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How Recreational Runners Get Through UTMB: 'It's All About Digging Deep into Yourself'

Wearing purple shorts, a blue and white tie-dyed T-shirt, a bright pink hat, a light blue Salomon hydration pack, fluorescent yellow-rimmed Oakley sunglasses, and a pair of Hoka Speedgoat 5 shoes, Chaiwen Chou was a vibe as she crossed the finish line of Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) on Sunday afternoon in Chamonix, France.

Chou, who had also freshened up the pink and purple tint of her hair before the race, stood out among the numerous other dusty and weary runners clad in more traditionally colored trail garb as they took their final strides in the epic 106-mile race around the Mont Blanc massif.

But what was most remarkable about the 41-year-old software developer from New York City was the huge smile on her face and expression of pure joy that emanated from her. When she arrived at the finish line after 45 hours and 15 minutes of running-about 75 minutes before the cutoff-she was beaming ear to ear and greeted with big hugs from her mom, brother, partner, and a good friend who helped crew her on her journey.

While her interest in running started on a bit of a whim a decade ago, her continued passion and progression have led her to run more than 30 trail running races, including the biggest and most celebrated one in the world. On Sunday, she was one of 95 American runners to complete the grueling UTMB course.

"So when I turned 30, I had this typical New Year's resolution, like, I want to get fit, I want to learn how to run," said Chou, who grew up in Massachusetts. "And then I met a friend who ran, and I started running with him and doing group runs. And then we started running trails, and we specifically entered The North Face Endurance Challenge, and that's where I ran my first marathon, and fell in love with trail running and then learned about ultrarunning and this whole world that I never even knew existed."For many recreational ultrarunners from around the world like Chou, UTMB sits at the top of their lifelong bucket list. It means starting at the same time as the elite professional runners on Friday evening in Chamonix, and maneuvering through the same rugged and aesthetic 106-mile loop with a daunting 32,000-feet plus of climbing and descending. It's historic, and the crowds and the energy around it are unparalleled.

It's also a monumental challenge to complete.

Trail Running's Infectious Buzz

Ultra-trail running is having a moment right now-especially since the end of the Covid pandemic-but it probably started a decade ago as the urge to run beyond the marathon gained mainstream traction and destination races around the world started to become desirable goal races for recreational runners.The North Face Endurance Challenge began as a singular 50-mile championship-style trail race near San Francisco in 2006 with a $30,000 prize purse, but it evolved into a multi-distance race weekend (from 10K to 50 miles) aimed at encouraging runners of all abilities to immerse themselves in the sport. After a few successful years of the event in Mill Valley, California, it expanded to several locations across the U.S.-upstate New York, Madison, Wisconsin, and Washington D.C., among others-and around the world.

Although The North Face pulled the plug on the series in late 2019 with a suggestion that it was going to reimagine the event format, nothing ever materialized after the Covid-19 pandemic temporarily disrupted the world-and specifically running events-in 2020. But those events played a big role in introducing runners and non-runners alike to the unique aspects of trail running, and many of those who caught the bug-like Chou-have continued to chase their passion in global events like the UTMB World Series.

Chou and her friends returned to The North Face Endurance Challenge four years in a row and she upped the ante each time, going from the marathon to the 50K and finally to consecutive finishes in the 50-miler. She competed in the 50-mile race in San Francisco in 2017 and 2019 and then started traveling to other races around the U.S. and eventually around the world. By 2020, she had completed the Madeira Island 115K race in Portugal and the Tarawera Ultramarathon 100-miler in New Zealand.

Once Covid subsided, Chou set her sights on trying to get into UTMB, which she did by collecting running stones and finishing seventh at the Grindstone 100 amid torrential rain storms last September in northwest Virginia. Her training for UTMB was interrupted in February when, just a week after she found out she secured an entry into UTMB through the lottery, she broke her ankle. Then once she got to Chamonix a week before the race, she smashed her left  knee on a shakeout run and it swelled up pretty badly.

As such, her UTMB experience was rougher than she had hoped-the 80-degree heat and the 32,000 feet of vertical gain and descent pushed her to her limits-as she had challenges fueling consistently and also got sick several times. But she persevered and reached her primary goal of finishing.

Officially, she was the 1,542nd finisher out of 1,760 runners who completed the full loop. (A total of 1,001 runners started but did not finish.) She did whatever it took and she crossed the finish line.

"So this is the first time I've  been in the Alps, and I'm just blown away by how beautiful it is," she said. "Even though I was in pain pretty much the whole race because the climbing and the elevation gain here are insane compared to the East Coast! But it was just so beautiful everywhere. It's pretty crazy. But you get to be out there all day though, so that's fun."Every Runner Has a Story

Becky Convery only started running four years ago in the middle of the Covid lockdown. What started as short, occasional runs turned into a passion for trail running that was fueled, in part, by doing group runs with the Virginia Happy Trails Running Club.

Like Chou, Convery also qualified for UTMB through the Grindstone 100. The 58-year-old Washington D.C. attorney almost quit that race, but she dug deep to finish. During UTMB, Convery dealt with GI issues from early on in the race and couldn't keep any food down. It was so bad, she almost dropped out at the 51.5-mile aid station in Courmayeur, Italy. But then she thought of Wayne Chang, a running buddy from Virginia, who did just that last year and immediately regretted it. With her friend's experience top of mind as she struggled, Convery persevered and finished in 45:27 with an hour to spare."I wanted to quit at Grindtone last fall. I was miserable and just wanted to go to bed, but he wouldn't let me quit," Convery said. "He's like, 'Look, I quit UTMB and I woke up a couple hours later, and I was like, 'Oh my God, what have I done?' So when it got hard out there (during UTMB), I thought of Wayne, and even though I couldn't keep food down, I said to myself, 'What would Wayne do?' He'll kill me if I quit, so I knew I couldn't quit. So I just kept going."

As much as UTMB gets considerable international notoriety for the livestream and media coverage around the elites-and understandably so, it draws many of the world's best runners-at the heart, UTMB is a personal journey of courage, commitment, and hope for most of the 2,800 runners who toe the starting line.

And really, that's what the entire sport of ultra-trail running is all about and what differentiates it from road racing. For many, it's not about racing at all-competing against other runners or even the clock-it's about challenging yourself and the natural terrain in pursuit of a dream that might seem like it's on the realistic edge of your abilities.

"It's all about digging deep into yourself," Convery said. "With this race, it's so international and there are so many nations represented, it's just an amazing time up there. Even though most people don't speak each other's language, everybody gets it. Everyone is pulling for each other. It's a great environment out there. I'm glad I made it."

Going the Distance

That's always been the case for 67-year-old Mike Smith, a retired resident of Santa Fe, New Mexico, who reached the finish line 15 minutes after Convery. It was Smith's second year in a row finishing UTMB, and because he won his age group at the Canyons 100K in April, he'll likely be back next year.

"The best part about it is always the people," Smith says. "But, oh gosh, chasing the time cutoff at that last aid station, that hike up to the La Flegere ski area, that's always a challenge."Smith relishes in those kinds of ultra-trail challenges. By reaching the finish line in Chamonix, he recorded the 224th 100-mile trail race finish of his career dating back to the mid-1990s. According to an ultrarunning history site, he ranks No. 2 in the world in all-time 100-mile finishes and first among 100-mile trail races. (Last year's UTMB was his 205th finish, which means he completed 18 100-mile ultra-trail races in the interim.

"This is always a spectacular finish," said his wife, Sandra, who wrote a book about what it's like to crew her husband at races. "This is one of the most exciting finish lines there is. The finish lines at smaller races are exciting because there's such a close community of people, but here, there are so many people from around the world, and that's just wonderful."

In all, 2,761 runners started this year's UTMB and 1,760 finished, including 95 U.S. runners who reached the finish line (out of 152 American starters) under the cutoff. Frenchman Vincent Bouillard was the overall winner in 19:54:23 on Saturday afternoon, but 20 hours later there were still about 1,000 runners moving toward the finish line and trying to beat the 46.5-hour cutoff on Sunday afternoon. Among the 95 U.S. finishers, 41 completed the course after the 40-hour mark.

Lamont King, 51, a runner from Roseville, California, has watched and been inspired by runners finishing in the golden hour of the Western States 100 as a fan and as a board member of the race for years. So finishing UTMB on his first try in 45:59-about 30 minutes before the cutoff-was a special moment for him.

"The race was very, very tough. We just don't have that kind of vertical in California where I'm from," said King, who has been trail running for 20 years. "But it's just amazing to be in this scenery in the mountains. It's just fantastic, and it makes up for a little bit of pain. I did have to push a little bit more than I probably would've liked, but I got it done. Coming in with all those people cheering for you in that final finish is almost overwhelming. It's just beautiful."

(09/21/2024) Views: 181 ⚡AMP
by Trail Runner Magazine
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American Katie Schide Shatters Courtney Dauwalter’s Course Record to Win UTMB

She’s now the third woman to win both Western States and UTMB in the same year.

Katie Schide is on a tear.

On Saturday, the American won the women’s race at the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) in dominant fashion, finishing the 109-mile race in 22 hours, 9 minutes, and 31 seconds. Her time is 21 minutes faster than Courtney Dauwalter’s course record of 22:30:54 from 2021.

Schide, 32, is undefeated this year, winning the Canyons 100K in April and the prestigious Western States 100 in June. 

Ruth Croft of New Zealand was 39 minutes behind Schide in second place (22:48:37). She passed Canada’s Marianne Hogan—who would finish third in 23:11:15—just after the 100-mile mark. Dauwalter, who won the Hardrock 100 on July 12, did not compete in this year’s edition.

In the men’s race, Vincent Bouillard of France was not favored to win, but he ultimately took the crown. He went to the lead after 48 miles and never relinquished it, crossing the finish line in Chamonix in 19:54:23. His compatriot, Baptiste Chassagne, was next to finish in 20:22:45, while Ecuador’s Joaquin Lopez placed third (20:26:22). 

Last year’s champion, Jim Walmsley of the U.S., withdrew just after 50 miles because of a knee issue, according to a post on his Instagram story. He remains the only American man to win the race.

UTMB has been contested since 2003. The course—which slightly changes year-to-year—starts and ends in the French Alpine town of Chamonix and traverses through Italy and Switzerland along the way, covering over 30,000 feet of elevation gain. 

This is Schide’s second time winning the event after taking top honors in 2022. Originally from Maine, Schide now trains in France and is sponsored by The North Face. 

In the final 7 kilometers, a downhill section, she was over 20 minutes ahead of course record pace, but she started limping. The buffer, however, was enough, and by the end, the hitch in her stride had mostly dissipated.

Schide said in a post race interview on the UTMB broadcast that her main goal was to dip under the 22-hour barrier, followed by a secondary goal breaking Dauwalter’s time from 2021. Schide went out hard in the first half—like she did in 2022—but she said winning two years ago gave her some much-needed context.

“I think this race, I just went in more confident in myself and I wasn’t surprised that I was fast,” she said. “Whereas in 2022, I was kind of freaking out because I was like “Oh, I didn’t really mean to do that.’ But this time, I meant to do it, and I was just focused on trying not to die too hard at the end.” 

Schide now joins Dauwalter (2023) and Nikki Kimball (2007) as the third woman to win both Western States and UTMB in the same year.

(09/01/2024) Views: 225 ⚡AMP
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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: 322 ⚡AMP
by Outside Online
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"It’s all about seeing what I can do" – 74 runners cross the finish line after tackling temperatures over 100F in Death Valley ultra

The race is frequently billed as the world's toughest foot race

What is the toughest race in the world? If you're a trail runner, the obscure Barkley Marathons probably comes to mind with its overgrown terrain and mind-boggling 54,200 feet of accumulated vert. But for those whose preferred mode of transport is road running shoes? There's nothing quite like the Badwater 135 which wrapped up yesterday morning in typically grueling conditions.

An impressive 74 runners out of 97 hopefuls who took off from the starting line in Death Valley National Park had crossed the finish line Wednesday morning after running through daytime temperatures as high as 120 degrees Fahrenheit (48.8C) and nighttime lows above 100F (37.7C). A recent heat wave sweeping the western states has been blamed for several deaths in National Parks including one in Death Valley on July 6 when a motorcyclist succumbed to heatstroke.

In addition to extreme heat, these hardy runners encountered higher humidity than normal as they set off during a light rainstorm. The course took them from Badwater Basin, the lowest point in North America, to the trailhead of Mount Whitney at 8,300 feet and over three mountain ranges with a total elevation gain of 14,600 feet. 

“For me it’s all about seeing what I can do, you know, testing my own limits, seeing how well I can do these extreme things,” Alabam runner Jessica Jones tells the Associated Press.

In the end, it was Colorado runner Shaun Burke, 37, of Durango who took first place in the men’s division with a time of 23:29:00 while 52-year-old Line Caliskaner of Norway led the women’s division, at 27:36:27 and finished second overall. We're willing to bet these runners had done some serious heat training and had some well-rehearsed hydration strategies in place to survive this course.

Race organizers do not provide aid stations or support during the race, which has been an annual event since 1987. To date, there have been no fatalities at the Badwater 135.

(08/03/2024) Views: 267 ⚡AMP
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Why Ultrarunning GOAT Courtney Dauwalter Says Loops—Not Out-and-Backs—Are the Superior Route

We polled Dauwalter on some of running’s most polarizing questions. Take the quiz to see how you stack up.

In 2023, Courtney Dauwalter had one of the most legendary years in trail-running history, becoming the first person to win the Triple Crown of the 100-mile races—Western States, Hardrock, and UTMB—in a single season. This year, she’s showed no signs of slowing down, repeating as Hardrock champion and improving on her course record by over two minutes.

Courtney has a lot to say: “Comfort is key! I prefer [shorts with] long inseams because I am most comfortable in them. We should all wear the clothes that make us feel our best when we're out trying hard things.”

On the type of course:  "I love any type of route, really, but loops definitely feel like big adventures. Not knowing what’s around each corner or what view you might be rewarded with is exciting.”

Race plan; “Early mornings feel so simple and peaceful. I love to drink my coffee and watch the sun rise while I plan out my day.

Courtney Explains: “Staying in the moment, focusing on taking the next step, and repeating a positive mantra are things I try to do during the toughest moments of any run.”

(07/27/2024) Views: 387 ⚡AMP
by Runner’World
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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: 358 ⚡AMP
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Western States 100: Walmsley Wins a Fourth Time While Schide Rocks the Women’s Field

For hours, Katie Schide (pre-race and post-race interviews) chased ghosts. For hours, Jim Walmsley (pre-race and post-race interviews) and Rod Farvard (post-race interview) chased each other. And in the end, after 100 courageous, gutsy miles at one of the world’s most iconic ultramarathons, it was Schide and Walmsley who won a fast, dramatic 2024 Western States 100.

Schide, an American who lives in France, was on pace to break the course record until late in the race, while Americans Walmsley and Farvard battled throughout most of the second half of the race, alternating the lead as late as mile 85.

Schide’s winning time was 15:46:57, just over 17 minutes behind Courtney Dauwalter’s 2023 course record, almost an hour faster than her own time last year, and the second fastest women’s time ever. Walmsley, meanwhile, won his fourth Western States in 14:13:45, the second fastest time ever — only behind his own record of 14:09:28 that he set in 2019.

Second and third in the men’s race came down to an epic sprint finish on the track between Farvard and Hayden Hawks (pre-race and post-race interviews), who finished in 14:24:15 and 14:24:31, respectively.

In the women’s race for the podium, Fu-Zhao Xiang (pre-race and post-race interviews) finished second in 16:20:03, and Eszter Csillag (pre-race and post-race interviews) took third for the second time in a row, in 16:42:17.

Both races featured one of the deepest and most competitive fields in race history, with the men’s top five all coming in faster than last year’s winning time, and the women’s top 10 finishing just under 40 minutes faster than last year’s incredibly competitive top 10.

At 5 a.m. on Saturday, June 29, they were all among the 375 runners who began the historic route from Olympic Valley to Auburn, California, traversing 100.2 miles of trail with 18,000 feet of elevation gain and 22,000 feet of loss. After last year’s cool temperatures, the weather at this year’s race was a bit warmer, albeit with a notable lack of snow in the high country. The high temperature in Auburn was in the low 90s Fahrenheit.

A special thanks to HOKA for making our coverage of the Western States 100 possible!

2024 Western States 100 Men’s Race

In his return to the race that propelled him to the heights of global trail running and his first ultra on American soil in three years, Jim Walmsley (pre-race interview) demonstrated why he is, once again, the king of Western States. Before the race, Walmsley exuded a calmness that perhaps eluded him during his first attempts, when he attacked it with an obsessive intensity that led him to famously take a wrong turn and then dropping out in back-to-back years.

