Middletown Residents Finish Strong in Sheehan Classic

Since the Sheehan Classic moved to Red Bank in 1994 it's been a draw for thousands of runners from New Jersey and states beyond who line up on Broad Street one (near) summer's day for one of the area's most scenic races.

Though event details have changed like the date - the race was typically held later in the season - and the distance - the Sheehan was reduced from five miles to a 5-kilometer race to help encourage participation - nearly 1,300 registered racers and countless hundreds more descended on Red Bank for the two-day runners' extravaganza. 

The Sheehan began on Friday with the opening of a runners expo in and later children races. The main event went down on Saturday, with an official 1,296 runners packing the borough's downtown and waiting for the starting bell. When it was over, just over 15 minutes for the winner, and over an hour for a few participants, the runners again gathered in Marine Park for a celebratory event.

Taking first in the Sheehan Classic was Johnathan Phillips, 28, of Brooklyn, NY, whose pace time of 4 minutes, 58 seconds a mile saw him finish the race in a brisk 15 minutes and 24 seconds. The top female finisher was Maria Pavkovitch who finished the 5k race in 18 minutes and 19 seconds.

Middletown was well represented this year with a total of 57 resigestered participants taking on the race. Five of Middletown's own even finished in the top 100. The first finisher from Middletown was Ken Shatzer. With a pace of 5 minutes and 46 seconds he clinched the number 12 spot. A complete list of Middletown racers can be seen by clicking here.

Though there can only be one race winner, like Highlander, everyone who participated in Saturday's Sheehan Classic was a champion for making the effort. Check out our famous from this weekend's event.

For a complete list of winners, sortable by everything from name to age to pace, click here.