Congrats to Our Trials Finishers!

What a flashback to how it once was yesterday to actually be able to see the Olympic Marathon Trials on TV, even if they were edited. I made sure I didn't know what had happened and thoroughly enjoyed the delayed telecast on NBC. Here is a special salute to the finishers from Illinois or with Illinois ties. On the men's side, Patrick Rizzo, 28, of Boulder, CO, a former Schaumburg resident, ran a terrific race, clocking 2:13:42 for 13th place. Jeff Jonaitis, 30, of Tinley Park, also ran extremely well, putting in a 2:17:56 for 41st place. In the women's race, which started 15 minutes after the men, former Chicagoan Claudia Becque, 35, of Emerald Hills, CA, finished 78th in 2:45:00. Another former Chicagoan, Christina Overbeck, 25, of Portland, OR, came in 108th in 2:48:25, and Kate DeProsperis, 32, of Downers Grove, finished in 134th with a 2:53:29. Great running by everyone! What effort, what training. You all deserve some time off for a job very well-done!

Marathon Trials: Excitement and Suspense

This Saturday's Olympic Marathon Trials in Houston have dodged the horrendous weather that hit there Monday (rain, flooding etc.), so things should be good to go on race day. Speaking of good to go, the fields look great. I'm focusing my good-luck salutes on Illinois runners and other runners with Illinois roots or connections. There is no doubt I will miss someone, so let me know, please!
Starting with the men, who run at 8 a.m., here are some "locals:" for whom I am rooting hard:
MEN (8 a.m. start)
Bib 8 -- Jorge Torres, Boulder, CO. He grew up in Prospect Heights and starred at Wheeling HS.
Bib 23 -- Patrick Rizzo, 28, Boulder, CO. He is from Schaumburg.
Bib 46 -- Jeff Jonaitis, 30, Tinley Park, IL. Go, Jeff, go!
Bib 61 -- Chris Siemers, 30, Arvada, CO. Chris is from Bensenville and starred at Fenton HS.

WOMEN (8:15 a.m. start)
Bib 10 -- Tera Moody, 31, Colorado Springs, CO. The native of St. Charles has been a major player on the national and international scene in recent years.
Bib 99 -- Claudia Becque, 35, Emerald Hills, CA. Former Chicagoan has been in trials before.
Bib 112 -- Christina Overbeck, 25, Portland, OR. Former Chicagoan is running well.
Bib 156 -- Kate DeProsperis, 32, Downers Grove, IL. No one tries harder. She's tough!
You can watch an edited Trials program from 2-4 p.m. on Saturday on Channel 5 (WMAQ-NBC).

WHO DID I MISS????

There are 123 men and 205 women on the start lists. Plenty of other big-name runners who have run in Chicago and the suburbs are also entered. This will be a huge day for running and running enthusiasts. By the way, the Olympic Marathons in London are Aug. 5 for women and Aug. 12 for men.

Giuliano, Sullivan Take S-NO-W Fun Run Titles

In this non-winter of winters, the always fun and hilarious (serious, too during the actual run) S-NO-W Fun Run 5-miler (32nd Annual John Jantz Memorial 5-mile), which is hosted by the Grand Geneva Resort in Lake Geneva, WI, went to Illinoisans Ryan Giuliano and Megan Sullivan on Saturday. Under sunny skies and April-like temperatures, Giuliano, 27, of Schaumburg, cranked out a great 25:50.2 to best the finishing field of 1,001. Second went to Christian Escareno, 23, of Schaumburg, in 26:23.9, and third went to Chris Setzler, 39, of Wonder Lake, in 26:25.3. Other big names weren't far behind. On the female side, Sullivan, 32, of Oak Park, won in 30:28.3. Jessica Langford, 40, of Rockford, was second in 30:42.7, and Hillary St. John, 23, of Madison, WI, was third in 30:57.5. If you ran this race, you know there is crazy partying, tons of fun and individual-year age groups. I haven't run it in ages, but I know a lot of you who were there this year. The 2012 results are at www.wisconsinrunner.com if you haven't found them.

March Madness Signup Dec. 31; Shamrock Jan. 1

Thse of you who want to run the March 18 Cary March madness half-Marathon in March know you need to get lucky when registration opens at 6 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 31. The limit of 1,000 should fill in an hour or two.
Meanwhile the Bank of AmericaShamrock Shuffle 8K on March 25,opens registration on Sunday (at noon) And the Bank of America Chicago Marathon opens registration on Feb. 1. Here is the Bank of America news release:

Registration for the 2012 Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle 8K will open at 12 p.m.* (CST) on Sunday, January 1, for the Sunday, March 25 event. Chicago's traditional rite of spring for runners and fitness enthusiasts starts and finishes in Grant Park, and travels through Chicago's "Loop," including a mile-long stretch on famed State Street.

The entry fee is $45, and registration will close when the 40,000-participant capacity is reached.

