(Photo by Shelley Hanson) Longtime racers and friends Blake Headen of Wellsburg, Susan Harrison of Pittsburgh and her brother Bruce Harris of Weirton get ready for the Ogden Newspapers Half Marathon races on Saturday.

WHEELING – Longtime racing friends Blake Headen of Wellsburg, Bruce Harris of Weirton and his sister Susan Harris of Pittsburgh were excited to get on the course again much like they have done for decades.

Headen said he has been running the race since the 1980s. Bruce Harris said he ran the first race back in 1978 and never looked back.

“I got up 29th Street Hill and I thought, why am I doing this? But I kept coming back. I love it down here,” he said.

Harris noted since he got knee surgery he was going to do the Half Marathon walk. Susan Harris said she was there to not only have fun, but to make sure her brother didn’t start running by accident.

The trio was happy that the rain had stopped and they hoped it would stay away for the remainder of the day’s activities.