Farley and Mays win 12th Deloitte-Ogier BVI Half Marathon

December 4, 2017 by

Source: BVI News

54 runners took part in the Deloitte-Ogier BVI Half Marathon on December 3, the first race in the BVI since Hurricane Irma. Photo: Dean “the Sportsman” Greenaway

Julius Farley and Maria Mays made it to the top of the podium in the 12th annual Deloitte-Ogier BVI Half Marathon, sweeping major trophies and other prizes on the way.

Farley won the event in a time of 1.32.06 competing in the male category, while Mays stopped the clock in a time of 1.54.01 competing in the female category.

Reuben Stoby came in second behind Farley in a time of 1.38.38 and Paul Mellor, third place in 1.41.12.

Karen Figser came in at number two in the female category with 1.58.48 and Rosemond Johnson third with 2.01.29.

The event which was held on Sunday,December 3 saw runners charting a new course, beginning and ending at the Tortola Sports Club (TSC) in Pasea Estate. Runners had to go through Road Town into Sea Cows Bay and back, while the 10k race was from the gate at Sensus car park at Manuel Reef and back.

Following the prize-giving ceremony, the two top runners in the male category shared their views of the race:

“I just went out and run my normal race and managed to make it,” Farley remarked. “Today was kind of hot but we managed to complete it. Despite the hurricane and the cancellation of so many other races we were able to pull off this one today.”
He has been a participant for four years now.

Reuben Stoby also was pleased of his second place victory. “It was a wonderful race! Julius and I have been battling in Road Racing in pretty much in every way; 5k, 2 miles, 10k and the half marathon and today he was really strong.”

A total of three teams participated- KPMG 1, KPMG 2 and Governor’s Beauties.

In the 10k, Gillian Plaxton won in the female category, while in the male, Andrew Fraser won.

In  second place in the male category was Phil Nelson, and in the third was Neil Day.

In the female category, Vanessa King came second followed by Jane Thorpe.

Director of the BVI Runners, Kay Reddy says due to the 6am curfew, the race began at 7 when the sun was already up making it a hot run.

Additionally, she explained that organizers had considered scrapping the race which was the first to be held post-Hurricane Irma.

“We were absolutely delighted because this year after [Hurricane] Irma we decided not to do any formal race,” said Reddy.  “We decided to have a little home race this year, just to do it casually, just for fun, just to see how people feel. I had planned for about 30 runners and I am absolutely delighted to note that 54 signed up. So it was a great race given the circumstances. The race turned out better than anticipated.”

Reddy also promised a full racing schedule next year.

Filed Under: Athletics Tagged With: , ,

Fall road racing resumes with Stoby, Mays winning

September 13, 2016 by
Fall road racing began in Carrot Bay with Saturday's Ceres Juices 10K Series race #3. PHOTO: Dean "The Sportsman" Greenaway

Fall road racing began in Carrot Bay with Saturday’s Ceres Juices 10K Series race #3. Photo: Dean “The Sportsman” Greenaway

Ahead of the 21st College Classic Series opener on Sept 17, fall road racing on Tortola resumed with Saturday’s Ceres Juices 10K Series in Carrot Bay, where Reuben Stoby and Maria Mays were the respective male and female winners.

Stoby covered the rain affected course from Carrot Bay to Smugglers Cove and return in 42 minutes and 26 seconds, after overhauling Guy Williamson who finished in 42.29.

“I didn’t let up on my training during the summer, I continued to do a lot of long runs in the morning so I was feeling very good, but once I notice the wet conditions, I didn’t really worry about a fast time and just tried to take the win,” Stoby explained. “Guy was leading throughout the race. I tried to make some surges but he wouldn’t let me pass. I let him continue and was able to pass him on Long Bay Hill. I wanted to finish a little faster-I didn’t-so I was trying to finish in good form.”

Williamson went out quicker than he usually does and said it was because he took a break from running over the summer.
“But, I really enjoyed the course,” he said. “Its the first race I did when I arrived three years ago and I remember Reuben kindly letting me win that one,” he recalled. “It’s a beautiful course and we had nice conditions for a nice cool race compared to the weather during the rest of the week and it was good to give Reuben a bit of a challenge at the end.”

Women’s Division winner, Maria Mays didn’t have a particular goal in mind for her race. “I nearly stayed in bed because of the weather so I just came out and thought it would be nice to run,” she said. “We just set off and Kat (Katrina Crumpler) and Melissa (Brunner) were with me, which is always nice to have company then the competitive streak kicked in and I thought I could go so I did.”

The course which included two major climbs in and out of Long Bay was hard though, Mays said. “Zebalon (McLean) and Kat were right behind me and I thought they were going to catch me,” she reflected. “I didn’t ease off until the last corner and I knew they weren’t immediately behind me, but, it was a lovely race.”

