IPSWICH- This is year for Dave Mansur. He started off the year in good shape by already sticking with one of his two New Year's resolutions: more running. Now, he can begin working on his other resolution: “Solve the world peace thing.” Mansur, 43, of Ipswich, crossed the finish line yesterday morning at the YMCA's forth annual Resolution Run with about 80 other runners and walkers who braved slick conditions from the New Year's Eve snowstorm. 

Each year, the YMCA adds five feet to the course for its length to coincide with the new year. Yesterday's race was 2.006 miles long.

With sponsorship from Ipswich Cooperative Bank and runners' race fees, the event raised more than $1,000 for the organization's Partner with Youth Program, which pays Partner with Youth Program, which pays Y membership fees for children who can't afford them. Fifteen-year-old Mark O'Flynn of Ipswich easily won the race, coming in at 11 minutes, 46 seconds. Larry Thode, 51, came in just shy of a minute later at 12:42. Kelly O'Conner, 14, won first place in the female division and fifth overall with a time of 13:11.  Eric Krathwohl, 51, came in third at 12:57, and Dan O'Flynn, 11, brother of the first-place finisher, came in fourth at 13:05.

Mansur crossed the finish line at 16:08. Not bad, he said, after a night of eating lots of chocolate with his young son and his friends. But the binge has come to an end. Now, it's a clean slate and time to hit the road and solve the world's problems, he quipped. Larry and Pam Hawes also made the race a chance to get back on the road.

“We're going to try to get back out running this year,” said Larry Hawes, who was accompanied by their 12-year-old son, Ian Fyfe. While there will be no marathons for the Ipswich couple this year (Pam Hawes has already run four), they want to use the event to get back into better shape. 

The runners and walkers braved below-freezing temperatures and wet pavement throughout the length of the course. But the snow was hardly a problem because all of it was plowed off the road long before the race got its 11 a.m. start.  Having a race on New Year's Day makes sense for Gerry Beauchamp, executive director for the Ipswich Family Y, because it is when s lot of people start to concentrate on getting healthy.

And it's a good idea to start the new year with a “short and inspiring course,” he said.

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