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Record-setting run by Raymond at Burlington to Collinsville 10K Classic

Terryville’s Tyler Raymond races toward the finish line of Sunday’s Burlington to Collinsville 10K Classic road race. Raymond won with a record time. More photos from the race.

CANTON, May 16, 2021 – A year ago, the Farmington River Trail in Collinsville was quiet. An occasional runner or cyclist would be on the popular path but traffic was minimal as residents kept their distance from each other as the COVID-19 pandemic swirled throughout the country and the world.

We were still learning how to safely interact with each other with the COVID-19 coronavirus. There were long lines to go to the hardware store on a Saturday morning and a limited number of customers were allowed in some grocery stores.

Competitive athletics, including road races with hundreds of people in close proximity to each other, were all put on hold.

On Sunday, the Hartford Marathon Foundation held their first live event with more than 200 runners since January 2020 with the sixth annual running of the Burlington to Collinsville 10K Classic.

There were pandemic protocols that the race observed such as limiting the field to 500 runners, having runners begin in 10 waves of 50 runners each and no post-race award ceremonies. Your award, if you earned it, would be sent to you through the U.S. mail. Masks were required and runners were asked to observe social distancing.

It is not quite the same pre-pandemic experience but that didn’t matter to the runners or race organizers.

“It’s wonderful to be back. It’s wonderful to see all of these people,” said Beth Shluger, CEO and President of the Hartford Marathon Foundation (HMF) that runs the race. “I missed seeing these faces and the emotion (of the runners) coming across the finish line. It’s really, really nice to be back and people are following the rules.”

HMF ran two smaller races in August and September with less than 200 people in them. This year’s Burlington to Collinsville Classic will be the first of several live races this year.

Brittany Telke, left, and Rebecca Stephenson were the top two finishes in the women’s race with Telke winning by 19 seconds. More photos from the race.

“We thought this was the right time to come back. We thought that people’s appetite would be back and we could do it manageably at 500 people,” she said, taking a break from handing out finishing medals to the runners as they crossed the finish line.

Terryville’s Tyler Raymond, a former runner at Central Connecticut State, won the 6.2-mile race (10 kilometer) race with a course record time of 31:03, shattered the previous record of 32:20 set by Alex Norstrom of Coventry in 2017.

Bristol’s Brittany Telke outlasted her running friend Rebecca Stephenson of Unionville by 19 seconds to win the women’s race with a time of 40:22 – the second fastest time in race history for a woman.

Raymond, 27, had the race record on his mind from the start and raced away from the first wave of runners. He ran alone the entire race but used the cyclist from the HMF team to pace himself.

“It can be hard to run along but the Hartford Marathon was a biker out in front to help guide the way and that helps motivate you to keep the distance with him,” Raymond said. “It helps. Having anyone out there (with you) is a huge help.”

As part of COVID-19 protocols, there are no water stations on the race so runners carry their own water like West Hartford’s Heidi Hogan (1125) and Middletown’s Nate Austin (869). More photos from the race.

Evan Doleci, who finished second in the race, grew up in New Hartford and graduated from Northwestern Regional. He is currently living in Manchester, New Hampshire where he has been running some 5K (3.1 mile) races but he was looking for a 10K race.

Doleci said Raymond break away early. “He wasn’t even close to us,” Doleci said. “I knew if I went with him, I would blow up so I didn’t try to go with him. I tried to run my own race.”

Doleci finished second with a time of 33:52 with Terryville’s Colby Brown finishing third in 34:32.

“This is the first race COVID started with a mass start with groups of more than two so that was kind of neat to get back to the original way that races take place,” Doleci said.

Telke and Stephenson made several virtual runs during the pandemic along with a few runs along the Farmington River Trail over the past year.

(Rebecca) said she would do this so I decided to join her, plus this is one of the first races in a while so I had to jump on that,” Telke said.

Telke took the lead from the start and never looked back. How close was Stephenson to her? She didn’t know. “I never look so I had no idea,” Telke said.

Telke finished 11th overall in the race that had 450 finishers. She ran the second-fastest time ever by a woman in the race. Only Burlington’s Mary Lynn Currier in 20:17 (39:58) ran faster.

“It’s a good PR (personal record) course,” Telke said. “It is very flat. It is great to get consistent splits.”

She praised the competition for getting her to run a great time vs. running against the clock in virtual races as she did in 2020. “I definitely couldn’t have done this on my own,” she said. “It was exciting to have people to run against.”

Stephenson, who won the 2018 race, had her fastest time (40:41) on the course on Sunday.

Salem’s Ann Alevras celebrates with a friend after finishing the Burlington to Collinsville 10K Classic Sunday. More photos from the race.

Afterwards, some runners ate chili from Lisa’s Crown and Hammer while others mingled for a few minutes stretching and recovering from their run. Some picked up their lime souvenir race t-shirt. Many wore masks while some – perhaps they were fully vaccinated – shared stories of the morning run.

For now, HMF will continue with their COVID-19 protocols – social distancing, masks, starting waves. As with most protocols with the pandemic, things change often.

“That is our plan. We will do more or less, depending on the community that we are in, and what they want us to do,” Shluger said. “At this point, the state is providing guidance. We are taking note of what the local health officials are asking of us.”

Terry Camputaro of Woodbury (950) races toward the finish of Sunday’s race in Collinsville. More photos from the race.

2021 Burlington to Collinsville 10K Classic
At Canton
Overall results: Tyler Raymond, Terryville, 31:03 for 6.2 miles (new course record). Old record Alex Norstrom 32:20, 2017; 2. Evan Doleci, Manchester, NH 33:52, 3. Colby Brown, Terryville, 34:42, 4. Mark Rabasco, Greenfield, Mass., 35:06, 5. Karol Szoch, Farmington, 35:16, 6. Alessando Macchi, Newington, 36:51, 7. Conor Garrity, Terryville, 37:01, 8. Max Morganstern, West Hartford, 38:18, 9. Ethan Shea, East Hampton, 39:36, 10. Pat Rosin, Southington, 39:46
Top 10 women: Brittany Telke, Bristol (11th overall) 40:22, 2. Rebecca Stephenson, Unionville (12), 40:41, 3. Helen Nye, Wethersfield (23) 42:18, 4. Kristin Lopa, Southington (25) 42:18, 5. Kate Esposito, Branford (27) 42:54, 6. Monica Mays, Canton (29) 43:23, 7. Haley Knox, Bristol (35) 44:58, 8. Stephanie Komp, Burlington (36) 45:00, 9. Zoe Yopp, Mystic (41) 45:53, 10. Gina Levesque, Southington (42) 45:54

2021 race results

Burlington to Collinsville 10K Classic

Year: Men’s winner Time Woman’s winner (Overall) Time
2021: Tyler Raymond, Terryville 31:03 Brittany Telke, Bristol (11) 40:22
2020: Tyler Lyon, West Hartford 31:31* Kate Zendell, Farmington (8) 41:01*
2019: Tyler Lyon, West Hartford 32:42 Monica Mays, Canton (17) 43:24
2018: Tyler Lyon, Harwinton 33:31 Rebecca Stephenson, Unionville (12) 41:43
2017: Alex Nordstrom, Coventry 32:20 Mary Lynn Currier, Burlington (13) 39:58
2016: Brett Stoeffler, Tolland 36:23 Mary Lynn Currier, Burlington (8) 40:36

2020 runners ran the course over a 10-day period and self-reported their times. Not counted toward official race records.

Gerry deSimas, Jr., is the editor and founder of The Collinsville Press. He is an award-winning writer and has been covering sports in Connecticut and New England for more than 40 years. He was inducted into the New England High School Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2018.

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