PRESS KIT: Story Ideas - 2002 Peoples Beach to Beacon 10K Road Race

Peoples Beach to Beacon 10K Road Race - 2002
(updated July 29)

Event Expanded to 5,000 Runners

Every year, the Peoples Beach to Beacon 10K Road Race grows in some way, whether in technology, volunteers or stature. This year, itÕs runners. To commemorate the fifth anniversary of the race, the field size has been expanded to 5,000 runners. Even with the 1,000 additional participants, registration filled up as quickly as it ever has and officially closed in late June.

Fifth Anniversary

2002 marks the fifth edition of the Peoples Beach to Beacon. Now may be the time to take a look back at how the race began and how it managed to ascend to one of the premier road races in the country. Also, to commemorate the fifth anniversary, race organizers expanded the field to 5,000 and are planning other special events to mark the milestone. Events include a T-shirt design contest, a $500 bonus to the first runner to cross the 5K mark, and recognition of the runner who crosses the five-mile mark in 50 minutes. Also, kids in the childrenÕs 1K run will receive wooden nickels and piggy banks marking the anniversary. Five-year volunteers as well as runners who have finished all five races also will be recognized.

T-Shirt Contest Winners

The T-shirts provided to adult and child runners, volunteers and staff for the 2002 Peoples Beach to Beacon were both designed by Cape Elizabeth students as part of a contest to commemorate the fifth anniversary of the race. The winning designs were created by (adult T-shirt) ö Joanne Wexler, who created it in her high school illustration and design class, 799-1340, (childrenÕs T-shirt) ö Kylie Tanabe, a fourth grader, 799-4262. The T-shirts are scheduled to arrive the week of July 22.

Young Peoples Run

A childrenÕs 1K race ö touted as the Young Peoples Run ö complements the Peoples Beach to Beacon 10K Road Race. The race, which has received little media attention in the past, continues to grow. Open to kids ages 12 and under, the event will be held in Fort Williams Park following the 10K. Sponsored by Oakhurst Dairy and Burger King, the Young Peoples Run boasts a field size of 500 ö the largest yet and larger than the fields for many Maine road races for adults. Mary Ann Doss (767-2413) coordinates the event.

International Flavor

Each year, families from Cape Elizabeth and surrounding areas invite elite athletes from Kenya, Ethiopia and elsewhere around the globe into their homes. The home stays serve as a sort of cultural exchange for the athletes and the host families as they swap recipes and stories.
Volunteer Effort

More than 600 persons from Cape Elizabeth and surrounding towns helped out last year, from passing out water to directing traffic to setting up and breaking down the start and finish lines. Volunteer Director Maya Cohen of Cape Elizabeth (838-8816, 741-2734), heads up the daunting task of bringing all those volunteers together and making the Peoples Beach to Beacon a true community event.

Beach to Beacon Showcase Event for Maine Runners

The elite distance runners from around the world who converge on Cape Elizabeth for the Peoples Beach to Beacon 10K Road Race each year attract much of the attention from the media and the public. But the competitiveness of the race among Maine's top runners is also a worthwhile story. Maine runners consider the race the jewel of the racing season. The winner of this showcase event wears the unofficial title as the state road race champion. Race President Dave Weatherbie (207-781-5970), himself an avid, top-flight runner, could provide valuable insights into the stature of the race among Maine runners. Also available as sources about what makes the race special are runner Byrne Decker of Yarmouth (207-846-4461), Julia Kirtland of South Harpswell (207-781-4617), winner of the first three races, and 2001 champion Christine Snow-Reaser of Dayton (207-499-2198).

Favorites in the 2002 race include returning champ Andy Spaulding of Freeport; Justin Easter of Jay, an outstanding distance runner at Bates College; Todd Coffin, the 2000 champ who missed last yearÕs race due to injury; and Bob Winn, a veteran Maine runner always in the hunt. On the womenÕs side, Snow-Reaser and Kirtland are likely to be pushed by Maggie Hanson of Bowdoinham, among others.

Returning World-class Runners

Year in and year out, the Peoples Beach to Beach 10K Road Race attracts some of the worldÕs best road racers from around the globe. This year is no different. Both of the reigning champions ö Kenyans Catherine Ndereba and Evans Rutto ö are returning. Ndereba, who holds the course record, is seeking her fifth title. Rutto will attempt to hold off a solid field, including three Kenyans currently ranked in the top 10 in the world. The field also includes a strong contingent from the U.S., including two Mainers ö Matt Lane and Susannah Beck, both Yarmouth natives. To monitor the latest entries and for elite runner bios, go to www.wolfenews.com. For more information on the elite field, contact Larry Barthlow, the elite athlete director, at (617) 536-7030, (617) 438-8098 (cell) or larry@globalathletics.com.

Corporate Challenge

For the first time, the Peoples Beach to Beacon 10K Road Race will feature a Corporate Challenge. Sponsored by UnumProvident, the challenge will pit teams of at least four employees from New England corporations and businesses against each other. The teams will be scored using net times and will be adjusted by age and gender under the WAVA (World Association of Veteran Athletes) system.

Awards for the Corporate Challenge will be presented to the individuals who score for the top three teams in any of the three classifications: men only, women only, and mixed. The winning team in each class will receive a Corporate Challenge Cup for display at their respective organizations. Corporations as well as business partnerships such as LLCs are eligible to participate. So far, 16 teams are signed up from such corporations as Bath Iron Works, Vortechnics, Maine Medical Center, L.L. Bean, the law firm of Pierce, Atwood, and UnumProvident, leading the way with 41 employees running.

