XTERRA Merrimack River 16K Race Report

In a field of nearly 250 runners ages 14 to 77, Massachusetts residents Paul Low (33) and Kristin Hall (39), took home the top male and female honors in the 16th Annual -- XTERRA Merrimack 16k Trail Run, with times of 57-minutes, 44-seconds and 1-hour, 14-minutes respectively.

This is a record fifth consecutive title for Low, with a 2:04 min. victory over CMS (Central Mass. Striders) teammate Kevin Tilton (25); no stranger to competition, both represented the USA in the 2006 World Mountain running championship in Turkey. 

Mother Nature didn't go easy on the competitors: Low stated that the "wind was tough, so I'm happy with the way I ran"; he continued, saying that due to the conditions, this was "the second slowest I've ever run in here".  At times he felt "clunky -- the River is usually not the first trail race of the year, but with the later date it turned out to be my first time off-road" race of the season.

Despite this, his winning time of 57:44 is still the 10th fastest, now tying co-race-director Dave Dunham (43), with four of the top ten times. Tilton's time was good enough to rank 15th fastest.  Chris Mahoney (29) representing Whirlaway took third place in 1:00:20.

Kristin Hall, representing the White Mountain Milers, led the largest women's field in five years, taking the victory by 3:47 min.  Hall noted that she "loved the downhills...glad I didn't fall into the river!"  She enjoyed the "steady stream of guys to run with" and ran an impressive negative split -- hitting the 5-mile-turn in 37:50 and coming back in 36:13.  This was doubly impressive on a day when the wind seemed to be in the runners' faces in BOTH directions.  Emma Barclay (32) of the Portland Maine Trail Monsters took second place and Robyn Sheedy Bunker (32) of Team Psycho took bronze in 1:19:00.

A special congratulations goes out to Richard Busa, a 77 year-old male running for the Wester Mass. AC.  Busa has finished this event seven times since his 70th birthday and remains the only XTERRA Merrimack River finisher in the 70+ category.

Good things come in 3's -- The XTERRA Merrimack River 16k Trail Run was the first of three, newly minted, XTERRA off-road running races in the New England area, and is part of a National Championship Series boasting more than 30 events in eight US regions. 

The top 10 runners in each age group earn points at every XTERRA race attended.  After the series concludes, those with the most points are crowned New England Champions.  In addition, the top 5 in each class are invited to compete against other regional champions at the 2007 XTERRA National Trail Running Championship, held in Lake Tahoe, NV on September 29th.

UPCOMING: 

Mark your calendar for the next two local XTERRA Trail Runs:
6/9/2007 XTERRA Northfield Mountain Trail Run, Northfield, MA -- 10k
7/8/2007 XTERRA Loon Mountain Trail Run, Lincoln, NH -- 13k

For the full race results, including information on age group winners, check online at:

http://www.coolrunning.com/results/07/ma/Apr14_XTERRA_set1.shtml | www.whitemountainmilers.com/xterra

RACE BENEFICIARY: Proceeds from this race benefit the Thomas Chamberas Runners' Memorial Scholarship Fund, offering financial assistance to young adults who exhibit qualities of Respect, Generosity of Spirit, Love of Running, Sportsmanship and Honor.

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