South Mountain Runners Excel in Weekend Races

Several members of the South Mountain Running Collective, a local club of distance runners,  performed well in races held over the weekend of May 19 and May 20.

On Saturday, six runners competed in the Brooklyn Half Marathon, a hugely popular race that attracts over 14,000 participants and a strong field. John Parry (South Orange) finished the 13.1 mile course in 1:21:50, a 6:15 per mile pace that was good for 9th place among 554 runners in the men's 45-49 age group; Hamish Wright, (Maplewood) posted a time of 1:24:43, 29th of 1339 men 35-39; Bill Haskins (South Orange), 1:25:18, 29th of 948 M40-44; David Mintz (South Orange), 1:30:01, 22 of 363 M50-54;  David Weiss (Short Hills, M50-54) 1:36:10; Tyrone Prescod (Maplewood, M45-49), 1:42:52.

While three South Mountain Runners beat their own personal record half-marathon times, the group was even more excited that their team placed 9th of 63 in the men's age 40-and-over category at the Brooklyn event. Head coach Bill Haskins says of his athletes' performance, “These guys are really fit and talented, they work hard and I'm proud of them. And they keep getting better, so we're looking forward to some more great races in coming months.”

On the following Sunday, South Mountain was well represented at the 2012 Pocono Mountain Run for the Red Marathon in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. Mark Nyhan (age 48, Morristown) ran the course in 3:13:08 and Yair Greenbam (38, Livingston) ran it in 3:15:43 under excessively warm conditions that made the marathon even more challenging than usual.

The weekend’s age-competitive results were typical. “We are fortunate to have Bill’s excellent coaching,” says John Parry. “People who listen to Bill tend to avoid injury and get good results.”  The group regularly trains at the Millburn High School track, and do long, easy-paced runs together on weekend mornings. “To excel at this sport, you have to like running. It’s hard to fake that,” according to David Mintz. “And we all do our share of solitary mileage. But when we run together, it’s remarkable how fast the miles fall away. Training is a social event that we greatly enjoy.”

SMRC was founded three years ago by John Parry, Bill Haskins and Andy Lehren.  Although the group’s core membership includes accomplished and committed distance runners, the club’s mission is to encourage and support runners of all levels, including beginners and casual recreational runners. For more information, click here.

Thank you to the South Mountain Runners for supplying their race results!