ANDOVER - With records falling everywhere on the Boston sports scene, why not here?
With weather conditions ideal for a road race, cool and slightly damp, the 20th annual Feaster Five Road Race record book took a few hits.
A record 8,500 people entered the anniversary special, up nearly 2,000 from a year ago and more than a 1,000 ahead of the previous mark. Those numbers put this event in exclusive company as one of the most popular events in New England.
The other tumbling record was for the men's 5K race as North Reading's Harry Norton, a Dartmouth College senior, ran the 3.1-mile course in 15:40 yesterday, besting an eight-year old course record set by Matt St. Germaine, of Plaistow, N.H., in 1999.
"These are perfect conditions," said the 22-year-old All-Ivy League runner, who has now won the 5K race three straight years. "The first mile was a little slow (5:15). So I decided to speed it up and I ran 4:50 for the second mile. I think that was the turning point for me."
Methuen's Kevin Alliette of Whirlaway Racing led that first mile before Norton made his move. Soon thereafter, another Dartmouth runner, Oliver Townsend, a Tennessee native who ate Thanksgiving dinner with the Nortons in North Reading, took over second place.
Alliette finished third for the third consecutive year, each time with Norton, who recently finished fifth in the Ivy League Cross Country Championships at Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx, in first.
In the women's 5K race, two women who are used to dueling on the local racing circuit had another close race.
Reading native Allison McCabe, now living in Cambridge, bested rival Melissa Donais, a former star at Phillips Academy.
McCabe, 25, a first grade teacher in Revere, finished in 18:04, ahead of Bradford's Donais, who finished second for the second straight year at 18:20.
"She caught me on the hill," said Donais, referring to the big hill about a mile into the race. "I tried. She just had it better than me today."
In the main event, with famed Boston Marathon champions Bill Rodgers and Joan Benoit-Samuelson in the men's and women's fields, Sweden native Tobias Lundgren, 21, won in 25:27.
Lundgren, who runs for Manhattan College, won by 20 seconds over John Friedman, 27, of Cambridge.
"I was having Thanksgiving with a friend of mine in North Reading so I decided to give this race a try," said Lundgren. "I looked up times from the last few years and thought there would be a couple of tough runners. I saw last year's champ (Patrick Moulton, of Pelham, N.H.) was not here. Me and (Friedman) were fighting each other hard."
Lundgren took over the lead from Friedman with about a mile to go.
"I just increased my pace hoping I could break away," said Lundgren, who finished more than a minute behind the record set by Dave Hinga of Lowell (24:06). "And then I just kept going. It's nice to win."
The winning female was first-timer Kim Webster of Framingham with a time of 29:43. In previous years, the 31-year-old Webster, a Maine native, had run a Thanksgiving morning race in Somerville.
She beat hometown favorite and Feaster Five legend Terri Anne McGettrick of Andover by 20 seconds in 30:03.
"This is perfect weather for me," said Webster, whose husband, Sam ran with their dog, Ally. "I caught (two-time defending champ McGettrick) at about four miles and I just pushed. I love running when it's cool."
