09 Nov 2016 Soaring Wings event ‘went great’
Story and photos
by Sonja J. Keith
Nearly 1,500 registered for this year’s Soaring Wings Marathon and Half Marathon held recently in Conway.
“The race went great, with tons of community support and amazing participants and volunteers,” said Amanda Castillo, who served as race director with Marla Watson. “It was another hot year for Soaring Wings of Conway, but the participants did great!”
Proceeds support Soaring Wings Ranch, a Christ-centered family and home that provides security, love and hope to children who need a chance. The Ranch is located on 195 acres in the Holland community, north of Conway.
According to Amanda, 1,203 crossed the finish line on race day. “The remaining participants were DNS – did not show on race day,” she said. “This is due to many factors such as lack of training, injury or family emergency.”
The overall winner of the marathon was Melissa Hambuchen of Conway with a time of 3:09:20. Second place went to Josh Capps, 39, of Lafayette, La., with a time of 3:15:55. Daniel Banas of Davenport, Iowa, was third at 3:17:08.
In the half marathon, the overall winner was John Pankey, 52, of Hot Springs. His time was 1:21:10. Erik Leamon, 41, of Conway was second with a time of 1:21:18. Luke Porter, 41, of Conway was third with a time of 1:22:28.
Erika Setzler, 24, of Conway repeated this year as the overall female winner with a time of 1:24:51.
For complete results, visit [email protected]. Official race photos can be viewed at RunBikeSwimPhotos.com. A percentage of every purchase goes to Soaring Wings Ranch.
Amanda and Marla expressed their appreciation to the major sponsors for the marathon and half marathon. Crain Automotive was the Presenting Marathon and Expo Weekend Sponsor. TLC Pediatrics was the Presenting Half Marathon and Kids Run for Kids Sponsor. 501 LIFE was the official media sponsor. The Sporty Runner was the Official Race Fuel and Pacer Sponsor. First Security Bank was the Training Sponsor, and Reliance Heath Care and Incite Rehab were Presenting Sponsors.
“We also want to thank the Conway Police Department for the support and security put in place,” Amanda said.
Awards not picked up during the awards ceremony can be retrieved through Tuesday, Nov. 15, at The Sporty Runner, located at 1016 Van Ronkle St. in Downtown Conway.
“The Sporty Runner is the official Honey Stinger Race Fuel and Pacer Sponsor for Soaring Wings of Conway,” Marla said. “Be sure and thank them for all they do for the race and our running community!”
Individuals who live out of town and are unable to pick up an award should email [email protected] with the subject: Award Shipping Address and include name and award placement for easy lookup.
Organizers are already looking ahead to 2017.
“We are excited to celebrate 10 years of the Soaring Wings Half Marathon in 2017!” said Marla. “We have a lot of new, fun things planned that we will announce soon. Registration for 2017 opens in April!”
For more information, visit swmarathon.com.
