By Aaron Krenkel
Of the Record staff

With a 10:00 a.m. starting time on Saturday morning, runners in the Mountain Challenge trail-running race too to the Deer Valley course just as the day got hot.

With Park City Temperatures headed for the nineties in Park City, only the combination of the high elevation and the sheer speed of many of the runners allowed entrants in the race to beat the heat.

The course, with 10-kilometer and 5-kilometer options, featured some serious climbing.

Starting out at the base of the mountain, at the Snow Park Lodge, the 10-k route followed the Tour De Hommes up the mountain to the Silver Lake Lodge, nearly 1,900 feet above the base. A water station at the top provided a momentary revitalization before turning around for the descent. From there the route wound its way back to the base on a slightly more gradual route.

The 5-k route started out with the 10-k route and climbed nearly 1,00 feet before splitting off and making its way back down to the Snow Park Lodge and the finish area.

Both courses, in addition to the natural terrain, featured an additional challenge in the form of mountain bike riders preparing for the upcoming National Off-Road Bicycle Association races. Tim Henney of Mountain Trails, who along with Steve Bolling (also with Mountain Trails) helped organize the race, said, "NORBA pre-racers are out there on the course. That adds a little bit of challenge, but its always something."

Despite the wheeled obstacles, Henney said NORBA activities did not present a significant problem. Henney described the races atmosphere as "pretty casual," and making bikers and runners aware of one another, and thereby preventing any injuries, was not a problem.

Neither the bikers, the heat nor the mountain itself could slow many of the racers who set out from the Snow Park starting line.

Shawn Harrington, a resident of Salt Lake competing in the 5-k along with about ten other runners, crossed the finish line first. He came in around the 25-minte mark.

Harrington said the course was very well marked, and he added, "the uphill was really steep, but the downhill was great." Having trained and raced in Vail for three years, Harrington said the Deer Valley Race helped him test the waters and get back into high-elevation trail running.

The top womens finisher in the 5-k, Park City resident Senta Byer, came in shortly after Harrington with a time 27:33. She said the course was "pretty good, but steep and hot."

In the 10-k, Park City resident Cory Smith set the pace in a field of over 40 runners with a blazing time of 40:05. Amith echoed other runners with the slightly masochistic description of the race as "a fun course its brutal." Smith credited his nearly three-minute cushion over the second-place finisher, Gary Bryson, to a strenuous training regimen. "I train for cross country skiing, so I do a lot of trail running," he said.

The Mountain Challenge has become an annual event hosted by the Mountain Trails Foundation, an advocacy organization dedicated to ensuring access to and maintaining local trails.

Henney described the Challenge as one of three major summer events for the organization. The Jupiter Peak Steeplechase, on August 12, is a 15-mile loop trail-run from Park City to the top of Jupiter Peak and back. Flyers for the event describe it as "an endurance race for the trail warrior." The Tour Des Suds, a slightly less demanding mountain bike race on September 23, runs from old town up to Guardsman Pass.

Such events, said Henney, are partly fundraisers for the Mountain Trails Foundation, and partly just events the foundation feels provide a good and otherwise lacking opportunity for fun competition on local treails. For example, he said, "The Mountain Challenge doesnt really generate a lot of funds, but the organization fells it needs to have a few good events per year."

Such "fun community events" come about through the work of a group of dedicated volunteers. The foundations four summertime trail crew members staffed and marked the route. Extra volunteers helped as well with services such as the water station at Silver Creek Lodge. Bolling and Henney coordinated and planned the event, and Lisa Edwards and Troy Duffin, also of Mountain Trails, helped with registration before joining the race.

In addition to the competitions, the Mountain Trails Foundation also holds weekly trail runs to familiarize people with local trails and introduce some pointers on avoiding injuries and staying strong with good nutrition. At 6:00 p.m. every Tuesday, a group gathers at the City Park to take to the trails. One group usually sets a faster pace, while another takes a more human, moderate pace. White Pine Touring has lent its van to shuttle runners to higher elevations, rather than just running out of town.

All entrants in the race also received a Mountain Trails Foundation t-shirt and water bottle.

The following were the top finishers in the 5-k: 1) Shawn Harrington 25:09 2) Senta Beyer 27:33 3) Scott Warner 28:35 4) Troy Duffin 30:30 5) Patrick Neville 32:00 6)Robert Strieper 37:30.

The following were the top finishers in the 10-k: 1) Cory Smith 40:05 2) Gary Bryson 42:50 3) Jeff Maloney 43:02 4) Trent Pabst 43:07 5) John Concannon 43:36 6) Julia Cassidy 44:02.

For more information on upcoming events or the weekly trail run series, call 649-4035 or 649-0697.