Whenever the 1000 Mile Club holds a track meet on San Quentin’s Lower Yard, everyone knows Markelle “The Gazelle” Taylor will take first place but second comes down to a race between Chris Scull and Eddie Herena. In the Two Hour Race, Scull took second by a lap.
“Markelle was only a mile ahead of me,” Scull said. “My sights are on first place.”
The two-hour race will be followed by a three-hour race to prepare for the yearly marathon in November.
The cool overcast day proved comfortable weather to run in, but coming off a three-week lockdown on Aug. 21 hampered training for the Sept. 8 meet. Still, 22 out of 24 runners ran for the entire two hours and a few improved on their times.
Tommy Wickerd completed 15-3/8 miles.
“I beat last year by a mile and a quarter,” Wickerd said. “I feel pretty damn good.”
He credits the improvement to fellow runner Jonathan Chiu, who completed 15.4 miles.
“Chiu pushed me,” Wickerd said. “I love this club. It’s one of the best decisions in my life.”
John Levin completed 14-1/4.
“I was very happy,” Levin said. “My goal was to run a half-marathon in two hours, and I did more than that.”
Markelle, recovering from a knee injury, did not beat his 2016 record of 18.6875 miles. He dedicated the still impressive completion of 17-1/2 miles to victims of the wildfires in California and kids at Shriners Hospital.
“I thought the guys looked really solid,” said volunteer Jim Maloney, who tracked laps during the race. “It looks like you guys recovered from the three-week lockdown and are getting back on track for the three-hour race.”
