Published August 21. 2024 11:00AM
The 23rd annual Ironton Rail Trail 10-K race/walk was held Aug. 18 along the trail, ending at the Saylor Kilns in Coplay.
Whitehall resident Matt Gillette won the race last year and prepared for this year’s event with his wife, Lindsay, and daughter Emma. In a repeat performance, Gillette also crossed the 2024 finish line first.
The overall women’s winner was Susie Racek, from Emmaus.
No run/walk can take place without a registration table. Bill Ehritz, Cassie and Terri Schmidt and Jim Talianek cheerfully staffed the registration table.
Keystone Running Store was the principal sponsor, along with 35 other sponsors of this event. The sponsorships and hard work of its organizers and IRT volunteers have transformed the event into an annual tradition.
The Ironton Rail Trail was developed almost 30 years ago. The trail spans Coplay, Whitehall and North Whitehall. The trail follows the historic railroad tracks that breathed life into the local cement industry for decades.
A key driver of the Coplay trail development for more than two decades has been Joseph Bundra, a former Coplay council member and former borough mayor. Bundra remains an IRT volunteer.
PRESS PHOTOS BY BILL LEINER JR.Runners take off at the start of the 23rd annual Ironton Rail Trail 10-K race, held Aug. 18 beginning along the trail and ending at the Saylor Kilns, Coplay.
Bill Ehritz, Cassie and Terri Schmidt and Jim Talianek prepare for the race at the registration table.
Two-time consecutive winner Matt Gillette, of Whitehall, shares a moment with his wife, Lindsay, and daughter Emma before the race.
Father and son duo Mike and Mikey Muessig, of Northampton, are ready for the race.
