One runner takes turn for the worse

North County Times – Escondido,CA,USA
+ Mary Anne Penton of Leucadia asked the man in the Elite Racing
shirt if he would take a picture of her with the Carlsbad 5000 banner in
the background. …

CARLSBAD —- There were almost 10,000 runners entered in the various races at the Carlsbad 5000 on Sunday.

By my count, there were almost 10,000 smiles for the 22nd annual event that is the best 5-kilometer road race in the world.

It didn’t matter that the elite runners didn’t set any world records. What mattered most was that almost everyone who participated had a good time.

There were, however, two notable exceptions: defending women’s champion Meseret Defar of Ethiopia and Kenya’s Evelyn Lagat.

Defar, who won a gold medal at the 2004 Olympics, was hoping to break her own world record of 14:46 set here last year, but she ran 15:01.

“I don’t know why I didn’t run faster,” said the 5-foot-1, 101-pound Defar, who still won the race by 20 seconds.

Her angst is nothing compared with that of Lagat, a 26-year-old making her first appearance in the race.

She inadvertently took a wrong turn on the course and found herself sprinting down Carlsbad Village Drive ahead of Defar.

Lagat was running near the back of the pack while heading north on Carlsbad Boulevard, just before Army-Navy Academy.

It’s a point in the race where there’s a slight dip in the road, so she could not see straight ahead. What she saw was an orange cone and, thinking it was the turn, she made a quick right and headed back toward the finish line.

“When I took the turn, there was someone there who looked like an official and they didn’t say anything,” Lagat said through her tears.

She cut off about three-quarters of a mile.

“I thought people had finished ahead of me,” said an obviously upset Lagat. “I feel bad about two things: I wanted to have a good time, and now they will never invite me back again.”

Mike Long, who books the elite athletes for the Carlsbad 5000, said she has nothing to worry about. But it did create a bit of confusion at the finish line, as the spectators cheered for Defar but saw Lagat some 20 yards in front.

Lagat’s brother, Robert Cheseret, an elite racer, explained what happened and she was devastated.

“I think,” she said accurately, “I got lost.”

Here’s hoping she’ll have a better time when she returns next year.

As for the amateur runners, there were plenty of positive experiences.

+ Mark Sarno ran track and cross country at Escondido High in 1979. In the over-40 race, Sarno found himself next to the great Henry Rono, the 55-year-old Kenyan who set four world records in a span of 81 days when Sarno was in high school.

“I ran with him most of the way,” Sarno said.

Sarno said everyone was pulling for Rono.

“There was a sense of excitement, and everyone recognized him,” said Sarno, 44, a scientist who lives in Encinitas. “I know I followed him when I was in high school.”

Said Rono: “They would pass me and say, ‘Just come with me, Henry.’ It was a nice run, very nice.”

+ Mary Anne Penton of Leucadia asked the man in the Elite Racing shirt if he would take a picture of her with the Carlsbad 5000 banner in the background.

Steve Scott, the founder of the race, happily obliged.

Penton turned to show the initials “M M” written in ink on her shoulder muscle before Scott snapped the picture.

Why the initials?

“My friend Marcie and I just turned 50, and it is our goal to break the mold whenever we can,” Penton said. “Secondly, Marcie’s husband, Michael Moore, passed away a year ago and this was his favorite race. We are running for him.”

When it was explained to Penton who Scott is, she shook his hand and thanked him for creating the race.

“This is the best thing in the world because anyone can do it,” she said. “There’s no pressure. You can walk or run; it doesn’t matter. And when you’re done, you can have a guilty-free breakfast.”

Can’t think of a better way to describe the Carlsbad 5000.

Steve Scholfield is senior sports columnist for the North County Times. He can be reached at (760) 740-3509 or stevescho@cox.net. Comment at sports.nctimes.com.