Coogan's Salsa, Blues, and Shamrocks 5K Run / Kids Races - Local Gallery

March 1, 2009 [Event Gallery] [Video] [Results]

The season opener for NYRR’s team-points series narrowly escaped a snowstorm and instead produced unusually fast times: A talented pack of men fought it out to the wire, and a repeating women’s champion set a course record. 4,700 runners circumnavigated Fort Tryon Park in the middle of this hilly, 5K race through upper Manhattan as bands and cheerleaders lifted their spirits on a sub-freezing morning.

Worku Beyi (center, #647), 22, of the Westchester Track Club (WTC) won the men’s race in a time of 14:38—very fast on this hilly course.	Tesfaye Girma, 26, of West Side Runners (WSX) was a very close second in 14:39.	Third place went to Thomas Slosky, 23, in 14:40—only two seconds behind the winner. His New York Athletic Club (NYAC) team won the open men’s title.	Jacob Korir, 28, of Shoe4Africa (right) led nearing the finish but made an unfortunate wrong turn while following a race vehicle. He finished fourth in 14:42.
Jared Tootell, 31, of the Hoboken Harriers (HOHA) cracked the top 100 with his 97th-place overall finish in a time of 17:07.	Albert Lim, 26, of the New York Harriers ran 18:40—a pace of 6:01 per mile.	Patrick Duffy, 47, of the New York Flyers finished in 19:03. He is expected to wear green at the Scotland 10K.	Thomas Curran, 62, of the Greater New York Racing Team (GNY) ran 7:30 pace—good for 10th in the 60-64 age group.
Ernest Joseph, 52, of the Taconic Road Runners, traveled from Haverstraw, NY, for the race. He finished in 26:39.	Stuart Calderwood of the Nike Central Park Track Club (CPTC) won his 50-54 age group in a time of 17:14.	John Samsel of WTC won the 65-69 age group. He ran 20:55—6:44 per mile.	Joseph Pascarella took second in the 75-79 division with a time of 31:31—10:10 per mile—and needed no hat or gloves in sub-freezing temperatures.
Aziza Aliyu, 23, of WTC won her second consecutive Coogan’s victory, but this year her time of 16:25 set a women’s course record.	Catherine Robbie, 28, of NYAC took 11th among the women in a time of 17:44. Her team won the open women’s title.	Jamie Sutherland, 31, of NYAC was the 13th woman and second in her age group. She ran 17:47.	Kelly Coogan, 29, of the Staten Island Athletic Club ran 19:55. Presumably, she’s partial to the race's name.
Corinna Cortes, 47, of Running Divas New York was second in her age group in a time of 20:26.	Suzanne Piotrowski, 25, of HOHA ran 22:59—a 7:24 pace.	Lisa Smith, 27, ran precisely 9:00 miles while representing the Reservoir Dogs.	Jun Matsuyoshi , 61, took 21st in her age group. She runs for the Mercury Masters (MERM) team.
Mary Rosado of CPTC was eighth in the 55-59 division with a time of 26:32.	Susan Epstein of the Van Cortlandt Track Club (VCTC) took eighth place among women 65-69 with her 32:11 performance.	The indefatigable Billie Moten was fourth in the women’s 70-74 age group.	Joan Rowland of MERM ran just over 14-minute miles and took third in the 80+ women’s age-group. (That’s a tough division!)