March 9 was a jam packed day on the East Lake Sammamish Trail, from Redmond to Issaquah. Read below for a summary of how everything went!

The LSRC Cheer Squad

The Flat and Fast Lake Sammamish Half Marathon was on March 9th and LSRC had a self-organized water station/cheer squad near mile #7 offering bottled water and gels to club members, and anybody else who requested it.  The goal of the crew-Krewe was to provide a truly mobile water and gel station for members on the run as the race was a cup-free event meaning official water stops would require fully stopping and filling a cup/bottle yourself.  We had about 10 members out beginning at 8am to cheer on the leaders and they stayed through the tail end of the racers with most of them heading off to the finish line to congratulate the finishers.  This race included many PRs by the members.

LSRC Member Results

(If you are a current member and your time is missing or you'd like to be removed from the list, please email board@lakesammamishrunclub.org.)

Runner	Finishing Time	Highlights
Steve Dion	1:12:16	Stellar race! 8th overall!
Matt Williamson	1:16:41	Super PR! Stellar race!
Zach Fung	1:16:47	75s PR! Stellar race!
Hongzhao Han	1:18:19	Super PR! Stellar race!
Glen Weissman	1:20:03	3rd AG! Stellar race!
Flo Boulanger	1:28:30	PR! Stellar race
Rhea George	1:29:20	Age group PR! Stellar race!
Molly Ha	1:31:55	Great rust buster race!
David Levin	1:32:59	PR! Stellar Race!
Steve Harris	1:33:11	Ran with/pacing Danielle
Danielle Henty	1:33:12	1st AG! Stellar race!
Mike Williamson	1:33:15	PR! Stellar race!
Catherine Williams	1:35:42	Ran this as a workout!
Peter Averill	1:36:51	PR! Stellar race!
Shy Vn	1:37:21	Stellar race! (PR?)
Becky Backstrom	1:37:51	1st AG! Ran 8 more miles after!
Randi Huo	1:43:56	Ran with/pacing Ben with Aimee
Aimee Nogoy	1:43:56	Ran with/pacing Ben with Randi
Ben Ha	1:43:56	PR!(?) Stellar race!
Joy Chan	1:48:31	PR! Stellar race!
Paula Murray	1:49:14	PR! Stellar race!
Mary Blake	1:57:28	Ran with/pacing Nina and just coming back!
Nina Tang	1:58:06	Super PR – first sub 2! Stellar race!
Michele Gurnsey	1:58:07	Ran with/pacing Nina and just coming back!
Caitlin Huotilainen	1:58:25	Stellar Race! (PR?)
Lillian Bowler	2:01:00	Stellar Race! (PR?)
Alan Sharp	2:15:48	Stellar Race! Stayed out of the pain cave!

Race Recap by Joy Chan

The morning of the Lake Sammamish Half dawned partly cloudy and mild, with the slightest of southerly breezes. After many days of obsessively checking forecasts, it seems runners had lucked out – the wind and rain predicted for the day was not to arrive until the early afternoon. Downtown Redmond was filled with an energy unusual for a Saturday morning, as scores of runners made their way to the start at Redmond Central Connector Park. Despite the number of people converging into such a small area, without music or announcements, it seemed too quiet for an event of its size. 

Club members converged at Redmond Downtown Park at 7 AM for photos and pre-race well-wishes. With 30 minutes until the start, most people headed off to finish their warmup, gear check, or the bathrooms, pre-occupied with their own thoughts. As people rushed to the start, they learned the race was going to be delayed by 10 minutes due to the long bathroom lines (which we later learned was due to an arsonist burning down a good number of the rented portable toilets). 

After what seemed much longer than ten minutes, the crowd started to move forward towards the yellow start arch; for people not in the front, this felt a bit sudden and the announcement would have been helpful. Sixteen hundred runners made their way across the tiny Redmond park and began the one-way journey towards Issaquah. 

