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Articles tagged #Gate River Run
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Thomson and Tuliamuk came out on top at USATF Half marathon championships

FORT WORTH, TX — The racing strategies were different, but the end result was the same for Jacob Thomson and Aliphine Tuliamuk Sunday morning in Fort Worth, Texas, as both runners claimed victory at the USATF Half Marathon Championships. 

On-demand race videos and coverage of the USATF Half Marathon Championships hosted by the Cowtown Marathon, the second stop on the 2023 USATF Running Circuit.  

A conservative early pace in the men’s race kept together the entire starting field, as Olympian Jared Ward jumping to the lead and taking on the pacing duties. He was joined up front by fellow Saucony pro Brian Shrader, as the 18-man lead pack passed through 5 km in 15:23. Just past the 5 km split, Thomson decided to push the pace, jumping to the lead and opening up a nearly five second gap. Thomson would continue to string the field out, running 30 seconds faster for the next 5 km split, as the Under Armour pro came through 10 km in 30:16. 

As Thomson came through 10 km, defending champion Leonard Korir, 2022 runner-up Futsum Zienasellassie, Shrader, and Abbabiya Simbassa led the pack, bridging the divide and catching up to Thomson. The quickening of pace diminished the lead group, leaving a pack of 10 with half the race to go. 

As mile 10 came about, Shrader jumped to the lead and started to push the pace. The pack of 10 strung out again, with only Thomson, Korir, Zienasellassie, and Simbassa able to maintain contact. For the next three miles, the five-man pack ran stride for stride, each feeling out when the right time to make a push to the finish would be. With one final turn before the finish, Thomson made the decisive move, surging ahead, using the momentum from the final turn to propel himself into the lead.

Thomson locked his eyes on the finish, pumping his arms wildly, and in the end was able to fend off the field to claim his first USATF title in 1:02:38. A stride behind Thomson, Korir and Zienasellassie battled to the finish for the second year in a row, with Korir able to withstand the kick of Zienasellassie, placing second in 1:02:39.

Zienasellassie carried his momentum from his USATF Marathon Championships victory in December to earn another top three USATF Running Circuit finish, finishing with the same time of Korir in 1:02:39. Simbassa came home fourth overall in 1:02:41, placing just ahead of Shrader, who hung on to take fifth in 1:02:43. Of note, Thomson, Korir, and Shrader will meet again next Saturday on the streets of Jacksonville, Florida, as all three are entered in the USATF 15 km Championships. Scott Fauble finished sixth in 1:02:49, while Tyler McCandless also broke the 63-minute barrier with his seventh-place finish of 1:02:52. Colin Bennie finished eighth in 1:03:08, Colin Mickow took home ninth place in 1:03:22, and Matt McDonald claimed tenth in 1:03:43, all earning points towards the USATF Running Circuit overall standings. 

Unlike the conservative pace of the men’s early miles, the women’s field got off the start line and immediately hit an honest pace. HOKA Northern Arizona elite teammates Lauren Paquette and Tuliamuk jumped to the front, with Paquette in particular pushing the pace. 

As Paquette led the way through the first 5 km, passing through the split in 16:31, she and Tuliamuk built an early ten second lead over the rest of the field. That lead would grow to 50 seconds over the next 5 km, as the duo came through 10 km in 32:45. Paquette did much of the pace setting over the next 5 km, with Tuliamuk just off her shoulder, both coming through 15 km in 49:16, now over a minute and a half clear of the chase pack.  

At this point in the race, Tuliamuk took over the lead, and while for a moment it looked as if the two would continue to run stride for stride, Tuliamuk’s move to the front pushed the pace just enough to where Paquette started to fall off the pace and Tuliamuk built a few second lead over her teammate over the next mile. 

Tuliamuk continued to push, building her lead to 12 seconds with one mile to go. As Tuliamuk came down the final straightaway, she glanced over her shoulder, then charged ahead to cross the finish line with a smile on her face, claiming her seventh USATF title in 1:09:36. Behind Tuliamuk, Paquette held on and finished a fantastic race in second place in 1:09:51.

The two teammates embraced at the finish line and then watched the rest of the top women race to the finish.  Veteran Nell Rojas pulled away from the chase pack of four women over the final two miles of the race, separating herself to easily cross the finish in third place, clocking 1:11:08. Molly Grabill earned a fourth-place finish in 1:11:16, while Jessa Hanson took fifth in 1:11:26. Tuliamuk’s and Paquette’s other teammate in the race, Paige Wood, finished sixth overall in 1:11:32. Rounding out the top ten finishers, Katja Goldring scored a seventh-place finish in 1:12:36. Olympian Molly Seidel finished eighth in 1:13:07, while Bridget Belyeu and Lindsey Bradley finished ninth and tenth in 1:15:05 and 1:15:12. 

