2,600 Participants Raise $110,000 in Heart Run and Walk

They came from as far away as Boston and as near as Woodland Hills, sporting everything from skimpy shorts, ponytails and matching shirts to hip-hugging spandex.

Some burst into a sprint right away. Others ambled. Some had toddlers and dogs waddling beside them.

Ranging from 8 months to at least 77 years old, participants coursed through the cordoned-off streets, slapping high-fives, huffing and puffing or gurgling as they crossed the finish line.

“It just gets bigger every year,” event co-founder John Moriarty said, surveying the fair-like scene of families, refreshment booths and throngs of volunteers.

Organizers estimate that this year’s event generated about $110,000, which makes it one of the association’s largest fund-raisers in the Los Angeles area. Since its founding, the race has raised almost $700,000, said Lance Slaughter, a senior regional director for the association.

On Owensmouth Avenue near Oxnard Street, a sea of runners stood impatiently at the starting line. Some completed last-minute stretches. A few rocked back and forth as if revving up their motors. At the honk of a horn, they thundered off, bent elbows and legs chugging away like locomotives.

Minutes later, the walkers gathered where the runners had sped off. Dressed in baggier, warmer clothing to fight the morning cold, they also tended to have their hands full--some carried drinks, others held the hands of children. A few clutched balloon bouquets.

Mary McAllister, a human resources assistant from West Hills, brought along a perfect walking companion--Yogi, her Welsh corgi. She’s 65 and Yogi’s 8. “Both of us are senior citizens,” she said.

Added her co-worker, 59-year-old Kathy Cicciarelli of North Hills: “The dog will walk and stop and rest. [Mary and I] will walk and stop and rest.”

As the sauntering masses poured forward like thick syrup, Julio Garcia, a network engineer from Canoga Park, fell to the very end of the pack. He bent over adouble-stroller to buckle up his 8-month-old daughter, Jennifer, in the rear caddy. In the front was her 3-year-old brother Joshua, wiggling his tiny brown boots.

“We always do things as a family,” Garcia said.

As the walkers turned onto Victory Boulevard, some runners zoomed along Burbank Boulevard and cornered onto Owensmouth for the full five-kilometer loop.

For many of the runners, Sunday’s race was part of their training for the Los Angeles Marathon next month.

The first man to finish the 5K race was Daniel Rosales, 31, of Orange, with a time of 16:21. The first woman to cross the line was Liz Leighwood, 23, of San Luis Obispo, at 19:04.

The male winner of the 10K was Chris Teague, 29, of Boston, who clocked in at 32:14. The first woman was Cindy Graham, 35, of Newbury Park, at 41:26. Each won a trophy.

Winners of different age categories were also recognized. Brian Moore, 11, placed first as a boy under 13 in the 5K run with a time of 19:49.

“I beat my dad; that was the best part,” said the Santa Clarita sixth-grader as sweat beaded his freckled nose. “He was, like, 20:50, and he’s been running for 20 years.”

There were also group winners. The first-place team award went to runners representing Litton Industries Inc. of Woodland Hills.

Had there been an award for best dressed, it might have gone to “T-Bone” , a professional runner and family fitness instructor from Los Angeles. While most people favored traditional workout fashion, T-Bone’s self-described look was “Renaissance futuristic.” He sported a turquoise blouse with long, poufed sleeves, blue velvet bloomers, a floppy hat and black tights featuring a design patterned after the Milky Way.

Many said they felt like winners no matter how they placed relative to other participants.

Showing off their toned gams in purple hot shorts, Murray Cohen, 75, of Tarzana and his friend Jack Mehlman, 77, of Encino, said they attained personal goals.

“I tried to break 33 [minutes] and I did 32:56,” Cohen said of his 5K performance. “For my age, that’s about as good as you can get.”

Mehlman, who had open-heart surgery last year, said, “I’m glad I’m alive. Last year at this time, I was still in a hospital.”

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Lydia Blaakman, a 31-year-old advertising director from Westlake Village, grinned from ear to ear as she crossed the finish line. “It’s a miracle I could even finish,” she said, explaining that she had knee surgery last year and that her doctor had said she would never run again. “I proved my doctor wrong!”

Not all participants were able to finish.

Yogi the dog pooped out after three kilometers and McAllister had to push her in a shopping cart for the remainder of the walk. “She’ll be resting the rest of the afternoon,” McAllister said.