The first mile was chaotic with the trail getting out of Downtown Redmond being fairly narrow for 1600 people. Even once on the Sammamish River Trail, the normally wide bike bath seemed to shrink. It was a lose-lose: Passing people took energy people wanted to conserve, but going too slow meant needing to make up a lot of time later. Fortunately the participants seemed to spread out through Marymoor Park, and by the time runners hit the East Lake Sammamish Trail (ELST), it was a little bit easier navigating the crowd. This was the longest stretch of the race, spanning a total of eight miles from the eastern edge of Marymoor Park to the southern corner of Lake Sammamish State Park. Bordered by lake views and large homes on the right, the ELST completed paving just five months previously, creating a continuous, flat route connecting Redmond to Issaquah. This was what runners had been looking forward to for many years – no more gravel surfaces, detours onto the road, or a moderate hill in the middle. Just a flat, fast course in arguably the best time of year for a half-marathon. 

Seven miles into the race, the LSRC cheer station came into view. With volunteers holding signs, providing water and shouts of encouragement, and ringing cowbells, it was an especially welcome sight at the point where races of this length could start becoming difficult. Thank you, Nelson, Daniel, Karen, Edwin, Jaime, Shawn, Jordan (and anyone we may have missed) – you guys were awesome out there! 

Finally the ELST came to an end and runners turned right towards Lake Sammamish State Park. This was the first turn in eight miles and welcomed as the breeze was a little stronger in Issaquah. Upon entering the park, runners navigated through the final ¾ miles – a graveled maintenance road, narrow park trails bulging upwards in hazardous spots from tree roots beneath, and a final turn that revealed the finish line a little too late. In total, at least 27 LSRC members completed the race, with over half of them setting new personal bests. 

Despite the shaky start, it was a great day overall. The weather held, the course cooperated, and we celebrated our accomplishments. Most importantly, we supported each other and had fun!

LSRC once again competed in the annual Winter Challenge, a competition between running groups and between individual runners as a way to motivate getting outside and being active during the low temps, and this year we did get some very low temps, of January.  LSRC team won the 2023 Challenge in grand fashion and in 2024 with a smaller team placed 2nd in both total miles with over 6400, and average miles at 195/runner.  LSRC members made out for at least 8 of the top 20 in total mileage with President Zach taking 6th overall logging a staggering 391 miles followed by David L in 9th with 343 and Daniel B in 11th with 328 miles.  Even long time member David A got in the game logging his 296 miles from the beautiful countryside, and cities, in Turkey.  

We plan to continue in 2025 so be on the lookout come December to participate.  

A great time was had by all at our 2023 annual meeting and holiday party.  A warm welcome to our newly elected board members Daniel Bannon, Aimee Nogoy, and André Udovenkø.  You can learn more about them on their board profiles.  A big thanks to our outgoing board members Stanley Chen, Randi Hou, and Sophia Liu.  Their efforts were invaluable in making this club as great as it is today.

- By Joy Chan

Link to full photo album

The morning of the USATF Pacific Northwest Open and Masters XC Championships dawned cool and crisp, a respite from the steady rains earlier in the week. Lincoln Park in West Seattle is a favorite among local XC venues, especially in the fall with the park ablaze in yellows and orange and the faint scent of the Salish Sea drifting lazily up from the beach below.  

The XC Championship consisted of three races: Open and Masters Women’s 6K at 9:30 AM, Masters Men’s 8K at 10:15 AM, and Open Men’s 10K at 11:15 AM. Excitement grew as LSRC team members gradually arrived for the morning’s races. We quickly set up camp near the finish chute – many thanks to Mike Williamson and Paula Murray for loaning the use of a second tent to shelter runners and provide space for team gear. Paula and Joy Chan – LSRC’s only two women at the meet – did the first recon of the 2K loop course. To their surprise, the expected puddles and mud after days of rain were largely non-existent, probably due to the abundant tree cover. The ground was firm, footing was secure, and the only hill was short and small. It was going to be a fast day, whether you ran three, four, or five loops. 