The USATF Running Circuit resumes next Saturday, March 4, as the USATF 15 km Championships take place in Jacksonville, Florida, with the Gate River Run hosting the third stop on the circuit

(02/26/2023) Views: 523 ⚡AMP
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Emily Sisson, Nico Montanez Take 2022 USATF 15-K Titles in Jacksonville

Emily Sisson and Nico Montanez scored convincing wins today at the 45th Gate River Run in Jacksonville, Fla., the traditional home of the USATF 15-K Championships.  Sisson, who represents New Balance, successfully defended her 2021 title in 47:28, collecting her fifth national title across all distances and surfaces.  Montanez, who trains with the Mammoth Track Club and represents Asics, clocked 43:10 to collect his first national title in any discipline.

While both athletes earned $10,000 in prize money, Sisson won an additional $5,000 for winning the race’s gender challenge.  The women were given a six-minute head start and Sisson crossed the finish line one minute and 42 seconds ahead of Montanez.

In typically humid Florida conditions, Sisson led the elite women’s race right from the gun.  In the early kilometers she had company from both Emily Infeld (Nike) and Emily Durgin (adidas), but by the 5-kilometer mark (15:38) she already had a six-second lead.  Running her first race since placing tenth in the 10,000m at the Tokyo Olympics last August, Sisson found herself in the same position as last year: running alone and against the clock.

“It’s my first race back from Tokyo, so it’s just good to push my body that hard,” Sisson told Chris Nickinson of USATF.tv in her post-race broadcast interview.  “I haven’t done that in so long now.”

Sisson, 30, who lives in the Phoenix area but has been training recently at high altitude in Flagstaff, Ariz., checked her watch a few times as she clicked off her kilometers in the 3:10 range.  Her splits were showing that she had a chance at Shalane Flanagan’s American record of 47:00 set at the same race in 2014.  But ascending the 141 foot (43m) high Hart Bridge which begins at about 13 km, Sisson lost too much time and had to settle for the #4 USA performance ever, behind only Flanagan and Olympic bronze medalist Deena Kastor who ran 47:15 in 2003 and 47:20 in 2007.

“It felt good to get out there and hoping this is a good springboard for the rest of the year,” Sisson added.

Emily Durgin was a clear second in 49:17 and Emily Infeld got third in 49:46.

Nico Monatanez Gets 1st National Title

Montanez, 28, who is coached by Andrew and Deena Kastor, stayed tucked-in to the men’s lead pack for nearly the entire race.  Two-time Olympic medalist Galen Rupp (Nike) led for more than two thirds of the race, splitting 5-K in 14:27 and 10-K in 28:52 with steeplechaser Hilary Bor (Hoke One One) on his heels.  Montanez waited for the incline on Hart Bridge before attacking the field.  He quickly opened a big lead.  Montanez said that his move wasn’t spontaneous.

“It wasn’t a moment like that where I’m like, oh, I had the lead and time to go,” Montanez said in his post-race broadcast interview.  “This thing was planned, it was maneuvered, it was thought out, it was prayed for.  This is something that has been on my mind.  This is Andrew and Deena Kastor, both of my coaches.  This is their recipe.”

Montanez crested the bridge with none of the other men still within striking distance and was able to enjoy the final kilometer to the finish.  Behind him, Leonard Korir, a 2016 Olympian, out-sprinted Bor for second place, although both men were given the same time: 43:14.  Rupp, who is also running the United Airlines NYC Half on March 20, faded in the last two kilometers and finished seventh in 43:31.

Todd Williams’s championships, race and national record of 42:22, which was set in 1995, stood up yet another year.

The Gate River Run was never cancelled due to the pandemic.  It was held on March 7, 2020, just before the initial pandemic shutdown, and race director Doug Alred was able to stage the race in 2021 early in the USA mass-vaccination process by cutting the field size in half to about 6700 finishers and employing social distancing.  The event has hosted the USATF Championships since 1994.

The Gate River Run is part of the USATF Running Circuit.  The next event is the USATF 1 Mile Road Championships to be held in Des Moines, Iowa, on April 26

(03/06/2022) Views: 859 ⚡AMP
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Gate River Run

Gate River Run

The Gate River Run (GRR) was first held in 1978, formerly known as the Jacksonville River Run, is an annual 15-kilometer road running event in Jacksonville, Fla., that attracts both competitive and recreational runners -- in huge numbers! One of the great running events in America, it has been the US National 15K Championship since 1994, and in 2007...

