how the race went," Scott said. "It was my first time at the event and it was set up great. The registration was smooth, good post-race snacks
and Gatorades, high energy announcers, etc. Starting the race, I knew I was going after the course record, so I was a little surprised to have some company for close to a mile and a half. It helped keep the pace honest. The best part was looping around halfway and being able to see all the other runners on the other side of the road. I was getting a lot of cheers and even some people hollering at me saying, 'is that all you got?' It was funny, people were having a good time. I knew I was well under pace so I was able to relax the third mile and run comfortably to the finish. I'm glad I came out. 
Third place in a very competitive "second pack" went to Christian Escareno, 21, of Mount Prospect, who runs for the Fast Track Racing Team and is the current overall CARA points leader. He ran a 20:08, closing on Kirchner and holding off No. 4 Alex Sutphen, 21, of Napervile, who ran 20:11. Fifth was Charlie Kern, 40, of Elmhurst, who ran a 20:25 as a hard training run for the world masters meet later this month in Lahti, Finland. Dani Prince, also of Team Indiana Elite, the 2008 women's Columbus marathon winner in 2:48, and Derek's girl friend, won the women's competition in 22:45. "This was my first time doing the 4 on the 4th and I really enjoyed the race," said Dani, who changed into a party dress before the awards ceremony! "It was great to hear all the support from the other runners and walkers when you hit the turnaround. You could tell everyone was enjoying the race and the 4th. My training has been minimal lately since I am getting ready to gear up for a fall marathon (Twin Cities), but I was happy with the results considering how little I've been doing. The race was a fun way to mix up the week of training." Runner-up woman was Hong Kong transplant Suet-Fei Li, 33, now of Schaumburg, 
who came in at 23:18. Third-place woman was Christine Overbeck, 23, of Chicago, who posted a very nice 23:35. Overbeck runs for Fleet Feet and is the CARA women's overall leader. She was followed in fourth and fifth by Emma Keenan, 21, of Niles in 23:38 and Kareen Ripperda, 39, of Elmhurst in 24:11. We had 832 finishers and a lot of very strong runners duking it out on the streets of Elmhurst. Some of the most honorable people I've run into in quite a while deserve to be mentioned. We had a results problem for a while in which Sutphen was listed ahead of Escareneo. Everyone was very professional, and we got it fixed. Also, Kirchner, Escareno and Sutphen also must be commended for saying upfront they could not accept prize money or gifts because they are collegiate runners. Class acts? Yes! Photo 1 from Ray Hecker shows Derek Scott near the 2-mile mark after he broke Kyle Kirchner. Photo 2 shows women's runner-up Suet-Fei Li pacing with Dave Schaefers (center) and one of his Fast Track Racing Club teammates, Wes Benson. Photo 3 shows gallant Kyle Kirchner who made it interesting for a while for Derek Scott. Photo 4 shows third-place finisher Christian Escareno ahead of a group of very good racers.
