Heart of the Hills History

The first race, called the Foot of the Hills Road Race and sponsored by Mike Lewis, ran from Keystone to Hill City in July, 1980. 33 runners made the first trek along the old road which follows the 1880 train route. Brian Thomas won this initial race. Since then, 947 different individuals have run the race. In 1985, amid howls of protest from Homer Hastings, and squeals of delight from almost everyone else, the race course was turned around and now travels from Hill City to Keystone. What follows has been garnered from race results, newspaper articles and personal experience. It is in no way meant to be complete. If you have complete results from any of the early years, we would be more than happy to add them to this record.

Multiple winners include Dean Colprit 1981, 89 & 95, Homer Hastings, 1982 & 84, Carl Cramer, 1991 & 92, Betsy Sewright, 1987, 88 & 89, Linda Groon, 1992, 94 & 95 and Tanja Cutting, 2005 & 07. Course records are held by Olympic Marathoner Rodney DeHaven, who ran 51:41 in 2001, and Karla Berk's 1:05:43 in 2001. Homer Hastings has the fastest time up the hill in 1:00:00, with Roxanne Lunde going up in 1:09:28. Twenty-six different runners have broken the one hour barrier. Of the 28 races, Mike Herdina and Elaine Doll-Dunn have run 22 times, Gary Miller has completed the race 21 times; Mike Besso has finished 17, Don Walker and Chris Kopp have 14, Homer Hastings and Bob Pfeifer have 13; Lorna Squyer, Cindy Walker and Jack Sayles have run 12. Chris Kopp has run 14 consecutive!

Nick Lemme and Ben Jasinski, age 11 and Jade Jasinski, 13 are the youngest finishers, while Elaine Doll-Dunn, 69, is the oldest women, and Elliot Thoreson, 75 is the oldest man to finish the race.

1980-Brian Thomas of Rapid City clocked the fastest time Sunday in the Foot of the Hills Run. Thomas ran the 10 mile course from Old Keystone to Hill City in 62:04. In the women's division, Rapid City's Cindy Sargent ran the quickest time, 76:53 to win the 13-19 age division. The run was sponsored by the Hill City Chamber of Commerce and the Rapid City Running Club.

1982-Irrepressible Homer Hastings and gritty Sue Thomas won titles Sunday in the 10 mile Foot of the Hills race. Hastings, 39, made it to the winner's circle for the first time in eight races this season, his time of 1:04:33 slightly slower than his runner up time of last year. Last year's champion, Dean Colprit, and several other top 20-29 year olds chose not to enter the demanding run, which climbs about 800 feet from Keystone to Hill City. Hastings said he sprained an ankle in last week's Mystic Mountain Run. "I couldn't even walk for three days," he said. Second place went to Bruce Renner of Rapid City in 1:07:44. Many runners consider the Foot of the Hills the most difficult race in the area. It is about half pavement and half gravel road, the first four and one-half miles mostly uphill with two more steep climbs in the seven to nine mile stretch. Temperatures ranged in the 70's at the 8:15 am start. "It's a mean course," said Hastings. Thomas, 27 recorded a respectable 1:10:35, more than eight minutes faster than her nearest woman rival, Lori Pickett of Hot Springs, and was fifth overall among the 64 finishers. It was her fourth victory of the season in four races. "It's pretty hilly, but I like it because of the trees. It's always beautiful out here in the hills," said Thomas. Hastings, who said he has also had hip problems this summer, seemed apathetic to the scenery, sprinting the first mile in 5:30. "Homer's just numb. He's probably got a dislocated vertebra and doesn't feel anything from the neck down," marveled one competitor.

1983-Randy Gregson was the first of 50 runners to finish the Foot of the Hills Run Sunday, winning in 61:23. The 10.4 mile run, which started in Keystone and finished in Hill City is sponsored by the Hill City Chamber of Commerce and The Runners Shop. Lori Pickett was the first woman to finish in 81:12.

1984-Homer Hastings won the men's overall title and Roxanne Lunde was the womens winner Sunday in the annual Foot of the Hills Run from Hill City to Keystone. Hastings ran the 10.4 mile distance in one hour. The run was sponsored by McCusker Law Offices and the Runner's Shop.

