Mr. Toad's Back to School Relay

Mr. Toad's Back to School Relay
Hart Park Hills
Bakersfield, CA
Saturday, Aug 20, 2011

2011 Photos by LissaFudge HERE.
2011 Photos on FaceBook HERE.
2011 Photos by DyeStatCal HERE
2011 Photos by Andy Noise HERE. 


Race FaceBook Page HERE.
Course Walk Through HERE,
DyeStatCal / ESPN Coverage HERE.
2011 Results HERE.
2011 Race Website HERE.

Sarah Baker

Top Individual Performances:
'11 Sarah Baker (18) 1:26:26
'11 Kathy Porter (27) 1:36:38
'11 Monica Banducci (31) 1:38:44
'11 Chelsey McGauhey (27) 1:39:01
'11 Terri Wilson (52) 1:51:06
'11 Cindy Adame (34) 1:51:23
'11 Lindsay Molinaro (28) 1:53:42
'11 Michele Packebush (40) 2:26:49
'11 Marti Barajas (38) 2:26:50
'11 Sammye Dickard (62) 2:42:41

Steve Dirske

Top Individual Performances:
'11 Steve Dirkse (41) 1:10:00
'11 Michael Hutson (44) 1:12:53
'11 Andrew Leonard (24) 1:20:10
'11 Klaus Benamy-Hackel (61) 1:29:17
'11 Chris Felix (40) 1:34:52
'11 Wes Oberg (34) 1:38:11
'11 Craig Smith (48) 1:49:35
'11 Wim Laven (33) 2:03:10

Stockdale TC Makes the Home Page of DyeStatCal.

High School Male Teams
Place     Team Name     First Runner     Second Runner     Third Runner     Total Time     Lap Splits
1     Mustang TC     Cameron Miller     Connor Fisher     Blake Haney     55:12     17:43          19:16           18:14
2     Prestige World Wide     Jordan Dickson     Ivan Esquivias     Jesse Muniz     1:04:15     23:33           20:43          20:00
3     Team Awesome     Maulin Shah     Mason Holbrook     Alek Catlett     1:08:53     24:04           23:36          21:14
4     Team Jacob     Josh White     Craig Bailey     Eric Millan     1:10:12      20:21          30:50          19:01
**5     Sandbaggers     Savannah Berry     Ashley Haycock     Cody Logan     59:32     24:54           13:06**       21:33
                                    ** Runner off the course

Junior High School Female Teams
Place     Team Name     First Runner     Second Runner     Third Runner     Total Time     Lap Splits
1     The Tadpoles     Augustine Lerma     Alex Cholometes     Maggie Baker     1:20:38     27:09            27:52            25:38
1     Fast Track Lamont Girls     Rocio Ortiz     Vanessa Cortes     Jennifer Ochoa     1:43:10     30:50            38:25            33:55

Junior High Male Teams
Place     Team Name     First Runner     Second Runner     Third Runner     Total Time     Lap Splits
1     Fast Track Lamont Boys     Joseph Dominguez     Albert Chonaguez     Pedro Cruz     1:13:19     22:33            26:48            23:59

Open Female Teams
Place     Team Name     First Runner     Second Runner     Third Runner     Total Time     Lap Splits
1     JeLyRu Toads     Ruth Saenz     Lyndi Wilson     Jessica Birch     1:36:01     35:20           29:39           31:03
2     Sprinting Spinners     Lindsay Haney     Amber Terrell     Joann Lucero     1:50:59     36:56           38:56           35:08
3     Lady Lopers     Brea Ruelas     Cindy Ingalls     Linette Holliday     1:51:37     39:25           36:08           36:05

Open Male Teams
Place     Team Name     First Runner     Second Runner     Third Runner     Total Time     Lap Splits
1     Donut Shop Racers     Anna Frank     Andrea Pratt     Bruce Deeter     1:09:09     20:25          25:22           23:23
2     Wild Stallions     Gilbert Garcia     Ty Salazar     Richard Tarkington     1:13:02     25:45          24:06           23:12
3     The Big Easy     Shawna Rountree     Bruce Wearda     Shawna Rountree     1:13:52     22:35          27:56           23:22
4     Saint Leonard's     Mike Madrigal     Ale Ponce     Diego     1:16:37     28:07          26:31           21:59
5     Kyle Trauma Festival     Jenny McDougle     Kyle Bardet     Rey Rodriguez     1:21:33     32:34          26:31           22:29
6     The Runnin' Rous'     Charlie Rous     Jenny Rous     Parker Rous     1:29:41     26:16          34:36           28:50
7     The Entourage     Sean Coyle     Jonathan Motter     Kyle Puette     1:37:59     33:45          34:43           29:31
8     Running on Empty     Tim Johnson     Lorelea Samano     Sharie Baker     1:41:22     34:14          37:15          29:54
9     Bootcamp Junkies     Lori Carmodyt     Nicki Gilbert     Danny Gilbert     1:41:29     35:11          37:11          29:09

