Simon Gutierrez was in a celebratory mood as he crossed the finish line Sunday at the third annual Super Half Marathon and Game Day 5K in Colorado Springs.
The 47-year-old won the 5k men’s race, but the event also marked the day he met his girl friend, Donna Garcia.
“We met at this race last year and I paced her,” Gutierrez said. “That made this a special day for us.”
Like many of the runners and walkers, Gutierrez was in a festive mood on Super Bowl Sunday. Many runners wore Denver Broncos clothing – one family was decked out in Seattle Seahawks garb – and Gutierrez wore a “Happy Birthday” pointed hat over his stocking cap, to honor his friend, Amy Perez.
While Garcia, who sported a Broncos stocking hat, was second in the women’s 5K, Gutierrez (17:34) set Masters and age group records despite less-than-ideal conditions. When the races began, the temperature was 16 degrees and the course was snow-packed.
“We’ve been training in it every day, so we’re used to it,” Gutierrez said, “but it wasn’t a good day for fast times. It was fun, though, and I wanted to support this race, PikesPeakSports.us and the Pikes Peak Road Runners.”
Shannon Payne, 28, won the women’s 5K and tied the course record (19:10) set last year by Amanda Ewing.
Pete Maksimow and Tracy Thelen won the Super Half Marathon. See the story here ... http://www.pikespeaksports.us/group/roadtrailrunning/forum/topics/the-frozen-tundra-of-colorado-springs-no-match-for-super-half-mar