Costumed characters run 'Star Wars' half marathon

ANAHEIM, Calif., Jan. 20 (UPI) -- Jedi knights, dark lords of the Sith and creatures from a galaxy far, far away put the Force into their strides at Disneyland for the Star Wars Half Marathon.

Race organizers said a total 12,200 people ran Sunday at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, Calif., and dozens of those runners put a little extra Force behind their steps by dressing as their favorite characters from the Star Wars franchise.

Good luck to all Jedi and Sith participating in #StarWarsHalf Weekend. May the course be with you! pic.twitter.com/DFV6zKSKPY
— Disneyland Resort (@Disneyland) January 15, 2015

Nicholas Arciniaga, 31, of Flagstaff, Ariz., was the first finisher Sunday with a time of 1:08:13, followed by Jason Ryf, 43, of Oshkosh, Wisc., with 1:10:56 and third-place finisher Jacob Abrego, 23, of Corpus Christi, Texas, with 1:14:49.

RT jlmarr1622: #Starwarshalf https://t.co/NUIJXANYmm (via starwars)
— BadRobot.co (@Badrobotco) January 18, 2015

"It was pretty big for me," Arciniaga told the Fountain Valley Patch. "It's a hometown race for me so I like coming back to Southern California and having my local fans and my family come out and cheer me on, so coming out here and being able to win is something that's always pretty special to me."

A truly luminous being. #StarWarsHalf pic.twitter.com/mEq1vWfqlP
— Star Wars (@starwars) January 18, 2015

Jennifer Berry, 34, of Denver, was the first finisher in the women's category with a final time of 1:22:34, followed by Carla McAlister, 22, of San Clemente, with 1:25:32 and Kellie Nickerson, 27, of Albuquerque, N.M., with 1:27:03.

Drumroll please for Animal Fett! #StarWarsHalf pic.twitter.com/LT2Zp7UMdo
— Star Wars (@starwars) January 18, 2015

The weekend also included Star Wars themed 10k, 5k and youth races. Runners who completed both the half marathon and the 10k were awarded medals for finishing the Rebel Challenge.