Coming Events
Return to top / Return to main page

State of the Sport Part IV: Largest U.S. Road Races for 2007
Largest road races and festivals drive the sport's growth and exposure

Since 1986, Running USA's Road Running Information Center (RRIC) has compiled the largest road race rankings and an examination of its 1987 lists vs. its 2007 lists provides a snapshot of the sport's growth at the top end. For example, in 1987, the 100th largest U.S. road race had 2,610 finishers and by 2007, it took nearly 5,000 timed finishers to reach the 100th spot. Overall, the total of the 100 U.S. largest road races in 1987 equaled 687,955 finishers vs. 1,100,746 timed finishers in 2007 or in other words, a 60% finisher increase in the Top 100 total since 1987.

The table below shows the largest road races by distance (1987 vs. 2007) and except for the 12K, the 2007 distance leader based on finishers was much - if not significantly - larger than the 1987 leader with the #1 half-marathon increasing nearly 6 times (as mentioned in State of the Sport Part III, the half-marathon is the fastest growing distance in the U.S.). Only two races - River Bank Run 25K and New York City Marathon - kept their #1 distance ranking from 1987.

Largest U.S. Road Race by Distance: 1987 vs. 2007

E = estimated finisher total; complete results unavailable

5K 9,400 E Manufacturer's Hanover #3, New York, NY
  39,012 E Race for the Cure, Washington, DC
8K / 5 Mile 18,500 E Al's Run,
Milwaukee, WI
  23,688   LaSalle Bank Shamrock Shuffle, Chicago, IL
10K 25,300 E Crescent City Classic,
 New Orleans, LA
  55,253 E Peachtree Road Race, Atlanta, GA
12K 72,500 E Bay to Breakers,
San Francisco, CA
  40,362   Lilac Bloomsday Spokane, WA
15K 6,667   Cascade Run Off,
Portland, OR
  11,336   Gate River Run, Jacksonville, FL
10 Mile 3,545   Bobby Crim,
Flint, MI
  17,584   Army Ten-Miler, Washington, DC
20K 1,648   Big Boy Classic
 Wheeling, WV
  3,921   Dam to Dam Des Moines, IA
25K 2,902   Old Kent River Bank Run,
Grand Rapids, MI
  4,833   Fifth Third River Bank Run Grand Rapids, MI
Half-Marathon 5,038   Philadelphia Distance Run,
Philadelphia, PA
  29,213   OneAmerica 500 Festival, Indianapolis, IN
Marathon 21,244   New York City
 New York, NY
  38,607   ING New York City New York, NY
Women-Only 5,897   L'Eggs Mini Marathon 10K,
New York, NY
  10,789 E St. Luke's Women's Fitness Celebration 5K, Boise, ID

Source: Running USA RRIC

In RRIC's largest road race lists by distance for 2007, there were several "firsts". For the first time, in the U.S., there were two 15Ks (Gate River and Utica Boilermaker) with more than 10,000 finishers; the popular half-marathon had nine races with more than 10,000 finishers and two - OneAmerica 500 Festival and P.F. Chang's Rock 'n' Roll Arizona - with 20,000 plus finishers, while there were a record six marathons - ING New York (largest ever), LaSalle Bank Chicago, Honolulu, Marine Corps, Boston and City of Los Angeles - with more than 20,000 finishers.

"Festival" events - which were non-existent in 1987 - are also a driving force of the Second Running Boom, and in 2007, to be one of the Top 50 Festivals by size in the U.S., it took nearly 17,000 total finishers compared to 11,000 finishers in 1999 (a 55% increase).

To see where your favorite road races ranked in 2007 or what is #1 in the different largest road race categories - timed events, by distance, festivals overall, festivals by state, women-only races, world-wide and more, go to: www.runningusa.org/cgi/index_largest_races.shtml

For Parts I-III of Running USA's 2008 State of the Sport series, go to: www.runningusa.org/cgi/trends.pl#part1

RRIC = Running USA's Road Running Information Center. State of the Sport reports, many types of running data and lists of the Largest Races from past years can be found on RunningUSA.org in the "Statistics" section. For other questions about running trends and demographics, contact Ryan Lamppa [ryan@runningusa.org] or Linda Honikman [rric@runningusa.org].

