BALLWIN, MO- The Alpine Shop Trail Run Series made its return to Queeny Park with what seemed to be one of the most humid starts in race history with a dew point and humidity level around 75 that was downright oppressive for runners. That didn’t stop them from tearing off on the trail for a fast start to the 2023 series.
Steven Stallis (32) made his mark on the Trail Run Series with a win over last year’s champion, Andy Rains (30), by almost 15 seconds with each finishing in 23:03.5 and 23:18.0, respectively. Stallis made his way to the Trail Run Series as an Optimal Performance Center Athlete after winning the GO! St. Louis Marathon earlier this year. Jason Difani (44) rounded out the Overall Mens podium as he finished the 3.77 mile course in 23:25.6, just 7 seconds behind Rains.
On the Women’s side of things, Lauren Hendrix (38) topped the Women’s podium with a time of 26:51.5, a comfortable 3 minutes ahead of 2nd place, Kelly McGaughey’s (40) 29:57.1, as she made her return to the Trail Run Series while she continues to put points on the board, hoping to crack the Overall podium this year. The Women’s Week One podium was all wrapped up as Lisa Kennedy (40) crossed the line at 31:37.2.
For the Trail Run Series, our Masters Category starts at 50. For our opening race of 2023, we saw Chris Bognar (52) cross the line first for the Men’s side with a finish time of 26:54.3. Chris Martel (57), a longtime winner of our Master’s Category took 2nd place at 28:58.1 followed by Michael Montgomery (56). For the Women, Susan Richmond (62) reached the top step with a time of 35:13.0. Kama Totherow (50) and Julie Dobslaw (55) came in second and third, respectively.
Following the race, participants helped themselves to beer from Schalfly and other refreshments, hotdogs off the grill, and Power Bars compliments of Paul and Great Harvest of Kirkwood. Optimal Performance Centers was on site like they have been since 2015 to take care of our athletes needs to ensure proper recovery and that they are ready to go for week 2. A big thank you goes to the sponsors of the Off-Road Racing League. A huge thank you to FITS Socks for our new finish archway, as well as sponsorship from The North Face and Camelbak.
Race 2 takes place next week at the Smith Shelter at Queeny Park. Walk up registrations are available, or register here. Ross with Hoka One One will be there to help you find your next favorite shoe and even ready to give away two pairs of shoes to lucky winners. We hope to see you there!