Pinkham Notch, NH-The world record-holder for marathons at extremely high altitudes, a Boston Marathon champion, a classics scholar who twice broke the women’s course record, and a veteran New England runner with decades of racing success have been selected as the four new members of the Mount Washington Road Race Hall of Fame. Formed in 2010 to recognize outstanding performers in this footrace to the summit of the highest peak in the northeastern United States, the Hall of Fame this year will pay tribute to the achievements of Matt Carpenter, Jacqueline Gareau, Christine Maisto and Keith Woodward in a ceremony at the base of the Mt. Washington Auto Road on Friday, June 15. The next morning, the 2012 Northeast Delta Dental Mount Washington Road Race will start at 9 a.m., as 1200 runners make their way up the 151-year-old Auto Road.

The 2012 Mount Washington Hall of Fame inductees:

Matt Carpenter, of Manitou Springs, Colorado, first came to Mt. Washington in 1992 and handily defeated defending champion Derek Froude of New Zealand, who two years earlier had become the first person to run this 7.6-mile race in under one hour. Carpenter won again the following year and then, after four years away from the race, returned to win it a third time in 1998. In 1999, after leading nearly the entire way, he finished second to Kenyan Daniel Kihara. In that race, Carpenter also ran his fastest-ever time at Mt. Washington, 59 minutes 16 seconds, and joined Kihara as the only two runners to break one hour at Mt. Washington more than once. His 59:16 is also the fastest non-winning time ever recorded. Returning in 2005, Carpenter broke the existing record for masters runners, in 1:02:12, a mark that stood for three years. Widely known for his ability to run hard where the air is thin, Carpenter holds records in marathons and 100-mile races in the Rockies and Himalayas.

Jacqueline Gareau of Sainte-Adele, Quebec, made her Mount Washington Road Race debut in 1989, on a day so thick with fog that runners could barely see the road. She ran to the summit in one hour 13 minutes and 13 seconds – a new record for women in the race. She won again in 1994, on a scorching hot day, and once more in 1996. In those second and third victories, she was also the first female finisher over the age of 40. In 2000 she returned again and finished second – at the age of 47. She still holds the Canadian women’s record on Mt. Washington and has held course records here in the masters age group and the 50-54 years category. In the 2011 race, she set a new record for women in the 55-59-year-age group. A massage therapist, Gareau has been renowned in marathon running since 1980, when she won the Boston Marathon. She is the only woman ever to have won both the Boston Marathon and the Mt. Washington Road Race.

Christine Maisto was a strong track and road runner when she came to Mt. Washington in 1985 and won decisively in 1:14:44, setting a new women’s course record for the Auto Road. In an event that had historically attracted far more men than women, that victory made Maisto the first woman to finish among the top 50 runners, as she placed thirty-first overall. She successfully defended her title in 1986, then finished second in 1987. After a three-year absence, she returned and won again in 1991 in a time of 1:12:16, taking the record back from Gareau. A longtime scholar of Latin and Greek, she followed her running career by earning a PhD in Classics. She now teaches at Monmouth College in Illinois.

Keith Woodward, of Stowe, Vermont, won the Mt. Washington Road Race just once, but no one has run this race more often or more consistently. Woodward won in 1983 with a time of 1:06:38, and 28 years later (2011) he set a new age group record for men 60-64, with a time of 1:21:29. Between 1973 and last year, he has completed the race 36 times, the most finishes by anyone ever. He has finished under 1:10 on sixteen different occasions, the second most in that category in the history of the race, and fifteen times in the top ten overall. His personal best was a 1:03:06 in 1985, when he finished second. In 1977, when he placed third in 1:08:15, he led the North Country Athletic Club team to the first sub-6 hour team finish (five runners’ combined times) at Mt. Washington.

The Northeast Delta Dental Mount Washington Road Race pits runners against one of the most challenging obstacles in road-racing anywhere in the world: the 7.6-mile Mt. Washington Auto Road, which rises at an average grade of 12 percent to the 6288-foot Mt. Washington summit. The race has attracted Olympic athletes, Boston marathon champions, and the best mountain running specialists in the world to compete in the White Mountains of New Hampshire along with numerous other runners from across the United States and from sixteen other countries.

The Mt. Washington Road Race Hall of Fame recognizes athletes whose exceptional accomplishments in the race have added greatly to the history and stature of the event. Inductees are chosen by a vote of the Hall of Fame committee from a longer list of nominees compiled by December 31 of the preceding year.

The Friday evening Hall of Fame induction is part of the annual pre-race gathering for stories, brief speeches, information and advice about running up the mountain, and other tributes to the race. The ceremony will start at 6 p.m. in the large tent at the base of the Auto Road, on Route 16 just north of Pinkham Notch.

The public is invited.

Regularly updated information about the Mt. Washington Road Race Hall of Fame is available any time on Facebook (facebook.com/mwrrhof), Twitter (twitter.com/mwrrrecords) and the Hall of Fame blog (mtwashingtonrecords.blogspot.com). For other information about the race, visit www.mountwashingtonroadrace.com.

Pinkham Notch, N.H. – March 10, 2012 With its headquarters in the Granite State’s capital and its eyes on the summit of the highest peak in the northeastern United States, Northeast Delta Dental now has its name on the premier running event in New Hampshire. This week, the dental insurance company has raised its already well-known support for the historic race to a new level, as officials at the Mt. Washington Auto Road confirm that the race to the top of Mt. Washington will now be called the NortheastDelta Dental Mount Washington Road Race.

