Many runners from the Concord area participated and earned several awards during the 64th Delta Dental Mount Washington Road Race that took place on Saturday, June 14.

Although the race was shortened due to potential icy conditions at the summit, it was still an incredible day!

Amber Ferreira from Concord was recognized as the top female runner from New Hampshire, finishing fifth overall among all women. Sean McCauley from Canterbury was the first male runner from the state, and this was his first time competing in the race. Ferreira and McCauley won the Crossan Cup, a special award given annually to the fastest man and woman from New Hampshire. This marks Ferreira’s seventh time winning this award.

Justin Freeman secured second place among New Hampshire runners, finishing just 2 seconds behind McCauley. Freeman is currently ranked No. 1 in the Delta Dental Mountain Challenge, which consists of seven events: Pack Monadnock 10 miler, Ascutney Mountain Run, Race the Cog, Loon Mountain Race, Race to the top of Vermont, the Vertical Ascent Challenge and the Mount Washington Road Race.

Christin Doneski from Hopkinton was honored as the top age-graded runner, finishing third among New Hampshire runners and 10th overall among women. Doneski’s performance this year was extraordinary. In January, she discovered that she had breast cancer and was unsure if she would be able to run at all. After undergoing significant surgery in April, she seemed unlikely to compete this summer. However, Doneski surprised herself by running three to five miles just weeks after her surgery.

Feeling strong and working closely with her doctors at Dana-Farber, she started competing in the Delta Dental Mountain Challenge. Doneski is currently ranked No. 1 for women in the Delta Dental Mountain Challenge!

Eli Lemire from Weare is a newly crowned national champion in cross country (2024) and track and field (2025) within the Yankee Small College Conference. He represents NHTI and placed third among New Hampshire runners, winning his age group.

Our Delta Dental team secured first place overall for the men’s and women’s teams.

The race is held annually during Father’s Day weekend; many fathers wouldn’t want it any other way. Sean Snow and his daughter, Stephanie, from Dunbarton, have maintained this tradition for five years! Sean says that he and his daughter enjoy the fun atmosphere of the race and often laugh on the ride home, reminiscing about the challenges they faced. But they always come back!

Scott Lemire, Eli’s father, has also made this event an annual tradition. Nothing stands in their way; for example, Eli Lemire’s high school graduation conflicted with last year’s race. Eli Lemire celebrated his graduation by running up Mount Washington, and then he received his diploma during the awards ceremony from world champion mountain runner Joseph Gray.

Jon Kovar has been participating in the race for over ten years and brought his son, Finn, along this year. Finn runs cross country and track at Hopkinton High School. Although Finn was ready to run the 7.6 miles uphill, he was relieved when the race distance was shortened. He loved the experience and can’t wait to run the whole distance next year. Finn finished fourth in his age group and was the second youngest runner in the race. Jon expressed his pride in Finn for signing up for such a challenging event.

Rob Rothe, who coaches cross country and the Nordic Ski Team at Hopkinton High School, also ran the race. He took sixth in his age group.

NYFD Running Club

Denis Sweeney is a New York City firefighter with local roots. His mom, Elizabeth, lives in Henniker, and he graduated from Bishop Brady High School. I met Sweeney at the NYC Marathon in 2023. A friend gave me his contact information after I mentioned that I was nervous about getting to the marathon start in Staten Island. I reached out to Sweeney, who put me on his NYFD team for the marathon! That meant I got to ride on their buses, which included a police escort to the start. For a runner, it doesn’t get better than that.

When I learned that Sweeney grew up in nearby Henniker, I knew one way I could thank him. I signed him and his team up for the Mount Washington Road Race. It was a bucket list item for him, and he was excited to share it with his team. Training for the race included some of their daily work of climbing 20-30 flights of stairs while fighting fires in full gear.

They will be back next year for the full distance!

There was some controversy surrounding this year’s race. About a week before the event, runners learned that access to the state-owned summit building would be restricted on race day. The State Parks crew expressed concerns that the building might not meet safety codes if too many runners were inside at once. However, closing the building completely was not a viable option, as runners needed a shelter in case of bad weather after the race.

After several discussions involving the race directors, Tom Raffio, officials with the Auto Road , and representatives of the State Parks, including Gov. Kelly Ayotte and Commissioner Sarah Stewart, a workable plan was established.

Then, on race day, the weather was below freezing at the top. The Auto Road made the call to stop  runners at halfway. Most runners were understanding, but a few were very upset.

Rumors that the race won’t continue are untrue.

Next year, the race celebrates its 65th anniversary.

Ellen Raffio is the Wellness Coordinator at Northeast Delta Dental.