SCHENECTADY — Jordan Davis could become the first runner to break 46 minutes at the Gazette Stockade-athon since 1994 on Sunday.
Except for one thing . . . there might be somebody in front of him who does it first.
That’s how strong the men’s field is for the 34th annual 15k, which will start at an earlier time than usual, 9 a.m., from Central Parkway adjacent to the stone gate to Central Park.
Davis, a former runner at Auburn University from western Maryland who ran one post-graduate season for Syracuse University under coach Chris Fox, said if he has a good day, he’s capable of a 4:55-5:00 mile pace, which would put him in the vicinity of 46:00. A five-minute pace would equal the 46:36 Andy Allstadt ran to win in 2007.
Zakaria Kunyiha posted a 45:14 in 1994, and since then, there’s been only two sub-47:00 winning times, Allstadt’s and a 46:25 by Kevin Collins in 1995.
As accomplished and fast as the 24-year-old Davis is, the top contender on Sunday will be Fernando Cabada Jr., the 27-year-old from Boulder, Colo., who is coming back from an Achilles’ heel injury that prevented him from running with the U.S. national team in the marathon World Championships in Berlin in August.
This will be his first race in his comeback to marathoning, but he’ll have a formidable challenger in Davis, who ran 46:50 at Fleet Feet Buffalo this year and has personal records of 14:15 for 5k and 30:20 for 10k.
“I have no idea what I’ll do,” Davis said. “It’ll depend on a lot of things. If it’s a good day, you never know. I want to try maybe a 4:55, five-minute mile pace. If it’s a bad day, who knows?
“I’ve raced him [Cabada] a couple of times, and he’s really good. He’s so talented. He’s one of the best we have, so I guess I’ll just hang in there. Maybe he’ll help me to a PR. That’s what it’s all about. Stick to what you can do and see what happens.”
Not to be lost in the shuffle is defending champion Emory Mort of Ghent, who won the Stockade-athon in 47:52 last year.
He’s using this race as a steppingstone to the Philadelphia Marathon in two weeks.
Mort’s Stockade-athon win qualified him for the 2009 15k national championship, the Gate River Run in Jacksonville, Fla., where he ran 47:57.
Davis, meanwhile, has been cranking up his mileage this year, but has been scaling back on his road racing schedule to save himself for the indoor and outdoor track seasons.
He ran 14:15 for 5k at the Festival of Races in Syracuse last year, and his 10k PR in Oswego this year.
Davis has served as a grad assistant to Fox, who has brought the Orange men’s cross country team to a national ranking and the Big East championship this season.
“Lots of running, man; I’m just doing the running thing,” Davis said. “He’s still my coach. I don’t do a whole lot of roads, because it wore me out when it came time for indoor and outdoor, so I do two, maybe three a month.
“I don’t really like nine miles, but it’s do-able, with the training I do. I did a 115 [mile week] this summer, and the last four weeks have been 95, 96, 100 and 96.”
Davis was surprised to hear that Cabada was in the race, but said he relishes the opportunity to run against somebody of his caliber.
“It should be fun,” Davis said. “I like racing against good competition. My last race this year will be Manchester, which is one of the biggest in the country. Just stick your nose in there. I love that kind of thing.”
Cabada, who grew up in Fresno, Calif., and moved to Boulder, Colo., about two years ago to be coached by former marathon world record holder Steve Jones, is staying with friends in Syracuse and will travel to Schenectady the morning of the Stockade-athon.
“I’m not really tapering for this or anything,” Cabada said. “I’m not going to hold anything back. Someone like me, when I put the jersey on — I’m sponsored by Reebok — I’m not going to do anything halfway. I’ll put it all on the line.
“I’m not going to put a time limit, but maybe capable of a lot of things, maybe challenge the record [44:39]. I’m not going to sit on anyone, I’m just going to focus on me. A 4:50 first mile would be a stupid thing, but I do think I can do 4:55 for maybe first two miles, then at 5k, go. I want to go in not worried about losing. It’s more about pushing myself. I’m excited to go and put on a uniform again.”
Defending women’s champion Kaitlin O’Sullivan was not entered as of Friday, and two-time champion Emily Bryans of Schenectady is out with a stress fracture, but the field has drawn Laurel Burdick of Manlius, who ran 54:49 as the third American at the 2009 Utica Boilermaker and 54:44 in 2008 at the Boilermaker; 43-year-old Lori Kingsley of Wysox, Pa., who was the third masters runner at the Utica Boilermaker (56:21) and the winner of the masters 15k national championsip at Fleet Feet Buffalo (56:55); 2007 Stockade-athon champion Eileen Combs; and Jen Adams of Gansevoort, who was second to O’Sullivan last year in 56:50.
“I’d like to run 55, 56, I’m just not sure what will happen,” said Kingsley, who joined Bryans on the Willow Street team this year. “Unfortunately, Emily isn’t running. I was hoping to stick close to her, because we’re not too far apart, time-wise.
“I want to do well for the team, too. We’re in the age-grade [division], so that pushes you a little more.”
