RunTex does it again! Sunday, December 19th saw one of the most exciting RunTex events ever! Hundreds of runners showed up for the annual Congress Avenue Mile to find the answer to that question “What’s your best mile time?”
Former University of Texas trackman Sammy Unberhagen and 1996 German Olympian Carmen Wustenhagen were the stars of the day, posting 4:01, and 4:41 respectively to win the elite division.

The race was broken down into 13 heats, culminating with an elite men’s and women’s race. Along the way, some fairly spectacular times were posted. Runners began at the south steps of the capitol building and shot down hill to Congress Avenue, all the way to the far side of the bridge.

Trent Wallace, an Australian runner and UT San Antonio graduate, surprised the elite field by charging to the front of the pack and giving Unberhagen a run for his money through the first half, passed in 1:55. But then, in almost a carbon copy of last year’s elite race, Unberhagen, Eric Polonski, and Clint Hosey (all former Longhorns) moved into the top three positions. Fighting a slight head wind, Unberhagen led the trio to a one-two-three finish, just missing the sub-four mark with a solid 4:01. Polonski clocked 4:02, and Hosey a 4:10. “It was a lot windier this year,” said Unberhagen, who ran a 3:59 here last year. “But it was really close again, just like last year.”

Wustenhagen, who ran a 4:06 1,500 at the 1996 Olympics, was the lead runner for the women’s elites- a field consisting of only four. Desiree Owen put up a game fight, but was no match for the Olympian, who pulled to an early 15-yard lead on the small pack. Wustenhagen hit the first quarter in 62 seconds, but surrendered some time to the headwinds in the next three-quarters, ending up with a 4:41. Owen was second in 4:53. Dill waged a tough duel with Austin road racer Lynn Doelger, and ended up third in 5:11. Doelger posted 5:18 for fourth.

“I am living in Austin full-time now, training with Winthrop Graham (Olympic 400 hurdles silver medallist) as my coach,” said Wustenhagen. “I just love running in Austin. I’ll go to Germany for a few weeks this February for some track meets, and later to attempt to qualify for the German Olympic 1,500-meter team. But I plan on staying in Austin for all of my training.”

In boys high school action, 15 year old James Lovett scorched the field with a 4:30, with Seth James clocking a 4:33 for second. The boys’ 17-19 year old heat saw a whopping 32 runners come in under five minutes, with Ben Hooker leading the way in a sterling 4:19. Brian Wade, tying him for time, also clocked a 4:19. Appropriately named Kyle Swift posted a 4:20 for third.
Hays High School star Whitney Dill (16) opted to run in the elite field, leaving the girls high school heat wide open. Candice Kolb dominated that heat, posting a 5:20, ahead of Leah Smith’s 5:31. Interestingly, their times beat the girls 17-19 top two- Virginia Coindreau and Briana Caramango, who notched 5:29 and 6:02 respectively.

One of the more exciting races of the day was the women’s masters’ field. Donna Moore took an early lead, passing the halfway mark in a swift 2:28, and pulling Margo Braud along with her. But Braud took control just after the half, building an eight second gap by the time she hit the finish on the bridge- 5:23 to 5:32. Anne Flannagan held on for third in 5:48.

The mens’ masters’ field has always been a barn-burner at the Congress Avenue Mile, often featuring a dark horse from out of town. This year was no exception as Richard Christensen, a lean 44-year-old from Dallas, sprinted to an early lead. It’s easy to misjudge your pace on the long stretch of the Avenue though, and it looked like Round Rock’s Ray Joseph was going to reel him in as they hit the half in a speedy 2:04. But somehow Christensen dug down, and pulled off a 4:37 win over Joseph’s 4:41. The Heerwald- Milstead rivalry continued with Heerwald getting the better of his former college adversary, 4:48 to 4:53 for third and fourth.

1999 Results (December 19, 1999)

• 1999 results