Gate City Striders

The Newbie Award - (Rookie of the Year)

Alex Brown

Male: Alex Brown
Alex joined GCS this spring and went right to work. He ran 4 NHGP races scoring 37 points for the club, which tied for second most among club members and won his 29 & under division in the process. He was a member of the GCS MCR Team that took 3^rd overall scoring 13 big points for us. He was a multiple 5m & 5k race winner at this Summer Trail Series, he finished 9^th at the Moose on the Loose 10m trail race (1:02:35),  8^th at the Smuttynose Half Marathon (1:20:33), 7^th (1^st GCS) at the Smuttynose 5k (16:48) 2^nd at the Medical Center 6k (21:19), 2^nd at the Macks Apples 5k XC race (16:28), 1^st at the Margaritas Mexican Fiesta 5k ( 17:27) And, completed all 6 races in the “Will Run for Beer Series” easily winning the whole thing.

Kristen King

Female: Kristen King
Kristen really started running seriously just 2 years ago and joined Gate City last year. This year she scored points at the Bedford 12k and BayState Marathon (which she gamely finished with a bloody leg and injured hip and arm as she fell in a pot hole at 10 mile mark). She was one of two women on the Coed Open team for Mill Cities that finished in 9 place overall (which means only 8 men’s teams beat them). She was the 5^th female GCS (22nd overall) at Bedford 12k (5^th place FO team), 4^th female GCS (10^th overall) at Baystate Marathon (4^th place FO team), 1^st in age group (41:57) at Thanks4giving 10k, 1^st female (19:31) at Crisman Memorial 5K, Boston Qualifier for 2 straight years, 3:17 marathon PR, 1st female (4th overall) (3:26) at Roxbury Marathon in Conn. And, she has done all this which holding down a full-time teaching job and going to school nights for her Masters Degree in Education!
 

The Bounce Back Award - (Comeback of the Year)

Steve Piper

Male: Steve Piper
Steve has bounced back from two setbacks over the past few years. The first was the untimely passing of his wife Linda in the fall of 2007 and the second was a major surgery in 2008. Steve’s physical issues started with a feeling that his leg was dead. He went from doctor to doctor to figure out what was wrong. Each referred him to the next, unable to help him, and for a while he would kind of limp his way through the pain. He rode the Pan Mass challenge that year basically with one good leg. Through it all he never gave up hope and never accepted each doctor’s diagnoses. With hard work and a lot determination he finally found a doctor that would help him. They had determined that there was a blockage in one of his veins that needed to be cleared. But, when they got in there he realized the damage was not repairable. So, they had to take a vein from another part of his leg and attach it. The doctor said they had never seen anything like it. Steve spent most of his re-hab last year on his ever-present bike. Guiding, coaching and encouraging those who were training for fall marathons.

During his ordeal some doctors hinted that it was all in his head and that he was just getting old and should slow it down. But, once he started running again you could see he had a fire to get back into the mix. This was Steve’s comeback trail: He ran the Boston Prep 16 in 1:59:42 (7:29 pace) placing him 8^th in his age group. He ran the Eastern States 20 in 2:25:18 (7:16 pace) placing him 7^th in his age group. He ran the Hampton Half Marathon in 1:32:49 (7:06 pace) placing him 3rd in his age group. He ran the New Bedford Half Marathon in 1:32:13 (7:03 pace). Culminating in the Boston Marathon which he ran in 3:15:32 (7:29 pace) finishing as the third fastest 50+ runner in the State!

Julie Hanover

Female: Julie Hanover
Julie’s comeback was not from an injury but rather from the “dark side”, if you will. Julie has been a Gate City member for 11 years and had run quite a few races with us in the past. But, for the last few years she had been training and racing mostly with the Fernando Braz and the Merrimack Valley Striders. This year, after much soul-searching, Julie decided to return to her NH roots and race with the GCS Triad Racing Team  and we were happy to welcome her back!

