Running News Daily

How to Prepare For Your First Running Event

Are you signed up for your first running race this year? If so, you might be wondering what to do next. Many of us register for a 10k or half marathon in the hopes that doing so will simply motivate (or pressure) us to get to the finish line, and sometimes, it does. But let’s face it, Forrest Gump was just a movie. In real life, without proper preparation, you could wind up injured, unable to finish, or not even make it to the starting blocks, all of which would be really disappointing, to say the least.

Preparing for your first race requires careful planning, from training and getting the right kit to goal-setting and pre-race fuelling. Proper preparation ensures you’re physically ready for the race, have the energy to keep going and can overcome race day nerves, all of which will mean you have a more enjoyable race, and are likely to make it the first of many.

1. Set a goal

Once you’ve chosen a race and signed up, it can be smart to set an achievable goal. This can give you something to focus on during both your training and your race, and that can help you stay motivated, while achieving your goal can also give you a greater sense of satisfaction (for this reason, it’s a good idea to set a secondary goal in case you don’t make your primary goal.

Your goal could be something ambitious, like running a sub three-hour marathon, but it can easily be as simple as just finishing the race. When I did my first triathlon in 2012, I simply wanted to finish and I wanted to do so without walking during any of the running section. I didn’t finish anywhere near the podium, but I managed to achieve my goals and I was really happy with myself.

2. Make a training plan

For injury prevention, it’s obviously vital to make a smart training plan, and to leave yourself enough time before race day to actually execute it. There is no one way to train, and your plan will depend on where you’re starting and where you want to get to, but just as a rough idea, in our first marathon training plan we recommend 12 weeks for seasoned runners, but a full year for novices. 

The most important aspect of training to remember is to build up gradually to give your body time to adapt to each increase in load, make ample room for rest and recovery and if possible, work with a coach and train in conditions similar to those you’ll be racing in.

3. Gear up

As you get closer to the big day, you’ll need to start to consider your gear. You’ll need to choose trail running shoes or road running shoes and have trained in them for a while to be sure they’re right for you. If you’ve already put in a ton of miles of them, you may need to replace them with an identical pair a few weeks before the race, and break them in. Once you’ve found the perfect pair of running socks, have a new or nearly new pair set aside for race day.

Use your training months to figure out what clothing you’re most comfortable in, taking into account the expected climate and conditions. Are you happiest in a pair of running shorts or do you prefer running tights? You’ll need a well-fitting running top that’s breathable and doesn’t chafe, and consider whether you want to run with a headband or running hat if you're expecting sunny conditions.

Remember, the general rule for running is light, breathable clothing that wicks moisture, but everyone is different. Reigning UTMB champ Courtney Dauwalter is well-known for running in baggy men’s running shorts and shorts, which isn’t common, but it definitely works for her.

4. Rest up

You’ll spend months slowly ramping up your mileage in order to reach your race distance, but once you get there, you’ll want to start to reduce both your distance and intensity in the final couple of weeks before your race, a practice known as tapering. During this time, you’ll focus on easy runs. 

In the final two days before your race, get complete rest and lots of sleep. If you’re not a great sleeper, read our article getting better sleep for some tips on improving your sleep hygiene and routine.

5. Recce your route

Ultra runner Renee McGregor has ranked highly in some pretty rugged races, from Snowdonia to the Himalayas, and when I heard her talk about her accomplishments, she described making the podium in a gnarly race where the majority of participants took a wrong turn. Her advantage? She wasn’t necessarily the fastest runner, but she had checked out the race course ahead of time and knew where to go.

Understanding your route before you take off, if possible, can help you plan for when you’re going to want to slow down, or walk, where you can gain back some time, when and if you’ll need running poles and any tricky sections in a trail race where there’s the possibility of getting off-route.

6. Get in the right headspace

In addition to your physical training, it’s advisable to give your mental state some attention. Running a race can be exhilarating and empowering but it can also be nerve wracking and daunting. In the months leading up to your race, it can be worthwhile practicing mindfulness or meditation, which a 2020 study published in the journal Neural Plasticity found improved coordination, endurance and cognitive function. This could help you in the lead up to the race and in combating race-day nerves.

Know yourself and understand what you’ll need the day before your race and morning of to ensure you’re in the best head space possible. It might be good to minimize social contact and give yourself some quiet time to focus and get in the right headspace.

7. Fuel up

Just like filling up the tank of your car before you set off on a long drive, you’re going to want to make sure your body has plenty of energy stored before a race. For a race that’s not likely to take much more than an hour, you can simply make sure you eat well in the couple of preceding days, but fueling for endurance races can take careful fine-tuning. Following his second-place win at the 2023 UTMB, Zach Miller revealed that for him, managing his sodium levels with salt tablets was the secret to success.

For longer distances, you might want to consider increasing your carbohydrate intake – a practice known as carb loading – to increase your body’s glycogen stores. The best nutritional advice is to focus on well-balanced meals with protein and carbohydrates and not going overboard on refined carbs or fiber, which might wreak havoc on your gut. Learn more in our article on carb loading.

Though you should definitely eat well in the days leading up to your race, if you’re going to be able to eat during the race and are loading your hydration vest up with running gels, then you don’t necessarily need to carb load, but you will want to make sure your stomach can handle gels and take them with plenty of water to avoid the dreaded “runners' trots.”

Ultimately, for longer endurance races, working with a dietician will give you an advantage, since every athlete and every race is different. This will help you avoid the pitfalls of low energy availability and might help you figure out your unique nutritional needs faster. 

8. Pre-hydrate

As we explain in our article on hydration tips for runners, hydration for a race doesn’t begin with filling up your hydration pack. Your behavior in the days before a long run can really affect your hydration levels on the big day, so avoid dehydrating foods like caffeine and alcohol.

According to Susan Kitchen, registered dietitian and USA Triathlon Level II and IRONMAN certified endurance coach, if you’re training for a big race, you want to avoid being in the heat unnecessarily in the days leading up to it, unless you're just doing a training run, but sitting outside on the beach sweating, or in a sauna, is not a good idea. Sip plenty of water in the days before your race, too.

9. Make a recovery plan

Chances are, all of your energy and efforts will be focused on that finish line, but the longer the race, the more you’ll want to make a recovery plan, otherwise it’s all too easy to end up having too many celebratory beers, which after a long run can be a bad idea. 

Try to plan for at least a couple of days off work following your race to recuperate, hydrate and nourish your body, schedule a massage and engage in some of your favorite recovery activities to reward your body for all its hard work.

10. Set your alarm

The night before race day, make sure you set your alarm nice and early so you have plenty of time to prepare. Chiefly, you’ll want to have time to sip water, eat and give yourself enough digestion time before the starting gun goes. 

In our article on what to eat before a half marathon, we explain that nutrition experts recommend runners eat a familiar breakfast around three to four hours before the race start, or a large snack 90 minutes to two hours beforehand. When deciding what time to get up, factor in that meal as well as how much time you need to get to the race plus any other pre-race rituals you want to observe.

(09/11/2024) Views: 173 ⚡AMP
by Julia Clarke

UTMB Is Having a Golden Moment. But It’s Delicate.

After a year that included a maelstrom of controversy, the world’s most prominent ultra-trail running event has righted its path

“It felt like a golden era of trail running.” 

That quote came from Keith Byrne, a senior manager at The North Face and a UTMB live stream commentator for nearly a decade, who was talking about last summer’s UTMB World Series Finals in Chamonix, France.

The UTMB races during the last week of August last summer were, I thought, the most alluring in the event’s 20-year history.

After years of being frustrated by the course, American Jim Walmsley finally put it all together for a victorious lap around Mont Blanc. In doing so he became the first U.S. man to win the race, setting a course record of 19:37:43. He and his wife, Jess, had moved from Arizona to live full-time in France to make it happen. And then there was Colorado’s Courtney Dauwalter, who won the race handily in 23:29:14 to notch her third victory and continue the strong legacy of American women on the course. The win felt extra historic because it made her the first person to win Western States, Hardrock, and UTMB in the same year—arguably the three most legendary and competitive 100-mile events in the world, and she dominated each one.

The events came off without a hitch and included record crowds in Chamonix, plus a record 52 million more tuning into the livestream.

Throughout the fall and winter, harmony and happiness seemed to give way to chaos and discontent. But a year later, as the UTMB Mont Blanc weeklong festival of trail running kicks off on August 26, everything seems back to normal in Chamonix. What happened along the way is a tale of drama, perhaps both necessary and unnecessary, all of it culminating in course corrections by the multinational race series.

In short, what a year it has been for UTMB.

And now, hordes of nervous and excited runners from all corners of the globe are descending on Chamonix for this year’s UTMB Mont-Blanc races. Registration for UTMB World Series events is reportedly up about 35 percent year over year with even greater growth in interest for OCC, CCC and UTMB race lottery applications. There is more media coverage, more pre-race hype, and more excitement than ever before. More running brands are using the UTMB Mont Blanc week to showcase their new running gear with media events, brand activations, and fun runs. Even The Speed Project—although entirely unrelated to UTMB—chose Chamonix as the starting point of its latest so-called underground point-to-point relay race to try to catch some of the considerable buzz UTMB is generating.

So what happened? Did the UTMB organization do its due diligence and make amends with several significant changes in the spring? Was the angst and stirring of emotions just not as widely felt as the fervent bouts of Instagram activism claimed it to be? Have the participants and fans of the ultra-trail running world suffered amnesia or become ambivalent? Or is it all a sign of the race—and the entire sport of trail running—going through growing pains as it adjusts to the massive global participation surge, increased professionalism, and heightened sponsorship opportunities?

On the eve of another 106-mile lap around the Mont Blanc massif, I wanted to take a look at what happened and the current  state of UTMB’s global race series that culminates here in Chamonix this week.

We caught a glimpse of what was to come shortly before UTMB last year, when the race organization announced the European car company Dacia as its new title sponsor. A fossil-fuel powered conglomerate didn’t sit well with some fans of the event, coming amid an era of widespread climate doom (even though the brand would be highlighting its new Spring EV at the UTMB race expo.) The Green Runners, an environmental running community co-founded by British trail running stars Damian Hall and Jasmin Paris, called it an act of “sportswashing” and released a petition calling on UTMB to denounce the partnership. (Hall even traveled all the way to Chamonix to deliver the petition in person.)

These grumblings of discontent and others that followed exploded into a social media firestorm shortly after UTMB. In October, it became public that UTMB had moved to launch a race in British Columbia, Canada, just as a similar event in the same location was struggling with permitting. A he-said, she-said back-and–forth left onlookers with whiplash. Then on December 1, UTMB livestream commentator Corrine Malcolm announced on Instagram that she had been fired and in late January, a leaked email from elite runners Kilian Jornet and Zach Miller to fellow athletes called for a boycott of the race series. All of it, jet fuel for social media algorithms.

“We’re at a turning point in trail running, but we can keep the core values if the community stands up,” the Pro Trail Runners Association secretary, Albert Jorquera, told me at the time.

In the midst of these dramas, I interviewed race founders Catherine and Michel Poletti over lunch at a Chamonix cafe. For nearly a decade now, I have met with the couple for candid conversations that helped frame online articles and magazine stories, and most recently for the book, The Race that Changed Running: The Inside Story of UTMB.

