Tuesday, August 5, 2014

2014 Festival Ironwood Walk, Run and Roll

The 2014 Festival Ironwood Walk, Run and Roll was held on Saturday, July 19 at Norrie Park.
  • Jason Smith from Milwaukee, WI, was the top male finisher in the 2-mile event in a time of 10:42. 
  • Jenna Magness, Lansing, MI, won the women’s 2-mile title in a time of 13:57.
  • Paxson Menard, Poplar Grove, IL, was the 5-mile champion posting a time of 29:04. 
  • Hannah Palmeter, Bessemer, was the overall female in the 5-mile event in a time of 32:02
Entrants for the race came from all over the United States and included a few international entrants.
Lukas and Samuel Schnyder and Melissa Johnson won the Longest Distance award, traveling over 8,000 miles from Johannesburg, South Africa, to compete.

It’s fun to see where entrants come from,” said race director, Chris Bergquist. “This year we had folks from Virginia, California, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Minnesota, Illinois, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Upper and Lower Michigan.”

Mallory Young, age 5, from Negaunee, MI, was the youngest entrant and Margaret Bull, Ironwood, was the senior entrant at age 86.

“The wide range of ages shows that this event is for all spectrums of the family,” said Bergquist. “Aspirus Grand View is the sponsor of this event and we gear this to be a healthy event that all family members can enjoy together.”

This year’s race was moved out to Norrie Park due to US2 being detoured along McLeod Avenue.
“I was not sure how moving to Norrie Park would affect the race,” said Chris Bergquist, race director. “As it turned out, the park was a great place to hold the event. I had a lot of positive comments about the flatter course and people were amazed at how beautiful it was out at Norrie Park.”

“I really want to thank all the volunteers who came out to help with the race,” said Bergquist. “The event could not happen without their volunteer efforts.”

Photos courtesy of Chris Bergquist .

Jason Smith and Jenna Magness took top honors in the 2-mile event

Paxson Menard and Hannah Palmeter won the 5-mile male and female events

Mallory Young, age 5, and Margaret Bull, age 86, were the youngest and oldest entrants