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Annual Cardiff Kook Run attracts runners, fun seekers

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As a pack of sweaty professional runners raced for the Encinitas sign along Coast Highway 101 Sunday morning Leprechauns, lobsters, a mermaid, Elvis, Batman, and dozens of costumed runners sprinted in the opposite direction.

This mix of focus and fun is the hallmark of the annual Cardiff Kook Run, which celebrated its fifth year. Starting at 7:30 a.m., the event took place as usual on Super Bowl Sunday and included prizes for the fastest runners, as well as the best costumes.

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This year, the event’s elite 10k race upped its game, getting certification from USA Track & Field and drawing hundreds more top-notch runners, according to organizers. Including participants in the whimsical 5k competition, the event registered roughly 2,500 runners, up from about 2,100 last year.

“The 10K has taken on a little more prestige,” said co-founder Steve Lebherz. “That’s where the focus of the runners are, so that’s where we’re moving.”

Taking home $2,250 for first place in the men’s elite run, Yonas Mebrahtu drove in from Flagstaff, Ariz. for the competition. He set a new record for the event’s 10k race at 29 minutes and 32 seconds. The world record is just under 26 minutes and 18 seconds.

Winning the race was “not easy,” panted the 28-year-old after crossing the finish line. “Four or five people were very strong.”

Winner of the woman’s elite 10k race, Stephanie Bruce agreed that the competition was nothing to laugh at. Also from Flagstaff, she finished at 33 minutes and 45 seconds.

“Excellent competition, it’s not as deep [as some other races], but definitely has some upfront power,” said the 32-year-old, who recently returned to professional racing after having her second child about four months ago.

“It’s a wonderful atmosphere — great course, great crowd,” she added.

The event is named for Cardiff’s statue of a surfer named “Magic Carpet Ride,” but often referred to as Cardiff’s Kook— a term for someone who doesn’t follow surfing etiquette. When the statue was first unveiled, folks criticized the figure’s awkward pose but grew to embrace it.

Dressed as strips of bacon, residents Karen McCarter and Melanie Dowd remembered when the event was much smaller.

“It’s gotten so big, like 10 times the size,” said McCarter, adding that the event fits nicely with the town’s identity. “The town has a local feel still. It’s not like all serious.”

With registration fees between $44 and $54, the Cardiff Kook Run will donate about $7,500 to charities this year, including the Epilepsy Foundation of San Diego County, Patrons of Encinitas Parks, the local chapter of Boy Scouts and the physical education program at Cardiff Elementary school, according to organizers.

In the past, the for-profit event had partnered with Cardiff 101 Main Street to beautify the area around the statue. When run organizers shifted their financial backing toward Patrons of Encinitas Parks this year, the business association filed a lawsuit in federal court to stop the event from using its copyrighted image of the surfer statue.

“We kind of felt like we finished our job there,” Lebherz said. “Now we’re moving on to some other parks in the city of Encinitas.”

Despite the lawsuit, which seeks $150,000 in damages plus attorney fees, both groups agreed the event should continue.

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