I plunged headlong into two articles with hopes of explaining it all. There was so much heat swirling around the UTMB stories, and so little light.

“The very thing that made ultrarunning so bonding was being torn apart by the community itself through social media,” said Topher Gaylord. A former elite runner who tied for second in the inaugural UTMB in 2003, Gaylord engineered UTMB’s first title sponsorship with The North Face and has been a close supporter of the Polletis for 20 years. “Some players are using social media to divide the community. That’s super disappointing.”

To me, it felt like the aggressive online activists were winning the day. Trail running suddenly seemed polarized, infected with the intertwined social media viruses of false indignation and close-mindedness. Twice, I deep-sixed my article drafts. Friends and editors convinced me they wouldn’t be read dispassionately. Who wants to be handed a fire extinguisher, when your goal is to torch the house?

Well, what a difference eight months can make. We now have some perspective and, with it, some answers.

Since its earliest days, UTMB’s volunteer founding committee believed in the values of the sport. The very first brochure produced for the race—a mere sheet of paper—featured a paragraph on values. In later years that statement became much more comprehensive, expanding to cover a wide range of topics and the race’s mission to support and protect them.

But maintaining those values in an organization that has gone from a singular race with a literal garden-shed office to a 43 global event series with a staff of more than 70 full-time employees is tricky at best. In an interview once, Michel Poletti paused, asking if I had seen a photo of a mutual friend that was making the rounds. He was climbing one of Chamonix’s famed needle-sharp aiguilles, one foot on each side of a razor sharp ridge—a perilous balancing act, big air on each side. It was his metaphor for trying to move ever up, while balancing business growth and heartfelt values.

Over the course of dozens of hours of interviews with the Polettis, I came to learn one thing: UTMB always moves forward up the ridge.  In the process, UTMB corrects its course. It starts with a careful analysis after each edition, evaluating pain points in areas such as logistics, security, media, traffic, and others, discussing how they can be addressed.  Historically, those course corrections haven’t been at the pace others might want—especially since the social unrest that developed during the Covid pandemic—but the organization has a reliable pattern of steadily addressing concerns.

And so, not too many weeks after that lunch meeting, UTMB set to work. First came a heartfelt effort they kept under the radar—traveling around the U.S. to listen and learn. They spent two weeks in the U.S. in February, visiting with American athletes, race directors, journalists, consultants, and their Ironman partners. “We need to learn from our mistakes and from this crisis,” Michel said.

Methodically over the ensuing months, UTMB rolled out a series of changes. Some were aimed at directly addressing the controversies, others were overdue for what is, by any metric, the world’s premier ultra-trail running event.

“My hope is that the trail running community understands that we are human,” Catherine had told me over the winter.

Four months ago, at the end of April, the race organization announced that Hoka would become the new title sponsor of UTMB Mont-Blanc and the entire UTMB World Series through 2028. It was a huge move because Hoka, one of the biggest running brands in the world, essentially doubled-down on its support of UTMB and trail running in general. The five-year deal brought benefits other than cash, too. Hoka has a strong history of inclusivity and growing representation among marginalized communities, an area UTMB  has announced it intends to focus more on beginning this year. The deal also moved Dacia out of the title sponsor limelight, instead bringing a brand with a strong reputation in trail running to the fore.

Dacia was shifted to the role of a premier partner in Europe, and now plays an integral part in a new eco-focused mobility plan UTMB updated in July. Fifty of their cars can be signed out for use by over 70 staff and 2,500 volunteers, encouraging them to arrive in Chamonix using public transportation instead. The move is estimated to eliminate 200 vehicles driving into the valley. (The organization’s new mobility plan will transport an estimated 15,000 runners and supporters, eliminating the need for approximately 6,000 cars during the UTMB Mont-Blanc week. On average, a bus will run every 15 minutes between Chamonix and Courmayeur, Italy, and Chamonix and Orsières, Switzerland.)

In May, UTMB announced a new anti-doping policy it had developed with input from PTRA. The organization committed to spending at least $110,000 per year, money that will be allocated to test all podium finishers and a randomized selection of the 687 elite athletes in attendance. The new policies will be implemented by the International Testing Association, an independent nonprofit that has also conducted two free informational webinars for the 1,400 UTMB Mont Blanc elite runners.

Not long after the announcement, Catherine Poletti suggested this was just a start. Speaking at TrailCon, a new conference held in Olympic Valley, California, on June 26, she said, “It’s a first big step for us. And we’ll continue to develop this policy.” (The most important anti-doping protocol may still be beyond UTMB, however. “The elephant in the room is that we need a coordinated approach to establish out-of-competition testing,” Tim Tollefson, an elite U.S. runner and director of the Mammoth TrailFest in California, who spearheaded independent testing at his event in 2023. “Individually, we’re just lighting our money on fire.”)

In mid-June, UTMB addressed a longtime issue with top runners—prize money. A chunk of the funding from the ratcheted-up Hoka sponsorship was directed to supporting the bigger prizes for the OCC, CCC and UTMB races in Chamonix—about $300,000 this year, nearly double of 2023—as well as more prize money for the three UTMB World Series Majors. (The sequence was intentional. The organization wanted a new doping policy in place before increasing prize purses, since large cash awards are often thought to lead to a growth in doping.)

It’s a move that was long overdue—the most celebrated marquee event in any sport should reward its top athletes more than any other event—but not possible without Hoka’s increased involvement. The proposal was shared with PTRA in advance of the announcement, and the group provided feedback that was incorporated into the final divvying up of the purse.  The total amount spent on prize money across all UTMB races is now more than $370,000.

“We increased the prizes quite dramatically,” said UTMB Group CEO Frédéric Lenart. “It’s very important for us to support athletes in their living.”

Finally, just last week, UTMB announced a new department within the company called “Sport and Sustainability.” The group is headed by longtime UTMB staffer Fabrice Perrin. He was a driving force behind the creation of UTMB’s live coverage back in 2012. Heading up relations with the pro athletes will be longtime elite trail runner Julien Chorier.  Nicolas LeGrange, UTMB’s Director of Operations, will be in charge of sustainability and DEI, Diversity, Equity Inclusion.

On the DEI front, UTMB is calling its strategy “leave no one behind,” and they promise new initiatives coming this fall so that, according to Perrin, “every athlete feels a sense of belonging within our community,” he says. “I am committed to ensuring that we perfect symbiosis with the entire community of trail running.”

UTMB has already begun to embrace adaptive athletes, something it was criticized for lacking as recently as last year. This year’s UTMB Mont Blanc races will feature a team of 12 adaptive athletes who will be participating in the MCC, OCC and UTMB races. Under the direction of adaptive athlete and team manager Boris Ghirardi, who lost his left foot and part of his left leg after a motorcycle accident in 2019, the race organization recruited the athletes from around the world to showcase how adaptability and resilience are key elements of the UTMB values.

“I proposed this program to make a concrete action around adaptive athletes and the inclusion policy, and to prove that it was possible,” he said this weekend. “If you really get everyone working on this,  you can change the game.”

And with that, UTMB Mont-Blanc 2024 is underway, resuming the golden era status that Byrne raved about last August. Starting this past weekend, banners have been unfurled over Place du Triangle de l’Amitié in the heart of Chamonix, kicking off the carefully choreographed trail running Super Bowl that is UTMB. The excitement begins on August 26 and culminates as the race for UTMB individual crowns reach a tipping point on August 31. (The golden hour of the final finishers on September 1 will be something to behold, too.)

“It’s like wrapping the Tour de France, Burning Man, and the biggest industry trade show into one giant, week-long festival,” Gaylord says. “It’s an amazing week for our sport, one of the biggest showcases we have.”

The aura of Chamonix and the opportunity to run a race there is drawing as much or more interest than ever before. It is perhaps the essence of what will keep the UTMB World Series afloat into the distant future. Runners will continue to chase Running Stones at qualifying events around the world, knowing the carrot of running one of the races around the Mont Blanc massif is second to none.

Trail running is booming on a global scale, and it’s not just UTMB shouldering the burden or reaping the benefits. The Golden Trail World Series, Spartan Trail Running, Xterra Trail Running—and even the World Trail Majors, Western States 100, and dozens of other more prominent trail races—are all trying to get a bigger piece of the pie, either by way of money or relevance.

UTMB Mont Blanc, as trail running’s most important race, is at the very beating heart of it all. And trail running is a soul sport, so when change and growth happen, it can feel threatening to all of us whose lives have been changed for the better by time spent with dirt underfoot and blue sky above. UTMB is big enough now that it’s urgently important that it make changes judiciously and preemptively.

As the world’s most significant trail race, the consequences of UTMB’s choices will ripple throughout the ecosystem. UTMB understands this.  “Do we owe something to trail running? Yes, of course we do,” Michel Poletti once told me.  That’s truer than ever now.

At TrailCon in June, Catherine Poletti summed up UTMB’s challenge. “Trail running is changing around the world. We’ve seen that evolution over 20 years. We need to adapt, to find a good balance, to accept different models and ways of organizing.”

Back in August 2021, I wrote an article here called, “UTMB, Don’t Break Our Hearts.” It came the summer after the organization announced its investment from the Ironman Group. Change– big change– was everywhere. Could the race around Mont Blanc maintain its soul and passion amid talk of multinational sports marketing, we all wondered? Michel Poletti closed the interview by saying, “Nous prenons un rendez-vous dans trois ans.” Simply translated: “We’ll schedule an interview in three years.”

Three years is now, and both UTMB and trail running’s landscape have changed dramatically, if not literally then certainly figuratively. We’ve seen UTMB adjust its rudder this past year, responding to concerns. Perhaps not at the pace any individual or specific group would like, and not to the extent some would wish. But it’s happening, and for that we should all breathe a cautious sigh of relief. Because if you love trail running, you have to care about what happens at the world’s biggest trail race.

As I write this in Chamonix very early on the morning of August 26, overcast skies are parting and blue skies are in the offing. The forecast for the week ahead is for bright sun with a few clouds. It’s a workable enough metaphor for trail running’s future. But one thing has to happen for it to come true. The race that changed running needs to continue to listen to its stakeholders around the world, and engage with them as it grows and develops in the days ahead. If that happens, Byrne’s vision of the golden age of our sport just might linger on. I can hope.

(08/31/2024) Views: 227 ⚡AMP
by Outside Online

Hardrock 100 Denies Zach Miller’s Attempt to Race After Appendectomy

After recovering quickly from the emergency surgery on July 5, Miller was hopeful to start the 100-mile race through Colorado's San Juan MountainsZach Miller had been looking forward to running the Hardrock Hundred Mile Endurance Run in southwestern Colorado for years.

The 35-year-old runner sponsored by The North Face received entry into the 2024 event via one of race director Dale Garland’s six personal picks, and with a solid regimen of training under his belt, Miller appeared to be one of the favorites for this year’s event on July 12-13. But on July 5, he woke up in Silverton, Colorado, with considerable abdominal pain. Doctors in Durango, Colorado, initially thought he might have been suffering from kidney stones—the pain was consistent to a 25-hour episode he said he suffered in mid-June—but a few hours later, he had an emergency appendectomy via a laparoscopic surgical procedure.

