Rookie Pete Breckenridge Surprised Everyone With Win at JFK 50, the Country's Largest Ultramarathon

Press Release

By E.P. Doyle, CVAC Media Liaison
 
Boonsboro-To-Williamsport, MD-- Former William & Mary standout Pete Breckinridge re-emerged after a decade-long competitive running retirement to shock a long list of favorites and win the largest ultramarathon foot race ever held on the North American continent at the 44th Annual JFK 50 Mile on November 18, 2006.
 
The 36 year old Breckinridge --the Colonial Athletic Association 10,000 meter runner-up way back in 1993-- was on none of the pre-race pundits short lists, or even their long lists for that matter.  The elite men's field included two-time JFK 50 Mile runner-up --and ultra legend-- Ian Torrence, reigning USATF 50 Mile Trail Champ Hal Koerner, 2000 Olympic Marathon Trialist John Pippott and 2006 Air Force Marathon Champ Mark Cucuzzella as well as a number of other potential winners with sub-6:00 50-Mile times on their resumes.  Breckinridge's modest prior accomplishments (2:35 marathon, 1:11 in the half-marathon and 31:32 10K) were neither overly-impressive or current.  His most recent PR performances dating no later than 1995.
 
As expected, Ian Torrence led through the difficult Appalachian Trail (15.5 mile) section of the course in a solid 1:56 with first-time ultra participant John Piggott just off his pace.  Once on the 26.3 mile flat towpath section of the course Piggott --the masters title winner of the Baltimore Marathon five weeks earlier-- quickly moved to the front and opened up a massive seven minute lead by the 24.8 mile aid station with the tandem of Koerner and Cucuzzella giving the closest chase.
 
Nine minutes off the lead at 15.5 miles -and 14th place-- a "way-under-the-radar" Breckinridge stepped on to the towpath and methodically started pulling in "name" after "name".  Over the next 14.6 miles he would mutate from "Also-Ran" to "Who Are You?" status.
 
By the 30.1 mile aid station, Piggott began to slow noticeably and looked vulnerable to Koerner and Albany, NY's first-time-fifty-miler James Sweeney who were quickly closing the gap on him.  But then suddenly just seconds behind Koerner and Sweeney came a flying Breckinridge who had covered the last 14+ miles a sub-6:40 per-mile-pace to pull into contention for the overall win.
 
No one amongst the spectators, media, race organizers or entourage handling the front running elites had any idea who this "number 844" was.  All that was known was that he was entered as a member of a team entitled "Old And In The Way" that comprised a group --besides himself-- of 46-to-53 year old current-non-elite athletes.  His entry form listed no 50-mile PR and a desperate quick "Google" on the internet brought up no enlightening information.  A check on the recording-lists at the previous points along the course verified that he wasn't some type of imposter and was perfectly executing a classic "cautious-across-the-mountains-and-then-go-to-work" JFK 50 Mile race strategy.
 
By the 34.4 mile aid station Breckinridge had overtaken Koerner and Sweeney and came into the aid station just seconds behind the struggling Piggott.  Then in a moment reminiscent of the baffled media personnel hanging out the window of the press bus at the 1976 Boston Marathon to ask the race leader  --a then unknown Jack Fultz-- "Who are you?", Breckinridge left the aid station in the lead.  A few minutes later a race official on a bicycle turned and asked Breckinridge that same question asked in Boston 30-years-ago, "Who are you?"
 
At the 38.5 mile aid station Andy Mason --a journalist covering the race and also a 6:51 JFK performer from 2005-- alerted race officials that Breckinridge was William & Mary product from the early 90s and that he had personally known him as a fraternity brother while he too was a student down at the Williamsburg, Virginia institution.  Mason also recounted that Breckinridge had been a member of "one of the best collegiate cross country teams in the country back then" and "was known for running bigger miles than anyone else on the team to compete with guys who were more physically talented than him."
 
The frontrunner of America's oldest and largest ultramarathon had now been "identified" and in spite of his "cover being blown" his dream of winning the JFK 50 Mile would not be denied.  Covering the towpath marathon (actually 26.3 miles) section of the course in 2:58, Breckinridge held strong down the final 8.4 mile road section.  Clocking the undulating section in just over 61-minutes, the Norfolk, VA resident breasted the tape in Williamsport with a most-impressive 6:04:40 maiden 50-mile effort.  The mark makes him the 16th fastest performer (17 best performance) in the storied history of the JFK 50 Mile.
 
The promising Sweeney (just 25 years of age) posted a 6:12:37 for second while Koerner grabbed the last prize money place in 6:19:52.  23-year-old Indiana University of Pennsylvania Graduate Student Adam Lint was 4th in 6:24:29 while Knoxville, Tennessee's Jon Lawler (43) --who was second overall at 42 miles-- rounded out the top-five and claimed the masters title as well in 6:25:01.
 
Fifty-year-old lawyer and mother of five, Barry Salisbury had last run the JFK 50 Mile in 2003 when as a 47-year-old she finished third overall amongst the ladies in a PR 7:57:08.  She returned this year to take a shot at the women's 50-and-over record (8:13:30) that was set by Pat Botts back in 1996.  She not only got the record she was after, but also a bit more "icing" on the cake as well as she became the oldest male or female to ever win the JFK 50 Mile.  The Middletown, Maryland resident assumed the lead for good from Canadian Susan Hutchinson at the final 8.4 mile road section and took the tape in 8:00:31.
 
Hutchinson (36) held on for the runner-up spot in 8:10:36 with fellow Canadian Victoria Baylis (35) filling the third podium position with a 8:23:05 clocking.
 
Age-group action was highlighted by a stunning record breaking performance in the men's 70-and-over division.  70-year-old Tony Cerminaro of Jermyn, PA crushed the previous record (9:47:45, Louis Joline, 2002) by over 38-minutes with a remarkable 9:09:00 effort.
 
1,017 official finishers crossed the finish line in Williamsport, Maryland.  This tally is historic on two counts.  First, it is the most number of finishers even in an ultramarathon footrace conducted in North America and secondly it --for the first time-- surpasses the "once-thought-ridiculous" 1,000 finisher landmark for a "beyond-the-marathon" foot race on this continent.
 
The 45th Annual JFK 50 Mile has been scheduled for November 17, 2007.  Entry forms and entry information will be available on the event's website (www.jfk50mile.org) on July 1, 2007.  The race reached its 1,100 "starter cap" well before race-day in each of the last two years and expects to fill-up early once again in 2007.