“We’ll just roll with what plays out and just kind of see what happens in the race,” he said in his pre-race interview. There’s a marked difference when compared to his remarks from his interview before the 2016 race.

What happened in the race was this: In his fourth Western States, Rod Farvard (post-race interview) had the race of his life to push Walmsley like he’d never been pushed before in his long history with the event.

Farvard — a 28-year-old from Mammoth Lakes, California, who has improved his finish each year at the race, from a DNF in 2021 to 41st place in 2022 to 11th place last year — put himself in a strong position from the start, leading a large pack of runners that included Walmsley at the top of the Escarpment, the 2,500-foot climb in the first four miles of the race. For the next 45-plus miles, Farvard remained in the top 10, part of a chase pack of American Hayden Hawks (pre-race and post-race interviews), Kiwi Dan Jones (pre-race interview), and Chinese runner Guo-Min Deng, among others.

At the Robinson Flat aid station at mile 30 — the symbolic end of the runners’ time in the high country, which features an average elevation of around 7,000 feet — Walmsley, who started the race conspicuously wearing all black, came through in 4:24 looking fast and smooth, now wearing an ice-soaked white shirt. Jones, the 2024 Tarawera 102k champion and fifth-place finisher in his Western States debut last year, and Hawks, who set the course record at February’s Black Canyons 100k after dropping out of last year’s Western States, followed about 90 seconds later. The two runners, frequent training partners, ran together frequently throughout the day, with Hawks often foregoing ice at aid stations.

After the trio of Walmsley, Hawks, and Jones went through Last Chance at mile 43 together, Walmsley put nearly two minutes on them up the climb to Devil’s Thumb. “I was with everybody at the bottom,” he said, according to the race’s official livestream.

About halfway through, at mile 49.5, the order remained the same: Walmsley in the lead with an elapsed time of 6:58, followed by Jones one minute back, Hawks two minutes back, and Farvard just over two and a half minutes back. The rest of the top 10 were last year’s 17th-place finisher Dakota Jones; 2024 Transvulcania Ultramarathon champion Jon Albon (pre-race interview), who is from the U.K. but lives in Norway; 2023 fourth-place finisher Jia-Sheng Shen (China) (pre-race interview); 2023 Canyons 100k champion Cole Watson; Western States specialist Tyler Green (pre-race interview); and Jupiter Carera (Mexico).

Then began a thrilling, chaotic second half of the race — featuring a gripping back-and-forth between Walmsley and Farvard, a wildfire near the course, a two-man river crossing, and a sprint finish on the track.

 

It all started when Walmsley entered Michigan Bluff at mile 55, again looking calm and in control, changing shirts and getting doused with ice. Farvard came in just behind him and left the aid station first, leading the race for the first time since the first climb up the Escarpment. The same routine took place seven miles later at Foresthill: Walmsley entering first, Farvard leaving first.

For the next 18 miles, the two runners alternated in the lead. By mile 78, they were so close that they were crossing the American River at the same time. Their battle underscored the overall depth of the field at this year’s race: At mile 80, the top five men were within 16 minutes of one another.

Around then, the 15-acre Creek Fire, which started not long before, was visible from the final quarter of the course and crews were temporarily not permitted to travel to the Green Gate aid station at mile 80 because the route to it passed close to the fire. Eventually, a reroute was established for crews to get to Green Gate and, later, after the wildfire was controlled, the regular route was reopened.

At Green Gate, Farvard came through in the lead, with Walmsley four minutes back and looking like he was hurting. It was then, perhaps, that the thought entered people’s minds: Could Farvard really take down the champ?

But Jim Walmsley is Jim Walmsley for a reason, and he again proved why he is among the world’s best. Against the ropes, facing one of his first real challenges in the race that shaped him, he delivered, entering the next aid station, Auburn Lake Trails at mile 85, more than a minute earlier than Farvard. He had made up five minutes in five miles.

 

Walmsley never trailed again, increasing his lead to 11 minutes by the Pointed Rocks aid station at mile 94 and then picking up his crew, including his wife, Jess Brazeau, at Robie Point to run the final mile with him. He entered the track at Placer High School to loud cheers, his loping stride still looking smooth, stopping a few steps short of the tape to wave to the crowd and raise his arms in triumph. He had done it again.

Behind him, Farvard was fading but determined to cap an extraordinary race with a second-place finish. Hawks, who had made up five minutes on Farvard in the couple miles between Pointed Rocks and Robie Point, was on the hunt, and by the time he stepped on the track, Farvard was within sight.

It was then that fans were treated to one of the most unique sights in all of ultrarunning: After 100 miles of racing, two men were sprinting against each other on a track. In the end, Farvard’s lead held, and he finished 16 seconds ahead of Hawks. He collapsed at the finish line — a fitting end to an epic performance.

Dan Jones ended a strong race with a fourth-place finish in 14:32:29, with Caleb Olson capping an impressive second half of the race — from 11th at mile 53 to fifth in 14:40:12 at the finish. All five men ran a time that would have won the race last year.

Behind Olson came Jon Albon, running 14:57:01 in his 100-mile running-race debut, followed by the surgical Tyler Green, who finished in seventh for his fourth straight top 10 finish at the race. Green’s time of 15:05:39 also marked a new men’s masters course record, breaking the 2013 Mike Morton record of 15:45:21.

Rounding out the top 10 were Jia-Sheng Shen in eighth with a time of 15:09:49, Jonathan Rea in ninth who methodically moved his way up during the last 60 miles to finish in 15:13:10; and Chris Myers in 10th in 15:18:25.

2024 Western States 100 Women’s Race

Through the high country, into and out of the canyons, and along the river of the world’s oldest 100-mile trail race, Katie Schide (pre-race and post-race interviews) raced only the ghosts of the clock and history. Smiling throughout, she seemed unaffected by the solitude and the enormity of the possibility that lay before her: to attempt to break the course record of one of the world’s most iconic trail races.

Schide, an American who lives in France, came into the race as the clear favorite, and for good reason: She finished second last year, breaking Ellie Greenwood’s previously untouchable 2012 course record by more than three minutes and losing to only Courtney Dauwalter, who broke Greenwood’s record by an astounding 78 minutes on her way to a historic Western States-Hardrock 100-UTMB triple win. Schide, winner of the 2022 UTMB and 2023 Diagonale des Fous 100 Mile, spent the last two-and-a-half months in Flagstaff, Arizona, training for Western States, winning this year’s Canyons 100k in an impressive tune-up and putting in a monster training block.

In her pre-race interview, Schide said that she had thought about ways to improve her race from last year, which perhaps should have been the first warning to her competition. The second, then, was her immediate separation from the women’s chase pack: She summited the Escarpment, a 2,500-foot climb during the first four miles, in first place and never looked back. By the first aid station — Lyon Ridge at 10 miles — she was already 12 minutes under course record pace, and by Robinson Flat at mile 30, she was 21 minutes ahead of second-place Emily Hawgood (pre-race interview), from Zimbabwe but living in the U.S.

The lead only ballooned from there. By Dusty Corners at mile 38, Schide was an incredible 26 minutes under course record pace, and though she lost a few minutes from that pace by the time she climbed up to Michigan Bluff at mile 55, her smile had not waned even slightly. She smoothly entered the iconic aid station, doused herself with ice, changed shirts, and was soon on her way. She never sat down.

Twenty-seven minutes behind her was Hawgood, looking to build on back-to-back fifth-place finishes. Eszter Csillag (pre-race and post-race interviews), a Hungarian who lives in Hong Kong, followed soon after, in the same third spot she finished in last year.

After them ran a dense pack of women: Only 16 minutes separated Hawgood in second from Lotti Brinks in 11th.

At the halfway point, the top 10 were Schide, 33 minutes up in an elapsed time of 7:26; Csillag; Hawgood; Chinese runner Fu-Zhao Xiang (pre-race and post-race interviews), the fourth-place finisher at last year’s UTMB; Lin Chen (China); American Heather Jackson, a versatile former triathlete who recently finished fifth at a competitive 200-mile gravel bike race; ultrarunning veteran Ida Nilsson (pre-race interview), a Swede living in Norway; Becca Windell, second in this year’s Black Canyon 100k; 2023 CCC winner Yngvild Kaspersen (Norway); and Rachel Drake, running her 100-mile debut.

Schide, easily identifiable in her pink shirt, maintained her large lead throughout the second half of the race, remaining calm, controlled, and upbeat throughout the tough canyon miles. By Foresthill at mile 62, she was 19 minutes ahead of course record pace and 48 minutes ahead of the second-place Xiang. Schide’s stride still looked smooth as she waved to fans and even high-fived a cameraman.

Schide’s aggressive pace eventually slowed — by Green Gate at mile 80, her lead on the course record had dissipated — but her spirits did not. After a quick sponge bath at Auburn Lake Trails aid station at mile 85, she fell behind course-record pace for the first time all day, only 15 miles remained until the finish.

Schide entered the track a couple of hours later, running with her crew and no headlamp. She would finish before dark. She stopped for a hug on the final straightaway and lifted the tape with, of course, a smile.

Xiang had methodically pulled away from Hawgood and Csillag during an incredibly strong second half to win the battle for second. Fu-Zhao Xiang finished in 16:20:03 for the third fastest time in race history. Chen, who dropped out at mile 78, was one of the few elite runners who had a DNF on this day, which was categorized by a lack of attrition in both the women’s and men’s elite races.

Eszter Csillag came in about 22 minutes behind Xiang in 16:42:17 for her second consecutive third-place finish, a 30-minute improvement from last year — a statistic that perhaps exemplifies the speed of this year’s race better than any other.

The battle for fourth and fifth was nearly as close as Farvard and Hawks’s race for second in the men’s race a couple of hours earlier.

At Pointed Rocks at mile 94, Hawgood led by barely two minutes, running hard and straight through the aid station. Kaspersen, meanwhile, was drinking Coke and made up almost a minute by Robie Point.

Emily Hawgood’s lead ultimately held, and she finished fourth in 16:48:43 to improve her finish from prior years by one spot. Yngvild Kaspersen was less than two minutes back in 16:50:39. Ida Nilsson capped a strong day to finish sixth in 16:56:52 and break Ragna Debats’s masters course record by almost 45 minutes. That means the top six women all finished in under 17 hours in a race that had only ever had three women finish under that mark — and two of them, Dauwalter and Schide, were last year.

The rest of the top 10 were Heather Jackson in seventh in 17:16:43, and, in close succession, Rachel Drake in 17:28:35, Priscilla Forgie (Canada) in 17:30:24, and Leah Yingling in 17:33:54.

The top 10 women were all faster than the 12th-fastest time in race history going into the day.

(07/12/2024) Views: 266 ⚡AMP
by Robbie Harms
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Hardrock 100

Hardrock 100

100-mile run with 33,050 feet of climb and 33,050 feet of descent for a total elevation change of 66,100 feet with an average elevation of 11,186 feet - low point 7,680 feet (Ouray) and high point 14,048 feet (Handies Peak). The run starts and ends in Silverton, Colorado and travels through the towns of Telluride, Ouray, and the ghost town...

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The Western States 100 and Hardrock 100: A Metaphorical Comparison

With the Western States 100 taking place last weekend and Hardrock 100 taking place next weekend, this is the time of year when all ultrarunners look to California and Colorado.

I’ve been privileged to run both of these iconic events, and in recent years, I have traveled to Auburn, California, and Silverton, Colorado, each year to spectate and volunteer. I’ve had the opportunity to observe and experience what makes these events so different from each other and yet, on some level, very much the same.

Vibes

I like to compare the vibes of Hardrock and Western States to rock concerts.

Hardrock is that concert that takes place in a modest venue with a few thousand seats, think the Beacon Theatre in New York City. Think of the last concert you attended that brought you close to the artist and allowed you to interact socially with other concertgoers. That’s Hardrock.

Western States, on the other hand, is the massive stadium show, think Kenny Chesney at Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts. These concerts take on a festival atmosphere and bring thousands of people out long before the concert is scheduled to start. Loud, chaotic, and celebratory, Western States shares the vibe with these large stadium shows.

Track Versus Cross Country

In my previous professional life as a high school principal I attended more than my fair share of track and cross-country meets. Over the years I made some observations that remind me of the difference between Western States and Hardrock.

Track meets are slick and fancy. Track athletes wear crisp kits and sleek shoes. Western States is track.

Cross-country meets are loose and in the woods. Cross-country runners are a ragtag group with unkempt hair and oversized kits. They know how to run they just do it a little differently. Hardrock is cross country.

Pace

Hardrock weekend moves at a pace akin to a small town. Sure, the runners up front need to move fast, and those at the back may feel the pressure of meeting the cutoffs, but by and large, the race moves at a laid-back pace. Runners spend time regrouping at aid stations, volunteers linger to chat and share stories, and race officials and veterans of the event make everyone feel welcome and embraced by the community.

The pace at Western States is more like New York City during rush hour. Intensely competitive at the front of the pack and challenging with tight cutoffs at the back, there is little time for dilly-dallying for anyone. It’s an intense, fast-moving pace, the rewards of which are a shiny belt buckle and big city memories to last a lifetime.

Community

Both events celebrate and embrace community. In fact, they both endeavor to nurture a sense of community in the many activities surrounding their events. Additionally, the phrases “Western States family” and “Hardrock family” are part of the language around each race.

As you might expect, Hardrock is a close-knit family — the kind where many still live in the same area, get together often, and share many common characteristics. The Western States family is a massive extended family that is spread around the world, getting together only occasionally and with disparate goals, attitudes, and temperaments. Both families share common connections but do so in very different ways.

 

Regardless of their differences in vibes, type of race, pace, and community, both Western States and Hardrock have earned their places on the top step of North American ultrarunning culture. In spite of, or perhaps because of, their unique characteristics, these two events have been able to stand the test of time, doing so in their own unique ways and on their own independent terms. As a result, they continue to be the two of the most sought-after events in American trail running and ultrarunning.

 

 

 

 

(07/07/2024) Views: 573 ⚡AMP
by I Run Far
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2024 Western States 100 Results: Walmsley Wins a Fourth Time While Schide Rocks the Women’s Field

For hours, Katie Schide chased ghosts. For hours, Jim Walmsley  and Rod Farvard chased each other. And in the end, after 100 courageous, gutsy miles at one of the world’s most iconic ultramarathons, it was Schide and Walmsley who won a fast, dramatic 2024 Western States 100.

Schide, an American who lives in France, was on pace to break the course record until late in the race, while Americans Walmsley and Farvard battled throughout most of the second half of the race, alternating the lead as late as mile 85.

Schide’s winning time was 15:46:57, just over 17 minutes behind Courtney Dauwalter’s 2023 course record, almost an hour faster than her own time last year, and the second fastest women’s time ever. Walmsley, meanwhile, won his fourth Western States in 14:13:45, the second fastest time ever — only behind his own record of 14:09:28 that he set in 2019.

Second and third in the men’s race came down to an epic sprint finish on the track between Farvard and Hayden Hawks , who finished in 14:24:15 and 14:24:31, respectively.

In the women’s race for the podium, Fu-Zhao Xiang (pre-race interview) finished second in 16:20:03, and Eszter Csillag took third for the second time in a row, in 16:42:17.

Both races featured one of the deepest and most competitive fields in race history, with the men’s top five all coming in faster than last year’s winning time, and the women’s top 10 finishing just under 40 minutes faster than last year’s incredibly competitive top 10.

At 5 a.m. on Saturday, June 29, they were all among the 375 runners who began the historic route from Olympic Valley to Auburn, California, traversing 100.2 miles of trail with 18,000 feet of elevation gain and 22,000 feet of loss. After last year’s cool temperatures, the weather at this year’s race was a bit warmer, albeit with a notable lack of snow in the high country. The high temperature in Auburn was in the low 90s Fahrenheit.

A special thanks to HOKA for making our coverage of the Western States 100 possible!

(06/30/2024) Views: 392 ⚡AMP
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Canadian ultra-star Priscilla Forgie is ready to crush Western States 100

Edmonton’s Priscilla Forgie is blazing a trail in Canadian ultrarunning, and she’s primed for one of the biggest races of the year—Western States 100-miler, set for June 29th. Having finished as the top Canadian in last year’s race (eighth place overall), Forgie is back, even more prepared and ready to tackle the course in Auburn, California. Her secret? Three specific strategies that can benefit any runner aiming to elevate their performance.

