FLRC’s second summer track meet of the year went off without a hitch under hot, sunny skies. The meet was a bit smaller than last month, with 42 runners competing across 75 individual efforts, but that made it all the more relaxed and intimate, while not detracting from the performances. No photos this month, but if you took any that you’d like to contribute, contact meet director Adam Engst.

The meet started on time with five heats of the 100m, the first of which saw the toddling return of 3-year-old Skylar Weiner and 2-year-old twins Joel and Adrian Kresock. By the time we’d gotten to the faster heats, the times dropped significantly, with Jacy Wilson taking the crown in 11.13 seconds, just edging Christopher Simmons in 11.86, Kaleb Lawrence in 11.91, and Curtis Mann in 11.94. 14-year-old Elsa Wood won for the women in 15.20, with 8-year-old Lianna Simmons (sporting the snazziest spikes around) second in 17.67.

Next up was the 800m, where Alexander Simpson gave us a master class in negative splits, running 62-60 to win in 2:02, running away from 13-year-old William Boscia in 2:30. Michelle Woods won for the women in a strong 2:54, though her only competition was 10-year-old Annaliese Granroth and 7-year-old Kaarina Granroth finishing in 4:00 and 4:03.

The 400m proved to be one of the most exciting races of the night, with Christopher Simmons edging 15-year-old Kaleb Lawrence, 1:03 to 1:04. 13-year-old William Boscia had the next fastest time—1:06—despite being in the previous heat. 14-year-old Elsa Wood doubled her win count with a 1:25, again ahead of 8-year-old Lianna Simmons in 1:31.

Also exciting was the 1600m, where a four-man pack traded off the lead for the first three-and-a-half laps before Curtis Mann threw down a blistering last 200 meters to win in 4:44, followed by 14-year-old Trent Thibault in 4:50, 16-year-old Thomas Stallone in 4:55, and Adrian Haws in 4:58. In the second pack, Liz Hartman ran an impressive 5:48 to win for the women, with 53-year-old Kim Jackson in the other heat laying down a strong 6:50 for second place. Also of note in the 1600m: 70-year-old Mike Homeyer in 7:36, 8-year-old David Tsyrennikov in 7:56, and 64-year-old Joseph Sullivan in 8:37. It’s a race for all ages!

The heat thinned out the relay ranks, but three teams still competed in the 4x200m, with Team Wood winning in 2:25, ahead of Team Hartman in 2:34 (with third runner Liz Hartman retaking the baton for the fourth leg after their anchor runner pulled a muscle halfway through), and Team Urazgildiiev in 3:10.

Once again, the meet was made possible thanks to the highly amiable and capable efforts of our dedicated volunteers. Carl Franck stepped up to serve as head timer for the first time and performed admirably. Tom Rishel and Adam Pacheck reprised their traditional roles as starter and bib recorder. Bill Watson served as head clerk for the last time before he decamps for Boston and some little university there—Harvard-something. He’ll be missed. Meet clerk Dave Kania was able to bend Meet Manager to his will thanks to an external battery pack that kept our computer running this time. Tonya Engst managed bib pickup and adroitly fielded runner questions. Heather Cobb managed backup timing and helped out in general, along with our additional timers Brittany Cronk, Josh Brockner, Laura Morse, Peter Frazier, and Andy Vautrin. Thanks, all, and I hope you enjoyed the post-race subs—yet another perk of volunteering!