The Mesabi Range 5k took place on Saturday, September 20th, at Mesabi Range Community and Technical College in Virginia.  Runners ran along West Chestnut and 9th Avenue, completed a figure-eight loop in Olcott Park, and returned along the same route.  The weather was cool and clear, allowing some participants to record personal records.

David Hyopponen won the men's race with a time of 17:34.  David ran the race for the first time last year and finished second.  This year, David did not decide if he was going to run until the morning of the race.  That turned out to be the right decision, as he was able to set his 5k PR.  David is focusing on 400m and 800m track workouts to increase his speed and currently is in 9th place in the NMTC Fall Trail Series.

Kayla O'Brien won the women's race in 26:40.   Kayla did not participate last year but did compete in the event in 2006.  A criminology student at the University of Minnesota-Duluth, Kayla works out at the gym and plays volleyball.  She chose to run the event because her boyfriend is one of the race directors.

Harry Shears completed the course in 20:01, a full minute faster than last year.  Harry has gotten back into running in the last year or two and enjoys going for a three-mile run every day.  His team - Coates Plaza - won the team event for the second year in a row.  Harry is also looking forward to competing in one of the Black Cat races in October.

Curtis Houle ran the race for the first time and finished in 27:28.  Curtis plays a lot of basketball, which helped prepare him for running a 5k.  He is a member of the MRC&TC basketball team, where he is a point guard. Curtis is a first-year student at MRC&TC and would like to pursue a career in criminal justice.

Dawn Torrel and Katie Troutwine completed the course together in 37:44.  While technically registered as walkers, they ended up running about half the race.  They mustered a pretty good kick at the end to ensure they finished under forty minutes.  Katie does not participate in many 5ks but enjoys doing this one because her cousin helps organize the race.  Dawn enjoys running and, like Harry, is contemplating participating in one of the Black Cat races in October.

Pictures courtesy of Kapoor.