California Track & Running News July-Aug 2013, VOLUME 39 NUMBER 3 | Page 26

26 ct&rn • April–June 2013

was. I paid in the last mile where I kind of lost momentum, but it really doesn’t matter.”
Schultz, Brian Pilcher (55:57, age 56, Ross),
Iain Mickle (58:42, age 52, Sacramento), and Janice Kesterson (1:09:54, age 59, Oakdale) all turned
in age-graded performances bettering 90% (which
is considered “world class”).
The race had over 1,100 finishers and offered
a $15,000 prize purse.

Jaime Heilpern, 43, in 15:55.
Despite the challenging course, age-group
winners Hans Schmid (age 73, 20:18, 90.4% age
graded), and Melody-Anne Schultz (age 71, 24:29,
92.4% age graded) turned in notable performances. Schultz’s 24:29 bettered the current U.S.
W70–74 age-group record (for a mixed
men/women’s race)—that is, until she improved
upon her mark two weeks later.

Zippy 5K
Brisbane; April 21
A venue change to Brisbane (from the Golden
Gate Park course where this race has traditionally
been held) greeted approximately 300 participants with a moderately hilly “keyhole”-configured course and a pleasant venue that included a
postrace festival in Brisbane Community Park.
The 14th annual race yielded two first-time
Zippy 5K champions: Former Cal Berkeley AllAmerican Giliat Ghebray (Oakland) and New Balance Silicon Valley’s Maggie Conley (Portola
Valley). Plus, Melody-Anne Schultz (71, Ross), continued her U.S. age-group record-bettering streak.
In the women’s contest, a tight pack composed of NBSV and Impala Racing Team athletes
proceeded conservatively from the gun until Conley decided to make a break at 1 mile.
“I’m better at the hills,” Conley explained. “I
wanted a buffer specifically between me and
[NBSV teammate] Kris Paaso because she has very
long legs, and I didn’t want her to get me on the
downhill. After that, I was hoping that I wouldn’t
get caught.”
The strategy worked as Conley proceeded to
the women’s victory in 17:15, well off the women’s
race record of 16:15 set last year by Clara Peterson
on the more forgiving Golden Gate Park route.
“Now I’d like to get a really fast 5K in somewhere and break 17:00,” said Conley, who owns a
16:36 5K PR [on a downhill course].
Paaso, age 42, was second overall in 17:17 and
earned the PA/USATF 40+ women’s division title.
Stephanie Pancoast finished third in 17:29.
Among the men, Jameson Mora used a similar strategy to Peterson’s, making a move on a
pack of five leaders around the mile point.
“I thought my best chance of winning would
be pushing hard early because I felt that Giliat
Ghebray would have a much better kick than me,”
said Mora, who finished second to winner Chris
Chavez at last year’s race.
Ghebray, however, had his own strategy in
mind: “I wanted to do as little work as possible
and make a late race move,” he said. “The course
is difficult and Jameson threw multiple moves at
me. I have a decent kick and was confident [