Cranmore & acidotic RACING to host 2017 USA Mountain Running Championships

Cranmore Mountain Resort and acidotic RACING to host 2017 USA Mountain Running Championships in June

NORTH CONWAY, NH – On October 19, the USATF Mountain Ultra Trail executive committee unanimously approved the Cranmore Mountain Race to host the 15th USATF Mountain Running Championships to be held on Saturday, June 3, 2017, in North Conway, New Hampshire.

The Cranmore Mountain Race will be the 31st annual mountain race at Cranmore and will be the 5th time that Cranmore has served as the US Mountain Running Championships.

Paul Kirsch, co-Race Director of the Cranmore Mountain Race, has been involved with directing the mountain race at Cranmore since 2003. “Our goal with this year’s championship is to provide a premier course, event and experience for both out of town and local runners at Cranmore in 2017.”

This year, the National Championship will be part of a weekend-long celebration of mountain running. “This year we are focused on expanding the Cranmore Mountain Race to add to its appeal for more runners in New England to get involved in the sport of mountain running,” said an enthusiastic Kirsch. “The weekend will consist of four races along with a post-event awards party at Tuckerman Brewing Company in Conway.

The weekend’s races will start on Saturday morning June 3rd with a 5k loop course on the mountain for those looking to try out mountain running. It will be followed by the men’s championship two-loop course. And then ninety minutes later, the women will run the same two-loop course as that of the men. On Sunday, an uphill mountain race will be staged. All of the races will be open to all ages and abilities, including the National Championship.

“One of the great things about mountain running here in New England is that you get opportunities to participate in the same race as the best runners in the country. It’s an incredible experience and Cranmore has such a storied history in mountain running, it’s great to see the mountain championships return,” noted Co-Race Director and owner of acidotic RACING, Chris J. Dunn.

Having separate starts for the men and women mimics the format of the World Mountain Running Championships. The Cranmore Mountain Race will serve as the sole selection race for the senior men’s and women’s squads, which will represent Team USA at this year’s World Championships in Premana, Italy, on July 30, 2017.
Both Dunn and Kirsch are looking forward to having a full weekend of events, including the awards/post-race party at Tuckerman Brewing Company.

“We have really started to see tremendous growth in other mountain races in New England and we think that by expanding the weekend at Cranmore, it gives everyone from the casual to the elite runner a chance to experience the sport,” said Kirsch.
“Having an awards party at Tuckerman Brewing Company is something we have talked about for several years. They are very involved in the local Mount Washington Valley community and so it just seemed like a perfect fit to include them as part of the weekend’s festivities.” continued Kirsch.

More information about the Cranmore Mountain Race can be found at acidoticRACING.com or on the Facebook page: www.facebook.com/cranmoremountainrace.

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