MDI Half Marathon a quest for vistas and victories

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Scenic views, a challenging course, and the only half-marathon in the country that runs through a national park are a few of many things the Bar Harbor Half Marathon has to offer.

The race will celebrate its 30th birthday Saturday, starting at 8:30 a.m. at the Mount Desert Island Family YMCA.

If you’re not up for the 13.1-mile challenge, the event also includes a 5K that starts simultaneously at 8:30, and walkers are also welcome. Walkers will start at 7:30.

The picturesque USATF-certified loop course starts and finishes at the Bar Harbor Athletic Fields across from the YMCA. Nine of the 13 miles are run on the carriage trails of Acadia National Park.

The course enters the park via the arched Duck Brook Bridge, and completes a six-mile loop around Eagle Lake.

After a peaceful, traffic-free run around Eagle Lake, which starts with a tough one-mile uphill, runners turn onto Route 198 back toward town, enjoying views of Frenchman Bay and Cadillac Mountain and gliding past Kebo Valley Golf Course.

Bar Harbor native Evan Graves, who established a course record of 1 hour, 9 minutes, 37 seconds in 2004, plans to run the race this year as he gears up for next month’s Chicago Marathon.

Beach to Beacon 10K founder Joan Benoit Samuelson set the women’s mark of 1:17:06 in 1997.

Full shower and restroom facilities will be available at the YMCA, where a pasta party will be held Friday evening. Prices are $12 for adults in advance, $15 at the door, and $6 and $10 for children, respectively.

No race-day registrations will be accepted, and due to Acadia National Park restrictions the half-marathon field is capped at 400.

The nonrefundable entry fee for the half-marathon is $50, while the 5K is $10. Applications for both races can be obtained at www.mdiymca.org.

Runners may pick up their race packets Friday from noon to 7 p.m. at the YMCA. Packet pickup on race morning is extremely limited, and runners must make arrangements by contacting race director Lisa Tweedie at fitness@mdiymca.org.

If you’re not planning on running, Tweedie could use volunteers. If you’d like to help out, e-mail her at the aforementioned address.

Nothing Comes Easy to be shown

If you plan to stay in the area after the Bar Harbor Half Marathon, runners will have a special treat in store at the Reel Pizza Cinema on the Village Green in Bar Harbor.

The film “Five Thousand Meters: Nothing Comes Easy,” will be shown at 2 p.m.

The movie is based on eight young men attempting to qualify for the 2004 U.S. Olympic team. As a matter of fact, one of the runners profiled in the film is Yarmouth native Matt Lane.

All proceeds from the showing of the film will benefit the Eden Athletics Running Club, and admission is $6.

One step closer to 50

Mount Desert Island Marathon race director Gary Allen fared well at the recent Quebec City Marathon.

The 50-year-old Great Cranberry Island resident finished the 10th edition of the race in 2:59:08, good for second in the 50-59 age group.

That effort was Allen’s 48th career sub-three-hour marathon, and he could reach No. 50 at the New York City marathon in November.

Speaking of Allen, the MDI marathon will be featured in the October issue of “Runners World” magazine.

The magazine showcases a different race in its “Race of the Month,” and the MDI marathon was selected.

This year’s race will be held on Sunday, Oct. 14.

XC Festival taking shape

Maine’s largest high school cross country festival is only two weeks away, and co-meet directors Glendon Rand and Jo-Ann Nealey are hard at work.

As of Wednesday, 50 teams are entered in the Sept. 29 meet at Troy Howard Middle School in Belfast.

Cumberland, R.I., High School, which has made the journey to Belfast ever since the first competition was held back in 2002, is returning, along with defending team champs McAuley of Portland girls and Scarborough boys.

Other solid teams include the Falmouth and Brewer girls and Scarborough and Portland boys as well as Penobscot Valley Conference entries John Bapst of Bangor, Caribou, Ellsworth and Mount Desert Island

The boys’ seeded race will likely be a showdown between the state’s two top runners, Falmouth’s Ethan Shaw and Riley Masters of Bangor.

Ryan McLaughlin can be reached at 1-800-310-8600 or bdnsports@bangordailynews.net