The 2nd Annual Public Enemy 5k was held at the Lake County Fairgrounds this morning, and Hometown Happenings was pleased with an increase in participation over last year. In 1934, “Public Enemy #1? John Dillinger escaped from the Crown Point Jail using what he claimed was a wooden gun. In 2008, actor Johnny Depp came to Crown Point to portray the Hoosier bank robber in “Public Enemies”.
Participants and spectators were treated with old-time cars, a visit from Lake County helicopter, a demonstration from the Crown Point K-9 unit and the Lake County SWAT team vehicle.
The course was a challenging one for both runners and walkers as they passed through wooded areas, over a covered bridge and around the lake. The temperatures were mild prior to the start, but heated up as race time approached.
The overall winner was Valparaiso native John Borman with a time of 17:43. The top female finisher was Jennifer Menclewicz with a time of 21:54.
"I typically work weekends, so do a local weekend race is always a fun time," said Menclewicz. "This was a tough course and I was not ready for the hills, but it was wonderful to see everyone so supportive. It was cool on the round-a-bout where you would see the other runners and everyone was giving support and cheering everyone."
One of the nice features of this event was the open areas where families and friends could gather to socialize or spend time together. Many families spent time on the playground and cheering on one or more family member.
"I decided to do this race because Marie (his fiancee) did it last year and said it was a lot fun, and I wanted to see some of the old cars," said John Borman. "The course was hard. I did not expect the hill at the mile mark, and that is where I was able to catch up to the top guys." Next up for Mr. Borman is the Brickyard 5 mile/5k on July 4th in Hobart, where he will be one of the top favorites.
Hometown Happenings was the sponsor of the race, and one of the great things about them is that they take their proceeds and donate the money back to organizations in the community.
"We had just over 360 participants this year, which is slightly up from last year. The cooperation from all of the organizations to help put this event is tremendous," said Tim Fealy, President of Hometown Happenings. "Some of the groups that will receive donations are the Northwest Indiana SWAT team, the Lake County Animal Shelter, and the Lake County and Porter County Sherriff's offices. Without these groups we could not have the unique features such as the helicopter, the dogs, and the Tommy Gun."
In addition to the overall and age group winners, there was a costume contest for the best dressed theme. The winners of that were the "Jailbird" and the "Swim Suit". The next event being run by Hometown Happenings is the "The Sole Survivor" on July 9th at the the Lake County Fairgrounds.