AJ West Elementary school held its 2023 Fun Run under bright blue skies on Friday in Aberdeen.

Dozens of AJ West grade-schoolers competed in the race, which constitutes three laps around the school (approximately one mile), and was funded via a grant from the Washington Education Association Chinook.

Fourth-grader Jack Nelson placed first with a time of 6:44 with fellow fourth-grader German Jimenez placing second 8:00.

Fifth-grader Ander Jones (8:28), third-grader Mailee Montoure (8:39) and first-grader Kyle Demasters (8:45) placed third through fifth.

SUBMITTED PHOTO AJ West first-grader Kyle Demasters placed fifth at the 2023 Fun Run on Friday in Aberdeen.

The event was a culmination of two weeks of running practices the competitors commit to in order to participate in the popular school tradition that began in 1987.

The race as followed by a “Color Run,” where staff and families threw colored chalk as the participants ran on the school’s grass field, and enjoyed a barbecue meal and a “basket bingo” held by the school’s parent-teacher organization to raise money for the school.

SUBMITTED PHOTO Miss Grays Harbor Lauren Fagerstedt, left, cheers on a runner during the Fun Run at AJ West Elementary School in Aberdeen on Friday.

SUBMITTED PHOTO A competitor celebrates during the AJ West Elementary School Fun Run on Friday in Aberdeen.