The morning of St. Patrick’s Day (March 17^th, 2019), racers of all ages participated in the All Community Events Bolingbrook St. Paddy’s Half Marathon and 5k. Race participants were decked out in festive wear and accessories, including but not limited to, tutus, shamrock socks, fun hats and headbands. The Half Marathon and 5k race started promptly at 8:30 am, which was preceded by a Kid’s Dash.

The course was a mix between street/road and the bike path. The half marathon course had to be changed around a little a few days before the race due to flooding. The course had some hills, but other than the few inclines, it was pretty much a fast, flat-ish course. The Bolingbrook police and volunteers were fantastic at keeping us runners safe as we were running across and on the streets. The volunteers at the water stations and along the across were vibrant and always cheering for the runners passing by.

The temperature was in the low 30’s at the start of the race, with some snow flurries expected, but the snow never came; it was just cloudy. After 1 hour of the race start, the sun had come out and the temperature warmed up to the mid 30’s.

All 5k and Half Marathon finishers received a pint finishers glass, shamrock cookies, among other snacks, and a grey fleece hoodie which was given out at packet pick up. All of the Half Marathon finishers received a green St. Paddy’s Medal.

5k Female Winners: 1^st– Catherine Ihrke with a time of 21:41.5. 2^nd– Jillian Hendzlik with a time of 22:59.9. 3^rd– Kendall Willis with a time of 23:14.5

5k Male Winners: 1^st– John Niendorf with a time of 17:34.3. 2^nd– Matthew Gatlin with a time of 18:45.0. 3^rd– John Bodensteiner with a time of 19:20.2

Half Marathon Female Winners: 1^st– Dani Fischer with a time of 1:23:48.3. 2^nd– Samantha Miller with a time of 1:31:15.7. 3^rd– Elizabeth Lundine with a time of 1:33:14.6

Half Marathon Male Winners: 1^st– Pol Nabben with a time of 1:13:20.5. 2^nd– Nate Kennedy with a time of 1:14:59.7. 3^rd– Paul Erickson with a time of 1:17:50.1

Deer Park St. Paddy’s 5k/10k – 2019

By Christy Stroud

Spring racing season kicked off at All Community Events with the first race of the year: The Deer Park St. Paddy’s 5k/10k  at the Deer Park Town Center in Deer Park, Illinois. Runners gathered on the sunny, but chilly (28 degrees) morning, many dressed in green and St. Patrick’s Day gear. A band played live Irish music at the start/finish line to add to the festivities. The day’s events kicked off with a Kids Dash at 8:15 am followed by the 5k and 10k both starting at 8:30.

The course took runners along mostly flat, paved roads where they encountered a bagpiper and balloon arches in the colors of the Irish flag along the way. All runners shared the same course for the first half of the race until a split where 5k runners went to the finish line and 10k runners continued on straight to run a slightly different loop to finish off their course. Due to the warmer weather, we had a few days ago and then the sudden cold again, runners also had to navigate around some icy spots. That didn’t stop some fast finishers though.

The top finishers in each race were as follows:

5k Men:

1st: Steven Salvano, 22, of Arlington Heights finished in 16:18

2nd: Adrian Sitnik, 39, of Norridge finished in 19:56

3rd: Jake Schabes, 16, of Long Grove finished in 20:02

5k Women:

1st: Mandy Kompanowski, 27, of Arlington Heights finished in 20:31

2nd: Alyssa Molinaro, 13, of Barrington finished in 21:49

3rd: Kelsey Barnholt, 32, of Clarendon Hills finished in 22:36

10k Men:

1st: Nicholas Webber, 22, of Vernon Hills finished in 33:46

2nd: Danny Garza, 48, of Chicago finished in 38:35

3rd: Bryan Piscitello, 14, of Barrington finished in 40:43

10k Women:

1st: Karen Frum, 43, of Northbrook finished in 39:42

2nd: Nicole Herion, 35, of Mundelein finished in 40:35

3rd: Michelle Lata, 38, of Geneva finished in 40:45

Full results can be found at http://results.itsracetime.com/results.aspx?CId=17095&RId=533&EId=1.

After crossing the finish line, racers earned a finisher pint glass and a delicious shamrock cookie. All racers also received a St. Paddy’s inspired quarter zip up shirt as part of their race gear. Not only did runners receive this amazing swag, but they also had the opportunity to give back. The Lake County Reserve Sheriff’s Deputy Unit was on site race day to collect non-perishable food items. Runners could also donate to WINGS, an organization that provides housing, integrated services, and advocacy to end domestic violence, when they signed up for the race.

The St. Paddy’s 5k/10k is also part of the Chicago Spring Running Challenge. You can learn more about the challenge here.