By Marc Raimondi
That was in the 15th mile, when the Colombian-born Jackson Heights resident broke down with an injured hamstring.But Saturday morning, Real had no such problems. There were no Kenyans, no hamstring injuries and no 15th mile, for that matter. In his first crack at the Queens Half Marathon, the 34-year-old won the race in 1:09.29.Australian Michelle Bleakley, who was the 27th woman to cross the finish line in last year's New York City Marathon, was the top female finisher in 1:19.38 in the Queens Half-Marathon, a deceivingly difficult 13.1-mile jaunt that starts in MacNeil Park along the edge of the East River, through the streets of Malba and College Point and back into MacNeil Park.”I wanted to lead the pack,” Real said through an interpreter. “After 10 miles, (I expected to) drop everyone.”That did not turn out to be the case.Felipe Garcia, 22, a member of the West Side Track Club – the same organization Real belongs to – stayed with Real the whole race and finished only a second behind the Jackson Heights native. The two jockeyed for position throughout the race, with more than 10 lead changes in the 13.1 miles.”I was worried,” said Real, who has won more than 20 half-marathons and who runs more than 20 miles a week to train. “(But) I was waiting until the finish (to pass him up).”Bleakley did not have as much difficulty with her opponents – the 37-year-old Mamaroneck resident led the female racers the whole way.”I love it here,” Bleakley said of the diverse course made up of gorgeous homes with views of the water in Malba juxtaposing with industrial parks in College Point. “It was a friendly course.”Bleakley, who is in the middle of her most successful year, won the Brooklyn leg of the New York Road Runners Five Borough Series earlier this year and was competing in her second Queens Half Marathon.The Greater New York Track Club credits her recent success to running 7-10 miles per week with a baby jogger, an apparatus that allows Bleakley's two-year-old daughter to come along for the ride.”That's why I think I got better this year,” said a laughing Bleakley in her thick Aussie accent. “After carrying my daughter, I've got better.”Reach contributing writer Marc Raimondi by e-mail at TimesLedger@aol.com or call 718-229-0300, Ext. 143.
