Leon Shordon ran away with his third straight Chum Run win, finishing first in the 5K trail run Sunday with a time of 17:35.

In a dramatic aftershock, Peter Oakley and Frank Jacques tied for second place with 18:44. And the next four finishers crossed the line within 3 seconds of each other during a crowded rush to the finish.

Erica Johnson, a runner at South Whidbey High School, took first for the ladies and came in fourth overall in a time of 21:17.

Runners in the 10th annual race faced a soggy course through the wooded course at South Whidbey Community Park.

Shordon said he had broken the course into four sections and had figured out how much time each part would take. That plan soon went out the window, though.

“The problem was that not only is it muddy and slippery, the puddles are trail wide,” Shordon said.

Usually the course can soak up a lot of rain, he added. But Shordon said he was faced with the choice of running through puddles where the bottom couldn’t be seen, or running around the water on the soft edges of the trail and dodging branches and other vegetation.

“My main goal just halfway through was to finish the race upright,” he said.

“It was muddy, so many puddles,” Johnson said.

Johnson, an 800 meter runner for the South Whidbey Falcons, is a sprinter and was running in her first Chum Run with fellow teammate Mary Bakeman, the second female finisher and the seventh overall with a time 21:19.

“It was fun racing with Mary,” Johnson said. “She’s been with me these past two years in cross country and track.”

Indeed, for many, the Chum Run wasn’t about competing. It was all about fun.

Sheila McCue and Beth Johnson crossed the finish line holding hands.

“That’s the competitive spirit,” quipped race announcer Jim Freeman.

The run attracted a wide variety of participants. Some were running in their first Chum Run, or their first organized race of any kind.

“This is my first. It was a lot more difficult than I expected,” said Roksana Hrycenko of Seattle. “I didn’t train on roads, I trained on a treadmill. I should have done some outdoor training because the surfaces are a lot different.”

“It was a huge accomplishment, and I’m really proud I finished,” she added.

Alexandra Hrycenko, her sister, said she was also glad she made it to the end. Especially because she smokes and is lazy, she joked.

“I couldn’t feel my legs anymore. I almost threw up,” Hrycenko recalled.

Ron Smullin of Clinton, who took first in his age group, reacted with near shock when reviewing the list of finish times.

“I’m surprised I placed as high as I did, being 63,” said Smullin. Smullin finished in the top 15, and said he came out to run to support the Maxwelton Salmon Adventure .

A total of 59 runners and 10 walkers braved near nonstop rain for the run, which covered two laps through the hilly terrain of South Whidbey Community Park. Teams and individuals competed.

First-, second- and third-place runners won prizes and medals. The top three runners of each team also received medals. Awards were also given in age brackets.

First-place finishers received a free pair of running shoes and other gear donated by Seattle-area running stores; other prizes included gift certificates from South End businesses.

Team Bate (Johnson, Shordon and Emily Martin) won first for teams, Team Sweat (Oakley, Challis Stringer and Bob Thome) came in second, and the Wildpats (Jacques, Eric Peterson and Patrick Royce) were third.

Race organizer Frazer Mann said the Chum Run attracted runners from the local area and beyond.

“We did have a fair number of off-Island participants,” Mann said.

While it also rained hard during last year’s Chum Run, the lousy weather this year may have kept the number of participants down a bit.

“We would have had over 100 without this rain,” Mann said.

The run was put together by the South Whidbey Endurance Athletes, or SWEAT, a group also known as Down Sound Racing. Chum Run proceeds will be used for the South Whidbey Parks and Recreation District scholarship fund, and the Maxwelton Salmon Adventure.