By Brenda Knox

Sunday morning’s heavy snow and below freezing temperatures did not keep more than 200 enthusiastic runners away from the 20th Annual Lake Tahoe Kokanee 5K, 10K, and Half Marathon Trail Runs.

As volunteers and runners started arriving, the thermometer showed a mere 24 degrees. This is a run dominated by South Shore runners. A few inches of snow never deters the hearty souls of the Lake Tahoe area.

The Tahoe Mountain Milers and Sagebrush Stompers running clubs have put on this event for 20 years, but never with snow until Sunday.

The first overall finisher for the 5K run was Harley Norton with a time of 20:57 and for the women, Laurel Weil with a time of 24:43.

The first overall finishers for the 10K run for the women was Maureen Sheehan, with a time of 47:49:44; and for the men, Ryan Elliott finished at 47:03:15.

Runners in the 20th Annual Kokanee races did not let snow stop them. Photos/Brenda Knox

Finishing first in the Half Marathon were Chris Badolato for the men with a time of 1:34:36.52 and Amy Bottenberg for the women with a time of 1:44:23.36.

Despite the subfreezing temps, runners seemed to fly over the snowy trails and past the aid station at Fallen Leaf Lake Dam.

The top three finishers in each age division, male and female, received a bottle of wine (if of legal drinking age) and a unique handcrafted award in the design of a Kokanee salmon. Top-three finishers in each age division are listed below.

Thank you to all the volunteers and congratulations to all the finishers who came out to participate on this snowy morning in Tahoe.

Proceeds from the 20th Annual Lake Tahoe Kokanee Runs benefit the Tahoe Heritage Foundation, a nonprofit organization that supports U.S. Forest Service environmental education programs at Lake Tahoe.

The next event sponsored by the Tahoe Mountain Milers and Sagebrush Stompers will be the Annual Turkey Trot at Bijou Community Park on Nov. 21. For more information, visit http://www.tahoemtnmilers.org/.

5K Top 3 Finishers (Female)

Age: 0-10

1. Blanca Sosa

2. Katie Fischer

Age: 11-15

1. Emily Stimac

2. Kerry Norton

3. Desi McCully

Age: 20-29

1. Laurel Weil

2. Rosana Ramirez

3. Kayla Francis

Age: 30-39

1. Briana Sullivan

2. Katie McRae

3. Jennifer Roman

Age: 40-49

1. Cynthia Novak

2. Claire Boyle

3. Elizabeth Bredall

Age: 50-59

1. Trish Hall

2. Peg Hellman

3. Carla Martin

Age: 60-69

1. Linda Roman

2. Cheryl VanFleet

3. Christina Schlosser

5K Top 3 Finishers (Male)

Age: 0-10

1. Connor McRae

2. JD Buchholz

3. Tobin McRae

Age: 11-15

1. Harley Norton

2. Mark Bredall

3. John Bredall

Age: 20-29

1. Scott Blomquist

2. Tayler Haught

3. Kyle Francis

Age: 30-39

1. Rick Roman

2. Chad Andres

Age: 40-49

1. Paul Noah

2. Lars Macleod

3. Dave Eveland

Age: 50-59

1. David Hellman

2. Lewis Martin

3. Dennis Furr

Age: 60-69

1. Richard Roman

10K Top 3 Finishers (Female)

Age: 20-29

1. Rebecca Eckland

2. Amy Kight

3. Sarah Syed

Age: 30-39

1. Kristi Bray

2. Heather Morgan

3. Angie Arcadia

Age: 40-49

1. Maureen Sheehan

2. Lynni Weibezahl

3. Marlaina Smith

Age: 50-59

1. Sharlee Cotter

2. Judy Guinn

3. Jo Kilpatrick

Age: 60-69

1. Nancy Peppin

2. Fran Gayer

10K Top 3 Finishers (Male)

Age: 30-39

1. Ryan Elliott

2. Seth Albert

3. Changfan Liu

Age: 40-49

1. Dennis DeLange

2. Michael Cantor

3. Brian Coonradt

Age: 50-59

1. Doug Cichowicz

2. Rick Conti

3. Dave Martini

Age: 60-69

1. John Campbell

2. Chad Arnold

3. Newel Knight

Age: 70+

1. Monte Coffman

Half Marathon Top 3 Finishers (Female)

Age: 20-29

1. Kate O’Driscoll

2. Kelly Huck

3. Sarah Garcia

Age: 30-39

1. Amy Bottenberg

2. Sarah McMahan

3. Erika Mathews

Age: 40-49

1. Julie Young

2. Bridget Matos

3. Rita Frank

Age: 50-59

1. Meredith Mills

2. Jennifer Singh

3. Ann Boeser

Age: 60-69

1. Carole Nageotte

Half Marathon Top 3 Finishers (Male)

Age: 20-29

1. Brandan Fletcher

2. Sean Cronin

3. Lane Martin

Age: 30-39

1. Chris Badolato

2. Piers Stockwell

3. Dusty Lachapelle

Age: 40-49

1. Keith Barker

2. B. Bottenberg

3. Jeff Murphy

Age: 50-59

1. Tom Eckert

2. Chuck Martin

3. Adolfo Maestas

Age: 60-69

1. Bill Land

2. Frank Kight

3. Bill Prowse

Brenda Knox is an outdoor enthusiast who lives in South Lake Tahoe.