Runners of all shapes and sizes converged at Solarsano Middle
School in Gilroy on Saturday for the first ever Run for the
Stinkin’ Roses (RSR).
By Paul Doherty Staff Writer
Gilroy – Runners of all shapes and sizes converged at Solarsano Middle School in Gilroy on Saturday for the first ever Run for the Stinkin’ Roses (RSR).
After taking over the direction of the Reek Run, the South Valley Running Club changed the name to the Run for the Stinkin’ Roses in an effort to rejuvenate the annual run that was being run in to the ground by the previous managers.
This year’s winners included a Gilroy native, a U.C.L.A. student, and a 2007 IDI 5K winner.
Hosaka Toshikazu, 29, from Gilroy scorched the competition in the 10K finishing in 38 minutes, 4 seconds.
“This run was much better than Bonfante Gardens,” Toshikazu said. “I really like the new course.”
After slightly injuring his right ankle while running in the San Diego Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon on June 3 Toshikazu was fully recovered in time for the RSR, setting the pace early on.
“This year I didn’t see any runners behind me … I tried to push as hard as I could,” Toshikazu said. “I just followed the pace bike.”
Toshikazu ran for the last time in the 19-29 age group, as he will be turning 30 at the end of the month.
Second place in the men’s 19-29 age group went to Moises Avila, 40:53, and third place went to Jesus Rivera, 43:52.
In the women’s 10K, Live Oak graduate Cobbie Jones, 18, was the overall winner with a time of 43 minutes, 23 seconds.
“I feel good considering I haven’t raced in a year,” Jones said. “This is a really nice course, and more than anything I had a lot of fun.”
Jones is going into her sophomore year at UCLA, where she will also start her first year of eligibility as a 1500 meter and 1800 meter runner.
“I red-shirted last year, and I dealt with a few injuries, but winning this run shows that I’m fit and that I’ll be of use to my UCLA team,” she said.
Second place overall in the women’s 10K went to Kathryn Garcia, who took first place in the 19-29 age group, with a time of 44:40, and in third place overall and second place in the 13-18 age group was Jessica Hopf, 44:53.
First place in the men’s 5K went to Zack Kaylor, who ran in the 13-18 age group, with a time of 17 minutes, 17 seconds.
First place in the women’s 5K went to Tanya Ferreira, 13-18 age group, with a time of 19 minutes, 56 seconds.
Ferreira also took first place, among women, in the July 4th IDI 5K in Morgan Hill.
“I think it was hotter today than on 4th of July,” Ferreira said. “Plus there were a couple of bumps in the road towards the end that seem much bigger when I was getting a little tired.”
Setting a blistering pace, the Royal Oaks native and San Francisco State sophomore beat her competition by more than two minutes.
“There were no other women around me,” Ferreira said. “There were about five guys right in front of me, so I was keeping pace by trying to catch them.”
See complete race results at www.morganhilltimes.com
