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| Chris O'Kelley |
Roger Bannister became the first human to run a mile in under four minutes back in 1954, running 3:59.4 on a cinder track in Oxford, England. People took all the more notice of his feat because the mile had already been a popular event for over a century. People were tracking the world record in the mile well back in the 1800s, before the first modern Olympic Games. Major League Baseball hadn’t gotten around to holding the first World Series. Basketball wasn’t yet invented. In 1976, the International Amateur Athletic Federation decided to only recognize world records in metric track events, but made an exception for the one-mile run. The current president of the IAAF, Sebastian Coe, was himself a former world-record holder in the mile.
In spite of the historical roots of the event, though, it’s not always easy to find a one-mile race to run. Most high schools in the United States run 1600-meter races during track season, more than nine meters shorter than a mile. That’s like getting high-fructose corn syrup when you wanted sugar. College athletes run the even shorter 1500 meters, which is like getting artificial sweetener.
But since 1998, Gulf Winds Track Club has put on a one-mile track race at the Breakfast on the Track. It has always been an egalitarian event, welcoming sub-5:00 runners like O’Kelley as well as athletes taking almost twenty minutes to finish a mile. As long as you were in Tallahassee that morning you could run the race.
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| The Start |
The most recent Breakfast on the Track Mile got underway at 7:15 AM with the start of the first section of the race. Nick Yaeger set the early pace, leading through the first lap. Soon after that, though, O’Kelley took over.
“Right about the third turn, on the second lap,” said O’Kelley.
O’Kelley wasn’t surprised by Yaeger’s fast start, though.
“That was intentional,” said O’Kelley. “He was doing me a favor.”
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| Charlie Kline |
Before the race Yaeger had agreed to be a pacesetter, a “rabbit,” for O’Kelley. After Yaeger had yielded the lead, O’Kelley did his own pacesetting, running ahead of the field for the rest of the race. Unchallenged, O’Kelley crossed the finish line in a winning 4:40.44.
“That was about what I was going for,” said O’Kelley. “I was trying to break 4:40. I ran pretty even so I’m happy with it.”
Charlie Kline took second in 4:45.75, and George Escobar was third in 4:50.62. Yaeger, the early leader, finished fourth in 4:54.89. Carter Hay was the top master runner in the race, placing sixth overall in 5:00.95.
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| Sheryl Rosen |
In a full schedule of long distance and trail races, O’Kelley only runs a single one-mile race a year--the Breakfast on the Track. Ann Centner has a lot more experience with the distance. Currently living in Blakely, Georgia, Centner frequently raced the mile at Oconee County High and then at the University of Georgia.
“My best time is 5:07,” said Centner. “I ran that in both high school and college. I actually didn’t run track my last two years at UGA, so it’s been about five years since I raced a mile.”
Two women raced in the first section, Centner and Sheryl Rosen. Rosen ran near the back of the pack on the first lap, trailing Centner. Centner built up a respectable lead, but Rosen came back in the second half of the race. Rosen passed Centner on the last lap, then held on down the homestretch to take the women’s title in 5:15.26, placing eleventh overall. A few steps back, Centner was second in the women's standings and thirteenth overall at 5:16.68.
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| Ann Centner |
With 186 athletes racing the Breakfast on the Track Mile, they couldn't all be on the track at the same time, so the race was run in ten sections. Brittney Barnes, third in the women's standings and 28th overall in 5:41.29, ran in section three. Racing in section five, Samantha Fillmore was the top woman master and eighteenth female finisher, 83rd overall in 6:38.00.
Whatever section an athlete ran, after their race they were welcome to enjoy a stack of pancakes, either with or without blueberries--the breakfast part of the Breakfast on the Track. For all the glory of the Olympic Games, they don’t race the mile there, and no one offers syrup to the athletes. For that, you’ll have to be in Tallahassee during August for the Breakfast on the Track.
