Maureen Hall

Maureen Hall had no trouble sleeping last weekend. When she wasn't running, she was watching the Baltimore Orioles at Memorial Stadium. And when she wasn't doing that, she was attending the Baltimore Road Runners Club's annual bull roast."

There was a homecoming yesterday morning at Camden Yards for the winners of the Oriole Advocates Home Run 5K.Eleanor Simonsick, who won the first Home Run that finished at Oriole Park in 1992 but has not been running competitively, returned in triumph."

Call Greg Watson a power man.After making a commitment to compete in the Power Bar Duathlon Series, an international running and bicycling series, Watson chased his dream on the professional circuit. . .* Through Switzerland, Finland, England, Japan, Australia, Canada, the Canary Islands and Holland.* Through a seven-hour daily training regimen.* Through a 5-mile run, 93-mile bike, 18 1/2 -mile bike race -- "and that was in Switzerland and it's not flat there," Watson says.After a year of higher-level competition following the series' conclusion, Watson is back at home in Towson, where he lives with his wife, Nancy Gugerty Watson -- a former pro triathlete and duathlete.

Runners looking to tune up for the Marine Corps, New York, Philadelphia or another fall marathon might want to consider the Watershed Half-Marathon on Oct. 1.It is part of the Watershed Biathlon (2.5-mile run, 13.1-mile bike, 2.5-mile run) and Half-Marathon package being produced by the Tri-Maryland Triathlon Club."The selection of the course was up to Baltimore County Police," says event director Brad Jaeger. "It starts at Loch Raven High School, goes out Cromwell Bridge Road to Loch Raven Reservoir, to Peerce's Plantation and back."

Cathy Stanmeyer, 22, of Great Falls, Va., won the Montgomery County Road Runners Club's Run for the Roses 5K Saturday in Kensington in a course-record 17 minutes, 41 seconds.The run, the fifth in the Road Runners Club of America's Potomac Valley 11-race Women's Distance Festival Grand Prix, was the fourth of the series that Stanmeyer has won. Stanmeyer broke the course record of 17:48 set by Mary Alico in 1984.` The top finishers:1. Cathy Stanmeyer, 22, 17:41; 2. Donna Elliot Moore, 30, 18:28; 3. Louise Mallett, 27, 18:30; 4. Carol Rose, 29, 18:47; 5. Margaret Cooper, 36, 18:53; 6. Natalie Updegrove, 30, 18:54; 7. Joyce Adams, 37, 18:55; 8. Sue Cain, 35, 19:05; 9. Maureen Hall, 26, 19:07; 10. Colleen Corey, 26, 19:08.

In keeping with the spirit of the race, Jeff Darman, director of the 12th-annual Nike Capital Challenge, says he has been "leaking quality items since 1981."Information he is leaking now concerns the Capital Challenge, a three-mile loop race around Washington's East Potomac Park on Sept. 17. It is restricted to teams captained by an elected federal official, a cabinet appointee, a federal judge or a journalist."I don't want the race to be 2,000 people," Darman said last week from his office in Arlington, Va. "We try to control the number, but, obviously, the voters help to control the growth sometimes, too. One of the examples of that is Beverly Byron, [Maryland's sixth district representative who was defeated in the March primary]

There was a homecoming yesterday morning at Camden Yards for the winners of the Oriole Advocates Home Run 5K.Eleanor Simonsick, who won the first Home Run that finished at Oriole Park in 1992 but has not been running competitively, returned in triumph."

Tippy Martinez was there to fire the starting gun, but Doug Walter and Michelle St. Laurent pitched complete-game, shutout victories yesterday in the sixth annual Oriole Advocates Home Run 8K.By the time the runners reached Key Highway, Walter had opened a block lead in the race from Oriole Park to the turnaround at the Fort McHenry bridge blockade and back. By the time he reached the Science Center on the return, his lead was two blocks, and he coasted to a 25-minute, 32-second victory.His closest competition was Bob Becker, who finished more than a minute later.

Jeff Cannada, 27, of Columbia and Misti Demko, 25, of Hershey, Pa., set records in the 15th annual Bon-Ton/York Newspaper Company 5-Mile Race in York, Pa., Sunday.Seventeen men finished the race at the Galleria Mall in under 25 minutes. Race director Clay Shaw said that a large contingent of Baltimore and Philadelphia runners contributed to the depth of the field."The fields are getting deeper and the times are getting faster," Shaw said.Demko, the two-time defending Constellation Classic 10K winner, broke the women's record by 15 seconds with her 26-minute, 55-second finish.

Brad Uhlfelder made it two victories in two weeks with his victory Sunday in the Lutherville-Timonium Recreation Council's annual 5K Turkey Trot.Uhlfelder had won the Ronald McDonald House Ramble 2.85-miler a week earlier in 13 minutes, 22 seconds.In the Turkey Trot, Uhlfelder led a field of 310 finishers, finishing in 15:11 -- a half-minute ahead of second-place finisher Mark Anderson. Uhlfelder's time was a second faster than Dave Berardi's winning time of a year ago."I had run up in York yesterday [Saturday]

There will be no shortage of hot racing over the Fourth of July weekend.The action gets under way Saturday at 8 a.m. in Kingsville with the Firecracker 5K. Offering first-, second- and third-place awards of $100, $75 and $50 for males and females and top masters prizes of $75, the race is scheduled Saturday to avoid a conflict with the community's annual Fourth of July parade.Says race coordinator Patty Von Paris: "The parade always is on the Fourth. We changed the date of the race because it helps the police plus it gives the runners the opportunity to run the other races on July 4th."