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Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run Will Host 2021 USATF 10 Mile Championships

In a joint statement today, the USATF Men’s and Women’s Long Distance Running Committees and the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Race Committee (CUCB) announced that the 2021 USATF 10 Mile Championships Presented by Toyota will be held in conjunction with the one-time-only fall running of the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run on September 12, 2021.

This will be the third time one or more of the USATF 10 Mile Championships have been hosted by CUCB: the women’s championships were part of the 2013 Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile, while race organizers hosted both the men’s and women’s championships in 2014. This year’s 48th running of the Credit Union Cherry Blossom moved from its traditional April date during cherry blossom season to September 12 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Participants in the Women’s Championship will start 12 minutes before the men so performances will be eligible for ratification as women's-only records. While eliminating any benefit of being paced by males, the separate start format also provides increased visibility for these talented female athletes.

The last time the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile hosted both the men’s and women’s USATF 10 Mile Championships in 2014, Janet Bawcom set an American women’s-only record of 52:12, a time that CUCB Race Committee member and former American University standout Keira D’Amato lowered to 51:23 last November in an elite-only, women’s-only pop-up event called the Up Dawg Ten Mile in Anacostia Park. Due to the homespun, ad hoc nature of the Up Dawg event, D’Amato earned no prize money.

D’Amato is planning to defend her record on September 12, this time with the added incentive of winning her first U.S. Championship and earning up to $15,000 — $5,000 for the win and $10,000 for an American Record.

“I am anticipating intense interest in the 10 mile championships as top U.S. athletes return to the roads after 18 months of limited opportunities due to Covid-19 and just a few months after being totally focused on the Olympic Track and Field Trials and the Olympic Games,” said Event Director Phil Stewart. “It should be quite a coming out party, well positioned before the plethora of fall marathons, including five of the six World Marathon Majors, taking place within six weeks. I am also excited about returning to our popular Memorial Bridge course after four years of bridge reconstruction.”

USATF Women’s Long Distance Running Chair Mickey Piscitelli added: “We are grateful that the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run continues, after nearly forty years, to make it possible for our elite athletes to earn a living doing a job they love. We are especially thankful in 2021 to have CUCB hosting our USATF 10 Mile Championships for both men and women. Professional runners throughout the world are anxious to get back to the business of setting World and American Records on the famously flat and fast course.”

While the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Mile has offered a prize purse for elite runners of all nationalities since 1984, the 2013 USATF Women’s 10 Mile Championships marked the first time the organizers introduced a separate prize purse of $14,400 for American Women. When the Men’s 10 Mile Championships were added to the slate in 2014, so, too, was an additional $14,400 for the American Men’s prize purse. In recent years, the event has also partnered with the RRCA for an additional $6,000 in prize money for RRCA Road Scholars and RunPro Campers.

The prize pool for the 2021 USATF 10 Mile Championships totals $26,000 for men and women. An additional $10,000 bonus will be awarded if a man or woman breaks the American Records of sub-45:54 and sub-51:23 respectively. International elite runners will be part of the field competing for an additional $20,000 in prize money.

The 2021 USATF 10 Mile Championships will be the fifth U.S. Championship Presented by Toyota this year. The 15K championship took place at the Gate River Run in Jacksonville, FL in early March, and will be followed by the 10K at the AJC Peachtree Road Race in Atlanta, GA on July 4, the 6K at the Women’s 6K Festival in Canton, OH on July 7, and the 20K at the Faxon Law New Haven Road Race in New Haven, CT on September 6.

Held virtually this year and last, the 2021 Credit Union Cherry Blossom Runs mark the 20th year of title sponsorship by Credit Union Miracle Day. Since 2002, over $10 million has been raised for the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, including $439,000 in 2020. Of that $439,000, $66,000 came from runners donating their entry fees instead of asking for a refund when race weekend in our Nation’s Capital was wiped out by Covid-19.

(06/25/2021) Views: 1,045 ⚡AMP
by Running USA
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Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run

Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run

The Credit Union Cherry Blossom is known as "The Runner's Rite of Spring" in the Nation's Capital. The staging area for the event is on the Washington Monument Grounds, and the course passes in sight of all of the major Washington, DC Memorials. The event serves as a fundraiser for the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, a consortium of 170 premier...

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Emily Sisson and Clayton Young winners at Gate River Run

Emily Sisson started fast and never looked back.

On a blustery, windy Saturday morning in Jacksonville, Sisson turned in a dominant effort to win the 44th Gate River Run in dominant fashion.