Masters Female Teams
Place     Team Name     First Runner     Second Runner     Third Runner     Total Time     Lap Splits
1     Denni and the Jets     Denni Jorgensen     Norma Diaz     Sandy Hansen     1:29:44     29:57       31:25       28:22
2     1 Fast Chick and 2 Slow Ones     Karen Poteete     Beth Espinoza     Sally Baker     1:32:10     33:07       30:48       28:17
3     For the Run of It     Celina Valenzuela     Susan Alvidrez     Megan Rey     1:38:39     33:51       34:13       30:36
4     BRB's     Diana Daves     Kim Nance     Evy Lyn Velasquez     1:50:15     37:17       39:12       33:47
5     Toasties     Cindy Wilson     Cheryl Mathews     Lupe Evans     1:58:37     43:06       47:35       27:58

Masters Male Teams
Place     Team Name     First Runner     Second Runner     Third Runner     Total Time     Lap Splits
1     Fast Track Lamont Coaches     Carl Hatley     Brian Lee     Cregg Weinmann     1:15:52     24:00         25:15         26:38
2     Eye of the Tiger     Michael Hutson     Andrea Ames     Tanya Hutson     1:27:02     22:29         32:56         31:38
3     Lamont Runners     Frank Velasquez     Rod Nance     Tom Ryan     1:44:01     36:55         38:11         28:56

Clydesdale Teams
Place     Team Name     First Runner     Second Runner     Third Runner     Total Time     Lap Splits
1     The Chubby Hubbies     Justin Bell     Marko Horvat     Victor Martin     1:49:02        42:10        34:02         32:51

Athena Teams
Place     Team Name     First Runner     Second Runner     Third Runner     Total Time     Lap Splits
1     Two Educators and a Baby Maker     Carrie Swidecki     Amanda Tumblin     Natalie Horvat     2:03:32     36:09      49:19     38:04
2     Cupcake Mafia     Gabrielle Alexander     Alison Burrows     Lisa Sorensen     2:05:25     39:12      46:58     39:17
3     Jan's Ya Ya     Debbie Jett     Charisse Irwin     Tami Maiocco     2:09:49     44:04      45:53     39:54

Open Female Solo
Place     Name     Total Time     Lap Splits
1     Sarah Baker     1:26:26     27:10         28:30         30:47
2     Kathy Porter     1:36:38     31:40         31:26         33:34
3     Monica Banducci     1:38:44     30:22         32:08         36:15
4     Chelsey McGauhey     1:39:01     30:54         34:11         33:57
5     Cindy Adame     1:51:23     34:31         37:19         39:34
6     Marti Barajas     2:26:50     43:19         48:57         54:35

Open Male Solo
Place     Name     Total Time     Lap Splits
1     Wes Oberg     1:38:11     29:06         33:00         36:06

Masters Female Solo
Place     Name     Total Time     Lap Splits
1     Terri Wilson     1:51:06     32:37          37:26            41:04
2     Michele Packebush     2:26:49     43:18          48:57            54:35
3     Sammye Dickard     2:42:41     44:54          55:45           1:02:02
**4     Suzanne Rivera     1:05:37     24:34          14:43**         26:22
                  **Runner off of the Course

Masters Male Solo
Place     Name     Total Time     Lap Splits
1     Steve Dirkse     1:10:00     21:47          23:58          24:16
2     Michael Hutson     1:12:53     22:30          24:45          25:39
3     Klaus Benamy-Hackel     1:29:17     29:12          29:46          30:20
4     Chris Felix     1:34:52     26:01          32:11          36:41

Clydesdale Solo
Place     Name     Total Time     Lap Splits
1     Andrew Leonard     1:20:10     25:51          27:07          27:13
2     Craig Smith     1:49:35     32:32          36:30          40:35
3     Wim Laven     2:03:10     33:54          40:18          48:59

Athena Solo
Place     Name     Total Time     Lap Splits
1     Lindsay Molinaro     1:53:42     34:38          38:14          40:52

Mustangs & Cougars

Just like last fall, the Stockdale Mustangs and the McFarland Cougars were at the top of the leader board this summer at the Bakersfield Track Club Summer Series 5k. Senior Mustang Cameron Miller posted the quickest time over the summer with a 15:38 clocking on the new course. His team mate Conner Fisher posted the third best time with a time of 16:19.

