Previous Story
Dev Bachani rules Sunset Run
Dev Bachani, middle, bested over 30 other runners during the Run Saipan’s Beach Road Sunset 5K run last Saturday along Beach Road. From left, second place Rex Pixley, Bachani, and third place Sildrey Veloria. (Contributed Photo)
Dev Bachani bested over 30 other runners during Run Saipan’s Beach Road Sunset 5K run last Saturday along Beach Road.
Bachani recorded the fastest time overall, completing the race in 20:30:33. Following him with the second fastest recorded time was Rex Pixley who came in a split second after at 20:30:37. Completing the race at third place was Sildrey Veloria who submitted a time of 21:00:40.
Not only did the trio complete the race in the shortest time, they were also honored the Top 3 for the men’s division.
Meanwhile, for the women’s division, current 10K record holder and multiple marathon champ Akiko Miller was recognized as the first-place winner for completing the run in 21:38:00. Coming in as runner-up was Rosemarie Fontanilla Chisato who recorded a time of 27:34:07. Making the Top 3 was Yuki Rechucher who finished the course in 28:27:00.
Run Saipan hosted its Beach Road Sunset 5K run last Saturday along Beach Road. (Contributed Photo)
According to Edward Jr. Dela Cruz, the 5K turned out great because of all the new faces that came out to join. Because of this, the group decided to a different approach this time, putting into play the “staggered start approach.”
“We had so many new faces. Everyone did an amazing job this 5K we did things a little different. We introduced the staggered start approach,” he said.
Dela Cruz explained that runners were split into three groups depending on how an individual has performed in 5K runs in the past.
The group with the longest 5K completion times were released first, followed by the second group, and the third group, which consisted of 5K runners with a record of below 25 minutes, was released last giving the first group a 10-minute head start.
“We had three running groups to start. We based it on people’s current 5k times: C group if your 5K time is over 30 minutes. B group if your 5K time is between 26 minutes to 30. A group if your time is faster than 25 minutes. We released C group first. We waited 5 minutes before we released B group. Then we waited another 5 until we released the A runners. It was so much fun. People had a great time being chased or doing the chasing to catch up,” he said.
Run Saipan’s next 5K run will be held on June 20 at Banzai Cliff.
