The race was named after the late Steve Prefontaine, who, among his other athletic accomplishments, was a three-time NCAA cross-country champion. There isn't much competitive advantage in being a Prefontaine veteran; the course changes frequently. This year it was two loops around the lake and its twin, Girl Scout Lake. The course featured stretches of grass, loamy trails through hardwoods, and ankle-wrenching sand. Runners, of course, only talk about the sandy part, except when they're emphasizing the one slight uphill on the course.
Complaining about the terrain or not, nearly 200 runners started the race at 8:30 AM. Crawfordville’s Stanley Linton went to the front early. It was Linton’s third Prefontaine; while at Wakulla High School he had placed third in the race in 2009 and fourth in 2010. Trailing him this year were Joel Piotrowski, who had won the race the first time Linton ran it, and Jay Wallace, the Prefontaine champion in Linton’s second outing. This time, though, Linton stayed ahead of them and of everyone else, winning the race in 17:20 and finishing almost a quarter-mile ahead of the runner-up, Nate Kaiser (18:43). Jay Wallace was the first master runner, placing third overall in 18:49.
Linton’s win may have been a case of the third time being the charm, but in the women’s competition it was a third win for Micah Adriani, who had won the Prefontaine 5K in 2007 and 2009. In fact, Adriani had finished a second ahead of Linton in 2009. She placed behind Linton this year, but was still at the top of the women’s field, 21st overall in 21:00. The women’s runner-up, Katie Showman, trailed Adriani throughout the race, finishing 27th overall in 21:39. Kristine Cox was the third female finisher, 31st overall in 21:50.
It was a valedictory event for the race director, Jeff Nielsen, who will be turning next year’s Prefontaine over to other hands. He did express one regret. “I wanted to drag some kind of obstacle onto the course,” confessed Nielsen. “But I just didn’t have time.”
I suspect that when the runners went home, few of them regretted Nielsen’s tight schedule.
Top Ten Men, 2012 Salute to Prefontaine 5K
- 17:20 ~ Stanley Linton (M, 18)
- 18:43 ~ Nate Kaiser (M, 33)
- 18:49 ~ Jay Wallace (M, 48)
- 19:25 ~ Chan Mcallister (M, 29)
- 19:25 ~ Aaron Smith (M, 16)
- 19:38 ~ J P Piotrowski (M, 15)
- 19:46 ~ Paul Guyas (M, 34)
- 19:51 ~ Brian Molen (M, 36)
- 20:03 ~ Travis Parks (M, 16)
- 20:15 ~ Matthew Cashin (M, 13)
Top Ten Women, 2012 Salute to Prefontaine 5K
- 21:00 ~ Micah Adriani (F, 35)
- 21:39 ~ Katie Showman (F, 30)
- 21:50 ~ Kristine Cox (F, 35)
- 21:58 ~ Ashley Daily (F, 25)
- 22:25 ~ Karen Geletko (F, 33)
- 24:03 ~ Ana Wallace (F, 12)
- 24:25 ~ Raychel Gray (F, 17)
- 24:33 ~ Mary Vancore (F, 48)
- 24:41 ~ Andrea Duffy (F, 36)
- 24:54 ~ Tiffany Roddenberry (F, 28)
Known winners of the Salute to Prefontaine 5K 1976-2012 | ||
---|---|---|
Date | Men | Women |
25 September 1976 | 15:43, Tim Simpkins | 19:20, Nancy McCormac |
September 1977 | 15:35, Tim Simpkins | 19:00, Janice Gage |
23 September 1978 | ||
September 1979 | ||
20 September 1980 | 17:17, George West | 20:52, Donna Miller |
September 1981 | ||
September 1982 | ||
24 September 1983 | 17:17, Jeff Doherty | 20:36, Donna Miller |
September 1984 | 17:11, Larry Abele | 20:43, Barbara Balzer |
September 1985 | 16:51, Tim Simpkins | 20:40, Darien Andreu |
27 September 1986 | 17:20, Tim Simpkins | 22:14, Laura Partin |
12 September 1987 | 17:33, Tom Burr | 21:20, Linda Nicholson |
24 September 1988 | 17:38, Tom Burr | 22:23, Yvonne Gsteiger |
23 September 1989 | 17:25, Tim Simpkins | 21:30, Vikki Saga |
22 September 1990 | 17:12, Bill Crooks | 22:23, Tina Davies |
22 September 1991 | 17:54, Gary Droze | 24:48, Tina Davies |
19 September 1992 | 18:29, Gary Droze | 22:05, Diane Blas |
18 September 1993 | 17:58, Tim Simpkins | 24:16, Sissi Carroll |
17 September 1994 | 17:00, Gary Droze | 21:16, Carrie Weyant |
30 September 1995 | 17:12, Gary Droze | 22:56, Sissi Carroll |
28 September 1996 | 19:18, Gary Droze | 22:56, Jane Johnson |
27 September 1997 | 18:50, Bill Crooks | 23:07, Julie Clark |
26 September 1998 | 19:26, Paul Hoover | 24:44, Peggy Simpson |
25 September 1999 | 17:56, Gary Droze | 24:13, Brandi Rook |
30 September 2000 | 17:49, Gary Droze | 22:17, Allie Hunter |
29 September 2001 | 19:37, Scott Poindexter | 22:17, Allie Hunter |
5 October 2002 | 22:17, David Yon | 25:47, Yvonne Gsteiger |
27 September 2003 | 18:35, Shawn Patterson | 23:49, Angela Dempsey |
25 September 2004 | 17:43, Gary Droze | 22:46, Seeley Lovett |
24 September 2005 | 18:13, Gary Droze | 24:06, Jane Johnson |
23 September 2006 | 17:24, Gary Droze | 19:59, Stephanie Liles |
29 September 2007 | 17:29, Chris Gregory | 20:26, Micah Adriani |
27 September 2008 | 18:16, Daniel Lee | 21:10, Kati Gosnell |
26 September 2009 | 20:28, Joel Piotrowski | 21:20, Micah Adriani |
25 September 2010 | 18:53, Jay Wallace | 22:17, Kelly Stevens |
24 September 2011 | 19:08, Michael Martinez | 22:31, Olivia Swedberg Yinger |
22 September 2012 | 17:18, Stanley Linton | 20:58, Micah Adriani |
Links:
- Complete results of Gulf Winds Track Club's 2012 Salute to Prefontaine 5K
http://gulfwinds.org/raceresults/2012/Prefontaine%202012.asp
- More photos of Gulf Winds Track Club's 2012 Salute to Prefontaine 5K
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10102307081052923.3397033.5215641&l=f65a62340a
- Fred Deckert's photos of Gulf Winds Track Club's 2012 Salute to Prefontaine 5K
https://picasaweb.google.com/Freddecka/PRE12ID02
- 2011 story, "Martinez and Yinger prevail at Prefontaine 5K"
http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2011/09/pre-2011.html
- 2010 story, "Wallace and Stevens tear up the trails at 'Salute to Prefontaine'"
http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2010/09/prefontaine-2010.html
- Find your next race, road or trail, in the Tallahassee region
http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/search/label/calendar?max-results=1