Forgie has dominated numerous races in recent years, with victories at the Squamish 50-mile and 50/50, a second-place finish at the Canyons Endurance Run, and an overall win (with a course record) at the Near Death Marathon. Here’s how she’s preparing for Western States 100 and how you can apply her methods to your own training.

“Last year, I was told I looked better at the 100K mark than at 50K! The elevation in the high country kicked my butt, so I arrived a bit earlier this time around to adjust,” Forgie shares.

Altitude can be a game-changer in endurance races. If your race is at a higher elevation than you’re used to, plan to arrive several days or even weeks early if at all possible, to give your body time to acclimate. If you’re unable to spend extra days at altitude, make sure to incorporate lots of elevation gain into your training runs and consider practising breathing techniques to help reduce respiratory fatigue.

(06/24/2024) Views: 424 ⚡AMP
by Running Magazine
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Walmsley and Schide favorites as Western States line-ups are finalized

Americans Jim Walmsley and Katie Schide, both UTMB winners, will head the finalized fields for the 51st edition of Western States 100 Endurance Run at the end of this month.

Western States is the oldest and arguably the most iconic 100-mile trail run in the world and the stars are again out in force Auburn on June 29-30.

Can Walmsley make it four?

Last year Walmsley memorably ended his quest to finally add a UTMB title in Chamonix to his CV and he’s the current course record holder at Western States, which he’s already won three times.

His time of 14:09:28 from 2019 hasn’t been bettered since and he’s the highest-ranked runner in terms of the UTMB index at 934 (Kilian Jornet is top on 941).

But he’ll face a raft of strong rivals including the 2023 runner-up Tyler Green (USA, UTMB Index 880) and several other top finishers from 2023, including fourth-placed Jiasheng Shen (CHN, UTMB Index 906).

Dakota Jones (USA, UTMB Index 902), Ji Duo (CHN, UTMB Index 889) and Hayden Hawks (USA, UTMB Index 910) booked their spots alongside Walmsley via Golden Tickets from top-three performances at other big events.

Schide the one to beat

And on the women’s side the 2022 UTMB winner Katie Schide (UTMB Index 825) will be looking to go one better than last year’s second place at Western States.

Only superstar Courtney Dauwalter on 847 is ahead of Schide on the UTMB Index but the reigning Western States champion (who smashed the course record time when beating Schide) won’t be back to defend her title.

That means that Schide, who underlined her form with victory at the Canyons Endurance Runs by UTMB at the end of April, starts as the clear favourite.

But she too will face tough opposition from the likes of Eszter Csillag (HUN, UTMB Index 768), who finished third 12 months ago, and three-time finisher Emily Hawgood (ZWE, UTMB Index 757).

Other big names lining up include former professional IRONMAN athlete Heather Jackson (USA, UTMB Index 764), Eleanor Davis (GBR, UTMB Index 753) and Emily Schmitz (USA, UTMB Index 736).

Jackson recently advertised her gravel racing prowess in a thrilling sprint finish at the famed Unbound event.

We’ll build up to the big event over the next couple of weeks here at RUN247.

(06/13/2024) Views: 375 ⚡AMP
by Jonathan Turner
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Western States 100

Western States 100

The Western States ® 100-Mile Endurance Run is the world’s oldest and most prestigious 100-mile trail race. Starting in Squaw Valley, California near the site of the 1960 Winter Olympics and ending 100.2 miles later in Auburn, California, Western States, in the decades since its inception in 1974, has come to represent one of the ultimate endurance tests in the...

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Hardrock 100 extends pregnancy deferral for up to five years

While some runners complained the policy is long overdue, most greeted the news with cheers.

The ultra-trail world is applauding Hardrock 100’s progressive, new pregnancy/parental deferral policy, which the race announced on Instagram on Monday. The new policy encompasses both pregnancy and situations involving adoption and surrogacy.

The new policy allows any woman who has been selected to race (or who gets in off the waitlist) who was pregnant on lottery day (Dec. 2, 2023, for the 2024 race), or who becomes pregnant between lottery day and race day (July 12), or who has given birth anytime during the six-month period leading up to lottery day, to defer their entry for five years. It may also be claimed by the partner of women who give birth during the six months leading to race day, or up to two months after race day.

Further, the policy allows surrogate parents whose due date falls within the six-month period leading up to race day to claim a one-year deferral. This policy also applies to parents who adopt a child during the same six-month period (provided the child is under five years old).

“At Hardrock, we firmly believe that runners of all types shouldn’t have to choose between chasing their dreams on the trails and pursuing the option of becoming parents,” the race posted on Instagram. “That is why we have updated our Pregnancy Entry Deferral policy to provide a more generous deferral period for pregnant women and new mothers, and expanded coverage to include other types of new parents, such as in situations of surrogacy and adoption.”

News of the new policy was greeted with mostly positive comments, though some decried the length of time it has taken for the race to finally acknowledge the realities of life for parents and those who are trying to have children. Canadian ultrarunner Stephanie Case (@theultrarunnergirl), who finished second in 2022, is a Hardrock board member and spoke to Canadian Running about her own fertility journey in a feature in the 2024 Trail Special Issue, commented “Proud to be on this board!”

The policy is somewhat less generous than that of the Western States Endurance Run (as an example of a comparable race), in that the eligibility period begins when a runner enters the lottery, and deferral may be for an indefinite period; however WSER’s policy applies only to pregnant women. The policy at Ultra-Trail du Mont Blanc (UTMB), like Hardrock’s, applies to surrogate and adoptive parents and partners of pregnant women, for up to five years (with certain restrictions).

(06/12/2024) Views: 379 ⚡AMP
by Anne Francis
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Hardrock 100

Hardrock 100

100-mile run with 33,050 feet of climb and 33,050 feet of descent for a total elevation change of 66,100 feet with an average elevation of 11,186 feet - low point 7,680 feet (Ouray) and high point 14,048 feet (Handies Peak). The run starts and ends in Silverton, Colorado and travels through the towns of Telluride, Ouray, and the ghost town...

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The Keys to Courtney Dauwalter’s Continued Dominance

During a recent press conference, Dauwalter dished oUltrarunner extraordinaire Courtney Dauwalter has picked up in 2024 right where she left off last year. After famously winning three of ultrarunning’s most epic races  during the span of about nine weeks last summer—Western States 100, Hardrock 100, and Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc—the 39-year-old athlete from Leadville, Colorado, defended her Transgrancanaria 126K title in a decisive wire-to-wire win in late February and won the Mount Fuji 100-miler for the second time on April 27, placing third overall.

She’s now gearing up to go for a third straight win at the Hardrock 100 on July 12-13 in Silverton, Colorado. After Hardrock, she’ll be crewing and pacing her husband, Kevin Schmidt, at the Leadville 100 on August 17-18, and then tackling a yet-unannounced trail running project in September.We caught up with Dauwalter to talk about her fueling and training in a virtual press conference, where she announced the May 20 release of her signature flavor of Tailwind Nutrition Endurance Fuel—Dauwaltermelon with Lime—as a permanent part of the brand’s lineup. Since she’s emerged as one of the world’s top trail ultrarunners, she’s been known for having a sound approach to nutrition and fueling, never shying away from eating whatever she wants, admitting her soft spot for candy and pastries, or having a beer every now and then if she feels like it.

COURTNEY DAUWALTER: I am still eating all of my favorite things whenever they sound good in quantities that sound good, and I am not intending to change that part of my life, because it just gives me a lot of joy to live that way. I guess it’s got to be partly my upbringing, and also with Kevin and I, our idea of how we want to live our lives is to enjoy it to its fullest while it’s here. We just want to enjoy food, enjoy meals out, enjoy the cravings that we have, and not worry about it. But I would say in the past couple of years I do more consistently do a recovery drink after a long run or after putting in big efforts, and that’s something that I was a little more lax with originally, so I feel like that’s a step in the right direction.

When I first got into ultrarunning, I had no nutrition plan. I didn’t know what I was doing. My first race was a 50K, and I remember not knowing that these aid stations would be buffets. My mind was blown when I got to them—all the options were overwhelming. I just started filling my pockets with jelly beans. In those first years, I did a lot of mimicking of what the people around me were doing. So if I came to an aid station and someone was grabbing pickles and drinking Mountain Dew, then that’s what I would do. If they were grabbing pretzels and cheese cubes, that’s what I would go for. It was just kind of roulette for me on what I would end up eating—if it would work, or if it wouldn’t work.

Initially, I never had a fueling plan at all. But then in 2017, I went to the Run Rabbit Run 100 in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, and Tailwind was available on course at all of the aid stations. I had a buddy who had started using it that year, and I remember just loving it and suddenly not having all the stomach issues and energy dips that I often had. I was like, ‘Oh, maybe this is what it’s like to have something reliable.

'At this point we’ve gotten pretty dialed on the race nutrition plan for those 10-to 24-hour efforts or the events of 100 miles or below. I’m not a person who has my watch beeping at me ever to remind me to eat. I don’t get those kinds of reminders, and I don’t want to eat every 15 minutes or 30 minutes during a race. I’m going to just slow drip the calories I have as often as possible—basically it’s an eating contest on the move. Now I know my body functions pretty well with about 200 calories per hour during those efforts. So, depending on the distance between aid stations, I can rely solely on a bottle of Tailwind and then supplement with some chews or waffles or gels, because usually I get actually hungry feeling and having something solid helps with that. But mostly, I’m relying on Tailwind as my backbone to the whole plan and generally aiming for that 200-calorie-per-hour benchmark.The past couple years (working with a nutritionist friend), we’ve been better at creating A, B, C and D plans—because sometimes the perfect nutrition plan that you have relied on isn’t going to work. Our approach is that’s fine, and here are some things you can start subbing in during a race that can cover your needs. I view race nutrition like a puzzle piece, and sometimes it fits into the puzzle right where we want it to, and sometimes we have to kind shift things around a little bit. I think one of the reasons a lot of us love ultrarunning is because, when things just aren’t going to plan, we have to problem-solve it.

That’s one thing I’m hoping to focus on a little bit more on in this buildup and this prep for Hardrock, because in the past couple times I’ve run it, I’ve struggled a little bit with taking stuff in. I would love to just try to intentionally train my stomach to be better at taking in those calories while pushing hard at 12,500 feet or 13,000 feet just to see if we can make some strides forward. So stay tuned on if that works or not.

Not specific things. I think I want to just keep finding the challenges that intrigue me and fire me up to keep putting in the work, the training, the time, the effort to go after them. And so whatever that is, there’s not a list of things I want to check off necessarily, but, I’m continuing to pour myself into this sport and see what’s possible while every one of my systems [muscular, digestive, endocrine, cognitive, emotional, etc.] is allowing that to happen. The Leadville 100 is on my short list of races I would love to do as soon as I can, but as far as a bucket list in general or what intrigues me, I’m still very interested in exploring the longer stuff and how our brains and our bodies can work together to take us over 100 miles. What does that look like to move efficiently for 200 miles or 500 miles? So that’s where I am putting a lot of my attention into—just finding ways to test myself on stuff that’s really long.I am interested in trying a road marathon again at some point because that was what led me to ultrarunning.. I didn’t think I could make that distance, but I finished without dying and then wondered, ‘What else is out there that sounds too hard that I could try?’ And then I stumbled into the ultrarunning world. In those first marathons, I was a casual runner.

I ran every day before work because it made me feel better to start the day, but I wasn’t doing huge miles or running quickly.  So circling back to run a road marathon would be kind of fun.I definitely didn’t invent it, and I don’t know who did originally, but I know that for me that phrase just became this imagery that I really grabbed onto—as opposed to the struggle bus or the hurt locker or the many other terms. That one for me was visually something I could see, and it was something that I could work with to be productive. Back in high school, I had a cross country skiing coach who was big on the mental side of the sport and would always remind us and believe in our capacity to push past that moment when it feels like you have nothing left. He was huge on just the idea that there’s always one more gear. So I just crank the knob and believe that it can be cranked a little bit more. Having someone who believed in me so wholeheartedly that I could trust to keep pushing was important because it’s hard to do that when you’re any age, but for sure it’s hard to do when you’re a teenager.

The idea that you feel like you’re about to die and yet you’re telling me there’s more to push past that? That’s hard to learn. So I feel really lucky that I had that coach and to learn about that mental side of sports and digging deeper than you think.

That was so special,  a highlight of my life for sure. We ran together through the desert in Arizona, side by side the whole time through all the highs and lows, and made it to that finish line. I’ll remember that forever, and that gift that she gave me of doing this thing with me and the sport I love and spending so much time preparing for it. She was training hard back home in Minnesota, trying to learn how to run trails, trying to power hike hills, and learning how to use all of the gear because she had never really run trails before. I think the domino effect is that you can start anything at any age. She was 66 when we ran this race together and 64 when she started this journey into trail running. I had told her my dream was to run an ultra with my mom, and now that she has completed a 100K, she has found a lot of joy in the trails. Even though we don’t have a race on the calendar together yet, she is still just finding that peace that the trails bring her, and it’s something she incorporates into her weekly life. I think that’s really cool, and it’s why I hope more people can find out about trail running—not necessarily even ultrarunning—but just getting out on the trails and exploring a little bit because that feeling of moving with your feet surrounded by nature and feeling so small in a big landscape is really, really cool.

My hope is that people hearing about the stuff that I’m doing or that the ultrarunning community is doing helps them believe they could go after something that sounds too hard or something that sounds crazy. Whether that’s running 100 miles or 200 miles or not. We can all find that thing in our lives that we can go after with a little more gusto and raise the bar for ourselves on what we’re actually aiming for. I also hope I can be a small example that you can work really, really, really hard at something and have a lot of fun doing it. Those things can happen at the same time and there’s no reason to separate them. I never predicted this chapter in my life, but I feel grateful every day for it. I’m just trying to squeeze as much living out of this period of life as I can.

n her approach to nutrition and fueling, early-career bonks, and more.

(05/25/2024) Views: 396 ⚡AMP
by Outside Online
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The Keys to Courtney Dauwalter’s Continued Dominance

Ultrarunner extraordinaire Courtney Dauwalter has picked up in 2024 right where she left off last year. After famously winning three of ultrarunning’s most epic races  during the span of about nine weeks last summer—Western States 100, Hardrock 100, and Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc—the 39-year-old athlete from Leadville, Colorado, defended her Transgrancanaria 126K title in a decisive wire-to-wire win in late February and won the Mount Fuji 100-miler for the second time on April 27, placing third overall. She’s now gearing up to go for a third straight win at the Hardrock 100 on July 12-13 in Silverton, Colorado. After Hardrock, she’ll be crewing and pacing her husband, Kevin Schmidt, at the Leadville 100 on August 17-18, and then tackling a yet-unannounced trail running project in September.

We caught up with Dauwalter to talk about her fueling and training in a virtual press conference, where she announced the May 20 release of her signature flavor of Tailwind Nutrition Endurance Fuel—Dauwaltermelon with Lime—as a permanent part of the brand’s lineup. Since she’s emerged as one of the world’s top trail ultrarunners, she’s been known for having a sound approach to nutrition and fueling, never shying away from eating whatever she wants, admitting her soft spot for candy and pastries, or having a beer every now and then if she feels like it.

RUN: How did you develop such a sensible approach to nutrition and fueling, and what, if anything, have you changed?

Courtney Dauwalter: “I am still eating all of my favorite things whenever they sound good in quantities that sound good, and I am not intending to change that part of my life, because it just gives me a lot of joy to live that way. I guess it’s got to be partly my upbringing, and also with Kevin and I, our idea of how we want to live our lives is to enjoy it to its fullest while it’s here. We just want to enjoy food, enjoy meals out, enjoy the cravings that we have, and not worry about it. But I would say in the past couple of years I do more consistently do a recovery drink after a long run or after putting in big efforts, and that’s something that I was a little more lax with originally, so I feel like that’s a step in the right direction.”

RUN: What was your fueling strategy when you first got into ultrarunning in 2011?

CD: “When I first got into ultrarunning, I had no nutrition plan. I didn’t know what I was doing. My first race was a 50K, and I remember not knowing that these aid stations would be buffets. My mind was blown when I got to them—all the options were overwhelming. I just started filling my pockets with jelly beans. In those first years, I did a lot of mimicking of what the people around me were doing. So if I came to an aid station and someone was grabbing pickles and drinking Mountain Dew, then that’s what I would do. If they were grabbing pretzels and cheese cubes, that’s what I would go for. It was just kind of roulette for me on what I would end up eating—if it would work, or if it wouldn’t work.”

RUN: You have told stories about a few famous bonks early in your career. When did you start to dial-in your fueling strategy?

