Island runner Scott Harvey placed prominently in the USA Track and Field (USATF) Club Cross Country Championships, held in Tacoma on Dec. 14.

More than 1,500 athletes across the United States gathered to compete at the Chambers Bay Country Club. Harvey, age 74, competed in the 70+ division representing Club Northwest in the 8K race.

For the second time in three years, he was a scoring runner for the second place team, placing 11th overall. At the same time, he defeated 28 runners in the 60+ division.

With a time of 38 minute, 35 seconds, Harvey maintained an average 7:46 pace in his race despite what he reported as “classic” cross country conditions: After weeks of rain, and multiple high school meets, the course was a sloppy, muddy mess. The 20 mph winds, gusting to 40 mph, on race day dropped the wind chill below freezing at times, Harvey said.

Harvey was the seventh fastest runner in their seventies in the 2022 championships race in San Francisco, earning a time of 37:35 for Club Northwest — he was also the fastest in his five-person team that year.