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August 16, 2007
Neophyte Takes Amelia’s Two Miler
By Timothy Small
Angel Rojas didn't want to stop running after he finished Miss Amelia's Cottage 2-Miler on Sunday in Amagansett. So, the 21-year-old Mexican
immigrant from Hampton Bays, who hardly broke a sweat, sprinted back up the pebble hill behind Miss Amelia's Cottage Museum, onto Windmill Lane, and
retraced some of his winning tracks. Rojas returned again a few minutes
later with a pack of slower runners, still charging at full-speed.
"I knew I was coming here for something," Rojas, who finished the race
in 11 minutes and 13 seconds, said afterward. "That was my mentality all
week. I'm ready for another one!"
In just his first season running competitively, Rojas has exploded onto the local scene, finishing third in both the Pediatric Dental Giant Steps 5K in Amagansett on July 29, and the 17th annual Joe Koziarz Memorial 5K on July 15 in Westhampton Beach. The Westhampton Beach race was Rojas's first ever.
"I played soccer and wrestling before, but I never ran," he said after the Giant Steps race. "I know I can get better."
Rojas is working with his friend, Doroteo Soledad, 32, of Hampton Bays, who finished fourth overall on Sunday, in 12:12. "Having the pressure of someone behind him [Rojas] helped," Soledad said.
Crossing the finish line, which was fittingly constructed of two dog water bowls, in second place was Mike Bottini. He finished the race, 22 seconds behind Rojas in 11:35.
In third place, Frank Condon, maybe the fastest short-distance 65-year-old in the country, finished the race in 12:08. The youthful Condon broke the 35-year-old U.S. outdoor mile record in his age group, 65 to 69-year-olds, at the U.S.A. Track and Field Masters west regional championship on July 9 at Occidental College in Los Angeles. Condon finished the mile in 5:12:21. The previous record was 5:22, set by Monty Montgomery in 1972.
"My goal was to set the record," Condon said after finishing Sunday's race. "Guys get slower as they're getting older, but I'm still hanging in
there."
Two weeks ago, Condon set the 800-meter record for his age
group at the U.S.A. Track and Field Masters outdoor championship in Orono,
Me., finishing in 2:17:20. The Amagansett race is one of his favorites,
he said. He participates in it every summer when he visits his family
- his son Greg, daughter-in-law, Claire, and grandchildren, Charlie and
Carolina, who live in Springs.
"I had no idea life could be this funat 65," he said.
Condon's presence and advice has inspired two younger runners who have also competed in Miss Amelia's Cottage run for the past couple of years, Alice and Dana Walsh, twin 15-year-olds from New York City. Dana was the first woman to cross the finish line, completing the two miles in 12:29, which was good enough for 6th overall. Alice finished in 14:26.
The Walsh twins admitted to being competitive with
each other, but said that specializing in different events helped take
off some of the pressure. Dana is an all-American mile runner with a
personal best of 5:13:03. Alice specializes in the 800-meter and
hurdles.
As always, a large number of children participated in the race,
which started north on Old Stone Highway, looped around west on Town Line,
and again south on Windmill Lane, before cutting off right behind the
museum.
Alex Weinberger, 10, was the youngest competitor to place in
the top three for his or her age group, finishing in 13:43, atop the 12
and under age group. His brother, Jack, 12, finished second in 14:38.
Leonardo Cantino, 14, placed first in the 13 to 17-year-old age group,
finishing in 13:04, while Andre Lejeune, 41, finished atop the 40 to
49-year-old age group in 12:14, fifth overall.
Among women, Marin Nass, 12, finished in 16:54, first among those 12 and under. Kiera Garry finished in second place among 13 to 17-year-olds, completing the course in 12:42, eighth place overall. Laura Brynes, 21, finished in 13:45, the fastest time for 18 to 29-year-olds, while Hilaria Alvarez, 35, finished in 1348, first place among 30 to 39-year-olds, and Diane Weinberger, 42, placed first in the 40 to 49-year-old age group, completing the race in 13:57.
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