Ochoro, Gebre Win Windy Big Sur Half Marathon
By Julie Armstrong
Posted Friday, 14 November, 2008
MONTEREY, Calif. - (November 9, 2008) - On a cold, windy and occasionally wet Sunday morning, Wesley Ochoro of Kenya blew away the competition and ran most of the Big Sur Half Marathon on Monterey Bay alone and unchallenged to victory in 1 hour, 4 minutes and 20 seconds. The women's race was a much tighter contest until the last two miles when Ethiopian Belainesh Gebre took advantage of a strong tail wind and pulled away to win by 36 seconds in 1:13:11.
The 6th presentation of the Big Sur Half Marathon on Monterey Bay drew a record field of 6,000 registered half-marathon runners and walkers. The popular event sold out a full month in advance, drawing runners from 48 states, 10 countries and three territories. A prize purse of over $12,000 was awarded to the top eight male and female finishers and the top three masters winners.
Local runner Jeff Magallanes, 46, of Seaside took the men's Masters title in 1:14:38, while female Masters winner was Christine Kennedy, 53, of Los Gatos who continued her dominance of this division winning for her fourth consecutive year in 1:25:44. The Half Marathon concluded a full weekend of activities which included the JUST RUN! Just Kids 3K and the Run Forrest Run 5K, drawing an additional 1,500 runners, and a two-day Health & Fitness Expo.
Ochoro, 30, currently training in Santa Fe, NM, surged into the lead with a 4:45 mile at mile three and dominated thereafter. The lead pack of seven, crossing the two mile mark in 10:07, included Paul Ngugi, Ben Bruce, Christian Hesch, Brad Lowery, Jared Scott and Justin Patananan. A hard fought race for second place resulted in Hesch, of Morro Bay, clocking 1:05:26 to edge Bruce of Eugene, Ore. by 1 second.
The women's race focused on Belainesh Gebre and Hyvon Ngetich in the early miles and held throughout. By mile five, the duo built an insurmountable lead that carried to the finish. Gebre, 20, from Ethiopia and now training in Flagstaff, AZ, and Ngetich, a Kenyan based in Las Cruces, NM, ran side-by-side during the windy trip to the Pacific Grove turnaround at mile 8. With two miles to go, Gebre pulled away to win by 36 seconds with the second fastest time ever run by a woman at the Big Sur Half and 53 seconds off the course record. Ngetich finished second in 1:13:47, the third fastest women's time in this race.
The tough race day conditions took a toll on the remainder of the women's field. Jacqueline Nyetipei, out of Las Cruces, NM, finished third in 1:16:08. Lauren Johnson, from Portland, OR, was 4th in 1:16:47, followed by Kari Bertrand, of Gilroy, CA, in 1:18:08, a new race record for the 35-39 age group. Heather Gibson of Los Gatos, CA, the 2007 third place finisher, was 6th this year in 1:18:17.
6th Big Sur Half Marathon on Monterey Bay
Monterey, CA, Sunday, November 9, 2008
MEN
1) Wesley Ochoro (KEN), 1:04:20, $2000
2) Christian Hesch (CA), 1:05:26, $1000
3) Ben Bruce (OR), 1:05:27, $800
4) Brad Lowery (SD), 1:06:42, $600
5) Paul Ngugi (KEN), 1:06:44, $400
6) Jared Scott (AZ), 1:08:16, $200
7) John Timeus (WA), 1:11:12, $100
8) Justin Patananan (CA), 1:12:12, $50
MASTERS Men (40+)
1) Jeff Magallanes, 46, CA, 1:14:38, $500
2) Eric Albrecht, 46, CA, 1:17:41, $300
3) Richard Bailey, 40, NC, 1:18:11, $100
WOMEN
1) Belainesh Gebre (ETH), 1:13:11, $2000
2) Hyvon Negtich (KEN), 1:13:47, $1000
3) Jacquline Nyetipei (KEN), 1:16:08, $800
4) Lauren Johnson (OR), 1:16:47, $600
5) Kari Bertrand (CA), 1:18:08, $400
6) Heather Gibson (CA), 1:18:17, $200
7) Kristi Arthur (NV), 1:18:25, $100
8) Jennifer DeRego (CA), 1:20:34, $50
MASTERS Women (40+)
1) Christine Kennedy, 53, CA, 1:25:44, $500
2) Angela Matthews, 45, CA, 1:28:39, $300
3) Jean Lampert, 50, IN, 1:30:11, $100
Complete race results at: www.BigSurHalfMarathon.org
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