Lots of runners from Okanogan and Ferry counties were among the 47,505 entrants in this year’s Lilac Bloomsday Run May 4.
     Unfortunately, I got busy and completely forgot to research the run’s Web site for top area runners.
     Until last week.
     The winner is . . .
     Sean Kato, Omak, who raced around the crowded 12-kilometer (7.44 mile) course in 48 minutes, 12 seconds.
     Right behind was Nik Michel, Republic, in 48:38. William Smith, Omak also broke 50 minutes at 49:04.
     Omak runners breaking the much-coveted one-hour mark were Sonny Sellars (56:28), Brian Condon (57:56) and Gregory Sklar (58:49).
     Just barely not making it under an hour were Deshawn Dunham (1:00:53) and Zachariah Riggle (1:00:55).
     Of note, the slowest entries from Omak were Landon Rodriguez Jr., who at age 2 made it in 3:20:22 for 77th place. I suspect he was paced by his brother James Rodriguez, 3, who finished in 3:20:14 (75th).
     A quick call confirmed that their mother, Suzette Seymour, kept them in check as she finished in 3:20:20 (76th).
     I am sure all three enjoyed the 50-degree weather for the 32nd running of Bloomsday.
     Top times by area towns:
     Brewster - Hector Aparicio, 27, 56:16.
     Bridgeport - Katherine Myers, 2:16:23.
     Coulee Dam - Adam Bearcub, 59:46.
     Elmer City - Steve Hood, 1:15:01.
     Inchelium - Joel Boyd, 1:05:03.
     Nespelem - Monte Joseph, 1:05:17.
     Okanogan - Alex Elsberg, 1:11:14.
     Omak - Sean Kato, 48:12.
     Oroville - Bruce Thornton, 1:19:33.
     Pateros - Grace Larsen. 1:00:07.
     Republic - Nik Michel, 48:38.
     Tonasket - Mike Carlson, 1:06:56.
     Twisp - Arlene Arneson, 1:09:40.
     Winthrop - John Northcott, 1:36:23.
--------------
     Debbie Springer recently announced her resignation as president of the Omak Booster Club.
     She helped lead the club to a prosperous and much-respected position in the community. I know I enjoyed reading the sandwich board at games with all the people donating to the club.
     You can bet the kids benefited from the money raised by the boosters, who have some talented leaders to continue the club.
--------------
     We recently announced the winners (every nominee was a winner for sure) in the annual NCW Sports Awards produced June 24 now by Wenatchee Valley Medical Center (Wenatchee and East Wenatchee Rotary clubs in the past).
     This year I picked seven of eight winners, and in the one category with a tie (female college athlete) had Cassie Merkley (Cascade/Idaho State University) at No. 1 and Amanda Miller (Eastmont/University of Washington) at No. 2.
     My one miss was at high school female athlete, where I selected Pateros’ Clara Hull at No. 1 over the winner, Morgan Clem, who I voted at No. 2.
     Hull played in 1B, the state’s smallest division, and never got as much press and notice by the public as Clem, who played for Eastmont (East Wenatchee) in 3A, the next-to-largest school size division.
     Hull quietly hauled in such kudos as state 1B player of the year in basketball, her 1B league’s most valuable player (averaged 19.9 points a game) and the all-state 1B basketball team.
     She also won the state shot put at 36 feet, 11.5 inches. That mark broke the 1B state meet record she set last year by a foot and 7 inches.
     While many may pooh-pooh accomplishments by those in the smallest school division, if you compared her shot put mark with bigger schools at this year’s state meets, she would have finished third in 2B, third in 1A, eighth in 2A, fifth in 3A and ninth in 4A.
     Clem was an all-league forward in soccer, finished first in the 3A state track meet in the 100-meter hurdles (11.9 seconds) and first in the 300-meter hurdles (43.1). She also was regional and district champ in the same track events.
--------------
     Merkley attended classes in the Okanogan School District before her family transferred to the Cascade School District in Leavenworth.
     She competes in track for Idaho State University, where her season ended after she suffered an injury at the 27th annual NCAA-I Heptathlon
June 13-14 at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa.
     Merkley’s goal was All-American status after she won the seven-sport event at the Big Sky Championships.
     As a junior Merkley will still have another year to train for and compete at nationals.
     Her first-day marks at nationals: 100-meter hurdles - 25, 14.76; high jump - 8, 5-6.5; shot put - 10, 39-5; 200-meters - 26, 29.32.
--------------
     Chesaw’s Fourth of July Rodeo would not be complete without its grand marshals and parade, interesting people to see (Sam Fletcher and his tall hat shout Chesaw) and amateur competitors taking their licks.
     It also would not be the same without the clowns, who were again this year Shawn Nigg and Billy McCoy.
     McCoy’s dad, Butch, started the tradition of a clown in the arena more than 20 years ago.
--------------
     Can anyone think of a sponsor of a county team doing it longer continuously than North Country Pub, which has paid for its senior men’s softball team since 1994?