CAPE ELIZABETH, Maine - Across the Casco Bay Bridge from Portland, the promontory of Cape Elizabeth juts gently into the Atlantic Ocean. The 12-mile headland is edged with sandy beaches and rocky shores, and the small town that hosts today's Beach to Beacon 10K Road Race is surrounded by farms and wooded areas, summer homes and year-round cottages. This is as sweet as American summer gets. Cape Elizabeth is one of those enchanted New England landscapes, like Martha's Vineyard or West Barnet, Vt., where pastures stretch under the sun in a hundred shades of green, flocks of white birch trees perch alongside the fields, and gnarled trees hang canopies over the road, providing shade and personality. In the late afternoon, a glowing orange sun melts into a pastel sky of pink and blue, and through it all, one winding road dips and rises with the land, traveling around corners and reaching ahead to the sea, unraveling across Cape Elizabeth like a story. Once a year, Cape Elizabeth becomes a true global village as runners from around the world collect to run the roads where hometown girl Joan Benoit Samuelson took her training runs as she made her way to history. It was in 1998 that the 1984 Olympic marathon gold medalist first hosted the Beach to Beacon 10K, a race she created to bring elite runners to Maine to share the beauty and the community that sustained her. And hosting is a lot of what this race is about. Susan Chepkemei, a 32-year-old Kenyan, is back for her third Beach to Beacon. Sitting on a deck that hangs over the edge of the Atlantic - the stunning view east is all ocean - she gives a nod to the lovely scenery, but says it's something else that makes this race special. ``I love the people very much, particularly the spectators - and everyone,'' she said. ``That's why I'm back. The people are wonderful, especially my host family. They are special people, and that's really important.'' Chepkemei, a top road racer for more than six years with three second-place finishes in the New York Marathon, won the first Beach to Beacon she entered, in 2004 (31 minutes 36 seconds), and shared a finish-line hug with her host, Beth Newlands Campbell, who finished later. Visa problems kept Chepkemei from returning in 2005, but she was back in 2006, finishing fourth (32:39). Chepkemei, who ran a half-marathon in Bogota last week, arrived in Maine a few days early. ``Each time, earlier and earlier,'' she said. Her training is limited to one run a day, so she has had time to go to the beach (``Too cold for swimming, but I touched it'') and to go shopping. She loves to run and she loves to shop. ``Every place I race, the first thing I ask is, `Do you have somewhere to shop?' '' said Chepkemei, who is 5 feet 2 inches, 97 pounds, and has the cheekbones of a fashion model. ``If it fits and it's nice, I buy it. If they could have sports for shopping, I'd do it.'' Her hosts, Beth and Hugh Campbell and their children, Caroline (8) and Caleigh (6), live in Cape Elizabeth, but rent a house on the water for August. This is the home they share with Chepkemei. ``[The race is] the biggest thing that happens in this town, and the most exciting thing that happens,'' said Beth. ``It's great for me and my children. It's really special to pull out a map of the world and have Susan point out where she lives. It's a real learning experience for the children, and it's a rewarding experience for me to have a new friend. ``We've become running groupies; when Susan runs near here, we all go and the kids wear their Kenya shirts. We went to New York for the marathon and the kids were jumping on her bed in the hotel and I could just imagine the headline: `Top runner injured in hotel bed accident.' But to them, she's just Susan.'' Meb Keflezighi, the 32-year-old silver medalist in the marathon at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, is the top American in the men's field, which features defending champion Thomas Nyariki of Kenya, Evans Cheruiyot, and Simon Ndirangu . . . In the women's race, the top contenders include Chepkemei and three Ethiopians who have run under 32 minutes: Wude Yimer, Diribe Alemu, and Genet Getaneh. Yimer, 20, won the Peachtree 10K in Atlanta a month ago . . . Defending champion Alevtina Ivanova of Russia, who set the course record of 31:25.7, is not here, instead training for the World Championships Aug. 28 in Japan . . . Five-time winner Catherine Ndereba is running the New York City Half-Marathon tomorrow . . . For the 10th anniversary, Samuelson will run with Canadian Jacqueline Gareau, who won the Boston Marathon in 1980, the year Rosie Ruiz jumped in late, crossed the finish line first, and fooled officials - for a time. Samuelson won Boston in 1979 and '83 . . . Norway's Grete Waitz, the '84 Olympic marathon silver medalist, is also a guest, but will not run. Barbara Matson can be reached at maston@globe.com.
Source: The Boston Globe
