A family gathering

It was 1979 when Chester Williams took his family to the picnic grounds of Narbona Pass.

Foot racing was popular among the Diné and important to the Williams family.

C.J. Carl was about five years old when his dad took him on this picnic and came up with one of the most successful races on the Navajo Nation.

"It was back in the early 80s during Memorial Day weekend," C.J. Carl said. "We had a family picnic at the picnic grounds, back then my dad was into running. We had a cookout there, they (uncles and dad) said, 'Well this would be a good place to make a course, have a run.'"

Then that July 4th weekend, the family held a race. They thought 30 or so runners might show up but instead about 100 did.

Crystal, N.M., native Louise Q. Mark ran in that very first race 30 years ago. At the time Mark was 16 and won the 10K race.

She was young and an avid cross-country runner.

Over the years, Mark has stopped by many times to see how the Washington Pass Classic, now called the Narbona Pass Classic, is holding up.

"The challenge is still there," Mark said. "There are more people that are prepared for it."

Family camp outs

And now families flood the picnic area. Some camp out days before the event and others set up their lawn chairs to watch runners make their way in alongside the road.

Mark ran cross country in high school and at Northern Arizona University.

She said she doesn't recall her time in the first race but is sure it is nowhere near what runners run today.

"It's nothing compared to what they do now," she said.

For the 46-year-old member of the Navy Reserve, who spent July 4th weekend a year ago in Iraq, one thing that brings her back to the event is the scenery.

"There's a lot of races throughout the Navajo Nation but this is probably the one where you get the highest elevation, that's probably the challenge right there," she said.

Local professional runners like Brandon Leslie take advantage of the course year after year.

"This is a great competition, they've done it for years, it just shows you that caliber of the race," Leslie said. "What more could you ask  for than racing in the mountains?"

Leslie ran in the 2007 Olympic Trials in the marathon and is one of the most influential Diné runners.

At this year's Narbona Pass Classic, he finished second in the 10K race with a time of 38:07, behind Diné College cross-country runner Nicholas Kipruto, who set a new record with a time of 34:07.

The old record was 34:42 set by Pablo Vigil.

Leslie said the race was more of a fun family event for him. Professional races are held all over the world but Leslie said the Classic gives the Navajo people a chance to see him run.

"A lot of people don't get to see me run around here," he said. "I'm always running somewhere else. I first ran road races in the 80s. I like coming back it just depends on the race schedule. I think that's positive motive to come here and come out with family.

"My son, his grandparents ran today," he added. "He got to share it with them."

Runners of all ages

Leslie said it was good to see runners and non-runners of all ages to show up for the event and see everyone have fun and some taking running seriously.

"They're all talking, 'I want to train harder,'" he said. "Last year's race I finished three minutes faster. Me coming out here I don't put that much pressure on myself, I just like to keep it fun."

Leslie said after the 2007 Olympic Trials he was on the verge of retiring but the running itch came back. Now, Leslie said he's thinking about racing again and has scheduled a marathon in the fall.

"I've been thinking about it the last couple of years, they (family) were excited about that," he said. "They were really excited to hear that I wanna give it another try."

No matter the level of competition, runners were all in for a treat. The course is designed to be challenging, it always has been and always will be, according to Carl.

Carl said after his father ran the event for 25 years he handed it down to him and his brothers and Carl enjoys every thing about the race.

Carl said the work is plenty but the payoff is great as many runners pay tribute to the course.

"Thirty years, how many races are 30 years?" he said. "I think they like the hills. There are three hills - Old Sandy, Back Breaker and Goat Hill."

The names of the hills are self-explanatory but the challenge of the course is not known until it has been explored.

Lance Williams, a Diné College cross-country runner in his second year of collegiate competition, said he's ran in the Classic's 10K for four years. This year he came in third with a time of 39:46.

Special environment

"The years before it was really competitive for me," Williams said. "After four years of running this, I just understood the course more. I am better prepared.

"I love the weather, the trees, the environment," he said. "You're surrounded by so many people and it's competitive running."

Nikki Johnson, 15, a runner from Navajo Pine High School, said she encouraged family and friends to attend the event.

Johnson said she's been to the race for at least two years, and this year she finally placed, taking home the second-place trophy in the 14- to 19-year-old girls' 5K division.

"Going up the hill was hard for me," she said, "but coming down was the most competitive part."

Young runners included Miles Beck, 5, Kayla Beck, 6, and Esther Beck, 9. The three are siblings to Allison Bedonie, the former Eldorado standout who will run for the University of New Mexico's cross-country and track teams. She is from Beeshbitoh, Ariz.

Their father Darrell Beck said the children have a natural interest in running.

"We just run all the time," he said. "We're a running family. These kids enjoy it."

Darrell Beck said the family camped out for two nights. He said they hope to have another future college runner in the family.

With family, friends and other visitors at the event, Carl was happy with this year's event.

"Seems like there was a lot more people than years before," he said. "It was bumper to bumper. Overall it went very well. I had good responses."

And after 30 years one of the oldest races on the Navajo Nation holds up deep in the mountains and hills of Narbona Pass.

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