CARBONDALE - Alex Tiernan made things look easy at Sunday's Heart of the Valley 5K Run.

Tiernan, who will be a junior on the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs cross country team this fall, posted a time of 18 minutes, 27 seconds to outdistance the rest of the field by more than three minutes under a hot morning sky.

What makes the feat even more impressive is that Tiernan won the previous day's Lobster Run 5K, also held in Carbondale.

"I ran yesterday in the Lobster Race, so I just tried to stay relaxed out there and have fun," said Tiernan, who came in third at last Sunday's Strawberry Shortcut 5K.

Tyler Wilson clocked a 21:54 to finish second overall. Carbondale's Brad Palmer rounded out the top three by crossing the line at 22:01.

On the women's side, New Castle resident Eileen Wysocki bested the competition with a time of 24:48.

The late-morning heat didn't seem to bother Wysocki, who has also recorded past victories at Rifle's Woodchuck Chase 5-miler and the race she directs, New Castle's Hogback Hustle 5K.

"It was hot out there, but I do most of my training in the heat of the day, so it wasn't that much of a factor," said Wysocki.

Glenwood's Nancy Risner was right on the heels of Wysocki, coming in at 24:56 for second place. Angela Shepard, who runs cross country for the Glenwood Demons, came in third for the women with a time of 26:52.

Race director Greg Feinsinger welcomed 47 runners and walkers to this year's event, which also featured fitness activities for children of all ages held in conjunction with the race.

"We like to see the kids and families participate," said Feinsinger. "Keeping youth active fits in with our mission."

The race, which is the third in the five-race Glenwood Charity Series, is a benefit for the Valley View Hospital Foundation with some of the proceeds also going to the Glenwood Springers Track Club.

Next up in the Glenwood Charity Race Series will be the Youthzone Uphill Challenge 5K, which will be held on Saturday, July 21.

Locals will need to take to the mountains in training for this one, which starts at Two Rivers Park and climbs to the finish line at Exclamation Point.

Heart of the Valley 5K
Top 20 overall

1. Alex Tiernan, 18:272. Tyler Wilson, 21:543. Brad Palmer, 22:014. Nolan Cummings, 22:23 5. Johnny Utah, 22:286. Kellen Fockler, 22:357. Mark Feinsinger, 23:318. Pearce Littler, 23:419. Stephen Triebel, 24:3410. Ryan Yost, 24:42 11. *Eileen Wysocki, 24:48 12. *Nancy Risner, 24:56 13. Jeff High, 26:03 14. Andrew Roberts-Gray, 26:05 15. *Angela Shepard, 26:52 16. *Abbey Walters, 27:15 17. *Meg Waibel, 27:2318. Edward Walters, 27:4619. *Jennifer Kishimoto, 27:4920. Bob Freyschlag, 28:03

*denotes female