Sisson, a professional runner who competes for New Balance, was superb in her first 15K. She built a lead not long into the Gate and stretched it throughout. Clayton Young, the men’s winner, didn’t have nearly the buffer as Sisson. He overcame a bunched pack in the final mile and won by two seconds in 43 minutes, 52 seconds.

Sisson finished in 48:09, nearly a minute in front of Lindsay Flanagan. It was the fifth-fastest women’s time in the race history.

Sisson was coming off of a personal-best 14:55.82 in the 5K at the Sound Running Invite earlier this month in Los Angeles, but a 15K was not a distance in her wheelhouse.

“I wanted to run pretty aggressively from the start. With the win, that was kind of an unexpected element so I had to run a bit off field,” Sisson. “It was such an amazing field. They did a great job putting this on. I had a great time.”

Sisson’s win earned her $10,000, and she picked up an extra $5,000 for being the first person across the finish line with the five-minute equalizer bonus.

“The only part I found really tricky was the last bridge at the end,” I was going up into the wind on it and I felt like I was nearly walking,” Sisson said. “Then we had the downhill to the finish so that was nice.”

John Raneri led at the 5K split, but that 18-second margin dissipated by the time the Hart Bridge. Young, in a pack of runners at the Green Monster, slowly began chipping away inside that final mile and a half. A newcomer to the race, Young said that he didn’t know when to start his final kick until he saw the finish line not far in the distance.

Young pulled away in the final mile and turned in a 43:52. He was two seconds in front of Abbabiya Simbassa (43:54). The top 11 men’s finishers were stacked together and separated by just 23 seconds. The race’s 2019 winner, Shadrack Kipchirchir was third in 43:55. Last year’s winner, Frank Lara finished seventh in 44:02.

“They don’t call it the Green Monster for nothing. I was surprised there was such a pack at the top of that gigantic overpass,” Young said. “I hadn’t done this last mile before so I didn’t know when to make my move but I saw the finish line and I was like, now or never, and so I made my move and just didn’t look back.”

(03/20/2021) Views: 1,619 ⚡AMP
by Justin Barney
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Gate River Run

Gate River Run

The Gate River Run (GRR) was first held in 1978, formerly known as the Jacksonville River Run, is an annual 15-kilometer road running event in Jacksonville, Fla., that attracts both competitive and recreational runners -- in huge numbers! One of the great running events in America, it has been the US National 15K Championship since 1994, and in 2007...

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The 44th annual Gate River Run will take place this weekend with little changes prompted by coronavirus pandemic

Race Director Doug Alred said the race will be a little different this year because of the coronavirus pandemic.

“We’re going to have a lot of social distancing guidelines in place,” Alred said.

The field is limited to 8,000 runners for the 15K. There will also be two different start lines. One start line will be at the corner of Duval and A. Phillip Randolph streets. The second start line will be at the corner of Adams and A. Phillip Randolph streets. The runners will merge just before the Main Street Bridge. Masks are required except while running.

“It’s requiring a lot more things,” explained Alred about the preparations. “We’ve been doing some smaller races and we’ve been kind of using some of the guidelines that we would use at the River Run and see how they go, so those things have worked really well.”

Despite the changes, Alred said runners will still feel a sense of tradition.

“We’re going to have hands on the course. Most of the water stations will still be there, they’ll be run a little bit differently, and the finish line is going to look exactly the same,” said Alred. “As long as people cooperate and wear their mask when they’re supposed to, I think it’ll go great. It’ll be a safe event for everybody, and most people who come will feel like this is a traditional run.”

The Gate River Run said it is expecting one of the best elite fields in recent years because of the limited number of races last year.

(03/16/2021) Views: 1,430 ⚡AMP
by Jennifer Ready
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Gate River Run

Gate River Run

The Gate River Run (GRR) was first held in 1978, formerly known as the Jacksonville River Run, is an annual 15-kilometer road running event in Jacksonville, Fla., that attracts both competitive and recreational runners -- in huge numbers! One of the great running events in America, it has been the US National 15K Championship since 1994, and in 2007...

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Good luck to all of you trying to figure out what to do until we can go back to running as always

I’VE LOST WEIGHT! Probably a half dozen pounds since January, when we departed our Indiana home aimed at our winter hang-out in Florida. Normally, weight loss would be reason to rejoice. Drop a half dozen pounds, and you might be able to drop a half dozen minutes from your marathon time.

But that assumes the pounds lost are fat, the more of which you carry, the slower you run. I feared that the pounds lost was muscle mass. Losing muscle very definitely will not make you a faster runner.

