Russ College Dean Dennis Irwin said he hoped the Frostbite 5K, held on Ohio University's Athens campus, would raise awareness about engineering. "This is a way for all the sponsors, including the Russ College, to celebrate the contributions engineers make to our lives -- and for us to support future engineers," Irwin said.

Dave Bresnahan, an Ohio University graduate student, came in first with a time of 16:30.

Ohio University running club member and top female finisher Anna Luczkow said her time of 21:26 was surprising even to herself.

"That's very close to my top time," she noted. "I wasn't expecting that, because I haven't really been training for 5Ks -- I've been training for half-marathons," she added.

Luczkow's time contributed to her fellow club members' win as fastest group, with an average time of 20:05.

But the simple act of running wasn't the only thing that brought people to the event. Aaron Wilson, a research engineer at the Russ College's Avionics Engineering Center, organized a group to run for his sister, Jamie Ridenour. The 33-year-old Ridenour ran the inaugural Frostbite 5K last year and had been training with her brother until she suffered a stroke earlier this month. Wilson and friends participated in her honor.

"It's something we all shared with her, so we thought we'd do it for her," Wilson said.

Stephen Mee of Santa Fe, N.M., won "Farthest Froster," given to the participant who traveled the longest distance to run the Frostbite: 1,517 miles.

Results are posted at www.engineersfrostbite5k.com/.