PHOTO: When you take the high-energy staff from Veda Salon and mix it together with the fun-loving gang from the Catamount Institute, this is what you get. But they put on a great show at Sunday's Veda Salon Earth Month 5K, a fundraiser for the Catamount Institute, which strives to "Inspire Ecological Stewardship through environmental science education and sustainability programs for schools and businesses."

PHOTO GALLERY: Earth Month 5K
VIDEO: Adrian Chouinard works the hills
VIDEO: Paul Mann running at the front
VIDEO: Interview with Adrian Chouinard


Two of the area's best runners, Paul Mann and Adrian Chouinard, captured the top spots in the Veda Salon Earth Month 5K on Sunday, but the Catamount Institute was the big winner.
Throughout the month of April, Veda is hosting events to help raise money for Catamount, which promotes ecological stewardship and environmental awareness to students and businesses in the Pikes Peak Region.
"This year our goal is to raise $40,000 for the Catamount Institute," said Carrie Perkins, owner of Veda Salon.

Click here for more info about Veda's Earth month events
Learn more about the Catamount Institute here.
Click here for info about Pikes Peak Earth Day

About 100 runners tangled with the out-and-back 5K course. The starting line was at University Village, but most of the running was done on the Santa Fe Trail. There were no official times kept, though Mann was clcoked in 17 minutes, 34 seconds, and the Boulder Running Company's Chouinard crossed in 19:10.

"It is fun to run at these little 5K races," Mann said. "They're all usually fundraisers for a good cause."