Northeast Delta Dental has been the primary sponsor of the Mount Washington Road Race since 2001, when the company first linked its professional interests in healthcare to one of New England’s most celebrated challenges to human fitness. The company’s President & CEO, Tom Raffio, made a very respectable ascent himself last year, reaching the 6288-foot high finish line in one hour 50 minutes and 51 seconds. On the occasion of the 52nd “Run to the Clouds,” Northeast Delta Dental assumes a new level of commitment to the race, which every year attracts a thousand runners to the Auto Road and its relentless 12 percent grade.

With this significant increase in support, this year the Northeast Delta Dental Mount Washington Road Race will contribute half of the race’s net proceeds to the Coos County Family Health Services. Based in nearby Berlin, NH, this community-based organization provides personalized, comprehensive health and dental care and social services to everyone, regardless of economic status.

Since 1995, the Northeast Delta Dental Foundation has funded over $45,000 to support the center’s school-based oral health education, fluoride rinse, and preventive dental services. The center’s status as the new beneficiary of the race is a reminder of the Auto Road’s and Northeast Delta Dental’s extensive ties to the region, and to the race’s commitment to the well-being of the larger community. The race expects that this year’s funding will be used especially to enhance the Coos County Family Health Services’ oral health programs.

The 1000-runner field for the Northeast Delta Dental Mount Washington Road Race is filled by means of an online lottery. Anyone wishing to compete in this year’s race can register for this lottery at www.mountwashingtonroadrace.com any time through 11:59 p.m. on March 15. The drawing of names in the lottery will take place on March 16. Notification of the results will go to all applicants by March 18.

Held three times in the 1930s, then organized on an ongoing basis in the 1960s, the footrace up the Mt. Washington Auto Road has a long history. Its popularity surged in the 1980s and has grown continuously since then, along with the global growth of the sport of mountain running. The 2012 race will serve as the qualifying event to select the six men who will make up the U.S. National Mountain Running men’s team that will compete in the World Mountain Championships in September in Ponte di Legno, Italy.

Originally called the Mt. Washington Carriage Road, the road to the summit of Mt. Washington was completed in 1861. Rising through several different climate zones, and offering stunning views of the White Mountains, Vermont, Maine and southern Quebec, the Auto Road is one of New England’s most spectacular attractions. The Northeast Delta Dental Mount Washington Road Race begins at the Auto Road base on Route 16 near Pinkham Notch and climbs to the 6288-foot summit at an average grade of 12 percent and a net altitude gain of 4650 feet. The runners battle not only each other but the sheer force of gravity and Mt. Washington’s famously unpredictable weather. Former six-time World Mountain Champion Jonathan Wyatt of New Zealand holds the men’s course record, 56 minutes 41 seconds, set in 2004. The women’s record was set in 2010 by the young Ethiopian runner Shewarge Amare, a time of one hour eight minutes 21 seconds.

Meanwhile Dobson, 27, of Denver, followed two-time Mt. Washington women’s champion Brandy Erholtz for the first five miles, steadily closing Erholtz’s early gap, passing her at the five-mile mark and reaching the 6288-foot summit in 1:12:11. Erholtz, 33, of Evergreen, Colo., was a happy runnerup in 1:12:44.

Dobson, who was seeing Mt. Washington for the first time, fairly vibrated with enthusiasm. “This race is as amazing as its history tells it is. It’s so different from Colorado races. Those tend to be longer, but for a while you can enjoy the scenery, and then maybe in the last four miles it starts to hurt. This one starts to hurts about 30 seconds into the race. Brandy and I can really make each other suffer! ”

“I knew (Dobson) was going to be the toughest competition,” said Erholtz, who won this race in 2008 and 2009, then finished second last year to Shewarge Amare of Ethiopia, who did not return to defend her title. “Kim has had a phenomenal year, and she’s a natural climber.”

“There’s nothing in Colorado that compares with this,” said Gates, who won here in 2009 in 59:58. One of only five people ever to have broken an hour at Mt. Washington, he placed fourth here last year — “That can be bad for your ego!” he said — but he felt better prepared this time. “It sort of sounds cocky, but today I was sure I’d either win or drop out. I had a problem in my calf a week ago, and I had to take four days off to rest. Sometimes that can be good for you.”

The always unpredictable Mt. Washington weather provided rain just before the race, then cool and clearing conditions with moderate winds and shifting clouds. After a quick start by 24-year-old Glenn Randall, a former NCAA champion cross-country skier at Dartmouth College, Gates took the lead in the second mile and seemed to be in charge of the race.

A mile later, however, he said, “I looked back expecting to see anybody but Tommy.” Manning had overtaken Randall and Matt Byrne, of Scranton, Pennsylvania, and was coming steadily forward. By the time he passed the halfway mark in just under half an hour, he had opened a five-second gap on Gates.

Gates responded to the challenge, looked back once more to make sure no one was chasing him, and pressed ahead, giving Manning a friendly pat on the backside as he re-took the lead.

“This was a good race!” Manning said as the two congratulated each other at the finish. “Man, you killed me!”

