Maine news, sports, weather from Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram, Portland, Maine

August 6, 2012

Beach to Beacon Notebook: For Gorman, a tumble can't take away from a run with friends

From staff reports

CAPE ELIZABETH - Joan Benoit Samuelson once again ventured out onto the course of her baby, the TD Beach to Beacon 10K road race, joined this time by Bill Rodgers, Frank Shorter and Leon Gorman, three men she said had a profound influence on her life.

Rodgers and Shorter are two of the greatest marathon runners in U.S. history. Gorman is the former president of L.L. Bean.

The three runners let Gorman pace the group over the 6.2-mile course. Time was not important -- they finished in a leisurely 1:10:07. And they had plenty of time to talk.

"Little vignettes of our lives and how our lives have benefitted from sports," said Samuelson. "Everybody did extremely well. The people around us got a little high from passing us. We passed some of them. And we played cat-and-mouse with others."

Shorter, running Beach to Beacon for the first time, said the group kept talking to make sure everyone was handling the heat and humidity.

"We were just running steady," said Rodgers, the only runner to win four Boston Marathons and four New York City marathons. "We stopped for our water breaks. We stuck together as a group."

There was a scare at the finish line when the 77-year-old Gorman was brushed by another runner and fell to the ground. He was taken to the medical tent, where he received treatment. "He's fine," said Samuelson, who noted he had already returned home.

Overall, said Shorter, "it was really a fun time." 

SO IF SAMUELSON ran Saturday's race with former Olympians Frank Shorter and Bill Rodgers and Leon Gorman of LL Bean fame who did her husband run with? Their daughter, Abby?

"No, no, I couldn't keep up with her," said Scott Samuelson, 54. Abby Samuelson, 24, finished in 318th place, her dad in 1,028th, a very respectable effort for a former pole vaulter. He ran with friends.

Scott Samuelson doesn't run the race every year. "Only when I can get a bib number."

Some years he can't. 

THERE WERE over 6,100 finishers in the race, a number that was celebrated by race officials.

"The goal has always been 6,000 finishers," said David Weatherbie, the race president.

"It's another watershed mark," said Samuelson. "We've been just below 6,000 for years. To go over it is impressive. It takes a collective effort from everyone, and I think it really shows the commitment of the community." 

LARRY BARTHLOW, organizer of the elite runners, said the medical tent "looked like a war zone," but Dr. Michael Baumann, co-medical director, said medical volunteers treated 66 runners, which is on par with past races.

Baumann said he expected more people to seek medical attention at the end of the race because of the heat and high humidity, and added the majority of runners who sought medical attention had heat-related issues and needed to be cooled down rapidly.

One person was transported to a local hospital for abdominal pain, which Baumann said may be unrelated to the race.

The medical tent was staffed by 104 volunteers. 

DOTTIE GRAY raised her arms as she crossed the finish line, but barely slowed down as she made her way down the chute. The 87-year-old completed her 13th Beach to Beacon and said she felt good. Her goal was to finish the race standing up.

"When I saw that finish line ... wow," she said. "It's such a beautiful course. I just love it. It's my favorite run."

(Continued on page 2)

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