Plenty to Celebrate at the Coast Guard Day 5K

By Brenda Barrera
Yorktown, VA
August 6, 2011
For the Washington Running Report

It was a birthday celebration of sorts. On August 4, 1790, Congress authorized the creation of a maritime service to enforce customs laws, signed off by President George Washington. That was 221 years ago and the Revenue Cutter Service—better known today as the U.S. Coast Guard—is celebrating their birthday. On August 6, 2011 the Coast Guard Day 5K held at the Coast Guard Training Center in Yorktown, VA celebrated its 23^rd running with a record number of finishers, 308.

Two teenagers, Jack Little and Taylor Falvey, took top honors.

A hometown standout, York High School senior Jack Little, 17, defended his title winning in 17:16. Just ten second behind him was Yorktown’s J.R. Cruz, 31 in 17:26. Stephen Chantry, Jr., 18, took third place in 17:33.

Little improved his 2010 time by one second, but said he felt better than last year.

“I’m in much better shape this year. I’m gearing up for cross country season,” said Little who just returned from a UVA cross country training camp. One of his goals for the upcoming school year is to hit 15 minutes for the 5K.

Yorktown marked a midway stop for the Falvey family traveling from York, PA to North Carolina for a holiday. Taylor Falvey, 18, was looking for a local race to test her leg speed before heading off to college this fall. It was a good pick; she easily won the women’s division with her 20:37 finish.

“I was just looking to do a time trial,” said Falvey, who will be competing for Philadelphia University.

She had no idea who was leading the women’s field for the first half of the race.

“It wasn’t until I was passing through the water station and they said I was the first female,” said Falvey who was pleased with her solid time.

Rounding out the top women finishers were Sheila Scotti, 27, from Newport News who took second place in 22:35 followed by 13-year-old Justina Rowe from Yorktown who crossed the finish line in 22:46.

While the younger Chantry was third overall, his namesake and masters record holder father, Stephen Chantry, 56, competing for the Colonial Road Runners took the men’s 55-59 division in 18:06. This past July, the elder Chantry competed in the WMA World Track & Field Championships in Sacramento, CA where he finished 4^th in the M55 1500M (4:27:16) and 6^th in the M55 800M (2:12:73).

The participants were treated to a historic course along the USCG Training Center on the banks of the York River. The winding course included the scenic Colonial National Historic Park site of the Revolutionary War’s final decisive battle.

Among the finishers (left) were Lacey Roberts and Coast Guard Chief Warrant Officer John Roberts of Mechanicsville, VA. Even though his wife beat him, 29:06 to 31:20, he could not stop beaming at the finish line area. “She’s amazing! “ and he quickly added, “She walloped me.” This past year Lacey has lost 86 pounds and today’s race was her first 5K.

For Coast Guard Commander Tim Haws, a Norfolk native, this was a bit of a homecoming. “I just reported here for training from Florida this past Monday,” said Haws who was stationed in Yorktown from 2004 to 2008. He took third place in the 35-39 age group with a time of 21:50. Haws was joined by his wife, Susie, who is expecting their first child this spring. She did a combination of run, walk, and jog, finishing the 5K in 45:08.

In the Coast Guard award category Samuel Mathes, 23, of Yorktown won handily with his 19:06 and Samantha Brabant, 24, of Bartow, FL took the title with her 25:10 finish.

The morning started with a 1 Mile Fun Run. This event marks the sixth stop on the Peninsula Track Club Grand Prix Series.