SALISBURY — The 41st annual Winter Flight 8K/5K and Fun Run may have had a slightly lower turnout this year than in years past, but the event still went off without a hitch on Sunday.

The main storyline from this year’s event was a runner who had a legitimate shot at breaking the 8K course record of 23 minutes and 33 seconds. Thomasville resident Chris Maxson, a former runner at Indiana Wesleyan University and Ole Miss, came close to breaking the record but fell short by approximately 22 seconds, ending at 23 minutes and 55 seconds. The course record was set by Dutch runner and Olympian Hans Koeleman in 1988.

Salisbury-Rowan Runners President David Freeze, who ran the event on Sunday, said that one record was broken in the 8K. Pete Gibson from Murfreesboro set the record in the 65 through 69 age range with a time of 30 minutes and 53 seconds.

Gabriella Delay from Winston-Salem took first place in the women’s 8K with a time of 29 minutes and 57 seconds.

Mark Perez, a runner on West Rowan High School’s cross country team, took first place in the men’s 5K with a time of 20 minutes and 16 seconds. Lucia Ellis from Mocksville set the pace for the women’s 5K with a time of 21 minutes and 39 seconds.

Freeze said that all proceeds from the race, mainly the registration fees for the runners, go to Rowan Helping Ministries. Last year’s Winter Flight raised more than $12,000 for the organization and 2022’s race topped $13,000.

The fact that the race is a charity event, Freeze said, is one of the main reasons that the organization hopes to keep the participation numbers up. Historically, the event has averaged 400 runners, but Freeze reported that this year’s event only had approximately 350 participants.

Some of those participants came from Ainsley’s Angels, a nonprofit aimed at helping people who may not participate in the races themselves be a part of it.

“It’s a highly inclusive organization. We’ve got these able-bodied runners that do this because they see the joy and the happiness that it brings to the angel riders and angel athletes,” said Kristen Faulkner, whose son was able to participate in the race because of Ainsley’s Angels.

Freeze said he enjoyed that the organization continued to show up every year, because he hopes that people know that the Winter Flight is aimed at being inclusive to everyone, no matter their abilities.

The Salisbury-Rowan Runners will be hosting another race on Feb. 24, the Will Run For Food 5K, which also raises money to benefit Rowan Helping Ministries. For more information on the races or the organization, go to https://salisburyrowanrunners.org/.