Running in the Baltimore area dates back to early 1970's along with the starting of the Baltimore Road Runner's Club by Les Kinion and four others. He was instrumental in getting the Maryland Commission on Physical Fitness to see about having a Maryland Marathon Championship Run in Baltimore in 1972. He ran for the Baltimore City Fire Fighters, Local 734.

The first Baltimore Marathon was conducted in 1973 and won by Victor Nelson of Maryland in 2:22:57. In 1974, the male winner was Ron Hill of Manchester, England in 2:17:23 and the female winner was Katherine Switzer of New York in 3:05:51. The runner up was Margaret Rosasco of Fallston, MD in 3:25:54.

The Maryland Marathon ran for a number of years and at the end of its stretch on November 24, 1990, the BRRC held the first Northern Central Trail Marathon (NCT), which did not have the infamous Satyr Hill. The purpose was to provide a marathon for the area runners. It was not the size of the Maryland Marathon with the big name sponsors or an impressive field. It was to be a race for the runners to enjoy the experience and for those who sought a Boston Qualifier.

The 16th Northern Central Marathon will be held Sunday, November 26, 2005 at 9:30 a.m. in Sparks, MD. The race registration is limited in the marathon to 500 runners and in the two-person relay to 80 teams. The marathon cutoff time is 5:30-hours (an average pace of 12:35 per mile). Each relay team member must run 13.1 miles and bus transportation will be provided to the exchange point.

The entry fee for the marathon is $60 (current BRRC members $50) and the relay is $80 per team. The late fee after October 30th is $70 and $90. There is no race day registration. A portion of the proceeds will be used to help fund amenities along the NCR Trail, such as rest areas.

The NCTM offers less drama of the large city marathons. The out- and-back course travels along the Northern Central Railroad Trail (NCRT) through rural and scenic northern Baltimore County. The certified course starts at Sparks Elementary School and travel 1.8 miles along gentle rolling hills before reaching the flat NCRT. The course has a slight grade up for 11.7 north along a dirt and crushed stone surface and turning to come back 11.2 miles along a slight downgrade back to the 1.5 "gentle rolling hills" (it is the closest they could find to Satyr Hill) to the finish at the school.

The Northern Central Railroad connected Baltimore with York, PA from 1838 to 1972. The railroad carried Union troops during the Civil War, and Abraham Lincoln traveled this road to deliver the Gettysburg address. The railroad was greatly damaged by Hurricane Agnes in 1972 and abandoned by the railroad that year. In 1984, DNR converted the right of way into a multi-use trail for hiking, biking, and jogging & running trail.

There is a $150 cash award for a new event course records for male and female in the open and master divisions. Awards will be given to the top 5 male and female finishers. Also, the top 2 masters (male/female). Age group awards will be based upon the number of entrants within each age group (16-19, 20-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44, 45-49, 50-54, 55-59, 60-64, and 65 and up). Relay awards are to the first place team only.

The event records are holding up over time and what will happen this year?

Open
1995 Robert Marino 2:25:18
1998 Joanna Zieger 2:47:25

Master
1991 William Desmond 2:36:03
1996 Barbara Bellows 3:04:02

The records for the relay teams

Male
1996 Montgomery County Road Runners 2:34:44

Female
2001 Team Angie and Julie 2:50:44
Angie Howell and Julie Deutschman

Coed
2000 Team PK 2:48:50
Patricia and Paul Keating

Phil Anderson of Bel Air, MD is the only participant who has completed all 15 years with a best time of 3:42:24 in 1994.

"My prior best time was 3:21 in Memphis (1994). When I was coming to the finish, I saw my mom crying and when I crossed the line we hugged. I didn't even know that I had won. I thought something was wrong with the clock," stated the 1997 winner, Laurie Corbin of Morristown, NJ, with a new record at the time (2:54:09). She was the first female to run under three hours.

"At mile 20 I was feeling good. I didn't think anyone would pass me. This is one of the best marathons that I have run. A friend ran this last year and told me about it. In Canada, I run a lot in the woods and this was ideal. The course had the optimum decline coming back," stated, runner up and first master, Alan Moore in 2:44:52 (1999).

"It's the most beautiful race that I've ran. I was a little disappointed. I stopped at mile 23 to stretch and got a cup of water. The race started to fall apart around 17-18, I wanted to keep trying. I knew if I had quit I would never finish another marathon. I blew up the last six miles, it was way past ugly," stated 1999 winner Heidi Gerken of Reston, VA in 2:56:16.

"Before the halfway point, I knew that I was in the lead. I didn't come to win today, and it was me and my watch. My goal was to break three hours. If there was another girl in front of me, my goal would still have been to break three hours. I had to put in a quick mile between miles 24 and 25 close to six minutes. It's a challenge to stay focused and not slack off. Mentally it's easy to fall off. I don't like big marathons. I enjoy the small ones. This was well organized," stated 2000 (2:58:58) winner, Angela Plamondon of Ottawa, Ontario. She won again in 2004 (3:04:55).

For full race details, visit www,brrc.com or call the race hotline 410-377-7327. or E- mail.