Montour Trail-Letter

Volume 10, Issue 6

November/December, 1999

The Fourth Annual IKEA/Montour Trail Half Marathon and 5K Run and Walk, Saturday, September 11, was a big success. Over 800 people took part in the three events.

The early preregistration numbers looked disappointing. As of August 13, we had signed up only 110 runners, as compared to 260 at the same date the previous year. But then the applications started pouring in. In the week before the postmark deadline, we received a record 294 applications. By the time race day rolled around, we had exceeded our 1998 numbers! The weather was ideal for running. The sky was clear. Temperatures were in the low 60s at the start of the race, warming up to the low 70s by noon. Most of the registrants had signed up for the Half Marathon, a measured distance of 13.1 miles. The course started in the parking lot of IKEA, and proceeded down Park Manor Boulevard to the Montour Trail, where the runners turned left. They then ran past Enlow and Imperial to a turnaround point a little short of Boggs, and returned to the finish line at the bottom of Park Manor Boulevard. Buses were available to take the runners back up to IKEA for refreshments and the awards ceremony.

The 5K course was a measured distance of 3.1 miles. The course was similar to the Half Marathon course, but the turnaround on the trail was a short distance west of where the Montour Trail crosses the Parkway (Route 60). The third event was a non-competitive 5K walk. Participants were taken by bus to Ewing Mill Road, from where they could walk at their leisure along the Montour Trail back to Park Manor Boulevard. Even though the runners and the walkers shared the same finish area, the walkers and the runners approached it from different directions. The male winner of the Half Marathon was Andrew Herr, for the third year in a row. The winning time was 1 hour, 9 minutes, and 27 seconds. The female Half Marathon champion was Mindy Sawtelle, in 1 hour, 20 minutes, 48 seconds. Andrew and Mindy each took home a plaque and a $500 gift certificate from IKEA. The second through fifth place winners also received plaques and lesser gift certificates. A total of 507 people finished the Half Marathon.

The male winner of the 5K was Michael Scaffardi, in 15:24, and the female winner was Tricia Snyder, in 18:24. Michael and Tricia each took home a plaque and a $150 gift certificate from IKEA. The second through fifth place winners also received plaques and lesser gift certificates. A total of 210 people finished the 5K Race. There was no tally of finishing times in the 5K Walk, but there were 78 registered walkers.

(Complete race results have been mailed to all race participants. They are also available on the World Wide Web at http://www.runhigh.com.)

A lot of people helped make this event happen. Committee members spent months planning and coordinating the race. On race day people helped with registration, traffic control, water stations, split timing, the finish line, communications, and refreshments. Police from four different jurisdictions, and EMTs from three ambulance services helped at various points on the course. The Salvation Army provided coffee to volunteers on the course. Although there are too many people to acknowledge individually, we'd like to thank everyone who helped to make the event a success.

We'd also like to thank all the race sponsors who contributed money, materials, or services. We'd especially like to thank our major sponsor, IKEA, who originated this race four years, and who continue to provide major support in many, many ways.

Thanks to all volunteers, sponsors, and participants!