By Nathan Mayberg
MONTICELLO — August 8, 2006 – A total of 217 tough-nosed runners placed their toes on the line Sunday morning for the Monticello Rotary Club’s 27th annual Monster 10K race and Baby Monster 5K race.
When it was all over, Mike Slinsky, 37, of Wappingers Falls, emerged victorious in the Monster 10K. Slinsky finished nearly two minutes faster than runner-up Ted DeLaunay of Chester. When Slinsky crossed the line, three participants in the Baby Monster were just approaching their separate finish line. Slinsky beat out 124 total runners in the 10K and one-third of those running in the 5K race.  
Slinsky’s final time of 35 minutes, 31 seconds was 12 seconds off the time set by Andy Latincsics last year, when he won the race. Latincsics had been dominating local races as of late, but did not compete in the Monster 10K.
Slinsky is no stranger to local races. He won the Wurtsboro Mountain 30K Road Run in 2005 and 2004’s Celebrate Life Marathon.
On the female side, Lilian Kroner, 40, of Monroe, once again charged home in front of all the other women, as she did in last year’s race.
In 2005, Kroner finished 11th overall, but this time she took fifth in the overall 10K competition. Her final time of 39:58 was a significant improvement over her mark of 41:11 last year. Kroner won the female title at last year’s Rock Hill Run and Ramble 5K, and was second among the females in this year’s event.
In the Baby Monster 5K event, Travis Wolfe, 19, of Neversink was a decisive winner. His time of 16:45 bested runner-up Jeremy Mathsen’s mark of 18:38. Mathsen, 19, of Grahamsville, joined a contingent of Tri-Valley Central School graduates which captured six of the top 11 times in the race.
In the female division of the Baby Monster 5K, Maegan Krifchin, 18, of Bellmore, Long Island, took the title for the second year in a row. Her time of 19:49, was good enough for seventh place overall out of a field of 93.
The female runner-up was Amanda Robotti, 18, of Warwick. She completed the course in 21:07, which was 13th overall.
Organizing the race for the sixth year in a row was Orshii Boldiis, a Past President of the Monticello Rotary Club. Les Kristt, who is another Past President of Monticello Rotary, emceed the grand awards ceremony, where dozens of trophies and plaques were handed out.
Each year, the organization donates the proceeds from the race to a different cause. This year, the money will go to the Diabetes Education Center at Catskill Regional Medical Center.
Boldiis said the center was chosen after a presentation by Donna Gibbons, who works at the center. The education center helps people who are inflicted with diabetes as well as their families in coping with the effects of the disease.
No figures were available for the amount raised, but the numbers were down from the last two years, as less runners attended the event.
The Monster, which has been one of the most famous races in the region over the past two decades, has attracted an average of 300 runners over the last few years. But this year, only 217 showed up.
The top 30 finishers in the Monster 10K were as follows:
1. Mike Slinsky, Wappingers Falls, 35:31
2. Ted DeLaunay, Chester, 37:07
3. Steve Keller, Youngsville, 39:03
4. Jim Phelan, Montgomery, 39:08
5. Lilian Kroner, Monroe, 39:58
6. Jeffrey Lease, Newburgh, 40:10
7. Matthew Gawors, Middletown, 40:19
8. Scott Meilke, Rock Hill, 41:02
9. Erick Sellstrom, Liberty, 41:23
10. Tom Manza, Monticello, 41:27
11. Gary Byrnes, Newburgh, 41:36
12. Douglas Rock, Cragsmoor, 41:50
13. April Ackermann, Cochecton, 41:55
14. Steven Pike, Montague, NJ, 42:01
15. George Shurter, Middletown, 42:07
16. Franz Scholten, Greenville, 42:37
17. Doug Carter, Chester, 43:55
18. Pedro Flores, Peru, 44:32
19. Nicole Rozario, Middletown, 44:39
20. Brendan Ference, Smallwood, 45:12
21. Edna Harrison, New Paltz, 45:21
22. Marco Pabon, Middletown, 45:23
23. Steve Holmbraker, Middletown, 45:30
24. Lior Aharon, Rock Hill, 45:39
25. Bill Schneider, Barryville, 45:40
26. Jean Halahan, Middletown, 45:43
27. Emil Barbosa, Wallkill, 45:46
28. Danny Berry, Warwick, 45:51
29. Drew Priest, Middletown, 46:00
30. Alex Gnanapragasam, Rock Hill, 46:02.