Charlotte Lettis (Beaverton, OR) was the first official women’s finisher in the race. She won Mt. Washington in 1972, making the 7.6-mile ascent up the Auto Road in one hour 40 minutes 8 seconds. In 1975, she ran again, placing second in 1:46:40. In addition to her groundbreaking performance at Mt Washington, she was a national class runner in the mile and the 1,500, qualifying for the 1976 Olympic trials. An early leader in the movement to recognize women’s running not only as a fitness exercise but as top-level athletic competition, she produced a 2005 documentary about how women’s distance running had evolved over the last 50 years.