Former Pleasant Valley High School and Susquehanna University standout Karyn Kern Pinter of Mount Bethel packed daughters Julia, 8, and Kathryn, 18 months, into the car and drove to Washington, D.C., last weekend to compete in the running of the Nike Women's Half Marathon.

This event, now in its second year, attracted a starting field of more than 15,000 runners, of whom 14,700 completed the 13-mile course through the capital.Pinter, 36, retains the competitive spirit that earned her accolades in basketball and track and field. She regularly enters half-marathons and competed last year in the inaugural running of the Nike-sponsored event. This year, she clipped more than 10 minutes off her best time and finished 821st in the entire field, which put her in the top 6 percent of the entrants.Her 39th place finish out of the 1,480 runners in her age group was even more impressive and put her in the top 3 percent in that category.Pinter was joined in Washington by her proud parents, Peter and Carol Kern, who followed the race from the comfort of their hotel room while minding the children.The computer age makes it easy. A "chip" embedded in the number bib worn by each runner acts like an "EZ-Pass" device. As each runner passes checkpoints throughout the course, the computer chip is automatically read and fed to an app that provides information directly to your smartphone. You may not be able to see your favorite runner, but as an onlooker you know exactly where she is throughout the race.Pinter was pleased to participate again, especially since the proceeds from the race benefit a worthy cause. She is looking forward to next year's event and to a further improvement in her time. For a runner, good is never quite good enough; they compete with themselves as well as their fellow participants.