Return to top / Return to main page

Browne Set to Defend USA 20K Title at New Haven on Labor Day
Dryer headlines women's field; $40,000 national championship prize purse; World Road Running Championship berths at stake
From USATF

INDIANAPOLIS - (August 28, 2008) - Defending champion Dan Browne (Beaverton, Ore.) returns to New Haven, Conn. for the USA 20K Championships in hopes of winning his fourth 20K national title. The women's field will be headlined by two-time Olympian Elva Dryer (Gunnison, Colo.), and the 2007 USA Half-Marathon champion will be in search of her first 20K crown. The national championships, hosted by the 31st Stratton Faxon New Haven 20K, will be held Labor Day, Monday, September 1.

Browne, 33, will have his work cut out for him as he is joined on the line by this year's USA Half-Marathon champion James Carney (Eugene, Ore.), as well as third place finisher from the half-marathon, Steve Sundell (Redwood City, Calif.). Also in the race for the title will be Andrew Carlson (Bloomington, Minn.), this year's USA 15K champion and 8K runner-up; Adam Goucher (Portland, Ore.), the 2005 USA 5K champion and 2000 Olympian will be making his first appearance at the 20K national championships along with Josh Rohatinsky (Beaverton, Ore.), the 2006 NCAA Division I Cross Country champion.

The women's field is headlined by Dryer, 36, an Olympian at 5000 meters (2000) and 10,000 meters (2004), as well as Zoila Gomez (Albuquerque, N.M.) and Tera Moody (Boulder, Colo.) the respective third and fourth place finishers at the women's Olympic Marathon Trials in Boston.

In addition to over $40,000 in prize money ($8000 for each national champion), athletes will be competing for berths on the U.S. team that will compete at the IAAF World Road Running Championships in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on October 12.

This marks the 16th year that the Stratton Faxon New Haven Road Race, a Labor Day tradition, has hosted the USA 20K Championships for men and the eighth for women. It is the sixth stop for men and the fifth for women on the 2008 USA Running Circuit (USARC).

The USARC, a USA Track & Field road series, features USA Championships from 5K to the marathon and attracts the best U.S. distance runners. The fourteenth edition for the men and thirteenth for the women, the 2008 circuit has eight events for men and nine events for women.

The first ten U.S. runners earn points at each USARC race (15 for first, 12 for second, 10 for third, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1), with a final $12,500 grand prix purse ($6000, $4000, and $2500) for the top three men and women point scorers overall. The USARC points at the USA Marathon Championships will be doubled.

The mission of the USA Running Circuit is to showcase, support and promote U.S. runners. Since its inception in 1995, the USARC and its races have provided more than $7 million dollars to U.S. distance runners.

For more information on the 2008 USARC and USA 20K Championships, visit: USATF.org

Return to top / Return to main page

USA 100K Team Announced for 2008 World Cup in Italy
2007 U.S. men's team earned bronze medal

INDIANAPOLIS - (August 21, 2008) - USA Track & Field has named the 2008 USA 100K Team which will compete at the International Association of Ultrarunners (IAU) 100K World Cup on Saturday, November 8 in Tarquinia, Italy. This year's team includes some first-time members and also seasoned veterans. The following athletes will represent Team USA (in alpha order):

MEN
* Greg Crowther, 35, Seattle, WA, 11th at the 2007 World Cup 100K in a personal record of 6 hours, 52 minutes, 52 seconds, leading the U.S. men to the bronze team medal - their first podium-worthy finish since 2000; the 2007 USATF ultrarunner of the year on the strength of national titles at 50K (road) and 100K (road)
* Adam Lint, 25, Seattle, WA, USA 100K team debut
* Howard Nippert, 43, Colorado Springs, CO, 10th Team USA (1993 World University Games, 1999-2003, 2005-2008 IAU World 100K Cup); fifth place finish at 2006 World Cup in Seoul, South Korea
* Chad Ricklefs, 41, Boulder, CO, member of the U.S. men's bronze medal winning team in 2007, behind Japan and Russia respectively; 2004 USA 50 Mile road champion and 2002 USA 100K road champion
* Steve Stowers, 42, Berkeley, CA, 2008 USA 100K Championship runner-up
* Michael Wardian, 34, Arlington, VA, 2008 USA 100K champion (6:56:57), USA 50K road champion (2:55:05) and USA 50 Mile trail champion (6:52:50)