1985-Gerd Pekorra took an early lead and held it for 10.4 miles to win the 6th annual Heart of the Hills Run held between Hill City and Keystone Sunday morning. Pekorra, Ellsworth Air Force Base, was clocked in 60:25 for the course. He won the mens 20-29 division as well. Beth Ward, Edgemont, was the first female to break the tape. She was clocked in 70:13 and won the women's 30-39 age division. Sixty area runners competed in the race. Following Pekorra in the overall finishers was Gary Miller, who placed second in 61:40. Miller won the 30-39 mens division. Dana Ward of Edgemont placed third overall in 62:10, Rich Barrows placed fourth overall in 63:45, and Tim Klukas placed fifth in 64:52. Following Ward in the women's divisions were Gail Jones, 75:39 and Naomi Williams, 76:48.

1986-Mike Dunlap of Nemo won the men's division of the annual Heart of the Hills run in a record time of 55:13. Mary Schrader, the women's winner, also covered the 10.4 mile course in a record time of 67:19.

1987-Saturday evening, July 18, the eighth annual Heart of the Hills run was held. The course is 10.4 miles on the old gravel road from Hill City to Keystone. The race was won by Mike Herdina in the men's race with a time of 58:44. The women's race was won by Betsy Sewright with a time of 71:08. The race organizers would like to thank Mike Lewis of Hill City and all of the people along the course who have helped with water stops.

1988-The 9th Annual Heart of the Hills Run was run Saturday evening at 6:30 pm. The 10.4 mile course runs on the back road from Hill City to Keystone. The mens winner was Keith Lein with a new course record of 54:41. The womens winner was Betsy Sewright with a time of 67:23. The race was sponsored by the Runners Shop of Rapid City and Mike Lewis of Hill City.

1989-The annual Heart of the Hills Run, sponsored by the Runner's Shop, a 10.4 mile run from Hill City to Keystone was held on Saturday evening July 15th. Temperatures were

ideal for a good race. The men's open division was won by Dean Colprit with a time of 56:26. The women's open division was won by Betsy Sewright with a time of 70:33. The youngest runner was Nick Lemme, age 11 with a time of 98:27. The oldest runner was Leo Neu, age 60 with a time of 74:04. The mens race walk division was won by Bernie Finch with a time of 114:16. The Womens race walk division was won by Kathy Finch with a time of 116:58.

1990-The annual Heart of the Hills Run, sponsored by the Runner's Shop and Mike and Colleen Lewis of Hill City was held Saturday evening at 6:30 pm. Running conditions were nice with a cool temperature and even a little rain to keep the runners cool. The scenic 10.4 mile run from Hill City to Keystone was won by Dan Propst of Pierre with a time of 59:46. The womens race was won by Lorna Squyer of Nemo with a time of 70:41.

1991-The Runner's Shop Heart of the Hills 10.4 mile run was held at 6:30 pm on July 20, 1991. There were 74 finishers. The overall men's winner was Carl Cramer II with a time of 59:23. The overall women's winner was Kathy Jenkins with a time of 1:15:24. The youngest runner was Timmy Goodwin, age 12 with a time of 1:20:57.

1992-The annual Heart of the Hills Run was held Saturday evening the 18th of July. The traditional 10.4 mile run is held on the back road between Hill City and Keystone and is one of the most scenic runs in the area. It was won for the second year in a row by Hill City resident Carl Cramer with a time of 57:55. The womens race was won by Linda Groon with a record time of 1:06:47.

1993-The 14th Annual Heart of the Hills Run sponsored by the Runner's Shop was run Saturday July 17 at 6:30 PM. The run is routed on the old Keystone Road from Hill City to Keystone. The run enjoys the support of the local community with residents along the road providing water stops, the Crazy Horse Amateur Radio Club provided communications on the course, and the Pennington County Deputy Sheriffs provided course protection. The Race was also joined by a goat at mile 4. The overall men's winner was R.S. McDaniel with a time of 56.21. The overall women's winner was Julie Anne Knight with a time of 1:11:44.

