Suffield's 32nd Annual Road Races Drew A Crowd

Saturday’s cool, misty morning gave way to the heated competition of the 32nd annual 5K run and 10K road race at Suffield Middle School, directed by the Suffield Parks and Recreation Department.

The races were dominated this year by 33-year-old David Cilley of East Windsor, who won first place in both the 5K and 10K events with times of 18 minutes, 50.4 seconds and 38 minutes, 26 seconds, respectively, according to timing from The Last Mile Timing Company. Cheryl Sunshine of Suffield, 41, won second place in the 5K race and first in the event’s female division at 20 minutes, 28.9 seconds. The 10K race saw Ken Clark of Somers come in second place at 40 minutes, 11 seconds, while Beth Krasemann of Suffield came in seventh and won the female division at 41 minutes, 53.8 seconds.

The winners of each division earned gift certificates to local businesses, with the grand prize of a $100 certificate to The Run In being awarded to Cilley, the overall winner of the 10K.

The races are an annual part of the town’s Suffield on the Green event and were overseen this year by Parks and Recreation director Wendy LaMontagne and recreation supervisor Cindy Fisher.

Almost $700 worth of prizes were provided by local businesses like RJ’s Country Cafe and Unique Fitness, according to LaMontagne. The event’s most prominent sponsor was the First National Bank of Suffield, which provided raffle prizes, volunteers to oversee registration and even participating runners. Bank president and CEO George Hermann was one of the competitors in this year’s 10K race.

The races began promptly at 8:15 a.m. for the 5K and 9:15 a.m. for the 10K. Each start was preceded by Fisher thanking the First National Bank for its support and holding a moment of silence for the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

The courses ran along some of Suffield’s most picturesque locations, including the historic buildings of Main Street and the vistas near Hill Street.

"You just get a beautiful picture of the community," LaMontagne said.  "Lots of little rivers and bridges… it’s a pretty ride, is what I’m saying."

The courses had volunteers posted at regular intervals, ready to hand out water to runners as well as EMS bikers to tend to the participants’ safety, according to Fisher.

The timing services provided by The Last Mile depended upon the "bib chips" glued to the back of the runners’ numbered bibs, according to Fisher.

"They’re more efficient, the latest and greatest thing… other than a photo finish, but we’re not the Olympics," she said, noting that the chips were adopted for use last year.

According to Kyle Dannack and Jason Phillips, The Last Mile timers and technicians on site at the event, the chips let them record the runners' times the moment they passed over a sensor at the finish line.  A backup sensor was situated a few feet beyond the finish line while Phillips recorded times by hand to ensure accuracy.

Raffles were held after both races, though only participating runners could enter to win prizes. The prizes were provided by the First National Bank of Suffield and included soccer balls, thermoses and collapsible kites. One such kite, shaped like a space shuttle, was won by Jacob Carroll, 5, the youngest runner in the race.

“Parks and rec. does great things in town," Hermann said. "It's just our way of giving back."

For complete race results, follow these links to The Last Mile's 5K results and 10K results.