40th Mt. Wilson Trail Race Held Saturday Morning, Koeper Wins Again, Pevsner 1st in Women's Division  

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Race Results - by division

Race Results – by gender

Race Results – Sierra Madreans

Race Results – overall

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The Annual Mt. Wilson Trail Race was held Saturday, May 27, 2006. Three-time winner Kevin Koeper of Arcadia (2000, 2001, and 2005) again came in first, with a time of 1:02:53.  Second place went to Arcadian J.J. Timphony at 1:03:19, and third place went to Fritz Van de Kamp of Pasadena at 1:04:22.  Fourth place finisher Patrick Reeves was the first Sierra Madrean to cross the line at 1:07:33.  In the women's division, Sharon Pevsner of Sierra Madre crossed the line first at 1:17:36.   Simone Messerschmidt of Auburn was second at 1:21:39, and Jannifer Heinder of Pasadena came in 3rd at 1:24:26.  288 racers took part, all but 6 of them from California.  76 of the runners were from Sierra Madre.  Racers ranged in age from 9 years old to 78 years old.  The race began at 7:30am sharp, with check-in beginning at 6am.  The first Mt. Wilson Trail Race was held in 1908, when nine men raced 7 miles to Mt. Wilson, rested 30 minutes, then raced back down.  

From 1912 to 1929, it appears people may have had more interest in the automobile as transportation than their own two legs, and no races took place during those years.  The trail race was reactivated in 1930, when women and young girls ran for the first time, in an effort to promote a resort camp known as Orchard Camp, which sat half-way between Sierra Madre and Mt. Wilson.

The race was held sporadically until the late 1940's and was then abandoned completely. It was revived in the Autumn of 1965 and evolved to its present format when it was held in the Spring of 1987 in conjunction with Search and Rescue Days. The race has been conducted more than 50 times in the last 95 years.

The current version of the race is approximately 8.6 miles in length. No official course record is recognized because the exact course has changed over the years due to trail damage caused by erosion, earthquakes and fire.

The race starts on pavement at the corner of Kersting Court and Baldwin Ave., and progresses uphill to a dirt path no more than three feet wide. The trail features an elevation gain of more than  2,100 feet in approximately 4.3 miles to the turn around point at Orchard Camp. Most of the race takes place on the established Mt. Wilson Trail where several sections have vertical drop-offs of several hundred feet.

Last year, one of the oldest races in California jumped into the 21^st century with the addition of Race Central and their computer chips.  Not only does this innovation drastically improve the speed and organization with which results of the race can be tracked and provided to its participants, but it actually helps racers who don’t start at the front of the race improve their times.  In the past, a runner’s time was counted from when the gun went off, whether you were at the front of the line, or one of the late arrivals that often start 30 or 50 feet back from the front.  Because the chip doesn’t activate until the runner’s foot crosses the starting line, actual times are now based on when a runner’s foot (where the chip is stored) crosses the starting line and when it crosses the finish line.

Last year’s race included 300 racers, aged 11 to 77.  Due to the confines of the course, and to insure the safety of race participants, only about 300 racers total are allowed to run.

This year’s race kicked off Friday night with the annual Pre-Race Pasta Feed, where runners were able to pre-register, load up on carbs, and get to know their competitors.  Runners were able to pick up their race numbers and race shirts between 6 and 8pm and enjoy a pasta dinner provided by Café 322 of Sierra Madre.  A portion of the $6.75 price of each dinner is donated by Café 322 to the Sierra Madre Search and Rescue Team.

The Mt. Wilson Trail Race is truly a community event.  Each year, the Search and Rescue Team assists in the presentation of the Trail Race with members standing by and ready in the event of emergency.  The Sierra Madre Woman’s Club cuts up oranges for the racers to help rejuvenate themselves after their run.  The Sierra Madre Civic Club assists with the organization and tabulation of race times.  The Sierra Madre Volunteer Fire Dept. is on hand at the race finish to assist with those who might have overtaxed themselves during the run.   Scout Troop Pack 110 camps out overnight, and provides water to runners as they reach the turn-around at Orchard Camp.

New additions to this year’s race included the Kids Fun Run up Baldwin Avenue which began at 8:00 am. Young runners were invited to race up Baldwin and back finishing under the same finish line banner as the Trail Runners!  Also, in Kersting Court, Sierra Madre grade school kids between the ages of 5 and 10 years participated in this years first ever “Mount Wilson Trail Race Art Show,’ celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Mount Wilson Trail Race. Artwork by Sierra Madre’s young artists depicting the Trail Race and/or the history of Mount Wilson was on display in Kersting Court on Friday May 26th from 6:00-8:00 pm during the Pre-Race Pasta Feed and on Race Day, May 27th from 7:00-11:00 am.  Please check back, we'll be adding additional photos, video and complete results over the next couple days.