No sooner had the runners finished the Frank Lloyd Wright Runs in Oak Park on Sunday and race director Greg Evans, the architect of this event, was eyeing new designs for 2004.

Evans, on the staff of the hosting Park District of Oak Park, said he was pleased with how the races came off, but wants a bigger turnout next year.

To that end, he already has begun working on a new two-race format that would include an 8K and 10-mile. The 5K would be eliminated. Nothing is definite, but Evans said Monday that is how is he is leaning.

The 5K and 8K races for 2003, run separately so participants could race in both if they wanted to, started and finished near Oak Park High School. Winners in the 5K were Juan Munoz, 36, of Chicago, in 16:34 and Christina Nixon, 46, of Oak Park, in 19:40. Taking honors in the 8K were Mike Lucchesi, 24, of Naperville, who posted a 25:18, and Shawn Friedman, 23, of Oak Park, who clocked 32:46.

Munoz, who speaks very little English, let his performance speak for itself in the 5K. He runs for the predominantly Hispanic Chicago United Running Club. Nixon, who won her age group with a 19:22 the day before at the Park Ridge Charity Classic, was happy to win one in her hometown.

"It's fun to have a history of running this event several times and also to win a race on my home turf," Nixon said. "The course is beautiful." Nixon also noted another use for T-shirts---a way of documenting personal history. She met her boyfriend at this race back in 1995 and couldn't remember the date. They pulled out the T-shirts and noted it was Oct. 29, 1995.

Second and third in the men's race were Gary Townsend, 52, of Oak Park, in 17:59, and Seiji Shinsakco, 31, no hometown available, in 18:19. On the women's side, Jenny Gadzinski, 21, of Wheaton, was second in 20:01, and Emily Cosgrove, 29, of Lombard, was third in 20:45.

In the 8K, Lucchesi, didn't seem to be feeling the effects of a long run the day before. Lucchesi, a former North Central College assistant coach and now an assistant cross-country coach at Lewis College, won in a breeze.

"I ran 18 miles hard yesterday in North Carolina and used this as a tune-up (for The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon)," he said.

Men's runner-up was Chris Wolfe, 35, of Cedar Rapids, IA. He learned of the race on the Web and drove in. He finished in 26:49, while J.D. Holt, 32, of Oak Park, took third in 28:17.

Women's second- and third-place finishers were Tracy Hogan, 33, of Chicago, in 33:35, and Tricia Marks, 35, of Chicago, in 34:50.

Among the many strong performances was that of 51-year-old Bob Theodore of Woodridge. Theodore placed sixth overall in the 5K with an 18:51 and then came back and got eighth overall in the 8K with a 30:21.

This year's race also featured a new disposable Chip, made available to the event through ChampionChip. After completing the races, runners were treated to a post-race breakfast that included all kinds of food from pizza to pancakes and sausage.

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