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Leave it to the next generation. Those of us who are now in the twilight of our running years can now take a major degree of solace in the successes of our children (also see previous post).
Noah Olson, son of CRR Tom Olson, recently completed the Ironman Maryland competition on Sept. 29. His official time was 13 hours, 6 minutes, 23 seconds, including transition times. He finished in the top half (31st) in his age group (25-29), gender grouping, and overall.
Olson had a plan for the day, which unfolded pretty much like he had hoped it would. His time for the 2.4-mile swim was 1:21:22. Then he hit the bike for the long and draining 112-mile distance. His bike time was 6:28:20, an overall average of 17.38 mph, which is super. The challenge was for him to keep the bike leg within reason so as to have enough left in the tank for the marathon. He did so, completing the marathon distance (26.2 miles) in 4:50:02.
According to the elder Olson, who recently completed the local Top of Delaware Sprint Triathlon, “The two transitions were 13+ and 12+ minutes each, as [Noah] took time to stretch, eat, etc. He looked and said he felt good at the finish. I am sure that taking a few extra minutes during the transition was very helpful. It was pretty inspiring to be at various stages of the race and watching and cheering on all the athletes out there demonstrating true grit!”
A Newark, Del., native and 3200m state record holder, Parsons ran locally while at The Tatnall School and then went on to log a stellar collegiate career at North Carolina State. In June, he competed in the USA Track & Field Championships in the 5000m final, where he actually led the race with 800 meters to go.
CRR Dan Simmons (right in photo) was spotted by CRR Bill Rose (left in photo) working out in the Carpenter Sports Building gym at the University of Delaware on Sept 4.
On a sad note, one of the original Creek Road Runners, CRR Tom Brill, died on July 23 of complications from Parkinson’s Disease. Having retired from the University of Delaware in 2006 because of Parkinson’s, Brill also had to stop running, but he walked as much as he could in the ensuing years.
Brill wrote his own obituary, a portion of which says, “He enjoyed hiking, running, canoeing and mountain climbing. He and his wife [Pat] won the Gore-Tex triathlon mixed pairs in 1985.”
Pusecker, who has served as senior chief business officer for the University of Delaware’s College of Arts and Sciences since 2001, will join St. Mary’s College of Maryland on July 1 as the public honors college’s vice president for business and finance/chief financial officer. Before coming to UD, Pusecker retired from the U.S. Army as a lieutenant colonel after more than 20 years of active duty service.