Broncos race back to HA for benefit Bishop Memorial pits alumni vs. students

loading...

Twenty years ago this summer, a member of the Hampden Academy cross-country family, Warren Bishop, was killed in a tragic car accident.

Two decades later, Broncos past and present, as well as a few others in the running community, gather on the same grounds Bishop competed on and honor him with a race of their own.

The 21st annual Warren Bishop Memorial Run, a late-August tradition at HA, will be run this Saturday on the school’s cross country course at 9 a.m.

Warren Bishop graduated from Hampden Academy in 1985, where he was a member of the cross-country and track and field teams.

The race is an attractive destination for HA alumni, including Brent Leighton, who makes the yearly journey from his home in Massachusetts.

“Brent called me a couple days ago to check on the race date. He’s planning on coming back,” said Hampden cross-country coach and race director Dick Balentine.

Balentine added that plenty of HA alums from the “past few years” plan on running, and their team will be matched up against the current Hampden cross-country team, which uses the event as a time trial.

“Most people that pre-register are local people,” Balentine said. “We’ve been averaging pretty good [numbers] over the past few years.”

The event also includes a 1.5-mile fun run, which consists of the 2.8-mile course’s first loop.

The course is a challenge. It starts in a soccer field, and after looping around the field, heads into a narrow woods trail where runners will face a steep incline roughly 150-200 meters long.

“It’s a very deceptive course, it seems pretty flat until you run it,” noted Balentine, who has 60 athletes out for cross-country this fall.

There’s only one other major hill on the course, but it’s a toughie. Slightly after the first mile, before runners head back toward the woods, another tough incline – this one short but quite steeper – will challenge even the finest runners.

The same hills come into play on the second loop, and coupled with unpredictable August heat, it makes this race challenging yet fun.

Fees for the event are $6 prior to race day and $8 on race day without a T-shirt, and $10 and $12, respectively, with a shirt.

All proceeds from the event will benefit the Warren Bishop Scholarship Fund, awarded yearly to male and female HA runners.

Molly Peverada and Aaron McCollough took the honors last year.

Registration forms are available at the school, and registration kicks off at 7:30 a.m. inside Hampden Academy.

Perry LeBreton and Peverada, a 2007 HA grad, were winners a year ago.

Contact Balentine at 862-4562 for more information.

Goode, Ganiel win Blueberry run

One-hundred and sixty-eight runners ventured to Machias last weekend to compete in the 32nd annual Machias Blueberry 5-mile run, and two former local high school stars took home victories.

Former Bangor and University of Maine runner Adam Goode, who has been on a hot streak as of late, beat out Erik McCarthy of Orono to win the men’s title in 26 minutes, 45 seconds. McCarthy finished in 26:51.

Meanwhile, in the women’s division, former Narraguagus of Harrington standout Gladys Ganiel returned to her Washington County roots to capture the women’s division.

Ganiel, who now teaches in Belfast, Northern Ireland, posted a time of 31:49, which was also good enough for 10th place overall.

Scenic 5-miler on tap

Options are limited as far as the local racing scene is concerned this weekend, but that limited option is a local favorite.

The 29th annual Northeast Harbor 5-miler, one of Maine’s longes-running races and one of the state’s more scenic events.

The picturesque course follows Somes Sound on Sargent Drive, which is the only fjord in the eastern United States.

The race starts at 9 a.m., while registration will be held at the Great Harbor Museum on Main Street. The fee is $20, and all proceeds benefit the Northeast Harbor Ambulance Company.