Miller’s appendix didn’t burst, but doctors removed it because they believed it was imminent. But soon after the procedure, he said he started thinking about the chance to be on the Hardrock starting line. He said he was walking around the hospital later in the evening after the procedure, and the next day, after he was released from the hospital, he walked about 3 miles in Durango. The following day, he rode his gravel bike in Silverton without any pain, and the the day after that—three days after the surgery—he was back running the trails around Silverton with mild post-surgical discomfort.

By Wednesday of this week, after running 8 miles and 6 miles on back-to-back days, Miller said he had hoped to start the 100.5-mile event and received verbal consent from his doctor. By Thursday morning, that consent came in written form, which he then submitted to Hardrock officials.

Miller said he had consulted with his doctor, his girlfriend, Jess, and several other people close to him and decided he wanted to continue with his intent to run. He said he didn’t feel any pain running this week, only some slight discomfort from the suture closures at the three point-of-entry holes in his abdomen that provided access for the laparoscopic procedure.

However, the Hardrock board of directors met with its medical advisors on Thursday and decided Miller would be ineligible to start the event. (Hardrock officials did not respond to RUN’s request for an interview or statement about the situation.)

“The recovery’s been really smooth, every day’s been better,” Miller said Thursday afternoon. “I ran the past four days and biked the other, and I felt surprisingly good. Honestly, I felt like I could go out there and give it a good hard go. Would I have? I don’t know, but I felt like there was a shot.”Miller said he understands the liability and safety concerns—both for his health and for the heightened potential of on-course evacuation if a problem did arise—and respects Hardrock’s decision.

“I think if they gave me the green light, it was pretty much decided I was going to go for it,” said Miller, who finished second at the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc in Chamonix, France, last summer. “But we didn’t get it, and that’s just the way it is, so I’ll just move on from here. There’s definitely some disappointment, but it was a difficult and unexpected situation, and nobody wanted to be in that situation and making those decisions. As much as it hurts, it’s understandable, and it’s the responsible thing to do.”

In the months leading up to Hardrock, Miller had been running 140-150 miles per week between 40,000 and 56,000 vertical feet of gain training in Bend, Oregon, Manitou Springs, Colorado, and eventually Silverton. He said he hopes to maintain his fitness and then pivot to another event or a potential fastest known time attempt in the near future, but said on Thursday he hadn’t yet thought about that in detail.

On Thursday evening, after learning he wasn’t going to be able to run, he went on a two-hour run near Silverton that covered 12 miles with 1,200 feet of vertical gain.

“There are still some good races left for the year and there’s always plenty of projects and FKTs to consider so the fitness I’ve enjoyed from the training doesn’t have to be wasted,” he says. “It’s still there and I can hopefully go use it somewhere else.”

(07/20/2024) Views: 276 ⚡AMP

Ludovic Pommeret Wins Hardrock 100 in Course-Record Time Courtney Dauwalter is on course-record pace, trying to win the race for a third consecutive year

 This is an ongoing story that will continue to be updated as more runners reach the finish line in Silverton, Colorado.]

Maybe you forgot that Ludovic Pommeret was the 2016 Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc champion. Or that he was the fifth-place finisher in Chamonix, France, just last year. Or maybe you thought the 49-year-old Frenchman was past his prime. Either way, he reminded us all he’s at the top of not only his game, but the game at the 2024 Hardrock 100.

The Hoka-sponsored runner from Prevessin, France, took the lead less than a third of the way into the rugged 100.5-mile clockwise-edition of the course after separating from countryman François D’Haene, the 2021 Hardrock champion and 2022 runner-up, and never looked back. Pommeret progressively chipped away at the course record splits—a course record, mind you, set by none other than Kilian Jornet in 2022—to win this year’s event in 21:33:12, the fastest time in the race’s 33-year history. Jornet set the previous overall course record of 21:36:24, also in this clockwise direction in 2022.

(Pommeret kissed the rock in to complete the course in 21:33:07 at 4:33 A.M. local time, but race officials credited him with the slightly slower official time.)

“It was my dream (to win it),” Pommert told a small collection of fans and media after winning the race at 3:33 A.M. local time. “I was just asking ‘when will there be a nightmare?’ But finally, there was no nightmare. Thanks to my crew. They were amazing. And thanks to all of you. This race is, uh, no word, just so cool and wild and tough.”

On Friday, July 12, 146 lucky runners embarked on the 2024 Hardrock 100. Run in the clockwise direction this year, it was the “easy” way for the course with a staggering 33,000 feet of climbing and an average elevation over 11,000 feet thanks to the steep climbs and more tempered, runnable descents.

Combined with relatively cooperative weather (hot during the day on Friday, but no storms) and a star-studded front of the pack headlined by Courtney Dauwalter and D’Haene, the tight-knit Hardrock 100 community was on course record watch.

And the event delivered—along with a whole lot more.

On the men’s side, the front of the race took a blow before the gun even went off when Zach Miller, last year’s Ultra-Trail du Mont Blanc runner-up, was denied entry after undergoing an emergency appendectomy the weekend before.

Despite the heartbreak of being forced to wait another year to participate in this hallowed event, Miller was very much a presence in the race, most notably for slinging fastnachts (Amish donuts) from his van in Ouray for race supporters and fans.

Such is the spirit of this event, deemed equally as much a run as a race.

The men’s race was further upended when D’Haene, in tears surrounded by his wife, three children, and friends, dropped from the race at the remote Animas Forks aid station (mile 58). An illness from two weeks before proved insurmountable for the challenge ahead. That blew the door wide open for the hard-charging leaders ahead.

Pommeret had built a 45-minute lead over Jason Schlarb, an American runner who lives locally in Durango, and Swiss runner Diego Pazosby, the time he had left the 43.9-mile Ouray aid station amid 85-degree temperatures. His split climbing up and over 12,800-foot Engineer Pass (mile 51.8) extended his lead to more than an hour over Schlarb and nearly 90-minutes at the Animas Forks aid station.

“I thought it was great. To run off the front like he did, and then just hold that all day and get the overall course record is pretty awesome,” Miller said. “When Killian did it, two years ago, it was a, it was a track race between him, Dakota, and François, after they got some separation from Dakota, it was Kilian and and François, all the way to Cunningham Gulch (the mile 91 aid station) and then Kilian just torched it on the way in. So yeah, it was super, super impressive for Ludo to do that. That’s a very impressive effort.”

The sleepy historic mining town of Silverton, Colorado was unusually hectic at 6 A.M. on Friday. In the blue hour before the sun poked over the San Juan Mountains looming above, 146 runners toed the start line of the Hardrock 100, marked by flags from the countries represented by competitors on either side of the dirt road.

With the sound of the gun, runners jogged off the start line—their caution a tacit sign of respect for the monumental challenge of what was to come. As the runners passed through town to the singletrack wending its way up to Miner’s Shrine, group of men headlined by  D’Haene, Ludovic Pommeret, Diego Pazos, and Jason Schlarb quickly took command of the front, the bright yellow t-shirt of Courtney Dauwalter was easy to spot just behind, along with Katharina Hartmuth and Camille Bruyas.

If they weren’t awake already, runners certainly were after crossing the ice-cold Mineral Creek two miles into their journey before starting the grunt up to Putnam Basin. At the top of a sunny, grassy Putnam Ridge (mile 7) 1:34 into the race, the lead pack of men remained, while Dauwalter had made a statement solo just three minutes back from the men and four minutes up on Hartmuth.

Dauwalter was smiling and chatty when she reached the KT aid station at mile 11.5, in 2:24 elapsed. By Chapman (mile 18.4), four hours in and 10 minutes under her own course record pace, she was pouring water on her head under the blazing sun. Things were heating up—in more ways than one.

When Pommeret galloped into Telluride (mile 27.7) after 5:37 of elapsed time in the lead, he was right on Jornet’s course record pace. One minute, some fluids and restocking later, and he was gone.

But wait, it was still a close race! D’Haene charged into Telluride just  two minutes later and hardly stopped before continuing on through downtown before busting out the poles and starting the steep, steep 5,000-foot climb up Virginius Pass to the iconic Kroger’s Canteen aid station nestled into a notch of rock at the top at 13,000 feet.

Not to be outdone, the women’s race proved equally thrilling coming into Telluride. Bruyas bridged the gap up to Dauwalter, and the two ran into town together in 6:25 elapsed. Both took three minutes in the aid station, although that must have been enough social time for Dauwalter, as she pulled ahead marching up the climb, poles out and head down. A bouncy Bruyas alternated between hiking and jogging just behind.

But time again again, Dauwalter’s long, powerful stride simply proved unparalleled. By Kroger’s (mile 32.7) Dauwalter had reestablished her lead by five minutes over Bruyas and 17 ahead of Hartmuth in third. She’d built that gap to 10 minutes in Ouray at mile 43.9, but she left that aid station in less than two minutes with a stern, serious look on her face. But as she crested Engineer Pass at the golden hour, wildflowers blanketing the vibrant green hillsides basking in the setting sun, she enjoyed a 30-minute lead in the women’s race and was knocking at the door of the men’s podium.

While Dauwalter forged ahead with her unforgiving campaign for a third straight win, the men’s race started to rumble. Like Dauwalter, Pommeret continued to blaze the lead looking strong as he trotted down Engineer to the Animas Forks aid station at mile 57.9 in 11:39 elapsed. He hardly stopped before continuing on to Handies Peak, which at 14,058 feet marks the high point of the race. He had blown the race wide open.

An hour and 15 minutes later, Schlarb, looking a bit more beleaguered, ran into Animas Forks with his pacer, where he sat down and changed his shirt while receiving a pep talk from his partner and son. But he made quick work of the time off feet nonetheless, and three minutes later he was back at it, seven minutes before Pazos appeared.

While D’Haene arrived just 10 minutes later, he did so in tears, holding the hand of his youngest son. After a considerable amount of time sitting in the aid station, surrounded by his family and crew, he called it quits. The lingering effects of an illness from just 10 days before proved too much to overcome as the hardest miles of the race loomed ahead.

While D’Haene pondered his fate, Dauwalter blitzed into Animas Forks in 13:26 with that same look of determination, 16 minutes ahead of course-record pace. She briefly stopped to prepare for the impending night, picking up her good friend and pacer Mike Ambrose to leave the aid station in fourth overall. Bruyas maintained her second place position 30 minutes back, with Hartmuth in third about 20 minutes behind her.

Pommeret continued charging ahead solo, increasing over Schlarb and Pazzos by more than two hours late in the race. When Pommeret passed through the 80.8-mile Pole Creek aid station at 10:44 P.M., it shocked the small group of race officials, media and fans watching the online tracker from the race headquarters in Silverton. Based on that split, it was originally calculated that Pommert could arrive as early as 2:34 A.M.—which would have been a finishing time of 20:34—but he didn’t run the final 20 miles quite as fast as Jornet did in 2022.

Behind him Pazos caught Schlarb to take over second place before Pole Creek and increased the gap to four minutes by the Cunningham aid station (mile 91.2).

