Josh Eberly, of Gunnison, won the Black Canyon Ascent with a time of 41 minutes, 23 seconds.

Photos: Gallery 1 ** Gallery 2 ** Gallery 3

Video: Race start ** Interview Kim Dobson ** Interview Josh Eberly ** Race start

MONTROSE - She had left the other women in the race far behind. With a mile to run in the 41st Black Canyon Ascent, Kim Dobson battled against the top men for overall position.

Her spring training had been on point, but she didn’t know what to expect on the six-mile road course that climbs 2,000 feet to the edge of the iconic Black Canyon. Then she glanced at her watch and discovered that a new women's race record was possible, but she’d have to hustle.

“I just told myself I’d better get going,” Dobson said.

She hit the finish line in 44 minutes, 53 seconds, about 12 ticks better than her old record.

“I’ve been feeling pretty good in training, and we now live in Eagle (Colo.) which is right around 6,600 feet elevation vs Grand Junction with is 4,500, so I thought that would help with this race,” she said.

Dobson, 31, is no stranger to big efforts on famous race courses. After having a baby and enduring some injuries, she cherishes the times when she can cut loose and run. And she runs uphill as well as any woman in the country.

"I'm just thankful when I can get out and push hard," she said. "It doesn't matter the time or results. When your body feels good and you can get out and run hard, it's something to be thankful for. So if I can do it, I'm going to give it my all."

She took the lead among the women in the first mile and ran among the faster men as she sailed by cattle grazing on the emerald-green grass of Bostwick Park at about Mile 2.

She has four wins in five starts at the Black Canyon, walking the course once when she was “extremely pregnant.” She'll run the Mount Evans Ascent and then travel to New Hampshire a week later for the Mount Washington Road Race in June.

Ashlee Nelson, 35, of Colorado Springs, was second in the women's race (49:58), followed by Erin McMahon, of Montrose, (57:14,) and Wendy Stalnaker, of Colorado Springs (pictured at right, 57:37.)

The Black Canyon Ascent has become a popular early season event for mountain and trail runners who use it as a conditioning test.

Josh Eberly, of Gunnison, didn't realize the race was scheduled for Saturday when he received a text message from fellow trail runner Peter Maksimow of Manitou Springs. Maksimow's message essentially said this: Come drink a beer with me so that I can  talk you into running this race.

Eberly was game, for the beer and the race, which he won in 41:23.

“I said well, I'm doing a workout so I might as well give it a shot," Eberly said.

A two-time member of the U.S. Mountain Running Team, it was Eberly’s first time running the ascent, and his first time visiting the Black Canyon.

“Right at a Mile 1 I just felt like I’m starting to push, so then I just pulled away and went for it and started grinding the whole way up,” Eberly said.

He had hoped to beat the men’s race record of 39:58 set by Glenn Randall in 2012.

“I was just a minute and a half shy of it, but great day and it just felt like the wind was at your back the whole time,” he said.

Racing for the first time in months as he recovers from a chronic achilles tendon injury, Maksimow finished second in 43:21. Tim Parr finished third in 43:30.

The event kicked off the “farewell tour" for 50-year-old Simon Gutierrez (left), of Colorado Springs, who finished fourth in 44:16. Gutierrez has won three world mountain running masters championships, and has competed on seven U.S. Mountain Running Teams. He says this will be his last competitive year, though he’ll continue to run for fun and help others enjoy the sport. His day didn’t go as planned, but he wasn’t disappointed. He just enjoyed the camaraderie and the views along the race route.

“I really didn’t feel good from the start,” he said. I was fourth at four minutes in and stayed there, so I just turned it into a training run.”

Next stop on the Farewell Tour is the Mount Washington Road Race, where he hopes for a Top 5 finish and the chance to break his own masters’ race record (61:33.)   

Ashleee Nelson, 35, of Colorado Springs, was second in the women's race (49:58), followed by Erin McMahon, 34, of Montrose (57:14.)