New Mexico - Colorado Runner

New Mexico
USATF unveils new logo and new look
Rising star in NM race walking
Patrick Collier is fated to bring fame to his adopted state
Collier nears the finish of the 2006 USA
20K Team Trials in Hauppage, NY.
When you watch Patrick walk, his
form is so good that he looks like one of those
little stick figures in all the race walk instructional
books, except that the stick figures don’t
look blurred as his means of locomotion does.
His posture is great. He’s the kind of walker
the judges point to as doing it the right way, except,
of course, that if he’s that smooth and that
fast, he must be lifting. The rule that race walk
judges must adhere to is that the “lifting” has
to be visible to the human eye before it can be
counted as a disqualifier. So Patrick is seldom
disqualified.
Patrick Collier started race walking as
a result of a good track and field organization
and team coach who recognized his potential.
54 coloradorunnermag.com January/February 2007
Submitted by Marjorie Holmes, Race Walk Chair
He competed for the first time in the New England
Championships late in 2002. He said the
team coach for Athletics East, Dave Sullivan,
asked him if he would be interested in volunteering
for the 3000 meter race walk. Patrick
said he thought, “Why not?” The weather was
cloudy and raining. He said he finished third or
fourth with a time of about 17 minutes. He was
encouraged when everybody thought he had a
good time and good technique. Dave told him
it seemed he was a natural at it.
Dave Sullivan’s recognition and his
encouragement to continue the sport is what is
needed for the program to thrive. That advice
led Patrick into a firmly established Olympic
sport at which he could and does excel. He said,
“I have been at it for almost four years, and I
hope to kick butt until I qualify for the 2008
Olympics.” We are all rooting for him.
Patrick started competing seriously
in 2003. He ran a mile race at Dartmouth in
January of 2003. His resume shows four major
competitions in 2004, including the USA 15k
Race Walk National Championships on June 13
in Lincoln Park, RI. He placed 11th with a time
of 1:22:40. (First place in that race had a time
of 1:04:40.)
In 2005 Patrick was again in four
major competitions, the last of which was the
USA 15K National Championships on August 7
in Watertown, MA. In that race he got second
place with a time of 1:11:47. Patrick took sixth
place at the 2006 USA 20k Team Trials in April
at Hauppauge, NY. His time was 1:34:29.
It looks as if Patrick is getting faster
www.usatfnm.org
With a unified look capturing the aspirations
of the sport and the inspiration of its athletes,
USA Track & Field unveiled a new logo and branding
campaign for the organization. The new look was
introduced at the Opening General Session of the 2006
USATF Annual Meeting in Indianapolis.
The logo features red wings surrounding
a blue star, located over a graphic of “USA Track &
Field.” The mark is the centerpiece of a new image
for USATF that includes lettering with a clean, modern
look, and a deepened color palette. The look will
anchor a branding campaign that will be implemented
over the next 18 months and will take the organization
into the next Olympiad and beyond.
The new logo will be applied to all USATF
merchandise, website presences, publications and official
correspondence and other materials. Individual
logos for each of USATF’s 57 Associations, based on
the new mark, have also been in development.
“The new brand I.D. system effectively unifies
USA Track & Field, conveying that we are a premium
brand,” USATF CEO Craig Masback said. “Using
the classic track and field imagery of the winged foot,
the logo will apply to all areas of the organization, from
grass roots to our elite athletes. Members and fans of
the sport will be able to see that mark on our athletes
and be able to feel like they’re part of it.”
New products featuring the logo, including
Nike Dri-fit apparel, were unveiled at the USATF Annual
Meeting in late November and early December.
Additional items will be available at the USATF online
store. Items are expected to be available via retail outlets
in the third and fourth quarters of 2007.
“This new look will speak more clearly
to consumers and allow the brand to go to market,”
USATF Marketing Director Ivan Cropper said. “It also
provides an even stronger platform for our corporate
partners as we look to expand and strengthen our marketing
efforts in the future.”
and faster as he continues his career in New
Mexico under the tutelage of Judy Clymer. She
is a long-time race-walk official, walker and
trainer on the race walking scene in Albuquerque.
The New Mexico Association nominated
her as “Outstanding Contributor to Race Walking
for 2005.”
There is one other thing which should
be mentioned about Patrick Collier. He is giving
back. Last July, Patrick was the event manager
for the New Mexico Senior Olympics. That involved
presiding over the conduct of the races,
coordinating the activity with other track and
field officials,
getting
volunteers
and keeping
and reporting
results of
the races. It
is rather unusual
to find
an athlete
who works
both sides:
that of the
athlete, and
that of the
officials who
make the
races possible.
He is
to be commended.
This page: Patrick Collier
Opposite Page: Left - Victor Sailor / www.PhotoRun.net
Right: Alex Burr

New Mexico
Albuquerque Scholars
at Foot Locker Champs
Matt Tebo of Eldorado High
School finishes fifth in 15:28.
5th Rio Grande Marathon Held in Las Cruces
Rio Grande Marathon
Las Cruces, New Mexico
October 29, 2006
by Don Shepan
The Rio Grande Marathon had a very
successful fifth presentation. Fourteen U.S.
states plus Mexico were represented this year.
Close to 350 participants lined up for the start.
The full slate of events included the Marathon
Run & Walk, Marathon Relay, Half Marathon
Run & Walk, and a 5K Run & Walk. The relay
followed the popular Ekiden format that was adopted
by USATF at the annual meeting held in
Albuquerque, NM in 2002.
