Runner, cyclist break records

Liz Stephen, 27, of East Montpelier, a member of the 2014 U.S. Nordic Team in Sochi, beat her own course record by seven seconds, and Marc Gilbertson , 45, of Hyde Park — social studies teacher, track coach and 1998 Olympic skier — was 14th.

Justin Freeman, 37, of New Hampton, N.H., was the fastest of the 490 runners who finished the ultra-steep 4.3-mile course. Peter Gurney, 25, of Winooski was second and Gordon Vermeer, 24, of Craftsbury Common was third. John Spinney, 39, of Waterbury was the fastest local runner, finishing seventh, and Charlie Schaefer, 27, of Stowe finished 10th.

In the women’s running field, Stephen finished sixth overall and five minutes ahead of the next woman across the line, Susan Dunklee, 28, of Craftsbury Common. Reni King, 38, was the first Stowe woman across the line, in 46:31.7.

Among the 104 cyclists who completed the race, Gered Dunne, 33, of White River Junction set a record; his time of 30:53.6 was nearly a minute better than the previous mark set by Jamey Driscoll of Winooski in 2011. Second among cyclists was Chris Yura, 35, of Bryn Mawr, Pa.; third was Ryan Berliner, 16, of Richmond. Top local cyclists were Clarke Colon, 50, of Waterbury Center, in 10th; Adam Juzek, 37, of Stowe, 11th; and Brian Irwin, 43, of Morrisville, 14th.

Peppered throughout the field of runners was a whole lot of Green, with five members of Craftsbury Outdoor Center’s Olympic-caliber Green Racing Project in the top 25, and 10 among the top 100. That means at least 10 percent of the running field is best known for strapping on skis, not running shoes.

There were plenty of local runners, including 16-year-old William McGovern, a member of last year’s Stowe High School state-champion boys’ cross-country team. He finished 22nd, while his coach/mother, racing matriarch Becky McGovern, followed 10 minutes later. She finished less than two seconds behind humor columnist Mike Mulhern (no joke), whose work often appears in the Stowe Reporter.

Tom Jackman, Stowe’s town planner and a familiar presence on local trails, finished 183rd, and commented on how hot the running conditions were, and yet how the brutality adds its own allure.