Oneonta Runners Club points battle percolates at CHK 4K

Well, the members of the Onteora Runners Club were back at it on Wednesday night, racing for precious points in the club’s Grand Prix Series at the CHK 4k.

The race, which traveled on the neighborhood roads near the Children’s Home of Kingston and on the Kingston Point Trolley Rail Trail, attracted nearly 80 participants on a picture-perfect night for running. This was the sixth race in the 10-race series and many of the age-group divisions are very close, so runners of all ages and abilities were seeking to add to their totals.

John Nolis celebrated his birthday with a firstplace finish at the event, covering the nearly 2.5mile distance in 13 minutes, 48 seconds. He almost got overtaken in the final strides by Martin Kurtz, who settled for second in 13:49.

Allan Meier, the top finisher among CHK employees, took third overall in 13:58. Logan Linares grabbed fourth place in 14:07, while Terry McCann was fifth in 14:57 and Ben Sweet took sixth in 15:31.

Felix Meier and Travis Meier were seventh and eighth, respectively, in 15:40 and 15:41. Evan Holland-Shepler was ninth in 15:42 and Tony Fletcher finished 10th in 15:50.

Christy Porter raced to the overall win for the women, 23rd overall in 18:50. Porter outran many ORC regulars for first place.

Maura Sullivan finished second for the ladies in 19:09, just ahead of third-place finisher, Jacque Schiffer, in 19:11. Jenny Moretti was fourth in 19:35, fifth went to Vanessa Rimes in 20:07 and in sixth, it was Wendy Tocci in 20:22. Claire Taylor (20:40), Pam Gottstine (20:51), Sue Hoger (21:00) and Tracey Little (21:16) rounded out the top 10.

Other regulars with solid finishes included Chris Gallo (16:00), Max Gruner (16:07), Gary Longhi (16:34), Steve Schindler (16:51), Spencer Schindler (16:52), Jason Taylor (17:12), Nathan Briggs (17:14) and Christopher Regan (17:21).

Proceeds from the race benefit programs for youngsters placed at the residential treatment center. The ORC series continues on Tuesday, Independence Day, at the Marbletown Run in Stone Ridge.

That race is a 2.3-mile point-to-point run from the Kripplebush Firehouse to the Marbletown Elementary School and start time is 9 a.m. with a $12 entry fee.

Hundreds flock to Summer Solstice Run

One week earlier, Minnewaska State Park was the site for the annual Summer Solstice 14k Trail Run. Runners welcomed in the summer season with a challenging run on the trails and carriage roads at the park.

Shaun Donegan was the overall winner in a time of 50:26, about a minute ahead of runner-up Josh Merlis in 51:28. James McCowan took third place in 52:28, and John Nolis was fourth in 54:44, with Edwin Moody fifth in 56:35. Shane Eherts grabbed sixth in 56:37, Alan Young was seventh in 56:46, Kent Thomson finished eighth in 56:47 and John Sellstrom was ninth in 57:20.

Michelle Pratt won the women’s race and was 10th overall in 58:44. Behind her was Catherine Herne in 1:00:02, while Michelle Davis was third in 1:05:52, Denise Iannizzotto was fourth in 1:06:26 and in fifth, it was Diane Linenbroker in 1:07:00. Mendy Gallo (1:07:11), Karen Lancaster (1:08:21), Rosibel Landau (1:09:11), Kristin Hjeltnes (1:09:24) and Heather Hazard (1:09:30) completed the ladies’ top 10.

Other locals at the top were Tim Kosteczko (58:54), Donald Thurston (1:01:02), Scott Costley (1:03:02), Bill Shashaty (1:03:08), Frank Colella (1:03:15), Declan DwyerMcNulty (1:03:46) and Gary Longhi (1:06:24).

Kingston Summer Series begins Wednesday

Just a reminder that the Kingston Summer Cross Country Series begins on Wednesday with the first races in the five-race series at Twin Lakes Resort.

Racing begins at 7 p.m. and registration for the entire series is $25.

Please send all race results and information to 79 Hurley Ave., Kingston, N.Y., 12401; fax to (845) 331-3557; or email to runerichrun@ gmail.com. Follow Eric Houghtaling on Twitter at http://twitter.com/ runerichrun