Pommeret, who develops training software for air traffic controls in Geneva, Switzerland, didn’t break into ultra-trail running until 2009 when he was 34 years old. He was third in UTMB that year—behind a 20-year-old Jornet, who won for the second straight year—the first of seven top-five finishes in the marquee race in Chamonix. (He was third in 2017 and 2019 and fourth in 2021 and 2023.) He also won the 90-mile TDS race during UTMB week in 2022, and the 170-kilometer Diagonale des Fous race (Grand Raid La Reunion) on Réunion Island in the Indian Ocean in 2021 and placed sixth in his first attempt at the Western States 100 in California in 2022.

Last year, Pommeret placed 13th overall in the Western States 100 and nine weeks later finished fifth at UTMB behind Jim Walmsley, Miller, Germain Grangier, and Mathieu Blanchard.

“We know Ludo is a beast, but to be a beast for so long, for so long is so impressive,” Miller said. “He’s 49, which by all means is a capable age in this endurance world. But I think anytime someone 49 does something like that, it’s gonna turn some heads because that would’ve been a really good performance for anyone. To have the track record he’s had—winning Diagonale des Fous, UTMB and Hardrock, that’s pretty impressive.”

Courtney’s Final 

By the time Dauwalter was pushing her way up Handies Peak, she had a smile on her face and engaged in playful conversation with media and spectators on the course. She had good reason to smile: she was feeling good and she had increased her 10-minute lead at Ouray to more than 60 minutes. Dauwalter went through the Burrows aid station (mile 67.9) in less than a minute, while Bruyas came in an hour later and spent four minutes refueling before heading out again.

Three hours after Pommeret had passed through the Pole Creek aid station (mile 80.8), Dauwalter arrived at 1:54 A.M., still in fourth place overall about 50 minutes behind Pazos and Schlarb. She took a little more time there, but was back on her feet in four minutes and running strong again and still on record pace. Bruyas walked in to Pole Creek at 3:08 A.M. in sixth overall, but the gap behind Dauwalter continued to widen.

Dauwalter was in and out of the Maggie aid station (mile 85.1) in two minutes and blazed through the Cunningham aid station (mile 91.2) even faster. The race seemed to be in hand at that point with Bruyas more than 90 minutes behind (in fact, someone updated Wikipedia and declared her the winner not long after Pommeret finished), it was just a matter of how fast she could finish.

(07/14/2024) Views: 295 ⚡AMP

The queen of ultradistance Courtney Dauwalter is set to defend her Hardrock 100 crown

Courtney Dauwalter , the queen of ultra-distance running, will once again put on trail running shoes this Friday to compete in the Hardrock 100 , the prestigious 165-kilometer mountain race with 10,000 meters of positive elevation gain that takes place in the San Juan Mountains in Colorado, United States.

The American runner will try to defend the title she won in 2023, when she won the race with a record time of  26h14:08 , although this year, unlike last year, the race will be run clockwise.

"It's a great race, very tough and difficult. I'm coming back because all my participations here have had very tough moments, and I hope to be able to soften those moments a bit and finish the race without so many difficulties," said Dauwalter in an interview with iRunFar.

The reigning Transgrancanaria and Mt. Fuji 100 champion will face her main opponents in Germany's  Katharina Hartmuth and France's  Camille Bruyas , second in the UTMB Mont-Blanc in 2023 and 2021, respectively.

On the men's side, the main figure will be the French runner François D'Haene , who wants to repeat his victory from 2021 and, why not, beat the circuit record belonging to the Spaniard Kilian Jornet (21h36:24).

American Zach Miller is on the roster, although he is likely to miss the event due to recent appendix surgery.

The Hardrock 100 begins and ends in the town of Silverton and passes through some of the most spectacular mountain scenery in the United States, home to elk, bears and cougars. The highest point is Handies Peak, at 4,200 meters.

The race will start on Friday 12th July at 6am (2pm in Spain) and can be followed live on YouTube .

(07/11/2024) Views: 245 ⚡AMP
by Matias Camenforte

Jim Walmsley, Mathieu Blanchard will return to UTMB in 2024

2023 UTMB champion Jim Walmsley and 2022 second-place finisher Mathieu Blanchard have confirmed they will appear at this year’s Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) final, which takes place in Chamonix, France on Aug. 30, according to a report by iRunFar. A number of other ultratrail elites have also been announced, including the U.K.’s Tom Evans, who finished third in 2022 and who won Western States 100 in 2023, and Canada’s Christian Meier, the former pro cyclist who won the 145-km TDS race last year. 

On the women’s side, Canada’s Marianne Hogan (who finished second in 2022) is confirmed, as are 2022 champion Katie Schide of the U.S., France’s Claire Bannwarth and New Zealand’s Ruth Croft (who won Western States in 2022). (Three-time UTMB champion and course record holder Courtney Dauwalter does not appear on the list.)

Four-time champion Kilian Jornet and 2023 second-place finisher Zach Miller will also not be returning. After the October, 2023 announcement by UTMB and its minority partner, the Ironman Group, of a new race in Whistler, B.C. in 2024, and the Dec. 1 announcement that UTMB livestream announcer Corrine Malcolm had been fired, the two publicly questioned the organization’s decisions and its treatment of athletes. There was talk of a boycott, though Jornet and Miller dispute this; in the wake of all of this, regular discussions between UTMB and the Pro Trail Runners Association (PTRA), of which Jornet is a founding member, became more frequent, with a view to smoothing relations between athletes and the race. 

Walmsley moved to France for two years to hone his mountain-running skills before finally winning UTMB on his fifth try in 2023 (he Walmsley first ran UTMB in 2017, finishing fifth; he DNF’d in 2018 and again in 2021, then finished fourth in 2022). Blanchard, who has returned to France after living in Montreal for a few years (and taking out Canadian citizenship), finished fourth last year after following Jornet onto the podium in 2022. Hogan has been dealing with injuries for much of the last year and a half since her podium finish in 2022.

(03/06/2024) Views: 568 ⚡AMP
by Anne Francis

Courtney Dauwalter and Jim Walmsley win 2023 Trail Runner of the Year

Trail running media community Freetrail have announced the winners of the Trail Runner of the Year (TROY), and the epic champions weren’t really a surprise: Americans Courtney Dauwalter and Jim Walmsley, both winners of the 2023 edition of UTMB.

TROY is a global award intended to recognize pro athletes within the sport by ranking their performances during the 2023 racing season. “It’s our hope that TROY will become an annual capstone, celebrating the year in competition,” Freetrail said when they created TROY in 2022.

Traditionally, contests like this one have been country-based, so Freetrail is taking a step toward inclusivity by making the competition international. “TROY is an extension of Freetrail’s mission to elevate the profile of the professional athletes in our sport while helping casual observers and the general public feel connected to their stories – hopefully creating diehard fans in the process,” Freetrail shares on its website.

We had some stellar Canadian athletes on the list, including Ailsa MacDonald of Cochrane, Alta., Edmonton’s Priscilla Forgie, Chilliwack’s Ihor Verys and Montreal’s Marianne Hogan. Americans took the lead, however, after remarkable performances in 2023.

Courtney Dauwalter

Ultrarunner and coach Corinne Malcolm says in the Freetrail announcement that “we are living in the Courtney Era and we aren’t mad about it.” The trail and ultrarunning community witnessed a historic chapter in 2023 as Dauwalter conquered the elusive triple crown of 100-mile races (Western States 100, Hardrock 100 and UTMB 171K) becoming the first person to win all three in one season.

Malcolm captures the essence of Dauwalter’s remarkable journey in 2023 when she says, “We’ve reached peak Courtney.” Before the triple was even an idea, Dauwalter kicked off her season with wins (setting new course records) at Bandera 100K, Transgrancanaria 128K classic, and a record-breaking performance at Western States 100 (WSER).

auwalter’s 2023 season unfolded as an extraordinary narrative of triumphs. Fans watched in awe when she ran to victory at WSER, breaking Canadian Ellie Greenwood‘s long-standing record by 77 minutes, and three weeks later, dominated the Hardrock 100, setting yet another course record.

The unexpected revelation of Dauwalter’s pursuit of the triple crown at UTMB adds a surreal dimension to her already illustrious season. “While she would go on to convincingly win her third world-class 100-mile of the season, completing a triple that will likely never happen ever again, she would also show us she was human, gritting through the final 50 km of the course… Leaving us absolutely speechless in the process,” Malcolm writes.

Jim Walmsley

Walmsley is a beloved fixture in the trail community, known for his immense talent and dedicated work ethic. Fans have followed the evolution of his ultrarunning career. Walsmsley’s journey is one of continuous growth, from three consecutive wins at WSER to a strategic move to Arêches, France, to learn from the likes of Francois D’Haene how to conquer UTMB.

“Just like for many of his mountain colleagues, that would also mean coming into the first spring race of the season off of largely ski fitness,” Malcolm says. “To qualify for the UTMB Finals Jim ran, won, and set the course record at the Istria by UTMB 100-mile race—in the process winning his first 100-mile race that wasn’t WSER.”

While temporarily sidelined with an ankle injury, Walmsley’s determination prevailed as he clinched victory at Trail La Frison Roche and, ultimately, UTMB. Fans watched a nail-biting race, with some doubts as to whether Walmsley would best compatriot Zach Miller, but “a switch flipped at Champex Lac,” and Walmsley secured his win in under 20 hours. Jim’s subsequent triumph at Nice Côte d’Azur by UTMB 100K not only cements his legacy but also earned him a golden ticket to WSER 2024, leaving the ultrarunning community in eager anticipation.

(01/12/2024) Views: 545 ⚡AMP
by Keeley Milne

2023 UTMB Men’s Race

After a history of struggling with UTMB, the American men showed up this year with Jim Walmsley and Zach Miller (pre-race interview) taking the top two-spots on the podium. Two vastly different racers with different approaches to the event, the two were able to push each other from start to end, with Walmsley’s ever-consistent pace finally winning out in the end with a new course-record time of 19:37:43. But with a stacked field, with nine of last year’s top 10 back for another crack at the race, and last year’s champion Kilian Jornet out with injury, it was anyone’s bet throughout most of the race of who would come out on top.

There’s never a non-chaotic start to UTMB, and this year was no different. With nerves and excitement running high, it was France’s Arthur Joyeux-Bouillon (pre-race interview) who led at Saint-Gervais, 21 kilometers in, with the entire rest of the field hot on his heels. But as darkness fell on the race and the kilometers ticked by, several distinct groups began to form. Coming into Les Contamines, 32 kilometers in, it was Zach Miller, Jim Walmsley, and the U.K.’s Tom Evans (pre-race interview) bunched up and running together. It looked like there would be the potential of a repeat of the Miller-Evans bromance from 2022, with the addition of Walmsley as a third. Frenchman Mathieu Blanchard (pre-race interview) and Petter Engdahl (pre-race interview), a Swede who lives in Norway, teamed up just a minute behind the leading trio, and the rest of the top-10 men came in within five minutes of the leaders.

By Col du Bonhomme at 44 kilometers, it was clear that Walmsley was there to put his mark on the race. Miller doggedly hung on 30 seconds back, and Evans came through another 30 seconds in arrears, looking decidedly worse than the two men in front of him. France’s Germain Grangier (pre-race interview), Blanchard, Engdahl, and Joyeux-Bouillon continued to run together just eight minutes off the lead. 

