Racing the Rising Sun (NPSF) - November Project

Today, the Tribe took on the 6000 metre animal that is the #Sunrise6K. The Sunrise 6K is not just about racing one another, but it’s also a chance to race yourself. To dive head first into the 3 lap pain cave and emerge stronger, faster, and tougher. Across the Tribe, we had countless PRs and many first timers. Make sure to chuck your time into the NP tracker, so you can see how you fared against previous years (and when you race the 6K next time round).

In the women’s race, we had a solid dual between training partners, Laura Green and Emmeliese Von Clemm. After 4 previous #Sunrise6Ks, Laura’s best result was a 2nd lap DNF last year, so we were unsure what to expect. However in the end, Laura Green was disqualified for attempting to trip fellow racers with her shoelaces. Coming in for the win was Emmeliese Von Clemm, followed by Hannah Russell-Goodson in second and Dana Macrae in third.

On the men’s side, a front pack of Will Oberle, Patrick Canfield, Misha Shemyakin and the Irish lad led out the first two laps. Misha stormed home for the win, but then had to bail to go home to look after his young child so we decided to DQ him. After four races of 4th places, Will Oberle hammered home to take the win, followed by a chasing Canfield and Ole “Ole Ole” Chris from Hamburg, Germany to take the bronze.

But the true beauty of this race was further back in the field. The newly minted “Most Improved” award went to Tantek Celik. Tantek has been one of the best examples throughout the Tribe of an athlete’s hard work and motivation to be stronger and faster. He took a monstrous 3 and a half minutes off last January’s time. Oh and since then, he’s also ran his first marathon! From the first time Tantek showed up back in early November 2013, it has been such an inspiration to see his progression. First PR Wednesday. First 10K. First half marathon. First 26.2. The Tribe is so proud of you, Tantek. And proud of everyone who raced out there this morning!

Also a huge shoutout to our “Rookie of the Year”, Rebecca Bar. Coming from the East Bay three times a week with several carloads of the #EastBayGang, Rebecca has been a pillar of our Tribe since she moved here from Boston. She also led Team BarGreen in the Friday Hills challenge to second place, but without a doubt, most enthusiastic team!