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LESSONS LEARNED
"EVERYTHING MARATHONING"

View the Recorded Seminar

THE PANELISTS
IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE


Joan Bienvenue
I've been running since I was 14 - 30 years!  36 marathons and counting. My proudest racing accomplishment – 5 year streak (and counting!) at Boston and getting to start in the American Development Corral as a masters runner at Chicago in 2019 – the closest I will come to being an elite! My favorite prerace meal – all the pasta, Bolognese if possible and favorite go to item on race day, my lululemon shorts with enough pockets in the waistband for all my Gu. My family includes my husband, Mark, two kiddos, 9 and 11, Molly and Elliott.

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Joan Bienvenue at the Boston Marathon

Leah Connor
I've run 33 marathons since 2007. I finished my first at Marine Corps in 5:17:03, my 3:36:35 PR in Chicago 2012 and my slowest in 7:11:46 at Walt Disney World in a walking aircast with broken sesamoids (not my smartest move, but my bedazzled boot was a crowd pleaser!). My favorite marathon was Boston 2017 because I ran side by side with my identical twin sister. The most rewarding part of my marathoning journey was becoming a volunteer race director for the Rivanna Greenbelt Marathon in 2014. Giving runners the opportunity to achieve their marathon goals filled me with joy. Cheering for runners in an inflatable T-Rex or Air Dancer costume is another way I love to participate.  
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Leah Connor as T-Rex in Chicago "You'll be DINO-SORE tomorrow!"

Jenny Goswami 
I've been running for 20 years. My proudest racing accomplishment is running in the Olympic Marathon Trials. My favorite pre-race meal is plain old pasta. My family includes my husband, Aashish and our 3 kids (Jay, Sonya and Serena (ages 7, 5, 3).

I'll talk about some of the mental aspects of marathoning, particularly keeping your mind focused on only the mile you're in.
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Jenny Goswami at the Olympic Marathon Trials

Mark Christopher Hampton
I've been running for15 years. My proudest racing accomplishment is a sub-3:15 marathon the year I turned 50.
My favorite pre-race meal is pasta, of course, and my favorite go-to item I wear on race day is a Ragged Mountain shirt, of course. I have a husband Jay, son Colin, and two dogs, Stella and Molly.

I’ll be talking about the importance of cross-training and, in particular, strength and balance training.  
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Mark Christopher Hampton

Charlie Hurt
​Been Running: 20 years
Best Accomplishment: 2:18:30 at CIM to Quality for the Trials
Pre Race: I have a lucky shirt that I wear on the day before, among other silly habits that I have picked up along the way. 
365 Days ago:  It was surreal to toe the line and get after it with all the pros. It was a freaking awesome weekend. Thanks for the shout outs. Thanks again for helping me get there. You taught me a ton and I appreciate ALL the support!
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Charlie Hurt at the 2018 Riverbank Run

Bob Johnson
​
I’ve been running for 40 years and ran a PR of 2:52:25 at the Drake Relays Marathon in 1984. In the running community, I am best known as “Heidi Johnson’s husband.” Heidi ran Boston 12 consecutive years and is a much more accomplished runner than I am.

I am going to talk about getting to the starting line uninjured — a concept I struggle with consistently.
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Harry Landers
I've been running for 18 years. I started on my 50th birthday, October 3, 2002. I suppose my proudest racing accomplishment has been running the Boston Marathon for 12 consecutive years. My favorite pre-race meal is a bowl of oatmeal with milk, nuts, and fresh berries. My only go-to item for race day is one of those stretchy zippered SPI belts - just the ticket for holding my gels.

My wife, Janis Jaquith and I have three grown children, twin sons and a daughter. And six grandchildren, ranging in age from 1 to 17.
​
I'm going to talk about the importance of "A, B, & C" race goals.
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Harry Landers at the Bruce Barnes Mile

Cynthia Lorenzoni
I started running in the spring of 1973. My proudest running accomplishments are the Houston Marathon in 1983, I ran even splits the whole wave and felt great! and starting the Charlottesville Women's Four Miler in 1983 with Mark. My favorite pre-race meal is sweet potato and salmon and go to item is Body Glide on my feet. Mark and I have four children: Alec (with wife Lauren and their children James and Emmie), Audrey (with husband Stewart), Adrian and Annie.  
​

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Cynthia Lorenzoni

Bill Petri
In short I am a father of 5 wonderful children with an equally amazing wife Mary Ann who suffers gladly through my over-sharing of running exploits. I have been running since 2013, with five marathons under my belt (Chicago twice, Richmond, Tobacco Road and a PR of 4:21 at the November Greenbelt Marathon) and have the goal of BQ. My other hobbies are gardening and trombone and in my work-life I am a professor at UVA heavily involved in the pandemic response through research and patient care. I will talk about how running has given me friendships that have profoundly enriched my life (and also how I am slowly learning to pay more than a little attention to Mark’s coaching!)