This year she ran 4 NEGP races. In doing so she scored 34 points in our Intra-Club Team competition and won the Women’s Open title. She ran in 1 NHGP races scoring 8 points for the club. She was on the GCS MCR Team that took 2nd in the Female Open Div. scoring 12 points. She ran the Manchester Half Marathon in 1:37:39 taking 7th place in her age group. She ran the Moose on the Loose 10m in 1:12:39 taking 3rd place in her age group. She ran the Baystate Half Marathon in 1:33:34 also taking 3rd place in her age group. She ran the Cigna 5k in 19:42 taking first place in her age group. And, she ran the Smuttynose Half Marathon in 1:33:18 taking first place in her age group.

The Leaps and Bounds Award - (Most Improved Runner)

Mike Merra

Male: Mike Merra
5k – 20:37 to 18:05 (a 2:32 improvement), 5m – 37:15 to 31:22 (a 5:53 improvement), ½ Mar - 1:39 to 1:30 (a 9:00 improvement), Mar – 3:23 to 3:07 (a 16:00 improvement), 1^st on GCS Male Seniors Team at Pack & Rhody, 1^st in Age Group at the Hamptons Half & Shaker 7, Ran long leg on GCS MCR Team that took 3^rd in their division.

Sue Donovan

Female: Sue Donovan
5k – 23:34 to 22:00 (a 1:34 improvement), 5m – 38:52 to 35:17 (a 3:35 improvement), 10k – 50:07 to 46:10 (a 3:57 improvement), ½ Mar – 1:54 to 1:43 (a 11:00 improvement), 4th on GCS Female Masters Team at Ollie & Lone Gull, 3^rd in Age Group at Bernas Great Legs 5k, 2^nd in Age Group at the Sons of Italy 5m, 1^st in Age Group at the Irish American 5m & 10k, 1^st in Age Group at the Westford 10k
 

The Ubiquitous Award - (Most Active Runner)

John Lewicke

Male: John Lewicke
He is one of only 61 runners in New England to complete all 7 NEGP races. In doing so he scored 62 points in our Intra-Club Team competition, won the overall men’s title and earned the status of Iron Runner. He ran the long leg on the GCS MCR Team that took 3rd in Veterans Div. scoring 8 points. He ran in 2 NHGP races scoring 14 points and winning his age-group with a 35:11 at the St. Anne’s 5m. He is a fixture at the Saturday long runs in Hollis and the outdoor track workouts in Nashua. He volunteered for many GCS events including: Applefest, FYB, The Med Ctr 6k, The Chase Corp. Challenge, Soup Kitchen, Mine Falls Clean-up. He ran dozens of races this year including: Finishing 6^th in his age group at the New Bedford Half Marathon (1:35:34), 5^th in his age group at the Ollie 5 miler (33:36), 4^th in his age group at the Jones 10m (1:14:15), third overall at the GCS Ultimate Runner Night, second in his age group at the NH 10k (43:49), and first in his age group at the Peanut Butter Chip Chase (22:46). And, he came in third among Veteran Men in all of New England for the USATF Grand Prix with 36 individual points.

Karen Pattelena

Female: Karen Pattelena
She is one of only 61 runners in New England to complete all 7 NEGP races. In doing so she scored 60 points in our Intra-Club Team competition, won the overall women’s title and earned the status of Iron Runner. She was a member of the GCS MCR Team that took 1st in Coed Masters Div. scoring 12 points. She ran in 1 NHGP race scoring 10 points and winning her age-group with a 1:32:34 at the Great Bay Half Marathon. She too is a fixture at the Saturday long runs in Hollis, the outdoor track workouts in Nashua and the indoor track workouts in Milford. She volunteered for Applefest and many of the Fitness University Clinics including Finals Day. She ran a 32:13 at Ollie which was good enough for 5^th in her age group. She ran a 1:08:37 at the Jones 10 (6^th in her age-group) She ran a 3:21 at the Baystate Marathon (her first) which qualified her for Boston by 29 minutes and placed her 7^th in her age group. And, she came in fourth among Masters Women in all of New England for the USATF Grand Prix with 30 individual points.

The Heart and Soul Award- (Best Team Spirit)

Jim Velino

Male: Jim Velino
He is one of only 61 runners in New England to complete all 7 NEGP races. In doing so he scored 40 points in our Intra-Club Team competition. He also ran 5 NHGP races and I think he would have run all 7 if two of them weren’t on the same day as two of the NEGP races. Now, because of the depth of our Mens Masters team and because NHGP only scores three runners deep he never scored a single point all season long. But, he never let that impact his commitment to the team or his enthusiasm to participate. He fought through nagging injuries and continued to show up race after race after race all year long with no complaints. Jim is a class act, a truly great guy and I feel that we’re fortunate to have him on our team!

