DeVries captures XTERRA race in Eden

EDEN, Weber County — Craig DeVries, 33, of Bountiful, had the fastest time of the day — 59:59 — in the XTERRA Wolf Mountain race on Saturday.

Race director John Wojciechowski predicted that no one would finish the 10K course in under an hour, but DeVries proved him wrong with a second to spare. Coming in second at 1:01:33 was 35-year-old Matt Campbell, who was participating in his second running race ever. His first was the Ogden Marathon just 3 weeks ago. After recently breaking his wrist, this long-time cyclist is now hooked on running and plans to sell his bike.

For the women, Rachel Cieslewicz, 28, crossed the finish line first in 1:08:06 with Holly Ebert, 47, coming in less than two minutes later.

"Everybody loved the course; it was tough with two 1,000-foot elevation climbs. With the water crossing, everybody finished a little wet and muddy but happy," Wojciechowski said.

This was the first race in the 2008 XTERRA Utah Trail Run Series with three more opportunities for runners to earn points toward their series total. Athletes with top points at the end of the series will be awarded free entry to the XTERRA National Trail Running Championship on September 27 in Bend, Oregon. From there runners can race in the first-ever XTERRA Trail Running World Championship on December 7 at the beautiful Kualoa Ranch in Hawaii.

Next up for the 2008 XTERRA Utah Series is the XTERRA Snowbird Challenge 8K on June 28 at the Snowbird Resort in Salt Lake City.

Complete results from today's race are attached and more information can be found online at www.xterratrailrun.com. Media interested in photos from this event should contact emily@xterraplanet.com.