Blume, Giuliano Win Race That's Good for Life

Things really got fast at Oak Park Running Club's Race That's Good for Life 5K. The CARA Runner's Choice Circuit event drew a top field through every age group with Matthew Blume, 31, of Chicago, taking top honors in a blistering 15:04.3. He led 30 more runners under 17 minutes on a course that is usually fast, but not that fast! Second was Ryan Giuliano, 28, of Oakwood Hills, in 15:12.9, and third went to Rob Wiley, 37, of Gurnee, in 15:20.7. Four more runners cracked 16 minutes -- incredible. Women's champion was Jacqui Giuliano, 26, and wife of Ryan. She cruised in a 17:40.6. Runner-up woman was Pamela Staton, 26, of Chicago, in 17:55.6, and the sidebar of the day was third-place Mary Blankmeier, 13, of Oak Park, an eighth-grader who turned in a 17:59.5. Of the many other great performances, I have to cite 88-year-old Bob McKeague, of Villa Park, who told me he needed a 33:30 to make the 80th percentile in age-graded timing. He went out and ran a 32:32! I enjoyed the race, stuck to my pace and ran my fastest 5K on a certified course in several years. I'm not sure I could do that again, at least not for a while. Kudos to race organizers for another superb job. A total of 531 women and 490 men finished the race.