1994-The 15th running of the Heart of the Hills Run was held Saturday, July 16, 1994 with 85 hardy souls completing the 10.4 miles from Hill City to Keystone. Jason Nicholas won the race in 57:34, followed closely by Mike Herdina, who completed his 11th race in 58:17. Course record holder Linda Groon won the female division for the second time in two attempts, clocking 1:08:19. She was followed by another 2 time champion, Betsy Sewright in 1:10:40. Homer Hastings broke the 50+ record, running 1:06:56, while Lorna Squyer ran 1:13:47 to break the 40-49 record.

1995-The annual Heart of the Hills Run took place Saturday evening in between thunder storms. The 10.4 mile run from Hill City to Keystone sponsored by the Runner's Shop, has been a tradition in the Hills for 16 years. The race was won by 2 time former champion Dean Colprit of Custer with a time of 56:53. Dean is now in the age 40-49 division and one of his
wins dates to 1981 when the course was uphill from Keystone to Hill City. The
womens course record was broken again by former champion Linda Groon. Her time was 1:06:14, bettering her previous record by 37 seconds.

1996-Black Hill State runner Mike Ryan ran 59:11 to lead 66 runners in the 17th annual Heart of the Hills Run from Hill City to Keystone. Mike Herdina finished 2nd in 59:46, followed by Jim Meeks in 59:58. Cathy Bechtel outsprinted Lorna Squyer to win the womens division by three seconds in one the closest finishes ever. Bechtel's time was 1:15:23 to 1:15:26 for Squyer.

1997- Joe Hall traveled from Buffalo WY to best 53 other runners in the 18th running of the Heart of the Hills Run. His winning time of 55:44 was the third best ever run on the 10.4 mile course which runs from Hill City to Keystone. The lead woman was Holly Kopplin, in a time of 1:11:21.

1998-104 degree temperatures greeted 73 runners in the 19th annual Heart of the Hills Run. Mike Herdina, running his 14 race, took the early lead, but was run down by a pair of recent high school graduates. Jason Arp won the race in 1:03:15, followed by Chris Kopp, who nipped Herdina at the finish in 1:03:37. Michelle Dunlap continued her dominance in races this summer, winning the women's division in 1:16:03. Beth Ward, finishing her 5th Heart of the Hills run placed second in 1:19:35. Times were slowed by the hot conditions, however that didn't stop Fred Romkema from breaking Homer Hastings 50-59 record by 9 seconds in 1:06:47. Elaine Doll-Dunn, running in her record 15th Heart of the Hills set a new 60+ age group record in 2:02:26.

1999-The 20th annual Heart of the Hills Run was held Saturday evening, July 17th. The 10.4 mile run goes from Hill City to Keystone on the old Keystone road. Runners as young as 11 yrs and as old as 73, as well as local and tourist runners made up the largest field in recent years, 97 runners. The weather was very different from usual July weather with dense fog at times. At the finish line looking up the road, finishing runners appeared from the fog shortly before the finish line. The overall winners were Robert Blase of Brookings in the mens with a 57:01 time and Beth Smith of Hershey, Pennsylvania with a time of 1:12:36.

2000- The annual Heart of the Hills Run was won by Augustana College's Todd Trapp in 59:47. Erin Herlihy won the women's division in 1:21:48. Seventy-seven runners made the trek from Hill City to Keystone.

2001-Olympic Marathoner Rodney DeHaven led a very strong field in the 22nd Annual Heart of the Hills Run held on July 14th. DeHaven became the first man to complete the race in under 5:00 pace, breaking the course record by 3 minutes in 51:41. The women's course record also fell, as Karla Berk traveled from Salt Lake City to run 1:05:43. Fifty-five year old James Elsing broke the 50-59 age group record in 1:06:13. Eighty-one runners completed the race.

2002-Scott Ellwanger ran 57:27 to top Jesse LaBuff, 59:22 by almost 2 minutes to win the 23rd running of the Heart of the Hills, leading 67 runners down the Old Keystone Road from Hill City. Last years runner-up, Nikki Underwood, a Black Hills State University coed finished in 1:09:23 to win the womens division, followed by Karen Glazier, who ran 1:12:15.

2003- The 24th annual running of the Heart of the Hills Run featured very hot and humid conditions for the athletes. Ben Crabtree travelled from Lennox SD claim the win in 59:26. The winner, who runs for Wayne State College was the only individual able to break the one hour mark. Cathy Bechtel won the womans division in 1:17:12. Winning times were the slowest since 2000, which was also a very hot day.

