1 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (1)
Runners take off at the start of the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K in the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018. Ross Bridge resident James Lawson, at left, won the race with a time of 30 minutes, 54 seconds.
2 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (2)
Runners take off at the start of the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K in the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.
3 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (3)
Runners take off a the start of the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K in the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.
4 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (4)
Runners take off at the start of the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K & Health Expo in the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.
5 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (5)
About 125 runners and walkers participated in the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K in the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.
6 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (6)
James Lawson, a 26-year-old resident of the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, makes his way along the course at the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018. Lawson won the race with a time of 30 minutes, 54 seconds.
7 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (7)
A runner makes his way along the course of the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K in the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.
8 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (8)
Runners near the finish line of 2018 Ross Bridge 8K in the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.
9 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (9)
Ryan Thomas, a resident of the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, pushes two of his children, 2-year-old Jack and 6-month-old Grant, as he runs in the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.
10 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (10)
Matthew Harden, at left, and Thomas Hao, two 13-year-old residents of the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, near the finish line of the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.
11 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (11)
Jeff Aiken gets a calf massage from Kimberly Becker of Ultimate Edge Sports Medicine after running in the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K in the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.
12 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (12)
Kimberly Descher, a resident of the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, gets some orange slices after finishing the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.
13 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (13)
Phil Mazur, at resident of the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, grabs a banana after finishing the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.
14 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (14)
Walker Dean, 9, of Cullman, Alabama, flies a kite at the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K & Health Expo in the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.
15 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (15)
Faith Freeman, 8, of Hayden, Alabama, flies at kite at the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K & Health Expo in the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.
16 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (16)
Ed and Donna Galotta, residents of the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, visit the health expo at the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K & Health Expo on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018, with their dog, Welker.
17 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (17)
Jeff Duckworth of Alabaster, Alabama, has a Jack's sausage biscuit and Gatorade after finishing the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K in the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.
18 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (18)
Medals for the top finishers of the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K sit on a table before the awards ceremony in the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.
19 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (19)
Runners in the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K gather in a health expo area after the race in the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.
20 of 20
Photo by Jon Anderson
Ross Bridge 8K 2018 (20)
About 125 runners and walkers took part in the 2018 Ross Bridge 8K in the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018. The event also included a health expo in a grassy area along Ross Bridge Parkway.
About 125 runners and walkers took to the streets in Ross Bridge Saturday morning for the 10th annual Ross Bridge 8K & Health Expo.
The event was a fundraiser for Alabama Teen Challenge, which provides residential low-cost drug and alcohol recovery programs for people of all ages. All proceeds went to the organization’s women’s training center in Hayden.
Turnout was much lower than last year, when about 360 runners participated, said Rachel Roberts, an Alabama Teen Challenge life coach who served as race director. However, this year’s event raised more than $20,000, which was about $3,000 more than last year, because of generous sponsors, Roberts said. Only about $3,000 came from race registration, she said.
The 4.97-mile race began in the Ross Bridge Village Center, and wound through numerous neighborhoods in the Ross Bridge community, including some trails, before finishing back at the village center.
James Lawson, a 26-year-old resident in the Ashby at Ross Bridge apartments, was the top finisher in the race, with a time of 30 minutes, 54 seconds. Lawson, who is pursuing a doctorate degree in accounting from the University of Alabama, said he moved to Hoover two years ago from North Carolina, and this was his third time to run the Ross Bridge 8K, but his first time to win it.
“It’s a great race,” he said. “There’s definitely a great running community in the Birmingham area, which is nice.”
Elizabeth Stacey, 34, another Ross Bridge resident, was the top female finisher, with a time of 35 minutes, 13 seconds.
The Health Expo was held on the grassy area in the village center along Ross Bridge Parkway and included organizations such as Advocare, Fleet Feet Sports, Ultimate Edge Sports Medicine, American Family Care, Gardendale First Baptist Church and the Laura Crandall Brown Foundation. City Bowls and Urban Pops had treats for sale as well.
