John Pang wore two hats when he ran in the Dirty, Dusty, Damn Hot Relay for Cancer on Sunday.
First, Pang ran leadoff leg for Team Fleet Feet in the relay division. And as if that wasn't enough, the 44-year-old Olympic Valley man kept right on running and went on to finish as the ironman champion in an event that attracted 84 participants to El Charro Avitia Restaurant in Carson City.
The race was hosted by the Sagebrush Stompers running club as a benefit for the Carson Advocates for Cancer Care.
Pang caught Stan Heinrichs on the final lap to win the ironman title in a time of one hour, three minutes and 21 seconds for the 15-kilometer route (9.3 miles). Heinrichs finished four seconds behind in 1:03:25, making this one of the event's closest races ever. Ted Smith, 50, was the third ironman in 1:10:06.
Diane Malven-Pang, 46, was also the iron woman winner in a time of 1:18:42. Linda McNeil was second in 1:30:13.
Team Fleet Feet crossed the finish line first overall with a 58:09 clocking, just ahead of the Tahoe Sunrunners in 58:37.
Pang put the team in fourth-place overall with his 19:40 effort on the opening 5-K leg and Buzz Graves moved into third. Bob Ryser, who won six state cross country and track championships at Carson High School before graduating in 1991, ran an 18:14 anchor lap to put Fleet Feet out front.
The Tahoe Sunrunners' trio of Mark Magaera, Neil Chappell and Steve Duncan finished second in 58:37. The South Lake Tahoe/Green team of Cory Martin, Jim Green and Grant Carter finished third in 1:00:17.
Martin, who turns 19 on Aug. 15, turned in the fastest individual leg of the day when he ran 16:38 for the opening 5K. Martin was part of South Tahoe High School's state championship cross country team in 2000 and the No. 6 runner last fall for Long Beach State at the Big West Cross Country Championships.
Larry Stone was second fastestfor the first leg with a 19:18 clocking, ahead of Dennis Pederson, who celebrated his 52nd birthday at the race by running 19:32 for the Nevada Appeal.
Fleet Feet captured its fourth straight Corporate Cup division title, while the Appeal ran 1:03:41 to finish second for the third time in four years.
The Go Girls from Lake Tahoe won the women's relay division, as Jackie Taylor, Christa Couch and Staci Baker ran 1:18:00.
Troy Hooker, Cari Blomquist and Adrian Mareu combined as Team Hooker to run 1:03:44, the fastest time among mixed relay teams. The second mixed team to finish was the Team Sauceda trio of Rick Sauceda, Todd Thompson and Jenny VanDuyne. VanDuyne's 5K time of 20:37 was the fastest among the women in the race.
The winning team in the men's 80-and-under (combined ages of all three members) division was also the team with the most unique name - "The Wise Disciples of the Great Hampster" - the Douglas High School trio of Michael King, Greg Mullin and Brian King. They ran 1:05:59.