The head of the race remained amazingly consistent over the coming kilometers to Courmayeur, 81 kilometers into the race. Walmsley led Miller by a handful of minutes, Engdahl and Grangier followed, running close to each other in third and fourth, at under 20 minutes back after Evans decided to call it a day. Joyeux-Bouillon and Blanchard stayed within half an hour of the leader in fifth and sixth. 

Ever the aggressive racer, Miller made his move before Arnouvaz, 99 kilometers in. He came through the checkpoint leading a fatigued-looking Walmsley by two-and-a-half minutes. Many wondered if this was just another instance of Walmsley taking the early race out too hard and paying for it later. Grangier, Joyeux-Bouillon, and Engdahl all came through the checkpoint within 30 minutes of Miller, still well within striking distance if either of the two Americans fell back. The rest of the top-10 men also remained close, with a large group containing New Zeakland’s Scotty Hawker, France’s Thibaut Garrivier, Blanchard, Switzerland’s Jean-Philippe Tschumi, and Germany’s Hannes Namberger coming in hot and fast. 

Coming over a dark and foggy Grand Col Ferret at 103 kilometers, Miller extended his lead to nearly four minutes, but Walmsley looked determined and seemed to have found a second wind. Grangier continued to hold strong just 12 minutes behind the leader, and the chase pack of the rest of the top 10 remained relatively unchanged with several of the men teaming up to run the final kilometers to daybreak together. 

It’s always a question of when the actual racing at UTMB starts. That is, when do runners make their move and hope that it sticks? Coming into Champex-Lac at kilometer 126 on Saturday morning, it was starting to seem like perhaps Miller’s early move might be the one that worked for the American. With an 11-minute gap over Grangier and Walmsley, who were now running together, Miller looked strong and focused. But there was still a lot of racing to do, and a lot of mountains between him and the finish.

Whether Walmsley was actually in a spot of bother in the later hours of the night, or if it was all part of his strategy to hold back until daylight, everything changed when the sunlight lit up the Alps. By kilometer 139 at La Giète, he’d whittled his gap to Miller down to two minutes, and by Trient six kilometers later, he’d moved back into the lead of the race, a position he wouldn’t relinquish. Grangier continued to run in third, with fourth, fifth, and sixth place, Joyeux-Bouillon, Blanchard, and France’s Ludovic Pommeret, all moving together 44 minutes back from the battle up front. 

With the kilometers ticking by, Walmsley’s lead only continued to grow. At kilometer 154 at Vallorcine, he was more than 13 minutes ahead of a struggling Miller. Seven kilometers later at Tête de Béchar, the gap was up to 16 minutes. From here, it would be just one more climb up to La Flégère before the course tipped downward to Chamonix. Grangier maintained his third place up the final climb, with Blanchard in fourth and Pommeret in fifth, more than an hour back on the leader. Garrivier ran in sixth, while Hawker and Joyeux-Bouillon were seventh and eighth, 92 minutes back from the lead. 

Once on the final descent, there was no touching Walmsley, and one can only imagine the thoughts and emotions that must have been going through his head. After five attempts at the race, the ultimate student of the course had finally figured out how to put together the race everyone thought he was capable of. He crossed the finish line to huge cheers from the crowd with a time of 19:37:43, breaking Kilian Jornet’s course record of 19:49:30. Wiping away tears while receiving congratulations from past UTMB champion François D’Haene, it was clear how much this victory meant to him.

Fellow American Miller came across the line in second with a time of 19:58:58, looking completely spent. This was his best finish during what can only be called an extended relationship with UTMB starting in 2016. Granger completed the podium with a 20:10:52.

Blanchard, last year’s second-place UTMB finisher, ended just off the podium in fourth. Maybe one of the more impressive results of this years race was of Pommeret in fifth. The 48-year-old masters athlete, who was the 2016 UTMB champion and 2022 TDS winner, showed that age really is just a number. The other surprise in the top 10 has to be Tyler Green, the American who made a late race move to finish in seventh. He didn’t move into the top 10 until Tête de Béchar, 161 kilometers in.

Race favorite Petter Engdahl withdrew at Champex-Lac, 126 kilometers into the race.

(09/03/2023) Views: 742 ⚡AMP
by Eszter Horanyi I run far

2023 Trail World Championships 80k Men’s Race

Starting under cool and clear skies in Neustift, the men’s race went out fast up the “starting loop,” which happened to feature a 1,200-meter (4,000 feet) climb over 8.2 kilometers straight out of the starting gate. While things hadn’t split up significantly over the first climb, both Zach Miller (pre-race interview) of the U.S. and Andreas Reiterer (pre-race interview) of Italy came across the top in the top 10, clearly stating their intents for the day.

Back down in the valley, the two chased Baptiste Chassagne of France as the top three, as the race left the Stubai Valley and headed back up into the mountains toward Innsbruck. Benjamin Roubiol of France, Peter Fraňo of Slovakia, Aritz Egea of Spain, and Thibaut Garrivier of France all ran comfortably in the top 10, though Garrivier looked noticeably distressed compared to the others. Pre-race favorite, Nicolas Martin (pre-race interview) of France, was not in contention and would eventually drop after the halfway point due to knee pain.By the 36k mark, Reiterer had taken over the lead from Chassagne as they went over the biggest climb of the day, tallied at 1,400 meters (4,600 feet). From an outside observer’s perspective, Reiterer looked incredibly comfortable, running well within himself and appearing to have everything under control. Egea, Miller, Roubiol, Garrivier, and Fraňo all stayed in the top 10, all within 10 minutes of each other, biding their time.

Over the course of the next three major climbs, all around 600 meters (2,000 feet), high in the mountains between the two host cities, Reiterer continued to lead the slowly stretching field. The steep trails were no barrier to his steady effort and the race’s cameraman was seen breathing harder than he was. Roubiol followed about six minutes back over the top of the last climb in the series, with Fraňo, Egea, and Garrivier completing the top five, still within 10 minutes of each other. Miller continued to hold on in sixth.More than halfway now, the runners bombed down into the village of Grinzens in the valley at 54k, now back to their original starting elevation, except on the other side of the mountains, with more descending to go before the final climb and descent into Innsbruck.

Reiterer and Roubiol maintained their top-two positions while the rest of the top 10 continued to shuffle amongst themselves with Garrivier continuing to move up in the field and Miller dropping another place into seventh. Miller, looking spry and claiming that he still had legs, continued to keep tabs on the men in front of him, clearly intent on reeling them in.

Continuing down to the low point of the course in Kranebritten at 66k, the top five looked like Reiterer, Roubiol, Fraňo, Garrivier, and Tomáš Fárník of the Czech Republic. Now, all that stood between the front end of the race and the finish was a final 1,000-meter (3,400 feet) climb and a wild drop back down into Innsbruck. While anything could happen, with more than a four-minute lead, it seemed like it was Reiterer’s lead to lose.

But on the final climb of the race, the ever-patient Roubiol made his move, surging into the lead at Aspachhütte at 71k, and opening a four-minute gap on a fading Reiterer. Roubiol looked incredibly focused as he made his way up the mountain. Fraňo and Garrivier remained solid in third and fourth, and Miller started to make good on his promise of still having legs, moving into fifth. The gap between Roubiol and Reiterer only continued to grow, eight minutes at 73k, and nine minutes at 75k, as they made their way to the top of the final climb. Fraňo stayed strong in third, Garrivier in fourth, and Miller and Fárník continued to battle for fifth, 25 minutes off the lead.From there, it was all downhill to the finish. Benjamin Roubiol flew down the final descent to win the 2023 Trail World Championships 80k in 9:52:59. Reiterer followed just under eight minutes back, the gap holding steady the whole descent. Fraňo and Garrivier both held onto their places to finish third and fourth.

I'm Behind them, U.S. teammates Drew Holmen and Eric LiPuma made a strong push to catch up to their teammate Miller. Holmen would out sprint Miller at the line, and the two were followed less a minute later by LiPuma, the trio taking fifth through seventh.

For the team competition, Chassagne would be the third French finisher in 17th place, securing the team victory for France. The strong fifth through seventh finishes of the U.S. men slotted them into second in the team competition, just over five minutes behind the French in over 30 hours of cumulative racing. Reiterer would lead the Italian team to a third-place finish.

(06/10/2023) Views: 639 ⚡AMP

Kilian Jornet Isn't The G.O.A.T. of Trail Running Just Because He Wins Big Races

After Kilian Jornet won the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) for a record-tying fourth time on August 27, it was easy to assume that running 100 miles is something that comes easy to him.

It doesn't, but it would be easy to think that because, well, it sure looked that way.

While the 34-year-old who hails from the Catalan region of Spain has long ago established himself as the G.O.A.T. of ultra-distance trail running in the mountains, he's as human as each of the other 2,300 runners who toed the line at this year's UTMB. Like his fellow competitors, Jornet felt fatigue in his legs from grinding through the 171.5km (106.5-mile) course and its 33,000 feet of elevation gain. He said he had difficulty breathing when he ran too fast or climbed too abruptly, likely the lingering effects of having just overcome Covid-19 earlier in the month.

And, like everyone else, he had to fight off low moments of mental torment, and maybe even a tiny trace of self-doubt-remember, he's human-as American rival Jim Walmsley opened up a big lead on him over the Grand Col Ferret as the course passed from Italy to Switzerland.

But what sets Jornet apart, and what has always distinguished him as an athlete, is a unique combination of physical ability, smart racing strategy and a deep connection to the mountains that allows him to move joyfully, patiently and, at times, seemingly with relative ease amid the physical anguish that comes with running such a grueling race.

But make no mistake, he suffered enroute to winning UTMB in a course-record 19 hours, 49 minutes, even if he made it look easy overcoming Walmsley and dispatching competent French contender Mathieu Blanchard.

"Since the start there has not been a single moment in which I didn't suffer," Jornet said after the race. "I knew that I needed to keep my intensity under a certain threshold where it can be heavy for the lungs, but it was no problem. But muscularly it was very hard from the start of the race."

Jornet is human, even if it took a debilitating illness to show it. But as he turned in yet another masterwork performance on the world's biggest stage, Jornet gave glimpses of what has made him so otherworldly for so long. Perhaps surprisingly, superior physicality is only a small part of it.Patience and Respect

Having already won UTMB three times and Hardrock a record-tying five times-most recently just six weeks earlier-Jornet had nothing to prove in Chamonix. In fact, if he had never toed the line or for that matter retires from competition, his legacy of epic race victories and Fastest Known Time (FKT) records on some of the most difficult trails and biggest mountains around the world would stand the test of time.

But that brings up another element that makes Jornet great is that he has always run as if he had nothing to prove. Sure, he's a competitive athlete, but his focus seems to be more about immersing in the zest of competition and the life-affirming bliss he's always felt in the mountains.

For Jornet, the destination truly is the journey, not the outcome. That adventure-oriented focus was something he learned in his youth growing up in the high-alpine environment of the Cap de Rec mountain refuge in the Spanish Pyrenees, where his dad was a mountain guide and his mom was a ski instructor. He climbed his first peak at age 3 and started competing in ski mountaineering races at 12.