Top Ten Men, 2018 Gulf Winds Track Club Mile at the Breakfast on the Track
- 4:40.44, Chris O'Kelley (M, 25)
- 4:45.75, Charlie Kline (M, 26)
- 4:50.62, George Escobar (M, 20)
- 4:54.89, Nick Yaeger (M, 24)
- 4:58.15, Ryan Truchelut (M, 32)
- 5:00.95, Carter Hay (M, 47)
- 5:01.58, Colin Abbey (M, 23)
- 5:03.43, Brad Busboom (M, 30)
- 5:12.19, Trevor Sununu (M, 22)
- 5:13.19, Nicholas Loffer (M, 34)
Top Ten Women, 2018 Gulf Winds Track Club Mile at the Breakfast on the Track
- 5:15.26, Sheryl Rosen (F, 34)
- 5:16.68, Ann Centner (F, 26)
- 5:41.29, Brittney Barnes (F, 30)
- 5:43.22, Alyssa Terry (F, 25)
- 5:47.37, Kat Sack (F, 26)
- 5:51.66, Caroline Willis (F, 19)
- 5:54.91, Ella Porcher (F, 13)
- 5:58.19, Sofia Paredes (F, 13)
- 6:02.37, Samantha Reilly (F, 26)
- 6:11.47, Maya Tang (F, 13)
| “Breakfast On The Track” Mile champions, 1998 - 2018 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Men | Women | Finishers |
| 8 August 1998 | 4:36, Robert Pautienus | 5:21, Jane Johnson | 101 |
| 14 August 1999 | 4:26, Lee Willis | 5:27, Jane Johnson | 123 |
| 26 August 2000 | 4:42.97, Gary Droze | 5:09.08, Sarah Docter-Williams | 112 |
| 18 August 2001 | 4:21.47, Ryan Deak | 5:08.94, Sarah Docter-Williams | 130 |
| 17 August 2002 | 4:35.07, Lee Willis | 5:10.33, Sarah Docter-Williams | 123 |
| 16 August 2003 | 4:45.20, David Huntzinger | 5:02.28, Sarah Docter-Williams | 122 |
| 14 August 2004 | 4:32.40, Lee Willis | 5:11.79, Sarah Docter-Williams | 162 |
| 13 August 2005 | 4:46.26, Art Remillard | 5:07.13, Sarah Docter-Williams | 157 |
| 12 August 2006 | 4:47.58, Whitney Strickland | 5:09.85, Sarah Docter-Williams | 202 |
| 18 August 2007 | 4:48.04, Michael Martinez | 5:12.91, Sarah Docter-Williams | 163 |
| 16 August 2008 | 4:31.39, Whitney Strickland | 5:12.79, Jana Stolting | 190 |
| 15 August 2009 | 4:43.40, Patrick Swain | 5:05.66, Jana Stolting | 176 |
| 21 August 2010 | 4:33.30, Trevor Touchton | 5:00.97, Stefanie Kurgatt | 191 |
| 20 August 2011 | 4:26.90, Kevin Sullivan | 5:05.82, Stefanie Kurgatt | 231 |
| 18 August 2012 | 4:40.52, Travis Covert | 5:01.74, Stefanie Kurgatt | 210 |
| 17 August 2013 | 4:34.92, Remy Tamer | 5:12.07, Sheryl Rosen | 178 |
| 16 August 2014 | 4:22.11, Matt Mizereck | 5:26.81, Caroline Willis | 213 |
| 15 August 2015 | 4:35.32, Joseph Garcia | 5:17.98, Katie Sherron | 214 |
| 13 August 2016 | 4:30.10, Stan Linton | 5:26.47, Caroline Willis | 204 |
| 12 August 2017 | 4:32, Charlie Johnson | 5:16, Katie Sherron | 185 |
| 11 August 2018 | 4:40.44, Chris O'Kelley | 5:15.26, Sheryl Rosen | 186 |
Links
- Complete results of the 2018 Gulf Winds Track Club Mile at the Breakfast on the Track
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vRQlMSG05Nmhfed3uh-G5EAPO9XOgmoj9zS1W92JS9ncebR125-FwrTmumoKJWQPr-KeP9tqFibdsKJ/pubhtml
- More photos of the 2018 Gulf Winds Track Club Mile at the Breakfast on the Track
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10112338085419763&type=1&l=c0d6b4f1d4
- Fred Deckert's photos of the 2018 Gulf Winds Track Club Mile at the Breakfast on the Track
https://photos.app.goo.gl/kSbJZDCQ6SeBPNAN9
- 2017 story, “A quick bite and a quicker run for Johnson and Sherron at the Breakfast on the Track Mile”
https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2017/08/breakfast-2017.html
- 2016 story, “Stan Linton runs 4:30.10 before breakfast”
https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2016/08/breakfast-2016.html
- 2015 story, “Garcia and Sherron headline a field of 214 milers at Breakfast on the Track”
https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2015/08/breakfast-2015.html
- 2014 story, “Morning mile honors for Mizereck and Willis”
https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2014/08/breakfast-2014.html
- 2013 story, “Tamer and Rosen eat up the field at Breakfast on the Track”
https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2013/08/breakfast-2013.html
- 2012 story, “Covert and Kurgatt master the mile and a morning meal”
https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2012/08/breakfast-2012.html
- 2011 story, “Making a meal of the mile”
https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2011/08/breakfast-2011.html
- 2010 story, “A mile for breakfast”
https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2010/08/breakfast-2010.html
- 2009 story, “Patrick Swain wins 2009 'Breakfast on the Track' Mile”
https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2009/08/patrick-swain-wins-2009-breakfast-on.html
- Upcoming races on road, track, and trail in the Tallahassee region
http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/search/label/calendar?max-results=1
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