Josephs, Holzhausen Win Inaugural XTERRA Georgia Trail Marathon

WINDER, Ga. -- Nearly 450 runners from 16 states came out to Fort Yargo State Park to participate in this inaugural marathon distance trail race of the XTERRA Georgia Series.

In the XTERRA Thrill in the Hills marathon distance, Lawrenceville’s Errol Josephs, 40, set the standard with his winning time of 3 hours, 31 minutes, 58 seconds. Behind him was Johnny Garner, 47, of Oakwood, in 3:33:56.

Amanda Holzhausen, 37, traveled all the way from Indiana to take home the top women’s prize in 3:45:03. Placing sixth overall, Holzhausen crossed the finish line more than four minutes ahead of Cynthia Bartus, 32, of Atlanta.

The half-marathon was won by Atlanta’s David Bell, 27, who blazed through the 13.1 mile hill-covered course in 1:18:00, and 24-year-old Elena Linn of Marietta in 1:32:13.

This was the fifth of six races in the 2010 XTERRA Georgia Trail Run Series, and with just one more chance to earn season points.

Those ending the season with the highest scores will be crowned XTERRA Georgia Regional Champions and earn free entry to the XTERRA Trail Running National Championship on Saturday, September 18, 2010 in Bend, Oregon. Then on Sunday, December 5, 2010 area athletes are invited to the Hawaiian island of Oahu for the XTERRA Trail Running World Championship.

For more information about the XTERRA Trail Run Series, visit XTERRAtrailrun.com