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A milestone day at the oldest and largest ultramarathon in the country had fitting results, as Max King and Ellie Greenwood set course records at the 50th annual JFK 50 Mile on Saturday. King, 32, of Bend, Ore., conquered the 50.2-mile course - which started in Boonsboro and finished in Williamsport - in 5 hours, 34 minutes and 58 seconds. He averaged 6:42 per mile to top the field of roughly 1,000 runners. Trent Briney, 34, of Boulder, Colo., finished second in 5:37:56, also dipping under the previous course-record time of 5:40:45, set last year by David Riddle, who finished third this year in 5:45:13.

As a runner, Gil Crumrine draws much of his motivation from his faith in God. The Hagerstown man has made several mission trips to Africa, and recalls that his fastest times in the JFK 50 Mile came after his first trip to the country in 2005. Not only was Crumrine impressed by the number of talented distance runners in countries like Kenya and Ethiopia, but he came to appreciate the people's simple way of life. Crumrine, 58, said he felt like he was honoring the great runners of Africa when he finished the 2005 JFK 50 Mile in 10:48.

Nelson at home in JFK By DAN KAUFFMAN / Staff Writer WILLIAMSPORT - Eight years after her last John F. Kennedy 50-mile appearance, South Hagerstown and Hagerstown Community College graduate Laura Nelson returned in style Saturday. continued The 1991 and 1992 JFK women's champion added the 2000 crown to her resume by clocking the third-fastest women's time in event history - 6 hours, 59 minutes, 13 seconds. "I wanted to break seven hours, and I knew I had to pick it up (in the closing mile)

Ian Torrence has run about as many miles at the JFK 50 Mile ultramarathon as he travels each year to get to the race, it almost seems. Maybe one of these years, he'll reach his destination - the winner's circle in Williamsport. "I'd love to win the race," said Torrence, 34, of Flagstaff, Ariz. "I want to win this race. " Torrence, one of more than 1,000 competitors entered in Saturday's 44th annual JFK 50 Mile, will be running the race for the 13th straight year - still searching for his first victory.

"Bucket list" was a term that came up when Mary Ellis and her daughter-in-law, Vicki Ellis, talked about why they wanted to tackle the JFK 50 Mile ultramarathon. “My husband passed away in 2010 and it was a sudden passing,” Mary Ellis said. The death of her husband, Daniel, at age 60, prompted Mary to contemplate a bucket list - things she'd like to accomplish in life. While Mary, 63, and Vicki, 42, don't have actual written bucket lists, they've talked about running together for the grueling JFK 50 Mile.

Editor's note: This is the final story in a five-part series about some of the people who will compete today in the JFK 50 Mile ultramarathon in Washington County. Brian Leach is returning to his roots for a dose of punishment. The 1988 graduate of St. Maria Goretti High School, who lives in Huntington Beach, Calif., was to arrive in Hagerstown a day before attempting to complete his first JFK 50 Mile. "It's something I've wanted to do for a couple of years," Leach said in a telephone interview.

WASHINGTON COUNTY - Bronchitis didn't keep Julie Presas from running her first JFK 50 Mile ultramarathon on Saturday, but for nearly 11 hours, it forced the seasoned runner to cough and wheeze her way over hills, through trails and across paved roads. Despite her tightening chest and the fact she gave up Ohio State vs. Michigan football tickets to run the race, Presas crossed the finish line smiling. "I'm happy. I'm thrilled, but I never want to do it again," the 39-year-old Columbus, Ohio, woman said.

David Riddle could only describe his performance at the 49th annual JFK 50 Mile ultramarathon with one word Saturday. “Surreal,” he said. “I would say it's a dream come true, but I can't really say that because I could never even dream it.” Riddle, 30, of Cincinnati, overtook prerace favorite Michael Wardian with about 4 1/2 miles left and prevailed in a course-record time of 5 hours, 40 minutes, 45 seconds. Wardian, 37, of Arlington, Va., finished second in 5:43:24, also eclipsing the previous course-record mark of 5:46:22, set in 1994 by Eric Clifton.

Editor's note: This is the fourth story in a five-part series about some of the people who will compete in the JFK 50 Mile ultramarathon Saturday in Washington County. Waylan Showe's approach to running long distances is far from regimented. A few years ago, he was so impressed with people who can run a 50-mile race in one day, he decided to try it himself. He had only run short distances, such as in gym class, but he wasn't intimidated. He signed up for the JFK 50 Mile and started running - whenever he could, however far he felt he could go that day. He didn't set a specific training schedule or goal.

Heavily rooted in U.S. history, what has become the JFK 50 Mile ultramarathon began as a challenge issued in the early 1900s by President Theodore Roosevelt, who demanded that his ranking military officers be able to lead their men 50 miles in a 20-hour time period. Six decades later, President John F. Kennedy initiated a similar physical fitness movement. In celebration of both men's vision and leadership, the JFK 50 in Washington County started in the spring of 1963 as one of numerous 50-mile races held around the country, but many were never run again following Kennedy's assassination in November 1963.