By Jason Pepe
Contributing Writer
The inaugural Frosty 5K took place the morning of Feb. 4 as part of the Lewisburg Ice Festival. It was sponsored by the Lewisburg Sunset Rotary Club, and proceeds will benefit the Lewisburg Downtown Partnership. A diverse group of approximately 280 runners participated in the race, accompanied by many supportive spectators.
“It was a fantastic turnout for a first year race to get 280. For around here, that’s a great number,” race organizer Tara Michaels said.
Michaels was also quick to thank the unusually pleasant February weather for encouraging such a turnout and allowing the race to run smoothly.
“We’re really excited about it; we’ll plan to do it next year,” Michaels said.
Over 20 volunteers of all ages contributed to the preparations that made the first year race a success, including members of the University field hockey team.
The race began in front of the historic Campus Theatre in downtown Lewisburg and spanned St. Louis Street and St. George Street before finishing outside of the Lewisburg Police Department.
The top overall finishers were Andrew Steely and Tina Bailey, who posted times of 17:29 and 21:10, respectively. An awards ceremony was held inside the Campus Theatre following the race where the top three finishers from each age group were announced and called to the stage.
One particular group of runners drew a great deal of applause as they crossed the finish line: three members of the University ROTC ran the race with fully packed rucksacks.
“It was good for team building within the ROTC organization and also for creating good relations between Bucknell ROTC and Lewisburg in general. It’s always good to build those types of connections,” Stephen Bessasparis ’14 said.
For more information, a full list of the results and photographs from the race is available on the Frosty 5K’s website: http://www.fitforfunds.com/frosty5k/