Two minutes back, Byrne, 36, overtook Randall to finish third in 1:03:31 and break an otherwise all-Colorado set of prize-winners. Randall, 24, of Mesa, Colo., finished in 1:03:36, followed by 45-year-old Simon Gutierrez of Alamosa (1:04:33) and Peter Maksimow, 32, of Manitou Springs (1:04:45). Gutierrez, a three-time winner of this race, defended his title as the masters (over 40) champion and also set a new record for men ages 45-49.

Dobson and Erholtz left a gap behind them and the third female finisher, Kasie Enman, 31, of Huntington, Vermont, who arrived in 1:15:19. Fourth was Rachel Cuellar, 29, of Albuquerque N.M. (1:16:37), followed by Camille Herron, 29, of West Lafayette, Indiana (1:19:36) and Jessica Snyder, 27, of Rochester NY (1:20:00).

Just behind Snyder was 18-year-old Carolyn Stocker of Westfield, Mass., whose time of 1:20:40 took more than six minutes off the Mt. Washington junior (19 and under) record previously set by Evelyn Dong in 2003. Following Stocker was the first female master, Christin Doneski, 40, in 1:21:49. Doneski, of Hopkinton, N.H., also won the Crossan Cup, awarded to the first Granite State finisher.

The men’s Crossan Cup winner was Olympic cross-country skier Justin Freeman of New Hampton, N.H., in 1:06:28. Freeman, 34, finished in 8th place behind Ryan Woods of Boone, N.C. (7th in 1:06:16), and just ahead of two-time Mt. Washington winner Eric Blake of New Britain, Conn. (1:06:53) and Kevin Tilton of North Conway, N.H. (1:06:59).

Jacqueline Gareau, 58, of St.-Adele, Quebec, and the only woman ever to win both the Boston Marathon and the Mount Washington Road Race, won the age-graded prize for all female runners over 40, as her finishing time of 1:27:58 combined with her age to lead the field of older runners. Gutierrez won the men’s age-graded prize.

The 51st running of this race was part of the celebration of the 150th anniversary of the Mt. Washington Auto Road. One of the most popular finishers was 54-year-old Tom Raffio of Bow, N.H., who is also the CEO of Northeast Delta Dental, the race’s primary sponsor. Raffio finished in 1:50:51, good for 443rd place.

The oldest finisher was 91-year-old George Etzweiler of State College, Pa., a retired Penn State professor who completed the race this year in 2:48:25. Another 15 people, ranging in age from 17 to 85, finished behind him.

The youngest finisher was Hannah Heinrich, 15, of Wolfeboro, N.H., in 1:54:58. In all, 893 runners – some of them doing quite a bit of walking – finished.

TOP MEN
1 Rickey Gates 30 Woody Creek CO 1:01:32
2 Tommy Manning 35 Colorado Springs CO 1:01:42
3 Matthew Byrne 36 Scranton PA 1:03:31
4 Glenn Randall 24 Mesa CO 1:03:36
5 Simon Gutierrez 45 Alamosa CO 1:04:33
6 Peter Maksimow 32 Maintou Springs CO 1:04:45
7 Ryan Woods 32 Boone NC 1:06:18
8 Justin Freeman 34 New Hampton NH 1:06:28
9 Eric Blake 32 New Britain CT 1:06:53
10 Kevin Tilton 29 North Conway NH 1:06:59

TOP WOMEN
1 Kim Dobson 27 Denver CO 1:12:11
2 Brandy Erholtz 33 Evergreen CO 1:12:44
3 Kasie Enman 31 Huntington VT 1:15:19
4 Rachael Cuellar 29 Albuquerque NM 1:16:37
5 Camille Herron 29 West Lafayette IN 1:19:36
6 Jessica Snyder 27 Rochester NY 1:20:00
7 Carolyn Stocker 18 Westfield MA 1:20:40
8 Christin Doneski 40 Hopkinton NH 1:21:49
9 Liz Gottlieb 35 San Rafael CA 1:22:18
10 Amber Ferreira 29 F Concord NH 1:22:37

Complete Results

The race to the 6288-foot summit of the highest peak in the northeastern U.S. will take place this year on June 18 without either the women’s or the men’s defending champion. Chris Siemers, of Arvada, Colorado, who last year won a wire-to-wire duel with two-time former winner Eric Blake, of New Britain, Conn., determined several weeks ago that he must have surgery to correct a persistent hip injury he sustained last winter.

MEN’S FIELD
Blake, who won the race in 2006 and 2008, will return this year, along with 2009 winner Rickey Gates of Boulder, Colo.; three-time Mt.Washington champion (2002, 2003, 2005) Simon Gutierrez of Alamosa, Colo.; Matt Byrne of Scranton, Penn. (6th in 2008, 4th in 2009); and Tommy Manning of Colorado Springs (7th in 2009, 6th last year). First-time contenders who could present a serious challenge to the veterans include Glenn Randall of Mesa, Colo., who last year won the Vail Hill Climb, the Mt. Evans Ascent and the Pikes Peak Ascent (ahead of Gates and Blake) in Colorado; Ryan Woods of Boone, N.C., who has won the Squaw Valley 3.6-mile ascent and the Bear Run in Linville, N.C., and who trains on a hill that gains 1000 feet of altitude in 1.1 miles; and Cole Crosby of Norman, Oklahoma, a former University of Oklahoma track and cross-country standout.

