Heart of Holladay race becomes a family affair
Taylorsville husband and wife finish first in their events
HOLLADAY — The family that runs together, wins together. And runs and runs and runs together.
Mike Terry, for the Deseret Morning News
Runner Sadie Brockbank finishes the Heart of Holladay children's quarter-mile race in first place and is greeted at the event's finish line with a ribbon.
Teren and Emily Jameson, a husband-and-wife team based in Taylorsville, put on a running clinic last week at the Heart of Holiday 5K race, and both came away with victories in a field loaded with quality runners.
The Jamesons — elite runners who travel across the country for marathons, half-marathons, 10K races and 5Ks — appropriately wearing bib numbers 1 and 2, cruised through the neighborhood streets and outpaced the field.
Teren Jameson, a former University of Utah cross country star, completed the 3.1-mile course with a blistering pace of 4:49 per mile. His overall time of 14:56 was five seconds faster than second-place finisher Mike Nielson. Trevor Ball was third at 15:14.
Emily Jameson, an ex-BYU Cougar, also sailed through the course to win the women's race at 17:32, good enough for 15th overall. Chelsea McKell was second at 17:40 and Sarah Yoder placed third at 18:23.
"This was a really tough field," Teren Jameson said. "There are a lot of really elite former college runners here, and it was tough. I had to put on a couple of moves over the last mile to pull away."
Those moves, he said, were to take advantage of his endurance on some of the slight hills in the neighborhood. With a well-timed kick, Jameson was able to separate from the field and pick up the first-place winner's check at the end.
Emily Jameson did the same and the two said the "extra spending money" will come in handy as they prepare for more races in the next few months, including the Deseret News Marathon in July, where both are defending champions in the 10K races.
The victory was sweet for Emily Jameson after a tough week on her feet. After running the half marathon earlier during the Salt Lake City Marathon, Emily was part of a wedding and complained of having to wear high heels the entire day.
Mike Terry, for the Deseret Morning News
Teren Jameson wins the Heart of Holladay 5K.
"That was tough," Emily Jameson said. "I felt like my feet were dead, but there was some really good competition out there. It was a really good race."
The Heart of Holladay race is becoming old territory for the Jamesons. After sweeping the men's and women's for the third year in a row, the race has become a favorite on their competitive training runs.
"Eventually someone is going to beat us," Teren Jameson said.
But not this year.
The Simonaitis family also had an outstanding race. Dennis Simonaitis was the top finisher in the masters division with a time of 15:58 (5th overall), while Michelle Simonaitis claimed the women's top time at 18:35 (23rd overall). Eric Peterson was second in the men's masters division, while Kris Erickson was the women's runner-up.
Heart of Holladay 5K
Men's results
1. Teren Jameson, 14:56
2. Mike Nielson, 15:01
3. Trevor Ball, 15:14
4. Bob Thompson, 14:53
5. Dennis Simonaitis, 15:58
6. Corbin Talley, 16:05
7. Tim Stringfellow, 16:11
8. Nathan Hornok, 16:14
9. Steve Ashbaker, 16:21
10. Josh Steffen, 16:27
11. Alexander Pachev, 16:29
12. Lion Gallegos, 16:47
13. Scott Dickey, 17:02
14. Chad Derum, 17:27
15. Eric Petersen, 17:54
Women's results
1. Emily Jameson, 17:32
Mike Terry, for the Deseret Morning News
Enthusiastic local runners break away from the starting line to cruise through neighborhoods in Holladay at the 5K race this past week.
2. Chelsea McKell, 17:40
3. Sarah Yoder, 18:23
4. Carre Joyce, 18:29
5. Michelle Simonaitis, 18:35
6. Carol Cabanillas, 19:24
7. Megan Call, 19:27
8. Rebecca Walter, 20:15
9. Amy Laughter, 20:29
10. Breanna Cobler, 20:46
11. Kris Erickson, 21:59
12. Kirsten Whetstone, 22:20
13. Ashley Bentley, 22:28
14. Colleen Southwick, 22:47
15. Marcie Nielsen, 23:22