2004-Mike Streff celebrated his 40th birthday by winning the 25th annual Heart of the Hills Run. Streff, last year's runner up, toured the 10.4 mile course in 1:01:02, beating 2nd place finisher Chris Kopp by 36 seconds. The women's division was captured by Kezia Manlove in 1:15:57. She was followed by Amy Yanni, who finished in 1:18.35, the fastest time ever by a woman over 50 years of age.

2005-The race was postponed this year because of a forest fire along the course. Most of the 57 competitors ran two weeks later. Nineteen year old Kyle Kattke, from Black Hawk SD finished first in 1:01:37. Second place was captured by Chris Kopp, running the earlier run. Tonja Cutting ran 1:11:17 to finish 10th overall, winning the women's division. Lisa Gustin finished second.

2006-Completing his 13th consecutive Heart of the Hills Run proved to be lucky for Chris Kopp, as he won for the first time in 1:00:45. Alan Dreyer placed second in 1:01:17. Dreyer's sister Anne Dreyer won the women's division, running 1:10:02. Hot weather again ruled the day and slowed times some. Three time champion, Dean Colprit won the master's division and finished 4th overall in 1:06:57.

2007- Rapid City Central High School runner Mike Krsnak became the youngest ever person to win the Heart of the Hills Run. Krsnak, 17 will run Cross Country and Track for the Cobblers this fall, toured the course in

AGE GROUP RECORDS

0-19 Jacob Christensen 59:04 1999 Lori Hedlund 1:12:20 1986
20-29 Keith Lein 54:41 1988 Linda Groon 1:06:14 1995
30-39 Rodney DeHaven 51:41 2001 Karla Berk 1:05:43 2001
40-49 Dean Colprit 56:53 1995 LeAnne Vette 1:13:40 1999
50-59 James Elsing 1:06:13 2001 Amy Yanni 1:18:35 2004
60-69 Leo Neu 1:14:45 1989 Elaine Doll-Dunn 1:45:56 1999
70+ Elliot Thoreson 2:05:00 1999

1980 Brian Thomas 1:02:04 Cindy Sargent 1:16:53
1981 Dean Colprit 1:00:16 Linda Goddard 1:15:53
1982 Homer Hastings 1:04:33 Sue Thomas 1:10:35
1983 Randy Gregson 1:01:23 Lori Pickett 1:21:12
1984 Homer Hastings 1:00:00 Roxanne Lunde 1:09:28
1985 Gerd Pekorra 1:00:45 Beth Ward 1:10:13
1986 Mike Dunlap 55:13 Mary Schrader 1:07:19
1987 Mike Herdina 58:44 Betsy Sewright 1:11:08
1988 Keith Lein 54:41 Betsy Sewright 1:07:23
1989 Dean Colprit 56:26 Betsy Sewright 1:10:33
1990 Dan Propst 59:46 Lorna Squyer 1:10:41
1991 Carl Cramer 59:23 Kathy Jenkins 1:15:24
1992 Carl Cramer 57:55 Linda Groon 1:06:47
1993 RS McDaniel 56:21 Julie Knight 1:11:44
1994 Jason Nicholas 57:34 Linda Groon 1:08:19
1995 Dean Colprit 56:53 Linda Groon 1:06:14
1996 Mike Ryan 59:11 Cathy Bechtel 1:15:23
1997 Joe Hall 55:44 Holly Kopplin 1:11:21
1998 Jason Arp 1:03:15 Michelle Dunlap 1:16:03
1999 Robert Blase 57:01 Beth Smith 1:12:36
2000 Todd Trapp 59:47 Erin Herlihy 1:21:48
2001 Rod DeHaven 51:41 Karla Berk 1:05:43
2002 Scott Ellwanger 57:27 Nikki Underwood 1:12:15
2003 Ben Crabtree 59:26 Cathy Bechtel 1:17:12
2004 Mike Streff 1:01:02 Kezia Manlove 1:15:57
2005 Kyle Kattke 1:01:37 Tanja Cutting 1:11:17
2006 Chris Kopp 1:00:45 Anne Dreyer 1:10:02
2007 Mike Krsnak 1:02:31 Tanja Cutting 1:14:32