About the author:
Rupantar has been the race director of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team since 1985, having been asked by Sri Chinmoy to serve in that capacity. As well as working on the big races the US Marathon Team organise each year - the 3100 Mile Race and the Six and 10 Day Race - he also spends a considerable amount of time archiving the Marathon Team's 40 year history on this website.
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"Sri Chinmoy 50 Mile/50 Km." Ultrarunning. May 1991.
It was one of those 'remember when' races as 50 runners from the Northeast area gathered on a chilly Saturday in early March. Unlike the old days of ultrarunning, when medical facilities and resting areas were an integral part of such events, this race saw no on in need o so much as a rubdown.
There were a lot of familiar faces in the crowd, as friends greeted each other once again - the Prospect Park Track Club out in strength, as usual, and cutting jokes, as usual. It was a friendly group, most of the neophytes finding an experienced 'buddy' who helped pace them over the rough down times and kept them entertained with ultrarunning war stories of the past.
For the ladies, it was a speed event from the start, looking more like a marathon than an ultra. Early leaders Chris Gibson (50-mi.) and Brian Adler (50-km) paced themselves right out of their events, but their speed had served as 'rabbit bait' for the pack. Two nationally ranked runners and long-time local favorites took the honors - Frank DeLeo of Brooklyn in the 50-mile and Mark DeBartolo of Lodi, NJ in the 50'-km. (Mark took up ultrarunning to combat diabetes, then found out he was really good at the sport. He dedicated this win to his cousin, Marine Captain Edward Miniacci, currently serving in Saudi Arabia.)The group of finishes showed the benefits of distance racing, as it included five men over 60 and the indefatigable 74-year-old Willie Rios. Several sets of runners ran the entire event together, finishing in ties. The popular husband/wife team of Clive and Janet Johnston split in the later stages of the 50-mile as Janet chased a new runner on the circuit, 24-year-old Neli Lozej of Canada. Lozej, one of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team's most promising women distance runners, responded picking up the pace to finish 15 minutes ahead of Johnson.
50-Mile Race Results. Queens, NY. 1-mile loop, paved, certified. 22 starters.
| 1. | Frank DeLeo | 37 | NY | 6:44:10 |
| 2. | Ed Finnegan | 34 | CT | 7:08:44 |
| 3. | Jeff Spera | 35 | NJ | 7:09:20 |
| 4. | Luis Rios | 42 | NY | 7:13:37 |
| 5. | Patrick Cooper | 26 | NJ | 7:27:04 |
| 6. | Neli Lozej (F) | 24 | Canada | 7:39:21 |
| 7. | Dave Obelkevich | 47 | 7:48:16 | |
| 8. | Janet Johnson | 50 | NJ | 7:54:50 |
| 9. | Clive Johnson | 54 | NJ | 8:04:56 |
| 10. | Dick Good | 61 | MD | 8:17:28 |
| 11. | Patrick McElroy | 60 | NJ | 8:21:51 |
| 12. | Frank MacMillan | 36 | MD | 8:30:56 |
| Gregor Knauer | 36 | 8:30:56 | ||
| 14. | Michael Davis | 44 | MD | 8:55:04 |
| 15. | Ruth Greher (F) | 48 | NY | 9:00:42 |
| 16. | John Kenul | 47 | NY | 9:26:03 |
| 17. | George Landberg | 55 | NY | 10:08:18 |
| 18. | John Lewis | 69 | MD | 11:42:04 |
50-Km Race Results. Queens, NY. 1-mile loop, paved, certified. 17 starters.
1. Mark DeBartolo 39 NJ 3:29:05 2. Bob Kish 31 3:53:30 3. Arpan DeAngelo 38 NY 3:59:26 4. Nick Palazzo 44 4:15:33 5. John Pati 37 NY 4:39:33 6. Martin Yecies 46 CT 5:03:53 Bob Falk 47 5:03:53 8. Augusto Rivera 62 5:11:47 9. Michael Morrin 54 CT 5:25:09 10. Marci Levin (F) 27 5:30:51 11. Dick Hearn 60 NJ 5:33:45 12. Alberto Lopez 41 5:50:55 13. Ross Grasso 58 5:53:57 14. Willie Rios 74 NY 6:03:46 15. Enrique Loutsch 58 6:15:04 16. Cullen Lewis 37 6:26:49 Dennis Trott 44 6:26:49
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