Citing health and safety concerns due to the COVID-19 pandemic, officials canceled the Mount Washington Road Race on Tuesday.
The race was scheduled to be held on June 20, however, organizers could not confidently ensure the safety and well-being of runners, staff, volunteers and family members nor predict when federal and state social distancing guidelines, restrictions on large gatherings, travel, and lodging would change.
“As runners, we’re all pretty well tuned in to staying healthy and doing what’s right to take care of ourselves and our fellow runners, so as difficult as this first time ever cancellation is, we all know it’s the right thing to do given the circumstances of this pandemic,” Mount Washington Road Race general manager Howie Wemyss said in a statement. “Still, this is a heartbreaking step that we find necessary to take knowing how much this race means to people and how much has been involved.”
Registered runners have three options moving forward:
■Donate their 2020 registration fee to the Coos County Family Health Center.
■Transfer registration to the June 19th, 2021 race, for a small fee of $20.
■Request a refund and receive 75% of their fee back.
Since the mountain is the star of this particular race, there will be no virtual race option.
This year would have been the 60th anniversary of the race, which follows the auto road f5rom Pinkham Notch, New Hampshire, to the 6,288-foot summit of Mount Washington.
Four-time winner and reigning World Mountain Running Champion Joe Gray was scheduled to run. Last year’s co-winner on the women’s side, Heidi Caldwell, was set to return as well.