Key ingredients in all five annual presentations
included favorable temperatures about
two weeks before the first frost, flat courses at a
modest elevation (4,000 feet), and scenic and
historic secondary roads and trail through pecan
groves which still had their foliage. The low humidity
is a sleeper in that it can cause problems
for those not familiar with dehydration that easily
occurs. The course is USATF certified and
sanctioned. The marathon is a Boston Qualifier
and a NM Association Gran Prix and Championship
event.
Beneficiaries include the Leukemia/
Lymphoma Society, the Boys and Girls Club of
Las Cruces, and the Dona Ana County Sheriffs
Office Mounted Patrol.
Last, but not least, are the participants
who return home and write complimentary letters
to us and submit comments and photographs
to their local runner periodicals and newsletters.
One full-page spread occurred last year in Inside
Texas Running. Paul Cooley of Houston,
TX, was one happy marathoner.
Timing by: Rio Grande Marathon - Weather: Sunny, 50 degrees - Elevation:
Start/Finish = 4,000’
Patti Minton, 49, Gainesville,
GA, 3:47:07. Grand Masters
(50+): 1. Jane Wickman, 53,
Kellogg, IA, 3:53:20. Seniors
(60+): 1. Nancy Thweatt, 64,
Escondido, CA, 5:36:04. Half
Marathon Male (Overall):
1. Eddie Lopez , 21, Las
Cruces, NM,1:15:22; 2. Jason
Atkinson, 25, Alamogordo,
NM,1:16:25; 3. Corey White,
25, Las Cruces, NM,1:16:53; 4.
Arturo Valerio, 32, El Paso, TX,
1:20:45; 5. Lawrence Smith,
35, El Paso, TX, 1:27:19.
Masters (40+): 1. Michael
Waldo, 53, Las Cruces, NM,
1:28:08. Grand Masters (50+):
1. Delbert Utz, 50, Silver City,
NM,1:30:34.Seniors (60+):1.
Alfredo Dominquez, 60, Juarez,
MX,1:46:06. Female (Overall):
1. Liz Jaramillo, 27, Las Cruces,
NM, 1:37:01; 2. Roberta
Varela-Hein, 42, Universal City,
TX, 1:38:35; 3. Erica Baldon,
29, El Paso, TX, 1:41:32; 4.
Kristin Rios, 36, El Paso, TX,
1:43:07; 5. Kristina Rynes, 26,
Mesa, AZ, 1:44:28. Masters
(40+): 11. Roberta Varela-
Hein, 42, Universal City, TX,
1:38:35. Grand Masters (50+):
1. Anita Pussman, 53, El Paso,
TX, 2:18:09.Seniors (60+): 1.
Carole Cook, 62, El Paso, TX,
2:25:11. 5K Male (Overall):
1. Charles Cosnowski, 33,
Alamogordo, NM, 19:28; 2. Bill
Wright, 52, West Layfayette,
IN, 20:28; 3. Kelly Farris, 41, El
Paso,TX, 20:45; 4. Ryan Reynolds, 16, Las Cruces, NM, 20:52;
5. Elliott Farris, 13, El Paso, TX, 20:54. Masters (40+): 1. Bill
Wright, 52, West Layfayette, IN, 20:28. Grand Masters (50+):
1. Bill Wright, 52, West Layfayette, IN, 20:28. Seniors (60+): 1.
Ron Wickman, 62, Kellogg, IA, 28:14. Female (Overall): 1. Anne
Marie Armistead,15, Las Cruces, NM, 22:26; 2. Lizbeth Mata,
16, Las Cruces, NM, 23:55; 3. Chrystal Saenz, 23, Albuquerque,
NM, 25:49; 4. Natalie Alonso, 17, El Paso, TX, 26:06; 5. Marina
Paggen, 24, El Paso, TX, 27:14. Masters (40+): 1. Pauline
Atkinson, 42, Alamogordo, NM, 30:24. Grand Masters (50+): 1.
Veronica Perez, 53, Las Cruces, NM, 31:54.
Susan Burr wins the
race in 3:19:45.
Ben Johnson of Albuquerque
Academy finishes sixth in 15:31.
Marathon Male (Overall): 1. Fernando Reza, 37, El Paso,
TX, 3:12:21; 2. Louie Telles, 46, La Luz, NM, 3:14:38; 3. Mark
O’Shaughnessy, 46, Fort Wayne, IN, 3:22:13; 4. Ton Pavetic, 50,
Alameda, CA, 3:29:32; 5. Randy Alfredo, 37, El Paso, TX, 3:32:52.
Masters (40+): 1. Louie Telles, 46, La Luz, NM, 3:14:38. Grand
Masters (50+): 1. Ton Pavetic, 50, Alameda, CA, 3:29:32. Seniors
(60+): 1. Kenneth Paap, 60, Half Moon Bay, CA, 3:47:48. Female
(Overall): 1. Susan Burr , 37, Honolulu, HI, 3:19:47; 2. Carilyn
Johnson, 39, El Paso, TX, 3:40:38; 3. Kerry MacDonald, 31, El
Paso, TX, 3:46:54; 4. Patti Minton, 49, Gainesville, GA, 3:47:07;
5. Molly Clark, 34, Albuquerque, NM, 3:51:47. Masters (40+): 1.
The Burr family celebrates with their
Native American Kachinas awards.
USATF New Mexico thanks the following local sponsors for their support:
505-299-8922
www.fleetfeetalbuquerque.com
505-820-2523
www.RunSantaFe.com
New Mexico’s #1
Running Company
505-884-5300
www.heartnsolesports.com
www.usatfnm.org
505-856-9377
www.the-athletes-edge.com
January/February 2007 coloradorunnermag.com 55