The reasons for the weight loss were simple. Stress surrounding The coronaVirus had sent my wife Rose and I into a deep funk. We lost our appetites. We lost energy. We lost sleep.

But more the problem, we lost use of The Lodge & Club, the ocean-front hotel property owned by Gate Petroleum, sponsor of the Gate River Run. Normally, we spend a lot of time at The Lodge’s fitness center, which boasts a heated outdoor pool. Rose works out daily with an aquarobics group that includes many of our best friends. I start in the gym with a routine of a half dozen machine exercises: upper-body, lower-body, core. Then I head to the pool to both run in chest-deep water and swim laps. I finish soaking in the whirlpool.

That’s my morning workout. Afternoons, I go for a short bike ride to a favorite coffee shop. Weekends, Rose skips the pool and joins me for a long bike ride to a Panera for coffee and bearclaws.

But all that was stolen from me when early in March The Lodge closed its gym, its pool and even access to the beach. Guests quickly checked out. Security guards roamed the property. We substituted activities with little enthusiasm. Rose and I walked from our condo to a nearby marsh and stared at turtles. I continued short bike rides in the afternoon but failed to stop for coffee. Even those minimalist “work-outs” seemed to drain all the energy we possessed. And the weight loss began and with it my hard-earned fitness.

Earlier this week, Rose and I flew home to Indiana. While we have many friends in Florida, we have family in Indiana, most precisely our first son Kevin and his wife Camille. Add to that several grandkids living and working in Chicago. If something happened, they would care for us.

But, as in Florida, change has been forced on my Indiana fitness routine. In the World That Was, Rose and I would bike frequently to a coffee shop. On the way home, I would stop at a community center featuring a gym. Not as plush as The Lodge in Florida, but strength machines are strength machines. I haven’t checked, but I suspect the gym has closed. And the coffee shop.

People argue about the point when we begin to lose fitness if we stop training. I don’t want to suggest a number, but in my case I have begun to halt the decline.

The first day after arriving home, I went for a short walk. And the day after that a slightly longer walk. And the third day, still more. I am functioning like a beginning runner, a few steps at a time. A little more each day.

In the basement, I have a Health Rider, a machine that allows me to exercise my upper and lower body. Winters, Rose and I store our bikes at The Bike Stop, which caters to cyclists. I need to call and have the bikes delivered. Mostly, I need a fitness routine, one that I can follow with some regularity until the World is no longer crazy. Good luck to all of you trying to figure out what to do until we can go back to running as always.

(04/04/2020) Views: 1,193 ⚡AMP
by Hal Higdon
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Ridouane Harroufi, Marielle Hall win 2020 Gate River Run

Only one second separated the top two men’s finishers in Saturday’s Gate River Run.

Ridouane Harroufi edged Frank Lara at the line in one of the closest-ever finishes to win Saturday morning’s Gate River Run through Jacksonville.

In the women’s competition, Olympian Marielle Hall won her first appearance in the race at the USA Track & Field 15-kilometer national championships. Natosha Rogers placed second with former Providence School and University of North Florida runner Eden Meyer in third.

Harroufi, who had dropped behind the front duo of Lara and Reid Buchanan along Atlantic Boulevard, caught both on the descent from the Hart Bridge.

Harroufi won in 44:42, with Lara one second behind and Biya Simbassa two seconds further back in third.

The race began at Duval Street for the first time in more than two decades as a result of the planned Hart Bridge ramp demolition.

(03/08/2020) Views: 1,364 ⚡AMP
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Gate River Run

Gate River Run

The Gate River Run (GRR) was first held in 1978, formerly known as the Jacksonville River Run, is an annual 15-kilometer road running event in Jacksonville, Fla., that attracts both competitive and recreational runners -- in huge numbers! One of the great running events in America, it has been the US National 15K Championship since 1994, and in 2007...

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Couple returns for Gate River Run 25 years after mid-race wedding on Hart Bridge

Rich and Lorrie Goodwyn were married atop the Hart Bridge during the 1995 Gate River Run. Now, 25 years later, they’re coming back to Jacksonville to celebrate their anniversary at the race.

Rich Goodwyn clipped the page and took it and made it into a poster, the one with the bridge and the bright green beams.

He holds that poster still, the one with the March 12, 1995 edition of the Florida Times-Union, the caption with the three words.

“Tying the knot.”

This was a strange sort of way to tie the knot. Tank tops and aluminum, asphalt and the press. Sweat-soaked perfect strangers walking — make that running — down the aisle, the one shared by the happy couple moments before, half of those strangers wondering exactly what they were witnessing but racing past anyway.

