Fernando Cabada sets new 25K American Record
GRAND RAPIDS (5/13/06) - The 29th annual Fifth Third River Bank Run had it all: cool running weather, a record number of finishers, a loaded elite field - and to top it off, an American record.

The overall winner, Fernando Cabada, 24, set a pending U.S. 25K record with his time of one hour, 14 minutes, 21 seconds. Cabada pulled away from Kenya's Julius Kibet in John Ball Park, just past 13 miles. The Clovis, Calif., native, who runs for Virginia Intermont College, drew inspiration from his relatively-unknown, underdog status.

"I didn't get introduced as an 'elite athlete' yesterday," said Cabada after the race. "When I walked out I said, 'Isn't that funny? How are you not going to introduce the guy that's going to win the race tomorrow?' I didn't really know I was gonna win - I was just kind of mad.

"I said I was going to win on the American side. I could have just settled for second or third and been the first American, but I said, 'How about I make a statement and I beat this guy?'" the winner added.

"I figured at two miles to go, 'I know I'm all right and he (Kibet) is dying, so I'll try to get it over with right now.' I put some distance on him, and that was it."

Cabada became just the second American (after Dan Browne in 2004) to win the River Bank Run in the last 11 years. Kibet came in second in 1:15:05, while Mbarak Hussein, 41, of Albuquerque, N.M., finished third in 1:16:53. Two-time defending champion Simon Wangai, of Kenya, dropped out, citing a bad cold.

The pace started slow, and a pack of about 30 men went through three miles in 14:54. Cabada was at the front from the beginning, and when three Kenyan runners made a break during mile four, he went with them.

The quartet cruised the fourth mile in 4:40, and passed the next three miles in around 4:45 each. The gap between the leaders and chasers was huge by the seven-mile mark. At that point, Ann Arbor-based Laban Moiben dropped back.

The lead group was down to Kibet, Cabada and Emmanuel Korir. The trio continued to roll through the halfway point, then a 4:37 eighth mile relegated Korir to a rapidly-fading third.

Kibet and Cabada raced side-by-side through the hilliest section of the course, splitting a series of mid-4:40 miles. Cabada continued to push the pace while Kibet covered every move he made. The duo sped through 13 miles in 1:02:17.

Cabada then made his big move, running a 4:32 14th mile and dropping Kibet in the process.

Meanwhile, the USA Track & Field championship race was playing out behind them. Hussein was the second American with his third-place finish, while Fasil Bizuneh, 26, of Marina, Calif., took fifth overall, good for the No. 3 American.

The next two spots were claimed by Michiganders..Hansons-Brooks teammates Josh Eberly, 25, and Mike Morgan, 26, led in-state runners with their sixth- and seventh-place finishes. Morgan (1:17:16) said he went with the leaders early on, while Eberly (1:17:09) hung back and stuck with his assigned pace.

"The race strategy was five-minute pace for 10 miles, then start trying to race," said Eberly. "I was hitting 4:48, 4:49 pace early, then I dropped back and started doing my own thing.

"It's a nice course. Not too hilly, but some decent hills at the end to keep it honest. Really great fans, too," he said.

"I was up there 'knocking heads,'" said Morgan of his quick early pace. "It's nice to run this well in a Michigan race. Being that it's the U.S. championship, it's like representing your home turf.

"We were using this as a tune-up for a fall marathon," Morgan continued. "We're not sure yet, but it will probably be either Chicago or Twin Cities. This was a nice warm-up for that training segment here."

Grand Rapids resident Kyle Baker finished ninth overall and third among Michiganders in 1:17:48. The Gazelle Sports employee and former Michigan State All-American out-kicked former Hansons runners

Justin Young and Jacob Frey in the final seconds to move up from eighth to sixth-place American.

"I'm decently happy with it," Baker, 30, said of his race. "At about mile 12, I hit a big wall. I didn't have any energy left. The last three miles I was just trying to finish and hold it together. Training's been going great, I'm really healthy."

Baker, Young and Frey were the sixth-though-eighth place Americans, and 2005 Michigan Runner of the Year Nick Stanko was close behind in ninth. Eastern Michigan grad Steve Crane rounded out the top-10 money winners.

The second-place master, behind the amazing Hussein, was Paul Aufdemberge, 41, of Redford, 25th overall in 1:20:48.

"I ran almost two minutes slower than I ran here last year," said Aufdemberge, who has torn up the masters circuit since turning 40 in 2005. "But it's a long way and a challenging course. I think this is my 12th time running it.

"The weather was nice, a good day to run," he added. "It was a little wet, but much better than hot-and-humid weather for this kind of distance."

Ryan Shay of East Jordan, Nathan Usher of Lansing, and Matt Edwards of Kentwood finished as the sixth, seventh and eighth overall state runners, Aufdemberge was ninth, and Grand Rapids' Kris Koster 10th in 1:21:48, good for 30th overall.

For the women, Russia's Victoria Klimina, 29, took an early lead that she never relinquished en route to a winning time of 1:27:47. Turena

Johnson-Lane, 30, of Muncie, Ind., took second place (and the USATF women's championship) in 1:28:42. Rochester Hills' Melissa White was third in 1:29:21.

Rounding out the top-five Americans were Virginia's Dana Coons, Minnesota's Desiree Budd, and Sopagna Eap of Oregon.

The race was a breakthrough for the 25-year old White, who trains with the Rochester-based Hansons-Brooks Racing Team. "I had a rough year last year," she said. "I had anemia for a year, so it's nice to have gotten in good, consistent training and to show it today."

Klimina was victorious in her second attempt at the River Bank Run, having finished third in 2004. Through an interpreter, she praised the support she received from spectators.

"The fans were really good," she said. "They were even yelling my name, which gave me a lot of energy. The first American (Johnson- Lane) caught up to me at the 10-mile mark. That gave me a scare, so I thought I should add some more speed."

Klimina had had speed to spare, winning by nearly a minute.

White's Hansons teammates Dot McMahan and Yolanda Flamino finished second and third among in-state women, followed by Grand Rapids' Lindsey Mills, Rochester Hills' Susan Barth, Stanwood's Lori Stich-Zimmerman, Dexter's Katie Jazwinski, West Bloomfield's Marybeth Reader, Grand Haven's Jen Carsok, and Janet Becker of Grand Rapids.

Bloomfield Hills' Gerard Malaczynski ran an amazing 1:41:08 at age 63, good for 145th overall and tops among state grand masters. Peggy Zeeb, 47, of Colon, led the Michigan masters women with a 1:51:08, good for 45th overall. Laurel Dawson, 50, of North Muskegon was the top grand master in 1:57:24.

In the accompanying 5K, dubbed the "River Bank Run Jayvee Race" by some, Ann Arbor-based Kenyan Philip Lagat broke the tape in 14:41, while Fenton's Suzanne Larsen led the women in 18:04. The masters champs were J.D. Pepper of Leslie (18:19) and Laura Vroon of Wyoming (19:04).

The 25K total of 4,661 runners eclipsed the previous race record of 4,238, set last year. In all, more than 10,000 people took part in either the 25K, 5K run, 5K walk or wheelchair division. Race organizers estimated that more than twice that number of spectators lined the course.

For complete race results, visit www.michiganrunner.net/results/ searchable.html MR

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