Sunday: Past Winners And Top American Set Headline Strong Field For Credit Union SACTOWN Run 10 Mile
Press Release
March 30, 2017
Defending champion Jane Kibii, top American runners Aaron Braun, Phillip Reid and Lauren Jimison Totten, and 2008 Olympian Andrew Lemoncello headline a strong elite field for Sunday’s Credit Union SACTOWN Run.
The seventh annual event, which helps raise money for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, including UC Davis Children’s Hospital, serves as USA Track & Field’s Pacific Association 10-Mile Championship.
The SACTOWN 5k run begins at 8:00 a.m. and the 10-mile race begins at 8:40 a.m. The UC Davis Children’s Hospital Miracle Mile is set for 7:30 a.m.
The race, organized by the Sacramento Running Association and sponsored by local credit unions, features a picturesque start and finish near the state Capitol.
The 10-mile field looks loaded with strong contenders on the men’s and women’s sides.
Americans Braun and Reid look to capture the men’s SACTOWN title while Lemoncello of England and Davis native Brendan Gregg both appear capable of winning the men’s race and the $2,000 first prize on the 10-mile course.
Braun, who trains in Flagstaff, Ariz., holds personal bests of 47:10 for 10 miles, 1:01:38 in the half marathon and 2:12 for the marathon.
Reid, of San Luis Obispo, Calif., looks to challenge Braun at the front of the race and improve upon his 2016 SACTOWN runner-up performance. Gregg finished third at the 2015 SACTOWN run and holds a personal best of 48:06 for 10 miles.
Lemoncello, who hails from Great Britain bur trains in Flagstaff, Ariz., was a 2008 Olympian in the steeplechase and enters the race with the top 10-mile time with a personal best of 47:08.
Kibii, a former Auburn resident who is originally from Kenya, looks to defend her 2015 and 2016 titles after finishing second at the L.A. Marathon on March 19.
In 2016, Kibii pulled away from Sara Hall, a former Stanford track and cross country champion from Redding, Calif., around the seven-mile mark in the women’s race and outlasted Hall’s kick for an event record time of 53:20, besting the old mark of 54:17 she set in 2015.
Kibii also captured the 2015 title and finished second to Olympian Kim Conley in the 2014 SACTOWN race.
Lauren Jimison Totten, an El Dorado Hills native who now lives and trains in Santa Barbara, Calif., is coming off a personal best run at the 2016 California International Marathon where she took third with a time of 2:33:20. She will be looking to better her third place finish at last year’s SACTOWN run.
Rachel Schilkowsky (Boston, Mass.) and Tori Tyler (Oakland, Calif.) also look to be strong contenders for the title and $2,000 first prize.
“The Sacramento Running Association is committed to bringing world class running to the Sacramento sporting landscape, and the Credit Union SACTOWN Run is a key event in helping us fulfill our mission,” Sacramento Running Association Executive Director Scott Abbott said.
“The 10-mile race at the Credit Union SACTOWN Run continues to be one of the nation’s premier spring foot races and one of the top 10-mile races annually on American soil,” he added.
“The 2017 SACTOWN run is predicted to have great weather for race day, which could lead to very fast times from our talented field of professional athletes,” said elite coordinator Danielle Domenichelli.
“We have athletes traveling to Sacramento from all over the country who will be competing for over $9,000 in prize purse money.”
The 2017 edition of the SACTOWN Run features another area of intrigue, as three married couples are included in the elite field. Lindsay and Tim Tollefson, Lauren and Seth Totten, and Brendan Gregg and Jonah Weeks will be vying for the fastest combined couples time.
The Pacific Association Championship includes a more formal team competition. The Sacramento Running Association’s women’s team expects to challenge for honors and is led by Jimison Totten, Tyler and Tollefson. The HOKA Aggies, led by Reid, Sergio Reyes and Sean Davidson, enter the event as the men’s team favorite.
Boundaries for the Pacific Association stretch from the California-Oregon border on the north to San Luis Obispo on the south. The east boundary is just beyond Reno.
The event helps raise money for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, which includes Sacramento’s UC Davis Children’s Hospital. The SACTOWN event emulates the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run held in Washington, D.C. on the same day.
Credit Unions for Kids is the brand under which America’s credit unions and affiliated organizations fundraise for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. To date, credit unions have raised more than $150 million since the introduction of the CU4Kids program back in 1996.
Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals is an affiliation of children’s hospitals throughout the country. Each year these non-profit hospitals provide state-of-the-art care, cutting edge research and preventative health education.
Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals treat more than 17 million patients each year, including 98 percent of all children needing heart or lung transplants and 88 percent of all children with cancer.
Registration is available at www.runsactown.org. Cost for the 5k is $40 through March 31 and $45 from April 1-2. The 10-miler costs $60 through March 31 and $65 from April 1-2.
The Miracle Mile is free to kids 12 and under until March 31 and $10 at packet pickup and on race day. The cost for adults is $10 until March 31 and $15 at packet pickup and on race day.
The SACTOWN Run continues the 2017 Buzz Oates Run SAC Series, a yearlong competition for area runners of all ages and abilities. For more information, visit www.runsacraceseries.com.
The 5k race includes the Credit Union Team competition, with the lowest combined time for all three team members determining the winner.
The Sacramento Running Association is a non-profit organization dedicated to finding ways to encourage people of all ages and abilities to run. The SRA is committed to developing new, quality running events that appeal to a broad variety of runners.
Other SRA events include the recently completed Super Sunday Run, the Gold Rush 50k on May 14, the inaugural Gold Country Half on June 11, the Capital Cross Challenge on October 7, the Run the Parkway on November 4 and the 35th annual California International Marathon on December 3.
A look at the elite field for the Credit Union SACTOWN Run:
MEN
Bib # Name Country Age 10-mile PR
1 Aaron Braun USA 29 47:10
3 Brendan Gregg USA 27 48:06
5 Phillip Reid USA 31 49:08
7 Andrew Lemoncello GBR 34 47:08
9 Fernando Cabada USA 34 47:32
11 Sergio Reyes USA 35 48:27
13 Malcolm Richards USA 34 49:56
15 Sean Davidson USA 25 50:54
17 Stephen Kersh USA 25 1:04:36 (HM)
19 Rio Reina USA 29 1:05:41 (HM)
21 Tim Tollefson USA 32 51:00
23 Seth Totten USA 25 51:00
WOMEN
Bib # Name Country Age 10-mile PR
2 Jane Kibii Kenya 32 53:21
4 Lauren Jimison Totten USA 26 56:33
6 Rachel Schilkowsky USA 24 57:41
8 Tori Tyler USA 29 56:41
10 Amy Schnittger USA 26 58:26
12 Lindsay Tollefson USA 31 58:48
14 Sarah MacKay Robinson USA 33 1:18:35 (HM)
16 Heather Tanner USA 38 57:01
18 Jonah Weeks USA 26 59:29
20 Molly Friel USA 49 59:47