A quarter-century has passed, and Rich Goodwyn is not going to forget that day.

Because 25 years ago, he was the man in that photo.

His wife, Lorrie, was the woman.

His son, Christopher, was the child.

Jacksonville’s Hart Bridge was the scene.

It was their picture, their day, their story.

Now, they’re coming back.

“I’m not sure I can come up with the right words,” Goodwyn said.

On Saturday, instead of just husband and wife, a much-grown family will be racing the Gate River Run through Jacksonville together and stopping once more atop the Hart Bridge, the celebrated Green Monster, a party of six celebrating the day that changed it all.

Along with Rich and Lorrie, traveling down from northern Virginia to celebrate their 25th anniversary, Christopher will be there again, along with his wife, Emily. So are the Goodwyns’ two younger children: Hannah, 23, who lives in the Space Coast area, and Drew, 21, who’s making the trip down two days after completing midterms at the University of Virginia.

“I was pushing [Christopher] in a stroller the whole time, and now he’s 30,” Rich Goodwyn said, “Times have changed.”

From that spring in the middle of the 1990s, times have changed immensely.

Rich Goodwyn was a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy stationed in Jacksonville, with skills as a pilot. Lorrie Nemecek was a flight attendant for USAir. Both were looking to build a new life together.

So it always made sense that this would be a match made in the air.

Rich said he and Lorrie were looking for a unique wedding experience, and marriage atop a bridge during the USA Track and Field 15K championship surely qualifies.

“There’s a lot of special memories,” race director Doug Alred said. “We’re really thankful that people have such a warm spot in their hearts for this race.”

The only requirements: There had to be a minister present, and Christopher, his son from his first marriage, had to be able to participate.

Originally, Goodwyn said, the plan was to conduct the ceremony from a hot air balloon, but upon further review, the idea for an aerial wedding deflated quickly.

“We realized that was probably not going to be the thing for a 5-year-old,” he said.

So instead, they decided on the Gate River Run, then still in its mid-1990s configuration due to the reconstruction of the old Gator Bowl as Jacksonville Municipal Stadium. Both planned to run. And they even had a minister designated who was willing to accompany them and finalize the ceremony.

But Goodwyn still had questions. How would the logistics work? Would it be possible to get everyone together atop the bridge without congesting the roadway?

“I called the newspaper to find out who was running [organizing] the race and try to make a memory,” he said.

That connected Goodwyn with longtime race director Alred, who gave the thumbs-up to the mission.

Everything was in place. Until it wasn’t.

One week before the race, Goodwyn received a shock. The minister who was lined up to marry the couple had been informed of a death in his family, and had to leave for the services out of town.

Plan ruined, it seemed. There would still be a wedding coming, but the Hart Bridge wasn’t going to be the location.

Or was it?

The Times-Union had run a short note on the Goodwyns’ search for a minister, titled “Uphill climb.” Word was getting out.

And while Rich didn’t know anything about the story, he was about to find the answer to his search.

“If it wasn’t for the Times-Union,” he said, “I’m not sure we’d be doing this 25 years later.”

Goodwyn had already scrapped his race-day wedding plans when he received a call that was about to change everything.

The instruction: To return a message and contact a man he didn’t know named Tom Slater, someone who had heard about the couple — not that Slater, as Goodwyn remembers, could quite explain what prompted his decision to speak with him.

“The Lord works in mysterious ways,” he said.

Soon, Goodwyn realized the Hart Bridge wedding just might happen after all.

Slater, then pastor of Faith Lutheran Church, was an experienced runner — as Goodwyn remembers, “I’m about 100 times slower than that.”

But that meant Slater would be able to run ahead of them and come back to meet the couple atop the bridge.

The Thursday before the race, Goodwyn and Slater were discussing the final procedures when another thought popped up.

“The director of music [at Slater’s church] is asking, ’Do you think they would be able to play music?” he recalled. “And I went, ‘What?’ You can’t just play music on top of the Hart Bridge.”

But the recommendations were strong. Goodwyn decided to try it. After all, once you plan a wedding during a 15K run at the top of a major bridge, acquiring music suddenly doesn’t seem like such an improbable task.

Still, Rich and Lorrie had one other problem to solve, and it surrounded the ceremony’s smallest participant: How do you get a 5-year-old to the top of the Hart Bridge?

Then, a Navy colleague offered him the use of a double-wide stroller to help push Christopher along the route.

“I was living the dream, in there with some snacks and drink boxes,” recalled Christopher, who now lives in Jacksonville.