Cameron Miller

Connor Fisher

The Mustangs were the first D1 from Bakersfield to qualify for the state cross country meet in recent memory last fall and with stand out runners like Blake Haney (Fastest California 1600 freshman ever) and Curtis Kelly returning they are looking for even more firsts this fall.

The 5th and 6th fastest of the summer were McFarland's Erik Garcia (16:36) and Jose Monnreal (16:41) who lead large numbers of McFarland runners at this summer's races. After winning nine state titles, and coming so close for a tenth in recent years, they were moved from D$ to D3 last fall and still won a valley title.

Erik Garcia

This weekend, Stockdale is running at the Mr. Toads Back to School Relay and the team of Miller, Haney and Fisher are looking forward to taking on all challengers.

Mt. Relentless

Andy

Norma

Denni

Mt. Whitney – One Day Hike

• 2011 Photos HERE,

This is a killer hike! - A must for the extreme day hiker. With some careful planning, some conditioning, and the right mental attitude this can be a successful day and an unforgettable experience. Mt. Whitney is a 22 miles round trip hike, has an elevation climb of over 6000 feet, and is one of the most famous extreme day hikes.

The Trail: It averages about 550 feet elevation gain per mile, an easy slope. There are a few shallow stream crossings with a couple of slippery logs and rocks. The trail surface is smooth in most places with some rocks up at the higher elevations. Even in the summer time small patches of snow/ice can often be found on a couple of the 97 switchbacks above Trail Camp.

How Long Does it Take? The ascent time for a day hike up Mt. Whitney is a fast pace of 5 hours, a moderate time of 7-8 hours, and a slow hike of 10 hours.  Going down is about 2-3 hours quicker than going up. Therefore, if you are a beginner and/or not in top physical shape it is easy to spend up to 18 hours on this "day hike." So if you want to return to Whitney Portal before dusk (about 8pm in the summertime), a very early start is recommended if you are in the two slower categories.

The first mile started at 2:48am and was 26:43. It was really nice out and we had some moon glow as we started up the switchbacks to the Whitney Zone. I was feeling really good because I did a good taper and I had a good group instead of going solo like I did the year before. All four were Whitney virgins (Well Denni did do a preview hike to Trail Camp a few weeks ago) and no big fans of the dark so I lead.

Despite staying out the really nice Whitney Hostel, we did not sleep much at all. So at best we got a couple hours before we got up at 1am and left the hostel at 2am to take the 13 mile drive to the Whitney Portal.

Stephen & I

Right from the start, we had the company of other day hikers and one solo hiker who later on became a great asset. By the time, we made it to the North Fork Lone Pine Creek (8810 feet / 0.8 miles), it was time for many to remove their jackets and adjust their packs. The other group was at this crossing as well. The water level was not bad and the rocks kept you dry.

Denni

I did mile 2 in 28:38 and mile 3 in 35:13. Mile 3 is where you enter the Whitney Zone and  go from Lone Pine Lake (9960/2.7) to Bighorn Park (10340/3.5) . There was also flood damage in this area as well. There were a lot more rocks on the trail and more sand too.

Overlooking Bighorn

When we got to Bighorn Park (10340/3.50 the sun was starting to come up and we enjoyed the flat stretch. The creeks were running high near the Outpost Camp (10360/4.3) so it was good to have a little more natural light. Sadly this easy part was short lived because we had to hike up to Mirror Lake (10640/4.3). Those 16 switchbacks are never fun and there was quite a bit of flood damage at the bottom and finding the trail tool a bit of time.

My 4 mile split was 35:23 and the 5 mile was 38:05. The Whitebark Stump is at the 4.8 mile mark and the 16 switchbacks are tough especially since some of the trail was covered by some snow. I felt really good on the section and pulled away from my fellow hikers and did not realize they were that far behind me. Fortunately Tom helped them through this section and we all regrouped at trail camp.

Tom rescuing the Lost Girls.

I always feel the 2 miles from Mirror Lake (10640/4.30 to Trail Camp (12039/6.3) is one of the hardest parts of the hike especially when you are coming down. My 5 mile split was 38:05 and the 6 mile was 47:34. I did  not stay very long at Trail Camp because I was feeling good and wanted to catch up to my trail Angel Lester.

