Palatine, New Trier Take Class 3A Crowns

It really wasn't a surprise when Palatine's boys and New Triers' girls ran to the state Class 3A state cross-country championships on Saturday at Peoria's Detweiler Park layout. Both teams had the horses and delivered. Palatine won the boys' competition with 114 points, god enough to beat Downstate O'Fallon, which broke up the usual Chicago-area podium with a runner-up total of 20. Neuqua Valley (Naperville) was third with 144 and York's rebuilding project took fourth with 151. Rounding out the top five was Buffalo Grove with 191. New Trier's girls won easily with 82 points, well ahead of Wheaton-Warrenville South (144), Naperville North (183, won tie-breaker with faster sixth runner), St. Charles East (183) and Prospect (213). Full results are at www.ihsa.org. Congrats to all runners in all classes.

Sun-Times' State XC Previews Worth a Read

Sun-Times writer Mike Clark offers a nice column this morning on the emergence of Chicago Public League teams on the state level and also provides boys and girls previews for Saturday's state meets in Peoria. The three pieces are all must-reads for you running fans. While York is in a rebuilding year and not favored to win, the Dukes still won their regional and sectional. With coach Joe Newton and a tightly-bunched group of York runners, there's always a strong element of intrigue. Is this the year for Palatine on the boys' side and New Trier on the girls'? The weather should be good and the running great tomorrow.

CARA Runners Choice Circuit

What are your favorite races on the CARA Runners Choice Circuit? Which races, not on the circuit, should be on it in the future? How important is the circuit? Let's have some input!

Chad Ware Wins Marine Corps. Marathon

Chad Ware of Wheeling won the Marine Corps. Marathon today in Washington, D.C. with a great time of 2:19:16. "Oh so close to that sub-2:19 OT (Olympic Trials) Qualifier, but praise God for a good marathon and a win today," Ware wrote on Facebook. Ware, 27, won by 4:30 over runner-up Mike Wardian, 37, of Arlington, VA, who ran 2:23:46. U.S. men's standrds for the 2012 Trials are 2:19 for the marathon, 1:05 for the half-marathon or 28:30 for 10,000 meters. Congratulations to Chad, who leads the male CARA Overall Runners Choice Circuit point standings. Trians, or no Trials (yet), we are lucky to have such a talented runner living in our midst. Photo: Washington Post.

Sliwa, Setzler Beat Wind, Win at Sycamore 10K

As you might have noticed, I've been on a blog break. I'm back mentally, although my running was a bit stale this morning at the Sycamore Pumpkin Run 10K, one of my all-time favorites. With temps at about 41 degrees and a strong southeast wind, we got it in our faces much of the first 3.5 miles. We worked hard and got slow splits, but it seemed pretty universal. Emerging through the breeze and the rewarding tailwind, which showed up on parts of Miles 4, 5 and 6, Max Sliwa, 20, of Yorkville, won in 33:50. Cari Setzler, 33, of Wonder Lake, was the women's winner in 39:41. She knows the course. She's won this race before. Second-place male was Max Cauley, 30, of Bloomingdale, in 34:22; and third-place male was Nathan Kennedy, 25, of Bolingbrook, in 34:34. Runner-up female was Holly Porter, 35, of Oak Park, in 39:51, and third place went to Jacqueline Mayweather, 25, of Schaumburg, in 40:13. The initial count shows 1,645 finishers. Like many others, I was really feeling it out there. I finished and am always happy to just participate when all cylinders are not at their best. It's been a good weekend for running and racing with the Chicago Fall 50 on the south lakefront as well as the Carrera de los Muertos and the Trick or Treat Trot 5K and 10K, on the north lakefront. And then the high school and college cross-country meets. This is an exciting time.

Marathon 2011

The Bank of Chicago Marathon was full of wonderful moments as Moses Mosop of Kenya and Liliya Shobukhova of Russia blazed to the finish line, Mosop setting a Chicago record and Shobukhova winning here for the third time. As you undoubtedly know, a tragic moment also occurred as a 35-year-old father of two from North Carolina died after going down with about 500 feet to go. It's not the first time this has happened in Chicago. It is sad and does taint the overall joy that typifies a marathon Sunday in Chicago. But as awkward as it is to get back to the results, here goes. Mosop, 26, proved he is for real, winning in 2:05:37. Second went to Wesley Korir, 28, of Kenya, who finished in 2:06:15. You'll remember that Korir was the guy who didn't start in the elite wave two years ago but placed, eventually getting prize money. Third went to Bernard Kipyego, 25, of Kenya, in 2:06:29. Shobukhova, 33, ran her best marathon yet with a powerful 2:18:20. Ejegayehu Dibaba, 29, of Ethiopia, was second in 2:22:09. Kayoko Fukushi, 29, of Japan, was third in 2:24:38. On the local level, Chicago-area runners did quite well. Brandon Mull, 25, of Wheaton, was the top area male with a 2:22:34. He was followed by Brent Alexander, 31, of Chicago, in 2:27:45; Logan Beausoleil, 24, of Gurnee, in 2:27:59; Ryan Giuliano, 26, of Schaumburg, in 2:29:11; and Todd Ptacek, 26, of Chicago, in 2:31:59. Top area women were Christina Overbeck, 25, of Oak Park, in 2:47:07 (great time); Amy Haney, 38, of Libertyville, in 2:50:31; Kristen Heckert, 24, of Sugar Grove, in 2:51:04; Angelina Anliker, 31, of Chicago, in 2:52:24; and Jean Marinangeli, 27, of Schaumburg, in 2:56:03. It's recovery time. Congrats to all who ran. Thanks to all who volunteered.

Hydrate and Use Common Sense Sunday

That's the word for Sunday's Bank of America Chicago Marathon. It won't be in the 80s, but it will be in the 70s with full sun. That's warm to hot, depending on who you are. On the open parts of the course, you will be doing a slow bake. Be prepared ahead of time with adequate hydration and don't forget that sunscreen. Temps should be in the high 50s at race time. Take it cautiously early and you'll get dividends later. It's one of the world's great marathons. Make it one of your great marathon days. Good luck!