By Steve Landwehr
IPSWICH — The ninth annual Run for the Pies is in the history books. More than 300 runners and walkers were greeted with unseasonably pleasant weather for the annual Thanksgiving Day fundraiser for the Ipswich Community Food Pantry and the YMCA.
Organizers raked in more than $3,000 for the charities, and Russell Orchards supplied the pies for the winners and six people whose names were drawn at random.
Jake Hennessey, 20, of Gloucester was the first to cross the finish line in the 2.8-mile run with a time of 15:22. That also made him the top runner among men ages 20 to 29.
Christine Twining, 34, of Ipswich was the fastest woman in that age group, as well as among all female runners finishing in 17:34.
Other winners were:
In the 1.2-mile run for children 12 and under, Ipswich's Jared Moseley, 10, defended his first-place finish last year in 7:43, more than a minute faster than in 2008. First girl was Lily Stewart, 12, of Ipswich at 8:21.
In the 2.8-mile run, Rowley's Jonathan Hills, 16, captured first place among men under 20 while Ipswich's Jackie Vlahos' 18:38 was the best among women in that group.
The 40-49 crown for men went to Alex Umansky, 40, of Derry, N.H., in 17:22, while Pam Ryan, 49, of Ipswich, claimed the women's title in 20:33.
Ipswich's Eric Krathwohl, 55, was the fastest of men ages 50 to 59 in 17:20, while Christine Bellinger, 59, of Newburyport, was the light-foot lass in 22:16.
In the 60 and over bracket, Hamilton's Roger Perham, 62, led the way at 21:13 and Jean Barry, 65, of Ipswich, took the women's title in 24:55.
