Fast Times at New Quarter Park

By Rick Platt

Mark Tompkins finishes first at Queen's Lake this morning.

Castillo-D’Amico Age Grades 89.7% at Queens Lake 5K Run



Tompkins and Quarles are Overall Champions

Although Bruton High School track and cross country coach Mark Tompkins and six-time Colonial Road Runners Grand Prix champion Jennifer Quarles were the men’s and women’s overall champions at Saturday morning’s 18th annual Queens Lake 5K Run at New Quarter Park, the highlight of the day was clearly the near-world-class performance by Mercedes Castillo-D’Amico, 54, of Newport News, runner-up for the women in a remarkable time of 19:50.


Tompkins has been a key part of the Queens Lake 5K for several years. He won the 2009 race in 16:04, won again in 2010 in 15:58, and was second last year in 16:51. Tompkins improved by 16 seconds from 2011 to 2012, winning easily this year in 16:35. Also for two years, in 2010 and ’11, Tompkins was race director for the Queens Lake 5K, organized by and benefiting his Bruton track and cross country teams. Time constraints—teaching, coaching, running, and now a father of five kids—forced him to give up the Queens Lake race directing duties this year to a new organization.

This year’s event was held under ideal weather conditions (cool, race-time temperatures in the 50s, sunny, and little wind), leading to a number of outstanding times. Women's winner Jennifer Quarles, 40, of Williamsburg, ran her fastest time as a Masters (40+) runner, winning in 18:59. She had turned 40 in early March. Quarles was second overall in both the 2010 (19:10) and 2011 (19:06) Queens Lake races, bettering those times this year for the win.

But the race of the day, age-graded, was by Castillo-D'Amico, second overall for the women in a time of 19:50, a Queens Lake age 50-54 record (bettering her own mark of 20:29 from 2009). On an age-graded basis, Castillo-D'Amico had an impressive 89.7%, just under the 90% level considered world-class. An 80% age grade is considered national class. It was a lifetime best 5K time for Castillo-D'Amico on a certified course (she had run a 19:48 at the New Year’s Eve “Beat the Ball 5K,” but on an uncertified course), and it was a lifetime-best age-graded percentage.

The Queens Lake 5K Run is certified (VA-08008-RT) an exact 5K distance according to USATF course certification standards. The course starts and finishes in New Quarter Park of York County, and includes a loop of Copse Way within the Queens Lake neighborhood.

Two other Queens Lake age-group records were set, both in the 80-and-over category, and both by 81-year-old race walkers--Tom Mills, who lives in Queens Lake (43:04 for the men's 80-and-over record) and Pat Eden (49:26 for the women's 80-and-over record).

After Tompkins, the remainder of the top six for the men were Daniel Shaye, 43 (17:08) and Greg Dawson, 46 (17:18) of Williamsburg, and Todd Kessler, 29 (17:35), Steven Brewer, 26 (17:41) and Ryan Doupe, 26 (18:19), all from Newport News, and Paul Pelletier, 46 (18:23) and John Piggott, 46 (18:26), both of Williamsburg. After Quarles and Castillo-D’Amico for the women, it was Debbie McLaughlin, 46 (20:57), Connie Glueck, 47 (21:08) and Dena Goble, 42 (21:29), all of Williamsburg.

The race was organized by and benefited both the St. Baldrick's Foundation and the Colonial Road Runners Scholarship Fund, with race directors Soosan Hall and Jennifer Gardner of the St. Baldrick's Foundation, the world's largest volunteer-driven fundraising organization benefiting childhood cancer research. It was the sixth CRR Grand Prix race for 2012. There were 111 entrants and 101 finishers in the 5K run/walk.

Full results, pictures and video can be found at http://colonialroadrunners.org/2012QueensLake5KResults.htm
 
Updated on May 16, 2012