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Miyachi, Shimizu to defend titles in Coffee Trail Run
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Posted on Jan 29 2009
The male and female winners of last year’s inaugural Marianas Coffee Trail Run are expected to defend their titles when the second edition of the race from Micro Beach to Mt. Tapochao and back returns tomorrow, Jan. 31.
The total number of runners last year was 38, including competitors from Guam and Japan. Organizers said they hope to draw about 50 runners this time, including Fujio Miyachi and Maimi Shimizu, who topped the men and women’s divisions of the 12-kilometer trail run last year.
The course, estimated this year to be about 10 miles, will pass through some of the oldest coffee plants at the slopes of Saipan’s highest peak.
Miyachi himself will aim to improve his time of 23 minutes and 31 seconds in this unique on-and-off road and up-and-down hill race.
Shimizu, who ruled the women’s division and was the seventh overall finisher with a time of 1:43.49, will get a strong challenge from Mieko Carey, who was runner-up at 1:47.26.
Organizers said a total of 16 participants from Japan and five from Guam have already confirmed.
About 10 from the office of the organizing government agency, Marianas Visitors Authority, have also registered as of yesterday.
MVA’s Frank Tudela and Ed Diaz said they hope to hit the target number of runners, hours before the start of the race.
Registration will start at 5:30am.
Major sponsors this year are Marianas Coffee Company, MVA, and Northern Marianas Athletics with the support of the Pacific Development, Inc. Other in-kind donors are Pacific Islands Club, Joshua Berger, Tyce Mister, and other MVA members.
Diaz said the course is very complicated to explain but said there will be a short course, which will go into two coffee plantation and a long course that will head up to Mt. Tapochao and down into Chuck Jordan’s coffee plantation along with other plantation in conjunction with the short course.
“Some of the trails are from the XTERRA [Saipan Championship] and some are new. It’s a good course and I am sure all the participants will enjoy it,” he said.