CD: “Initially, I never had a fueling plan at all. But then in 2017, I went to the Run Rabbit Run 100 in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, and Tailwind was available on course at all of the aid stations. I had a buddy who had started using it that year, and I remember just loving it and suddenly not having all the stomach issues and energy dips that I often had. I was like, ‘Oh, maybe this is what it’s like to have something reliable.'”

RUN: What is your current approach to race-day nutrition?

CD: “At this point we’ve gotten pretty dialed on the race nutrition plan for those 10-to 24-hour efforts or the events of 100 miles or below. I’m not a person who has my watch beeping at me ever to remind me to eat. I don’t get those kinds of reminders, and I don’t want to eat every 15 minutes or 30 minutes during a race. I’m going to just slow drip the calories I have as often as possible—basically it’s an eating contest on the move. Now I know my body functions pretty well with about 200 calories per hour during those efforts. So, depending on the distance between aid stations, I can rely solely on a bottle of Tailwind and then supplement with some chews or waffles or gels, because usually I get actually hungry feeling and having something solid helps with that. But mostly, I’m relying on Tailwind as my backbone to the whole plan and generally aiming for that 200-calorie-per-hour benchmark”

RUN: You had to overcome some stomach challenges in UTMB in 2022 and then at last year’s UTMB you seemed as physically challenged as you have ever been. How have you adjusted your fueling in those situations?

CD: “The past couple years (working with a nutritionist friend), we’ve been better at creating A, B, C and D plans—because sometimes the perfect nutrition plan that you have relied on isn’t going to work. Our approach is that’s fine, and here are some things you can start subbing in during a race that can cover your needs. I view race nutrition like a puzzle piece, and sometimes it fits into the puzzle right where we want it to, and sometimes we have to kind shift things around a little bit. I think one of the reasons a lot of us love ultrarunning is because, when things just aren’t going to plan, we have to problem-solve it.”

RUN: You’ll be doing a lot of your pre-Hardrock training in and around Leadville between 11,000 and 14,000 feet above sea level once the spring snow subsides. How are you able to fuel at such high altitudes?

CD: “That’s one thing I’m hoping to focus on a little bit more on in this buildup and this prep for Hardrock, because in the past couple times I’ve run it, I’ve struggled a little bit with taking stuff in. I would love to just try to intentionally train my stomach to be better at taking in those calories while pushing hard at 12,500 feet or 13,000 feet just to see if we can make some strides forward. So stay tuned on if that works or not.”

RUN: Do you have any bucket list events you want to tackle in the coming years?

CD: “Not specific things. I think I want to just keep finding the challenges that intrigue me and fire me up to keep putting in the work, the training, the time, the effort to go after them. And so whatever that is, there’s not a list of things I want to check off necessarily, but, I’m continuing to pour myself into this sport and see what’s possible while every one of my systems [muscular, digestive, endocrine, cognitive, emotional, etc.] is allowing that to happen. The Leadville 100 is on my short list of races I would love to do as soon as I can, but as far as a bucket list in general or what intrigues me, I’m still very interested in exploring the longer stuff and how our brains and our bodies can work together to take us over 100 miles. What does that look like to move efficiently for 200 miles or 500 miles? So that’s where I am putting a lot of my attention into—just finding ways to test myself on stuff that’s really long.”

(05/22/2024) Views: 560 ⚡AMP
by Brian Metzler
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Hardrock 100

Hardrock 100

100-mile run with 33,050 feet of climb and 33,050 feet of descent for a total elevation change of 66,100 feet with an average elevation of 11,186 feet - low point 7,680 feet (Ouray) and high point 14,048 feet (Handies Peak). The run starts and ends in Silverton, Colorado and travels through the towns of Telluride, Ouray, and the ghost town...

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How to Prepare for Western States 100 Trail Race

The Western States 100, the world’s oldest 100-mile footrace, stands as a monumental test of human endurance. Traversing California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains, this race demands competitors climb over 5,000 meters, challenging even the most seasoned athletes. It has become synonymous with the legends of ultrarunning, including Jim Walmsley, Scott Jurek, and Ann Trason.

The Western States 100 began as a horse riding event in 1955. It wasn’t until 1972 that a group of infantry soldiers attempted the trail on foot, with seven successfully completing the 100-mile distance in under 48 hours. Inspired by this feat, Gordy Ainsleigh ran the course alongside horses in 1974, finishing in 24 hours and 42 minutes. This marked the birth of the official footrace in 1977.

Ann Trason holds the record for the most victories at Western States, securing 14 wins from 1989 to 2003. Scott Jurek dominated the men’s competition with seven consecutive victories from 1999 to 2005. In 2021, Beth Pascall of the UK won the women’s race, recording the second-fastest time in the history of women’s 100-mile races with a finish of 17:10:42.

The Course: A Test of Will and Stamina

The Western States Trail stretches from Olympic Valley to Auburn, California. Runners start at 5 a.m. on Saturday and must reach the finish line by 10:59:59 a.m. on Sunday to be eligible for an award. The race begins with a steep 777-meter ascent to Emigrant Pass in the first 4.5 miles, then follows historic gold and silver mining trails, climbing an additional 4,700 meters and descending 7,000 meters to Auburn.

The trail cuts through rugged, remote terrain, accessible only by foot, horse, or helicopter. With temperatures reaching up to 35°C, the race tests runners’ resilience in extreme conditions. Despite the challenges, support is robust, with a volunteer-to-runner ratio of 4:1 and 20 aid stations, including 10 medical checkpoints.

The Coveted Buckle

Finishers of the Western States 100 are awarded a buckle, a nod to the race’s roots in endurance horse racing. A silver buckle is given to those who finish under 24 hours, and a bronze buckle to those finishing within 30 hours.

Securing a spot in the Western States 100 is highly competitive, with only 369 entries available each year. Runners must qualify through designated races and enter a ballot. Automatic entries are granted to the top 10 finishers from the previous year and top performers in Golden Ticket Races such as the Black Canyon 100K. Additionally, the race offers a pregnancy deferral policy, allowing expectant participants to defer their entry without a time limit.

Preparing for the Race

Runners typically arrive in Olympic Valley early in the week, with pre-race activities including a shakeout run on Thursday and a mandatory briefing on Friday. The nearest airports are in Reno, Sacramento, and San Francisco. Accommodations are available in Olympic Valley, home to the Palisades Tahoe ski resort, and in nearby Truckee and Tahoe City. Although the start and finish locations differ, transportation options are plentiful, with rideshares and shuttles available.

The Western States 100 is more than just a race; it is a journey of perseverance and grit. Finishing the 100-mile course within the 30-hour limit is a badge of honor, joining the ranks of those who have conquered one of the toughest ultramarathons in the world.

(05/22/2024) Views: 496 ⚡AMP
by Runner´s Tribe
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Western States 100

Western States 100

The Western States ® 100-Mile Endurance Run is the world’s oldest and most prestigious 100-mile trail race. Starting in Squaw Valley, California near the site of the 1960 Winter Olympics and ending 100.2 miles later in Auburn, California, Western States, in the decades since its inception in 1974, has come to represent one of the ultimate endurance tests in the...

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Meet the ultimate ultrarunning power couple

The running accomplishments of Rachel Drake and Tyler Green are astonishing on their own—but there’s far more to this pair of high-achievers than paces and race results. Drake recently earned her entry to the 2024 edition of the legendary Western States 100 with a strong win at Black Canyon Ultras 100K in Arizona, and Green finished second at the 2023 edition of Western States (and capped off his season with a sixth-place finish in the men’s race at UTMB 171K); the couple juggles demanding careers, school (Drake), coaching (Green) and family time with their one-and-a-half-year-old son, Lewis. We connected with the couple to find out how they make it work.

Drake, now 32, grew up in White Bear Lake, Minn., and the family currently lives in Green’s hometown of Portland, Ore. They will soon be moving to Salt Lake City, Utah, so Drake can begin her anesthesiology residency in the summer. The dynamic trail-running duo met at the McKenzie River 50K, and now combine their strengths in raising a family while balancing high-level running performance. Green, 40, works as a trail running coach and a high school cross country and track coach.

From Western States to World Trail Majors

The couple has similar goals for the 2024 season—they are both racing Western States on June 29, and both hope to capture another top performance at one of the World Trail Majors races, with the current plan being to run Ultra Trail Cape Town in November. The couple exemplifies flexibility in running and life—when a recent trip to run Ultra Trail Madeira was entirely derailed due to travel difficulties, they rallied, enjoying time at home instead. And when Black Canyon Ultra 100K in February was delayed several hours due to bad weather, Drake rose to the occasion.

“I’m really proud of how I handled the multiple changes in plans, I never felt stressed or perturbed,” Drake posted on Instagram after Black Canyon 100K was delayed several hours. “And I guess my ability to fall back asleep showed that my catecholamines were indeed not yet surging through my bloodstream. I think having been through medical school, graduate school and the birth of a child has really put things in perspective.”

An element of surprise

Both Green and Drake love being a part of the trail running community, and while being parents adds an element of challenge, they are finding joy in bringing Lewis to events. “Just a few weeks ago we were at the Gorge Waterfalls trail races, and it’s so fun to bring Lewis into the fold,” Drake told Canadian Running. “He was making friends and wandering around at the finish line, and it was just the best.”

While Drake is quick to express gratitude for their lives, she also acknowledges that they have their hands full. “It’s challenging to balance everything. Lewis is a super easygoing kid, but having a toddler definitely adds an element of surprise to every well-laid plan,” she says. “When we travel, the logistics are a lot more complicated, but it’s always worth it.”

Combining strengths

Drake says that, as athletes, her strengths and Green’s are quite different. “Tyler is much more of a 100-mile specialist, and I am more of a 50K specialist,but moving up in distance this year,” she says. “I think I am also more of a speed-oriented runner and Tyler is probably more of a strength runner.”

As well as being partners through life, Drake and Green share a specific dynamic in the running world—that of coach and runner. “Tyler actually coaches me, so he gives me a lot of advice,” Drake explains. “I’ll weigh in on race strategy and planning our competitive calendars, but I don’t get involved with his training, since he has a great coach.”

Drake and Green share a mutual sponsor in the backpack brand Osprey. “Rachel has partnered with Osprey for five years now, and I followed suit three years ago as I saw how positive the partnership was,” Green explains. “Our connection with Osprey runs deep; they have supported us as people first, whether that’s celebrating a great race result, jumping for joy when we shared we were expecting a baby, or caring for us through injury. We feel like our stories are interwoven.”

The brand’s commitment to sustainability and longevity in its products pairs well with the couple’s values. “I have an Osprey backpack I’ve had for 20 years, it’s still my favorite pack, and I think that tells a lot about how our values align with the company,” says Green. “The gear Osprey makes truly performs and lasts. We’re ultrarunners who work incredibly hard to keep going and going and going, and an Osprey pack on our backs reflects that process.”

Running as a new mom

Drake and Green are now parenting a toddler, and while Drake’s top-notch performance may seem remarkable so quickly after having a child, she says she wouldn’t call it a fast return. “I had a sacral stress fracture at four months postpartum and had to take time to recover from that and then build back fitness,” she says, emphasizing that the culture that celebrates “bouncing back” from postpartum rarely includes any discussion about the challenges of returning to running after giving birth.

“I nursed Lewis for a year after he was born,” she adds. “I loved nursing and it felt important to me to prioritize that. While I was nursing, I felt much more limited with my training, so I had to accept that, even though I was preparing for races that I really cared about.”

Drake’s social media captures enviable images of family, travel, running and mountains, almost always with Lewis in tow. The key to the couple’s success: “Lots of communication with each other, planning our days out and capitalizing on getting stuff done during Lewis’s nap time,” Drake says. One could safely predict fans will follow Drake’s and Green’s performances on trails and off, long after the results of this year’s Western States.

(05/16/2024) Views: 445 ⚡AMP
by Keeley Milne
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Western States 100

Western States 100

The Western States ® 100-Mile Endurance Run is the world’s oldest and most prestigious 100-mile trail race. Starting in Squaw Valley, California near the site of the 1960 Winter Olympics and ending 100.2 miles later in Auburn, California, Western States, in the decades since its inception in 1974, has come to represent one of the ultimate endurance tests in the...

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Western States unveils new anti-doping policy

The legendary 100-mile race has partnered with the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency as part of an "ongoing commitment to clean sport".

On Tuesday, Western States Endurance Run (WSER) revealed a new partnership with the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), unrolling new regulations around anti-doping and reaffirming the race’s “continuing commitment to clean sport,” as their website explains. Here’s what you need to know.

While WSER has for years had drug testing in place, the previous policies were not as stringent (and were not governed by USADA). For some runners eager to toe the line in Auburn, Calif., on June 29, the rules and expectations around testing are now more clearly laid out; others have more questions and are requesting further clarification.

Entry rules

WSER’s entry rules explain that athletes found guilty of doping offenses by governing bodies like WADA or USADA are barred from participating in WSER during their period of ineligibility. Additionally, any athlete subjected to a ban of three months or more is ineligible unless otherwise approved by WSER. Previously, athletes who had any infractions against the WADA code were banned for life from participating in WSER—but, as ultrarunning world champ Camille Herron explains on X, the new policy allows for “more leniency of entry for those who were given a warning/1-2 month ban.”

Levelling the playing field

WSER will be taking testing seriously and targeting elite athletes and top age-group competitors for post-race urine and/or blood testing. Sample collection and analysis will be handled by USADA, ensuring a thorough and transparent process. USADA will also be responsible for results management, including communicating with athletes regarding test results, investigating violations and imposing sanctions as necessary. WSER also reserves the right to impose its own sanctions.

Prohibited substances

WSER strictly adheres to the WADA (World Anti Doping Agency) Code, prohibiting the use of substances on the WADA Prohibited List. Athletes are responsible for knowing and complying with these rules. The WSER website provides resources to help athletes check their medications and suggests that runners be extremely cautious when using supplements.

Athlete response

The updated drug policies have garnered some positive responses on social media, while some athletes, such as Canadian pro mountaineer and ultrarunner Adam Campbell, are asking for further explanation.

WSER has a partnership with trail running giant UTMB, and while NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, including aspirin and ibuprofen) are, notably, banned at all UTMB races, runners at WSER would not be tested for them under these new guidelines.

“The issue is the terms are not clearly defined,” Campbell posted on X. “Strong stances usually demand greater clarity. If UTMB sanctioned someone for a doping violation how would WSER handle it? Their possible violations do not necessarily sync with WADA—seems like a reasonable question to clarify.” At the time of publication, the race had not yet responded.

The 2024 edition of WSER will take place on June 29-30.

(04/04/2024) Views: 428 ⚡AMP
by Keeley Milne
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Western States 100

Western States 100

The Western States ® 100-Mile Endurance Run is the world’s oldest and most prestigious 100-mile trail race. Starting in Squaw Valley, California near the site of the 1960 Winter Olympics and ending 100.2 miles later in Auburn, California, Western States, in the decades since its inception in 1974, has come to represent one of the ultimate endurance tests in the...

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Three workouts for endless endurance

If you’re gearing up for a half-marathon distance or longer, you’re likely hoping to build your endurance tank to keep your race pace steady and strong through the hard final miles of your race. Pro ultrarunner Krissy Mohl, author of Running Your First Ultra, whose accomplishments include taking fourth place at both Western States 100 and Hardrock 100 (2012), schedules regular endurance-based workouts for the athletes that she coaches that are appropriate for runners targeting any longer distance race.

Before you tackle any of these workouts, make sure you have a strong training base, and schedule an easy running or recovery day to follow. Use these as your bread-and-butter workouts in your pursuit of crushing a consistent race-day pace.

1.- Pace repeats

Mohl has runners use this workout throughout their entire training build, beginning with 5 or 6 repeats and building from there.”It is key to find the pace you can manage the entire workout,” she says. Aim to be consistent and steady, with your final repeat at the same pace as your first.

Warm up with 15 minutes of easy running.

Run 7-8 x 5 minutes steady, with 1 minute recovery between each repeat.

Cool down with 15 minutes of easy running.

Adapt this workout for your ability and goals by adding repeats (or doing less), focusing on consistency.

2.- Endurance pyramid

These pyramid intervals are shorter than most endurance sessions, but they add up to a strong, leg-tiring session. Mohl suggests less technical terrain for this workout to work on turnover: “Make these intervals a little quicker than normal, especially the 1-and 2-minute ones.”

Warm up with 15-20 minutes of easy running.

Pyramid: Run 1,2,3,4,3,2,1 with equal recovery between each segment.

Cool down with 15 minutes of easy running.

