XTERRA Pocono Trail Run Series Reaching for the Sky in 2012

Free trips to Utah among the prizes for runners who participate.

After a successful first season, the XTERRA Pocono Trail Run Series is reaching for new heights in 2012. They're giving away airline tickets to prove it.

The 2012 XTERRA Pocono Trail Run Series will run from May 5 to June 30, and it will feature five races in the picturesque region of northeast Pennsylvania. And as if running along those trails were not rewarding enough, the Pocono Series is offering four flights to Utah as prizes during the 2012 season.

The first two trips will be awarded at the XTERRA Earth Conservancy Half-Marathon Trail Run on June 16 at Mocanaqua, Pennsylvania. The male and female winner of the 21-kilometer half-marathon race will each receive a round-trip ticket to Salt Lake City, Utah, to compete in the 2012 XTERRA Trail Run National Championship.

The other two trips will be awarded via a random draw at the end of the XTERRA Pocono Series season. There's just one requirement - only runners that finish all five races in the series are eligible to win those trips.

Richard Burgunder (pictured) of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, said runners who enter all five races in the series will be treated to fun and challenging races … along with the chance to win the free trips.

"What I like most about the Pocono area is its stunning natural beauty and how the region is an outdoor sports mecca," said Burgunder, who won the men's 30-34 age group in the Pocono Series last year. "Within the endless mountain region, you'll find abundant forest, lakes, rivers, streams and wildlife. It's an amazing place for any extreme and adventure sports enthusiast."

Indeed, the five races in the Pocono Series offer runners a variety of challenging terrain, ranging from sandy lake shorelines to narrow single track trails that climb more than 2,000 feet. Many of the trails take the runners through rocky river beds and flowing streams, then up to mountain ledges with spectacular views.

All of the races in the Pocono Series are held in the months of May and June, when the weather is generally mild. Most of the race courses traverse into forest, so the runners are often well-shaded, even on sunny days.

"Last summer wasn't overly hot and humid, like most typically are throughout that region," Burgunder said. "While it did get quite warm on some race days, the weather ultimately wasn't a major factor."

Burgunder made the cross-state trip from Pittsburgh to enter the Pocono Series races last year, and he plans to do so again. He said the abundance of activities and attractions in the region allow him to make a weekend getaway with each race. "There's a ton to do throughout the region and most activities are within an hour's drive of all the race sites," he said.

The XTERRA Pocono Trail Run Series is also a bargain. Many of the races offer an entry fee as low as $20 per runner.

To register for a race in the Pocono Series, or to learn more about it, please visit www.wilkesbarreracing.com

The race dates for the 2012 XTERRA Pocono Trail Run Series are:

May 5 - XTERRA Big Pocono Trail Run
May  19 - XTERRA Seven Tubs Trail Run
June 2 - XTERRA Hickory Trail Run
June 16 - XTERRA Earth Conservancy Half-Marathon Trail Run
June 30 - XTERRA Gouldsboro Trail Run

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