The next race is scheduled for Beef Island on Oct 8.

Final Results.

Men: 1. Reuben Stoby, 42 minutes and 26 seconds. 2. Guy Williamson, 42:29.  3. Zebalon Mclean, 47:27.  4. Guyp Dubois, 48:14. 5. Ben Mays, 53:22.  6. Adrian Dale, 54:45.  7. Dennis Versoza, 56:55.  8. Claudius Rhymer, 59:01.  9. Sergio Dantas, 1:00:01.  10. Rauiri Bourke, 1:02:36.  11. Dennis Delacruz, 1:03:36.  12. Howard Moore, 1:08:47.

Women: 1. Maria Mays,45:06. 2. Katrina Crumpler, 47:37. 3. Melissa Brunner, 49:26.  4. Katrina Lindsay, 52:36.  5. Melisande Rowe, 54:59.  6. Rosmond Johnson, 55:05. 7. Juliane Potgieter, 55:43. 8. Sarah Hayes, 55:44. 9. Karen Fraser, 55:51. 10.  Saungie Liburd, 58:30. 11. Debbie Bell, 58:31.  12. Patricia Snoei, 1:00:10.  13. Rachael Mayo-Smith, 1:01:27.  14. Karrina Stead, 1:02:12.  15.=  Kay Reddy, Anna Kinkead, 1:05:36. 17. Simpa Ganadillo, 1:12:28.  18. Mary Macayanan, 1:13:58.  19. Brenda Pickering, 1:14:30.  20. Nedy Ador Dionicio, 1:15:01.  21. Rovelyn Dimaala, 1:18:26.   22. Christane Matos, 1:18:52.  23. Clair Burke, 1:20:30.  24. Cayley Smit

Walkers:1. Shirley Liburd  2= Sophie Bennett, Sylvie Hune, Guy Hune.

Filed Under: Athletics Tagged With: , ,

Farley Upsets Stoby In Ceres Juices 10k Series Opener

June 14, 2016 by

By BVI Athletics Association

Julius Farley breaks the tape in winning the Ceres Juices 10K Series opener. PHOTO: Dean "The Sportsman" Greenaway

Julius Farley breaks the tape in winning the Ceres Juices 10K Series opener. Photo: Dean “The Sportsman” Greenaway

When he entered the A. O. Shirley Grounds after a see saw battle through the streets of Road Town, Julius Farley kept looking back, just incase he had to dig a little deeper. It wasn’t necessary as he had created enough separation between himself and challenger Reuben Stoby, to break the tape in Saturday’s Ceres Juices 10K Series Opener in 39 minutes and 24 seconds-much to his surprise-for his first victory of the season over his rival, who had been dominating the road racing scene.

“I just tried to run my race and ended up squeezing out a victory so I just want to give thanks to the creator for giving me the strength and the endurance that I could have been able to push on through,” said Farley who began challenging Stoby one mile into the 6.2 miles race. “I saw that he made several attempts (to break away) but I just managed to pick it up when I saw him coming, so I was able to make it through.”

Stoby congratulated Farley on running a steady race. “He ran a very good race and was steady in his pace and 39, I think this is the first time anyone has run under 40 on this course-it’s a tough course bearing in mind the heat at well,” said Stoby who finished in 39:38. “I have to give it to him. He came out very strong today. I tried to keep up hoping to hold on to the finish waiting to see what I had in the legs for a kick, but it didn’t happen. I wasn’t feeling so strong so I allowed him to set the pace and he went a little faster than I anticipated, so congratulations to Julius.”

Maria Mays won the women’s division in 45:41. “It’s the first 10K race I’ve done in ages so I’m delighted to be running it again and even more delighted to have won it,” Mays said. “I was really pleased with the Virgin Gorda 10Ks -I won both of those- and the Half Marathon, so I know that I was on reasonable form. But, you just never know.”

Final results
Men:
1. Julius Farley, 39 minutes and 24 seconds.  2. Reuben Stoby, 39:38. 3. Guy Williamson, 43:33.  4. Adrian Dale, 46:46.  5. Zebalon Mclean, 47:18.  6. Dan Mitchell, 47:35.  7. Guyp Dubois, 48:39.  8. Shane Donovan, 49:41.  9. Owen Walker, 51:41. 10. Charles Kerins, 52:33. 11. Aaron Gardner, 52:52.  12. Dennis Versoza, 53:55. 13. Simen Malmin, 54:29. 14. James Drury, 54:32.  15. William Hare, 55:48.  16. Claudius Rhymer, 56:12.  17. Gary Salter,57:28. 18. Sergio Dantas, 58:06. 19. Ruairi Bourke, 59:44. 20. Gabriel Obregon, 1:00:58.  21. Dennis Delacruz, 1:01:20.  22. Laurent Keeble-Buckle, 1:03:05. 23. Luke Plummer, 1:04:22.  24. Howard Moore, 1:07:26. 25. Nik Fox, 1:11:39.  26. Jim Cullimore, 1:16:45.

