XTERRA Florida Trail Run Series Champion: Liza Hash – She will attempt national age group championship in Utah in September

INGLIS, Fla. – As her running peers found out in the XTERRA Florida Trail Run Series, Liza Hash likes to get things done early.

Her basic strategy during each race of the 2011 XTERRA Florida Series was to start fast and try not to look back. It worked wonders, as Hash emerged as the top overall female runner in the inaugural XTERRA Florida Series.

She went undefeated in the women's 35-39 age division, and was also the top overall female at two of the three races in the series.

"I have always liked trail runs, but I did learn that I do much better if I start out in the front," said Hash, who is 35 and resides in Inglis, Fla. "If you are in the middle or further back at the start of a race, it is often hard to get around some of the other runners and that can slow you down a lot."

In keeping with her theme, Hash has already registered to race in the XTERRA Trail Run National Championship at the Snowbasin Resort, Ogden, Utah, on Sunday, Sept. 25, 2011. It will be her first attempt at a national age group title.

"I am (originally) from the Northwest, so I am familiar with the weather and altitude," Hash said. "I to go Portland, Oregon, every year to do a race called Hood to Coast … I often run faster in Portland than I do in Florida, so I imagine Utah will be the same."

The XTERRA Florida Series concluded in early May, and Hash said she has not competed in any other races since then. Instead, she has trained both in the gym and out in the Florida heat.

"Lots of lunges and squats to adjust for the hills, and nothing is harder than running 95 percent humidity," she said.

Hash and her husband own a private water utilities company and some rental properties in Florida, so she spends much of her day out in the sun "digging or building."

"Being out in the heat all day makes it easier to run in it," she added.

Hash will be one of hundreds runners who will be competing at the XTERRA Trail Run National Championship. There is no qualifying process for the race, so runners of all ages and skill levels from across the country are eligible to enter.

The 21-kilometer course will serve as the national championship course, but there will also be a 10-kilometer trail and a 5-kilometer trail that runners can enter.

To register for the XTERRA Trail Run National Championship, please visit the event site:
https://www.xterraplanet.com/xduro/nationals.html