WOMEN
* Devon Crosby-Helms, 26, San Francisco, CA, second World team
* Meghan Arbogast, 47, Corvallis, OR, first World team; multi-Olympic Marathon Trials qualifier
* Connie Gardner, 44, Medina, OH, six-time team member; 2006 USA 100 Mile trail champion; 2003 USA 100 Mile champion and 2002 USA 100K champion
* Kami Semick, 42, Bend, OR, 2006 USA 50K trail champion; third consecutive USA 100K team
* Carolyn Smith, 43, Milwaukee, WI, 2008 USA 100K champion; third USA 100K team; 11th at the 2005 World 24 Hour Championship, U.S. women's team bronze medal
* Julie Udchachon, 38, North Pole, AK, third World team; USA 2007 100K road champion and 2005 USA 50K trail champion

STAFF
Team leader, Lin Gentling, Rochester, MN
Assistant team leader, Mike Spinnler, Hagerstown, MD
Team physician, Lion Caldwell, Cape May, NJ

The team receives limited funding and the athletes will pay for the majority of their trip to Italy out of their own pockets. Expense for team travel (airfare alone) last year totaled more than $15,000. The Fund for National Ultrarunning Teams, Inc. has been set up as the fundraising arm for the Team. Send your donation made payable to: Fund for National Ultraunning Teams, PO Box 1807, Madison, WI 53701-1807.

The USATF Selection Process and the lists of men's and women's performances that MUT used to select the remaining team members and alternates is available at www.usatf.org/groups/MountainUltraTrail and for information on the 100K World Cup visit: www.iau.org.tw

Return to top / Return to main page

Shelton, Luksetich Romp at Patrick Henry Half Marathon
From Mike McCormick

ASHLAND, Va. - (August 23, 2008) - Brian Shelton and Amanda Luksetich each won their first career half-marathons at the Patrick Henry Half Marathon held in perfect summer running conditions on Saturday morning. Temperatures were in the low 60s for the 7:00am race start.

Shelton, 29, of Richmond, who made his decisive move four miles into the race from a three-man lead group, won by well over a minute in 1 hour, 17 minutes, 37 seconds for his first half-marathon victory.

"There was a downhill around mile four," said Shelton. "I attacked going down and I just didn't let up going up the other side. They couldn't stay with me. This is my first half-marathon win and hopefully not my last."

Masters men (40 and older) took the next two spots as Richmond's Gerrit Labuschagne, 46, was second in 1:19:09, while Daniel List, 42, of Powhatan, was third at 1:19:34.

Luksetich, 26, a winner of two marathons in 2007, the Oklahoma City Marathon and the Marshall University Marathon, also claimed her first career half-marathon by almost four minutes in 1:25:25.

"The party zone in Ashland definitely helped," said Luksetich, who responded to the cheers of the early morning fans. "I noticed it was my fastest mile."

Michelle Mudge-Riley, 31, of Glen Allen, Va., was runner-up at 1:29:02, followed by Holly Baker Wong, 29, of New Kent, Va., who took third (1:31:41).

The event, which is organized by the Richmond Road Runners Club and the Sports Backers and is now in its second year, had 1,153 runners registered. The race is named for Hanover County's famous Colonial-era patriot, Patrick Henry, who proclaimed the Revolutionary War's rallying cry, "Give me liberty or give me death." The course covers territory that Henry trod during his lifetime.

2nd Patrick Henry Half Marathon
Ashland, VA, Saturday, August 23, 2008

MEN
1) Brian Shelton (VA), 1:17:37
2) Gerrit Labuschagne, 46, VA, 1:19:09
3) Daniel List, 42, VA, 1:19:34

WOMEN
1) Amanda Luksetich (VA), 1:25:25
2) Michelle Mudge-Riley (VA), 1:29:02
3) Holly Baker Wong (VA), 1:31:41

For more results, go to: Sportsbackers.org

Ryan Lamppa, Running USA Media Director
(805) 696-6232
Ryan@RunningUSA.org | www.RunningUSA.org