3.- Steady hills

Whether your race is a flat road one, or an ultra that involves powerhiking, hill training will build confidence and strength. Mohl says that a consistent, runnable hill is best for this workout.

Warm up with 15-20 minutes of easy running.

Run 5 x 5 minutes hill running with one minute of recovery after each repeat.

Cool down with 15 minutes of easy running.

Make sure you are fuelling appropriately for long, tough training, and prioritizing quality recovery time that includes rest days (at least one per week).

(03/27/2024) Views: 549 ⚡AMP
by Keeley Milne
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This Teen Ultrarunner Wants to Take on the World's Most Prestigious Races

Last November, 17-year-old Sebastian Salsbury received an email reminder. He had 13 days to decide about entering the race lottery for the 2024 Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run, regarded as one of the most prestigious trail events in the world. 

Rules stipulate that each lottery applicant must be at least 18 years old on race day. On January 20, Salsbury will finally meet the age requirement, five years after he technically ran a qualifying time to enter the lottery for the first time.

It's been a goal he's been progressing toward for years. In 2020, when Salsbury was 13, he completed the Black Canyon 100K in Arizona in 15 hours 49 minutes and 32 seconds, well within the 17-hour time limit necessary to qualify for the Western States lottery. 

"It's hard to put that experience into words," Salsbury says. "It was one of the most beautiful courses I've ever been on. That race made me feel like I was doing the right thing in my life." 

Starting Young

Salsbury, who grew up in Santa Barbara, California, was attracted to the trails at a young age. Throughout his childhood, his parents often brought him to nearby trails to hike. The hikes gradually transitioned into jogs, and Salsbury's relationship with the outdoors continued to grow. The mountains, he says, were a playground.

Though Salsbury played basketball, football, and soccer growing up, his love for running took over. He quit the other sports after junior high school to minimize risk for injury, he says, and to dedicate more time to running.

A few years after Salsbury's entry into racing-his first was a local 5K on the road when he was four-he ran the Santa Barbara Red Rock Trail Run. Despite being just nine, he kept up with his father for all 28 miles. The following year, for the Santa Barbara Nine Trails, Salsbury traversed 35 miles with nearly 12,000 feet of vertical gain from the Jesusita trailhead to Romero Canyon trailhead and back, again alongside his father, a road marathoner.

Next, Salsbury entered the Black Canyon 100K in Arizona. He recalled the point-to-point race as one of his most difficult running experiences to date. 

"I was basically crying," Salsbury remembers, adding that his hydration vest kept digging into his ribs. "I loved the feeling of working hard and going through really low moments and overcoming them. I crave it."

Supported for the last 20 miles by his coach at the time, Tyler Hansen, Salsbury crossed the finish feeling both defeated and uplifted. The Black Canyon race gave him the confidence to continue challenging himself in ultrarunning.

"My best friends don't understand," Salsbury says about the pursuit of ultras, which he envisions including some of the most technically demanding and prestigious races in the world: the Western States 100 in California, Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc through the French Alps, as well as the Hardrock Hundred Mile Endurance Run in Colorado. Salsbury admits that running disrupts his social life, and also that he doesn't mind the solitude the sport necessitates. In fact, he welcomes it.

"I like the feeling of being alone in the mountains," Salsbury says. "It's a great way to free your mind."

Given that he is still a teen-the average age of trail runners is in the mid-30s-Salsbury has not been immune to negative comments over the years. "It's not cool at all to hate, but I can still see where someone would be coming from, seeing a kid doing all that stuff," Salsbury says. "There are going to be people that troll and hate for no reason. That's just life."

A Purposeful Progression

The training required to undertake ultras is out of this world for a typical high school runner. To ensure he's programming himself with sufficient miles without overloading his still-developing body, Salsbury sought the guidance of his longtime role model, pro trail runner Hayden Hawks. The two met when Salsbury was 14, and their camaraderie clicked naturally.

"I had lots of mentors help me at a young age in my running journey, and I felt the responsibility to do the same with Sebastian," says Hawks, 32. "We have taken a patient and gradual approach, developing strength, speed, and a foundation that will help him build into the longer distance races at an older age."

Hawks has coached Salsbury for the past two years, carefully mapping out a plan that tallies 50 miles weekly spread across six days. Salisbury complements the mileage with a combination of hiking, mountain biking, and intervals on an indoor bike as part of his cross training. Three days a week, he does strength exercises at Varient Training Lab in Santa Barbara. To fit it all in so he could have ample opportunity to train and compete, prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, Salsbury enrolled in West River Academy, an online private school program.

"I have zero regrets," Salsbury says. "The opportunity that it's given me to travel with my family and run and be able to guide my days how I want and learn at my own pace, I'm grateful for that."

The online program lasts up to three hours a day, which is "a lot less than standard high school," Salsbury chuckles. In 2022, he researched computer engineering and built a computer from scratch. This year, as part of the online curriculum, he's learning to speak German in addition to researching for a project about coffee and sustainability, which he is especially interested in as a part-time certified barista. Salisbury works at a local coffee shop twice a week. 

So far, he's enjoying the unique balance of online learning and ultrarunning. "I like to keep myself busy," he says. "I've always had this next-level energy. Obviously it goes into running, but it's who I am as a person." 

His days are hardly routine compared to the average high schooler. On a recent Thursday, Salsbury started the day with a three-minute cold plunge before he spent the remainder of the morning packing running shoes, thermal layers, his COROS watch, and a heart rate monitor ahead of a four-day trip to Boulder, Colorado, to train with a friend at altitude.

Living at sea level in Santa Barbara, Salsbury doesn't often have the opportunity to run at altitude beyond twice a year, mostly "just a vacation with my family where I get to do some running," he says.

As much as he has run over the years, Salsbury says he's been fortunate to never have had any serious injuries. This year, a growth spurt of eight inches led to severe shin splints, and Salsbury, who is now 6-foot-4 and 162 pounds, took four months off from running.

Now, life is back to business as usual. Salsbury is planning ahead. His next race is the La Cuesta Ranch 25K in San Luis Obispo, California, in late January. After he graduates from high school in June 2024, he wants to pursue a running career ideally full-time, though he hasn't stated when he aims to turn professional. 

"I've always had the intention to be one of the greatest ultrarunners in the world one day. That will continue to be my goal," Salsbury says. "I want to leave a positive impact on the sport and be an inspiration to other athletes of any age, but obviously the youth because that's how I grew up. People can judge and say whatever they want, but I do want to be the best of all time."

(03/16/2024) Views: 439 ⚡AMP
by Trail Runner Magazine
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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: 624 ⚡AMP
by Anne Francis
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North Face Ultra Trail du Tour du Mont-Blanc

North Face Ultra Trail du Tour du Mont-Blanc

Mountain race, with numerous passages in high altitude (>2500m), in difficult weather conditions (night, wind, cold, rain or snow), that needs a very good training, adapted equipment and a real capacity of personal autonomy. It is 6:00pm and we are more or less 2300 people sharing the same dream carefully prepared over many months. Despite the incredible difficulty, we feel...

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Burnout Is Complicated

Kieran Abbotts is a PhD student at the University of Oregon, studying human physiology. He earned his master's degree in Metabolism and Exercise Physiology at Colorado State University. The lab that he works at now studies exercise and environment and stressors on physiology. In other words, he's an expert on how the chemicals in the body work during exercise, and what happens when things get out of whack. 

"Essentially, there are two kinds of training. There's functional overreaching, which means you stress the body with hard workouts and long runs. Then you provide adequate time to recover, and you induce adaptations," Abbotts said. This kind of training is ideal-your body is getting stronger. "You want to be functionally overreaching as an elite athlete-so that you're making progress and becoming a better runner, but also giving yourself adequate recovery." 

And then there's non-functional overreaching, which can feel the same to many athletes, but it's very different. 

"With non-functional overreaching you're essentially doing the same thing-big workouts, stressing the body-but not giving yourself enough time to recover. And so you start doing damage." That damage might take a long time to show itself, Abbots said, but it eventually will. 

This might be the most important thing to know about being an athlete at any level. Non-functional overreaching is exactly the same as very healthy training, except without enough rest. And rest is different for everyone, which makes it exceptionally easy to slip from functional overreaching into damaging non-functional overreaching without realizing it. Without adequate rest, the body begins to break down instead of build stronger. 

Stress Is Stress

Professional ultrarunner Cat Bradley, 31, living in Hawaii, has experienced fatigue and burnout in various forms, including just after she won Western States in 2017. 

Winning a big race is great, but it also means all eyes are on you-the pressure is high to stay on top. "After winning Western States, I took a month off, but I was still running at a high level. And for lack of a better term, I felt like I had a gun to my back," Bradley said. "I wanted Western States so badly, and after I won, so many things happened and I never shook that gun-to-the-back feeling. After a while, it led to burnout. I had to take a mental break." 

For many athletes, finding success can be the stress that makes non-functional overreaching feel necessary. How can you take an extended break when you're winning and signing new sponsor contracts? 

A second version of burnout for Bradley came when she went through an especially stressful situation outside of running. She was dealing with such extreme daily emotional stress in her personal life that everything else was affected, including running and training. When the body is enduring stress, it doesn't know (or care) what the cause is. We can't put our life into silos. If there's stress in one's life, everything else needs to be adjusted. It doesn't matter if that stress is "just work" or illness, or relationships. 

When you're overtraining, or chronically overstressed, your body is creating higher levels of "catecholamines" hormones released by your adrenal glands during times of stress like epinephrine, norepinephrine, or adrenaline. "Having those chronically high levels of overstimulation and not enough recovery, you wind up with a desensitization," Abbotts said. "Overstimulation also causes decreased levels of plasma cortisol. Cortisol is the stress hormone, and it plays a very important role in your physiology." 

When you're exercising or stressing the body, cortisol will go up, to help the body deal with the stress. But if you're constantly requiring lots of cortisol, your body will eventually down-regulate. It will adapt and then you'll have low levels of cortisol. This means trouble dealing with physical and mental stress. 

In February, Bradley experienced her most recent version of burnout, and it happened mid-race. Bradley was running the Tarawera 100-miler in New Zealand. Besides training for such a big race, she was also working full-time and planning and preparing for her wedding, which was just days after the race. On top of everything, travel to the event was incredibly stressful. 

"I was in fourth place, I could see third, and at mile 85, I passed out and hit my head on a rock," Bradley said. "We can talk about the reasons that I fainted, but I really think my brain just shut down-it was too much." 

For Bradley, reaching burnout has a lot more to do with outside stressors than the actual running. But now she's aware of that-she continues to work on not reaching the gun-to-the-back feeling. The need to please others. The fear of losing fitness in order to take care of her body. It's an ongoing process, but an important one. 

Overdoing Is the American Way

Professional ultrarunner Sally McRae said, based on her observations, Americans are really bad at taking time off. "I've traveled the world and Americans are really bad at resting," she said. "It's part of our work system. You go anywhere in Europe and everyone takes a month-long holiday. You have a kid and you take a year off. We're not conditioned like that in America. It's like you get one week and then after you work a decade, you get two weeks of vacation." 

For McRae, avoiding burnout and overtraining has a lot to do with creating a life that's sustainable. She started working when she was 15-years-old, so she realized earlier than most that life couldn't just be working as hard as possible to count down to retirement. 

"Perspective is massive when it comes to burnout. My goal every year is to find the wonder and the beauty and the joy in what I do. Because it's my job, but it's also my life," McRae said. "And I really believe we're supposed to rest-it should be a normal part of our life. Whether that's taking a vacation or taking an off-season. I take a two-month offseason and I have for a long time." 

One of the most important parts about rest and not overstressing the body is that everyone is different. An overstressed body can lead to hormonal imbalances, which in turn affects everything. 

"When you're overtraining, you tend to get mood changes and have trouble sleeping," Abbotts said. "Two of the big things that stand out are you're exhausted but you can't sleep. And the other is irritability-mood swings, and depression." When you get to the point that you've overstressed your body for so long that the chemicals are changing, pretty much everything starts falling apart.

And even though everyone is different, you'd never know that from looking at social media. "I know social media makes it seem like ultrarunners are running 40 miles a day, doing a 100-mile race every other weekend," McRae said. "And that's insane. You've got to be in touch with yourself. It's very different to wake up and feel sore or tired, but if you wake up and feel like you have no joy in the thing you're doing, you need a real break from it."

How Can the Running Community Do Better?

Elite ultrarunner and running coach Sandi Nypaver wants runners to get more in touch with how they're feeling and less concerned about numbers or what anyone else is doing. 

"I have to have honest talks with people I'm coaching. I need them to feel like they can tell me how they feel, because sometimes they think they have to stick to the training plan for the week no matter what," she said. "But the plan is never set in stone. It's meant to be adjusted based on how you're feeling. Some weeks we might feel great and not need to change anything, while other weeks we might have to totally crash the plan and do something else." 

It's easy to judge ourselves against everyone else, especially when results and reactions are so public and available. 

"It's easy to say, 'if that person only took three days off after a big race, and now they're already back to training, that must be what you're supposed to do,'" she said. "But even at the highest level, training is different for everyone. Resting is different for everyone." 

"Something that's really, really hard for many runners to understand is that once you're not sore anymore, that you're still not recovered," Nypaver said. "A lot of research says that things are still going on in your body for up to four weeks after, for certain races, depending on the distance." 

Sometimes it's difficult to be aware of subtle signs when the soreness is gone. "Convincing people that they need to chill out for a while, even past the soreness, can be really difficult." But after a huge effort, and before the next, people rarely end up saying things like, "I really wish I hadn't rested so thoroughly." Part of it is actually having a recovery plan. Putting rest days on the calendar, focusing on foam rolling and mobility on days that you're not "doing." 

"And, actually just relaxing. Taking it easy. It's not just a running model, we live in a culture where we're always being asked to do more," Nypaver said. "I wish instead of always thinking about doing more, we'd focus on how we want to be more. A lot of us want to be more relaxed and less stressed and happier and enjoy our lives. We need to put our attention on that instead of trying to do so much. It's something I struggle with all the time."

We don't get validation for resting, relaxing, and being present because there's no tangible thing to show for it. There's no "be really calm often" challenge on Strava. But the bigger rewards are great. You just have to trade in immediate dopamine hits for a much more balanced, happier life. 

Simple, right?

"One thing I'm doing, and asking my athletes to do, is to write down your intentions," Nypaver said. "One of my intentions is to chill out more this summer and enjoy it. I grew up thinking it's all about running, and I have to go all-in on running. But having other outlets, other things that I like to do, is so important."  

When you've reached burnout-an extended period of non-functional overreaching, prolonged rest is the only way to let the body fix itself. 

"Once you are overtrained, you need to stop training," Abbotts said. "It's just kind of the bottom line. Maybe some people can get away with greatly reducing their training load, but most of the time you need to stop. You need an extended amount of time off." 

There's nothing glamorous about rest. There's no prize money in relaxing. But it's the absolute key ingredient in extended performance, and in a much healthier, happier life. 

(02/10/2024) Views: 507 ⚡AMP
by Trail Runner Magazine
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Canadian road and trail champ Anne-Marie Madden shares her wisdom

Canadian distance runner Anne-Marie Madden has been shining on both road and trails for years, most recently winning the masters division at the 2023 California International Marathon (CIM). Madden was third at Arizona’s Black Canyon 100K in 2022, earning her entry into the 2022 edition of the legendary Western States 100, where she took 11th place.

Madden, who works as a doctor in Vancouver, shared the secrets to her success in seamlessly transitioning between road and trail running with Canadian Running.

Early morning trail training

Balancing a thriving medical career with elite training demands a strategic training schedule. Madden’s weekdays are often dictated by long work hours, so she utilizes non-technical trails for pre-dawn runs with her dog, Tucker. Her days off become an opportunity for long, trail-focused runs.

“During this most recent marathon build, I made a concerted effort to do some long runs on the road,” says Madden. “My coach gave me a few workouts within a long run. This was useful on weeks when I had limited time off to do other workouts and it also built up my confidence running faster road paces again.”

Fuelling for both styles

Madden’s fuelling strategy adapts to the demands of each terrain. For shorter, more intense road workouts, she opts for liquid nutrition and gels, finding bars challenging to consume when running at a higher intensity. She uses different methods of staying hydrated during training: on trails, she uses a filter flask to refill water from natural sources, contrasting the convenience of refilling at water fountains on urban road runs.

Tips for runners hoping to shift between terrain

“One of the biggest mental shifts for road runners moving into the trail space is to let go of pace goals,” says Madden. “The terrain often dictates the pace. Running on trails is a great opportunity to hone in on perceived effort and to tune into our body’s cues.” Madden says this skill carries over to road racing.

