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Herndon and Rosser Win Oak Mountain Xduro and D.D is Top Dog in K9 Challenge

Tony Herndon, 39, from Birmingham and Mary Rosser, 33, of Columbiana, won the men’s and women’s divisions of the XTERRA Oak Mountain 21km trail run this morning at Oak Mountain State Park in Pelham, AL.

Herndon, a pediatric urologic surgeon at Children’s Hospital, had a winning time of 1:26:21 while Rosser, a stay-at-home mother of two turned in a 1:50:23.

“We just love this park,” said Rosser, who’s two kids took part in the XTERRA kids trail run and golden retriever Charlie ran in the Breeder’s Choice XTERRA K9 Challenge. “This race was really tough though. I’ve been running since high school but this was my first off-road half-marathon and it was challenging.”

Herndon, who won last year’s XTERRA Oak Mountain 10k, led nearly from start-to-finish and was a full four minutes ahead of runner-up Owen Bradley. Herndon is training for his first Ironman World Championship in Kona this October, which he’ll do as a fundraiser for Children’s Hospital.

“It was tough course but a lot of fun. I was happy to come down and be a part of it and think this is great for the community, and to get people outdoors and exercising,” added Herndon.

The XTERRA Oak Mountain 10km trail run was won by Drake Ott of Birmingham in 45:08 and Amy Mills-Avest of Victoria, BC, Canada in 52:14. Nicholas Craig of Enterprise and Emalee Butler of Hoover won the 5km event in 25:11 and 30:50, respectively.

More than 200 runners took part in the three trail runs, which were benefits for Children’s Hospital of Alabama and the Lakeshore Foundation in Birmingham.

XTERRA KIDS TRIATHLON

Twenty-three up-and-coming triathletes ages 4-to-13 took part in the XTERRA Kids triathlon at Oak Mountain State Park this afternoon.

The race combined a 50-foot-swim in Double Oak Lake, a 2-mile bike along a combination of paved and dirt trails, and 1-mile run along the lakeshore for the older kids in the group and a variety of distances for the younger bunch (as it was a made-for-fun event course marshals revised distances based on each kids fitness level).

D.D. WINS A YEAR SUPPLY OF AVODERM DOG FOOD IN K9 CHALLENGE

D.D., a 5-year-old 98-pound Rottweiler and her owner Rose Lehn of Birmingham won the owner-and-dog time Breeder’s Choice XTERRA K9 Challenge time trial race with a perfect run in 16.7 seconds.

“This was a really neat event and so much fun,” said Lehn, who won a year’s supply of Avoderm Dog Food from the event sponsor. “D.D. is a working dog and she listens really well. She’s so big that the weaving in and out of those tight spaces was tough, but she did great. I’m really proud of her.”

The competition was playful and downright fun to watch with all kinds of different breeds taking part in the event from Bouvier’s to golden retrievers, and German Shepherds to Australian Cattle dogs.

The course started with a quick sprint and two log step-overs, followed with a fire-hydrant swerving shuffle, then the option of a speed-crawl through a five-foot long narrow tunnel or a three box climb (owner’s choice), and ended with a platform crossing to a teeter-totter cross, and a few final step-overs to the finish.

The made-for-fun event which does not require any specialized training, attracted more than a dozen dogs. Each owner/dog team were allowed two runs at the obstacle course, and the crowd hooted, hollered, drooled and barked at all the action.

TOMORROW IS THE XTERRA SOUTHEAST CHAMPIONSHIP

The Oak Mountain “red trail” is lauded by competitors from all over the world as one of the most fun, technical and scenic mountain bike trails they’d ever ridden. Mix in a warm water swim at Double Oak Lake and a tree-lined up-and-down trail run and you’ve got a world-class setting for the nation’s leading off-road triathlon taking place tomorrow at 9:30 a.m.

For more information or pictures from today's event contact:

Trey Garman, Vice President
TEAM Unlimited/XTERRA
720 Iwilei Road, #290
Honolulu, HI 96817
Office: 808-792-2603
www.xterraplanet.com