By Matt Phelps

Wind and rain couldn’t dampen the Mercer Island Rotary Run Day — much.

More than 3,000 people turned out for the event, which benefited colon cancer awareness. The total amount of participants was a record for the event. The turn out was good for an event that traditionally gets good day-of-race weather.

“We had a great, great cause for this year and lousy weather,” said Bo Darling, event organizer and Mercer Island Rotarian. “Normally if we have good weather, we have 600 or so day-of-race sign ups, but I think we had around 200 today. I am just happy the rain stopped.”

“This is just so satisfying on so many levels,” Darling continued. “Watching it come together is so amazing.”

The rain ceased just long enough for most of the participants to run the course and not get completely soaked.

The narrowed focus to just one cause this year brought out many more sponsors for the event. One sponsor, KING-TV, sent one of its most familiar personalities, John Curley of “Evening Magazine,” for the event.

“Normally I would be running, but I have a injury,” said Curley, who is an avid runner. “KING-TV is always looking for ways to be involved in the community and this race has great history.”

Before firing the gun to begin the 8K race, Curley noted that just 25 people turned out for the first race when the Rotary Run began in the 1970s .

“We just need to get the word out about early detection for colon cancer,” said Curley. “Early detection is essential.”

Darling added: “Doing the right things for the right reasons is just so gratifying.”

One of the biggest surprises was the mens and womens winners of the Half Marathon, as both are or have been, an Island resident.

Donnie Fellows, a 25-year-old resident of Indiana, grew up on Mercer Island and was the first male participant across the line in the Half Marathon in a time of 1:07:57.

“I used to run quite a bit,” said Fellows, who ran cross country and track for Mercer Island High School. “Now I run when I have time. This worked out great because I could come back and visit family and run the race.”

Fellows was 14 when he last participated in the race.

Island resident Susan Empey was the first woman across the finish line during the Half Marathon. Empey, 36, finished the race in a time of 1:23:03.

“I have ran it before,” said Empey. “It is a tough course and it was windy. In some parts, you just get socked. It is nice to see people you know and get their support along the route.”

The winner of the 8K was one of the younger participants in either race. Julian Cowan, 14, from Puyallup finished the event in a time of 28:40.

“I went out way too fast,” said Cowan, who had a commanding lead at the half-way point of the race. “The whole last mile was tough. It had a lot of good hills but it was kind of cold.”

Cowan said he has been running 8Ks since he was 10 years old.

The first woman across the finish line in the 8K is a former University of Washington track athlete, but currently resides in Oregon. Melinda Campbell, 25, crossed the line with a time of 30:35. Campbell said that like a lot of the runners she participated in the event to prepare for the Bloomsday race in Seattle. The 8K is a qualifying run for the Bloomsday Race.

“This race was a lot like the Bloomsday course,” said Campbell. “It is a great course. I had a little too much left in the tank though.”

The Rotary Run Day also involved a half marathon walk, an 8K walk and a kids dash with a live band and refreshments.

The race also included some new amenities for the runners like high-tech running shirts and massages for after the race.

“We wanted to find out what the runners wanted and give it to them,” said Darling.

The race has grown over the past decade and Darling said that next year will be no different.

“We fully intend to continue to grow the race,” said Darling.

The event had 22 official business sponsors and more than 250 volunteers.

Full Mercer Island resident’s races results can be found on page A12 along with the top 10 finishers overall in the Half Marathon and 8K.