Cohalan 4-Mile Run Concludes Sayville Summer Series

This weekend's SummerFest kicked off with the Honorable John Cohalan 4-Mile Run and Kids' Fun Run on Saturday morning.

Held in honor of former State Supreme Court Justice and Islip Town Supervisor John P. Cohalan, this was the fourth and final race of the 2010 Sayville Summer Series. This race was sponsored by the Sayvile Running Company, the Chamber of Commerce, and Sayville Ford and others. Runners lined up at the starting line near Sayville Running Company and took off through the streets of Sayville when the gun went off at 9:20 a.m.

Race organizer Mike Nolan of the Sayville Running Company estimates that between 400 to 500 runners participated in Saturday's race. Nolan added that runners broke records on Saturday morning, finishing with times that were 20 to 30 seconds faster than last year's times.

"It's a celebration of running and the ability to run," said Nolan. "It's about how you can be competitive and have fun while being civil."

This year's winners of the Cohalan Run include Billy Holl of Bayport, who finished in first place at 21:02. Following him were Tim Murphy of Lake Ronkonkoma at 21:33 and Brendan Barrett of Sayville in third place at 21:52. Christina Derosa of Sound Beach led the women in first place in 23:53. Una Broderick of Wantagh came in second place in 25:05 and Brittany Liobell of West Sayville in third place in 25:50.

The winners of the 2010 Sayville Summer Series are Sandy Kolar of West Sayville taking first place in Female Overall, and Brendan Barrett of Sayville winning Male Overall. The first, second, and third place winners of the Summer Series took home cash prizes.

After the race, runners relaxed in the Common Ground and enjoyed the sounds of the Jeff Regan Band while enjoying complimentary massages from Long Island Sports Rehabilitation. Volunteers from the Pilot Club distributed fresh fruit, water, and bagels to runners to help them recharge.

Runner Kathy Collins, of Bayport, ran the race with friends and finally met her training goal. She said her favorite part of the race was "running by the houses and taking a peek at the gardens as I go by."

Cathie Harris of Blue Point is fairly new to running. She started to run in November with Sayville Fitness and got a training partner, Alicia Cobb, of Bayport. Cobb and Harris bonded quickly while training and kept each other motivated to run.

"It felt awesome to finish, and to even do four miles," added Cobb, a teacher who brings her running gear to school to teach her class about exercise. "Cathie's fun to run with. She keeps me entertained."

"This was the ninth time I ran 4 miles in my life," said Harris. "I ran under a 10 minute mile. It was wonderful. It felt great that I could accomplish this. You feel like you could do anything."