Middaugh Defends Title on Home Course
Beaver Creek, CO – July 16, 2016: Current XTERRA World Champion Josiah Middaugh once again won the Mountain Championship on his hometown course, fighting off 20-year-old Sam Long of Boulder to defend his title by a margin of 30 seconds. Middaugh finished with an overall time of 2:10:05 to Long’s 2:10:35. Rom Akerson finished third (2:12:20) followed by Ben Hoffman in fourth (2:13:30) and Leon Griffin in fifth (2:14:23). Rounding out the top ten for the pro men in a deep field of 21 athletes were Branden Rakita, Greg Bennett, Brad Zoller, Mario de Elias, and Brian Smith.
In the women’s race, Julie Baker ran away with the title in a time of 2:38:54. Suzanne Snyder took the second spot in 2:40:47, and Boulder’s Maia Ignatz claimed the final podium spot in 2:42:36. Rounding out the top five for the women were Katharine Carter and Elizabeth Gruber. Gruber, who lives in Colorado Springs and recently won the XTERRA Lory race, made her debut as a pro in the race.
