Maze Kicks Off Rogue Trail Series
by Brom Hoban, 4/24/2006

About 165 hardy souls set forth into the 30K "Maze"- the first of Steve Sisson's innovative trail series races on Sunday morning, and over 100 more ran the separate 10K event. The Maze, in Walnut Creek Park, near North Lamar, is a crazy set of convoluted trails that even the most experienced runner can get lost on, hence the name "Maze."

Paul Terranova was the champ in the men's field, clocking a fairly spectacular 2:08:14, overtaking 2005 winner Paul Frost, who posted a 2:09:55. Master's ace John Paladino was third overall. Brenna Abbitt of College Station was the overall women's winner in 2:28:32, good for 11th place overall.

In the separate 10K race, RunTex's Jeff Whitfield topped the filed in 41:46, while Sabine Bildstein took the women's title in 46:25.

Sisson, who heads up Rogue Training Systems, has really hit on something here, as runners raved about the event with unanimous praise.

"I had a blast, commented John Ferguson, who is training to run the Inca Trail Marathon in the Andes Mountains of South America at the end of May. "I really enjoyed the event."

Ferguson averaged about a 9:00 minute-per-mile pace over the rugged terrain of the 30K course. If that sounds easy, it's not. He estimates it's the equivalent of running a 6:45 pace for a road 30K.

"This was my first trail run and I have to say that those of you that run these often impress me," said one runner. "The level of extra work needed for this is so much higher than for a road race. The terrain change took any chance of using strategy out of it for me--I just could not maintain continuity. Hats off to the race staff. What a well-run event, and a lot of fun. Hard running, but a good time. I think my favorite part was the ceremonial drawing of the start line with the stick in the dirt. Awesome."

Sisson, a former UT track star and sub-14 minute 5,000 meter runner, has become quite an accomplished trail runner himself. He is again training a group to head to the 2006 Pike's Peak Marathon this August in Manitou Springs Colorado. He placed 12th there last year.

The next two races of the Rogue Trail Series are the Loop (at Emma Long Metro Park) on May 21, and the Belt (Barton Creek Greenbelt), on June 18. Check out www.roguerunning.com to register.