King, Anderson Win Inaugural XTERRA Trail Running World Championship
Posted Wednesday, 10 December, 2008
KA'A'AWA, Hawaii - (December 7, 2008) - Max King, 28, from Bend, Ore. and Cynthia Anderson, 25, from Kailua, Hawaii won the inaugural XTERRA Trail Running World Championship half-marathon at Kualoa Ranch on Oahu on Sunday morning. More than 800 runners from 32 states and eight countries participated in the 5K, 10K and 13.1 mile events.
Near perfect running conditions with cool breezes, cloud cover and temperatures in the mid-70s greeted runners for the half-marathon championship race that featured 3,000 feet of elevation gain while weaving up-and-down the verdant cliff faces in Ka'a'awa Valley and into the dense rainforest of Hakipu`u Valley at Kualoa Ranch.
King, a member of the Team USA cross country squad and the reigning XTERRA Trail Running USA Champ, led from start-to-finish and was the only runner to post sub 6-minute miles for a winning time of 1 hour, 18 seconds, 24 seconds. Ben Bruce of Eugene, Ore. finished more than three minutes back in second place at 1:21:56, and Thomas Taylor of Phoenix, Ariz. placed third in 1:29:34. Honolulu's Matt Stevens was the top local finisher just 17 seconds later.
"Ben (Bruce) is as good a runner as I am, and I am always afraid of him," said King. "This race was a lot tougher than Nationals. The last 5 kilometers were definitely the most challenging. I just didn't want to do anymore hills. This was an awesome event."
His first time in Hawaii, Bruce said this terrain, and the course's elevation gain was quite different than what he is used to. "There was more climbing in the first two miles of this race than the entire Nationals race combined."
In the women's race, Anderson, a former cross country and track stand-out at the University of Rhode Island, was in a tight duel with Canadian Danelle Kabush the entire way. Kabush, the race favorite, had the lead until about mile seven when Anderson passed on a steep uphill. Kabush stayed close the rest of the way and was right on Anderson's heel for much of the final six miles but ultimately finished 33 seconds back with a time of 1:40:11. Anderson's winning time was 1:39:38.
"Danelle and I were together most of the race especially when we were skating down the large ridge. She really kept me in the race," said Anderson, a research assistant for the University of Hawaii.
"Cynthia is tough," said Kabush after the race. "She was a great runner and the course was beautiful. I just wish I had been able to focus on the scenery more while I was running."
"The trails were nuts" according to Richard Burgunder of Astoria, N.Y. "I took a bad spill out there, but the course was even more amazing that I expected, especially the upper ridge section. I loved it, but it was really challenging."
Winner of the men's 55-59 division Francisco Rodriguez, of Bayonne, N.J., has a running resume that includes completing 157 marathons, at least one in every state. He is now working on a half-marathon in every state and chose the XTERRA Trail Run Worlds as his stop for Hawaii. "I obviously run a lot, but this was my first trail run. It was a tough course, but I definitely want to come back next year."
At just 12-years-old, Dakota Grossman of Pukalani, Hawaii finished the half-marathon test of endurance in just 2:01:06. The 5K winner at the XTERRA Makena Beach Trail Run back in October said, "The course was a lot different from Maui. I had a lot of fun."
Ages for the half-marathon race spanned from 11-year old Mililani local Jakob DeWald to 74-year-old George Taylor of Kelowna, British Columbia who said winning his age group "really made his day."
In the 10K race, it was Leo Rosenberg, 19, of Manhattan, Kan. who was crowned the men's winner in 47:09, just 38 seconds ahead of Honolulu's Kevin Weng. Jenny Selan, 27, made her hometown of Honolulu proud winning the women's race in 50:46, over 2 minutes ahead of Pearl City's Liz Ford.
A nurse at Kapiolani Medical Center, Selan is usually on the triathlon circuit but decided to come out today and run with a friend. "Hawaii has some pretty steep hills, and they made the course great."
Pierce Murphy, 15, of Hanalei, Hawaii and Brigid O'Connell, 26, of Honolulu took home the gold medals in the men's and women's 5K division with their times of 19:19 and 29:23 respectively.
Not even knowing she won at first, Brigid said this was her very first running competition. "I had a lot of fun. I am used to running on the road, so this was very cool and different for me."
The XTERRA Trail Running World Championship was a benefit for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation - Hawaii Chapter. $10 from every entry went directly to the JDRF to help with their goal of finding a cure for type-1 diabetes. The organization helps tons of kids like 14-year old Devin Rettke, who must check his insulin level several times a day. After competing in the 10K event today, Devin said "The course was really fun, but that first hill was really tough. I usually do multi-sport events, but after this I am definitely going to start doing more trail running."
Today's event would not have been possible without the help of Kualoa Ranch and its President, John Morgan, who even competed in the 5K event. "The event turned out very well, and everyone had a great time. We were glad to be a part of it."
The race was filmed for a segment in the nationally syndicated XTERRA Adventures TV show and featured a $10,000 prize purse paid down to the top seven men and women. Highlights will be up soon at XTERRA.tv. The XTERRA Trail Running World Championship was the final stop on the World Tour - a national and international series of 50+ trail races held in New Zealand, Italy, France, Switzerland, Japan and the U.S.
Inaugural XTERRA Trail Run World Championship: Half-Marathon
Kualoa Ranch, Oahu, HI, Sunday, December 7, 2008
MEN
1) Max King (OR), 1:18:24, $2000
2) Ben Bruce (OR), 1:21:56, $1000
3) Thomas Taylor (AZ), 1:29:34, $750
4) Matt Stevens (HI), 1:29:51, $500
5) Jimmy David (HI), 1:31:54, $300
6) Mark Speck (HI), 1:34:29, $250
7) Mark Mench (HI), 1:37:20, $200
WOMEN
1) Cynthia Anderson (HI), 1:39:38, $2000
2) Danelle Kabush (CAN), 1:40:11, $1000
3) Christina Castelanelli (CA), 1:47:17, $750
4) Heather Albert (HI), 1:51:31, $500
5) Jessica Tranchina (HI), 1:53:04, $300
6) Shannon Cutting, 44, HI, 1:53:36, $250
7) Mary Castelanelli (CA), 1:55:30, $200
Complete results at: www.xterratrailrun.com and race photos at: www.xterraphotos.com
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