The Crazy Lenny's New Year's Eve 5km

The story of this event starts back in the fall of 1981 when former Poland Seminary High School and current Baldwin Wallace College student athlete Lenny Cockman decided to get some of his former high school cross country teammates back together for a little reunion run/race during the holiday season.  Lenny enlisted the help of former teammates John Mirth, running at Cornell University and Phillip Pillin, running at  Bowling Green State University.  He decided that the race should start at his parent's house on Highland Avenue in Poland and head out towards the Poland High School.  True to his "Crazy" nickname, Lenny went out with a fifty foot steel tape and measured off the course that would stand for nearly twenty years.  

That first year, the former Poland teammates got together on December 31, 1981 at noon on New Year's Eve for the first edition of the race.  A teammate of John Mirth's at Cornell University, Rich Oldrieve from the Cleveland area would win the race on the men's side.  Former Poland runner and current Ohio State University runner, Beth Sheridan, would be the fastest female.   

In all kinds of winter weather on December 31st, runners would show up at Lenny's parents house to see old teammates and to see who was the fastest that day over the 5km distance.  When the race outgrew the close confines of the Cockman house (many years after Lenny moved to South Bend Indiana to teach), the race moved to Poland High School in 1998 and took nearly the same course in reverse.  The township of Poland continued to grow and traffic increased and after  the 2004 event, it was decided that the course should be moved because of all the traffic and the increase of runners in the race.  

The 2005 Crazy Lenny's New Year's Eve 5km race was moved to Poland Middle School at 11:00 a.m. with a lap of the old track (that many of the original old timers raced on), the down through Poland Woods.  That year saw the largest field ever assembled at 45 runners plus 9 in the kid's race (a sure sign that the once young teammates were getting old......).  This race is the third oldest running event continuously held in the Youngstown area.  The field size often depends on the weather and the interest of the current Poland Seminary High School runners, but the old timers are nearly always there in one of the fastest road 5kms in the area (if the weather cooperates...).  There are plenty of give aways and door prizes to be given out.  The race winners on the male and female side, along with the masters receive brand new cars!  (the traditional Matchbox kind....).  The race has always been free and will hopefully continue that way.    

The list of race winners:

Year     Year       Men                           Women

1          1981           Rich Oldrieve   16:22            Beth Sheridan 

2          1982          John Mirth       15:12 CR             Beth Sheridan

3          1983         Dave Mirth  16:03              Beth Sheridan  18:52

4          1984         Dave Mirth   15:15        Beth Sheridan 17:38 CR

5         1985         Jeff Martin                   Karen Lane

6         1986         Rick Brauer   15:38      Annette McKay  20:50

7         1987        Rick Brauer    16:20     Beth Sheridan  19:09

8         1988        Dave Haushalter  16:07   Beth Sheridan  18:27

9        1999        Dave Mirth   15:24      Liz Guillespie  22:55

10       1990        Dave Mirth   16:28     Becky Rudzik  18:15

11       1991       Dave Haushalter  15:57   Becky Rudzik  18:35

12       1992       Dave Haushalter  15:46   Becky Rudzik  20:09

13      1993         Dave Haushalter  16:17    Becky Rudzik  20:07

14      1994         Keith Gorby  15:56       Beth Ellwood  20:49

15     1995         Keith Gorby   16:16     Anne Ralston  19:49

16      1996        Donn Craig   16:16       Becky Rudzik  21:08

17     1997        Dave Haushalter  16:47   Becky Rudzik  22:24

18     1998         J.P. Moran    16:57         Becky Rudzik  24:40

19     1999         Dave Mirth   15:56       Stacy Havich  24:20

20     2000          Mark Prejsnar   17:41    Val Zajac  22:06

21     2001         Mark Prejsnar   16:09    Stacy Havich  21:01

22     2002         Dave Mirth    15:37     Colleen Moran  24:10

23     2003         Dave Mirth    16:59      Laura Kaulen  18:48

24     2004         Jimmy Ransom  17:17    Laura Kaulen  20:09

25     2005         Dave Mirth   17:06       Suzzanne Andrews  20:52

26     2006        Jimmy Ramson   17:07     Becky Rudzik     20:50

27       2007      John Mirth   16:23            Colleen Moran   19:54     

The results from past years:

 1981     1982   1983   1984   1985    1986 

1987     1988    1989  1990   1991     1992   1993  

 1994    1995    1996   1997   1998     1999   2000

2001     2002    2003   2004   2005     2006   2007