10,000 COMPETE IN GREAT RACE
At the intersection of Grant Street and Boulevard of the Allies in Downtown Pittsburgh, friends crowded around their folding chairs and cooler Sunday, listening to a playlist of “Great Jams for a Great Race.”
“We’re out here every year at the same corner,” said Jen Bebout, 32, of Moon.
Ms. Bebout and her friends belong to the Steel City Road Runners group; several had just finished the 5-kilometer contest in the 41st annual Great Race and were enjoying the after-party with medals around their necks.
Just down the boulevard, the Joos family of Plum turned their
heads and cheered as the lead runner in the men’s 10K flew by.
“I would not run, ever,” said Shawna Joos, 38, who was waiting for her husband T.J. to race by. “But I come to support him. It’s a nice atmosphere.”
Friends and family watched as just over 10,000 competitors ran from Pittsburgh’s east neighborhoods to Downtown for the Great Race.
With the temperature at 50 degrees and a clear sky above, the 5K run began at 8 a.m. at Fifth Avenue and Atwood Street in Oakland. The 10K and handcycle competitions started at Frick Park in Squirrel Hill an hour and half later.
“A successful race is a day like today,” race director Brian Katze said. “Runners got to the start lines on time; they finished great. The weather cooperated; everything operationally went smooth. It’s really hard to judge success when it comes to a road race, but everybody having a great time — that’s really what makes a successful race.”
The race follows a mostly downhill course along Forbes Avenue in Squirrel Hill to Fifth Avenue in Oakland and finally onto the Boulevard of the Allies, finishing in Point State Park.
“Even though there’s a hill in the middle, it’s a lot of downhill, so you get to feel fast,” said Melissa Harman, 40, of Beechview, a member of the Steel City Road Runners. “A 5K is an accomplishment in itself. But to feel fast when you finish, it’s an amazing feeling.”
Jim Spisak, 27, of Bloomfield crossed the 10K finish line first in 28 minutes and 16 seconds.
“I just genuinely enjoy the act of running,” said the Duquesne graduate who competed on the university’s track and cross country teams.
Mr. Spisak won the Great Race 10K in 2014 and 2013. He will compete in the USA Track and Field Cross Country Championships in Spokane, Wash., in December.
Samantha Bower, 28, of Monroeville won the women’s 10K with a time of 35:31.
“I thought: ‘If I do top eight, I’ll be really happy.’ I was not expecting to be first,” Ms. Bower said. “I’ve been having a really good training cycle.”
Ms. Bower competed at the USA Weightlifting American Open this past spring in the 53-kilogram category.
Kaden Herchenroether, 13, of Allison Park won the handcycle competition at 32:31.
In the 5K, Kenny Goodfellow, 29, of Oakmont won the men’s category in 15:17, and Lisa Burnett, 35, of Chagrin Falls, Ohio, won the women’s category in 17:20.
Pittsburgh Emergency Medical Services resuscitated a man in his early 60s who collapsed from cardiac arrest just 20 to 30 yards before the finish line. The man was transported to a local hospital in critical condition. Eight other runners were treated at the scene for minor injuries; four were transported to the hospital, according to Pittsburgh police spokesperson Alicia George.
The race — officially named after former Pittsburgh Mayor Richard S. Caliguiri in 1993 — raises money toward research for amyloidosis, a rare protein disorder. Mr. Caliguiri, who established the Great Race in 1977, died of the disorder in 1988.
One dollar from each registration is donated to the Richard S. Caliguiri Amyloidosis Fund.
A related Junior Great Race was held Saturday for children ages 12 and younger. More than 12,000 people participated in the weekend’s events.