Along the way, he developed a grounded sense of presence in the mountains that has allowed him to remain calm and bide his time in ultra-distance races-especially more rugged mountain races like UTMB and Hardrock. Instead of going all-out from the front, he typically follows a more fluid strategy of just staying in contact with the lead group and letting the race play out a bit as the terrain dictates before becoming hyper-competitive.

Contrast that to Walmsley, who has been hellbent on becoming the first American man to win the race with a front-running mentality, countryman Zach Miller, who returned after injuries and Covid-19 kept him away from continuing the same pursuit for three years, and the hard-charging Blanchard, who was eager to steal the show and make a name for himself in front of a supportive mostly French crowd after a robust third-place finish in 2021.

Even when Jornet was younger, he ran with maturity and wisdom beyond his years, always earnestly clinging to the premise that the experience of racing-and sharing it with his competitors, not to mention spectators and volunteers when possible-is always more important than the actual race itself.

When Walmsley built a big lead with a strong power-hiking surge up the Grand Col Ferret, Jornet was seemingly content, at that moment, to ease through the highest point of the course, chatting at times with volunteers, fans and videographers in French, Spanish or English as he had done at times earlier in the race. In previous UTMB races, he's burst ahead on the switchbacks up Grand Col Ferret and other steep climbs on that course, only to stop on top and wait for his competitors to catch up while gazing at the stars or picking mushrooms with children.

"At Hardrock this year, when I saw him on top of Grant Swamp Pass, he stopped in the middle of the race just to chat with me because we hadn't seen each other in a while," Miller says. "That's just the way Kilian is."A Versatile Mountain Athlete

Jornet has a much more diverse set of athletic skills and abilities than most ultrarunners. In addition to winning ultras, Jornet was a multiple world champion in ski mountaineering and SkyRunning in his twenties. He also set a host of new speed ascent marks and roundtrips on Mt. Kilimanjaro (Tanzania), Aconcagua (Argentina), Mont Blanc (France) and the Matterhorn (Switzerland). Although he missed in his attempt to set a new FKT on 29,032-foot Mt. Everest in 2017, he actually summited the world's highest mountain twice in six days without supplemental oxygen.

When he was a few years younger, he set a new record on the 171-mile Tahoe Rim Trail in California and Nevada and posted the fastest-ever time up the steep, rocky 1.3-mile Mt. Sanitas Trail in Boulder, Colorado.

"Kilian is a beast," says Francois D'Haene, the other four-time UTMB winner who last year became the first to win Hardrock and UTMB in the same summer. "When it comes to Vertical K races and distances from 40K to 100K, I think there is no competition between us. He's faster than me and stronger than me, especially on technical terrain."

Aside from long-and-rugged Hardrock and UTMB, Jornet won the shorter and much faster 42km Zegama Alpine Marathon in Spain and placed fourth in the 31km Sierre-Zinal village-to-village race in Switzerland in August. A lot of it has to do with the fact that he still trains in much of the same fashion as he did as a kid, often focusing more on fun, hard, playful days of adventure on foot or on skis as much as he does structured high-performance workouts.

"Kilian is unique in the range that he can cover," Miller says. "As a runner, his ability to switch back and forth from something like Zegama to Hardrock to Sierre-Zinal to UTMB is just incredible. And because of that ability, I think he's a bit of a mad scientist when it comes to training. He kind of turns himself into a guinea pig and trains in ways other guys might not be willing to for fear of overtraining."

All of that translated into Jornet's ability to win this year's UTMB despite trailing Walmsley by about 15 minutes at the 126km aid station at Champex. When the surging Blanchard caught him and quickly left the aid station, Jornet's competitiveness and mountain practicality started to fire up. They passed Walmsley and gapped him and then ran stride for stride over the ensuing 2,300-foot climb from the village of Trient down into the ski town of Valloricine.

Finally, after leaving the 153km aid station at the same moment as Blanchard, Jornet surged on a gently sloped 4km section of trail to the base of the final 2,600-foot climb up Tte aux Vents. Blanchard got a first-hand view of the master at work and all he could do was watch him run away to victory and hold on for second place.

"Running from Champex with Mathieu, I knew I was stronger going up but that he was catching on the downhills," said Jornet, who has lived in Norway for the past several years with his wife, Emelie Forsberg, and their two young children. "Once we got to Valloricine, the strategy was to push very hard up the final climb to Tte aux Vents and then manage the lead. I had about an 8-minute lead and I was feeling comfortable with it, but in a ultra race you never know, many things can happen."A Transcendent Athlete

At some point a conversation about Jornet should transcend trail running and include the similarities he shares with other great athletes who have had a similarly dominant presence in other sports. And yes, that means Tom Brady, Michael Jordan, Lindsay Vonn, Eddie Merckx, Michael Phelps, Ann Trason, Lynn Hill, Kelly Slater and Eliud Kipchoge.

Why not? Like each of those all-time athletes, Jornet has consistently risen to the occasion at the biggest moments of his career, not only because he physically outclasses the competition, but also because his intellectual prowess as an athlete and his ability to outthink, outwit and outlast them. It's not that he wins everything-although he's won the vast majority of his races since winning UTMB as a 20-year-old in 2008-it's more that he's been competing at the highest level for 15 years and hasn't regressed and has rarely had bad days.

In 2017, he had a rough go of it in the UTMB and finished second to D'Haene and in 2018 he dropped out after inflammation and pain caused by a pre-race bee sting made it difficult to keep running.

"Even his bad races he performs well, and I think that's what makes Kilian special," says Walmsley, who finished fourth at UTMB this year. "Whether it's a bad moment or a bad race, he's always still competing at a really high level. I have raced him twice at UTMB and both times I have thought I have found a crack, but I haven't been able to hold onto it."

Until recently, Jornet might have been viewed solely for his athletic. But with his bold move this year to break away from longtime sponsor Salomon and begin a new environmentally friendly trail running shoe brand called NNormal (with Spanish footwear brand Camper), he's not only begun to hone his entrepreneurial spirit in the world of business but also to make an impact as the environmental steward he's always been.

It's a path only a handful of high-level outdoor athletes achieved success at after making their mark in their sport disciplines, most notably Yvon Chouinard, a climber, surfer and kayaker who founded Patagonia in 1970.

Jornet ran all of his races this year in the same model of NNormal shoes that will be available at running shops and online this fall. It's a uniquely designed shoe that's balanced under the midfoot to promote midfoot and forefoot running gaits, but with enough cushioning to run with a heel-striking stride, especially on downhill sections of a trail. A thin polyurethane plate provides protection from rocks and some energy return, while a proprietary version of a Vibram Litebase Megagrip outsole serves up secure traction.

That all might sound pretty standard, but Jornet really wants his NNormal shoes to stand out for their durability. He and his colleagues have gone to great lengths to source long-lasting components, but they've also designed the shoe to be deconstructed so it will be easy to re-sole, repair or recycle it after hundreds of miles of wear and tear. It's all part of NNormal's No Trace philosophy that is all aimed at transparently designing gear with the smallest carbon footprint possible.

"There are a lot of good guys in the sport, but in [my] mind, Kilian is the king of the sport," says Miller, who was the fifth finisher at UTMB this year. "He sets the tone for the entire sport and [is] a great representative of the sport."

(09/03/2022) Views: 1,186 ⚡AMP
by Trail Runner Magazine

2022 UTMB Men’s Race

As expected, the men took the race out fast from the start on the relatively flat roads and trails from Chamonix to the village of Les Houches. Spain’s Pau Capell, the 2019 UTMB winner, led a charging group through Les Houches, seven kilometers into the race, followed closely by Mathieu Blanchard, a Frenchman living in Canada, and Jia-Ju Zhao and Guo-Min Deng, both of China. All the top contenders were in a massive chase pack, settling in for the long night and day ahead.

It didn’t take long for Jim Walmsley (pre-race interview) of the USA to make his intentions for this year’s race clear, coming into Saint-Gervais, at 20 kilometers into the race, in the lead, looking strong and relaxed. Kilian Jornet and Capell were just seconds behind with Deng, Zhao, and American Zach Miller making up a chase group half a minute in arrears. They were followed by Frenchman Germain Grangier, Blanchard, Frenchman Thibaut Garrivier, and Yan-Qiao Yun of China.

Unsurprisingly, by Les Contamines, 31 kilometers into the race, it was shaping up to be a showdown between Walmsley and Jornet. They came into the aid station together looking relaxed, Walmsley taking the time to high-five fans, and were shortly on their way into the night together. Capell and Miller came in just 30 seconds back, and Grangier rounded out the top five, just a minute behind them.

A notable withdrawal around this time due to physical issues is last year’s second place finisher, Frenchman Aurélien Dunand-Pallaz (pre-race interview).

Climbing over the high Col du Bonhomme, 43 kilometers in, Walmsley, Miller, Jornet, and Tom Evans (pre-race interview) of the U.K. shared the lead. With 1,160 meters (3,800 feet) of climbing down just on this one climb, everyone in the group looked relaxed and was moving well. Capell was just 90 seconds back, trying not to let the elastic to the front group snap in the dark of the night on the run over to Col du Bonhomme before the long descent into the remote French outpost of Les Chapieux.

The four leaders stayed together down to Les Chapieux, 50 kilometers into the race, where last year’s winner, François D’Haene — not participating this year — was spectating and cheering on runners. Unfortunately, Capell had lost contact with the lead group over the previous section, coming into the aid station more than two minutes back. The rest of the top nine stayed relatively the same with Erik Sorenson of the USA slotting in 10th for the first time.Coming into Lac Combal, 66 kilometers into the race, after crossing country borders into Italy and traversing the most remote part of the course, Walmsley and Jornet had only slightly pulled away, their gap to Miller and Evans hung at a tenuous minute. All four looked strong, but it seemed like pre-race predictions of a two-man showdown were about to be realized.

Walmsley, with his arms and legs fully covered from the cold of the night but shirt front open, came into the town of Courmayeur, 80 kilometers in, solo and in the lead, but his gap on Jornet just 80 seconds.

Both men were moving well and left the aid station together after only a few minutes. It was a significant 12 minutes before Evans and Miller came through, staying in Courmayeur for under three minutes. Blanchard, looking more relaxed than any of the previous four, was also in and out of the aid station quickly, 18 minutes off the lead. Known for his slower starts and late race surges, Blanchard appeared to know exactly what he was doing.

It was never a question of if Walmsley or Jornet would strike out on their own, it was just a matter of when. Walmsley was the first to throw down a serious acceleration, coming into Arnouvaz (97 kilometers) solo and with a 2.5-minute gap on Jornet. Both were in and out of the aid station quickly, looking strong and motivated. Blanchard also chose the trail between Courmayeur and Arnouvaz to make his move, coming into the Arnouvaz aid station in third, looking very controlled and 14 minutes behind the leaders.

He was familiar with that position in the race, having finished third in UTMB in 2021. He was also familiar with the race tactic of starting slower, letting the leaders fight it out early and tire themselves out, and then moving up as the fast starters dropped back. It had brought him success the previous year, and he was seemingly employing the strategy again. Miller and Evans continued to run near each other, what Evans would later refer to as a “bromance” that lasted over half the race, and both looked like they had less spring in their step than the men ahead of them.

