On a very hot and sunny Sunday, 100 brave souls set off over the rugged Taipo Mountain Marathon course. Leading from almost start to finish, Alex Morgan cruised home in 4:11:19. His next closest rivals were Cosmo Boys Mak Ping Yin and Lau Yu Chun who were 13 and 14 minutes off his pace respectively. Sam Ribet ran a nice race to finish fourth with Andy Pickles, moving up to the full marathon distance, came in a highly credible 5th overall and 2nd in the veteran category. Another veteran, Ho Hon Ming was next in. In the v-55 category, a returning John Lane held off John Fowler while first time full marathoners Jenny Roper and Amelia Rendall were the top 2 in the female open.

Other than Morgan's domination, the most impressive accomplishment of the day came from KK Chan (aka the Fireman). Fresh off winning the 70 km Lantau Trail Race the day before, KK finished the full marathon in 4:51:19 (8th place overall). Many exhausted runners were left watching in frustration while he ran past effortlessly on the final section of the course.

Jimmy Thompson won the half marathon in 2:00:35. Known primarily for his strength on the ups and flats, Jimmy actually ran the fastest half-marathon split on the downhill section of the course as well. Something tells me he must be practicing…Steve Holmes followed in second with Eliot Fisk third. Among the veterans, Dean Lewis easily outdistanced Steiner Urs and Mitchell Stocks, while Mike Cooke won a hard fought battle over Peter Widmer and John Tanner in the v-55 category.

Miki Burlage came out of nowhere to win the women's half marathon. Even she seemed surprised as she admitted that she spent more time watching her feet placement than looking at other runners. Caryl Hartwright overcame Brigitte Zeltner-Widmer in the veterans category with Virginia Unkefer dropping down from her normal full marathon distance to finish third.