With this morning’s Spring Canyon Park 5k, the 2011-2012 Tortoise & Hare Series comes to an end. After all seven races in the series, the top five standings and their points totals were as follows:

1. Tom Schipper: 51
2. Brian Walter: 47
3 (tie). Christie Nichols: 46
3 (tie). Marlena Lanini: 46
5. Kelly Cook: 45

Tom lead the series from Race 1 to Race 7, and the final four to round out the top five were separated by only two points. The final race was particularly significant to Kelly, whose first place finish in today’s race allowed her to break into the overall series winners’ circle.

These five were awarded gift certificates for Runners Roost, a local store that has supported both the club and community over the years. (Remember that FCRC members get 15% off all their purchases here and at Foot of the Rockies!)

We had 104 runners participate in this season’s Tortoise & Hare Series. Thanks to everyone for coming out, to Nick Clark who has selflessly directed the race series for five years now, and for the many others who have helped make “the world’s best racing bargain” happen.

The next race series will probably start again in October 2012, if past years are an accurate indicator. See you then!

Full T&H Series Standings

Today was the Spring Canyon Park 5k, the final race of the 2011-2012 Fort Collins Running Club Tortoise & Hare Series. It was particularly significant because it would decide the series points standings, of which many people were only separated by a few points!

Unlike last year’s Spring Canyon Park 5k—which featured a loop within a loop—race director Nick Clark came up with a course that was a lot more straightforward. It was out-and-back, going around the dog park onto the new Fossil Creek Trail, and turning around precisely 1.55 miles out.

The finish was very exciting as it came down to two-person sprint for the blue ribbon. Ultimately, Kelly Cook prevailed with Melanie Bukartek just mere seconds behind. Ellen Silva caught the moment on camera, with the photo at the top.

Afterward most of the participants gathered at Rocky Mountain Bagel Co. for delicious bagels and cream cheese while Nick got a lot of practice in mental mathematics in order to determine the series winners. That will be the topic of the next post!

Race Results

Photos from the Spring Canyon Park 5k (Facebook)

Hands down, this was the best weather for a Tortoise & Hare race all season: starting temperatures in the high 40s with lots of sun, and little of the ferocious wind that has blown through the Front Range the last few weeks. As evidence that the air was balmy, there were a lot more people than just Tom Schipper who was running the race in shorts this time!

Good thing the weather was nice, since this was the longest race of the T&H season: 12 kilometers or 7.5 miles. For a few runners, this was a personal record for distance.

Results are now posted. The next and last Tortoise and Hare race will be a 5K at Spring Canyon Park on April 1.

Next Tortoise and Hare run is this coming Sunday, March 4th, 8AM at Cottonwood Glen Park. This time it’s a 12K (7.5 miles). You can check out the course description/map. Hope to see lots of you out there!

After Fort Collins received about eight inches of snow, FCRC President Connie warned everyone that “yes, it will be cold.” But it turned out not to be that bad: the sun was shining, the air was still, and the humidity was virtually zero.

Thirty-one runners showed up today, earning the right to much on lots of chips and guacamole during tonight’s Super Bowl. Here are results from today’s Tortoise & Hare race. Enjoy the game!