Women:
1. Maria Mays, 45:41.2.  Melissa Brunner, 47:47.  3. Claudia Ferrari, 52:24.  4. Rosmond  Johnson 52.47.  5.  Melisande Rowe, 53:15. 6. Lauren Julien, 55:34. 7. Saungie Liburd, 56:35.  8. Cayley Smit, 58:27. 9. Philomena Robertson, 59:18. 10. Debbie Bell, 59:57. 11. Karrina Stead, 1:03:17. 12. Vanessa King, 1:03:45. 13. Nedy Ador Dionicio, 1:10:52. 14. Claire Santillan, 1:14:30. 15. Simpa Ganadillo, 1:16:00. 16. Roslyn Gilbert.

Power Walkers: 1.= Sophie Bennett, Peter Reichenstein. 1:43:00. 3.= Linda Li, Sylvie Hune, Guy Hune, 1:43:40. 2-Mile Assault Course, 1. Clair Burke, 20.00.

4-Mile Course: 1. Olwyn Barry, 40:06. 2. Brandon Menton, 40.10.  2. Barry Leon, 1:00:01.

Youth One Mile: Girls: 1. Z’Hara McLean, 12:19.  2.  Ava Ghiorse, 12:50.

Boys: 1. Eli Ghiorse, 7.00. (400m)

Filed Under: Athletics Tagged With: , , ,

Stoby, Mays tune up for Virgin Gorda Half Marathon with victories

May 2, 2016 by

By BVI Athletics Association

Runners take off on the second half of the Virgin Gorda Half Marathon course during Saturday's Dive BVI 10K series finale, which was a tune up for the event. Photo: Todd VanSickle

Runners take off on the second half of the Virgin Gorda Half Marathon course during Saturday’s Dive BVI 10K series finale, which was a tune up for the event. Photo: Todd VanSickle

Reuben Stoby and Maria Mays were the top male and female finishers in the Dive BVI 10k Series finale of May 1- the final tune up for the 5th annual Virgin Gorda Half Marathon and Six Miles Challenge which will take place on May 14.

Stoby led the field that included 18 participants from Tortola out of the 38 on the second segment of the course in the Valley. Running along the route with vistas of the historic Copper Mine and the world renowned Baths and scenic views of the outer islands, St. John and Tortola, Stoby finished in 41 minutes and 53 seconds. Mays, the top woman covered the course in 47:41.

“I think my time is pretty decent,” said Stoby who had Guy Williamson breathing down his neck last year when he ran 40:19 and Williamson, 40:59. “But, I’m happy with the time ahead of the Half Marathon.”

Stoby who ran 46:14 over the first half of the course – including the first six miles up to Nail Bay two weeks ago – said both races were important in his preparations for the May 14 race.

“Definitely, to re-familiarize yourself with the course as I did last year as well, but, thanks to the 5k series as well, that has been helping me to get in shape as well,” he noted. “But, it hasn’t been anything too special leading up to the Half Marathon.”

Mays said that in the first tune up on April 11, she was looking at it as preparation for the Tortola Torture and not the Virgin Gorda Half Marathon and six Miles Challenge. “That was the big scary thing in the way that I couldn’t see past, but this race today, like Reuben said, it was great to see the course again,” she said. “It’s just fantastic coming to Virgin Gorda. It’s three or so weeks between them (Tortola Torture and Virgin Gorda Half Marathon) so this race was really important to keep on the game.”

With so many races on Tortola and Virgin Gorda to choose from, staying healthy is everyone’s goal. Stoby, however, runs in all of them. “I know when to push and when not to, but, it’s wonderful just to be running and keeping fit all the time,” he pointed out.

Mays on the other hand, described herself as ‘pathetic’ and not really competitive. “I wish I was, but, I always just think ‘I’ll do it and see how I do’ and then 3/4s  of the way, ‘maybe I can do this’, so I’m trying to find that little element. I think Reuben’s got it.”

Final results:

Male: Reuben Stoby, 41 minutes and 53 seconds. 2.  Julius Farley, 43:28. 3.  Curwin Andrews, 48:47. 4. Brian Davis, 50:21. 5. Adrian Dale, 51:32. 6.  Zebalon McClean, 52:35. 7.  Ishwar Persaud, 52:59. 8. Gabriel Obregon, 55 :05. 9. Marlon Felix, 55:29. 10.  Gus Faller, 56:41. 11. Patrick Ormond, 56:47. 12. Mahinda Ratnayake, 58:24. 13. Dennis Versoza, 59:53. 14.   Aaron Gardner, 1:00.11. 15. Damien Parry, 1:02.31. 16. Teejay Torres, 1:05.37.  17. Andy Miller,  1:13.55. 18. Dan Starling, 1:17.59.

