Eckstein makes it eight in a row

COURTESY OF OLDENBURG FREUDENFEST

The Twister Lauf 5K Run set a new record with 183 total participants on Saturday. Runners from all over the country ran in the annual summer race.

There’s no stopping him. Barring wishing ill -which is extremely frowned upon- this writer doesn’t see his dominance ending anytime. The man is Curtis Eckstein and on Saturday morning the former cross country state champion won his eight-straight Twister Lauf 5K run in Oldenburg.

The Oldenburg Academy graduate has won all eight races since the inception of the Lauf Run and his time in 2026 equaled that of a year ago.

Eckstein crossed the finish line in 15:18 which was just a second shy of being three minutes better than runner-up Lani Bloom, a 22-year-old out of Ithaca, Mich. Bloom was the top female and finished in 18:17 which marked a second-straight female title for her. Incoming Oldenburg senior Carson Hartwell was third in 18:42, Sam Dennis of Sunman was fourth in 18:50 and Batesville high school runner Levi Essick rounded out the top five in a time of 18:58.

What remained of the field consisted of local runners, those back home to visit for the weekend and running enthusiasts from across the country. After the top five, it was a slew of familiar names to some in the area. Jacob Moorman ran sixth at 19:24, Isaiah Frey out of Oldenburg was next in 19:25 and Jon Weigel sat eighth in 19:30. Ryan Benz and Thomas Essick rounded out the Top 10, finishing in 20:19 and 20:21 respectively.

The Lauf Run set a new record with 183 participants on Saturday despite off-and-on showers and a heat wave as part of the 2026 Freudenfest in Oldenburg. Proceeds from the event went back to support Oldenburg Academy Athletics.
Full results from Saturday’s run can be found at stuartroadracing.com.