Oct 22, 2007 Front Line Racing: Relay Champions By Doug Kurtis

“If it wasn't for the Detroit Free Press Marathon there absolutely would not be a Front Line Racing.” These are the words of team coordinator Fred Vanhala. Without Vanhala there wouldn’t be a team either. In a recent letter to the team he outlined their history with the marathon.



In 1999 - The team was created during a get together with friends at the Park Colony Swim & Tennis Club in Allen Park. “Our family invited Marv & Judy Phelps and their boys over for a day at the pool. I knew Marv had dabbled with running a bit in the past, so told him that the Free Press Marathon was going to have a Marathon Relay that year. The two of us were in for the five person team. We just needed three more. I hadn't run a race since the late 1980's, but felt this would give me a good goal to shoot for to get in shape. Soon thereafter, my brother Marc, a co-worker Jeff Horka, and a brother-in-law Clark Scott agreed to run. Clark would later get injured water skiing, and was replaced by Bill O'Neil. We ran and had a blast. Team time: 3:57:31; place 60th.”

“I was the 2nd smallest guy on the team at 6'2" and 215 pounds. With five guys racing, the name Front Line Racing Team seemed appropriate for us heavyweights.”

“So what has happened to that initial team? Bill O'Neil continues to run and compete. He generally runs with four brothers as a relay in Detroit each year and I often run into all of them at the Hockey Town Cafe thereafter. Marc had some knee problems and has not raced since - though does a lot of bike riding. Horka continues to race with us either at Detroit or Toledo. Phelps now run marathons and wants to complete ten. He had a scare this past summer with thyroid cancer, but early treatment and surgery should have got it all. He's planning on running the 1/2 marathon in year while his wife Judy walks it.

Team members know Phelps has played a huge role in the continuing success of the team and is the man responsible for the very professional look of its website.

After having raced in five different decades, starting in the 1960's Vanhala is looking forward to running a race in the 2010's to make it 6 decades, but he’s not sure if he'll race again this decade.

With the adrenaline from the 1999 team was still flowing through his veins, Vanhala felt that the winning marathon relay time from 1999 looked beatable, but not by the current Front Line team. He started cold calling runners from the downriver area to see if they'd be interested in going after the title. Mike Capraro and Ken Cook agreed to run. “They were checking me out with the well known Tony Mifsud just to make sure I wasn't some wierdo or something. Luckily, Tony, having known me since my high school days, lied and told these guys I was okay. I made some more calls and four other teams came together as well.”

The men's open team would win their division, but a young team from Canada running in the Corporate Division would be the overall champions for the 2nd straight year.

In 2001 Vanhala said he couldn’t remember why he decided to put together nine teams. “It was insane. Runners were coming in, coming out; I was in need of replacements from who knows where and began calling runners all over the state. I was exhausted before the race began.

2001 – It was the first year for the men's masters division of the Free Press Marathon Relays and the start a winning streak that is still intact for Front Line Racing.

2002 - “Like giving birth, I forgot the pain of putting together nine teams in 2001 and put together ten teams for 2002. “

2003 - “Our five man masters team set an event record that may hold up for quite some time, with a 2:31:51.”

2004 – The men's 5 person open team would repeat as overall champions in the fastest time ever and our men's master team would take that title for the fourth straight year.

2005 - “We finished 2nd in all three full marathon team categories. Our dependable 5 man masters team came through for us, winning for the fifth straight year.”