by Travis Duncan

If you watched Hayden and Cameron Rathmell running in the Garden of the Gods 10 Mile Run on Sunday, you would never know that one of them recently finished a battle with cancer.

Hayden Rathmell, 17, finished with a time of 1:18 and his brother Cameron, 14, took top honors in the Mens 14 and under division with a time of 1:21.

Both boys will run for Liberty High School next year, Hayden as a senior and Cameron as a freshman. Hayden's time at Sunday's race was good, but it is all the more remarkable considering he's recovering from chemotherapy he underwent to treat the B-cell lymphoma doctors discovered after taking a biopsy from his right leg two years ago.

"It took awhile for him to come back," said Lon Rathmell, the boys' father. "He lost a lot of muscle mass and the treatment is hard on the heart muscle. The doctors said it might affect his ability to be a really top class runner."

Although Hayden attends Liberty High School, he has many friends at Rampart High School who donated $4,000 toward his medical bills by organizing a Bald for Bucks event and charging $20 to individuals for shaving their heads. Hayden said his friends at Liberty were great, too, shaving their heads as part of the fundraiser, signing banners, and giving him lots of encouragement through his four months of chemotherapy.

Hayden said he's looking to have a strong senior year now that he's fully recovered, both on the track and in school.

"I missed 50-plus days of school the second semester and still ended up with a 3.2 GPA," he said. "I've got a lot of colleges that I've been looking at. I'd like to maybe walk on to a D-1 school or maybe run for a D-2 school with a scholarship."

WALK LIKE AN EGYPTIAN: Four girls from The Classical Academy won the award for best High School Aid Station. "The Egyptians" made their own costumes and even learned the "Walk Like an Egyptian" routine from the Just Dance video game to perform during the race. Their team consisted of Megan Percy, 15; Heather Sheryll, 16; Lauren Hamilton, 16; and Brianne Hoglin, 15. Hoglin said she thought their team won because, "We'd yell that  the runners were looking good, looking strong," as they ran past.

RECORD CRUSHER: Kayli Tabares, 12, set a new age group (1-14) record by placing ninth overall (1:14.06) among the women competing at the 36th running of the
Garden of the Gods 10 Mile Run.  The old mark was 1:23:17 set in 2009 by Olivia Willoughby, then 14, of Colorado Springs.

The Russell Middle School seventh grader this fall was hoping to run the 10 miles in 1:12 but said she  was satisfied with the slower time considering the conditions.

Running in memory of his mother: Erich Woessner, 33, met his birth mother, Mary Mawhinney, for the first time 11 years ago. On Sunday, he paid tribute to her by competing in the 36th running of the Garden of the Gods 10 Mile Run.

The Denver resident is thankful he got to know Mary, who shared so many of the same interests with her computer scientist son, before she, a software programmer, succumbed to Hodgkin’s lymphoma on Feb. 20.

“I had a great (adoptive) parents growing up but when I met (Mary) it was unbelievable,” he said. “Meeting someone who looked like you and you had so much in common with is so amazing. I took up running after her funeral to get off the couch because she was always so active. It is what she would have wanted.”

Finding some time for herself: Yvonne Carpenter is finding more time to train with a growing daughter, Kyla, age 10, and a more regular training schedule for her husband, Manitou Springs running legend Matt Carpenter.

That training showed up on Sunday when she won her age group (45-49) with a time of 1:17.02.

“Since we bought (Colorado Custard Company) Matt’s schedule is a lot more structured and I can find time to train. I mean, we met in our running club (Include Club) and this is the first time I have run this (race) in 14 years. I am one minute slower; I’ll take it.”

Keeping it in the family: The Deep family of Beavercreek, Ohio, near Dayton was not planning on running a race on Sunday morning, until father Geoff decided for them.

“He is a runner and he came back yesterday  and told us we had signed up for the 5K,” said Abby Deep, 41, who was in Colorado Springs on vacation and visiting friends. “Fortunately the boys all like to run and they let me walk it with the youngest (Sammy, 7).”

Johnny, 9, and Tommy, 10, run track for St. Luke’s elementary in Beavercreek.

Rachel Henley, 24, and her mother Lori Henley, 58, both of Denver, took advantage of the run to get a look at the “less-touristy” parts of the city park.

”You can’t beat getting to do that,” Lori said.