Denni, the Beaver and Norma at Trail Camp.

Lester at Trails Crest.

Trail Camp (12039/6.3) to Trail Crest (13777/8.5) is 2.2 miles of switchback fun (96 to 99 demanding on who is counting) and miles 7 took me 53:29 and mile 8 took 53:27. I still felt pretty good and the altitude did not bother like it had in the past. It make things harder but I did not have any altitude sickness symptoms at all through out the day. I got to Trail Crest with Lester at 9:30am which was the same time I got there in 2010. But in 2010 it took 4 hours longer to get there!

As I sat at Trail Crest with Lester, he told me about his bear incident. At 2:30am, he put his pack on his car and walked over to the bear locker and Yogi ran up and took his pack!

Lester chased after the  miscreant and the bear gave up the pack but took Lester's Slim Jims and Power Bars. He left the GUs (Smart bear because those things are nasty.) so poor Lester started with little food. So I gave him some of mine. Then sadly it was time to go downhill (Boo!).

You have to drop down 300 feet to the John Muir Trail (13480/9) junction and mile 9 took me 62:43, mile 10 was 64:29 and mile 11 was 59:40. These miles are brutal and I hate Rocks!. I can not believe that from the John Muir Trail (13480/9) to the Summit (14496/11) you have to climb a thousand feet in 2 miles! Plus it is not just one big climb like the switchbacks. You go up you down and you go up. It is unreal.

Then to make things even uglier, the trail midway up Whitney is covered in snow.

Becky was another Trail Angel out there.

But before you got the privilege of slipping in the snow, you had to cross over the rocks. I was on all fours.

I Hate Rocks!

I hate to be on the ground and avoid it at all costs but here I am at 14,000 plus feet trying get across this rock field. 240 pound men do not like to crawl because it is like bench pressing 240 pounds, squatting 240 pounds and doing who knows what with all that weight. This killed me and when I exited the snow I was wiped out.I had trained hard to walk forever up and down but doing a killer weight workout was not expected.

Plus the thought of going back through that was not appealing. But now I was almost to the top. Lester tried to pace me but I was on auto-pilot and barely moving. Then my Super Trail Angels appeared.

Norma & Denni to the rescue!

I was dead in the water but they waited for me and helped me get to the top where I basically leaned on the side of the hut and did nothing for about 5 minutes trying to recover. Then I got in line to sign the book.

My poles and pack are on bottom left where I leaned on the wall for a long time.

We were 25, 26 & 30 for the day.

After eating some food and getting some food for Lester, we headed back down the mountain. I have often read about the let down after you summit and this is very true. The goal has been attained and now you face 11 miles of punishing hiking to the trailhead. I felt okay but was not looking forward to all the downhill because of my size.

Ugly

From the summit to the John Muir trail, mile 12 took 61:17 and mile 13 took 54:00. Going through the snow and crossing the rocks again was very taxing and I was moving slowly. Lester took off and i did these two miles by myself and had a few pass me on the way. I also saw quite a few very late summit attempts by people who had no business being that high up there that late in the day. I got to the top before noon and it was now 2pm.

When I got to the John Muir Trail (13480/13) I was dreading the last climb to Trail Crest (13777/13.5) , that 300 foot climb is murder and this is where Denni and Norma passed me and disappeared on the other side.

Norma leading Denni.

This is also where I made a bone head mistake. As I started up the last hill, I realized I left one of my poles. I usually hike with one so off I went. Even though I only went a hundred feet at most, I seriously felt like leaving it but I went and got it and head to Trail Crest. At TC, I got phone reception and tried to text that we made it to the top. It did not go through but the break was nice and I picked up another trail angel.

Trail Crest Hell

This angel, I saw earlier in the day at Trail Crest, when she was sending one of her friends back down the mountain and helping another up the mountain. Becky from Bishop was super fit and very helpful. Before I hooked up with her I was plodding down the switchbacks at 40 plus minutes per mile and she helped me get below 40 minutes a mile.

Top of Switchbacks with my marmot friend.

Mile 14 took me 55:59 but 15 took 39:53 and 16 took 37:20. The switchbacks are a long drag but we had a great conversation going down them so it went by quicker then if I had been solo. When I got to Trail Camp (12039), I was glad to see Denni and Norma again. I was low on water and morale and they had both for me.

The cables on the switchbacks.

