Running commentary

Snow is falling in Sisters Country. As we move into the winter running season there is much to recap from the local running scene.

Sisters produced some top-notch results on the running trails this fall, including an epic win for Sisters Middle School teacher Josh Nordell in the Bizz Johnson Trail Marathon near Susanville, California in early October. Nordell squeaked out the win in 2:51:21 for a margin of just over a minute in the scenic and rugged 26.2-mile race.

Stefan Redfield, a senior for the Bearcats of Willamette University, placed second at the Northwest Conference Regional Cross Country Championships to lead his team in qualifying for the NCAA Division III Nationals, held at Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa.

Redfield completed his cross country career with an impressive 17th-place finish at Nationals in 24:41, just 19 seconds behind the champion on Saturday, November 20. His finish earned him All-American honors.

Parker Bennett, who did not run at the regional meet due to injury, was able to compete in Iowa, but finished well off his best in 27:15. Willamette placed 27th as a team.

Some up-and-coming running stars extended their cross country season by competing in the U.S. Track and Field Junior Olympic Cross Country State Championships in Oregon City on November 13, and most returned the following week to compete in the regional meet, which serves as a qualifier for nationals.

Dyut Fetrow, a seventh grader, turned out to be the highest placer among Sisters runners, finishing 10th in the "midget" division at both the state and regional meets, helping his team from the Central Oregon Running Klub (CORK) qualify for nationals.

Similarly, Zoe Falk, Liz Stewart, and Madison Boettner formed the core of the CORK youth division team, which qualified for the national meet as well. If they choose to move on to nationals, they will be running near Birmingham, Alabama in early December.

The trio could be a formidable force in next year's high school season. Brandon Pollard, running for the Bowerman XC club out of Beaverton, competed in the youth boys division, as did Izaak Kanzig, running for CORK.

A few locals competed in the Portland Marathon on October 9, including first-timer Terri Brown who navigated the course in 5:38:05.

A week later, adventure racer Sean Meissner traveled all the way to Chile for an ultramarathon in the Andes, where he placed fifth. The trip was made possible by his victory last year in the Canadian Death Race, sponsored by The North Face.

As for my own running, I look forward to the winter challenge and have decided to put a couple of races out there on my calendar to have something to shoot for. I plan to go back to the Buck Mountain Mudslinger on February 26 at Silver Falls State Park.

I think I have my wife Deirdre convinced that this 6.5-mile race should become a tradition. Last year about 10 of us from Sisters took part, so I'm hoping to stir up a bunch of locals to go along again this year.

In the nearer future, like Thanksgiving Day, is the "I Like Pie" run in Bend, which is a great way to burn some calories before taking part in pie eating and the rest of the Thanksgiving feast. The event begins at FootZone in Bend at 9 a.m. and includes untimed distances ranging from two kilometers to 10 miles. Bring a pie to share or even enter one in the contest.

Another holiday-themed run is the annual Jingle Bell 5k Run in downtown Bend on Saturday, December 5, at 11 a.m. This race kicks off the Bend Christmas Parade. More information on these two races, as well as many others, is available at http://www.footzonebend.com.

Another service that Foot-Zone offers is a clinic on putting screws into your shoes for running in icy conditions, to be held Tuesday, November 30 beginning at 6 p.m.