WOMEN’S FIELD
With Amare out, the presumed women’s favorite is two-time winner (2008, 2009) Brandy Erholtz of Bailey, Colo., who was third last year and whose other recent successes include winning the 2010 Vail Hillclimb. Her strongest competition should come from Kasie Enman of Huntington, Vermont (2nd in 2008); Amber Ferreira of Concord, N.H. (7th last year); Jennifer Campbell, of Newmarket, N.H. (3rd in 2009, 9th last year); and Camille Herron of Lafayette, Indiana, who placed 6th here in 2008 and who, following a period of injury, has won four marathons in the past six months – Dallas, Birmingham (Alabama), Napa Valley and Fargo. First-time Mt. Washington challengers include Kim Dobson of Denver, Colo., who set the women’s course record last year in the Mt. Evans Ascent in Colorado, and Cindy Harris of Indianapolis, who has won the Empire State Building Run-up in New York City four times.

EXTREME ATHLETES
While some of the top entrants at Mt. Washington are widely accomplished road-racers, others are better known for accomplishments in different endurance sports. One notable example is Amber Ferreira, who last winter won the Granite State snowshoe racing series and then went on to win the senior women’s race at the Snowshoe National championship. Two more are brothers Justin Freeman and Kris Freeman, both of whom have competed on the U.S. Olympic cross-country ski team. Kris, of Thornton, N.H., finished 15th in the 2010 Mount Washington Road Race, two places ahead of older brother Justin, who lives in New Hampton, N.H. Kris is also the first person with Type 1 diabetes to earn a place on the U.S. Nordic team.

Among the strongest runners in the senior division of this year’s race is Peter Gagarin of Sunderland, Mass. Now 66 years old, Gagarin is a five-time U.S. national champion in the sport of orienteering, in which each entrant navigates with map and compass to a series of checkpoints in unfamiliar and usually wooded terrain. At the masters level he is regarded as perhaps the best non-European competitor in the sport.

And then there’s Tim Mather. Mather, 46, of Marlborough, Conn., is competing this year in all five of the races up the Mt. Washington Auto Road. He raced in the annual Ski To the Clouds in March; he’ll run the footrace on June 18; the following week he’ll be back at the Auto Road for the Climb To the Clouds, a revival of the popular automobile hillclimb; on July 9 he’ll ride his bicycle in Newton’s Revenge, the first of two bicycle races up the Auto Road each summer; and he’ll compete in the other bike race, the older and better-known Mt. Washington Auto Road Bicycle Hillclimb, on August 20. A week before that final bicycle hillclimb, Mather will also ride in the 24 Hours of Great Glen, a day-and-night endurance event for off-road bicycles on the Great Glen Trails, adjacent to the Auto Road.

UPHILL BACKWARD
Frequently the Mount Washington Road Race includes an entrant or two who are simultaneously running the race and publicizing a worthy cause, usually related to health. This year, Don Davis of Reading, Mass., plans to make the ascent by running up the Auto Road backward, as part of an effort to qualify for the Guinness Book of World Records. At the same time, he’ll be striving to raise awareness of Donate Life New England, a non-profit organization based in Waltham, Mass., that promotes organ and tissue donation.

HALL OF FAME
On Friday, June 17, at the pre-race gathering at the foot of the Auto Road, the Mount Washington Hall of Fame will induct three new members, all former champions in the “Race with Only One Hill.” These include Mike Gallagher of Vermont, who competed on three U.S. Olympic cross-country ski teams and won the Mount Washington Road Race four consecutive years (1968-1971); former New Zealand Olympic marathoner Derek Froude, who in 1990 became the first person to run up Mt. Washington in under one hour (59:17); and Kenyan mountain runner Daniel Kihara, who set a then-course record of 58:21 in his 1996 Mt. Washington debut and won again in 1999, 2000 and 2001.

Froude, who now lives in Tampa, and Gallagher will be present for the induction ceremony. Kihara will be inducted in absentia. The Friday evening presentation begins at 6 p.m. in the big tent next to the starting area of the race, just off Route 16 between Jackson and Gorham, N.H.

SPONSOR AND ANNIVERSARIES
The principal sponsor of the Mount Washington Road Race is Northeast Delta Dental, which this year is celebrating its 50th anniversary, just as the Auto Road is celebrating its 150th. In recognition of the occasion – and to see whether or not he can improve on his time from last year’s race — Northeast Delta Dental CEO Tom Raffio will run on Saturday wearing race number 50. Race director Mary Power and Auto Road general manager Howie Wemyss will present Raffio’s number to him as part of the Friday evening festivities.

This year’s Mount Washington Road Race is part of the summer-long celebration of the 150th anniversary of the opening of the Mt. Washington Auto Road. Completed in 1861 and originally called the Mt. Washington Carriage Road, the twisting, windswept road to the top of the Presidential Range is the oldest man-made tourist attraction in New England. The Mount Washington Road Race was first held three times in the 1930s, then again in 1961 on the Auto Road’s centennial, in 1962, and continuously since 1966.

The race pits 1000 runners against one of the most challenging obstacles in road-racing anywhere in the world. In its 7.6 miles, the Mt. Washington Auto Road gains 4727 feet in altitude with no downhill break. The final 70 yards rises at a 22 percent grade to the finish line beside the old weather station, where a wind speed of 231 mph. was recorded in 1934. (The average wind speed at the summit is 35 mph.) The race has attracted Olympic athletes, Boston marathon champions, and the best mountain running specialists in the world, along with numerous other runners from across the United States and from 18 other countries.

