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In his Yukon Cross-Country Championships debut, Dawson City teenager Jack Amos showed that he鈥檚 a force to be reckoned with.

Sporting a Team Yukon singlet, Amos led a handful of laps at the Mount McIntyre trails to win the male 15-17 category six-kilometre race in 21 minutes, 59 seconds. The next best runner was last year鈥檚 winner, Special Olympics runner Darby McIntyre, in 23:33.

鈥淚鈥檓 just happy that I had a steady pace,鈥� said Amos after the race. 鈥淚t was pretty comfortable. I wasn鈥檛 in too much pain, so that鈥檚 good.鈥�

Rounding out the male 15-17 category was Joe Parker (29:34), who suffered from cramping during the last half of the course.

Just over 30 runners participated in this year鈥檚 cross-country champs, on a two-kilometre course. Depending on their age category, they run the loop anywhere from one to five times.

Featured on the loop was Telemark Hill, which course designer Don White said was requested by several of the runners.

鈥淲e could have excluded Telemark Hill, but a number of people wanted to run it,鈥� he said.

Perhaps it was an exercise in pain management.

鈥淚t鈥檚 long and it鈥檚 steep,鈥� said women鈥檚 open division winner Lindsay Carson 鈥淚t鈥檚 really gravelly and that鈥檚 where it gets steeper. It鈥檚 tough just trying to get your footing and you鈥檙e really trying just not to walk up it.鈥�

She thinks people might find it especially tough on a course like this where you have to run it a few times.

鈥淵ou have to do it every single lap and you know it鈥檚 coming,鈥� she said.

Carson, who raced the Eastside 10K road race last weekend, treated Sunday鈥檚 race as a training run leading into her cross-country season.

鈥淚t was a good thing to get my head into the cross-country mindset,鈥� she said.

Her season continues with the B.C cross-country championships in late October, followed by the Canadian cross-country champs in Kingston, Ont. at the end of November.

The runners began with a downhill mass start from the cross-country ski team wax room, clearing the stadium and heading out on the trails for their laps.

鈥淭he guys took it out pretty conservative, so I just hung on the back end of them and then my goal was each lap to try to pick it up,鈥� said Carson. 鈥淚 guess my goal was to probably to reel in Brendan (Morphet) by the end of my race, which I did, so I was happy.鈥�

Carson and Morphet have been trading race wins this season on the local circuit.

At the Yukon River Half Marathon, Morphet edged her out for the win and at the Yukon 10K road championships in late summer, Carson took the win.

On Sunday, Morphet completed the lap five times, winning his category in 37:30. He was joined on the podium by visiting runner, Patrice Zutcher (47:53).

For some of Sunday鈥檚 field, the race will be a tune-up for the main event, the B.C. Cross Country Championships held in Nanaimo at the end of October.

It鈥檚 certainly a race that Amos is preparing for.

He鈥檇 like to run three kilometres in under nine minutes, a feat he said he鈥檚 pretty close to. He also wants to stand on the podium.

White will be taking a group of young runners down to the Vancouver Island race.