With the rise of the sun, runners from around the tri-state area set off on Cape Girardeau's biggest distance running event of the year.

Sunday marked the 22nd annual City of Roses Half Marathon. The event, which is held the last Sunday of September, had over 125 participants, which is about average for the long-running event, race director Chuck Dobbs said.

The 13.1 mile event started and finished at the A.C. Brase Arena Building in Arena Park. This was the first time the event had ended at the Arena building, after a course change was made from last year.

Overall female champion Sue Burton, originally from Toronto and now living in Cape Girardeau, said the she liked the new course.

"Nice and flat, which is unusual for Cape Girardeau," she said.

Burton, who finished nearly eight minutes ahead of the next female with a time of one hour, 30 minutes and four seconds, is using the half marathon as a training tool for her upcoming trip to the World Duathalon Championship in Atlanta.

Although Burton had trained for marathons in the past, she said for now Sunday's 13 miles is long enough for her.

"Thirteen is as long as I'm going to go this year," she said.

On the men's side, Ballwin, Mo., native Jay Orr finished first in 1:14.20. Orr, a 1994 graduate of Southeast

Missouri State University, has participated in the event several times in the past, including a first-place finish in 1996.

Orr said he enjoys coming to the event to get away from the big city.

"I like coming to Cape Girardeau," he said. "It's a small town, but I like it a lot."

For Orr, the City of Roses Half Marathon is a good warmup for his marathon training. Orr has competed in marathons from the San Diego Marathon to world famous Boston Marathon, and even finished 30th in the 1996 Chicago Marathon which featured 11,000 racers.

Running may not be the kind of sport to get rich at, but Orr said that running just becomes a way of life.

"It's a kind of sport that doesn't get a lot of return monetarily," Orr said, "but it's a good lifestyle to have."

At 32, Orr hasn't given up on his ultimate dream yet, a chance at qualifying for the Olympic Trials. A marathon runner needs a time of 2:22 to qualify, which Orr has missed in the past by as little as six minutes.

Of course, in order to shave off as much as six minutes from his best time Orr will have to step up his training, which is something he has no problem doing.

"I just really like the workload of training for a marathon," he said.

Orr will get a chance see where he stands in December, when he plans to compete in the California Internationals in Sacramento.

jjoffray@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 171