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by John Stifler ÛÓ MWRR Press Liaison
54TH Annual NORTHEAST
DELTA DENTAL MOUNT WASHINGTON ROAD RACE
Pinkham Notch, N.H. ÛÓ June 21, 2014
Joseph Gray and Shannon Payne, both
of Colorado Springs, Colo., dominated the men’s and women’s fields today in the
7.6-mile Northeast Delta Dental Mount Washington Road Race to the summit of the
highest peak in the northeastern United States. Gray’s win was hard-earned
relief after several years in which he had placed second, third or fourth in
this grueling all-uphill race. Payne’s was the impressive celebration of her
first-ever attempt at Mt. Washington, in a career which previously included
almost no mountain-running experience.
Gray’s performance ÛÓ he finished in 59 minutes 9 seconds ÛÓ not only made him
just the eighth runner ever to finish this race in under one hour but also gave
him the satisfaction of defeating both of the men to whom he had been runnerup
the past two years: Sage Canaday, 28, of Boulder, Colo., the 2012 winner, and
defending champion Eric Blake, 35, of West Hartford, Conn., who overtook Gray
to win in 2013. Today the 30-year-old Gray set the pace early, with Blake
beside him and Canaday following, but Canaday fell off the pace by the halfway
point, and when Gray leaned into the mountain’s 12 percent grade and winds that
swirled at 35 mph., Blake could not match the new champion’s effort despite
running his second-best time ever here, one hour and one second. Canaday
stayed third, finishing in 1:01:30.
“I felt pretty good the whole way,” said Gray. “I knew we’d have a good
strong race. Eric is always strong, and it makes you nervous if he’s behind
you. I figured I could win it, but I knew it was going to be a barn-burner.”
Payne, 28, looked almost surprised to find herself alone in front before she
had run two miles up the Mt. Washington Auto Road. “I don’t know how to (run an
all-uphill race) very well. I kept thinking, Û¢Well, the course will flatten out
soon,’ but it never does. But going uphill in really short strides, the way you
have to here, is good for my running form.”
Holding a steady form from start to finish, Payne crossed the line at the
mountain’s 6288-foot summit in one hour 10 minutes 12 seconds, the
fifth-fastest time ever for a woman here. Chasing her, but unable to catch her,
was the redoubtable Valentina Belotti, 34, of Temu Italy. A three-time runnerup
in the World Mountain Championships, Belotti was also seeing Mt. Washington for
the first time, but she arrived with more mountain running experience than
Payne. However, as she remarked as she recovered in the 25-degree wind chill of
the summit, “This is very different from our mountain races in Europe. Very
steep!” Belotti finished in 1:11:58.
Third place went to Brandy Erholtz, 36, of Evergreen, Colo., in 1:15:38. A
two-time winner here (2008 and 2009), Erholtz ran strongly but was still
returning to top form after having her second child last September. “When he
starts sleeping through the night, it’ll help me get more endurance (for
running)!” she said.
The top finishers from New Hampshire were Justin Freeman, 37, of New
Hampton, ninth overall in 1:06:29; and Denise Sandahl, 33, of Bow, fifth woman
overall in 1:17:21 ÛÓ just nine seconds behind the 2011 World Mountain Running
Champion Kasie Enman, 34, of Huntington, Vermont.
Race results will be posted at http://mountwashingtonroadrace.com/results/
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