For the first time in the races' brief history, the majority of participants were female. That dispelled any notions that trail races -- those pitted, rooted, rocky, and uneven rustic cousins to the neat-and-tidy road race -- might be the less attractive option for lady runners.

Not this race. Not these ladies, who stormed the Carolina North Forests with grit, determination, and grace.

And "See Jane Run," a local group of running mothers founded by 1996 Olympian Joan Nesbit Mabe, dominated the medal stands. She also founded the annual Pumpkin Run 4K, which like The Philosopher's Way draws attention to the beauty of the same Carolina North Forests in which her group often trains.

"The Janes have a goal race every season, this year we picked it early, and we'd been looking forward to it all year," she said. "We're out on our home course."

"They were pretty impressive today," said Steve "Squonk" Hoge, one of the founding members of the Trailheads. "They were running very fast."

Nesbit Mabe was among the very fastest. She blistered the 7K single track trails to victory in 33:16.4, with fellow "Janes" Hollis Oberlies (35:46.9) and Julee Waldrop (38:25.5) in second and third place overall, respectively.

"I was just really happy that Sarah Jane (her daughter, a top runner for Chapel Hill High School) wasn't here today, because she would have beat me." Nesbit Mabe said.

Janes also swept the masters category -- with Karen Coffee (38:29.2) in first, Mimi O'Grady in second and Terri Bennett (39:15.3) third -- and Janes comprised nine of the top-10 finishes in the 7K. See Jane Runners Christine Osborne, Meredith Bolon, Christine Cotton, Kelly Monroe-Porco, Cindy Miller, Patti McKnight, Lisa Turner, and Jenny Kopczynski dominated the ladies 7K 40-49 division.

Leslie Beckwith (1:17:59.2) was first overall in the women's 15K, and Virginia Purcell won the women's 15K masters.

Flat out fast

Among the men, it was Nick Krouse (27:49.4) earned gold in the 7K event, with Ian Edwards (29:34.2) earning silver, and Kernersville's Derek Kaat (29:38.1) capturing the bronze.

Jesus Serafin (33:53.5) won the 7K's master males division, Durham's Barton Bechard (1:14:50.5) finished first in the 15K masters.

"I felt pretty good," said Beckwith, who drove from Fayetteville, for the event. "I was a little slow at the end, but it wasn't bad. The heat wasn't bad. The course was nice and shady, and there were no steep hills."

"All my trail runs are on the roads at Fort Bragg," Beckwith pointed out, "because the roads are all dirt roads, but I don't get the major hills there, but I love trail running."

In the men's marquee 15K run, it was Durham's Daniel Williams (1:03:51) surging late past local Duncan Hoge (1:04:07.1) for a narrow victory.

"I was totally dead, I hadn't trained all week, and I was not ready for this heat," said Hoge, who would graduate from UNC the following day.

"I definitely went out fast and I had some fun in the woods, but then I got hit by the heat about three-quarters of the way through, and that was that," Hoge explained. "Dan (Williams) came out of nowhere, and I tried to hold him off, and I tried to hang with him for a little bit, but he was definitely moving."

Hoge led and looked strong through the first half of the 15K race.

"About six miles into the race I asked the guy by the side of the trail how far up the road Duncan was, and he said about 20 or thirty seconds," Williams said. "I ran him down and then we stayed together for a few minutes, but I still had energy, so I just kept on going."

Williams said he found the heat and humidity that settled in on Saturday morning to his liking, as his recent training had prepared him for far worse.

"I just got back from Haiti a few weeks ago, and it was really hot there, so this is nothing," said Williams, who was in the earthquake-ravaged nation working with Haitian Outreach Ministries.

Building bridges

The Philosopher's Way, named in honor of former UNC philosophy professor Horace Williams, is the second of two annual events staged by the Trailheads, noted race director Joseph "Marmot" Lea. The other is January's Little River Trail Run at the Little River Park Regional Park and Natural Area on Guess Road in northern Orange County.

Carolina North Forest Management's Jerry McGovern said proceeds from Saturday's event would be used for trail maintenance in Carolina North..

"This year's money will help go toward bridges that span wetlands and things like that," he said. "Nothing in particular: just in places that need it. Carolina North is just glad to host this race."

Members of the Trailheads (www.trailheads.org) seek to promote the joy of trail running, support members' healthy life styles, to celebrate and enhance the natural environment through various means, including introducing runners to local natural resources like Carolina North Forests.

While the Pumpkin 4K Trail Run founded by Joan Nesbit-Mabe's "See Jane Run" women's running group follows a wider course through the same woodlands each autumn, the Philosophers' Way races are run on single-track trails through the forests under the banner: "Enter, Learn, Return."

"We had really broad support from our sponsors," Trailhead and race organizer Layna "Willow" Mosley said. "We had 25 or 30 sponsors. We had our title sponsors (Fleet Feet Sports Carrboro, The Open Eye Café, Balanced Physical Therapy / Balanced Movement, and New Balance), but we also had dozens of other sponsors. We had about 55 prizes to raffle off over and above the winners' prizes."

"This is the first year that we've (gone three deep in age-group prizes): that was the biggest change," Lea said. "We really wanted to provide nice stuff, but it was also an opportunity to educate the businesses about this resource and the role it plays in the local community.

"In terms of businesses we approached, there were simply not many that we approached that were not on board."

Runners were also eager to participate in what is quickly becoming a local rite of spring.

"We had 320 runners that checked in," Lea said. "With college graduations and Mother's Day this weekend, there were not a lot of other races competing with us. We hit it, and it worked."

Up next

Men's 15K winner Daniel Miller said he would next tackle the grueling Grandfather Mountain Marathon. Next up for women's overall winner Leslie Beckwith would be another trip from Fayetteville in search of trails.

"I'm running the Uwharrie Rumble trail half marathon," she said.

Next up for the Trailheads will be the usual retreat from hot summer pavement for cool pines this summer before beginning to plan for next winter's Little River Trail Run once again.

For now, however, organizers can bask in the cool knowledge that more and more people are finding it fun to get lost in the woods now and then.

"I think the trees are happy," Hoge said, gazing around the race site on Saturday morning.

"It takes a lot of people who like to have a lot of fun to put on a great trail run," he added. "I'm always encouraged when I see that nearly a third of the runners that show up for an event like this -- and maybe more -- had never been to the Carolina North Forest before now. It's still bringing people in."

And that notion does a great honor to the original nurturing spirit: Mother Nature.