The annual 10K race at Moccasin Bend formerly known as the John Johnson Mental Health 10K came really close to not happening this year, but members of the Chattanooga Track Club put it all together at the last minute and it came off as planned on Saturday as the Moccasin Bend Fall Classic.
The event included a 5K and a 10K and it was promoted as a no frills race with no T-shirts and no age group awards.
That didn’t seem to matter very much to 29-year-old Daniel Goetz, who ran by himself much of the way and finished first overall in the flat and fast 6.2-mile event in 34 minutes, 51 seconds.
Dr. Lisa Logan, that friendly 44-year-old who serves as the assistant principal at Ringgold High School when she’s not running, was the overall female winner as she finished 15th overall with a time of 46 minutes, 51 seconds.
There were only 73 finishers in the 10K and another 21 in the 5K, but there was a unique situation at the finish line of the shorter race as Stephanie Lyons was the overall winner and the fastest female in 20 minutes, 25 seconds.
Thomas Maurer was the male winner and second overall as he crossed the finish line in 20 minutes, 44 seconds.
Saturday morning’s weather was much cooler than it has been, although several runners mentioned that the humidity was a bit higher than normal and there was a nagging headwind on the way out Moccasin Bend Road to the turnaround point.
While Goetz was all alone in first, Ryan Shrum was the runner-up in 37:09 while Tim Ensign was third in 37:35. Karen Leavitt was the second female and 19th overall in the 10K with a time of 48:38 while Beth Daniel was third after claiming 26th overall in 49:20.
None of that seemed to bother Goetz, who has just moved back to Chattanooga in recent weeks from Oregon and is currently training for the New York City Marathon on November 6.
“I didn’t feel that great out there as it was windy on the way out, but I wanted a good hard effort and that’s exactly what I got,” said Goetz shortly after ending his race.
“My time was about 17:45 on the way out, so I picked up my pace a bit on the way back. I think I ran too hard yesterday and I was on my feet last night for about five hours, so none of that helped. But I’m pleased with my effort and I’m looking forward to New York,” he added, admitting that he’s hoping to go under 2:30 in his first attempt at the 26.2-mile distance.
While Goetz is pointing toward New York, Shrum is getting ready for another run at Chickamauga on Nov. 12, which will be his 11th straight race at the popular local national park.
“Anytime I can finish ahead of Tim Ensign, I’m happy as he’s my inspiration and role model,” said the 49-year-old Shrum.
“I was hoping to break 37 today, but it was a little warmer than usual. I passed Tim about 100 yards before we reached the turnaround, but he was right there with me the whole time,” Shrum added.
Ensign is that ageless 53-year-old who still holds the course record for this race of 31:04, set back in 1984. The goal for the IBM speech writer on Saturday was to get a state record for his age group, which is 36:13, but he wasn’t close.
“I missed that record by one second back in the spring and thought I might have a shot today, but it just wasn’t my day. We just didn’t have the best conditions for a fast time for an old guy like me as I was really far off. I knew early on that it wasn’t my day as I wasn’t feeling good at the first mile, but that head wind was really bad between the first and second mile,” Ensign smiled.
Logan did a marathon last weekend in her hometown of Winchester where she posted a time of 3:58. Her legs were a bit heavy a week later, but she was more than fast enough to claim her first win as the overall female in a CTC race.
“Jan Gautier wasn’t here today and that opened the door for me,” Logan said with a smile on her face.
“I did that marathon last week and tried to save something for today. My legs were still tight and sore, but I still felt pretty good overall. I don’t think I’ve ever been the overall female winner in a Chattanooga Track Club event as there are normally a bunch of fast women, but if I can just finish in the top five, I’m happy,” she replied.
The next race on the CTC schedule is set for Saturday, Oct. 22 with the annual Pie Run, a scenic 10K race on Signal Mountain.
(email John Hunt at nomarathonmoose@gmail.com)