LIST OF ENTRANTS
This year’s Mount Washington Road Race will start at 9 a.m. – an hour earlier than in previous years. Click here for the list of entrants in the 2011 Mount Washington Road Race, where it can be sorted by state, hometown, etc.

For a colorful description of running the race, see Todd Balf’s article “Because It’s Steep” in the June 2011 issue of Runner’s World.

Amare, who lives and trains in New York City as part of the West Side Road Runners, made her Mt. Washington debut in 2010 in impressive fashion, taking nearly two minutes off the women’s course record that had stood since 1998, when Sweden’s Magdalena Thorsell clocked a time of 1:10:08.2. Her accomplishment attracted extra attention because a last-minute mixup forced her to run in a pair of borrowed shoes.

Later that summer, Amare won the Bogota International Half-marathon in Colombia, beating her better-known countrywoman Dire Tune in a time of 1:13:52. Training well this spring, Amare won the Cooper River Bridge 10K in Charleston, S.C., in a time of 33:06, edging Kenyan Janet Chebron by two seconds. She also recorded a personal best in the half-marathon, placing fourth in the New York Half-Marathon on March 24 in time of 1:09:25, just behind American Olympian Kara Goucher and two top Kenyans, winner Caroline Rotich and Edna Kiplagat. (A runner’s half-marathon time is typically predictive of his or her time at Mt. Washington.) Amare is one of the favorites this coming weekend in the Ottawa 10K in Canada.

Siemers, 30, similarly won the Mount Washington Road Race last year in his first attempt up the relentlessly steep Auto Road, which rises at an average grade of 12 percent to the 6288-foot summit of the highest peak in the Northeast. In a field loaded with the best uphill runners in America, Siemers battled two-time Mt. Washington champion Eric Blake of New Britain, Connecticut, until the final half-mile, when he pulled ahead to win in one hour and 22 seconds. Unfortunately, last winter Siemers developed a persistent hip injury; although for a time he was optimistic about this year’s race, doctors have confirmed that the injury will require surgery to enable him to compete again. He hopes to return to Mt. Washington next year.

Blake, who won the race in 2006 and 2008, will return this year, along with 2009 winner Rickey Gates of Boulder, Colo.; three-time Mt.Washington champion (2002, 2003, 2005) Simon Gutierrez of Alamosa, Colo.; Matt Byrne of Scranton, Penn. (6th in 2008, 4th in 2009); Tommy Manning of Colorado Springs (7th in 2009, 6th last year); and several other contenders.

Amare’s nearest competition is likely to come from two-time winner (2008, 2009) Brandy Erholtz of Bailey, Colo., who was third last year; Kasie Enman of Huntington, Vermont (2nd in 2008); Laura Haefeli of Del Norte, Colo. (3rd in 2008, 6th last year); and others including Camille Herron of Lafayette, Indiana, who placed 6th here in 2008 and then recently, following a period of injury, has won four marathons in the past six months – Dallas, Birmingham (Alabama), Napa Valley and Fargo.

Sponsored by Northeast Delta Dental, the Mount Washington Road Race this year is part of the summer-long celebration of the 150th anniversary of the opening of the Mt. Washington Auto Road. Completed in 1861 and originally called the Mt. Washington Carriage Road, the twisting, windswept road to the top of the Presidential Range is the oldest man-made tourist attraction in New England. The Mt. Washington Road Race was first held three times in the 1930s, then again in 1961 on the Auto Road’s centennial, in 1962, and continuously since 1966.

The race annually pits 1000 runners against one of the most challenging obstacles in road-racing anywhere in the world. In its 7.6 miles, the Mt. Washington Auto Road gains 4727 feet in altitude with no interruption in the constantly uphill grind. The final 70 yards rises at an in-your face 22 percent grade to the finish line beside the old weather station, where a wind speed of 231 mph. was recorded in 1934. (The average wind speed at the summit is 35 mph.) The race has attracted Olympic athletes, Boston marathon champions, and the best mountain running specialists in the world, along with numerous other runners from across the United States and from 18 other countries.

For a colorful description of running the race, see Todd Balf’s article “Because It’s Steep” in the June 2011 issue of Runner’s World.

This year’s Mt. Washington Road Race will start at 9 a.m. – an hour earlier than in previous years.

For more information about the 150th Anniversary of the Mt. Washington Auto Road, visit www.MtWashingtonAutoRoad.com.

Sponsored by Northeast Delta Dental, the Mt. Washington Road Race annually pits 1000 runners against one of the most challenging obstacles in road-racing anywhere in the world: the 7.6-mile Mt. Washington Auto Road, which rises at an average grade of 12 percent to the 6288-foot Mt. Washington summit. The race has attracted Olympic athletes, Boston marathon champions, and the best mountain running specialists in the world to compete in the White Mountains of New Hampshire along with numerous other runners from across the United States and from sixteen other countries.

Founded last year on the occasion of the 50th running of the storied race, the Mt. Washington Road Race Hall of Fame recognizes athletes whose exceptional accomplishments in the race have added greatly to the history and stature of the event. Inductees are chosen by a vote of the Hall of Fame committee from a longer list of nominees compiled by December 31 of the preceding year. This year’s Hall of Fame inductees will be honored at a ceremony on Friday, June 17, the night before the annual Mt. Washington Road Race.

