CAPE ELIZABETH – It felt neither hot nor particularly humid as a gentle sea breeze wafted amongst the tents at the finish line of the 2011 Beach to Beacon in Cape Elizabeth on Saturday. Sitting right on Maine’s scenic coast, with Portland Head Light as its focal point, Fort Williams Park often sees tranquil summer weather like it did on Aug. 6. Were it not for the occasional updates on the pace of the 14th-annual 10K road race blaring out of the loudspeakers, it might have been just another pristine morning.
But out on the course it was another story: a sweat-soaked, sun-baked slog. A touch of high humidity was enough to doom overall winner Micah Kogo’s bid for a record pace, and force both of Maine women’s winner Sheri Piers’ race partners to fall away from her. The heat even bothered recreational runners of all ages, like Donna Keeler of Gorham.
“It was a nice day for a run,” she said. “But it was a little humid. It felt hot and sweaty and stifling.”
In fact, the weather left Piers feeling more than a little dejected. The 40-year-old Falmouth native, who also took the Maine title in 2009, cruised across the finish line with a time of 35:11.2 – well back of the winning time of 32:08.7 set by Aheza Kiros of Ethiopia – without either of her two racing partners. Both Kristin Barry and Erica Jesseman of Scarborough, who Piers trains with, were hard-hit by the heat. Barry had to stop for three minutes at one point in the race, and Jesseman, who took second place for Maine women, actually collapsed after crossing the finish line.
“It was very hot today,” Piers said. “It just seemed like it was extra hot. Even though we have been training in this heat, it didn’t matter today.”
“It is nice (to win), but when you run with a group and with running partners and a couple of them didn’t feel so good, (it’s not as nice),” she added. “It’s nice when everyone has a good day, and when one doesn’t have as good a day, it puts a little damper on it.”
Even Kogo, of Kenya, was hamstrung slightly by the humidity. On pace to set a course record at the halfway point, he had slipped well behind Gilbert Okari’s 2003 mark of 27:27.5 by the time he crossed the finish line, although Kogo had long since left Lucas Rotich, the second-place finisher, in the dust. Kogo finished with a time of 27:46.9 – six seconds back from last year’s winner, Gebregziabher Gebremariam of Ethiopia.
“I was feeling a little tired,” Kogo said. “After one or two miles, I started to pick it up a little bit. And then after 5K I felt strong and I looked and saw that I only had a few guys near me. So I made a little push, and then I saw there was only one guy (Rotich), and that was how it was at seven and eight kilometers.”
The Beach to Beacon is a course that can punish as well as reward. Lined with screaming crowds, the race tends to be deceptive in its initial few miles as runners stream easily over the less difficult terrain. After the five-mile mark, however, the route turns a bit rougher, as a succession of hills tests runners’ endurance right as they begin to lose that initial burst of adrenaline.
“You get a little break after about three-and-a-half miles, and then you get the tough hills at five,” added Louie Luchini, 30, who is a state representative from Ellsworth and won the Maine men’s title with an overall time of 30:35.
Some competitors were less bothered, however. Christina Kouros, 16, of Cape Elizabeth took first place in the women’s wheelchair division and looked relatively unfazed as she blasted across the finish line.
“It feels great,” she said. “I have been waiting to do this. But to finally do it is just a whole different thing.”
Several other racers stated that they thought conditions on the course had actually improved since 2010.
“It was actually better than last year by far,” said Arman Mohammad, a recent graduate of South Portland High School. “It was pretty sunny, though.”
Mohammad was one of the non-elite, mostly-amateur runners who made up the bulk of the 5,876 athletes from 12 countries that competed in this year’s Beach to Beacon. And, unlike the elite athletes, he didn’t prepare much.
“I didn’t train at all, actually,” he said. “I just came out and ran it. I have run it for the last three years, because I had been training for cross country. I am not going to run in college, but I just wanted to run this anyway. I am probably going to keep doing it.”
Driven by similar designs, Anthony Simpson, 15, of Sanford, also got into the race with his mind on keeping in shape for soccer. However, he also wanted to keep a family member company.
“This is my third year,” he said. “My mom did it the year before (I started), and then she wanted somebody to do it with, so I have been doing it with her the past three years. We run a 5K every month or so around the state, 10Ks are just twice as long than 5Ks – that’s the primary difference.”
But many runners simply got into the race to test themselves, and to prove that they could do it. Carolyn St. Hilaire, 57, of Biddeford has raced for the past five years, and said that she initially competed simply to sate a little curiosity.
“I just wanted to see if I could finish,” she said. “But after that, I was hooked, and I love it. Every time I get into it is great; it’s just the camaraderie and the excitement of all the people together.”
And, of course, there is the competitive spirit to consider. The desire simply to challenge and to best others is hardly limited to the elite runners.
And, to an extent, all those who ran in the Beach to Beacon this year were lured by a certain rush. There is a power and a thrill in those screaming fans, who rise as one as runners approach the finish line. It is part of what makes this Maine’s greatest race.
“The crowds are amazing,” Luchini said. “They kind of carry you when you’re dying out there. And the finish chute is awesome. Once you turn that corner into the park, you can’t even hear yourself think, the crowds are so great.”
The lead pack of elite runners from around the world forms at
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