Who's the Best Ringer You've Ever Seen Show Up at an Obscure Local Race??

Back in the day, the studs ran the little races all the time. I think the best I ever saw were Dave Babriacki and Ron Ysais (both 28 mid guys) duking it out to 29 flat. Farron Fields (another 28 guy) used to come out a lot even as late as the last 80's. Amby Burfoot was known to haunt local races during his day.

Keith Kelly showed up at the Tuckerman Inferno pentathlon in North Conway, NH this past April. He did the running leg for a team of his PC classmates. He won the run by about 2 minutes.

http://community.webshots.com/photo/549775164/2057393340059038552stCysl

I ran a recent 5k that had maybe 170 people. The depth at the top was actually surprising considering the size of the field. The organizers knew the field would be pretty strong and gave the "elite" guys and gals seeded numbers. Unbeknownst to anyone, Courtney Babcock (14:55 5000) showed up, quietly paid her fee, lined up and won the ladies' race. I followed her from maybe 50m back nearly the whole race and kept thinking, "who the hell is this little girl who won't come back to me?"

Many moons ago, I went to a dorky little XC meet in Nanaimo, BC, expecting to win. I brought along a hottie and she was going to see what a hero I was.

Jason Bunston showed up.

I came 2nd.

Said hottie couldn't believe how far in front of me he was. :)

I was at a local 10k about 7 years ago. Some jackass in an old tank top, cut off jean shorts, and a beat up pair of chuck taylors that were green from cutting grass showed up and ran about 29:30, won by 3:00 or so, never did find out who he was.

29:30 in Chuck's? Hmmm. What 10k, what year? Not sure I believe this one.

I ran a small 5k race in Northern NJ about 8 or maybe 10 years ago. Marcus O'Sullivan showed up and won in around 15:00, if I remember correctly. It was a very hilly out and back course.

Keith Kelly ran a 14:09 5K in Rhode Island

Speaking of Rhode Island, I got my ass handed to me by John Gregorek in the last 400 of a 5k a while back.

Bill Rodgers used to run this midnight, pirate 5k near me.

It was the Tipton Pork Festival 10k, it may even have been 10 years ago...they were the low-cut chucks, btw, not the high lace-ups.

I ran a little-known local 5K with about 60 people, but this guys shows up and blitzes the course in low-14's in poor weather. Name: Daniel Bolz.

Mark Crogan used to show up at small races in Northeast Ohio in the 90's. He was always very cordial to us ordinary folk, signing autographs for kids and sharing stories of European track meets for as long as someone wanted to listen.

MEs lookin for the booty maties!!!!!!!

Thems bowleg boys be fast thurrrr in tha Fort

F-DUBBBB

RunDaddy wrote:

And how fast did he/she run????

I can't remember this guy's name, but about 10 years ago I was living in California and went to run a very small 10K (about 300 people tops) and some guy who must have weighed about 120 lbs turned up and ran 29 flat and seemed like he was hardly working. I think the guy who came second ran 33:50 or something. I think the guy who won was a very well known runner at the time, but I can't remember his name and it's bugging the shit out of me....oh well.

Funny thing was he was very gracious and stuck around afterwards and picked up his plaque or whatever stupid thing the race director gave him.

Brian Abshire?

CT TAC XC championship (which was a serious, but small race) back in the late 70s. Some guy shows up in training flats, ran in his warmup top and number pinned on crooked. Beat everyone by almost a minute in 30-low for 10K XC. Turns out it was Sydney Maree, staying w/ a friend from 'Nova who brought him home for Thanksgiving since he obviously wasn't going to make the trip back to SA for the long weekend.

came to a very small (less than 100 runners) 5k on Hilton Head back in the early 80's. like a fool a couple of college kids and i went with him early. he ran low 15's, with apparently little effort.

but he was cool, he turned down the 1st place awards - including a nice dinner gift cert. - and had the race director give them to the 2nd place college guy

I ran in the Berry Invitational XC meet when I was in college in the 80s, and one year Craig Virgin showed up. This was around 1984. Uh, he won.

i should add he was almost 40 at the time. he had great results as a masters runner the next few years, a 2:15 marathon, a 45:xx 15k among them.

sadly, he committed sucicide a few years ago