Runners Gather for the Giralda BY DICK HELMER MADISON, NJ--The twenty-first annual Giralda Farms Run was held November 13. For the first time the 10K race in and around the Giralda Farms corporate park was the official USATF New Jersey 10K Championship Race for men and women over forty years of age. USATF is the official track-and-field body for running sports in the U.S. As a result it drew more individual runners and teams of NJ runners than usual from outside the local area. To reduce crowding among the approximately 800 runners at the starting line at the top of Dodge Drive, the 5K and 10K runners were given staggered starting positions on different lines. The race went off without a problem at noon and 780 completed either the 10K or 5K race. Earlier in the day a fun run for approximately fifty younger runners took place over a ¾-mile course. Some parents who ran in the later races accompanied the younger children in the fun run as a warm-up. This year in particular Giralda Farms looked perfect in bright sunshine and with its trees still in full color. After the race the USATF NJ committee met and chose the race to be the 2006 10K championships for Masters men and women. The overall 10K winner was Carlos Martins, 36, of Kearny in a time of 32:08. The overall female 10K winner was Heather Gardiner, 27, of Ramsey in 34:16. Rodger Price, 56, of Piscataway was the age-graded winner in the over-40 category in 37:12 as was Anne Thornhill, 65, of New York for the over-40 women in 48:10. The complete results for individuals and teams can be viewed online at www.compuscore.com. The site offers a link that explains age-grading of results. The organizers of the race, the Madison-based Rose City Runners Club, will meet in January to distribute surplus race funds. In the past, contributions have been made to small scholarships for two Madison High School seniors and to the Madison Community Center.
5K 1. Joe Jacobs 16:55 10K 1. Carlos Martins 32:08
5K 1. Kathleen Castles 17:47 10K 1. Heather Gardiner 37:48
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