“For readers with a road running background looking to do more trail racing, I recommend they introduce trail runs into their program on their easy days or for a portion of their long run,” says Madden. “They can eventually work in trail workouts such as hill repeats or speed work on gravel paths.”

Vert and alpine views

Madden’s social media posts highlight the beautiful B.C. trails where she runs with her exuberant dog. “The alpine views here are spectacular and the high numbers of park visitors means the trails are well maintained and great for running,” she says. She does the bulk of her long runs on the mountain bike trails in Pemberton and Squamish.

Madden says that while there are lots of great runs in B.C. with tons of vert., the snow pack can make it hard to find long sustained climbs to train on can be challenging in early spring: “something to keep in mind if you’re signing up for a big race with lots of vertical early in the race season.”

With that in mind, Madden will next be lining up at Black Canyon 100K on Feb. 10th, “a relatively low vert trail race which is easier to train for during the Canadian winter when a lot of the higher elevation trails are snow covered,” she says.

(01/29/2024) Views: 486 ⚡AMP
by Keeley Milne
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Black Canyon Ultras

Black Canyon Ultras

The Black Canyon 100K trail race takes place on the world class Black Canyon Trail near Phoenix, Arizona. This 80 mile long trail features incredible single track trails on an old stagecoach route, this course traverses across high desert grasslands and crosses through several arroyos and deep canyons on a classic journey in the desert Southwest. This historic trail is...

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The Wild, Uncertain Science of Post-Exercise Ketones

A new review study points toward post-exercise ketone supplementation as a way to improve adaptation and performance. What does the uncertain science mean for endurance athletes?

I heard about athletes supplementing with ketones sometime in the mid-2010s. A company reached out, promising the next big breakthrough in endurance performance from this liquid supplement composed of a molecule naturally produced in the body from the breakdown of free fatty acids. They told me that the top cyclists in the world were already using ketones and that it was destined to take over running, too. They sent a few boxes…and they collected dust in the pantry. It felt like a biohack, and I wasn’t comfortable with it.

Over the years, more studies on ketone ingestion emerged, and I started to get more and more intrigued. Rumors came out that about 70 percent of the cycling peloton used the stuff. But they cost a ton, and it was hard to discern what was actual practice and what was just marketing.

It wasn’t until 2023, though, that I embraced that ketones were here to stay, whether I liked it or not. A 2023 study in the American Journal of Physiology-Endocrine and Metabolism had nine men complete two cycling trials, both with one hour consisting of two minutes at 90 percent of aerobic capacity (moderately hard), followed by two minutes at 50 percent of aerobic capacity (very easy). In both trials, the cyclists consumed a carb-protein drink immediately after exercise and at one, two, and three hours later. Here’s the study intervention: in just one trial, participants ingested 0.29 g/kg ketone monoester immediately after exercise and at one and two hours later.

The ketone trial led to 20 percent higher levels of natural erythropoietin (EPO) in the bloodstream.

For comparison, a 2005 study in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that the initial exposure to altitude training increased EPO by an average of around 50 percent in swimmers, with large individual variability (returning to baseline after a couple of weeks of altitude training), with lots of variation across studies. Given that our bodies produce EPO to increase red blood cell production, and red blood cells transport oxygen that power endurance performance, the ketone study indicated that we could be seeing a supplement that supercharges adaptation and performance.

Context for Ketones

To be 100 percent honest, I was sad when I saw this study. I love performance physiology, but I don’t want to think about a new biohack. Maybe it’s a sign that I’m getting old when a study on cutting-edge science just makes me tired. Get these research protocols off my lawn!

But I also couldn’t bury my head in the sand (though that would probably increase EPO concentrations via hypoxia). Instead of giving into my old-coach fatigue, maybe I can help publicize the emerging science so fewer athletes have an information disadvantage. My final push was last week when a fantastic review article was published in the American Journal of Physiology-Cell Physiology by Ruben Robberechts and Chiel Poffé. If ketone supplementation has the potential that some think it may, the article could be a key step in the future of exercise physiology.

Before getting to the science, I think it’s important to lay out the stakes. Based on the articles (mixed with a heaping dose of gossip), I can see three different scenarios unfolding over the next 10 years.

One, post-exercise ketones don’t live up to their promise, and this is all a nothingburger. That outcome would please me the most, and we all know that what’s most important in science is my pleasure. If researchers did this type of theoretical analysis on other interventions (i.e. heat training, Vitamin D, lifting, ashwagandha, strides, beta-alanine, doubles, creatine), they could come back with similar findings. We are only talking about a few intervention studies and lots of theory, and future research could have different results. Plus, some critics would already be confident making their judgments as the Supreme Court of Nothingburgerland.

Two, ketones could become a more commonly used supplement with benefits for performance and health (like iron). They are expensive, which isn’t great, but maybe they will help athletes be healthier and faster, with limited side effects. On the flip side, maybe more research indicates tradeoffs that lead to benefit:risk calculations with performance or health. Over email, Dr. Poffé–an author of the review study and a key researcher in this field–says that “studies have shown divergent effects on performance depending on the exercise context and whether you take them before, during or after exercise.” Even if they are beneficial in some contexts, it’s not a simple equation of take ketones = get faster.

The third possibility is that they are banned as an illegal performance enhancer. I have no inside info on whether that’s a possibility, and at first blush, it doesn’t seem likely without some health risks. Dr. Poffé says “I honestly don’t see much of a reason to ban ketones while allowing other ergogenic supplements.”

So, yeah, we’re talking about a wide range of possibilities, which makes sense given the uncertain mechanisms and effects at play. Let’s dig in. (We got even deeper into the nuance on our podcast this week, which you can listen to here.)

Introduction to Ketones

As stated by the review study, ketone bodies “are molecules that are continuously produced from the breakdown of free fatty acids,” primarily in the liver. Ketone body production is upregulated during periods of low carbohydrate availability—that’s why you have heard “ketosis” thrown around for ultrarunners who practice low carbohydrate, high-fat nutrition, aiming to improve fat oxidation and avoid bonking. Ketosis via nutritional interventions comes with way too many downsides for endurance athletes, though, including everything from reduced bone density to diminished high-intensity performance. That makes sense intuitively because low carbohydrate availability is extremely stressful on most body functions, especially the endocrine system.

Ketone esters, enter stage left. Researchers figured out how to create an ester bond between a ketone body precursor and a ketone body (first in 1978 in rats, but not undergoing human testing until 2012). These ketone esters cause a “rapid and transient increase in ketone bodies,” possibly inducing ketosis. It was as if this evolutionary mechanism honed over millions of years now had a dimmer switch. For the chemistry nerds out there, you can probably guess what oral ingestion of an ester is like—not fun. Companies like HVMN honed the taste over time, and now I’d say that ketone esters taste like a robot’s ass. We can only imagine what they tasted like before.

Ketones have mostly been marketed as a before-and-during-exercise supplement, at least in the podcast ads I have heard. Take ketones, burn more fat at higher intensities, win the Tour de France, etc. However, a bunch of studies have shown limited to no acute benefit. For example, a 2017 study in Frontiers of Physiology found that pre-exercise ketone supplementation caused around a two percent performance decrease in 10 male professional cyclists doing a 50-minute time trial.

Perhaps there’s some protocol being used in the cycling peloton that improves acute performance, as the marketing claims indicate. Heck, Tom Evans reportedly took ketone esters on his way to winning Western States, so there must be some benefit for some athletes (or at least neutral impacts), possibly related to perceived effort. Anecdotally, when I tried ketones on a fatigued long run, the lights went out. Thankfully, I had my phone to call the Wuber (when my wife Megan drives to pick me up).

So perhaps it’s something else. Maybe all this ketone hype is because taking them improves recovery and hematological variables, confounding variables that are actually the driving force behind their use (maybe that even explains some of the success stories behind low carb, high fat nutrition approaches. I’d love to see the blood work!).

According to the review, after exercise, circulating ketone bodies are increased. However, any benefits athletes may see from a sustained increase are blunted in advanced athletes practicing good recovery nutrition. Ketone esters “may induce a unique physiological milieu to enhance post-exercise recovery and exercise adaptation as it allows to benefit from the potential beneficial effect of post-exercise ketosis in combination with other nutritional exercise recovery strategies (e.g., carbohydrate-protein recovery drink).” They had me at physiological milieu. Dr. Poffé says that his lab started ketone work in 2016 when “there was already some preliminary data showing that it could help riders during the Tour de France as a recovery aid.”

Mechanisms of Post-Exercise Ketones

I can’t emphasize enough how great this review article is, summarizing extremely uncertain science and studies. Before getting to the EPO mechanisms, let’s briefly touch on a bunch of other considerations. First, ketone bodies may cause epigenetic changes. For example, histone lysine β-hydroxybutylation could increase with ketone body increases, which may “increase transcription of genes involved in the adaptive response to exercise.” Across several different epigenetic mechanisms, it’s possible that ketone bodies could be a signal to the body to adapt to stimuli (which makes sense given their evolutionary role in exercise in energy-limited environments).

Second, ketones could “enhance the restoration of cellular energy status after exercise” while also blunting AMPK phosphorylation, which could enhance recovery due to its role in cellular stress or decrease adaptation due to its role in mitochondrial biogenesis. I love this one because that maybe-good, maybe-bad uncertainty regarding downregulation of AMPK points out just how little is known about the long-term consequences of post-exercise ketones, particularly in conjunction with other impacts.

Third, ketones alter g-receptor signaling, which “mediate cellular responses to a wide variety of external agents.” Fourth, ketones show anti-inflammation and anti-oxidation properties, which seems good at first glance but could theoretically cause long-term reductions in training adaptations since the inflammation response can spur adaptation. Fifth, ketones may influence neurotransmitter concentrations in the brain, which could profoundly impact perceived exertion (and possibly even mental health, though that’s a topic for another day).

The next cohort of potential adaptations are at the cutting edge of science but still theoretical. Ketones could increase muscle glycogen resynthesis, reduce protein degradation and enhance protein synthesis, spur angiogenesis that leads to more capillaries to supply blood to working muscles, induce favorable changes in muscle mitochondria, and improve sleep quality in athletes who are training hard. You can put those variables together with a 2019 study in the Journal of Physiology, where male athletes completed a three-week overload training block with six days a week of two-a-day training sessions, with one group having post-exercise ketones. That study found higher tolerated training load in the ketone group and improved performance. (The study was the subject of a Letter to the Editor disputing some of the conclusions.)

A 2023 study looked at a similar three-week overload block, validating the findings. They had 18 male athletes complete 10 training sessions per week, with one group taking post-exercise and pre-sleep ketones and the other taking a placebo. The ketone group “increased the number of capillary contacts and the capillary-to-fibre perimeter exchange index by 44 percent and 42 percent,” plus “substantially increased vascular endothelial growth factor and endothelial nitric oxide synthase expression both at the protein and at the mRNA level.” And the money finding: EPO concentrations in the ketone group increased by 26 percent. That study was eye-opening for the possible recovery and adaptation benefits of ketones, and it brings us back to the elephant in the room: potential hematological changes from increased EPO production.

Hematological Changes

In 2018, a study in the Diabetes Care journal found increasing levels of EPO after a ketone body infusion. The authors of the 2023 study that started this article cited this study as part of the impetus for their investigation (read their amazing summary here). We’re seeing similar findings in athletes in the 2023 studies, which found 20 percent and 26 percent increases in EPO production in the ketone groups relative to controls. But the science is not there to make a definitive conclusion.

In the title of this article, I promised uncertain science, and now we are deep in it. First, we don’t know how much this EPO change may impact performance. “Currently,” the review says, “it has not been identified if the observed changes in EPO post-exercise are indeed sufficient to induce an improvement in hemoglobin mass and oxygen transport capacity in humans, and whether these effects are additive to stimuli that are frequently used by athletes to increases EPO such as hypoxia.” It’s possible that these changes don’t correspond to performance benefits.

And get a load of this: “The precise physiological mechanism underlying ketone body-induced upregulation of EPO is currently unknown.” However, based on mouse models, the researchers theorize that it relates to H39K acetylation in kidney cells.

Are Ketones the Future?

There are tons of unanswered questions. How do these types of adaptations change over time? The longest study right now is a few weeks.

Do the processes change in female athletes? That’s one of my big concerns in making any recommendations since metabolic processes can vary based on gender. While more research is needed, Dr. Poffé indicates that past studies likely show that the results can be extrapolated to female athletes. “In a recent, unpublished study,” he says, “we observed that some effects are even more pronounced in females.”

How about aging athletes? Athletes of different levels, with different goals and backgrounds? What’s the right dosage and timing? Would the same responses happen at altitude? Should consumption be periodized? With similar studies, would other interventions lead to similar findings? Should ketones be banned altogether?

I don’t know the answers to those questions, and a lot more studies are needed before I make coaching recommendations other than “be careful” and “keep it simple.”

“Similar to most nutritional supplements,” Dr. Poffé says, “the long term effects (e.g. what occurs if you supplement for multiple years) are not known.” When athletes take ketones, he says instead of taking them chronically, to supplement “during periods of limited recovery opportunities,” like training camps. From a performance perspective, he advises to consider ketones when everything else is sorted out around training, nutrition, and recovery. They are “the final step,” not the first one.

In September, after reading the research, I dusted off that old package of ketones and opened up a serving for myself. Then I threw it in the trash because it seemed like a health hazard after all those years. I ordered a new package and started experimenting with them a couple days a week post-exercise. In October, at the Blue Sky Marathon, I closed the final four miles two minutes faster than last year to set a course record.

That probably had nothing to do with ketones, right? I’m no Olympian, but I train hard. And when looking back on the race and why I could finish so fast while feeling so good, I would be burying my head in the sand not to consider one of the only variables that changed.

I’m not sure what the future holds with post-exercise ketone supplementation. Maybe it’s all snake oil and placebo, with some studies that find physiological anomalies without a demonstration that it fundamentally alters performance trajectories, destined to be covering dust in the pantry of exercise physiology history.

Or maybe we’re seeing the dawn of a revolution in endurance training and performance.

 

(01/14/2024) Views: 740 ⚡AMP
by David Roche (Trail Runner Magazine)
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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: 605 ⚡AMP
by Keeley Milne
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5 creative ways to unlock your running potential

Every runner seeks the elusive formula for peak performance, and while traditional strategies play a vital role, exploring unconventional avenues can unearth untapped potential. Performance coaches, authors and the hosts of a new podcast called Farewell, Brad Stulberg and Steve Magness, recently shared some innovative ways to tap into your best performance.

These methods, adapted from the training of legendary ultrarunner Courtney Dauwalter, Kona Ironman champ Chelsea Sodaro, and Canadian Olympic champ decathlete Damian Warner, can help you build an arsenal of tools that will allow you to become your best running self, whatever your goals may be. Look Embrace curiosity over fear

In the premiere episode of Farewell, Stulberg interviews ultrarunning GOAT Dauwaulter, whose 2023 season saw her winning the triple crown of ultramarathons (UTMB, Western States 100 and Hardrock 100). Dauwaulter is known for her curiosity-based approach to racing and says that whenever she works her way through a unique challenge, she puts it into her “filing cabinet” of experiences built through more than a decade of running ultras.Consider approaching challenges with curiosity rather than fear.

Dauwaulter’s journey started with curiosity-driven road marathons, leading her to conquer ultramarathons and achieve astonishing feats. When faced with a daunting task, adopt a mindset of exploration, saying to yourself: “let’s just see what happens,” rather than feeling like you must succeed at all costs. The unexpected outcomes might surprise you and expand your perceived limits.Use the power of “yes”

Chelsea Sodaro, the Kona Ironman world champ winner, draws inspiration from a mantra the athlete and her husband taught their daughter when she was going through a “no” phase—“yes, yes, yes.” This simple yet potent affirmation becomes a guiding force during challenging moments. Applying this mantra encourages a commitment to embrace difficulties and lean into the hard aspects of training. The next time you encounter a tough run or race, channel the spirit of “yes, yes, yes” to shift from resistance to resilience.Less is more: subtract to succeed

Stulberg suggests challenging the instinct to add more when faced with a hurdle. Research shows that humans tend to be “adders,” inclined to incorporate new strategies, rather than simply subtracting impediments. When striving for behaviour change, consider subtracting obstacles instead of seeking additional solutions. Reflect on what you can eliminate or modify to clear the path to success, allowing simplicity to fuel progress.Consistency trumps perfect practice

Through several decades of elite competition, Canadian Olympic champion decathlete Damian Warner has learned the importance of consistency over perfection. His coach’s mantra—that there’s no such thing as a bad practice—highlights the importance of routine, unexceptional training days. Warner’s gold medal-winning experience underscores the power of sustained, consistent effort, even when conditions are less than ideal. Recognize that excellence is often built through everyday dedication rather than sporadic extraordinary performances.You are not your thoughts

In overcoming mental health challenges like OCD and anxiety, Sodaro shares a unique strategy—naming her brain (she calls hers Regina, after the character in the movie Mean Girls). By personifying intrusive thoughts, she creates distance between herself and her mental struggles. Runners grappling with mental hurdles can apply this concept, acknowledging that their thoughts don’t define them. Naming and dismissing unwanted thoughts can provide mental clarity and resilience during demanding runs.Ultrarunner Adam Campbell’s tips to master your mid-race mindset” — Canadian Running Magazine

View on the original site.

