April 21, 2026, Des Moines, Iowa: Downtown glistens in the early evening light as viewed from the finish line.
Shore AC Results for the 2026 USATF National Masters 1 Mile Championships in Des Moines, IA
Race date: April 21, 2026 Individual and team race results here from Gateway Timing.
Race web site here.
SHORE AC TEAM RESULTS:
Men 50+:
5 Shore Athletic Club -A M50+ 19:45
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Gun Chip
66 Brian Hanlon 65 Toms River, NJ 136 6:23 6:19
76 John Blaser 69 DeWitt, IA 193 6:35 6:32
81 Scott Linnell 69 Colts Neck, NJ 113 6:58 6:55
82 Christopher Rinaldi 59 Berkeley Heights, NJ 115 7:09 7:07
Men 70+:
1 Shore Athletic Club -A M70+ 18:32
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Gun Chip
61 James Linn 73 Harleysville, PA 189 6:07 6:05
62 Kevin Dollard 70 Hopewell Junction, NY 159 6:10 6:08
66 Harold Leddy 71 Bridgewater, NJ 132 6:21 6:19
91 Roland Cormier 86 Jackson, NJ 123 9:58 9:55
Race web site here.
SHORE AC TEAM RESULTS:
Men 50+:
5 Shore Athletic Club -A M50+ 19:45
=======================================================
Gun Chip
66 Brian Hanlon 65 Toms River, NJ 136 6:23 6:19
76 John Blaser 69 DeWitt, IA 193 6:35 6:32
81 Scott Linnell 69 Colts Neck, NJ 113 6:58 6:55
82 Christopher Rinaldi 59 Berkeley Heights, NJ 115 7:09 7:07
Men 70+:
1 Shore Athletic Club -A M70+ 18:32
=======================================================
Gun Chip
61 James Linn 73 Harleysville, PA 189 6:07 6:05
62 Kevin Dollard 70 Hopewell Junction, NY 159 6:10 6:08
66 Harold Leddy 71 Bridgewater, NJ 132 6:21 6:19
91 Roland Cormier 86 Jackson, NJ 123 9:58 9:55
April 21, 2026, Des Moines, Iowa: Members of the Shore AC men's 70+ team flash confident smiles as they prepare for the USATF Masters National Road Mile. Left to right: Hal Leddy, Jim Linn, Kevin Dollard and Roland Cormier.
Harvest Time! Shore AC Reaps Gold at Grand Blue Mile
Like quintessential American farmers, Shore AC masters men arrived in Des Moines ready to work hard and reap rewards. What they hoped to harvest wasn't golden winter wheat but sweet golden medals.
Of course, modern farmers depend on high-efficiency equipment to succeed in the field. Fortunately for them, the Shore AC men's 70+ crew brought along their finely tuned racing legs. And they would need every muscle fiber to outpace the mighty mountain hounds from Boulder Road Runners, not to mention the sturdy yeomen from Atlanta Track Club.
With his tractor running on jet fuel, Jim Linn paved the way for the Shore AC M70+ quartet. He scorched the U-shaped course in a blazing 6:07 (gun time), achieving a magnificent 89.87% age grade for the 73-year-old. Driving his combine like it was a Porsche Carrera, Kevin Dollard hung on Jim's shoulder and hurtled over the finish line in 6:10 as second team scorer. Startled hens were still flapping their wings when Hal Leddy floored his plow Dodge Viper style across the timing mat in 6:21 to complete team scoring. And just for good measure, 86-year-old insurance runner Roland Cormier sailed through the finish chute in 9:58 to re-eclipse the M85-89 American record that he had already smashed last year. The valiant efforts of this fearsome foursome proved to be just barely enough to beat Boulder for the M70+ team win. Bravo, boys!
Of course, modern farmers depend on high-efficiency equipment to succeed in the field. Fortunately for them, the Shore AC men's 70+ crew brought along their finely tuned racing legs. And they would need every muscle fiber to outpace the mighty mountain hounds from Boulder Road Runners, not to mention the sturdy yeomen from Atlanta Track Club.
