Saturday, September 3, 2011 -- Bruceton Mills, WV / Coopers Rock State Park
Coopers Rock Stump Jump! 10K Trail Run - MASS Event #4 (iPO Event Id#: 13333)

2011: [Details] [Coverage] [Photos] [Overall Results] [Results by Class]

[ 2010 Results ]

Stump Jump Enjoys Big Turnout

Story and photos by Nathan Reckart.

Marc Glass runs through Rock City

Runners from all over gathered at Coopers Rock State Forest for the second annual Coopers Rock Stump Jump! 10K Trail Run. Race organizers rushed to get all 100 runners registered before the start, and were happy to see participation double since last year's race.

This year's Stump Jump was the fourth event in the 2011 Morgantown Adventure Sport Series (MASS) and was presented by WVU College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences and sponsored by Big Bear Lake Camplands.

Everyone was excited to get the fun started as they listened to the race director give the final instructions. There was even a false start before the gun sounded and the runners took off for the woods on what would be a course full of rocks, roots, and . . . stumps.

Mark Burnham was the first to reach Rock City, where the trail snakes between house size rocks near the 5 mile mark of the course, with Nate King nipping at his heels as they weaved their way through the boulders.

Enjoying the race & trail

TJ Hooks was close behind and this young man was on a mission. He closed a 30 second gap over the last mile and finished 15 seconds behind Burnham (40:01) to take second place at 40:16. King held on for third at 40:59. All three call Morgantown, WV home. Steve Gergely, from Manhelm, PA, took fourth place at 42:56.

Heather Parks, of Brucenton Mills, WV, claimed the first female spot (15th overall) at 48:42. Clara Rhodes, from Morgantown, took second (18th overall) at 50:08 and Alyssa Anderson, also from Morgantown, rounded out the top three ( 24th overall) at 52:22.

Spirits were high and smiles were all around post race as the awards were handed out. The consensus seemed to be that everyone enjoyed the beautiful, but brutal trail and the nice weather. What better way is there to spend a warm Saturday morning in September?

MASS is a series of events that focus on "active adventures" and encouraging people to become physically active.

This year's series wraps up with the Deckers Creek Adventure Race on October 9th.