In your pursuit of optimal running performance, integrating these unconventional approaches can inject a fresh perspective, foster growth, and aid in unlocking your true potential. Remember, innovation often lies in the willingness to explore the uncharted paths of curiosity, affirmation, simplicity, consistency and mental resilience.

(01/07/2024) Views: 528 ⚡AMP
by Running Magazine
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Five creative ways to unlock your running potential

Every runner seeks the elusive formula for peak performance, and while traditional strategies play a vital role, exploring unconventional avenues can unearth untapped potential. Performance coaches, authors and the hosts of a new podcast called Farewell, Brad Stulberg and Steve Magness, recently shared some innovative ways to tap into your best performance.

These methods, adapted from the training of legendary ultrarunner Courtney Dauwalter, Kona Ironman champ Chelsea Sodaro, and Canadian Olympic champ decathlete Damian Warner, can help you build an arsenal of tools that will allow you to become your best running self, whatever your goals may be.

1.- Embrace curiosity over fear

In the premiere episode of Farewell, Stulberg interviews ultrarunning GOAT Dauwaulter, whose 2023 season saw her winning the triple crown of ultramarathons (UTMB, Western States 100 and Hardrock 100). Dauwaulter is known for her curiosity-based approach to racing and says that whenever she works her way through a unique challenge, she puts it into her “filing cabinet” of experiences built through more than a decade of running ultras.

Consider approaching challenges with curiosity rather than fear. Dauwaulter’s journey started with curiosity-driven road marathons, leading her to conquer ultramarathons and achieve astonishing feats. When faced with a daunting task, adopt a mindset of exploration, saying to yourself: “let’s just see what happens,” rather than feeling like you must succeed at all costs. The unexpected outcomes might surprise you and expand your perceived limits.

2.- Use the power of “yes”

Chelsea Sodaro, the Kona Ironman world champ winner, draws inspiration from a mantra the athlete and her husband taught their daughter when she was going through a “no” phase—“yes, yes, yes.” This simple yet potent affirmation becomes a guiding force during challenging moments. Applying this mantra encourages a commitment to embrace difficulties and lean into the hard aspects of training. The next time you encounter a tough run or race, channel the spirit of “yes, yes, yes” to shift from resistance to resilience.

3.- Less is more: subtract to succeed

Stulberg suggests challenging the instinct to add more when faced with a hurdle. Research shows that humans tend to be “adders,” inclined to incorporate new strategies, rather than simply subtracting impediments. When striving for behaviour change, consider subtracting obstacles instead of seeking additional solutions. Reflect on what you can eliminate or modify to clear the path to success, allowing simplicity to fuel progress.

4.- Consistency trumps perfect practice

Through several decades of elite competition, Canadian Olympic champion decathlete Damian Warner has learned the importance of consistency over perfection. His coach’s mantra—that there’s no such thing as a bad practice—highlights the importance of routine, unexceptional training days. Warner’s gold medal-winning experience underscores the power of sustained, consistent effort, even when conditions are less than ideal. Recognize that excellence is often built through everyday dedication rather than sporadic extraordinary performances.

5.- You are not your thoughts

In overcoming mental health challenges like OCD and anxiety, Sodaro shares a unique strategy—naming her brain (she calls hers Regina, after the character in the movie Mean Girls). By personifying intrusive thoughts, she creates distance between herself and her mental struggles. Runners grappling with mental hurdles can apply this concept, acknowledging that their thoughts don’t define them. Naming and dismissing unwanted thoughts can provide mental clarity and resilience during demanding runs.

In your pursuit of optimal running performance, integrating these unconventional approaches can inject a fresh perspective, foster growth, and aid in unlocking your true potential. Remember, innovation often lies in the willingness to explore the uncharted paths of curiosity, affirmation, simplicity, consistency and mental resilience.

(01/05/2024) Views: 486 ⚡AMP
by Keeley Milne
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Running Through the Night to Confront the Darkness of Substance Addiction

Ultrarunner Yassine Diboun found his own unique way to help those in recovery move through darkness together. It’s working. 

Since 2020, Yassine Diboun has made it a point each year to black out one square on his calendar with a Sharpie.

It’s a gesture to signify that on this day, typically set around the winter solstice, this 45-year-old ultrarunner and coach from Portland, Oregon, won’t run during the day, as he does most every other day of the year. Instead, he’ll watch a movie with his daughter, Farah, or cook a meal with his wife, Erica, eagerly waiting for night to fall. Because that is when the action starts.

Diboun has become a fixture in Portland’s trail running scene, a Columbia-sponsored runner and one of the most electric and positive forces in the U.S. ultrarunning scene today. He is also an athlete in active substance addiction recovery since 2004.

And here, at the confluence of endurance and recovery, is where Diboun enacts an annual tradition in Portland called Move Through Darkness. From sundown to sunup, Diboun runs through the evening, covering a route that connects city streets with trails in Forest Park while accompanied by dozens of other runners.

On December 9, Diboun will start his fourth-annual Move Through Darkness run. It may exceed 70 miles. It may not. That’s not really the point, though in some sense it is, for the more miles he runs, the more pledge-per-mile dollars he gains to funnel into future recovery programs, the very support structures that saved his own life two decades prior.

In 2009, Diboun and his wife moved to Portland, where he pursued a career in coaching. One of the first things Diboun did upon arrival was to connect with the recovery community, which led him to The Alano Club of Portland, the largest recovery support center in the United States.

Diboun’s personal history of substance addiction is circuitous and complicated—documented extensively in Trail Runner, The New York Times, Ginger Runner interviews, and others—but what’s most important to know is that it led him down a path that wasn’t his own. Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A.) and the 12-step program threw him a lifeline and he white-knuckled it to shore, reinforced by commitments to a plant-based diet and a healthy dose of body movement. (That’s code for running a ton of miles.)

Such discipline brought him to the highest levels of ultrarunning. He’s a four-time finisher of the Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run (once in the top 10), a three-time finisher of the H.U.R.T. 100, in Hawaii, and he represented the U.S. at the IAU Trail World Championships in 2015. These accolades sit beside countless ultra wins and podiums.

His success story prompted Brent Canode, executive director of the Alano Club or Portland, to reach out to Diboun in 2018 with a proposition. Diboun had, by then, teamed up with mountain athlete Willie McBride, to start Wy’East Wolfpack in 2012. The business offers group functional fitness programs, youth programs, and personal guidance to get people outdoors and on trails.

Under Canode’s leadership, the Alano Club just launched The Recovery Gym (TRG)—a CrossFit-style facility offering courses for those in recovery, and Canode saw running as a natural extension of this program. He asked Diboun to spearhead a new running portion of the gym. For Canode, though models like the 12-step program were widely available and proven effective, he found the diversity of options for community lacking beyond that.

“What we learned was that a lot of folks don’t attend 12-step programs,” Canode says. “They haven’t found a connection anywhere else, and that’s a matter of life or death for a person in recovery.”

Together, the two started regular informal runs called the Recovery Trail Running Series, which evolved into a more formalized wing of the gym: Run TRG. This program quickly took off, offering evening group runs, outings that would often end in post-run dinners and fun gatherings. The groups grew bigger each week.

“We cultivated this community for anybody in or seeking recovery from substance addiction, and it really picked up some good momentum,” Diboun says.

When the pandemic shut everything down in March 2020, including The Recovery Gym and its new Run program, regulars instantly lost the group’s connection. Many relapsed and started using substances again. A few turned to suicide, including a prospective coaching client for Diboun who had met with him just one week prior.

“I know from personal experience that life can get too overwhelming at times and you get too stressed or overwhelmed and you can’t see anything,” Diboun says. “You can’t see any hope, so you just live recklessly, helplessly. In extreme cases, life can feel not worth living anymore.”

While running one evening by headlamp, Diboun thought about the fragility of hope, the pandemic, the recent suicides, and the ever-increasing need for community. The combination of isolation and mental health decline, paired with an uptick in running popularity during the pandemic (Run TRG, once relaunched, tripled in size), created an opportunity for Diboun to leverage his visibility as both a decorated ultrarunner and someone vocal about his addiction history.

An idea was born: Move Through Darkness.

For one night, sundown to sunrise, he would organize a run to crisscross the city, connecting various trail systems and raising visibility of the mental health challenges entangled with isolation and addiction. It would take place around the winter solstice, the longest night of the year.

The initiative would serve three main purposes: First, it would be a personal pilgrimage for Diboun, a reminder of his own ongoing relationship with sobriety. Second, it would offer another way for those in recovery to come closer during difficult times. And third, the event would raise financial support for the Alano Club of Portland, which serves more than 10,000 people in recovery each year through mutual support groups like A.A., peer mentoring services, art programs, harm reduction services, and fitness-based initiatives like The Recovery Gym and Peak Recovery, Alano’s newest program, which provides free courses in split boarding, rock climbing, and mountaineering. Over the last eight years Alano has won four national awards for innovation in the behavioral health field.

December 2020 was the first-ever Move Through Darkness event. About 30 runners participated throughout the night, joining Diboun in various sections of his sinuous route. Given that the invitation was to run upwards of 100K through the night in some of the worst weather of the year, the turnout was impressive. The group eventually made their way to Portland’s Duniway Track to complete a few hours of loops, encouraged onward by music.

One of those runners that first year was Mike Grant, 47, a licensed clinical social worker from Portland. Grant has been in long-term recovery with substance addiction and understands the initial hurdles of getting out there. During the event, Grant completed his first ultra-distance run by covering 50 miles. He hasn’t missed a Move Through Darkness run since.

This year, he’ll be joining again, in large because of Diboun.

“You hang out with Yassine for any length of time, and the next thing you know you’re running further than you ever have before,” Grant says. “He’s one of those people you just feel better when you’re around.”

The Move Through Darkness route is roughly the same every year, but it always starts and ends at the Alano Club, located in Portland’s Northwest neighborhood. This first year, his daughter, Farah, ran with him from Duniway to the Alano Club, which was a particularly special moment to share.

The fundraising component is a pledge-per-mile model, where you can pay a certain dollar amount for every mile Diboun will cover. All funds go to support the Alano Club, specifically the Recovery Toolkit Series. Other recovery-focused gyms are increasingly available nationwide, but The Recovery Gym is the only CrossFit affiliate in the U.S. designed from the ground up, exclusively for individuals in recovery.

Each week, TRG offers six to eight classes free of charge to anyone in recovery. Every coach holds credentials in both CrossFit instruction and peer mentoring for substance use and mental health disorders. An original inspiration for Run TRG was the Boston Bulldog Running Club, a nonprofit established in 2015 to provide running community reinforcement for those affected by addiction and substance addiction.

According to national statistics released earlier this year, 29 percent of U.S. adults have been diagnosed with depression at some point in their lives—the highest rate since such data was measured. Suicides in the U.S. reached all-time highs in 2022, at nearly 50,000 lives—about 135 people per day lost to self-inflicted death. In 2022, 20.4 million people in the U.S. were diagnosed with substance abuse disorder (SUD).

Oregon, specifically, is rated number one in the country for illicit drug use. In 2020, Oregon had the second-highest alcohol and drug addiction rates in the country, while ranking last in treatment options.

Canode says that, after 40 years of researching addiction and effective recovery, the single most important aspect of recovery success is authentic connection to a like-minded community. That’s why both Canode and Diboun are building an all-hands-on-deck approach to recovery through running, to strengthen connections through movement.

“In recovery, we know how to grind,” he says. “We are naturally great endurance athletes. We also know how to consistently move through darkness, which is especially true in the beginning of someone’s recovery journey. It’s often not rainbows and unicorns and lots of positivity. It’s a grind. It’s grueling.”

Annalou Vincent, 42, a senior production manager at Nike, is one of the many people who have reached out to Diboun from all over the Portland community.

“Finding Yassine and Run TRG saved my life,” she says. After starting a running practice in her thirties, she started feeling better and decided to question decisions like drinking alcohol. She eventually dropped booze and became a regular at the Run TRG. Vincent has worked closely with Yassine to develop and promote Run TRG, and has joined Diboun for various legs of Move Through Darkness over the years.

“I can’t imagine my life or my sobriety without running and this program, says Vincent. “Over the years I’ve seen it change the lives of many others. Move Through Darkness is an extension of that. This program and others like it are saving lives.”

Willie McBride, Diboun’s business partner, supports Move Through Darkness each year and has witnessed its evolution and impact.

“I think people really connect with this project because they understand those dark parts of life, and how challenging they can be. Darkness comes in all different forms,” he says. “But also the very tangible act of running all night, literally putting their body out there—coming together as a group sheds light right into that darkness.”

Diboun is reminded daily of his life’s work, to remain sober and offer his endurance as a gift to others, even when it gets difficult.

“I’m coming up on 20 years sober, but I’m not cured of this,” he says. “This is something I need to keep doing and stay on the frontlines.”

With record rainfall aiming for Oregon in December, this Saturday night calls for a 58 percent chance of rain showers, with the last light at 5 P.M. and the first light around 7 A.M. That’s potentially 14 soggy hours of night running. But this forecast doesn’t cause Diboun any concern. He’s used to it, used to running for hours in the dark, used to being drenched. He’s faced that long tunnel and knows that there’s always light at the end, as long as you keep trudging forward, and best when together.

“You keep passing it on,” he says. “You keep giving it away, in order to keep it. Gratitude is a verb.”

(12/10/2023) Views: 512 ⚡AMP
by Outside Online
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Who Is Courtney Dauwalter’s New Ultramarathon Partner? It’s Her Mom.

Here‘s how the Dauwalter duo completed a dream of crossing a finish line together

The last loop was quiet beneath the full moon. Their shuffling feet on the packed, pebble-tossed singletrack punctuated the sleeping Sonoran Desert as the duo moved through shadows of saguaro cactus and prickly pear. Millions of white pinpoints began to appear in the dark sky.

That’s when 66-year-old Tracy Dauwalter, mother of ultrarunner Courtney Dauwalter—who was coming off of historic back-to-back-to-back 100-mile wins of the 2023 Western States 100, Hardrock 100, and UTMB, including two course records—started resharing doubts with her daughter, who kindly reminded Tracy many times throughout the last 13 hours, “that’s not useful thinking, so let’s not think it.”

Occasionally, Courtney would redirect their attention, pointing out this unique section of the course that they’d been past twice before. This time, she built a 60-second container to stuff all those fears inside.

“Tell me all of your doubts and frustrations. You have one minute,” Courtney told her mom. “Once you finish, you can’t complain out loud anymore. It’s not serving us to get to this finish line.”

Tracy spewed all of her negative thoughts, from her rolling stomach to her aching muscles, which was an important reset to get out of the whirlpool of heavy thoughts. I signed up for this, Tracy humbly reminded herself. Nobody’s making me do this.

A dedicated team, the pair was running three loops side-by-side in matching long running shorts, white baggy tees, Salomon hydration vests, and cactus-themed socks, at the Halloween-themed Javelina Jundred 100K race. The ultrarunning event is held the closing weekend of October in the McDowell Mountain Regional Park, an hour northeast of Phoenix, Arizona. Temperatures can climb into the 90s by mid-morning and dip into the low 50s once daylight disappears behind the McDowell Mountain Range.

Now 38 years old and living in Leadville, Colorado, Courtney had participated in the event once before, in 2016, when she was the race’s outright winner. She set the then-course record for the 100K, one of several performances that drew national attention to her astonishing endurance and athleticism.

Tracy, who’d just recently started trail running, had covered ultra-distances at 12- and 24-hour events across flat gravel, but had never before run this far on a trail. They selected Javelina’s rolling 100K with 3,924 feet of vertical gain. The majority of the climbing is packed into the gradual ascent from the Javelina “Jeadquarters” aid station, which serves as the start and finish of the race and basecamp, to the far side of the loop, Jackass Junction.

