Cool Running :: The Pit Run 10K Race Results

Siba, Lyford set records at Pit Run

Jeff Mills, Staff Writer, The Daily Star

ONEONTA &emdash; The ibuprofen wore off about three miles into the race, just as Houssine Siba started up the tallest hill of the Pit Run's challenging course.

Siba's aching, injured calf was killing him.

No matter.

The pain couldn't stop Siba, who went on to win the fifth annual Pit Run easily, setting a new course record by completing the 10-kilometer race in 32 minutes, 5 seconds Sunday afternoon.

"I was trying to keep a good pace and get under the course record," Siba said. "I had a calf injury. I injured myself yesterday. I took some pain killer, some ibuprofen, but my calf really hurt."

Siba, a 25-year-old native of Morocco who now lives in Kingston, won the race in his first attempt. He held off 26-year-old Scott Weeks of Cortland, who crossed the finish line 19 seconds later.

Ben Carey of Oneonta was third, while John Sandman of Delhi took fourth out of the 765 finishers.

Charlene Lyford of Greene won the women's race in a record time of 35:44. Lyford &emdash; who finished sixth overall &emdash; also won the race in 1996 and took second in 1997.

For Siba, the Pit Run was a chance to get back into racing.

"Last year, I did a lot of races but this year not so much," Siba said. "But when I heard about it, and I heard it was in memory of `Pit' I decided to do it. It's really good that it's held in his honor. It's a celebration of this man who gave everything for his community."

The race is named for Ricky J. "Pit" Parisian, a state police investigator from Oneonta who was shot and killed trying to stop a grocery store robbery.

For Lyford, a 32-year-old mother of two, the Pit Run isn't just another race.

"Rick Parisian was killed on the day my youngest son was born," Lyford said. "I'll always remember where I was when it happened. It does make this race kind of special for me. I wanted to be a state trooper once, but that didn't work out. I really respect what the state police do for all of us."

Lyford used last year's race as motivation for Sunday.

"I didn't finish that race very strong," Lyford said. "I was leading until the last two-tenths of a mile, and then I collapsed. I just didn't have anything left, and I didn't want that to happen again this year."

Lyford led Sunday's race from the start. She used two men in front of her &emdash; both runners she was familiar with &emdash; to pace herself, and never saw Michelle Franklin until the Cortland runner crossed the finish line in second.

"There was another girl who ran with me for the first mile or mile and a half, but she dropped back," Lyford said. "I knew I had to run a good race because there was some good competition here."

Unlike last year, Lyford finished strong.

"When you come down the bridge and make the turn into the park, that's the hardest half mile of the course," she said. "You get into the park, and you just want the finish line to be right there. But you still have a half mile to go, and you have to push yourself to the finish."

The finish was no problem for Siba. But the third mile of the course was another story.

"That's the hardest part," Siba said. "It's a long, long, long hill. It's a challenge to go up and down the hills, but it was so beautiful today, and there were people cheering everywhere. It's a challenging course, but it's a good course."

Like Lyford, Siba got off to a good start. He paced himself by running with Weeks, who went out strong to win the prize money for being in first place at the one-mile mark.

"I knew Siba was here, and he's pretty hard to beat," Weeks said. "If I was going to have a chance to take anything, I knew it was going to have to be the first mile. I've raced against him before, and I've seen him go under 30 minutes for a 10k."

Siba's calf injury prevented him from challenging Weeks in the first mile.

"The guy who was with me picked up the pace at the end of the first mile," Siba said. "He pushed me hard for the first mile, and with about 60 yards to go went ahead of me. But I'm thinking about winning the race, not winning the first mile."