This coming Sunday in Hermon, you can support cancer research and be a part of a Maine road racing tradition.

The Run for Hope 5-kilometer race will be held at the Best Western White House Inn, located behind Dysart’s off exit 44 of I-95, continuing the tradition of the Terry Fox Run.

It will be run on a RRTC-certified course at 11:30 a.m. Participants can either run, jog or walk.

Fees are $10 for individuals and $35 for a family. T-shirts will be available to the first 200 registrants for an additional $5 fee.

Donations will be accepted. Even if you are not running and would like to make a donation, send a check to Run for Hope, c/o the Best Western White House Inn, 155 Littlefield Avenue, Bangor, ME 04401.

High School XC opens Saturday

We can’t say that summer is officially “out the door,” as there have been a few muggy days “mugging” the region.

This Saturday in Ellsworth, we can probably admit that summer is officially gone, as hundreds of high school runners will done Maine’s mid-coast for the Ellsworth Invitational cross country meet.

It all starts at 11 a.m. with the girls’ junior varsity race, followed by boys JV, girls varsity and concluding with boys varsity.

The meet kicks off the season for many Penobscot Valley Conference powers such as Bangor, Brewer, Old Town, Ellsworth and MDI, as well as many other conference teams.

Southern Maine teams such as York, Falmouth and Sanford have made the trip in the past, with the Yachtsmen taking the boys’ team title last year, and fielding the boys’ individual champion in Brandon Bonsey.

Runners to watch out for this year include the DeWitt brothers of Ellsworth; Joey, a junior and Cody, a freshman on the boys’ side, and Old Town sophomore Cassie Hintz on the girls’ side.

Team-wise the MDI boys were voted second in the MTCCA High School cross country preseason poll and could be considered a favorite. The Trojans captured the PVC title last year.

Brewer’s Clark off and running

Former Brewer standout Heather Clark performed well in her first Division I meet this past weekend.

Clark, a freshman at Florida State, ran to a 16th-place overall finish at the Mountaineer Open, hosted by Appalachian State University in Boone, N.C., posting a 19:36 over a 5-kilometer course. She finished fourth on the team, and the Seminoles finished second overall, with their men’s team taking first.