So on a March morning to remember, a day on which Todd Williams achieved the still-standing United States record of 42 minutes and 22 seconds for 15 kilometers, it was a pair of slower runners atop the bridge, 141 feet above the St. Johns River, who were writing their own story to remember.

Slater, in black running pants and white collar — “he looked like a priest,” Goodwyn recalls — was there. Christopher was there. So, too, was a small press contingent.

“The music director is sitting on the curb with this electronic organ, playing the Wedding March as we run up the bridge,” Goodwyn said.

Runners No. 6,115 and 6,116 came to a halt. Then came the vows, and a new start. Bouquet in hand. The pounding of runners’ feet behind. The kiss the camera captured, and the moment frozen in time.

They are excited to be out there again.

(03/07/2020) Views: 1,165 ⚡AMP
by Runner’s World
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Gate River Run

Gate River Run

The Gate River Run (GRR) was first held in 1978, formerly known as the Jacksonville River Run, is an annual 15-kilometer road running event in Jacksonville, Fla., that attracts both competitive and recreational runners -- in huge numbers! One of the great running events in America, it has been the US National 15K Championship since 1994, and in 2007...

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There is a group of 33 runners called the Streakers who have finished every Gate River Run

Thousands of runners will lace up their running shoes this weekend for the 43rd annual Gate River Run.

Every year, there is a special group of runners called the “Streakers.” There are 33 Streakers who have run the race every year since it started in 1978.

Art Collier is a streaker. He says he has continued doing the race every year to stay healthy and in shape. He's crossed the finish line 42 times.

“I think it’s a certain exhilaration of an accomplishment, that you made it another year doing something you’ve been doing for over thirty years and I made a commitment to it," explained Collier.

The long-time runner said the running group creates a sense of community on the course.

"There's a lot of comradery, a lot of good people along the way," said Collier.

Carol Newby is also a streaker.

"I'm just very blessed because a lot goes on during the year prior to the River Run, you have injuries, you have surgeries, you have this, you have that and being a part of them, I'm blessed because I can continue to do it," said Newby.

(03/05/2020) Views: 1,803 ⚡AMP
by Jennifer Ready
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Gate River Run

Gate River Run

The Gate River Run (GRR) was first held in 1978, formerly known as the Jacksonville River Run, is an annual 15-kilometer road running event in Jacksonville, Fla., that attracts both competitive and recreational runners -- in huge numbers! One of the great running events in America, it has been the US National 15K Championship since 1994, and in 2007...

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Shadrack Kipchirir, won the 42nd Gate River Run Clocking 43:41, edging Stanley Kebenei and two-time defending Gate champion Leonard Korir for his first win in the event

The redemption portion of the event was delivered by Kipchirchir, who had paid his dues in the run. He finished second twice, 2016 and ’18, beaten by the two men who he edged Saturday. 

"I mean those guys … I was sick of them," Kipchirchir said. "Three years ago. Kebenei beat me by a microsecond. Then two years ago, Lenny outkicked by microseconds. Today I wanted to come and knock them in their head. That was my main aim."

Kebenei won the 2016 run in 44:37, just 2 seconds in front of Kipchirchir. Korir (43:23) won the 2018 Gate by 1 second over Kipchirchir. Korir was trying to become just the fifth male runner to win the event three consecutive years.

Six elite runners were within two seconds of each other with a mile to go on the Hart Bridge, Martin Hehir, Frankline Tonui, Kipchirchir, Kebenei and Korir.

Six elite runners were within two seconds of each other with a mile to go on the Hart Bridge, Martin Hehir, Frankline Tonui, Kipchirchir, Kebenei and Korir.

(03/09/2019) Views: 2,138 ⚡AMP
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Gate River Run

Gate River Run

The Gate River Run (GRR) was first held in 1978, formerly known as the Jacksonville River Run, is an annual 15-kilometer road running event in Jacksonville, Fla., that attracts both competitive and recreational runners -- in huge numbers! One of the great running events in America, it has been the US National 15K Championship since 1994, and in 2007...

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Olympian Leonard Korir is aiming to become only the fourth man to win the Gate River Run three years in a row

The two-time defending champion headlines the elite men’s field entering Saturday’s 42nd annual Gate River Run through downtown Jacksonville, the national 15-kilometer championship for USA Track and Field.

With one more victory, the 32-year-old Leonard Korir can join a select club as winners of three straight men’s titles. Only Todd Williams (1994-96), Meb Keflezighi (2001-04) and Ben True (2013-15) have previously accomplished the feat.

Race director Doug Alred said he’s hoping to see a tight contest, and he feels the odds this year are good.