With his tractor running on jet fuel, Jim Linn paved the way for the Shore AC M70+ quartet. He scorched the U-shaped course in a blazing 6:07 (gun time), achieving a magnificent 89.87% age grade for the 73-year-old. Driving his combine like it was a Porsche Carrera, Kevin Dollard hung on Jim's shoulder and hurtled over the finish line in 6:10 as second team scorer. Startled hens were still flapping their wings when Hal Leddy floored his plow Dodge Viper style across the timing mat in 6:21 to complete team scoring. And just for good measure, 86-year-old insurance runner Roland Cormier sailed through the finish chute in 9:58 to re-eclipse the M85-89 American record that he had already smashed last year. The valiant efforts of this fearsome foursome proved to be just barely enough to beat Boulder for the M70+ team win. Bravo, boys!
Action shots courtesy of De Dollard and Lisa Vaughn
Jim Linn (at left) and Kevin Dollard gun for the finish.
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Hal Leddy (above girl's head) digs deep in the final stretch, with Hanlon and Rinaldi in hot pursuit.
Your M85-89 age group champion: Roland Cormier of the Shore Athletic Club!
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April 21, 2026, Des Moines, Iowa: Members of the Shore AC men's 50+ squad look forward to testing their fitness against some of the nation's best quinquagenarians. Left to right: Brian Hanlon, John Blaser, Scott Linnell and Chris Rinaldi.
Alas, the Shore AC men's 50+ crew conducted their harvest with rusty old gear that couldn't hold a candle to their competition. For starters, most of their team was between the ages of 65 and 69. We knew well beforehand that other M50+ teams would clean our clocks. But it got even worse. Calamity struck several hours before the start of the race when 59-year-old Scott Siriano encountered a transportation snag and found it necessary to skip the race. Then, during the race, a promising dash for 57-year-old Chris Rinaldi turned to disaster when, with just a quarter mile to go, he tripped and fell flat on the road. Bleeding from his lips, a hand and one knee, Chris slowly stood back up and walked to the finish line in 7:09. All three age 65+ teammates passed Chris along the way. Famous sculptor Brian Hanlon was the first to cross the threshold, tripping the timer in 6:23. Iowa resident John Blaser motored across the timing plane in 6:35. Team scoring came to a merciful close when Scott Linnell lugged his out-of-shape body under the finish line arch in 6:58. Despite finishing fifth -- i.e., dead last -- we still felt satisfied that we a) showed up for the race and b) collected 60 Grand Prix points for the Shore AC M570+ team. Well done, lads!
Chris Rinaldi matches strides with Scott Lucking of the Atlanta Track Club as they fly down the home stretch.
John Blaser stays focused as he powers towards the finish line.
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Brian Hanlon (at middle) and Kevin Dollard (at right) keep up a strong pace as they near the halfway point in the race.
Scott Linnell (at middle) tries in vain to stay with 80-year-old studs Gary Ostwald (left) and Gary Patton (right).
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Individual Accomplishments
This convention of high-speed horticulturists yielded phenomenal mile times and corresponding age gradings. What a delight then to witness a Shore AC athlete finish among the top three in his 5-year age group!
Now, thunder out shouts of joy for these Shore AC athletes who finished among the top ten in their 5-year age groups.
This convention of high-speed horticulturists yielded phenomenal mile times and corresponding age gradings. What a delight then to witness a Shore AC athlete finish among the top three in his 5-year age group!
- Roland Cormier 86 1st M85-89 9:55 76.35%
Now, thunder out shouts of joy for these Shore AC athletes who finished among the top ten in their 5-year age groups.
- Brian Hanlon 65 8th M65-69 6:19 79.29%
- John Blaser 69 10th M65-69 6:32 79.61%
- James Linn 73 4th M70-74 6:05 89.87%
- Kevin Dollard 70 5th M70-74 6:08 85.72%
- Harold Leddy 71 7th M70-74 6:19 84.23%
April 21, 2026, Des Moines, Iowa: Shore AC athletes check out the finish line after their delicious team brunch hours before the race. Left to right: Jim Linn, Hal Leddy, Scott Linnell, Kevin Dollard, Team Mom De Dollard and Brian Hanlon.
April 21, 2026, Des Moines, Iowa: Let the celebration begin! Shore AC runners gather post-race for dinner in the Marriott hotel lobby, joined by USATF official Pam Fales (at left). SAC members, left-to-right: Kevin Dollard, Team Mom De Dollard, Scott Linnell and Hal Leddy.
