DELTA — Gabe Henneberger and Lance Moore led area runners in the 21st annual Mount Cheaha 50K trail ultra on Saturday.
Henneberger, 24, of Huntsville, finished fourth in 5:09:31. It was his first finish in the event, which had 264 finishers. Moore, 30, of Harvest, was 13th in 5:55:07. It also was his first Cheaha finish.
Graham Grant, 29, of Carrollton, Ga., won in 4:29:15. That puts him 10th on the event record list. It’s one of only four record finishes in the last six years. The course
Carson Bedics, 24, of Homewood, was chasing hard and finished second in 4:31. Deanna Doane, 27, of Jacksonville Beach, Fla., won the women’s division and captured third. She crossed in 4:44:59, putting her atop the women’s record list by more than 15 minutes. Doane won the sloppy Mountain Mist 50K in 2024.
Despite a nasty fall, Dink Taylor, 60, of Huntsville, finished his 21st Cheaha 50K and was 97th overall. Taylor crossed the line in 7:36:05.
Carrie McCary, 55, of Huntsville, captured her age division title with a time of 7:21:46. She was 81st overall. Tina Hicks, 56, of Huntsville, was second in the division, finishing in 7:52:19.
The Mount Cheaha 50K is a point-to-point trail run finishing in Cheaha State Park at the summit of Cheaha Mountain. At 2,407 feet this is the highest point in Alabama. About 80 percent of the course is run through the Talladega National Forest, with creek crossings, lakes, waterfalls, hardwood and pine forests. It begins at the Porters Gap Trailhead in Talladega and follows the Pinhoti Trail to Mount Cheaha in Delta.
The event is put on by the Pinhoti Trail Races and is one of five ultras in the series.
See all of the Mount Cheaha 50K results here.
(Main photo courtesy of pinhotitrailseries.com)
