Happy Holidays and welcome to the newest edition of the SJAC newsletter. As the new SJAC president I thought it would be nice to introduce myself and let you all know what's been going on in the club this winter. I'm Brandon Hamilton and have been a new edition to the club this year. I'll be 36 years old December 17th and have been running ever since Jr. high when I realized I had some talent doing the 600 yard dash. My passion for running took me through High school (Cherry Hill West and Cherry Hill East) , College (Glassborro State) and then into the road racing scene where I took up marathoning in the Fall of 1993 with the Marine Corp marathon.
I just completed my 17th marathon in Philadelphia 2 weeks ago. Along the way I've been privileged to meet a cast of characters and develop some good friends and even managed to find a fiancée who also shares my love of running. So I guess running has been good to me. Running seems to be the thread that weaves my life together. I want to share my enthusiasm of running with you this year. I hope that by serving you I can reap the rewards of getting to know some of you a little better and that you will share your stories, triumphs and journeys with me. This past year has been a memorable one. Despite the cold weather it seems like only yesterday we were down in Stone Harbor accepting our numerous age groups awards for the 10K run. I note this race in particular because it was the one race that it rally sunk in what an amazing feeling it is to belong to the SJAC running club. It used to be that I'd stick around for the awards (if I received one), and leave not really knowing anyone and not feeling connected in any real sense to the running community. Now it's a completely different feeling and I'm hooked! Every race feels like a party. The cheering, the camaraderie, the kind words when you know it wasn't your best day, and the bonds you build knowing that you are not doing it alone. This is what the SJAC is really all about. But let's not get too mushy here. We also are here to win! Once again we have won the USATF grand Prix club series for the 2nd year in a row. This is not an easy task. If we don't field a team of 5 runners (4 men and one woman) we get the big goose egg and go home with no points. This is where Ed Maher gets all the credit. His constant emails and reminders keep the enthusiasm going and let us know that showing up is half the battle. Of course it doesn't hurt that we have two of the best age graded runners in NJ in Joy Hampton and Jim Flanagan. They are ranked 1 and 2 respectively for males and females in the entire Mid Atlantic region in the overall USATF grand Prix series. Way to go Jim and Joy! But the thing that's amazing about this group is that even while not running there are those that support the club in other ways. Ken Shiel has taken some amazing photographs and has kept us entertained in previous newsletters with his creative writing skills. Sylvia Schenk recruited some of her high school athletes to come out to a water stop for the Philadelphia marathon. And then there are those like No Frills race coordinator Ed Epenshade who has even battled brain surgery but felt a need to come out and join us at our club meeting. There's Bob Blessinger who led the way as club president while planning his personal future and Ann Warsing who kept the books and kept us solvent. There's John "BJ" Weis who keeps this web site coordinated and how could I forget John "beer boy" McMenamin who keeps the cooler stocked and humbly works behind the scenes to get things done. The list could go on and on.
Let me remind you that our club is not just about running. No good run goes unrewarded so we know how to have fun too. We had a great post race party at PJ's Whelihan's after the Philadelphia marathon and celebrated our club series win. At our December club meeting we had a Chinese auction(Pollyanna). It seemed like more than half of the gifts were gifts of "cheer". Like I said, we know how to have fun! We also know how to bring culture to the club. We had a great time at the Haddonfield Symphony. Thanks to Symphony President Trevor Orthmann we were able to get a group discount and capped off the night with some food and drink at Houlihans. Did you know that Trevor has 9 violins? It's amazing the hidden talents this group has! I'm looking forward to the year ahead. Look for a "Welcome" letter in the mail soon. It will contain a SJAC and USATF application as well as some more club info. Enjoy your holiday and have a healthy and Happy New Year! I hope to see you at Franco's on January 14th. Until then I'll see you on the roads.
Brandon Hamilton