This year we had a combined total of 15 runners (two women and 13 men) across all LSRC teams. Despite not having enough women to form a scoring Open or Masters team (we will improve next year!), Paula and Joy both put in excellent efforts and ran XC 6K season bests. The Masters and Open Men’s teams saw strong performances from all runners, with both teams placing third in their respective divisions despite stiff competition; this earned the Open Men’s team $100 in a cash prize. The full team and individual results are posted below. Congratulations to everyone who raced! 

Although the races seemed – on paper, at least – to be spread out across a long morning, between the warmups, cheering for each other on course, and cooldowns to visit Bruun Idun, time flew as quickly as our feet. We had a ton of fun supporting each other on a gorgeous autumn day, and could not have asked for a better end to LSRC’s 2023 XC season. Thank you to everyone who took part in the meets and supported logistics, from organizing carpools, showing up early or staying late to help with setup and takedown, or providing goodies to share. Until next season! 

Women’s Open and Masters 6K Team Results 

1. Club Northwest (17) 

2. Unattached (50) 

3. Seattle Running Club (68) 

Men’s Masters 8K Team Results 

1. Club Northwest (17) 

2. Seattle Running Club (46) 

3. Lake Sammamish Run Club (79) 

Men’s Open 10K Team Results 

1. Club Northwest (15) 

2. Bellingham Distance Project (57) 

3. Lake Sammamish Run Club (67)

By Paula Murray

Photo Credit: Jianfeng Cai

LSRC Cross Country men’s and women’s teams were back at it this past Saturday, competing at Club Northwest’s annual Emerald City Open at Lower Woodland Park in Seattle.

Conditions were sunny and humid, with little-to-no wind. The men’s race was fast and furious and while the other 6 teams outscored us, there were impressive performances and point scoring by each LSRC member on this very challenging course.

Click here for high resolution photos with special thanks to Jianfeng Cai who was also one of the photographers at the Redmond Harvest Half!

Men's Team Results:

1. Club Northwest (30)
2. Western Washington (53)
3. Central Washington (75)
4. Seattle Pacific (87)
5. Trolltown Trotters (134)
6. Seattle Running Club (174)
7. Lake Sammamish Run Club (190)

The women ran second, and by this time the sun was out in full force. Once again, every member scored points – the women’s team managed to place 5^th out of 7, beating out Olympia College and Seattle Running Club thanks to successfully fielding a full 5-member roster.

Women's Team Results:

1. Western Washington (28)
2. Seattle Pacific (48)
3. Central Washington (83)
4. Club Northwest (84)
5. Lake Sammamish Run Club (153)
6. Olympic College (155)
7. Seattle Running Club (DNS)
   

We appreciate everyone who came out to run! Here are the individual results:

6K	Time	Points scored	Highlights
Molly Ha	26:41.0	19	Great performance in the lead!
Randi Huo	30:01.4	30	Good job powering through the heat for a strong finish!
Joy Chan	32:14.4	33	Nice work on the hills (and it was ALL hills!)
Paula Murray	33:11.8	34	Nice work getting back on track after a few wrong turns!
Nidhi Hooda	40:55.0	37	First CC race ever, great job!
8K	Time	Points scored	Highlights
Chris Vo	30:26.9	31	Nice work leading the team!
Zach Fung	31:38.5	34	Great run and massive PR on this course!
Ben Bush	32:30.5	36	Solid performance and great finish!
Mike Williamson	36:26.0	44	Great passing throughout the race!
David Levin	38:47.3	45	Strong finish, great work staying in front of runners from 3 other clubs!

By Mike Williamson

LSRC makes a fine showing at the Nike Twilight XC race on Cedarcrest Golf Course. Everyone had their own story to tell on the twisty, turny, uppy, downy, oft congested course. But I'm sure we all would agree, we had a blast. Sounds like there was a course PR for at least one of us, and Molly Ha brought home 1st overall for the women! Nice job everyone!

