Riley Buese (No. 296) won first-place overall in the female category at the Race for Open Space 5K. She is 11 years old.

Eleven-year-old Stapleton resident Riley Buese was the overall winner in the female category at the 2015 Race for Open Space 5K on May 3 with a time of 21:45. This was her first-ever first place in a running event and her fastest 5K.

“I like running because I can think and reflect on my day. After school I have homework and hang out with my family, so running is the time I can just think,” she says.

She is a sixth-grader at Bill Roberts K-8 School where she has been a part of the running program for three years. She says she has typically gotten third place in cross-country meets so the win at Race for Open Space was a big surprise.

Buese runs 3–5 miles four or five times a week, and on Sundays she runs with a group. She says running is growing as a sport among kids. “I like running on trails and in the wilderness rather than by houses.” She plans to run more races this summer.