Leading up to race day, the Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle Health & Fitness Expo will take place at Chicago's Navy Pier on Friday, March 23, and Saturday, March 24. The two-day Health & Fitness Expo will feature more than 75 industry-leading exhibitors offering the latest in running and fitness apparel, footwear, nutrition and technology. The Health & Fitness Expo is free and open to the public.

The Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle will conclude with its traditional post-race party in Grant Park immediately following the race. The party will include live music, food, beverages and fun for all participants, family, friends and spectators.

More information on the race and registration is available at shamrockshuffle.com.

2012 Bank of America Chicago Marathon Registration Opens February 1
After you've kicked off the running season at the Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle 8K this spring, you can put an exclamation point on the end of the year by completing the 35th anniversary Bank of America Chicago Marathon on Sunday, October 7.

Registration for the 2012 Bank of America Chicago Marathon will open at 12 p.m. (CST) on Wednesday, February 1, at chicagomarathon.com. Entries will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis and registration will remain open until the event reaches its 45,000-participant capacity. The cost of entry is $150 for U.S. participants and $175 for participants outside the U.S.

* Please note that registration will open at a new time of day this year, beginning at 12 p.m. (noon) rather than 12 a.m. (midnight).

2012 CARA Runners' Choice Circuit

For those of you who haven't already received information on the 2012 Chicago Area Runners Association Runners' Choice Circuit, here it is. These are the events at which you can score points, see the better runners from all over the area and be guaranteed a very high-quality race.

March 25 Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle 8K, Chicago

April 1 The Race That's Good for Life 5K, Oak Park

April 28 Lakefront 10 (Mile) Presented by NovaCare, Chicago

May 6 First Midwest Bank Southwest Half Marathon, Palos Heights

May 20 Seven Bridges Season Starters 5K, Woodridge

May 26 Fleet Feet Sports Soldier Field 10 Mile, Chicago

June 3 Roselle Run for the Roses - Sternberg Lighting 5K, Roselle

June 24 Downers Grove 5 Mile, Downers Grove

July 4 Community Bank of Elmhurst 4 on the 4th, Elmhurst

July 21 Waterfall Glen Xtreme 10 Mile, Darien

Aug. 25 DeKalb Corn Classic 10K, DeKalb

Sept. 2 Buffalo Grove Stampede 10K, Buffalo Grove

Sept. 9 Chicago Half Marathon, Chicago

Sept. 22 Park Ridge Charity Classic 5K, Park Ridge

Oct. 7 Bank of America Chicago Marathon, Chicago

Oct. 27 Halloween Hustle 5K, Palatine

New Trier Girls 4th, Palatine Boys 5th at Nike Nationals

The New Trier's girls state champion cross-country team (Wilmette Running Club to satisfy the IHSA in post-season, out-of-state competition) placed fourth on Saturday at the Nike Cross Nationals in Portland, OR. Wilmette tied for third with 182 points but fell to fourth on the sixth-runner tie-breaker. The North Shore powerhouse finished as follows: Meridith Smith (14th in 18:34); Courtney Ackerman (15th in 18:35); Jessica Ackerman (24th in 18:48); Julianna Jackson (62nd in 19:24) and Molly Krueger (67th in 19:27). Sixth and seventh runners were Kathleen Keene (109th in 20:10) and Anna Berglund (127th in 20:37). On the boys side, Palatine XC Club (state champion Palatine) took fifth and Elmhurst XC Club (York) took 13th. Here's the Palatine finish: Peter Tomkiewicz (11th in 15:54); Anthony Gregorio (38th in 16:16); Marcus Garcia (57th in 16:28); Tim Johnson (67th in 16:33) and Tim Meincke (82nd in 16:42). Sixth and seventh runners were Christian Zambrano (126th in 17:14) and Graham Brown (135th in 17:25). For full results, which include great individual performances as well as team results, go to:
http://www.runnerspace.com/eprofile.php?event_id=13&title_id=187&do=title&folder_id=907

Kate Deprosperis Heading to Olympic Trials

Kate Deprosperis, 32, of Downers Grove, has qualified for the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials on Jan. 14, 2012 in Houston. She ran a 2:45:16 on Sunday at the California International Marathon in Sacramento, getting under the 2:46 USATF "B" Standard to make the Trials field. Deprosperis, who runs for Saucony and is coached by former Trials winner Jenny Spangler, has 40 days to recover and prepare for the trials. That's a tall order, but if I know anyone who can pull it off, it's Kate. After running 1:22:12 for the first half, she hung on for the qualifying time, placing 140th overall and 25th in the women's competition. Other strong but non-trials qualifiers from our area included Suzanne Ryan, 37, of West Chicago, who ran 2:50:06; Adrienne Shields, 32, of Chicago, who ran 2:55:38; Meshelle Rich, 37 of Chicago, who ran 2:56:47 and Christen Meyer, 48, of Western Springs, who ran 2:58:29. ALSO, thanks to eagle-eyed Bob Cisler . . . I missed this one. Christina Overbeck, now of Portland, OR, but a recent resident of Chicago, also qualified with a fantastic 2:44:25! They all deserve a big congrats,and best wishes to Kate and Christina as their dream continues next month in Houston.