The 2011 inductees and their accomplishments:

Derek Froude of New Zealand ran the marathon in the 1984 Olympic Games, trained in Colorado and became increasingly interested in mountain racing. He came to the Mt. Washington Road Race in 1990 with a plan to break the daunting one-hour barrier here, and, after studying the course carefully, succeeded in clocking a time of 59 minutes 17 seconds. “I thought I could do it,” he said upon finishing. Froude returned to win again in 1991, then made one more appearance here in 1992, this time finishing second behind another Colorado-trained newcomer (Matt Carpenter). Derek Froude now lives in Florida and will travel to Mt. Washington for the Hall of Fame ceremony.

Mike Gallagher remains best known as one of America’s great Nordic skiers – he skied in three Olympics – but he was also a formidable runner, as he proved by becoming the first person to win the Mt. Washington Road Race four times. Moreover, he won those in consecutive years (1968-1971); the only person with more consecutive wins (five) is Bob Hodge. Gallagher ran a personal best of 1:06:13 here in 1968, and in his final win, in 1971, he took a 51-second victory over Boston Marathon champion and Olympic Trials marathoner Amby Burfoot. Since retiring from racing, Mike Gallagher has kept busy with coaching and with inspiring young skiers. He lives in Vermont and will drive over to the White Mountains for the Friday night event.

Daniel Kihara first ran Mt. Washington in 1996, when he took nearly a minute off Froude’s course record, making the ascent in 58:21. Training both in his native Kenya and in the hills of Pennsylvania, Kihara returned to Mt. Washington in 1999 to win a second time, following with his third and fourth victories in 2000 and 2001. His only loss was a sixth place finish in the weather-shortened race in 2002. His slowest time for the full course was just six seconds over an hour (1:00:06), and he is still the only runner in the history of the race with three sub-one hour finishes. Whether or not he can attend the event in person remains to be ascertained.

This year’s Mt. Washington Road Race and Hall of Fame induction are part of the summer-long celebration of the 150th anniversary of the opening of the Mt. Washington Auto Road. Completed in 1861 and originally called the Mt. Washington Carriage Road, the twisting, windswept road to the top of the Presidential Range was one of the first man-made tourist attractions in New England. The Mt. Washington Road Race was first held three times in the 1930s, then again in 1961 on the Auto Road’s centennial, in 1962, and continuously since 1966.

The Friday evening Hall of Fame induction is part of the annual pre-race gathering for stories, brief speeches, information and advice about running up the mountain, and other tributes to the race. The ceremony will start at 6 p.m. in the large tent at the base of the Auto Road, on Route 16 just north of Pinkham Notch.

The public is invited.

Regularly updated information about the Mt. Washington Road Race Hall of Fame is available any time on Facebook, Twitter and the Hall of Fame blog. For other information about the race, visit www.mountwashingtonroadrace.com.

“I always think I will win,” said Amare after her victory last year. “Sometimes you get it, sometimes you don’t.” Then she added, “I’ve never been in this kind of race. It was very hard!” Her debut win was the more impressive because she had to run the race in borrowed shoes after discovering that her own were locked inside someone’s car just before the start.

Chris Siemers, who similarly won the men’s race last year in his first attempt up the Auto Road’s famously unrelenting 12 percent grade, will be at the starting line again this year to defend his title. Siemers, of Arvada, Colo., entered the 2010 race just a few days beforehand, ran a determined duel with two-time winner Eric Blake of New Britain, Conn., and pulled away in the final mile to an 18-second margin of victory in a time of one hour and 22 seconds.

“I was born to do this stuff,” said the 29-year-old Siemers. “I came here prepared to win.”

Whether or not both champions will win again is one of those Mt. Washington questions that fascinate longtime observers. Not uncommonly, runners who set records in their first attempts on Mt. Washington run the same course more slowly the next time. On the other hand, both Siemers and Amare report their training is going well.

Besides Blake, Siemers can expect challenges from 2009 winner Rickey Gates, 30, of Woody Creek, Colo.; Matt Byrne, 36, of Scranton, Pennsylvania, who placed fourth in 2009 and sixth in 2008 three-time winner and master’s course record-holder Simon Gutierrez, 45, of Alamosa, Colo.; and possibly some newcomers.

If Amare runs as well as she did last year, it is difficult to imagine any woman beating her, but the female field has plenty of depth. Two-time winner Brandy Erholtz, 33, of Bailey, Colo., will return this year, as will Laura Haefeli, 43, of Del Norte, Colo. The top prospect from New England is likely to be Jennifer Campbell, 28, of New Market, N.H., who finished 9th here last year.

The women’s field will once again be infused with extra spirit thanks to the return of 58-year-old Jacqueline Gareau of Montreal, the only woman ever to win both the Boston Marathon (1980) and the Mt. Washington Road Race (1989, 1994, 1996).

Sponsored by Northeast Delta Dental, with additional support from Polartec, the Mount Washington Road Race each year attracts a field of 1000 runners, the maximum number that can safely be accommodated on the road and at the summit. As usual, this year nearly double that number applied to enter the race, entering the annual lottery that randomly selects entrants from all who apply. Registration for the lottery is open each year from March 1-15.

The race makes exceptions to the above entry system for elite athletes, previous year’s age-group winners, and a small group of runners who have completed every race in the New England Mountain Goat hill-running series. All these runners receive exclusive invitations to the race. Previous winners may enter automatically.