Jennifer Mack

Female: Jennifer Mack
Jennifer started running with us just this year. Her 7 year old son Joey ran with us last year and scored some points at the last NHGP race of the year. So, early in 2009 I got an e-mail from Jen saying how much she enjoyed last years experience and that she’d like to participate in some races with us this year. Well, of course, I proceeded to tell her all about the NEGP series. How the club was paying for all members to run and that if you completed all 7 races that you would get an Iron Runners jacket. So I signed her up for the first NEGP race of the year. And, as it turned out, for all the other NEGP races that followed. In every single race she ran, she brought her cheering section (usually her mom) cheerfully toed the line, ran her heart out and finished dead last on the team. But that didn’t keep her from coming out race after race to achieve her Iron Runner goal. Unfortunately, she came up 9 miles short as she had to drop out at mile 17 of the Baystate Marathon (her first) due to a nagging bout of plantar fasciitis. So, she ran 61.85 miles of the 71.05 required to complete all 7 races. But, true to her never-say-die spirit, she sent me an e-mail immediately after the race asking what the NEGP race were for next year so she could try again!
 

The Breadwinner Award - (Team MVP)

Rich Smith

Male: Rich Smith
A true MVP, Rich finished first on the team in every single one of the club races he ran! He scored 37 points for the club in the NHGP, which tied for second most among club members and finished third in the state in age-graded scoring (in only 3 races) He ran 4 NEGP races scoring another 31 points. He ran the long leg of the GCS MCR Team that took 3rd overall scoring 13 big points for us. He finished 7^th at the Stowe 8m, 6^th at Bill Luti 5m & 5^th at Market Square 10k, 4^th at the Seacoast Half , 3^rd at the Covered Bridges Half & 2^nd at the CHAD Half, He won the Great Bay Half (1:15:01) finally, He won the Moose on the Loose 10m (57:20), He won the St. Anne’s 5m (27:22), He won the Skip Matthews 4m (21:40), He won the NH 10k (34:58).

Cathy Merra

Female: Cathy Merra
She a coach & founder of Granite State Flash Team - Midget Girls. She scored 27 points for the club in the NHGP and finished second in the state in age-graded scoring (in only 3 races). She ran 5 NEGP races scoring for our Women’s Open, Masters & Seniors Teams in each of those 5 races. In doing so she scored 40 points in our Intra-Club Team competition. She was a member of the GCS MCR Team that took 1st in Female Masters Div. scoring 9 points. She ran a 1:29:22 at Mount Washington (2nd in division), She ran a 48:05 at the Bedford Rotary 12k (1^st in division) NH State Record, She ran a 19:15 at the Rhody 5k (1^st in division), She ran a 1:10:15 at the Yankee Homecoming 10m (1^st in division) would have been NH State Record, She ran a 30:08 at the Ollie 5m (1^st in division), She ran a 3:11:50 at the Baystate Marathon (1^st in division) would have been NH State Record, She ran a 38:46 at the Lone Gull 10k (1^st in division), She ran a 31:55 at the Luti 5m (1st in division & 5th female) NH State Record, She ran a 18:50 at the Cigna 5k (1st in division & 5th female overall out of 2000+) NH State Record, She ran a 39:15 at NH 10k (1st in division & 3^rd female overall) NH State Record, She ran a 18:34 at St Charles 5k (1st in division & 3^rd female overall), She ran a 1:28:22 at the Hampton Half (1st in division & 5th female overall out of 2000+) NH State Record She ran a 1:06:05 at Moose on the Loose 10m (1st in division & 3^rd female overall), She ran a 19:06 at the Greater Derry Turkey Trot (1^st in division & 1st female overall), She ran a 23:44 at the Medical Center 6k 5m (1^st in division & 1st female overall) and NH State Record, She came in second among Seniors Women in all of New England for the USATF Grand Prix with 50 individual points. She ran a 3:11:59 at the Boston Marathon (4th in division) would have been NH State Record, And, she was recently featured in Running Times Magazine as one of the Top Masters Runners in the Nation!