Saturday, December 5, 1998 -- Wheeling
American Red Cross Santa Trot 5K Run/Walk
Photos from this event were graciously contributed by Tammy Tracy.

[Coverage/Recap w/Pics] [More Pics Set 1] [More Pics Set 2]
[Awards] [Run (Complete Results)] [Walk (Complete Results)]

Not exactly the attire you'd expect to see on a December morning in West Virginia

The American Red Cross Santa Trot 5K had one hundred and seventy runners and walkers out taking advantage of an unusually warm Saturday morning on December 5th. The sky was overcast but there was no precipitation, just temperatures around 60 degrees. This was a striking contrast to last year's weather that brought temps below freezing. The weather didn't fool Santa. He still arrived to do a little early season Christmas promotion, or maybe he was just checking to see who was being naughty and who was being nice!

In a blizzard or 60 degree heat, Santa sports the familiar red suit

One thing was nice and that was a flat and fast race course that circled through Elm Grove, starting and ending at the Stone Presbyterian Church. The fastest to cover the friendly course was Kevin Walsh with a time of 17:02. Not far behind was Eric O'Brien (17:07) and Chad Coalmar (17:28) claiming second and third overall, respectively.

In fastest overall female runner was Kristen Hetzel with a time of 20:07. Her closest rival, Jessica Melanko, was another 30 seconds back with a time of 20:38. Taking claim to the third place overall famale runner was Tina DiCocco (20:55).

Donna Patrina and Terry Whitecotton in a dead heat for fastest walker

In the 5K walk, it came down to a photo finish between Terry Whitecotton and Donna Patrina. They crossed the line togehter in a time of 35:12. Luckily, a tie brought no controversy as each was the winner in their respective categories, Whitecotton the overall male champion and Patrina the overall female champion.

The race was filled with champions as everyone brought the gift of giving to the event. You see, the proceeds from the race go to benefit a great cause in the American Red Cross - Ohio Valley Chapter. Also giving their support were many volunteers and several race sponsors, including Belmont National Bank, without whom this great event wouldn't be possible.