2011 Race Report by Bob Dolphin
April 2, 2011
When I awoke just before 4:00 a.m. on race day, April 2, 2011, I was excited as I anticipated walking the Yakima River Canyon Marathon (YRCM) as an early starter for the first time. For our marathon early starts are reserved for those runners and walkers who do not anticipate finishing the course in seven hours from the regular 8:00 a.m. start.
Lenore and I left at 4:45 a.m. and were accompanied by Gilbert Barrera of San Antonio, Texas. He was staying next door with his daughter Rosie Rifa and had planned to be a volunteer at Aid Station #11 manned by the Rifa family. Instead, he changed his plans and chose to compete in his second YRCM as a walker.
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We arrived at the Selah Civic Center before 5:00 a.m. to meet with other early starters for our drive to Ellensburg. Joining Gilbert and me in our Subaru Outback (purchased from our sponsor, Stewart Subaru of Yakima!) were Eugene DeFronzo of Chesire, Connectictut, Elaine Koga-Kennelly and her husband Paul Kennelly from Newman Lake (near Spokane) and Frank Bartocci of Rochester, Minnesota.
