More than 700 hard-core runners congregated in Ajijic Sunday, July 19 to tackle the rocky, rain-slicked trails of the back-to-back 2015 Chupinaya mountain races. At the end of the day, Guadalajara’s Fernando “Dory” Mejia Gonzalez sailed through as the overall champion on the 13.8-kilometer long route.

Clocking a time of 1 hour, 27 minutes, 36 seconds, Mejia (above) was more than ten minutes off the record set in 2011 by U.S. runner Joe Gray. Victor Santana, Esteban Rodriguez Vazquez, Santiago Carsolio Avila and Jose Isabel Gonzalez crossed the finish line within an hour and a half to earn the other four spots on the winner’s podium.

Karina Carsolio Avila (above) nailed first in the female division with 1:49:19 on the stop watch, as Sandra Paulina Alcantar Ortiz, Yolanda Rodriguez Briones, Marcela Camarena Sanchez and Andrea Mora Reyes came in close at her heels under the two-hour mark. 

The lady champ took seventh position overall in the field of 500 registered competitors – 128 women and 372 men – who completed the formidable contest dubbed the Reina del Occidente (Queen of the West).  

A total of 179 runners competed in the collateral 6.5KM recreational route, with Alexis Calvario Villaloboz taking top honors in the men’s division at 38:31, and Aurora Renteria Corona leading the women with a time of 42:40.

There was no official count of runners who tagged along without numbered bibs after missing the sign-up deadline. Places ran out nearly two weeks ahead of the competition.

The event also featured the participation of more than a dozen athletes running with leashed canine companions and scores of local kids competing in street sprints held in the vicinity of the plaza.