This year’s Mount Washington Road Race is part of the 150th anniversary celebration of the Mt. Washington Auto Road. Originally called the Mt. Washington Carriage Road, the road to the summit of Mt. Washington was completed in 1861. Rising through several different climate zones, and offering stunning views of the White Mountains, Vermont, Maine and southern Quebec, the Auto Road is one of New England’s most spectacular attractions.

The Mount Washington Road Race begins at the Auto Road base on Route 16 near Pinkham Notch and climbs to the 6,288-foot summit at an average grade of 12 percent and a net altitude gain of 4,650 feet. The runners battle not only each other but the force of gravity and Mt. Washington’s famously unpredictable weather. Starting time this year – an hour earlier than in the past – will be 9 a.m.

Directed by Josh Nemzer of DMSE Sports and Mary Power of the Mt. Washington Auto Road Company, the Mount Washington Road Race is one of the country’s premier running events, and demand for places on the starting line continually exceeds the number the race can accommodate. Thus, entry is by an on-line lottery system. Anyone wishing for a place in the starting field needs to sign up for the lottery on the race website no later than 11:59 p.m. on March 15. The list of lottery winners will be posted a few days after the cutoff date for registration.

As always, the race makes exceptions to the above entry system for elite athletes — runners whose recent performances indicate that they may be contenders for top places among the finishers, or whose past participation in the race have contributed particularly to the event’s charisma. All previous winners of the race may enter automatically, and the previous year’s age-group winners are entitled to bypass the lottery through an exclusive invitation. Others with national- or world-class race times and outstanding performances in races elsewhere are encouraged to email the elite athletes’ coordinator, John Stifler, to request a similar bypass, at jstifler@econs.umass.edu.

To sustain and enhance the quality of the race, the Mt. Washington Auto Road Company last year secured the talents and experience of DMSE, directors of the Boston Marathon and numerous other races in the region, to join the Auto Road Company this year in managing all components of the event. Former longtime Mount Washington Road Race director Bob Teschek of Granite State Race Services, who retired from the job after the 2010 race, maintains his connection to the event, continuing to serve as its timer.

This year’s Mount Washington Road Race is part of the 150th anniversary celebration of the Mt. Washington Auto Road. Originally called the Mt. Washington Carriage Road, the road to the summit of Mt. Washington was completed in 1861. Rising through several different climate zones, and offering stunning views of the White Mountains, Vermont, Maine and southern Quebec, the Auto Road is one of New England’s most spectacular attractions.

Sponsored by Northeast Delta Dental, with additional support from New England Runner magazine, the Mount Washington Road Race begins at the Auto Road base on Route 16 near Pinkham Notch and climbs to the 6288-foot summit at an average grade of 12 percent and a net altitude gain of 4650 feet. The runners battle not only each other but the sheer force of gravity and Mt. Washington’s famously unpredictable weather.

As the race begins its second half-century, the challenging annual event is now officially an in-house operation of the Mt. Washington Auto Road company, the private organization that manages the ultra-steep 7.6-mile Auto Road where the race is held. The organization will maintain overall ownership and supervision of the event.

In addition, Northeast Delta Dental has announced that it will continue as the primary sponsor of the Mt. Washington Road Race.

Dave McGillivray has been named Race Manager of the popular and grueling Mt. Washington Road Race in Pinkham Notch, N.H. for 2011. The appointment of McGillivray as race manager, follows the retirement of longtime Mt. Washington race director Bob Teschek. Teschek and his company, Granite State Race Services, will continue to time the race and compile the finish-line results, as he has done since taking over the race in 1982.

Since 1936, the first year the race was held, the Mt. Washington Auto Road has provided not only the race course itself but the support vehicles, radio communication and countless other kinds of assistance that are integral to the race’s safe operation.

By officially making the Mt. Washington Road Race an in-house operation, the Auto Road organization has put this premier running event at the top of the long list of outdoor sports activities it presents annually, especially the Mt. Washington Auto Road Bicycle Hillclimb, held each year on the third weekend in August, and Newton’s Revenge, an identical bike race in early July. Both bicycle races involve the same logistical and administrative demands as the footrace, both require the same advance planning by participants and organizers – and all three will continue to offer the same spectacular challenges and rewards to the participants. “

Bob Teschek’s 29 years of careful stewardship of this race have really set the stage for the future and will make this transition much easier for all of us,” said Howie Wemyss, General Manager of the Auto Road. “The race has been extremely well run over the years, and we know that with DMSE’s involvement we will continue that professional level of management, while making subtle enhancements to the whole weekend.” Helping to ensure that the transition is as smooth as possible, Tom Raffio, the CEO of Northeast Delta Dental (www.nedelta.com), announced last week that his company will continue its role as primary sponsor of the Mt. Washington Road Race in 2011. Underscoring that commitment, Raffio himself ran the 2010 Mt. Washington Road Race in June and reached the finish line at Mt. Washington’s 6,288-foot summit in a respectable 1:52. He vowed to return next year to lower that time.

One other significant fact further guarantees that the race remains in the hands of those who know and love it: McGillivray, Nemzer and Wemyss have each run the Mt. Washington Road Race themselves several times.

“We know it’s a great race,” Nemzer said at the summit this year. “We don’t want to change it.”

