Susannah Beck of Eugene crosses the finish line of the womens half-marathon at the Xterra Trail Running National Championship in Bend on Saturday.

Elite runners from Eugene made the trip over the Cascade Mountains to battle their Central Oregon counterparts Saturday at the 2008 XTERRA Trail Running National Championship.

The half-marathon (13.1-mile) race was an all-Oregon affair, as runners from Bend and Eugene swept the top three places in the men’s race and the top four places in the women’s event.

Max King of Bend raced to a relatively easy victory in a blistering time of 1 hour, 8 minutes and 1 second. Ben Bruce of Eugene was second (1:09:04), and Ryan Bak of Eugene took third (1:09:41).

In the women’s race, former Olympic Trials marathoner Susannah Beck of Eugene won with a time of 1:23:07. Kami Semick of Bend was a close second (1:23:26), and Lisa Nye of Bend placed third (1:25:11). Katie Caba, also of Bend, finished fourth (1:25:18).

On a sunny and comfortable morning, 225 runners from across the country raced a half-marathon course that started and finished in Bend’s Old Mill District and took participants along the Deschutes River Trail and other trails and dirt roads southwest of Bend.

“Ryan (Bak) and Ben (Bruce) decided they wanted to run fast today, so I got a little nervous,” said King, who competed as a member of the Oregon Track Club with Bak and has run the steeplechase against Bruce. “It was a bit of a surprise. But I just felt good and comfortable the whole way — and just had some fun.”

Bak and Bruce, both 26, kept King, 28, in their sights until the 2008 Olympic Trials steeplechaser from Bend pulled away during the last two miles.

“They had me running scared, which makes me run well,” King said.

King actually sort of recruited Bak and Bruce to the race. Bak said he was visiting King in Central Oregon last weekend with his girlfriend, and King persuaded him to return this weekend for the race. Bak and Bruce made the drive from Eugene together.

“Max was recruiting some competition,” Bak said, “and we ended up going 1-2-3 with Max recruits.”

Bruce said he and Bak, who competed in the 2008 Olympic Trials in the 5,000 meters, were both “virgins” to trail running, giving King an advantage over the road and track runners.

“Every technical section (parts of the course with natural obstacles), he’d gain another 10 seconds on us,” Bruce said.

From the Old Mill District, the championship course proceeded along the paved trail on the east side of the Deschutes River and crossed over the footbridge from Farewell Bend Park onto dirt trails on the river’s west side. The middle portion of the course included the dirt and gravel Haul Road that parallels Century Drive. Runners then headed toward the river from Entrada Lodge and turned around at Meadow Camp to run along the river. They headed back via the lodge and the Haul Road to the finish at the Old Mill District.

Women’s winner Beck, 40, said she camped at Devils Lake near Mount Bachelor on Friday night and made the short drive Saturday morning to the Old Mill District for the race.

She led the women’s field until Semick caught her at about mile 7 near the turnaround at Meadow Camp. Semick took the lead, but Beck passed her on the way back into town and managed to hold off Semick at the finish by just 19 seconds.

“I was not expecting to place,” said Beck, who was fourth at the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in 2000 and eighth at the trials in 2004. “I just started training a couple weeks ago.”

Beck said the XTERRA course, which included just 1,000 feet of elevation gain and was relatively nontechnical, suited her well.

“It’s my kind of course because I’m a former road racer,” she said. “But it was great to have Kami in there to keep me honest.”

Beck edged Semick in July to win the USA Track and Field National 50-Mile Trail Championship in Crystal Mountain, Wash.

Semick, 42, said she did not know Beck was in the XTERRA field until she recognized Beck’s running gait in front of her after the start of the race. Semick was not exactly pleased to see her.

“I thought, ‘I know that running style — darn it,’” Semick said. “She’s got great leg speed. I took the lead at Meadow Camp, and I knew I had to put distance on her. She passed me on Haul Road. I was within 10 feet of her until that last mile.”

King and Beck each took home $1,000 for their victories. The top five finishers in both the men’s and women’s divisions were awarded shares of a total prize purse of $5,000.

XTERRA also hosted 10-kilometer and 5K races on Saturday. Andy Martin of Bend — who likely would have been a contender in the half-marathon race if not for a foot injury that currently is preventing him from running longer distances — easily won the 10K in 35:29. Dennis Durling of Bend was second (41:36), and Adam Van Berckelaer of Costa Mesa, Calif., finished third (41:55). In the women’s division of the 10K race, Becky Bjork of Bend was first (43:53), Leah Shirley of Bend was second (45:18), and Noelle Harer of Seaside was third (45:38).

In the 5K, Mike Olson of Bend won the men’s division with a time of 16:54. Scott Abrams of La Pine took second (18:54), and Michael Sotos of Ashland claimed third (19:50). The top three 5K women’s finishers were all from Bend: Nicole Smith was first (21:18), followed by Linda English (23:09) and Sara Yellich (24:13).

The XTERRA Trail Running National Championship is the culmination of the yearly XTERRA U.S. Trail Run Series, which since last October included 50 races staged in 15 states. Several regional champions from the series competed on Saturday. National champions were crowned in a number of age groups.

The XTERRA race, run by the private Honolulu-based company of Team Unlimited, is a nonsanctioned national championship. Other championship races are sanctioned by USA Track and Field, including the USA Mountain Running Championship (7.6 miles) and four USA Trail Running Championships at distances of marathon, 100 miles, 50 miles and 100 kilometers, staged at various locations throughout the summer.