Same course was used from 1954 to 1960 @UMO...Total of 449 (over 500 registered)runners in 3 divisions (L,M,S) (2.5 miles)...(L)Results: (1)Sam Burgess (Morse)12:11 (2)Herman Pellitier (Caribou) (3)G.Smith (Bangor) (4)John Parola (Thornton) (5)M. Murphy (P.I.)12:51.5 (6)Bob Hillgrove (Rockl)12:52 (7)W. Martin (Cheverus) (8)Dick Farley (Brewer) (9)W. Hanson (Houlton) (10)J. Smith (P.I.)...Notes...In his first year of running, Soph sensation Sam Burgess set a course record that was set the year before ('59) by Jerry Crommett (Portl)the NEW ENGLAND mile champ, by 13 seconds...It was to be the first of 3 in a row in the Class L division...The following week, Sam led in the N.E. X-country meet by 15 yards with less than a quarter of a mile to go when he pulled up lame with a nasty pull...Burgess would go on to win a couple of State mile titles in track......B

On the 50th year of running: Best effort: In the fall of '61, Sam Burgess (Morse High) & myself came into the state meet (14-0) (2 1/2 miles)undefeated....Both of us had set records on every course...No regionals, then....I took the lead from the gun; hit the mile (4:39??). No one had ever been ahead of Burgess for that distance.. When Burgess went by me, it was like a run-away train...I went into oxygen debt & just barely hung on for 2nd, beating the 3rd & 4th place runners by a 3 second total...i crawled to the UMO football goal posts & ^%$#@ ....Throat was sore for 3 days..must have been 800 watching the race (basically, no other outdoor sports @ the time)The "cheering" for all the runners is still echoing.......B