Story #25 in a series of 25. Written to celebrate the CIM’s 25th Anniversary on December 2, 2007. By Cynci Calvin.
2007 Race Review
Near Perfect Weather for the 6th Year in a Row
A few clouds and breezes meant cool but not too cold, wonderful marathon running conditions.
Record Numbers… again!
2006 saw marathon entries increase from 3,000 to 4,500 and relay teams increase from 350 to 500. The CIM, choosing quality over quantity, capped entries for 2007 at 6,000 for the marathon and 750 for the relay, and planned accordingly. by the Expo, there were only 600 entries left and the late entry line extended to J Street on Friday when the Expo opened. Both the marathon and the relay achieved their caps and the same caps are being instituted for 2008.
New for 2008: online entries only will be accepted and there will be NO EXPO ENTRIES. Entries will close when the caps are achieved or on November 15, whichever comes first.
U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials Qualifier Parade
As these nine talented young women wended their way from Folsom to the State Capitol to achieve their sub-2:47 Olympic Marathon Trials qualifying times, they provided an inspiring show for the CIM’s cheering spectators.
- #120 Nicole Cueno of Minneapolis 2:42:03
- #133 Brooke Wells of San Francisco 2:42:35
- #128 Michelle Gallagher of Daly City 2:43:31
- #108 Sara Donahue of Brookline, Mass. 2:43:43
- #24 Megan Lewis of Santa Barbara 2:44:04
- #28 Emily Brzozowski of Colorado Springs 2:45:02
- #59 Caroline Annis of San Francisco 2:45:27
- #29 Meghan Arbogast of Corvallis, Ore. 2:45:46
- #36 Marie Sample of Marshall, Minn. 2:46:00
Marathon World Record Time
Helen Klein does it again – this time for women 85 and older. Her 5:48 time blasted the previous record of 6:53:50 set by Ida Mintz in1990. At the 2002 CIM Helen set the world record for women 80 and older (4:31:32), and since then she has set single-year age division records at the CIM each year.
Women’s 45-49 Course Record
Meghan Arboghast’s 2:45:46 put her on top of this age division list. Laurie Porter’s 2:49:41 time placed her second on the list. Now in third is Dr. Joan Ullyot with her 2:51:25 time set in 1986.
Men’s 80+ Course Record
Sam Hirabyashi, 80-years young, finished in an age division course record time of 4:52:29. His time is more than two hours faster than the previous record set by George Billingsley in 2004 (7:06:35). His time places him 13th on the world marathon rankings list for men 80 to 84, according to the Association of Road Racing Statisticians.
Marathon Winners
Men: Moiben Laban (24), Kenya in 2:14:31; $10,000
In spite of arriving in Sacramento on Saturday evening after two days of travel from Kenya, Moiben ran a strong and intelligent race. He stayed with a lead pack of nine runners through mile 10, waited until the group dwindled to three after 15 miles, and then he cranked out mile times of 5:00, 4:55, 5:01 and 5:00 to pull away from fellow Kenyans John Gathoga (debut marathon, 2nd, 2:14:57) and Richard Kimeli. Kimeli faded to 8th while Charles Bedley of Toronto moved in to finish third (2:16:26).
Women: Wioletta Kryza (39), Poland in 2:39:20. $10,000
“Now I win!” Wioletta Kryza (39), Poland in 2:39:20ished 3rd at the 2006 CIM and second at the 2005 CIM. Her experience prevailed as she ran unchallenged to her 2:39:20 victory. Nicole Cueno of Minneapolis, Minn. surprised herself with her second place finish (2:42:03) and a 10-minute pr. Brooke Wells from San Francisco nailed her Olympic Marathon Trials qualifier finishing third in 2:42:35. Early race favorite and 1998 CIMwinner Alena Vinitskaya finished fourth after sustaining a foot injury mid-race.
2008 PA/USATF Marathon Champions
Men (13th Overall): Paul Smith, Chico 2:32:44
Women (3rd Overall Woman): Brooke Wells, San Francisco 2:42:35
First Local Finishers
Men: Michael Woodward, Rocklin (2:36:57)
Women: Kirsten Schneider, Sacramento (2:52:39)
Overall Masters Winners
Men – 12th overall: Neil Holm (41), Courtenay, BC in 2:32:22
Women – 10th woman overall: Meghan Arboghast (46), Corvallis OR in 2:45:46
Vision Impaired Division Winner
This division, added to the CIM this year, was won by Kurt Fiene of Omaha, Neb. in 2:52:55. Kurt’s time qualified him for the U.S. Marathon Team for the 2008 Beijing Paralympics.
Wheelchair Winner
Chris Houde of Carmichael in 2:11:36
Clydesdale Division Winner
Terry Nugent of Highlands Ranch, Colorado in 2:58:44
Athena Division Winner
Bobbi Wright of Salem, Oregon in 3:28:51
All 16 of the CIM’s Honor Roll of 24-time finishers successfully completed their 25th CIM!
- Michael Buzbee, Yuba City, Calif.
- Web Chadwick, Sacramento, Calif.
- Steve Haun, Sacrameno, Calif.
- Bruce Mauldin, Yreka, Calif.
- Mike Nolan, Sacramento, Calif.
- John O’Neill, Diamond Springs, Calif.
- Mike Sullivan, Seaside, Calif.
- Barry Turner, Sacrameno, Calif.
- Blake McDonald, Davis, Calif.
- James Raia, Sacramento, Calif.
- Mike Ryan, Fair Oaks, Calif.
- Alfred Saragoza, Woodland, Calif.
- Steven Polansky, Carmichael, Calif.
- Ernest Takahashi, Sacramento, Calif.
- Tim Twietmeyer, Auburn, Calif.
- Denis Zilaff, Sacramento, Calif.
Potential American Age Division Record Runner Disqualified
James Scott, 68, Fremont California, crossed the CIM’s finish line with the clock showing a time of 2:47:13, a potential age division American record time. His performance was investigated and was not corroborated by the acquired evidence. USATF event referees disqualified him, and no appeal was made concerning this decision. Several other runners were investigated for a variety of reasons including no start or half-way Chip times and no photos or video at random locations on the course. Several of these were removed from the official results with the majority of them admitting to not running the entire course. Runners not running the entire course must NOT CROSS THE FINISH LINE. Investigations resulting from these runners actions are time consuming, expensive and wasteful of event resources.