Committed to making the move stick, Walmsley climbed the Grand Col Ferret at 102 kilometers with a strong powerhike and held a five-minute gap over Jornet. Seemingly unconcerned with his position, Jornet chatted in French with both spectators and volunteers before vanishing into the night. Moving faster and looking stronger over the col than the previous two men, Blanchard continued the chase in third 17 minutes back. Miller and Evans continued to work together to keep the gap manageable.

The gap between Walmsley and Jornet stretched even further to 14 minutes by the sleepy Swiss village of La Fouly, 112 kilometers into the race. Both men were running under course-record pace, and both looked calm and collected. Still running strong into La Fouly, Blanchard kept the leaders within reach.

But Walmsley was committed to stretching the elastic on the field as much as he could, coming through Champex-Lac at 125 kilometers with 13 hours and 40 minutes on the race clock, gaining even more time on the course record and moving strongly. It’s generally a bad idea to bet against Walmsley after he’s put his mind to something, and after a fifth place finish in 2017 and DNF in 2018 and 2021 at UTMB, his commitment to the race and move to Europe to train on the trails seemed to be paying off.

But Walmsley is also known for going out fast and strong, and it doesn’t always stick.One could argue that Jornet was just biding his time, letting Walmsley burn his matches out front. However, there were times around this point in the race where Jornet just plain looked like he was working, enough so that we all began to wonder if the GOAT of trail running would have a crack in his armor today. However, by Trient at 142 kilometers, Jornet had decided to make his move, coming into the aid station in the lead. But instead of seeing Walmsley behind him, it was a surging Blanchard, less than a minute back that Jornet would have to now battle.

It was a long 19 minutes before Walmsley would arrive, appearing to be in discomfort. The dynamic duo of Evans and Miller continued to run together, still holding the gap to the race leader at just over 30 minutes, as they had for much of the race.As the kilometers ticked down, it was indeed a showdown between two men, except it was Blanchard challenging Jornet, with both men coming into Vallorcine at 153 kilometers together, well ahead of the course-record pace.

With Walmsley slowly losing time to the leaders but still in third, eyes moved to Evans who’d finally dropped Miller after nearly a night and a day of racing side by side to see if he could make the pass.By this time, it felt nearly inevitable that Jornet would run to the win and it was no surprise when he came into Tete aux Vents solo looking focused and fast with an 11-kilometer downhill run to the finish. Blanchard never gave up the chase, seven minutes back, while Evans passed a tired but “pumped” Walmsley to slot into third for the first time.

Jornet would finish with a course-record time of 19:49:30, besting both François D’Haene’s 2014 record time (20:11:44) on a course which did not include the Pyramides Calcaires, a gnarly little climb and descent added to the UTMB course a few years back, and Capell’s 2019 time (20:19:09), which did include those extra kilometers.

This is his fourth win at UTMB. Just five minutes back, Blanchard would also come into the finishing chute under the previous course record in second place. An elated Evans rounded out the podium, a stellar finish for his first UTMB.

Walmsley came across the line in fourth, releasing the two DNF monkeys on his back and finishing the next step in his goal of ultimately winning this race someday. Miller, no longer on the comeback trail following surgery and recovery, but fully back, crossed the line in fifth place.

Most of the back half of the men’s top 10 are runners who started slower and bided their time, moving up in the race’s second half, including France’s Beñat Marmissolle, France’s Arthur Joyeux-Bouillon,Jonas Russi of Switzerland, and Romania’s Robert Hajnal. The final member of the men’s top 10, however, is France’s Thibaut Garrivier, who went out hot and looked like he paid for it later, but ultimately holding onto 10th place.

(08/28/2022) Views: 987 ⚡AMP

Will Jim Walmsley Be the First American Man to Win UTMB?

Jim Walmsley has always been an outlier among American trail runners.

Not only is he as fast and talented as any ultrarunner the U.S. has ever produced, but he's also been bold and even a little brash about his intentions. His off-the-front racing style is something to be revered-and respected if you're one of his competitors -because the lanky 32-year-old Hoka-sponsored runner from Flagstaff, Arizona, has proven time and time again that it works for him. 

On August 26 in Chamonix, France, Walmsley will embark on his latest and most prodigious quest yet: to win Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB). It's his fourth attempt at trying to follow up on his stated intention of becoming the first American man to win the race, but he's gone to extra lengths this year to prepare for it. It would certainly add to what has already been a great year, given that he and longtime girlfriend Jessica Brazeau got married on May 4 in Silverton, Colorado.

But if Walmsley is going to pull it off this year, he will have to fend off three-time UTMB winner and 2022 Hardrock champion Kilian Jornet, of Spain, among other strong runners in the talent-loaded field.

UTMB has been one of the pinnacle events in the sport of trail running since its inception in 2003. Not only does the course send runners on a grueling 171.5K loop (106.5 miles) around the Mont Blanc massif with nearly 33,000 feet of vertical gain, it also brings together the deepest international field of the year and more hype and media attention-including epic coverage and commentary via livestream-than any other event in the world by far.

One of several top-tier Americans in this year's UTMB field, Walmsley skipped the Western States 100 this year and since June has been living and training in the mountains of the Rhne Alpes region of France near Beaufort, not far from good friend Franois D'Haene, who knows a thing or two about training for big mountain ultras. 

Last year, D'Haene not only became the first male runner to win UTMB for a fourth time, but he also became the first runner to win both Colorado's Hardrock 100 and UTMB in the same year.

The Frenchman was crewed and paced by Walmsley at Hardrock in 2021 and was one of the first people to suggest that Walmsley spend a summer training in the French Alps in order to best prepare for UTMB, rather than showing up in Chamonix 7-10 days before as he-and many other American men-have in the past.

Aside from Jornet, who won this year's Hardrock 100 for the fifth time on July 16, the top international runners include Frenchman Aurelien Dunand-Pallaz, the runner-up at UTMB last year; Germany's Hannes Namberger; New Zealand's Scott Hawker; and Spain's Pau Capell, who won the race in 2019.

D'Haene certainly thinks Walmsley is capable of winning UTMB, but points out that there are always numerous capable runners who are contenders and it all depends on how the race plays out. The idea of Walmsley stating his intent out front-that he wants to win UTMB-is more of a bold American approach, D'Haene says, as opposed to a more subtle European style he prefers.

"Just to explain to people, 'I am here to be the first American to win the UTMB,' puts a lot of pressure on him," D'Haene says. "He thinks UTMB, he sleeps UTMB, he eats UTMB, so it's a lot of pressure. If you take the approach that I just want to smash that course and win that race, then it's a lot of pressure. I'm not sure if he'll win or not win, but at least he's training well in the Alps and his confidence is up."

Walmsley has raced UTMB three times already-taking fifth in 2017 but DNF-ing in 2018 and 2021. The fact that no American man has ever won UTMB is irrelevant in the scope of this year's race, but it certainly adds a heightened focus in Walmsley's quest and a brighter spotlight on him before and during the race.

Whereas four American women have won the women's UTMB race a total of seven times-including the 2019 and 2021 champion Courtney Dauwalter-only a handful of U.S. men have made it to the UTMB podium. The highest finish came when when Topher Gaylord and Bradon Sybrowsky tied for second in the inaugural race in 2003. 

While Walmsley appears to be the top American this year, it would be foolish to focus on him as the only American capable of winning. Other U.S. runners with momentum and motivation heading into UTMB include Tim Tollefson, who finished second at CCC in 2015 and third in UTMB in 2016 and 2017; Tyler Green, fourth at Western States 100 this year and 10th in the TDS 145K in Chamonix last year; Zach Miller, winner of the CCC 100K in 2015 and sixth and ninth, respectively, in UTMB in 2016 and 2017.

Miller went for broke trying to win UTMB in 2016 and held a 35-minute lead beyond the halfway point. He still led at the 100K mark, only to struggle over the final 50K and wind up sixth. What makes UTMB different, he says, is that the endless string of long climbs and descents demands a more moderate rhythm and effort over the first half of the course so you don't blow up before the race really begins.

"I don't think there's a super-secret code to crack. We've had a number of really good American men run there, it's just we have to have one of them have a good day all day one of these years," Miller says. "It's not anything we can't figure out or accommodate for. I think we've done it in other European-style races. It's just this one has kind of eluded us. I think it's possible that someone is going to have that 'right' day, but you almost have to have to get a little lucky, too."

Tollfeson is coming off three DNFs at UTMB in 2018, 2019, and 2021, and had a tough Western States this year (21st). Miller also DNF'ed at UTMB in 2018 and 2019 and then was away from racing because of injuries. He finished his first long ultra in several years in late June, winning the Andorra 100K to earn his place in Chamonix.

Other Americans in the field include David Laney (third at UTMB in 2015), Jason Schlarb (fourth in 2014), Seth Swanson (fourth  in 2015 and seventh at TDS last year) and Sage Canaday (48th at UTMB in 2017), who is back after suffering a pulmonary embolism and a devastating house fire in 2021.  

As for Walmsley, his front-running style has helped him snag three Western States 100 titles, three JFK 50 wins, a 50-mile world-best time, a 100K American record and the Fastest Known Time running across the Grand Canyon and back. It also helped him produce a solid 2:15:05, 22nd-place effort at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials. 

Most recently, he tore up the trails (and the competition) at the rough and rugged Madeira Island Ultra Trail 115K in Portugal in April. Otherwise is been running in the Beaufortain Mountains with D'Haene and training a lot on a Wahoo bike trainer in France. Two weeks ago, he completed the arduous 114K (71-mile) Ultra Tour du Beaufortain loop with 7,300 meters (25,000 feet) of vertical gain as one of his last big training days. 

"I hope Jim can change it this year," D'Haene says. "I hope he will be OK and can run a good race, of course, but it's UTMB and, of course, it's always difficult."

(08/20/2022) Views: 1,194 ⚡AMP
by Trail Runner Magazine

Billy Yang’s Latest Film Takes Us Through the Amazing Career of Zach Miller

We caught up with the popular trail-running filmmaker to learn all about his latest project.

Zach Miller has been a household name in trail and ultrarunning since his out-of-nowhere victory at the 2013 JFK 50 Miler. Since then, the 34-year-old has raced and won some of the biggest races on the ultra calendar.

Billy Yang: I started off a fan like everyone else. He’s an unassuming guy, as his friends from Colorado Springs, Colorado, say in the film. I was totally guilty of that. When I first met him, here’s this guy that shocked the ultrarunning community out of nowhere. There were a lot of oddballs at that point in time, but Rob Krar was crushing the competition and dominating the scene. I figured that I’d see what this guy was about.

I was doing a film at Lake Sonoma 50 miler in 2014, which ended up gaining a lot of traction. I followed four runners and this guy Zach Miller kind of spoils my film by winning the whole thing. Over that weekend, we hung out and got dinner with the Nike team. He really was this aw shucks, blue-collar guy who has this flip phone. So I wanted to know, who is this guy?

What did you discover?