“It’s not that exciting when one person just runs away with it,” he said. “If the leaders can just stay together onto the Hart Bridge, that would be great.”

So far, that’s been the case in Korir’s past two victories. His 2017 win was the event’s closest finish ever, edging Shadrack Kipchirchir to the finish line by a fraction of a second.

Despite his record in Jacksonville and his international achievements at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, there’s reason to believe that Korir is far from a lock to repeat Saturday.

Unlike 2017 and 2018, he did not win the USATF cross country championships, held this time in Tallahassee on Feb. 2. Instead, he took third, while Kipchirchir beat him out by five seconds.

In addition to Kipchirchir, 2016 champion Stanley Kebenei returns, coming off a fifth-place finish in the cross country finals.

(03/08/2019) Views: 2,364 ⚡AMP
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Gate River Run

Gate River Run

The Gate River Run (GRR) was first held in 1978, formerly known as the Jacksonville River Run, is an annual 15-kilometer road running event in Jacksonville, Fla., that attracts both competitive and recreational runners -- in huge numbers! One of the great running events in America, it has been the US National 15K Championship since 1994, and in 2007...

more...
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Is Todd Williams 15k American Record he set in 1995 unbreakable?

Todd Williams ran the Gate River Run in 1995. His crowning achievement, is a still-standing American Record of 42:22 for the win. By 5k he was at 13:47; he came through 10k at 28:07. This split — in a non-paced, solo road effort — was less than 30 second slower than his fastest track 10,000m at the time. And that was with another 5k and a monster hill to go. He finished with a new American Record 42:22, Williams was only about 8 seconds off of Paul Tergat’s world record at the time. That’s lofty company to be in. In fact, this record remains one of the more untouchable American distance records today. In 1993 he ran a 60:11 Half Marathon in Tokyo. The retired professional runner personal bests are 13:19.50 5000m and 27:31.34 10,000m. He ran his marathon best of 2:11:17 in the 1997 Chicago Marathon. (03/13/2018) Views: 2,019 ⚡AMP
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Hasay and Huddle are going after Shalane Flanagan’s national 15k Record Saturday

In the women’s race, at the Gate River Run this Saturday, the key number is 47. That’s the time, in minutes, of Shalane Flanagan’s national record 15K time from 2014 (47:03). If everything falls into place with the expected high-octane showdown of Jordan Hasay (photo) and Molly Huddle, the race director believes that mark could go down. Hasay, 25, used last year’s victory as a stepping stone to success at April’s Boston Marathon. There, she placed third with the fastest-ever time (2:23:00) for an American woman in her marathon debut. Her chief challenger is Huddle, who finished second here in 2012 and now enters in the best form of her career. The 33-year-old from Providence, R.I. broke the American half-marathon record on Jan. 16 in Houston, running 1:07:25. That surpassed Gate River Run legend Deena Kastor, whose mark of 1:07.34 had stood for 12 years. (03/09/2018) Views: 2,049 ⚡AMP
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Last year's Gate River Run men's finish was the closet in race history

For the first time since 2014, both reigning champions - Leonard Korir for the men, Jordan Hasay for the women - return to defend their crowns at the Gate River Run Saturday March 10. “People always like to pull for the winners,” race director Doug Alred said. History leans against a Korir-Hasay double repeat, something that’s happened at the Gate River Run only in 1986-87 (Arturo Barrios and Grete Waitz) and 2001-03 (Meb Keflezighi and Deena Drossin). Given Korir’s current form, though, he’s the clear men’s favorite. A 31-year-old U.S. Olympian who was born in Kenya and now runs with the U.S. Army Distance Project, Korir made his First Coast debut a memorable success last year by edging Shadrack Kipchirchir last year in the closest finish in race history. (03/09/2018) Views: 2,203 ⚡AMP
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Leonard Korir and Jordan Hasay going after course records at Gate River Run

The 2018 Gate River Run, which also serves as the USA Track and Field 15K National Championship, will be held on Saturday, March 10, in Jacksonville, Florida. The championship will feature $60,000 in prize money with $10,000 awards for the first place male and female finishers. The reigning men’s and women’s champions are returning to defend their titles: Olympian Leonard Korir (43:22), running for the US Army World Class Athlete Program (WCAP) and Jordan Hasay (49:28), representing The Nike Oregon Project. Other elite runners include Molly Huddle, Sam Chelanga and Ryan Vail. The course records to beat are: men’s 42:22 was set in 1995 by Todd Williams, women’s 47:03 set in 2014 by Shalane Flanagan. (03/02/2018) Views: 2,027 ⚡AMP
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