New York Firefighters

While in New York last fall to compete in the New York City Marathon, shortly after the 9/11 tragedy, race founder Joan Benoit Samuelson decided to make an effort to bring New York City firefighters to the 2002 Peoples Beach to Beacon as a show of support for their heroic actions. At this point, a team of four NYC firefighters is participating.

Joan Benoit Samuelson

Founder of the race with lead sponsor Peoples Heritage Bank, for which she also serves as spokesperson for the "Peoples Promise: Shining the Light for Maine Youth" program, Joan Benoit Samuelson remains one of Maine most famous athletes and familiar faces. Samuelson, who in 1984 won the gold medal in the first women's Olympic marathon, continues to be active in running races and other athletic endeavors with her children and husband. This year, for the first time, Samuelson will run the race.

Race Beneficiary: Opportunity Farm

This year's race beneficiary is Opportunity Farm, a long-term, family-style, residential facility in New Gloucester for at-risk Maine youth. Founded in 1910, the farm provides a one-of-a-kind, structured program for boys, emphasizing accountability and responsibility. Opportunity Farm is breaking ground on a separate campus for at-risk girls, a major expansion that happens to coincide with its selection as the race beneficiary. Peoples Heritage Bank will provide a cash donation of $30,000 from race proceeds. Additionally, Opportunity Farm will benefit from fundraising opportunities and publicity valued at more than $40,000.

Also, The Shipyard Brewing Company, in conjunction with the Peoples Beach to Beacon, is holding a silent auction at its website ö www.shipyard.com ö with proceeds to benefit Opportunity Farm. Items being auctioned are an original painting by artist Paul Black of the Tall Ships off the Eastern Prom during OpSail 2000, and a trip for two to England for five days in November to accompany Shipyard on its annual Boar Tour of London and the Ringwood Brewery in Hampshire, England. Bidding closes at midnight on August 1.

McGillivray to Co-direct Olympic WomenÕs Marathon Trials

Dave McGillivray, the Peoples Beach to Beacon 10K Road Race director since its inception, was recently named the co-director for the 2004 Olympic WomenÕs Marathon Trials in St. Louis. He also is the longtime race director for the BAA Boston Marathon and was named the world's outstanding race director last year for his direction of the third Peoples Beach to Beacon. McGillivray is known throughout the running world as a technical wizard with a keen ability to balance the needs of the runners, spectators, sponsors and volunteers, and to anticipate critical issues. From his own running career and 3,452-mile run across the U.S. in 1978 to raise money for charity, to founding his own special-event management company, McGillivray has a rich personal history that would make a strong profile.

Running legend Johnny Kelley is Grand Marshal

94-year-old running legend Johnny Kelley will serve as Grand Marshal of the 2002 Peoples Beach to Beacon 10K Road Race. A two-time Olympian (1936 and 1948), Kelley won the Boston Marathon in 1935 and 1945 and finished second on seven other occasions. He completed his record 61st Boston Marathon in 1992 at age 84, finishing the course in 5:58:36.

Peoples Heritage Bank and other sponsors

Without the help of primary sponsor Peoples Heritage Bank and others such as Nike, UnumProvident Corp., Poland Spring, MBNA, WCSH TV-6 and US Airways, the official airlines, the race would not be the first-class event it is today. Peoples Heritage Bank's Bill Ryan met with Olympic gold medal winner Joan Benoit Samuelson five years ago to create a premier running event in her home state. Bank officials such as David Ott run in the race and assign staff to oversee the race from beginning to end each year. Meg Dempsey, for example, who is a vice president and the bank's director of public affairs, spends 90 percent of her time in the spring and summer months on the race. For more information, contact Meg Dempsey (207-828-7055) or visit online at the race web site at www.beach2beacon.org or the bankÕs web site at www.peoplesheritage.com.

Technological Advances

Advanced technology continues to help make the Peoples Beach to Beacon 10K Road Race a premier event. Computer chips made by ChampionChip attached to each runner's shoes will again be used to determine each finisher's exact time for the race. The chips are processed by Granite State Race Services to compile a list of finishers and their times, which are then published in the Maine Sunday Telegram the day after the race. In addition, because the Peoples Beach to Beacon is known for a number of razor-thin finishes ö including in 2000, when Catherine Ndereba of Kenya barely edged Libbie Hickman of the U.S. in the women's race ö organizers will again use a finish line camera. Lynx System Developers, Inc., based in Woburn, Mass., is providing a FinishLynx, the world's most popular and versatile digital photofinish and timing system. A FinishLynx line-scan camera only sees a very narrow piece of the world: the finish line. It looks at the finish line many times a second and stores each of these images. In case of a close finish, the images become a vital tool for the race judge to use in determining the winner. For more information about ChampionChip or FinishLynx, visit online at www.championchip.com or www.finishlynx.com.

Town of Cape Elizabeth

The Town of Cape Elizabeth really comes through for this event. Town officials serve on the 50-plus-member organizing committee and are involved from the time they begin meeting in January to the day in early August when 5,000 runners and more than 10,000 spectators line the streets of this coastal town. From milemarkers being placed, to police and traffic flow, to using town buildings for registration, the town is involved in making the event a success each year. For more information, call Town Manager Mike McGovern at Cape Elizabeth Town Hall at (207) 767-3323.


NOTE TO REPORTERS/EDITORS: For more information or assistance with any of the above items that do not contain contact info, please contact Beryl or Jason Wolfe at Wolfe PR ö (207) 775-5115, beryl@wolfenews.com, jason@wolfenews.com ö or Meg Dempsey at Peoples Heritage Bank ö (207) 828-7055, mdempsey@peoplesheritage.com. Thanks!

# # #