"Thank you for making the Cherry Creek Sneak a Denver tradition since 1982!" These are the first words you see on the Cherry Creek Sneak official website. This is the 26 th annual Sneak at the Cherry Creek Shopping Center from 8:00-9:15 AM on April 27, 2008. There were five different races, the 5-mile elite run, 5-mile run/walk for everyone, 5K (3.1 miles) run/walk, 1-mile student sprint, and a ½ a mile Sneak fun run for kids ages eight and younger. My family went and participated in a couple of the races. My dad ran the 5-mile run/walk for everyone. The top three finishers of that race were Jon Kinner, Larry Sradley, and Chase Kelly*. I ran the 1-mile student sprint. I enjoyed part of the route where we ran over a bridge on Cherry Creek and we saw the creek running through rocks. I also liked the race because afterwards they had different free things for the runners including snacks, water, coupons, and massages.
The student sprint was an official and timed race. Every runner receives two Colorado Rapids tickets. At the end, each child gets a coupon for a stuffed eagle. They even used chips to record time. A chip is a device that times a runner when he/she crosses mats at the start and finish. Evan Fortney-08:01.90 (age 14), Jack Preigh (13), and Zane Jeffress (12) finished in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd places*. The fun run was not officially timed, but is only for kids eight and younger. After the race, kids can also enjoy a slide, climb a rock wall, play a mini soccer game, and much, much more.
For the elite 5-mile run, 29 runners participated. The first three of the runners were Nelson Laux-24:39.30, Payton Batliner, and Aaron Carrizales*. The 5-mile run/walk had 3801 people running. In the 5K run/walk, 2947 people ran/walked. Top finishers were Paquito Lopez, Daniel Lupa-Chazan, and John Costello*. The student sprint had 245 kids. In all, 7022 runners were there. No official results were calculated for the fun run.
The overall best female runner was Danielle Korb, the only woman to run the elite 5-mile. The runner's ages went all the way down to four years old.
Overall, I think this was a great running experience, and I would give it 5 out of 5 stars.
*In order from 1 st-3 rd.