The first Santa Made Me Do It 5K was held on Saturday, December 6th in Bethlehem, CT under challenging conditions. But the cold and the rain didn’t stop the 130 runners who braved the weather, and tackled the rolling hills and beautiful countryside surrounding the town center. All were upbeat and enthusiastic, many decked out in seasonal attire. There were running Santas, snow princesses, elves, reindeer, and about a hundred tutus.
The day started with a kid’s fun run and then moved on to the 5K race. The first finisher was James McKirdy from New Britain followed by Ian McDonald from Haddam Neck and Paul Baldini from North Haven. The first female finisher was Christy Piepmeier from Amston, followed by Sophia Rickevicius from Watertown and Hildie Heck from Lyme.
The 169ers were out in force. The club, whose mission is to complete a timed road race in each of Connecticut’s 169 towns, was its usual boisterous self, cheering on every runner with gusto. A special cheer was reserved for Laurie Von Schmidt who completed her 100th town.
Complete results can be found at Cool Running here.
Check out race photos on Flickr.
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