So I used Norma's Steripen and got some water and then it was time to do the Trail Camp (12039/16) to Mirror Lake (10640/18) section. This section is hard because the trail is all uneven rocks for the most part and your legs take a beating descending 1500 feet in a mile or two. Mile 17 took 41:24 and mile 18 took 38:07 and billy goat Denni lead the way.

Overlooking Mirror Lake and Bighorn.

Once you get to Mirror Lake the technical part of the hike is done. It is still slow going but at least the trail is a trail instead of a rock fest. There are a couple creeks to cross near Outpost Camp and Big Horn Park but they do not involve getting wet. Mile 19 took 32:56 and the end was near for us.

Once you get to Lone Pine Lake, you are no longer in the Whitney zone and the switchbacks are long and seem to never end.

My mile splits:

19. 3256
20. 2815
21. 2514
22. 2500
23. 1737

But at last you get to the trailhead and lucky for us it was still daylight. When I finished I was tired but also relieved because I had finally got the Whitney monkey of my back. it too me three tries and i finally did it. Then it was time for a Whitney Portal burger and fry!

Top Returning Harriers

The following are the best times at Woodward Park (5k) in 2010. Please add a year to their grade. I only keep track of those boys who break 17 minutes and girls who break 20 minutes:
The best Kern County time was run by Foothill's Chris Schwartz at the Clovis Invite in 2008. He ran 15:09. Stockdale's Haney ran the fastest central freshman time ever last year (15:57). McFarland's Garcia has the 16th best time all-time.

Erik Garcia

rank    name    time    yr    school    race
1    garcia,erik    1545    10    mcfarland    state
2    miller,cameron    1546    11    stockdale    state
3    kelly,curtis        1554    11    stockdale    state
4    haney,blake    1557    9    stockdale    clovis
5    monrreal,jose    1614    11    mcfarland    state
6    fisher,connor    1627    10    stockdale    valley
7    nunez,omar    1630    11    delano    valley
8    mireles,luis    1632    11    shafter    valley
9    vis,simon        1632    10    shafter    valley
10    esquivias,ivan    1635    11    highland    valley
11    gonzalez,avlaro    1640    9    ridgeview    clovis
12    mullen,troy    1645    11    stockdale    valley
13    patino,cesar    1653    11    Wasco     valley
14    gonzalez,gerardo    1654    11    Wasco     valley
15    varner,craig    1656    11    centennial    valley
16    millan,eric        1658    11    centennial    valley
17    espinoza,jose    1659    10    shafter    valley

Haney, Longsinger, Miller, Kelly and Fisher

The all-time best Kern Girl time is 17:57 by Centennial's Brittany Grimes at State in 2003. East's Roman has the 16th best time.

Roman

1    roman,sydney    1906    10    east    state
2    aldape,nicolette    1932    10    shafter    valley
3    tudor,cambria    1938    10    shafter    valley
4    blackmon,tori    1941    10    stockdale    clovis
5    huff,marie        1952    11    garces    state
6    ramirez,jennifer    1959    9    mcfarland    valley

Schwartz

Best Ten Times (Boys):
ATT    fernandez,german    1424    12    riverbank    state     2007
1    schwartz,chris    1509    12    foothill    clovis    2008
2    Schwartz Chris    1513    11    foothill    state     2007
3    Brewer Ricardo    1520    12    north    state     1992
4    schwartz,chris    1521    11    foothill    clovis    2007
5    Nelson Billy    1522    12    taft    state     2001
6    Gomez Andres    1528    12    mcfarland    state     2000
7    schwartz,chris    1529    12    foothill    state     2008
8    Gonzalez Galvin    1530    11    mcfarland    state     1993
9    Gonzalez Galvin    1531    12    mcfarland    state     1994
10    schwartz,chris    1531    11    foothill    valley    2007

Grimes

Best Ten Times (Girls):
ATT    stamps,julia    1643    12    santa rosa    1996    1996
1    grimes,brittany    1757    12    centennial    state     2003
2    grimes,brittany    1837    9    centennial    state     2000
3    grimes,brittany    1839    11    centennial    state     2002
4    grimes,brittany    1846    11    centennial    valley    2002
5    Barber Brianne    1847    9    centennial    state     1996
6    Sanchez Veronica    1850    10    Wasco     state     1995
7    Miller Lori        1853    12    north    state     1991
8    Davis Laura    1858    11    mcfarland    state     1997
9    Veiss Alicia    1901    11    mcfarland    state     2001
10    baker,sarah    1901    11    bakersfield    valley    2009