bonus army evicted from washington 80 years ago today

on july 28, 1932, president hoover ordered the u.s. military to remove the "bonus army" (more than 40,000 marchers, most of whom were world war one veterans and their families) from washington d.c. - following the failed efforts by the local police to disperse the army.  the earlier effort by the metro police had resulted in the shooting deaths of two veterans when the mob assaulted two police officers who tried to disperse the crowd.

it was after the mob assault on the police officers that president hoover ordered the full scale removal of the bonus army.  in charge of the soldiers tasked to "evict" the marchers from their makeshift camps was none other than general douglas macarthur.  assisting him in the operation was then major george patton. macarthur's chief aide was the major dwight eisenhower!  the veterans and their families were driven out of the camps and then the tents and belongings were burned.

the veteran's, in the midst of the great depression, were trying to get congress to authorize immediate payment of their service certificates - that were due to mature in in the early 1940s (20 years after they were awarded to the soldiers).  while the 1932 effort failed, subsequent efforts did result in the 1936 congress authorizing the early payment of the "bonus" certificates.

2012 run for central park 4 miler: race photos and results

if if wasn't that i had fallen behind on my goal of nine + one for the 2013 nyc marathon, i would have gone to norwalk and done the summer series 7 miler instead of heading down to central park for the 4 miler.  with the run for central park now in the books i have 4 races toward the nine (well off the pace - so to speak - of prior years).  since it was a team race, it was great to see so many taconic road runners afterwards!

as for the race itself, i had very conservative 7:30 pace in mind when i started.  as it turned out i ran a 29:06, 7:17 pace - a bit faster than i had in mind. my overriding priority was to avoid setting back my recovery from a nagging ankle problem.  afterwards, race done and point in hand, i wasn't any worse for the wear - so i'll count that as success :D

here are the race results from nyrr.

2012 waveny xc summer series 2 person 6 mile relay

it's been a few years since i last ran the two person relay - the last time i was in a different age group!  this time around i was in the 100+ age group w/emmy.  we managed to string together a series of sub-7 minute miles (barely) to finish in 41:48, a 6:58 pace.  still, it was good enough to win our age group and a pair of the 40th anniversary race tee shirts :D

afterwards, as always, it was time for socializing - which tonight included a birthday cake for francoise!

here are the race results from clubct.

2012 westport summer series 5k: race photos and results

it was hot this morning - easily in the 80's and sunny - when the westport summer series 5k got under way a little after 8 at the longshore county club.  i didn't have a particular time goal in mind but i thought a sub-22 minute finish was possible.  but when i struggled with a 7:06 first mile - most of which was in the shade - that target seemed out of reach. my 22:11, 7:16 pace, came close, but the 7:22 last mile did it for me.  even so, under the circumstances, i was more than pleased :D

here are the race results from hitek racing.

i posted a few more photos on facebook.

2012 wlf putnam county classic: race photos and results

this morning we had a record number of finishers cross the line, 350, at the wlf putnam county classic!  for the second year in a row, i wasn't one of them (although i did run the course on sunday).  while i love co-directing the race w/emmy, it's still strange to see the field go off after i blew the air horn - and i not be part of crowd setting off on the hilly 8 miles.  that said, being on the other side of the race is a lot of fun!

and i wouldn't have been a success without all the great volunteers!  we had a huge contingent of taconic road runners club members, the ham radio operators from pearl, the local police (two of whom rode the course on bikes), fire and ambulance crews, lake families who set up water stations on the course outside their homes, the high school custodians, and many, many more people and organzations who helped out us out in big and small ways!

here are the race results from taconic.

i've posted a lof more race photos on facebook.  and i'll add a link to the team's race photos once they've been posted to the homepage.

preview of the wlf putnam county classic course

this morning i ran the wlf putnam county classic 8 mile loop around lake mahopac.  the race this wednesday, the fourth of july.  it's a fantastic, albeit challenging course.  after the main event, which finishes on the mahopac high school track, there are a series of fun runs for kids.

here is the link to the course photos i posted on facebook.

if you're looking for a 4th of july race, join us!

july 2012 race schedule

my july race schedule is characterized by extremes - a pair of short relays to kick off the month and the vermont 100 mile relay mid-month!  the new canaan 2-person relay is one of my favorite events (especially in the years i ran it w/katie)!  i haven't run the vctc 2x2 relay often, but it's a great reason to head down to van cortlandt park!  in between those two relays is the westport summer series 5k.

but the month actually kicks off with the wlf putnam county classic on the 4th of july - the day before the vctc relay.  together w/emmy, i'm the co-race director, so it's unlikely i'll actually run the 8 miles around lake mahopac that morning.  but i may get in the loop before the race itself :D

i'll probably run the 4 miler in central park on july 14th - it's a team race (and i need another point).  but that one conflicts with the norwalk summer series 7 miler, the race i'd rather run that saturday morning.  but since i'll probably sit out the 9 miler two weeks later (the day before the escarpment trail run), i'm not worried about my place in the series standings.

the vermont 100 occupies the 3rd weekend of the month.  i'll try for my 4th vermont finish - and, to a lessor extent, redemption for my dnf at mile 44 of the greater new york running exposition last month!  this event has almost become an annual staple of my july.

last but not least - and probably one of my all-time favorite races at any distance is the escarpment trail run on july 28.  it will be my 4th time doing this incredible trail run.  dick vincent puts on an incredible event, year after year.  if you run trails, this is not to be missed :D

here's how it looks so far:

7/4 - wlf putnam county classic, 8m
7/5 - vctc 2x2 relay
7/7 - westport summer series 5k
7/10 - new canaan summer xc series 2-person relay
7/21 - vermont 100 mile endurance run
7/28 - escarpment trail run 30k

as always, if you're at any of them, say hello!