Just over 100 people braved the unseasonably cold, windy conditions Saturday, Nov. 3 and participated in the twelfth running of the Step by Step 5-kilometer (k) race in Solomons. The event is sponsored by Calvert Alliance Against Substance Abuse (CAASA). Once again David Raley was the first runner to cross the finish line. Raley, 29, finished the trek in 17 minutes and 38 seconds, a mere two seconds slower than the time he posted in the 2011 race.
Crystal Rapp was the top female finisher with a time of 20 minutes and eight seconds.
Finishing just 21 second behind Raley was Perry Rapp, 46, with Tom Burke, 53, posting a time of 18 minutes and four seconds, good for third place.
Christie Offenbacher was the second female to finish, posting a time of 20 minutes and 38 seconds. Kristen Pedersen finished third among females with a time of 21 minutes and 48 seconds.
“Maybe the cold and wind made you run faster,” CAASA Coordinator Candace D’Agostino told the participants who stayed for the post-race awards ceremony. The money raised by the race is used by CAASA for its various programs. The race is dedicated to the memory of Michael Blackwell, an avid runner who died in 2001 after being struck by a vehicle while jogging on Broomes Island Road.
Complete race results are posted on the Chesapeake Bay Running Club web site at www.cbrcmd.org.
Contact Marty Madden at marty.madden@thebaynet.com
