The Ding Dong Dash drew fewer runners than last year and the times were a bit slower, perhaps due to the forecasted high temperatures. Saturday started with overcast skies and a pleasant breeze, but the temperature at race time was still in the mid 70s.
The Jefferson park and recreation department hosts the Ding Dong Dash each year as part of the Bell Tower Festival. Hy-Vee sponsored the 2016 race.
Sixty-seven runners finished the 5K and 10K races, and another seven did the 1-mile untimed fun run. They came from 22 Iowa towns and from Virginia, Missouri, Minnesota, Illinois and Florida. In 2015 there were 122 participants.
Josh Johnson of Gowrie won the race with a time of 18:09. Johnson placed second last year with a time of 20:05. The winning time in 2015 was Trey Thompson’s time of 17:50. Thompson didn’t run this year.
Second place overall was Logan Egeland of Jefferson with a time of 19:12. Third place was Jose Cavazos of St Charles, MO, with a time of 21:14. Johnson ran in the 15-18 division, Egeland ran in the 19-29 division, and Cavazos ran in the 30-039 division.
Heidi Bills of Jefferson won the women’s 5K with a time of 23:41.Susan Fray of Jefferson was second with a time of 25:00, and Kelsey Hood of Jeffeson was third with a time of 25:58. Bills and Hood were both in the 19-29 division and Fray was in the 50-plus division.
Winners not already listed in the men’s 5K were: ages 10 and younger, Will Stevens, 22:54; ages 11-14, Ethan Frederick, 23:04; ages 40-49, Kirk Stevens, 25:54; and ages 50 and older, David Woodruff, 23:41.
Winners not already listed in the women’s 5K were: ages 11-14, Baily Cunningham, 25:44; ages 15-18, Sydney Schiltz and Lauren Carlson, 30:00; and ages 30-39, Lisa Ebersole, 27:26.
Tyler Hostetler of Jefferson repeated as winner of the men’s 10K race with a time of 37:56, just 25 seconds slower than his winning time last year. Ben Feldmann of Jefferson placed second with a time of 48:23 and Michael Owens of Urbandale with a time of 52:03. Hostetler and Owens ran in the 30-39 division and Feldmann ran in the 19-29 division.
Chantel Flack of Jefferson won the women’s 10K with a time of 52:44. She ran in the 15-18 division. Emma Saddoris placed second in 55:46. She ran in the age 19-29 division. Alicia Heun placed third in 58:06. She ran in the 30-39 division.
Other winners in the 10K races were John Harris of Ankeny with a time of 52:53 and Heather Ruzicka of Jefferson with a time of 1:05:50. Both ran in the age 40-49 division.
