By Kurt Steele

Little did eight-year-old Caitlin Alexson know that her mother’s protective jog by her side while she learned to ride a bicycle would lead to her mother becoming a competitive runner.

Four short years after that initial jog, Norfolk resident Margaret Alexson progressed from being a non-runner to having the fastest woman’s time in the 2011 Norfolk Memorial Day Five-Mile Road Race. Alexson also had that honor for the 2012 and 2013 races, finishing 13th overall this year with a time of 34:39.

When Alexson first began running while her daughter biked, she came to realize that she really enjoyed the sport and it could be her ticket to improved health and finally stopping smoking. “Unlike many successful runners, I never felt the need for a coach. Recreational running was enough,” she says.

But she did pick up a support team of running mates along the way. “I’ll never forget that in my first year of running the Memorial Day Race Kate Johnson passed by me as I looked like I was ready to die. She asked with obvious concern, ‘Can I help you?’”

That was the beginning of Alexson’s sisterhood running team, which grew to include another fellow Norfolkian Holly Durstin, who blew by her in the race one year pushing a baby stroller, and eventually her twin sister, Mary Reeve.

Alexson believes her twin has more competitive motivation than she does. After running just three years, Reeve came in second in this year’s race just behind Alexson in the 40-49 Age Female Group. The two sisters have run in other regional races together, including charity events. Alexson offered this tip for runners, “Enjoy running with a partner or two and make sure there is much good laughter along the way.” Clearly, a recipe for success.

This year’s race day was a delightfully comfortable 67-degree-day, with 220 registered runners finishing the race. The course, which starts on Westside Road near the intersection of Mountain Road, covers hilly terrain and a mixture of paved and dirt roads before ending just past the fountain on the Village Green.

The race was started by a group of local residents 35 years ago. After their successful overseeing of the event for 10 years, the Norfolk Volunteer Fire Department (NVFD) took over its management and uses it to fund Chief William F. Kelly Memorial Scholarships for deserving Norfolk college students. “We were pleased to have awarded five scholarships this year totaling $3,500,” says Ron Zanobi, NVFD’s race chairman.

Kudos to the other top finishers: Jeriah Griswold, 30, was the fastest male (and overall) runner this year, with a time of 28:23, followed by Eamon Dempsey, 33, Botto Rocco, 30, Casey Smith, 32, Alec Brochu, 21, Douglas Rhynhart, 28, Kim Marchand, 49, James O’Brien, 29, Robert Dwyer, 32, and Addison Quale, 32. Their times ranged from Griswold’s 28:23 to Quale’s 34:28.