If you live or work in Nashua, you’ve probably seen Thomas Parker. He’s the fit-looking fellow who runs up and down Main Street.

The WMAC runs the Grand Tree trail running series, a string of 23 races in Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Hampshire (also one each in Rhode Island and upstate New York), from Northern Nipmuck in early April to Stone Cat in mid-November. They include some of the toughest foot races in New England, through streams and up and down steep, rock-strewn slopes, usually for about half-marathon distance or longer.

Speed counts, of course, but the WMAC also awards points simply for finishing. The winner of a race gets 100 points. Everyone else gets a percentage score, by dividing the winner’s finishing time by their own. After several such races, you can generally get an idea of where in the pack you might finish.

The WMAC keeps a running total of points based on percentage scores. The more races you run, and the faster you finish, the more points you get.

Thomas Parker, 40, of Nashua, ran strongly in 20 races this year, and racked up 1,428.48 points, more than anyone else. Michelle Roy of Groton, Mass., was the top Lady Stonehead, and seventh overall, with 15 races.

I don’t believe there’s any prize money, but it’s a heck of an accomplishment, so I second WMAC scribe Will Danecki: Way to go, Thomas! Way to go, Michelle!

A total of 1,858 people ran at least one of the 23 GT races, the club reports, and that’s up 285 from last year, which in turn was more than the year before that… apparently trail running is catching.

You have to finish at least six Grand Tree races to get an official GT score, and only 67 runners did that. I was one of them, barely. I would have run many more if not for my bum hip, but I managed six for a score of 396.64 (40th out of 67). Series champs were Greg Hammett, 30, (he and Ben Nephew seem to be taking it in turns the past few years) and Deb Livingston, 32, both of Mass.