By ANTHONY BOTTAN
Runners from all over Long Island and New York City took part Dec. 9, helping raise funds for Lynbrook's Community Coalition. Though more than 850 people registered for the race, paying a fee ranging from $15 to $25 depending on when they registered, the snowfall cost the race 200 runners. "Clearly if the weather held up on December 2, we probably would've had close to 900 runners," Race Director Cathy Papandrew said.
Though the final figures were not in as the Herald went to print, Papandrew said the race raised more than $20,000 in the past two years, and she assumed this year would be no different. Because of the rescheduling, however, the Community Coalition had to pay for some things twice, including the timing system and the use of the school, which will affect how much money it makes.
All the proceeds raised from the race will benefit the Community Coalition's Saturday Night at Lynbrook High program, which offers games and activities for teens in the hope of keeping them away from drugs and other destructive activities.
According to Tom Lynch, president of the Community Coalition, the SNL program starts in January and runs through April. Lynch said that even with the bad weather, he considered this year's race a success. "It's a great event," he said. "It gets everybody - kids, adults and families - involved. It's a real Lynbrook event."
Peter Hawkins, 43, of Malverne, who raced in a wheelchair and was an entrant in the physically challenged division, finished first overall with a time of 20 minutes, 38 seconds. Hawkins, who took part for the second straight year, was the pace-setter, completing each mile in a little more than five minutes. He said he trained indoors this year because of the cold weather, but nonetheless, he enjoyed the event. "It's always fun because it's a local race," Hawkins said.
The winner in the male runners division was Valley Stream Central High School senior Kevon Carter, with a time of 21:22, roughly 5 1/2 minutes per mile. Carter, who runs cross-country and track for the Eagles, said his coach encouraged him to run in the Fly with the Owls. He said he covered six to seven miles a day in the weeks leading up to the race. "It feels good," he said. "I was training a lot for this race, and I'm happy it paid off."
Carter said he tried to keep pace with Hawkins to make sure he remained the leader of the pack. Hawkins said he hoped Carter could hang with him, which would pretty much guarantee victory for Carter. "I was crushing people," Carter said. "I was just trying to keep up with Pete."
The first female finisher was Una Broderick of Wantagh, with a time of 25:13.
After the race, the Community Coalition offered bagels, bottled water and free massages for the runners, along with a customer satisfaction survey for them to fill out. At first glance, Papandrew said, the coalition got high scores, but it was more important that the organization did something good for the youth of the community.
Even Lynbrook Mayor Brian Curran ran the race, finishing in just under 40 minutes. Though his wasn't exactly a record-breaking performance, Curran said he was happy with it. "I actually finished without having a heart attack," he said.
For a complete list of results, go to
href="http://www.flywiththeowls.com/Results.cfm">http://www.flywiththeowls.com/Results.cfm.
Comments about this story? ABottan@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 202.
Photos by Jeff Wilson/Herald