Call Greg Watson a power man.After making a commitment to compete in the Power Bar Duathlon Series, an international running and bicycling series, Watson chased his dream on the professional circuit. . .* Through Switzerland, Finland, England, Japan, Australia, Canada, the Canary Islands and Holland.* Through a seven-hour daily training regimen.* Through a 5-mile run, 93-mile bike, 18 1/2 -mile bike race -- "and that was in Switzerland and it's not flat there," Watson says.After a year of higher-level competition following the series' conclusion, Watson is back at home in Towson, where he lives with his wife, Nancy Gugerty Watson -- a former pro triathlete and duathlete.

Matt Beliveau, 19, and Maureen Hall, 30, won their divisions of the eighth annual Rite of Spring 5K at Brooklandville on Sunday.The race was the first in a series of 5Ks that race director Dave Cooley will be presenting in the next three months.The others are the Pikesville 5K Run on April 2 at 8:30 a.m., the Dulaney 5K Classic on April 8 at 8:30 a.m., the Maryland School for the Blind 5K on April 29 at 8:30 a.m., the Preakness Celebration 5K on May 13 at 9:30 a.m. and the Bay Cafe 5Karibbean 5K on May 21 at 8:30 a.m.For information, call Cooley at (410)

Sunday's Governor's Bay Bridge 10K was delayed an hour by a thunderstorm, but when the 10th annual event got under way, Gary Gerrard and Maureen Hall finished first in their divisions.Said Hall, who has won the Bay Bridge run four times: "I didn't think we were going to run because of the conditions. When you have a few thousand runners' lives at stake, you have to be precautionary. I hate to say this, but it was either sink or swim."Hall, who finished in 38 minutes, 7 seconds, is preparing for the Constellation Classic 10K, where she holds her 10K personal record of 36:20.

Tippy Martinez was there to fire the starting gun, but Doug Walter and Michelle St. Laurent pitched complete-game, shutout victories yesterday in the sixth annual Oriole Advocates Home Run 8K.By the time the runners reached Key Highway, Walter had opened a block lead in the race from Oriole Park to the turnaround at the Fort McHenry bridge blockade and back. By the time he reached the Science Center on the return, his lead was two blocks, and he coasted to a 25-minute, 32-second victory.His closest competition was Bob Becker, who finished more than a minute later.

It somehow is fitting that the torch has been passed in the John F. Kennedy 50 Mile.The 31-year-old ultramarathon from Boonsboro to Williamsport in Washington County, originally an ultramarathon/hike, was inspired by President Kennedy's attention to physical fitness. Its first running was held before his death, and since his assassination, the race has been held on the Saturday closest to the anniversary of his death.The race's founder, organizer, statistician and chief cook and bottle washer is Buzz Sawyer, who after 30 years of leadership has turned over the race to Mike Spinnler.

There will be no shortage of hot racing over the Fourth of July weekend.The action gets under way Saturday at 8 a.m. in Kingsville with the Firecracker 5K. Offering first-, second- and third-place awards of $100, $75 and $50 for males and females and top masters prizes of $75, the race is scheduled Saturday to avoid a conflict with the community's annual Fourth of July parade.Says race coordinator Patty Von Paris: "The parade always is on the Fourth. We changed the date of the race because it helps the police plus it gives the runners the opportunity to run the other races on July 4th."

It doesn't have the same ring as Mule Creek Junction, Wyo. . . . or Burr Oak, Iowa . . . or Harmony, Minn. . . . or Hazel Green, Wis., but when Bob Ray ran in Anchorage, Alaska, last month in the Mayor's Midnight Sun Marathon, it made 50 states that he has run in.Ray, Baltimore's marathon man who has run every day for the past 25-plus years, ran in the 48 contiguous states in July 1987, when he undertook a cross-country odyssey."

Police jurisdictions in the metropolitan Washington area are cooperating with the Road Runners Club of America on problems encountered by female runners and walkers.As the days grow shorter and it gets dark earlier, the RRCA draws attention to the following safety tips -- no matter where you are running:* Don't wear headphones.* Vary your route.* Run with a dog or partner.* Avoid isolated areas.* Notice details of strangers and trust your instincts.* Call police if someone bothers you or you notice a person out of the ordinary.

Jeff Cannada, 27, of Columbia and Misti Demko, 25, of Hershey, Pa., set records in the 15th annual Bon-Ton/York Newspaper Company 5-Mile Race in York, Pa., Sunday.Seventeen men finished the race at the Galleria Mall in under 25 minutes. Race director Clay Shaw said that a large contingent of Baltimore and Philadelphia runners contributed to the depth of the field."The fields are getting deeper and the times are getting faster," Shaw said.Demko, the two-time defending Constellation Classic 10K winner, broke the women's record by 15 seconds with her 26-minute, 55-second finish.