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Bill Petri

​Katie Ryan
 I have been running since high school-started marathoning in 2010 in Baltimore and stopped marathoning in 2018 in Richmond. I managed to qualify for/run Boston 8 times, which is probably my proudest running accomplishment.  I am from north of Boston and grew up watching Joan Benoit, and so being able to run/finish Boston even once felt like a bit of a dream come true. I pretty reliably eat a banana pre-race, not much else works. I kind of mix it up in terms of my running wardrobe, though I usually have a RMRS logo somewhere in the mix. I have a running husband and 4 great kids, ages 14-24. 
 
I am going to talk about do’s and don’ts of marathoning with your spouse/partner, with a focus on finding the right balance. 

Jim Ryan
I've been running for 30 years. My proudest racing accomplishment was hitting a pr of 2:48 in the Richmond Marathon in 2012. My favorite pre-race meal is chicken and pasta night before; eggs and pb&J the day of; and favorite go-to item I wear on race day is a Ragged Mountain singlet. My wife Katie and I have four kids--Will, Sam, Ben, and Phebe.

I'll talk about the difficulty/importance of pacing or the importance of having a plan for hydration and nutrition.  
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Katie and Jim Ryan at the finish of the iconic Charlottesville Ten Miler

Joan Benoit Samuelson
1984 Olympic Gold Medalist in Los Angeles — First Women’s Olympic Marathon, (2:24:32)
1985 Chicago Marathon winner, time stood for 18 years as an American record (2:21:21)
1996 Finishes 13th in the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials
1998 Qualifies for U.S. 2000 Olympic Marathon trials at New York Marathon
2000 Finishes 9th in the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials
2001 Qualifies for U.S. 2004 Olympic Marathon trials at New York Marathon
2002 Sets national 45-49 age group record – 2:42.28 – at Chicago Marathon
2004 Injury prevents entry into U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in St. Louis, plans run in 2008 trials.
2005 Qualifies for U.S. 2008 Olympic Marathon Trials at Twin Cities Marathon in Minnesota.
2008 Set U.S. Masters 50+ 5K Record – 17:24 in the USA 5K in Providence, Rhode Island on Sept. 21, 2008.
2011 115th Boston Marathon, 2:51.29; also won her age group 50-54
2013 117th Boston Marathon, 2:50.37 (first in age group, 47th overall)- achieves goal of finishing within 30 minutes of world record 2:22.43 set 30 years earlier at 1983 Boston Marathon
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Joan Benoit Samuelson

Linda Scandore
On a whim I entered the 1995 Women’s Four-Miler having no prior running experience.  Thirteen months later I did the Marine Corp Marathon, the first of 22 marathons.  In 26-years of running, my proudest accomplishments were placing 10th at the Boston Marathon and 9th at the New York City Marathon in my age group.  Every runner “pushes the envelope”  testing the limits as I did for the Richmond Marathon with a pre-race dinner of Oysters Rockefellow and a warm-up mile or two before the race.  Alas, that was before Mark Lorenzoni became my coach.  Though the taste lingered, I managed not to puke the Oysters Rockerfellow.  Spaghetti and meatballs have since become my standard pre-marathon dinner.  Race wear begins with a base layer…Vaseline.  It's the perfect preventive for skin irritations and blisters.  As for the outer layers, I check out Captain Harry’s race outfit as we both have similar range of temperature comfort.  He gets to agonize over the right outfit…long sleeves, short sleeves, two shirts, singlet, etc. and I simply add a jog bra.  Borrowing from triathletes, I use pinch spring-lock toggles on my shoe laces.  Somebody always stops during a race to tie their laces...and it’s not me.  

A favorite racing photos shows me sitting on the curb with friends having just finished the 2010th Boston Marathon.  It captures the friendships that make running so special.  My training partner Bonnie Wilfore and I ran most of the race together.  As arranged at Boston College, two English bandits joined me.  James Bowers, a Coast-to-Coast walking friend, and his Boston College mate who ran the last miles with me rallying the crowd to cheer me for a strong finish.

I’ll cover power and pitfalls of zip code running and blending yoga with running. 
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Linda Scandore (in white) at the 2011 Boston Marathon

Beverly Wispelwey
I've been running since I was 15 years old.
My accomplishments: crossing the finish line, whether a 5K or a marathon!
Pre-race: Plain pasta or a plain Bodo's bagel  
My husband, Brian, and I have three grown children and 3 grandchildren. ​
I am talking with the person out there whose head gets in the way of their goals. 
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Beverly Wispelwey at the Boston Marathon

Dr. Robert Wilder
I have been running for 45 years. My proudest accomplishment was being elected captain of college XC team and running Bruce Barnes with my daughters. My favorite pre-race meal is coffee & banana. I have 4 kids: Lauren, Stephen, Ryan & Caroline and 1 grandson Sutton who is awesome!
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Dr. Robert Wilder

Contact Us

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Location

3 Elliewood Ave, Charlottesville, VA 22903
Free private parking lot behind our building

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