Fall 2013 PRT Women's Season Wrap-up

The women of Prado Racing Team continued their dominance in the Dirt Dog Series this past Fall by winning the Women's Open Division and placing 5 women in the top ten individually in the series standings.

The Women of PRT win their third Women's Open Dirt Dog Championship Title
photo credit: Derek Bradley

The PRT Women came into the series as the defending 2011 and 2012 champions with a perfect score of 60 points, having won three races as a team throughout the series. Much of the team's early success depended on the motivation of its members, who were committed to showing up to races throughout the Fall season so that the team was able to field a full team at four out of the six regular season meets, as well as a squad of eight women at the championship meet itself.

Hilary Corno led the team and the Dirt Dog series standings going into the Championship meet. She had a solid season winning the Bonita Stampede 5 miler and placing second in both the Wild Duck 5-K and Bonita 4-miler. All this while training for (and winning) the Long Beach International Marathon in October. 

When the gun went off for the three-loop 6-K Championship race, it was Marie Schaper who stepped up to lead the team to victory, running a gutsy race to finish second only a week after finishing second overall in the Santa Barbara International Half Marathon. Following Schaper was Corno in third, Sawyer in fourth, Timinsky in seventh, Merchant in ninth, Sara Sanchez in 17th, Kelcie Wiemann in 18th, and Jordana Henderson in 31st. The women's combined score of 15 points was enough to clinch the victory for the third year in a row. 

Marie Schaper (far left), Julie Sawyer (middle), and Hilary Corno (far right)
swept the top three places in the individual standings for the Dirt Dog Series.
photo credit: Marc Sawyer

Due to Corno's commanding lead in the series standings, she held on to her overall victory to become the Dirt Dog Series Individual Women's Open Champion. Additionally, the PRT Women swept the top three places, with Sawyer finishing second overall and Schaper finishing third. Rounding out the top ten were Merchant in seventh and Timinsky in eighth.

From left to right, Sara Sanchez, Gina Merchant and Kelcie Wiemann
compete in the Dirt Dog Cross Country Championships
photo credit: Marc Sawyer

After the conclusion of a successful San Diego Cross Country season, many of the women weren't done racing, and a team of six women (Kristin Schleicher, Julie Sawyer, Liz Johnson, Caela Timinsky, Marie Schaper, and Gina Merchant, pictured below) traveled up to compete in the USATF Club Nationals Cross Country Championships in Bend, Oregon. There the women competed on a "true" cross country course, complete with ever-changing terrain, hay bales, and snow. In their first showing ever at the national level, the team placed 22^nd out of 34 teams in a very competitive race.  

The Women of PRT after a grueling 6K course in Bend, Oregon
photo credit: Caela Timinsky

After a very successful season, the PRT Women look forward to future success in the Spring of 2014!