2005 Trail Runner Trophy Series Runners Hit the Dirt, Take Early Leads

Trail Runner Magazine has already tallied up points from the first weekend and put out the below press release. They are also posting results/rankings here.

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2005 TRAIL RUNNER TROPHY SERIES RUNNERS HIT THE DIRT, TAKE EARLY LEADS

CARBONDALE, COLO. MARCH 9, 2005 – BANG! With the sun rising over the East Coast on Saturday, March 5, race starter’s pistols signaled the commencement of Trail Runner Magazine’s 2005 Trail Runner Trophy Series—the largest trail-running series in the world. Sponsored by La Sportiva and other outdoor companies, the Trophy Series is a seven-month-long points-based competition with two categories: Marathon and Shorter Distances and Ultra Distances.

The Series’ opening day featured four Trophy Series races and gave several hundred Trophy Series participants a leg up on their competition. Scott Dunlap, who narrowly won last year’s Trophy Series Title (Marathon & Under Division), was one of the competitors. "Last year proved that every point counts, and it's best to get on the board early,” he said, “But with over 130 races left, the Series is far from over." Dunlap won the Redwood Trails Palo Alto Vista Trail Marathon in Palo Alto, California, placing him at the top of the early overall standings for the Marathon & Under Division. Beatrice Song of Sunnyvale, California, won the women’s marathon.

Out East, Dale Reicheneder of Malibu, California, and Monika Bracken of Castleton, Virginia, won the Seneca Creek Greenway Trail Marathon in Damascus, Maryland. Just a few degrees latitude south, at the Umstead Trail Marathon in Raleigh, North Carolina, Mike Aldrink and Leanna House, both from nearby Durham, were victorious.

In the Ultra Division (races longer than 26.2 miles), Karl Meltzer of Sandy, Utah, won the Old Pueblo 50-Miler in the old-West environs of Sonoita, Arizona. Emily Baer of Silverton, Colorado, won the women’s race. For their sweaty efforts, Meltzer and Baer pounced on the early Ultra Division lead.

For more information on the 2005 Trail Runner Trophy Series and the Grand Prize package of a trip for two to the 2006 Dolomite Sky Race in Italy, provided by title sponsor and leading trail-running shoe company La Sportiva, visit www.trailrunnermag.com.

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