News & Stories

Anwatin Team at the Trail Loppet

By Andy Harris

Where was the Anwatin team this weekend? Well, let me tell you…

With nearly half the Anwatin team showing up, six runners in the 13.1K, two in the 5K, and one very fast Age Gap relayer, the Anwatin Adventure Team took the Trail Loppet by storm Saturday, September 26.

It was an early one for the Anwatin team, with most runners arriving to help out at 8:00 in the morning, an hour most teenagers are allergic to. The team was quickly organized into a fearsome water-stop-setting-up and lefse-making unit by Volunteer Coordinator Nancy Nelson.

At 9:20 am, the team gathered along the back stretch on VJ Cook and special guest Michael Burgdorf to victory in the Age Gap Relays. The duo ran a blistering 10:48 for the cumulative 4 kilometer course, which included some signature hay bales to jump over. Maya Amudson and her dad, Isaac, were hot on their heels, finishing with a time of 13:34 — Maya added on some miles to her day when she trekked over to the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden to help out keep the runners watered and fed.

For our eight 13.1K runners, after the Age Gap Relays came an hour of nerves, trips to the bathroom, warm-ups, last-minute snacks, more trips to the bathroom, more nerves, and, finally, making the way to the start line. The gun went off and so did they, speeding through the challenging course in impressive time. The entire contingent finished within 25 minutes of each other, highlighted by age group wins by Charlie Grabow and Katy Scott with respective times of 1:05.34 and 1:06.59. Those two were followed by Tome and Timothy Vang, Doua Thao, Marcos and Simon Dos Santos, and Pheng Yang. All told, the group took the top six spots in the race for the under-19 age group.

While the 13.1K runners were out, we also had two veterans represent Anwatin in the 5K. Blue-haired Henry Munnich had a strong time of 33:50, and Emily Kral pulled away from her dad, Michael, as per tradition, clocking in at 36:02. In a crowded field, these two stood out in their age groups and continue to improve with every race.

Sweaty, hungry, and so very happy, the team settled into some post-race fuel. Free hot dogs and pop were the incentive to volunteer one again in the afternoon, and the Vang and Dos Santos brothers, Pheng, and Doua, stomachs way bigger than their eyes, were immediately won over. The gang had a great time serving up water and trophies at the awards ceremony.

All told, we were at the event for nearly five hours, or, in other words, about five 13.1K’s, running and volunteering and eating.

Rumor has it that some members of the team were sighted biking around Theodore Wirth park, fishing rods in tow and bellies full of ice cream and fries from the Chalet, out until at least dinnertime.

So, where was the Anwatin team this weekend? Well, let me tell you…

Same place as we’ve ever been.