Jake Hegge of LaCrosse, WI ran strong on the hilly course to capture the overall title in the 15K by nearly 4 minutes (1:01:14) over Mitch Isaacson (1:05:09) of Stevens Point.  Dan Bessette of Clintonville, WI crossed the finish in 1:09:56 for 3rd overall.  Andrea Mueller of Edgar, WI toured the course nearly 3 minutes (1:16:16) over runner up Paula Kastenson (1:19:13) of Sturgeon Bay.  Samantha Miller of Stevens Point was only 22 seconds back, capturing third overall (1:19:35).  Zachary Heenan of Appleton (23:26) edged out Nicholas Robertson of West Bend (23:34) for first overall in the 5K.  Ron Hayes of Oshkosh crossed the line in 24:57 to round out the top three in  men’s race.  Stacy Hohn of Clintonville was one of only two women to break 30 minutes on the challenging 5K course, winning the overall title in 29:00.  Martine Delannay of Madison was only 31 seconds back in second.  Krystle Firkus of Wausau finished strong to join the top trio in 31:16.  The closest race of day emerged in the Kid’s 2K with Clintonville 4th graders Kyle Tennie and Madison Hohn running shoulder to shoulder for 1.9K before Tennie pulled away by 7 meters,  Hohn unleashed a wicked kick on the downhill into the finish to close the gap but Tennie held on to win by less than a second, 9:27.0 to Hohn’s 9:27.9.  Tennie was the overal boys’ winner and Hohn captured the title for the girls.  The only other runner to break 10 minutes on the rolling 2K course was 7 year old Roisin Willis of Stevens Point, second in the girls’ race.  Ashley Straub of Wausau was third overall in 10:17.  Tennie’s older brother Evan ran a spirited race, finishing second among the boys in 10:49.  Brock Opperman of Iola rounded out the top three, finishing third in 13:29.  

 

The top three runners in each age group in all races received one pound blocks of Oak Grove Dairy Cheese, a small, specialty cheese house north of Clintonville.  Great Lakes Endurance enthusiastically supports local farmers and food producers in each of the communities it hosts trail races.  Oak Grove Dairy is owned and operated by  Terry and Theresa Kust, who purchase most of their milk from the nearby Sawall family farm.  All finishers could sample the Oak Grove cheese along with whole grain crackers from Elemental Ovens of nearby Manawa.  The crackers are artisan crafted from the local and organic ingredients in small batches made weekly.  Runners could also enjoy homemade cookies and bars baked by Great Lakes Endurance’s own Lois Bressette.  Runners were also served Door County cherry juice.  Overall winners in the 15K received new running shoes from Montrail while winners of the 5K and Kid’s 2K were awarded fleece jackets from Mountain Hardwear. The event shirt was sewn by Atayne out of Brunswick, Maine.  The shirt fabric was 100% recycled fiber from soda bottles and was sewn and screened in the U.S.   Montrail, Mountain Hardwear and Atayne are official gear sponsors for the Great Lakes Endurance Trail Series.