| This year's race had great weather - 43 degrees and cloudy
with little or no wind. Even the footing was great because of the severe
drought of 2001. 237 runners made this the largest crowd ever. Add
in a couple dozen spectators and that makes over 250 people celebrating
Thanksgiving with a running event. The men's race was won by Boston runner
Ben Nephew in 16:40. The women's race was a quite close with Jennie Bender
of Johnson winning by four seconds in 20:22 (she surged past the second
place woman as well as me and several other runners in the final uphill
quarter mile). Many dollars and pounds of food were donated to the Burlington
Emergency Food Shelf. Thanks to race directors Ralph Swenson and Neil Stout
and other volunteers for a great holiday, low key athletic event that benefits
runners as well as the community at large.
-- Steve Eustis
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