2012 Brooks SRC team announced

The Seattle Running Club has finalized its 2012 roster of Brooks-sponsored athletes following a competitive application process.  Returning  team members Travis Boyd, Julie Cassata, Marlene Farrell, Max Ferguson, Destry Johnson, Trisha Steidl will be joined by Lance Thompson, John Wallace, and Wendy Wheeler-Jacobs.

Team members were selected according to their running-related achievements and service to the SRC and the running community as a whole. They will be visible as representatives of Brooks and the SRC at various local, regional, and national events this year.

Travis Boyd is a graduate of UW, where he ran track and cross country. His personal records are 14:29 (5K), 30:11 (10K), 1:07:56 (half marathon), and 2:23:23 (marathon).

Julie Cassata spent much of 2011 hiking the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT). Previous major events included the 2008 Boston Marathon (3:22) and 2010 Umstead 100 mile Endurance run (21:30).  She is the secretary of the SRC in addition to working part-time at SRC partner store Fleet Feet Seattle.

SRC board member Marlene Farrell is a 2-time Olympic marathon trials qualifier with a PR of 2:45:16. Other recent PRs include 1:18:54 for half marathon (Geoduck 2010) and 36:58 for 10K (Wenatchee 2011). One of the perennial leaders of the SRC cross country team, she also coaches middle school and high school runners in her hometown of Leavenworth. She blogs at runwenatchee.org.

Following a 3rd-place finish at the 2011 Amica Seattle Half Marathon, Max Ferguson is looking forward to a full year of racing in 2012. Probable events include the Seahawks 12k, Yakima Skyline 25k, Vancouver Marathon, Seattle Marathon 10k, Salmon Days 10k, Seattle Half Marathon, and a fall marathon. He works at SRC partner store The Balanced Athlete.

At age 37, Destry Johnson continues to compete very successfully in the open division of local road and cross country races, setting PRs of 14:55 (5K) and 1:08:58 (half marathon) in 2009 and coming within 4 seconds of his 12K PR (38:30) last year at Bloomsday.  Target races this year will include Bloomsday, the Seattle Rock ‘N Roll Half, Puyallup City Blast, Torchlight 8K, the New York Marathon, and his usual slate of local/regional cross country races.

Trisha Steidl, head cross country and track coach at Seattle University, remains active as an athlete, winning the Seattle Marathon for the third time in 2011.  She also won the 2011 Bridle Trails and Cougar Mountain 10-mile races.  Previous times include a 36:22 10K, 1:21:53 half marathon, and 2:48:17 marathon. Her activities as an SRC board member include volunteering at many club events (Cougar Mountain, White River) and other events such as Club Northwest’s All Comers track meets.

Lance Thompson has best times of 9:13 (3K steeplechase), 15:16 (5K (15:29), 25:29 (8K), 1:13 (half marathon), and 2:39 (marathon).  He volunteered at a Cougar Mountain race and as a Seattle Marathon pacer last year, and looks forward to more running and racing in 2012.

SRC treasurer John Wallace has not missed a day of running since 1989, ran across the United States in 2004-05, and plans to run one ultramarathon a month in 2012.  “I am a mix of the everyday runner and the every day runner,” he notes. “You can count the number of races I’ve won outright on one hand…. You can count just 86 Americans that have run more consecutive days.”

Wendy Wheeler-Jacobs is well-known as both an athlete and volunteer at running events.  She has helped mark the Cascade Crest 100 course, and raised money for the Washington Trails Association through the creation of Glenn Tachiyama’s trail running calendar. For the past three years, she has been among the top 6 masters at both the White River 50 and Where’s Waldo 100K.  Her 2012 schedule includes the Oregon Trail Ultramarathon Series and Angeles Crest 100.