“I came here prepared to win this,” said Siemers, 29, as he stood at the uphill end of the 7.6-mile Mt. Washington Auto Road and recovered from the grind to the summit of the highest peak in the Northeast. “I’d had some recent disappointments with my running, and I wanted to take out my frustrations on this mountain. But my quads were burning with a feeling I’ve never felt before.”

Like Siemers, Amare had never seen the ultra-steep Auto Road before running up it.

“I was expecting a little up, up,” she said later, “and I got it. This race is really hard.”

Since this year’s contest was the sole qualifying race to select the U.S. national team that will compete in the World Mountain Running Championship this fall in Slovenia, the field was packed with runners well-matched in strength and endurance. Many more than the usual half-dozen elite runners ran together in the early going, the pace shared by two-time winner (2006, 2008) Eric Blake of New Britain, Conn., defending champion Rickey Gates of Woody Creek, Colorado, all-American steeplechaser Joe Gray of Lakewood, Washington, Zac Freudenburg of St. Louis, Missouri – all past members of the national team – and several more.

By the second mile, however, Siemers had begun his challenge, keeping elbow to elbow with Blake as the two gradually pulled ahead of everyone else.

“I knew Eric had a lot of experience here,” said Siemers, “so I stayed with him. I felt confident, and I didn’t care whether I won by one second or one minute.”

Still, Blake looked in control. “I felt good the first mile or two,” said the 31-year-old track coach, who had twice before been in tight races here. “His breathing was heavy, and I thought I was going to take it, but in the second half it got to me.”

Above the seven-mile mark, under bright sun and with the summit in sight, Siemers took the lead for good, storming up the final 50 yards to claim the title of 2010 U.S. National Mountain Running Champion and the $2000 first prize for winning. Blake arrived 18 seconds later, followed by Gray, Gates, the next newcomer, 30-year-old Max King of Bend, Oregon, and Tommy Manning, 34, of Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Amare had a last-minute worry before the race: her shoes and running singlet were locked in a car whose driver was away. Having quickly borrowed another runner’s extra pair of racing flats and a singlet, she shot away from the rest of the women’s field at the start and ran with no further worries. “I always think I will win,” she said later. “Sometimes you get it, sometimes you don’t get it.” Today she got it, breaking the previous women’s course record of 1:10:08.2 and winning not only the first prize of $2000 but the $5000 bonus awarded for breaking the course record.

Behind her, the strongest American women battled for second place. Two-time winner (2008, 2009) Brandy Erholtz, of Bailey, Colorado, led Kristin Price of Raleigh, N.C., in the first two miles, but Price, another first-timer here, pulled ahead and eventually finished in 1:11:13, with Erholtz third in 1:12:53.

Barely had Erholtz crossed the finish line than she was followed by 40-year-old Nicole Hunt, of Deer Lodge, Montana, whose time of 1:12:59 broke the existing women’s masters record of 1:13:33 previously held by Laura Haefeli of Del Norte, Colorado. She won the $2000 bonus awarded by New England Runner magazine for new masters’ records here.

Haefeli herself finished sixth, just behind another newcomer, Megan Lund of Basalt, Colorado. Price, Erholtz, Hunt and Lund thus became members of the 2010 U.S. National team, joining the men’s team of Siemers, Blake, Gray, Gates, King and Manning.

Martin Cox, a British mountain and ultramarathoner who trains with Gates in Colorado, won the men’s masters prize while finishing 11th overall in 1:06:03.

As the middle of the pack began to cross the finish line, the eyes of all the spectators turned to watch for the man wearing number 50 on his shirt, in honor of the race’s 50th running. He was Tom Raffio of Bow, N.H., and CEO of Northeast Delta Dental, the company that sponsors the race. Running Mt. Washington for the first time, Raffio, 53, crossed the line in 1:52:12, placing 343rd among the 662 male finishers and 34th out of 91 men in the 50-54-year-old age group.

In all, there were 916 finishers from 39 states and four Canadian provinces, plus Spain, the U.K., Brazil and Ethiopia.

Top Finishers:

Men:

1. Chris Siemers, 29, Arvada CO, 1:00:22

2. Eric Blake, 31, New Britain CT, 1:00:40

3. Joseph Gray, 26, Lakewood WA, 1:01:31

4. Rickey Gates, 29, Woody Creek CO, 1:02:34

5. Max King, 30, Bend OR, 1:02:34

6. Tommy Manning, 34, Colorado Springs CO, 1:03:27

7. Matt Russell, 27, Wells ME, 1:04:21

8. Chris Lundstrom, 34, Minneapolis MN, 1:04:25

9. Zachary Freudenburg, 31, St. Louis MO, 1:05:18

10. Joel Bourgeois, 39, Grand-Digue, New Brunswick, Canada, 1:05:31

Women:

1. Shewarge Amare, 23, New York NY/Ethiopia, 1:08:21

2. Kristin Price, 28, Raleigh NC, 1:11:13

3. Brandy Erholtz, 32, Bailey CO, 1:12:53

4. Nicole Hunt, 40, Deer Lodge MT, 1:12:59

5. Megan Lund, 26, Basalt CO, 1:13:30

6. Laura Haefeli, 42, Del Norte CO, 1:15:47

7. Amber Ferreira, 28, Concord NH, 1:19:47

8. Amber Moran, 31, Arden NC, 1:20:55

9. Jennifer Campbell, 27, Newmarket NH, 1:21:06

10. Caitlin Smith, 29, Oakland CA, 1:21:43