Milan getting back in stride after arthroscopic knee surgery

Running a marathon is one of the more daunting tasks in sports. It takes endurance, stamina, and miles of training runs.

Dan Milan of Brewer is quite familiar with those demands as he has finished seven marathons and is now meeting a new demand of overcoming an injury.

The 44-year-old Milan, a steady and consistent runner on the local road racing scene, had arthroscopic surgery in January on his right knee because of inflammation.

He started running again in April and got back on his six-day schedule toward the end of May.

Milan has run many long-distance races in his 10-year running career, which received a boost with a family visit to Arizona when his brother-in-law urged him to try a race. He got hooked and did a half-marathon in Tuscon in a time of 1 hour, 26 minutes.

Milan said that running is something everyone can get hooked on.

“My long-term goal is to keep running as long as I can, and to get other people involved,” he said. “It’s a lifetime thing, and I enjoy it.”

He started running after spending lots of time doing volunteer work.

“I wanted to do something for myself and started running at night,” Milan said.

He has logged lots of miles since and achieved a big goal by running in one of the more popular marathons in the world, the Boston Marathon, which he will run again next year.

“It’s a tough, challenging course, and ‘Heartbreak Hill’ lives up to it’s name,” he said. “It’s mainly flat and downhill after that, though.”

Milan is planning on running either the Maine Marathon in Portland or the MDI Marathon, which are two weeks apart in October. He’ll also be among a field of 5,000 in the People’s Beach to Beacon 10K, which he ran last year and is one of his favorite races.

He enjoys races in the Greater Bangor area as well, and looks forward to the Turkey Trot 5K in his hometown every year.

“It’s a special race, and I’ve improved on my time each year,” Milan said. “My main competition is Bob Snow, for top Brewer High parent.”

Milan tested his knee in two road races, the Walter Hunt Memorial 3K and Tour du Lac 10-mile race and said he is about 85 percent. He completed the Tour du Lac in 1:14:32, and the 3K in 11:32.

Sub 5 Scholarships awarded

Hampden Academy standouts Oriana Farley and MacKenzie Rawcliffe were recipients of the Sub 5 Track Club’s College Scholarships. The scholarships are worth $500, and funding came from proceeds from the Tour du Lac 10-miler in Bucksport. Race directors Fred and Joan Merriam dedicated the race to Fred’s mother, Doris Blackman Merriam, who died on June 20. More than $1,500 was donated in her memory.

The scholarships are awarded to graduating seniors who will continue their cross country or track careers in college.

Farley, who will attend Brown University in Providence, R.I., this fall, has notched 11 PVC and six state individual championships in four years. She specialized in mid-distance events. She will major in pre-med at Brown and will run both cross country and track and field.

Rawcliffe, who excelled in hurdling and jumping, holds six school records at Hampden and five individual state crowns. She’ll participate in track and field at Tufts University in Medford, Mass., where she’ll major in politics and law.

Meanwhile, Melissa MacAlister of Foxcroft Academy and Old Town’s Kendra Gould received running camp scholarships. They will both attend the Colby College Cross Country camp this month in Waterville.

Finishing Kick: Runners have a plethora of races to choose from this Saturday. The sixth Tremont 4-miler will start from the Tremont recreation building, with registration at 7 a.m. and race time at 8. In Hallowell, the Old Halowell Day 4-miler will be contested from City Hall at 8 a.m. You can also head to Yarmouth for the Pat’s Pizza Clam Festival 5-miler at 8 a.m., and the Maine Potato Blossom 5-miler will be run in Fort Fairfield, with registration at 7:30 a.m., walkers going off at 8:30 and runners at 9.