XTERRA Philly Series underway for 2011

The XTERRA Philly Trail Run Series opened its 2011 season last week with some familiar themes still in place.

For one, the race was held on a weekday evening. Second, Dan Dix won the race.

Dix placed first overall at the XTERRA Hibernia Park Blast Trail Run last Wednesday (May 11) at Coatesville, Pa. He completed the 5-kilometer trail course at Hibernia County Park in 20 minutes, 33 seconds.

"The course was up and down with a mix of single track and double track trails, with some technical sections mixed in," said Dix, who is 32 and resides in Coatesville. "It was a great evening with temperatures in the 70s under sunny skies."

Dix (pictured at right) and Greg Linsky broke away from the rest of the field early and then Dix surged in front midway through the course. Linsky placed second in 21:00, and James Downey was third in 21:30.

Dix was also the runner to catch during the 2010 XTERRA Philly Series -- he won all four races he entered last year.

Diane Grim of Boyertown, Pa., was the first female finisher, completing the course in a time of 26:02. At 52, she was one of the oldest women in the field. Deena Andrus was second in 27:08, and Becky Bailey was third in 27:35.

In keeping with an XTERRA Philly Series tradition, the race started at 7 p.m. on a weeknight, allowing the runners to race while the sun was setting.

"I enjoy the midweek race because it breaks up the work week nicely," said Dix, who works as a lead scientist at All4 Inc. environmental consulting firm. "I try to take it easy as possible at work and don't really think about the race until the drive over where I usually start getting really excited."

The Hibernia Park Blast Trail Run was the first of five races on schedule for the 2011 Philly Series. The next race is the XTERRA Warwick Park Ruckus 5K on May 25. Also in keeping with tradition, the Philly Series will take runners on adventurous courses of varying distances throughout the season.

To register for a Philly Series race, or to learn more about it, please visit www.mid-atlanticevents.com/trailrun or www.xterratrailrun.com.

(Race photo courtesy of Derek Schultz)

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