Female: 1. Maria Mays, 47:41. 2. Melissa Brunner, 51:40. 3. Kim Takeuchi, 54:11. 4. Katleen Brownsdon, 55:02. 5. Rosmond Johnson, 55:05. 6. Katie Goodwin, 56:41. 7.  Josie Ratnayake, 58:24. 8. Becca Knight, 58:45. 9. Kay Reddy, 1:00.10. 10. Lucy Smith, 1:01.18. 11. Lindsay Fogarty, 1:05:01. 12. Sara Mc 1:06.34. 13. Gretel Honis, 1:13:55. 14. Tara Murphy, 1:14.34. 15.  Nedy Ador, 1:14.42. 16. Clair Burke, 1:14.44. 17. Angie Bester, 1:17.59. 19. Chris Yates, 1:29.44.

DNF: Emily Drinkwater & Brendan O’Reilly.

Filed Under: Athletics Tagged With: , , , ,

Stoby, Mays Lead Virgin Gorda Half Marathon Tune Up

April 12, 2016 by
PHOTO: Dean "The Sportsman" Greenaway

PHOTO: Dean “The Sportsman” Greenaway

By BVI Athletics Association

Reuben Stoby and Maria Mays led the field of 33 participants in the men and women’s divisions respectively, during the first of two Dive BVI 10K Series races on Saturday, which are a tune up for the 5th Virgin Gorda Half Marathon and 6 Mile Challenge on May 14.

Stoby ran the race over the first half of the Half Marathon course with a trek out to Nail Bay and the notorious ‘beast’ in 46 minutes and 14 seconds. Mays was timed in 51.16 in the women’s division.

“We had directional on the road so that everyone would know where to turn so that for the Half Marathon, they are on their game and knew exactly where to go,” explained race director Casey McNutt. “We had 17 people from Tortola that came over to gauge what they are going to experience in the Half. Right now, we have 72 pre registered for the Half Marathon and 6 Mile Challenge. We are leaps and bounds a little over a month out from where we were last year. We have a tremendous amount coming from the U.S. Virgin Islands with 28 preregistered so far, so it’s really nice to see them coming over.”

Saturday’s race came ahead of the upcoming early bird preregistration period that end on Friday. McNutt said the early bird cut off is where participants can register for $60 before the fee goes up to $70 from April 16. The $40 fee for the 6 Miles Challenge will increase to $50.

“We have an amazing kit for all the participants, the race bags are awesome and we’ll have a lot of great merchandise on sale at the Half Marathon Festival,” she said. “This is our fifth anniversary and we’re really excited bout it. It has gotten better every year. So we’re hoping that people take advantage of the early registration and book early.”

The next 10K will cover the last 6.2 miles of the course including taking in vistas of historic Copper Mine and the renowned Baths, on April 30.”

Final results. Men: 1. Reuben Stoby, 46:14. 2. Julius Farley, 48:51. 3. Curwin Andrews, 50:56. 4. Vincent Fournier, 51:50. 5. Alan Cundall, 53:56. 6. Ben Mays, 57:19. 7. Dennis Versoza. 1:07:25, 8. Ryan Everett, 1:08:57. 9. Luke Plummer, 1:09:44. 10. Paul Hubbard, 1:17:47. 11. Zebalon McLean, 1:22:33. 12. Tim Backlund, 1:25:24. 13. John Hudspeth, 1:34:19.

Women: 1. Maria Mays, 51:16. 2. Rosmond Johnson, 57:59. 3. Kat Brownsdon, 1:01:11. 4. Anna Gillham, 1:01:44. 5. Kay Reddy, 1:03:15. 6. Becca Knight, 1:06:19. 7. Kim Takeuchi, 1:10:18. 8. Debbie Bell, 1:10:33. 9. Sarina Hancock, 1:12:59. 10. Tiffanie Houston, 1:17:36. 11. Jude Holmes, 1:17:47. 12. Clair Burke, 1:19:01. 13. Nedy Adordionicio, 1:20:45. 14. Michelle Backlund, 1:25:25. 15. Casey McNutt, 1:33:36. 16. Tasia Veenkemp, 1:33:37. 17. Kim Hudspeth, 1:34:19. 18. Kim Beradine, 1:44:58. 19. Chrissann Nickel, 1:44:59. 20. Chris Yates, 1:49:20.

Filed Under: Athletics Tagged With: , , ,