David Melly, 21, of Newton won the Chilmark Road Race with a time of 15:43.31. Sheridan Wilbur, 17, of North Smithfield, R.I., won first place for the women with a time of 18:24.55.

On Saturday morning, a total of 1,600 people will run the Chilmark Road Race. On Friday and Sunday, kids and adults will take part in the Alex Cohen Memorial Basketball Marathon at the community center.

As every Gazette readers know, the Chilmark Road Race just celebrated its 36th year. The Gazette has been a big part of the race’s success with reporter after reporter writing wonderful pre-race and post-race stories along with magnificent accompanying photos from Alison Shaw, Peter Simon, Mark Lovewell, and others.

A pair of first-timers picked up the coveted lobsters from Larsen’s at the 36th annual Chilmark Road Race.

Conor Dooney, 23, of Dublin, Ireland, crossed the finish line in 16:05:31, nearly half a minute ahead of second-place runner Corey Kunz, 32, of Hoboken, N.J., who finished in 16:30:66. Mr. Dooney raced for the Yale University cross-country team and currently competes for his home club of Backfridge in Dublin. The first three runners finished with sub-17 minute times.

Hugh Weisman’s daughter Jennifer Sullivan was 13 years old when the first Chilmark Road Race was held in 1978. On Saturday, Mr. Weisman’s grandchildren, 15 and 18 years old, will run the same course.

“It’s become a big family tradition for a lot of people, and year after year people come back just for this week,” Mr. Weisman.

It is unknown what the winner of this year’s Chilmark Road Race — Hugh Parker of New York city with a time of 16:07:29 — did to prepare for the race. He ran fast and shirtless in the morning downpour, crossing the tape nearly 30 seconds ahead of his closest competitor, David Melly of Newton, and the women’s winner Nnenna Lynch, also of New York city, who finished with a time of 19:21.27. Perhaps Hugh woke early, stretched and ran eight or nine miles just to warm up. He looked that fit and that youthful on Saturday morning.

The noisy, motley group of runners suddenly waxed silent and awaited
the bullhorn. When it blasted, the soles of more than a thousand running shoes
began pummelling Middle Road against a canvas of shadows and golden
light.

On Saturday morning the 25th annual Chilmark Road Race began just as
its predecessors - but with an even richer sense of history, and
featuring a wonderful new gadget.

Hugh Weisman organized the first Chilmark Road Race in 1978 as a fun run for the kids at the Chilmark Community Center. He never imagined that tomorrow, he'd be presiding over the 25th annual event, nor that the road race would grow to landmark stature on the calendar of the Island summer.

"It's been very gratifying," said Mr. Weisman, who now gives up a week of vacation every year to run the race. "I ran into somebody in New York this winter who says he lives for the road race - he's flying up for it.

Said Jack Davies: "It doesn't rain on the Chilmark Road Race."

And for the first 25 years, it didn't. Runners last year, in fact, were reported as traversing the scenic stretch of Middle Road "against a canvas of shadows and golden light." That was hardly the case this year, as runners arrived at Beetlebung Corner decked out in homemade raingear, most of it fashioned from kitchen trash bags. But Saturday morning's thick gray clouds and spotty rain didn't faze the participants; it only put a damper on the takeoff and fostered some ironic humor.

Boarding the shuttle from Beetlebung Corner to the starting line of the 28th annual Chilmark Road Race on Saturday, one could smell the excitement.

The excitement, as it happened, smelled like 50 sweaty runners in a school bus. Race officials blared Highway to Hell by AC/DC in the background, a subtle nod to the day's combination of 90 degree heat and 80 per cent humidity.