With an emphatic overall victory Sunday at Quicksilver County
Park, Morgan Hill’s Jim Atkinson fortified his position to win the
21K Division of the Dirty Legs Spring Trail Run Series
ALMADEN — With an emphatic overall victory Sunday at Quicksilver County Park, Morgan Hill’s Jim Atkinson fortified his position to win the 21K Division of the Dirty Legs Spring Trail Run Series.
Atkinson won the fourth race of the circuit –- presented by South Valley Endurance — in one hour, 41 minutes, 11 seconds, roughly a 16-minute edge over second-place finishers Dan McKinnon of Santa Cruz and Rob Zimmerman of San Juan Bautista.
Atkinson also won the men’s 30-39 Division title Sunday. Zimmerman and McKinnon crossed in 1:57:16 to tie for first in 40-49s followed by Morgan Hill’s Guy Kerr (2:07:40).
Atkinson leads Zimmerman by three points in the 21K standings with two events left.
Several other Morgan Hill runners placed first in their age groups Sunday. Joe Morris covered the 10K in 1:01:15 to win the 40-49 Division, and Heather Oliver captured the women’s 30-39 title in the 5K, crossing in 36:05.
Locals Kathy LeBleu (1:33:02) and Cheryl Molenkamp (1:06:10) raced uncontested in the 40-49 10K and 5K, respectively. Oliver is currently sixth in the 5K Division standings, and LeBleu is 18th in the 10K.
Kerr sits seventh among 21K runners, and Jin McGarvey and Scott Klettke, also of Morgan Hill, rank in the top 15.
The top male and female finishers in each racing category will receive a custom award after the series concludes in June. The next event is scheduled for May 9 at Harvey Bear Ranch County Park.
Division winners Sunday
21K –- men’s 20-29: Joseph Wyatt, San Jose, 2:07:39; men’s 30-39: Jim Atkinson, Morgan Hill, 1:41:11; men’s 40-49: Dan McKinnon, Santa Cruz, 1:57:16, Rob Zimmerman, San Juan Bautista, 1:57:16; men’s 60-69: Robert Mulls, Soquel, 2:13:03; women’s 30-39: Samantha Forde, Santa Cruz, 2:09:24; women’s 40-49: Roxanne Peralez, Salinas, 2:08:00. 10K -– men’s 20-29: Chris Galdes, 59:21; men’s 30-39: Billy Cunningham, 1:00:57; men’s 40-49: Joe Morris, Morgan Hill, 1:01:15; men’s 50-59: Steve Sokol, San Jose, 1:01:45; women’s 30-39: Haley Juno-Galdes, 1:02:18; women’s 40-49: Kathy LeBleu, Morgan Hill, 1:33:02; women’s 50-59: Lesley Galloway, 1:29:09. 5K -– men’s 15 and under: Alex Sokol, San Jose, 25:25; men’s 20-29: Ariel Gunatina, San Jose, 28:06; men’s 40-49: Stephen Boesch, Mountain View, 24:25; men’s 50-59: Kevin Kiel, San Mateo, 32:56; women’s 20-29: Mamie Robinson, 47:26; women’s 30-39: Heather Oliver, Morgan Hill, 36:05; women’s 40-49: Cheryl Molenkamp, Morgan Hill, 1:06:10; women’s 50-59: Leslie Sokol, San Jose, 37:31.