Full race report and phot album:  https://www.strava.com/clubs/935966/posts/25820846

By Paula Murray

Several members of the club traveled to Bellingham for the 49^th Annual WWU Bill Roe Cross Country Classic on September 23 at Lake Padden Park. This is a competitive meet, featuring top college talent in the region.

Lake Sammamish Run Club brought 6 men and 5 women, allowing us to field full teams for both the 6K women’s race and the 8K men’s race. Although there was no master’s division, our upper age groups were well-represented.

The weather was cool and cloudy for the start of the women’s race. The LSRC team got to the line with not a moment to spare before roll call, adding some pre-race excitement for the fans. Our front runners made some impressive passing throughout the race. Every member scored points, resulting in our placing just ahead of Hawai'i Hilo and beating out 3 teams who were unable to field full rosters.

Women's Team Results:

1. University of Victoria (54)
2. Western Washington (72)
3. Saint Martin's (94)
4. Simon Fraser (112)
5. Alaska Fairbanks (117)
6. Club Northwest (152)
7. Alaska Anchorage (173)
8. Seattle Pacific (188)
9. Trinity Western (219)
10. Central Washington (275)
11. Lake Sammamish Run Club (330)
12. Hawai'i Hilo (347) 

The LSRC men were ready at the line, just in time for a dramatic increase in wind speeds of up to 14 mph – making for a fast start and some challenging headwinds on the early loops. Our two front runners were involved in an early stumble, but it did not slow them down and solid performances were delivered by the whole team. Some excellent strategies were employed throughout the race, and points were scored by every member. While the men’s team placed last, they edged out 3 teams lacking full rosters – underscoring the value of all who showed up to race for LSRC.

Men's Team Results:

1. Western Washington (47)
2. Alaska Anchorage (62)
3. Simon Fraser (85)
4. Victoria (93)
5. Club Northwest (149)
6. Premature Acceleration (155)
7. Saint Martin's (206)
8. Seattle Pacific (244)
9. Central Washington (254)
10. Alaska Fairbanks (282)
11. Seattle Running Club (384)
12. Lake Sammamish Run Club (403)

Great work by everyone who participated! Here are the individual results:

6K	Time	Points scored	Highlights
Aimee Nogoy	25:44.7	56	Great teamwork at the lead!
Molly Ha	25:45.8	57	Way to pass and score!
Randi Huo	28:50.0	70	Great job staying ahead of Hawaii for the win!
Joy Chan	31:39.8	73	Great job crushing hills – strong finish!
Paula Murray	32:00.2	74	Nice work scoring points, even after overrunning the warmup!
8K	Time	Points scored	Highlights
Matthew Williamson	29:51.5	70	Nice work leading the team!
Zach Fung	30:15.8	71	Great job overcoming a slip and scoring
John Nguyen	33:49.8	74	First CC race ever, great job!
Mike Williamson	34:49.9	75	Way to hold off 2 other team’s runners for points!
David Levin	36:48.5	77	Great teamwork David & John! Way to score and hold off another team’s runner!
John Westworth	36:48.5	78

 

Congratulations to all finishers of the inaugural Redmond Harvest Half Marathon, put on jointly by LSRC and Seattle United Runners! We had over 300+ finishers on Labor Day Monday, and saw many fast times and PRs on course. Individual results may be found at: redmondharvesthalf.com/results and photos may be found at: redmondharvesthalf.com/photos. Check out the great albums by SU photographers!

It took many months to get this race off the ground and to race day, and we honestly could not have done it without a lot of volunteer help. We had over 60 volunteers day of, not including family and friends who also pitched in last minute. Many thanks to all our volunteers for their time and energy! I especially want to call out the following:

- The race planning committee, which consisted (from LSRC) of Jordan Andersen, Zach Fung, Nelson La, Sophia Liu, and Stanley Chen; and (from SU)

- Jeff Cao, Mei Chen, Yingwei Liu, and Dan Wu. We worked together closely these past 6 months to get to race day.

