Most years, the Moffat County Invitational could best be described as an uphill battle for Bulldog distance runners and everyone else on the grounds of Loudy-Simpson Park.

That was not the case this past weekend — at least not literally.

The MCHS boys cross country team took a group win Saturday as part of their home meet, the first of three running events they will host this fall.

The big alteration for the MCHS Invite was the reworking of the 5K course to do two laps around the park while cutting out the southern hill that is usually a staple of the race.

head coach Todd Trapp said there were several factors that led to the decision this year, namely the tricky terrain.

MCHS senior Haven Carr led the boys, third overall in the field of 94 high school runners, with freshman Jonas Pressgrove sixth and junior Zach Womble eighth in the top 10.

Carr noted that while the hill wasn’t part of this year’s run, it was still challenging.

“That last mile kind of got me,” Carr said. “I’m kind of glad we didn’t do the hill because the gravel up there is really rough on the ankles.”

Womble added that he felt Saturday was “mentally better” for himself and his teammates.

“Now it’s just a flat course where you can just go,” he said. “You don’t have think about it as much.”

For Bulldog girls, Hayden sophomore Sydney Wattles was runner-up to Rangely’s Taya Wren, clocking in at 20:01.39, setting a new personal record with a goal of breaking the 20-minute mark this season.

“I had a big kick at the end, and I’m really happy with my finish,” she said. “It was a lot faster course without the hill.”

Kimber Hume is the lone senior on a young girls team, in her second year of cross country, and like most of the team she also hit a PR.

“With Trapp’s coaching, I’ve definitely improved a lot over a year,” Hume said. “All of our girls did really good today.”

Saturday marked the district championships for the junior high level, with Steamboat Springs locking up the boys and girls team results.

Craig Middle School had several runners make the top 10, including Kaden Kuberry ninth in the boys race and Elise Lenker third for the girls, followed by Emma Virden and Melany Hernandez in ninth and 10^th, respectively.

Later this month will mark the first time Trapp has hosted three meets in one season.

Following the Whistle Pig Invite Oct. 17 at Yampa Valley Golf Course — a collaboration between MoCo and Steamboat Springs — the next week the action will be right back at Loudy for the 3A Region 1 Meet.

With hosting duties rotating among Western Slope teams, this happened to be Moffat County’s year.

Trapp noted that teams that don’t always make their way up to Craig were out on Saturday getting a feel for the course, and his athletes will hold a small advantage with their familiarity with the park.

Even though it’s not the route his older runners know from previous years, it still pushes them in new ways.

“We don’t have the bill, but we do have some small, tight laps and go through the Nature Trail,” he said. “It’s good just to see what kind of speed we can get on it.”