Ethan Wever was a little disappointed Tuesday.
The Erlanger native earned a free pair of running shoes for winning the 45th annual Edgewood/Tri-State Running Company Independence Day 5K at Presidents Park. His time of 16 minutes, seven-tenths of a second was nearly 16 seconds faster than Joey Carroll’s 16.16.3 and 50 ticks ahead of Salah Farah’s 16:50.7.
It was a 30.7-second gap that ever-so-slightly perturbed Wever.
“On a track, I’m like 14:58,” Wever said. “I was kind of hoping for a 15:30 today, and so I went out like was running a 15:30 … It just didn’t happen.”
Wever led from the start – the exact opposite from his days at Covington Catholic.
“I was an OK high school runner, but most of the time I was getting beat by all the Conner boys,” he said. “I couldn’t compete with them.”
Wever’s win followed a fourth-place finish in the Hyde Park Blast Four-miler June 24 in Cincinnati. (He finished that in 20:37.) Tuesday, he saw 2023 Conner graduate Drew Moore, who finished ninth at the state Class 3A meet last fall.
“If Drew had actually raced, he probably would’ve got me,” he said. “He just committed to EKU (Eastern Kentucky University) to run there. He’s talented.”
Wever called the Edgewood course “deceptively hilly.”
“You think it’s just one hill, but it’s rolling hills the whole way,” Wever said.
Beatty’s the top woman
Christi-Anne Beatty graduated from the University of Cincinnati’s law school this spring; she wants to focus on real estate.
Tuesday, Beatty became the first woman – and 42nd overall – to the finish line; she covered the 3.1 miles of ground in 19:30.6.
Which was a whole lot better than last year’s eighth-place finish in 20:17.
Tuesday’s pre-race strategy was simple – add more training mileage. What also helped: 2022 winner Ellie Greenwell not defending her title.
“There weren’t as many fast people this year, too,” she said. “So that kind of helps.”
Alexandra Burg of Fort Mitchell was second (and 46th overall) in 19:37.4, and Erlanger’s Maggie Durrett was third in 19:43.5.
Christi-Anne Beatty was one of three in her family in the field. Older sister Amanda walked the distance in 49:19.0, and mom Angeline traversed it in 54.46.6.
Tuesday was Angeline’s first race. She said hearing of a Senior Games event in Pittsburgh inspired her. (“I saw this guy who was 95 who ran,” she said.)
“I used to take (Amanda and Christi-Anne) to volunteer all the time when they were kids,” Angeline said. “I’m going to be 60 soon, so I decided, I’m going to walk.”
Amanda Beatty, meanwhile, remembers the long walks – as in the 12.5-mile strolls from Florence Mall, through Erlanger, Elsmere, Edgewood, Lakeside Park, Fort Mitchell, Fort Wright and Covington before crossing the Ohio River to Cincinnati. (Angeline remembers frequently carrying Christi-Anne’s cello.)
“We were walkers when we were younger,” Amanda said.
Elizabeth Mayer of Fort Mitchell was the first walker to finish, covering the 3.1 miles in 33:45.4. Eight-year-old Brooke Durrett of Erlanger was next in 35:16.1, and Louisville’s Karen Bunnell was third in 37:32.5.
A total of 831 runners and 104 walkers signed up.
A Fort Thomas sweep
It was a Fort Thomas 1-2-3 sweep at the Firecracker 5K at the Campbell County YMCA.
William Doering won with a time of 16:21.8. Matthew Gray was next in 16:45.7, and Thomas Gray-Torsell was third in 16:54.0.
Bellevue’s Amy Schwarber was the top women’s finisher in 18:53.3. Jen Schmidt was second in 19:51.8, and Clara Heberling of Covington was third in 19:53.2.
A total of 488 runners signed up.
For complete results, visit timingspot.com.