Feb. 25, 2006 – St. John residents Jeremy Zuber and Regina Loiacano won again in Saturday's 10th annual 8 Tuff Miles race from Cruz Bay to Coral Bay on St. John.
Most of those that participated ran the course, but many people walked.
Zuber, 25, had a personal best time of 49:20. He also won the men's division in 2005 and 2004.
Loiacano, 32, took first in the woman's division in 2003, 2002 and 2001. She placed second in 2004, and did not race in 2005. This year, she ran the course in 58:05.
Zuber, who works at Caneel Bay Resort, seemed hardly out of breath as he crossed the finish line on the Coral Bay ballfield.
"I was slow getting to Bordeaux, but I just boogied," he said, talking about his speedy run downhill into Coral Bay.
Loiacano, who runs the sewing program at Maho Bay Camps, said this year she paced herself.
"I usually go out too fast, so this year I went a little slower," she said.
She beat the 2004 winner Letitia Dusich, 25, by about a minute across the finish. Dusich, a former St. Croix resident who is home from Long Island for a few months, did the course in 59:06.
"The hills are tough. I wasn't as prepared as I thought," Dusich said.
She said once she made it up the hills, she just cruised down.
Third in the woman's division went to Kelly Fullerton, 24, of Seattle with a time of 1:03:09.
Fullerton, who ran track in college and is on St. John for vacation, said this was the first time she ran the course. She said she found the weather quite a bit warmer than she was used to for running.
"Heat was a factor," she said.
Second in the men's division went to another visitor – Ben Nephew, 30, of Mansfield, Mass., with a time of 50:56. He said he did a little better than he thought he would.
"I was worried about the heat. It was a tough course," he said.
Nephew, a biomedical researcher, said he was visiting family members.
Calvin Dallas, 53, of St. Thomas finished third with a time of 57:00. He came in fourth in 2005 and 2004, but finished third in 2003. Dallas, a teacher at Joseph Gomez School on St. Thomas, said it was a beautiful course and the weather was good.
"The Virgin Islands is a lovely place," he said.
While winning is nice, many of the 658 people who registered for the race were aiming to improve on their personal best times.
St. Thomas resident Lance Maanum, 45, said his time improved by 14 seconds. "I did better than I thought," he said.
Ealiane Joseph, 19, of St. Thomas and a University of the Virgin Islands sophomore, said she found the course easier this year than last.
"Last year it felt like I was climbing never ending mountains," she said.
Patty Mahoney, 61, of St. John said she was training for the Boston Marathon.
"It's gotten a little easier," she said.
St. Thomas resident Collette Monroe, 48, who got herself organized too late to register so she didn't have an official time, said she was so excited about running the race.
"I feel good," she said.
Several hundred people showed up at the Coral Bay ballfield to cheer on the runners.
Deputy Fire Chief Brian Chapman was there to root for his wife, Chris Chapman, as well as three firefighters participating in the event. He said there is a perpetual trophy that goes to the top firefighter or police officer.
"It looks like the firemen will take it again," he said.
St. John resident Justin Doran, 11, said he was on hand to cheer for Nephew.
The event also brings out many volunteers who make the race tick.
St. John resident Bob Klenke was manning the radio at the Ajax Peak water station.
He said that last year he helped cut fruit for the runners.
"This is something different," he said.
A breakdown of finishing times by age groups can be found at
8tuffmiles.com.
Results are divided into runners and walkers.
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