Frankston to Portsea 55km Run 55km/34 miles
7th April 1990
| 1. | Paul Patton | 3:42:27 |
| 2. | Chris Benn | 4:11:34 |
| 3. | Kevin Cassidy | 4:32:00 |
| 4. | Kon Butko | 4:33:00 |
| 5. | Geoff Womersley | 4:53:23 |
| 6. | Peter Nelson | 4:56:35 |
| 7. | Simon Cass | 5:03:14 |
| 8. | Jan Brimacombe [F] | 5:06:21 |
| 9. | Alan Witt | 5:07:29 |
| 10. | Phillip Dodin | 5:08:18 |
| 11. | Jim Wolstencroft | 5:10:05 |
| 12. | Martin Dixon | 5:14:45 |
| 13. | Phil Barnes | 5:43:48 |
| 14. | Norm Johnston | 6:18:22 |
Cliff Ryan D.N.F.
Report by Kevin Cassidy
It was a fairly mild morning when I arrived at the Davey Street intersection about 30 minutes before starting time. As the place was deserted, I thought that perhaps the race had been cancelled. “Well”, I thought to myself, “I’ll run the course anyway and declare myself the winner”!. However, a quick walk around the corner and I found Laurie and Jan Brimacombe. Jan is a seasoned marathoner and she was fronting up for her first ultra. In a matter of minutes, runners started arriving from all directions. We all threw in $2 to cover the refreshments at the finish and by 7am, the race was boasting a record 15 starters. Many were quite vocal about the fact that President Hook was missing in action.
Mustering on the corner, someone said “GO” and we were away. Paul Patton bolted into the distance never to be seen again, knocking out a new course record whilst Chris Benn and Jim Wolstencroft also broke away and disappeared from view. Kon Butko and myself ran together at the front of the main bunch.
The first 20km was quite demanding with a succession of ups and downs and two difficult hills before leveling out about halfway. I picked up my pace a bit and overtook Jim who was starting to fade, but I decided it would be foolish to chase the two runners ahead of me. The course then took us onto the beach front for a long flat section. I was drinking every 5km and felt good but the traffic was giving me problems. The road was quite narrow at this point.
The final 10km was hard work tackling a series of roller-coaster hills all the way to the finish. I thought I had a comfortable hold on third place, but with less then a kilometer to go, Kon appeared over the hill behind me giving me a hell of a fright. I still finished third, but only just!
At the finish, we received a certificate and block of chocolate. This has occurred over the last few years at the suggestion of Geoff Hook, who, as mentioned previously, was noticeably absent. One by one, runners crossed the line with a special cheer reserved for our final finisher, Norm Johnson. Norm is a real character. During the run, he decided that his bum-bag was becoming a hindrance so he hid it behind a roadside tree. On the car trip back home, we had to stop and search for his bag. It was found intact.
As we left, I mentioned to Kon Butko that I would write a race report. “Well make sure you give Hookie a bagging for not turning up”, he laughed.
Well there you have it, Hookie. The Peninsula Road Runners are eagerly awaiting your reply. Peter Armistead may also try to explain why he whimped out despite being present at the start.
Geoff Hook replies…….
Dear Kevin,
Thank you for your lucid report on the Frankston to Portsea race. You capture the spirit of the start so well. I’m surprised you went ahead with your bagging of me in your report after I was nice enough to put a big photograph of you in our previous issue of the magazine. Maybe you were upset to have me in that same photo alongside or that it was relegated to the back page! I’m deeply offended at the bagging and if this was earlier times, a challenge would be issued [pistols, not running, because you are too good for me now]. So think yourself lucky!
I also take this opportunity to correct a false statement in your report and also explain why I didn’t attend the race. I only suggested certificates, NOT chocolate. And despite what you may think, I believe that running a PB track 100km the next day was a reasonable excuse for not turning up for a Frankston to Portsea run the day before
Your faithful and obedient servant,
Mr Hook.