- Nina Tang, 60 Acres Aid Station Captain, for (on very short notice) driving my car with supplies down to start and back home when we realized everything was not going to fit in Jordan's van. You guys already had a busy weekend but got up at 5AM anyway to help set up before going to your aid stations.

- Shawn Pearce, 60 Acres Aid Station Captain, for bringing coffee to the volunteers at the start and aid stations. I don't drink straight coffee, but I'm sure many appreciated this!

- Brian Lee, who selflessly stopped while on his way to start to help Zach finish putting up all the course markings. Even with both of them, we barely got the markings up in time. (Brian, I feel terrible you missed the gun because of this.)

- John Nguyen and André Udovenkø, who worked double shifts in the morning when we realized we needed more hands to help set up the start. Thanks for showing up on such short notice!

- Skye Pazuchanics, who worked a double shift as course monitor on the Leary Way Bridge after the second shift volunteers no-showed. She didn't need to, but supported everyone until the very end (I hope your cowbell blister is better!).

- Catherine Williams, who arrived at the start ready to help however she could! I was so glad to have your help on the random little things that kept popping up, and especially for helping with our younger volunteer!

I've been a participant, volunteer, and race committee member, so am no stranger to events. But, there was something really special about seeing everyone and everything come together for the first time on race day. To see so many running friends and acquaintances lining up with excitement and anticipation, and doing their very best. To have so many people support their friends, family, and community through volunteering. To see so many people from different clubs and backgrounds laughing and enjoying the day, together. Running - and sport in general - truly can unite us, and show others the best version of ourselves. To me, that was the true reward of being a part of this inaugural event, and I hope we can keep that spirit going for many more years to come.

Every year, the Redmond High School puts on a 5k on a Cross Country style course where community members get to race with the Redmond Cross Country runners. This year there was a little bit of wildfire smoke in the air, but that did not put a damper on the amount of fun we had! The course was a little bit different and simpler than it had been previously, but the same trails were used. Results can be found here: 

https://www.redmondxctf.com/

While it really wasn't a day for PR's it certainly was for Pies & Pints! A 4th of July tradition in Carnation is the 5k race for pies where top three in each age category receive a pie of their choosing from the Remlinger Farm store. Temperatures were starting to climb during the race on this bright sunny day, making the post run beer or soda that much more rewarding for all the participants. Special Thanks to Randi Huo for taking photos of everyone as they crossed the finish line!

Women	Time	Highlight
Michele Gurnsey	22:16	Great run! Tough age category!
Skye Pazuchanics	22:27	First 5k in a while for Skye. Pie!
Joy Chan	24:43	Great run! Pie!
Mary Buchanan	26:04	Great run! Pie hopefully next time!
Tanya Wicht	29:04	Just getting back into it since Eugene
Nina Tang	30:02	A routine run for Nina!
Jolanta Thorburn	36:15	Probably had the most fun!
Men	Time	Highlight
Jordan Andersen	16:39	6th Overall, Pie!
Eric Gentry	17:16	Great run! Pie!
Ben Bush	17:35	Great run! Tough age category!
Glen Weissman	17:57	Great run! Pie!
Guanyu Wang	20:27	Nursing an ankle injury. Heal up soon!
Stanley Chen	20:46	Just starting up Chicago Training!
Peter Averill	20:52	Great run! Pie!
Daniel Bannon	21:27	Great run! Pie!
Zach Fung	21:39	Taking it easy. Will be back for pie next year!
Doug Sippy	23:59	Great run! Pie hopefully next time!
Shawn Pierce	24:39	Great run! Pie hopefully next time!
Derrick Tetzman	27:19	Welcome to LSRC! Come back for pie next year!
Alan Sharp	29:09	Great run! Pie hopefully next time!