Yang: Well, he’s clearly a rabbit—a pacesetter in a race. In that JFK race, everyone thought he’d go 30 or 40 miles with Rob and drop back. But Rob’s wheels came off, and he ended up winning and later signing with the Nike Trail Running team. Fast forward to 2017, here is this guy who has this Steve Prefontaine-esque mindset of racing as hard as you can and giving his best. He even has the mustache.

So, I wanted to tell a three-dimensional story around him with a focus on UTMB as his white whale.

The UTMB crown has alluded every male American that has toed the line in Chamonix, France. It seems like one of the last, to use a climbing analogy, first ascents in running. Zach has been to UTMB three times, once with you there. Were you hoping or waiting to see if Zach could get it?

Yang: I’d be wrong to say the story wasn’t centered around this big, awesome white whale that is UTMB. When I zoom out, I do think that the end we have is kind of perfect. The way the outcome is so imperfect. The finish isn’t a given. For two years, we racked this story. I don’t tell the story about the 2019 race when he dropped out. What we see is his racing style and the only thing that’s a given is how hard you decide to push. That was kind of the spirit of the film.
Miller is now the subject of filmmaker and trail runner Billy Yang’s latest film, Zach. Yang spent years following Miller and capturing every detail of his life for this project that is now available on YouTube.

We caught up with Yang to hear more about what went into the making of his latest project and what he learned from spending so much time with Miller.

This interview has been edited for clarity.

You mention the climbing analogy. My inspiration was actually a film called Free Solo. You can take as many stabs at it and the things you want to do is right in front of you. For Alex Honnold, that was El Capitan. He kept coming back. For Zach, that’s UTMB. Sometimes, it’s just challenging and that mark of a good story is learning how to pivot and complete the story without that Disney outcome.

I finally decided after years of working on this that we needed to wrap this up. We can’t keep chasing this victory that I saw in my head.

Zach is a well-known runner. What do you hope viewers see that they may not have before about him?

Yang: In a way, I’m hoping to introduce him to a new crowd. Zach is a runner, he what makes Zach who is is way more. He grew up in Kenya, and is parents were missionaries. Faith plays a big role in his life. Mentorship and giving back is so important to him. The mindset of ‘do the best you can’ shows in all aspects of his life and at the center of that, I wanted Zach to be a model for people. He’s probably not genetically built like Kilian Jornet or Jim Walmsley or Eliud Kipchoge. But what you see is all the hard work, the miles, and the little things he puts in. He’s so easy to root for.

At the end, we don’t totally see it, but you slightly detail where Zach is at after foot surgery. What’s he up to now?

Yang: He’s not running at the moment. He’s working on building out a short bus that’s turning into a home on wheels. He plans to travel the world in it. That’s the epilogue.

Do you think we see an American man winning UTMB in the coming years?

Yang: I think between Zach, Tim and Jim, and maybe some others no currently at the forefront, someone will do it. Zach said it’s a puzzle you have to put together and for whatever reason, that hasn’t been put together yet. I think it will happen in the next five years and I would bet money it will be one of those three.

(01/30/2021) Views: 1,214 ⚡AMP
by Runner’s World

Tollefson, Dauwalter Lead a Strong Pack of Americans at 2019 UTMB

A year after a bad fall ended Tim Tollefson’s latest effort to be the first American atop the podium at the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB), the ultrarunner is returning with reignited determination—but also a heavy heart.

Twice a third-place finisher of the daunting 171K, the Mammoth Lakes, California, pro is primed and ready to compete in this epic race through the French, Italian, and Swiss Alps between Friday and Saturday. This comes after Tollefson’s bid in 2018 ended around the 48K mark when a fall required stitches in his left quad, forcing him to withdraw, but not leading to any long-term damage.

Though a disappointing way to end his day and his hunt for first, he’s put that behind him as he once again tries to become the first American man to finish atop the podium in the 17-year history of the race.

“Last year doesn’t haunt me, but it’s something I would like to avenge,” Tollefson told Runner’s World. “It serves more of a constant reminder that I need to come back here and prove something to myself because I think I have unfinished business. I think this race in particular plays to experience, and I’d like to think that I now have enough experience and the skill set to put together the performance I have dreamt of.”

Training was slightly different this year to prepare. The 34-year-old physical therapist added about 20 percent more vertical gain during his weekly training, especially on long runs. This included dozens of 20- to 30-mile runs with about 9,500 feet of vertical gain. He also won the popular 120K Lavaredo Ultra Trail in June in Cortina, Italy, with a time of 12:18:47.

With more than 32,000 feet of vertical gain and often inclement weather, the UTMB course has been known to crush even the strongest and fittest runners. Tollefson proved worthy of the challenge in 2016 and 2017 with third-place efforts, not to mention his runner-up showing in the adjacent CCC 100K in 2015.

This year, Tollefson is competing for more than just his personal goals: He is running to honor a fallen friend. On August 14, friend and fellow Mammoth Lakes resident Cody Tuttle, a 32-year-old professional filmmaker and photographer who documented Tollefson for several projects, died in a paragliding accident near Lone Pine, California.

“It was a tragic loss for the community,” Tollefson said. “It’s a sobering reminder that every time we go into the mountains, there is an inherent risk, and yet there is a reason we are all drawn to this type of rugged mountain environment.”

Tollefson will have heavy competition as he strives for his goal. As usual, the men’s field of the race is deep, with Frenchman Xavier Thévenard, a three-time winner and defending champion as the clear favorite. Last year’s runner-up Robert Hajnal of Romania is also in the field, but Americans Zach Miller, twice a top-10 finisher at UTMB, Alex Nichols, who was second at the 2018 Hong Kong 100K, Hayden Hawks, who has had big success at 50K and 100K races, and Jason Schlarb, who has been on a tear since turning 40, could all be contenders.

“I feel like I’ve finally acquired the climbing skills that allows me to run with the Europeans and be able to be confident coming into this race,” Tollefson said. “It still comes down to executing the race, but I’m really psyched to get out there and run another lap around Mont Blanc.”

The women’s field is also intriguing, especially from an American point of view. Although defending champion Francesca Canepa of Italy returns, all eyes are on Courtney Dauwalter, who has dominated women’s ultrarunning in recent years, right up to the point when she dropped out of the Western States Endurance Run in late June with a hip injury. The 34-year-old Golden, Colorado, resident is healthy, but admits she didn’t do the training she had hoped while recovering from her injury.

“It’s a long race and, from what I hear, it’s a grind, so it’s not a fast 100-miler,” Dauwalter told Runner’s World. “I’m not sure how my skills and experience will play into it, but I’m going to take each section as they come and run as efficiently as possible and see what happens. These mountains are awesome and the challenge will be big.”

Two-time winner Rory Bosio (2013, 2014) from Truckee, California, is also back after running the shorter OCC in 2017 and the longer TDS last year, while Nebraska’s Kaci Licktieg, who took third at Western States Endurance Run this year, and Katie Schide, an American living in Switzerland, both could be poised to compete for podium finishes.

“I don’t know if I can be competitive; the women’s field is bonkers this year, and I think that’s great,” Bosio told Runner’s World. “Winning those races back to back seems so long ago, almost like it happened to a different person. But it’s going to be an exciting race, no matter what because it’s UTMB.”

More than 2,300 runners from 90 countries will start the race at noon ET on Friday. You can follow along live here.

(08/31/2019) Views: 2,131 ⚡AMP
by Runner’s World

Spain won both the men’s and women’s team titles at the Trail World Championships, U.S. teams finished 4th and 3rd

Spain’s Luis Alberto Hernando won his third consecutive title, with the former biathlete clocking 8:38:35 to win ahead of his team-mate Cristofer Clemente with a time of 8:46:19 as the host nation secured the team title at the 2018 Trail World Championships on the Penyagolosa Trails in Spain.   Evans, who placed third in the Marathon Des Sables last year, was followed over the Penyagolosa Trails HG finish line by fellow Briton Jonathan Albon, and Ryan Smith’s 16th-place finish in 9:25:50 secured GB the team silver. Tom Owens, who was fourth in 2015 when he led the team to bronze, placed 25th (9:39:26) in Penyagolosa, while Rob Sinclair was 38th (9:54:26) and Casey Morgan 53rd (10:14:40).  Mario Mendoza was the first American to finish clocking 9:00:31 in sixth. Teammate Zach Miller finished 8th in 9:15:46. The U.S. team finished fourth.  Ragna Debats of Netherlands won the women’s title in 9:55:00, while Spain’s Laia Canes was second in 10:11:11. Bronze was claimed by France’s Claire Mougel with a time of 10:15:23.  Clare Gallagher was the first American to finish clocking 10:36:37 in 8th.  Teammates Kaytlyn Gerbin Places 10th in 10:39:40 and Sabrina Little was 12th clocking 10:45:27 securing third place for the U.S. in the team competition.   Spain secured the team title ahead of France.  (05/12/2018) Views: 1,898 ⚡AMP

My feet have pretty much taken me all over the world says Zach Miller

Zach Miller likes to look down from a mountain, see a distant peak or valley that looks inviting and know he can just run there. The 29-year-old Miller has surprised himself and the racing world by becoming one of the top mountain runners and ultra racers, running for up to 105 miles at a time. But, at its core, it’s a will to use the gift of his legs that propels him. “My feet have pretty much taken me all over the world,” he says while cooling down after one of his daily 20-mile training runs on Colorado’s Pikes Peak, where he lives in a one-room cabin above 10,000 feet. “They’ve taken me physically up and down mountains. They’ve enabled me to do enough in races to send me anywhere in the world.” In just a few years’ time, Miller has exploded on the scene as an extreme-racing legend and fan favorite by the way he starts each race like a spooked horse in a sport in which measured is considered the only way to win. “I just like to be at the front if I can be,” the 2007 Hempfield High School grad says. “I don’t like being at the back. It makes me nervous.” Not trailing the pack is one thing. Being able to run like your pants are on fire over hill and dale for 50 miles or more at a time is another. But Miller does it. Sometimes he hits the wall like any human testing the limits of physical and mental endurance. But sometimes the go-get-’em mindset makes for great performance. Zach is in France in preparation for the grueling 103-mile Ultra-Trail Du Mont-Blanc race through three countries. (04/08/2018) Views: 2,374 ⚡AMP

USA Team Announced for 2018 Trail World Championships

USATF Mountain, Ultra, Trail Council announced the U.S.A. Trail Team competing at the 2018 Trail World Championships May 12, in Penyagolosa/Castellon, Spain. The team will tackle the technical 85 kilometer (50 mile) point-to-point course which goes from sea level in the city of Castellón to Sant Joan de Penyagolosa mountain. Climbing to a maximum height of 1500 meters above sea level, the predominantly uphill course has 4900 meters of ascending and 3700 meters of descending. The U.S. women's team will be Danielle Filipek, Clare Gallagher, Sabrina Little, Kaytlyn Gerbin, Amy Leedham and Sarah Pizzo. The men’s team will be Chris Raulli, Olin Berger, Tim Freriks, Zach Miller, Mario Mendoza and Tim Tollefson. "The course looks stunning," says Kaytlyn Gerbin, "and challenging with a lot of ascent, which I’m looking forward too. I’m thrilled to toe the starting line alongside my USA teammates." (03/19/2018) Views: 1,986 ⚡AMP
Trail Running