It was exactly here, at this midway point, after slogging up the final climb over rolling hardened granite and sandy washes, where Tracy had a sticking point. Fortunately, Courtney was there to fill up her water bottles and point out all the tasty options when they reached the runner’s buffet.

“Please keep eating,” she said, as the electronic dance music bumped. A few hours earlier, they enjoyed a surprise pick-me-up of McDonald’s cheeseburgers, delivered by crew masters Dick Dauwalter, Courtney’s dad, and Kevin Schmidt, her husband. But one of the biggest highlights during the race for Tracy was watching Courtney interact and commune with so many people in the trail running community.

“Courtney does this amazing sport, but even more, I adore the person she is. It’s one of my favorite things to watch the love that’s out there for Courtney, and the way she responds. To be in that world with her was really special,” Tracy said. “She was also really kind to me, even when I was frumping and I’d fall down, she’d help pick me up.” Courtney let out a laugh.

“Mom, you only fell one time!” said Courtney, laughing.

“I know, but it was embarrassing,” Tracy said.

While Javelina was the mother-daughter’s debut trail ultra finish, side-by-side, the experience wasn’t their first race together. When Courtney was in high school, the duo finished a rollerblade marathon together in St. Paul. (Rollerblading is a major pastime in Minnesota, where Tracy grew up and still lives today.) Here, she met Dick and raised Courtney, a middle-child to two brothers.

While growing up, Tracy played softball and badminton. In college, she ran cross-country and track. “I’ve always been interested in sports and done them at a level that I could make the team. I was never a star. Being on a team is social and taxes your body while working up a sweat,” she said.

When the kids were interested in soccer, she and Dick organized an adult co-ed squad. Now, she jogs, plays volleyball, and golfs. She and Dick enjoy motorcycle tours, too, like venturing through the Elk Mountains in Colorado. “I’m not great at anything, but I can hold my own, and it’s super fun—I’m willing to do any sport,” she said. The motto was much the same for the kids.

"I thought that it would be so cool to share this sport that I love so much with this person I love so much. I knew she could do it.”

“They could try any activity. But once they committed, they had to see that season through—whether they enjoyed it or not, we were committed. We didn’t miss practices or games. We made sure those were a high priority for them and us. That drove our lives for many years with lots of fun times, but boy, that schedule was crazy—we’d slam-dunk dinner at 4 P.M. so that everybody could get to practice,” Tracy said.

An accountability mindset is one that leads to showing up in other areas of life from work to class to chores, following through on responsibilities and gritting out less desirable tasks. “When things get hard, like college classes, your option is not to quit,” Tracy said. “You dig in a little deeper, get help, and get it done, which is the same with any sport.”

But perhaps their most special ingredient is that the Dauwalters know how to have fun. “Having fun while doing those things is just as important,” Courtney said. “Our family always worked hard, but we play hard, too. All of that combined is what makes life special. Having that be deeply ingrained in who I am helps me in everyday life, but also, for sure, in ultrarunning.”

While watching Courtney grow up, Tracy noticed her daughter had a deep motivation as a person and athlete. One of her earliest memories was two-year-old Courtney, who could barely walk, repeatedly riding a Big Wheel tricycle downhill with a group of kids and insisting she’d wrestle the bike up the hill by herself. As a kid, Courtney and her siblings played soccer, often on the same teams. Later, they ran high school cross-country and track. To fill the winter months, she tried basketball, but she had a propensity to quickly foul out, taking the bench for the remainder of the game.

One day, she came home with a bright idea to Nordic ski instead, which was foreign for a family full of downhillers. They picked up the equipment, Courtney joined a competitive team, and she practiced in nearby school fields. “All she did was wipe out. All the time. Dick and I are thinking, ‘I wonder what this is going to look like?’” said Tracy.

During those foundational years, Courtney would rush home after a Nordic race to report the number of crashes she’d had. “In a 5K, I would be psyched if I only crashed nine times—tripping, planting my poles, tumbling the entire time. I was so bad,” she said.

But Tracy bought a beat-up pair of cross-country skis and started to practice alongside Courtney. “We learned together,” Tracy said. “It was more fun to crash with somebody than to crash by yourself.”

By the time Courtney graduated, she was an all-state runner and had earned All-American honors as a Nordic skier three times. She was a four-time state champion, and her team acquired two national championships. In 2003, Courtney moved west to Colorado, where she raced collegiately on the Nordic ski team at the University of Denver. Three years in, her DU team won 11 meets and the 2005 NCAA Championship.

“Courtney was really good at everything she did, and it wasn’t because she was a natural,” Tracy said. “Anytime she tried a sport, she didn’t have an immediate knack for it, but she hung in there to develop it. She was a hard worker and determined.”

Years later, in 2015, any remaining questions of physical stamina were laid aside—for both Tracy and Courtney, who proved to have a serious knack for endurance. Courtney broke the ribbon at her inaugural ultra race, the 2011 Prickly Pear 50K in San Antonio, Texas, and her curiosity about wanting to run longer continued to grow. The following year, she dropped out of the Colorado’s Run Rabbit Run 100 Mile race at mile 60 with throbbing legs, questioning her ability to cover that much ground in a single push.

Frustrated by not meeting her goal, Courtney registered for her first 24-hour race, the 2013 FANS Ultra Races, a more manageable format than an ultra on singletrack. Her family joined to crew and run laps, providing entertainment and support, including Tracy. They didn’t have much of a background in ultras and were green to any strategy.

Regardless, Courtney wrapped a total of 105 miles on that two-mile gravel loop around Lake Normandale Park in Bloomington, Minnesota, completing her first non-trail century-distance, and gaining confidence. Two months later, she crossed the finish line of the Superior Fall Trail Race 100 Miler in Lutsen, Minnesota, her first 100-mile distance on trail, and stood on the podium for second place.

Moving forward, the FANS Ultra Races became a family tradition. Courtney returned to the 2014 event, besting her first summer with 123.6 miles. Tracy decided, if she was going to crew and run laps with Courtney, she might as well sign up herself.

“She was like, ‘Heck, I’m going to spend the whole day out there anyways. Why not put some time on my feet?’” Courtney recalled.

In 2015, she tallied 109.2 miles while her mom, then 57 years old, covered 66.8 miles. Their annual pilgrimage continued in the 24- or 12-hour format, over the next several summers, coinciding with Courtney’s ultrarunning career picking up steam. She won the 2016 Run Rabbit Run 100 Mile with a 75-minute lead, and along with the title, the world’s largest ultra purse: $12,000.

By the summer of 2017, she retired from her position at the Girls Athletic Leadership School in Denver where she taught science and coached cross-country. “In an interview a few years ago,” Courtney said. “I was asked if I could run an ultramarathon with anyone in the world, who would it be? ‘My mom,’ I said. I thought that it would be so cool to share this sport that I love so much with this person I love so much. I knew she could do it.”

In an interview a few years ago, she was asked, if she could run an ultramarathon with anyone in the world, who would it be? “My mom,” she said. “I thought that it would be so cool to share this sport that I love so much with this person I love so much. I knew she could do it.”

Tracy heard the recording and, despite having never run on trails, she immediately called her daughter. “Let’s do it. I heard you want to run an ultra, so let’s sign up for something,” she said to Courtney. “If someone puts a challenge in front of me, it can even be pretty insane, and I’m a sucker for trying to rise to that challenge.” In addition to the competitive spark, the invitation felt sentimental.

Committed to doing an ultra together, they accepted that it might be a winding road to get there. The two picked the 2022 50-mile Superior Fall Trail Race in Lutsen. Mid-route, they missed the cut-off. Tracy shrugged and shook her head recounting the unfinished event. Courtney refused to let the DNF be a negative thing. “You learned so much in that first summer, mom,” she told her. “Dialing in all of those pieces helped immensely this year. And we decided, we’re not done. We still need a finish line together.”

As soon as registration opened in January, the duo signed up for the 2023 Javelina Jundred 100K. “I was nervous coming into this race because I was bouncing off of that epic fail of the first 50-miler we tried, which was a wake-up call. You have to prepare yourself,” said Tracy.

“It was not an epic fail,” Courtney countered.

That winter, Tracy clocked workouts on a treadmill. From April onward, she ran outside four or five days a week for 10 to 20 miles. Courtney researched singletrack trails around Lone Lake, which her mom became excited to explore. One of the biggest challenges of learning to run on trails is her tendency to shuffle and trip, Tracy confessed. Building confidence, she finished the Willow 20 Miler in May and Afton Trail Run 50K in July. Like her daughter, Tracy didn’t keep a close log of her mileage, and her training was not systematic.

Courtney’s advice, true and simple, rang in her mind: Spend time on your feet.

“People asked me if I coached her. Absolutely not,” Courtney said. “I did try to be helpful—harping on testing nutrition, wearing a pack so that her body gets used to one, and hiking uphills—so her race day could be much better. She was the one putting in the work and figuring out routes where she could do laps or get on hills. I admired from afar.”

“It helped that Courtney kept reminding me, ‘This was our run together, our race, and it could look however we could make it.’ If I crawled, that wouldn’t be disgusting. It got ugly, then it got not ugly,” Tracy added.

Staying lighthearted, Courtney countered, “It never got ugly. There was never a doubt that we would make it to the finish.”

Fortunately, the elation did come around. Next to her daughter, Tracy crossed the finish line of Javelina Jundred 100K in 17 hours and 38 minutes with a smile in the glowing lights, after staying up into the night running, eating, and sharing pain—but mostly, laughing—with her daughter. They’d gone full circle together, both on the circuit they’d traveled in the desert as well as in life.

“I think you beat me by, like, a half-second, mom,” Courtney said.

“I know,” Tracy bantered back. “I think I was really needing to be done, so I rushed with a half-second sprint.”

(12/03/2023) Views: 453 ⚡AMP
by Outside Online
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Canadian ultrarunner Priscilla Forgie loves this super-quick soup

It can be tricky to fit both healthy eating and regular running into an already jam-packed schedule, especially during the holiday season. This lightning-quick soup recipe, a favorite of Canadian ultrarunner Priscilla Forgie, is full of nutritious vegetables (easily tailored to your taste), with a lentil protein boost and lasagna noodles to up your carbohydrate game. It’s the perfect meal-in-a-pot to cook up in mere minutes after a nippy winter training session.

Forgie, an Edmonton-based ultrarunner, is coming off a stellar 2023 season, with a top-ten finish at Western States 100, and 12th place at CCC (100K) by UTMB. She enjoys experimenting with plant-based recipes (Forgie is vegan) to fuel her adventures, and for this soup, notes: “I always add extra nutritional yeast for added cheesiness.” While the recipe comes together in moments in an Instant Pot (or other pressure cooker), it can easily be made on the stovetop and left to simmer (leave the noodles out until shortly before you are ready to eat).

Instant Pot Lasagna Soup

(adapted from Vegan Richa)

Ingredients

1 tsp oil

1/2 onion chopped

1 cup chopped veggies (can be a combo of peppers, carrots, zucchini or whatever you prefer)

1/4 cup red lentils (uncooked)

1 cup tomato puree (or marinara or tomato sauce)

1-1.5 cups diced tomato

2 tsp Italian seasoning (1 tsp basil, 1/2 tsp oregano and parsley, with a generous dash of thyme/sage and rosemary)

1/4 tsp each onion powder, garlic powder

1/2 to 3/4 tsp salt (use less if there is salt in the tomato sauce)

2 cups water or veggie broth

5 oz lasagna sheets, broken into small pieces (or pasta of choice)

Black pepper and red pepper flakes to taste

1 Tbsp nutritional yeast

1 cup packed spinach (optional)

Directions

Heat oil in Instant Pot on sauté mode. When hot, add onion, garlic and a pinch of salt. Cook for two minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add veggies and stir in. Add red lentils, tomato purée, tomato, salt, Italian seasoning, onion powder and garlic powder and mix in. Add lasagna sheets and water or broth, mix in well (use smaller pieces for the Instant Pot).

Close the lid and pressure cook on manual high for three minutes. Let the pressure slow-release for 10 minutes, and if there is still pressure left in the pot, manually release it carefully to open.

Mix in the black pepper, pepper flakes and nutritional yeast. Taste and adjust salt and flavor if needed.

Fold in the spinach if using. Let sit for a few minutes before serving, and add vegan cheese (or regular cheese, if you prefer) for a more lasagna-like flavor. Enjoy!

(11/27/2023) Views: 660 ⚡AMP
by Keeley Milne
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America’s Oldest Continuously-Held Ultramarathon Is Only Looking Forward

After 60 years, the JFK 50 Mile Race is sticking to its community-centered approach, and people keep showing up

Mike Spinnler cries nearly every time he recounts memories as a runner and long-time race director of the JFK 50, the oldest continuously run ultra in the country.

Such memories include the time he first ran the iconic Maryland race when he was 12 years old, or the year he cheered on his 60-year-old wife as she crossed the finish, or memories of watching his two sons racing. For him, this race is a member of the family.

In 1993, five years after his tenth JFK finish, Spinnler became the race’s second race director, where he’s been ever since. By then, he’d set the course record (5:53:05) in 1982, and added another win in 1983, for a total of five top-five and six top-ten finishes.

Thirty years later, it’s still his pride and joy. He’ll immerse in the magic of the event again on Saturday, November 18, as more than 1,000 runners take the journey through the historic route that’s so dear to his heart.

“It just keeps growing in its prestige,” he says.

The JFK 50 started in 1963, the same year President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. The president had instituted a public health program to improve the nation’s fitness, supporting the launch of a series of 50-mile races around the country. But as years went on, the only one that stuck around was the JFK 50.

“Kennedy’s mission was this: Improve your physical fitness, improve your lifestyle, improve your country,” says Spinnler. “We heeded his call and have been doing it for 60-plus years.”

The JFK 50 course is located about an hour northwest of Washington D.C., covering traditional lands of the Indigenous Massawomek and Shawandassee Tule (Shawanaki/Shawnee). One of the race’s primary appeals is that it’s a horseshoe-shaped, point-to-point course with three distinct sections: The Appalachian Trail (miles 0-15), the Canal/Tow Path (miles 15-42), and the rolling finish (miles 42-50).

The race starts in Boonsboro, Maryland, follows a few miles of paved roads before connecting with the Appalachian Trail (AT), where the course climbs more than 1,000 vertical feet in five miles, crests to the high point, and follows rocky singletrack before dropping 1,000 vertical feet halfway into the race (mile 14.5), to connect with a flat marathon distance along the C&O Canal Tow Path. The last several miles are rolling country roads, where it finishes at Springfield Middle School in Williamsport.

In 2019, Seth Ruhling, an unsponsored athlete, showed up to the JFK 50, slept in his car the night before, and won the race in a blistering 5:38:11, his debut 50-miler. Within hours of winning, he sealed a sponsorship with The North Face.

Ruhling, 29, now lives and trains in Boulder, Colorado, and he’ll be returning for his second JFK 50. Since Ruhling’s 2019 win, he has made a name for himself with a sixth place finish at the Pikes Peak Marathon in 2021, second place at Montana’s Rut 50K, first place at the Broken Arrow Skyrace 46K, and most recently, sixth at CCC 100K during the week of UTMB in Chamonix, France.

In 2020, JFK 50 was one of the only races in the country that didn’t shut down with the pandemic. Ruhling had planned on racing, but got injured. “I always wanted to go back,” he says.

Ruhling was particularly drawn into this year’s race because of its deep field of registered elites, which had at one point included 2023 Western States winner Tom Evans, Matt Daniels, Adam Merry, and Sean Van Horn—all of whom have since dropped.

His strategy for the mixed course, which requires technical trail chops as well as fast road turnover, is to attack every single section. He says that, while the JFK 50 is known more as a “track race,” it’s a mistake to discount the early trail miles. “The record is going to happen on the towpath, sure, but only if it’s set up with efficient running on the AT section,” he says.

(11/19/2023) Views: 630 ⚡AMP
by Outside Online
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30 Hours at Javelina Jundred, the Burning Man of Trail Running

Inside the spectacle of ultrarunning’s most festive top-tier 100-mile race

It’s a hot, sunny Saturday afternoon in the desert northeast of Phoenix, and Lindsay DesRochers is being chased by a dinosaur—as if 85-degree heat, a creaky left knee, and a hot spot on her right big toe aren’t enough to worry about during her first attempt at running 100 miles.

The 44-year-old senior creative recruiter from Scottsdale is 41 miles into the Javelina Jundred, and she also has to contend with a Tyrannosaurus rex who’s making her giggle. The dinosaur is, in fact, local trail running legend, Jerry Bloom, who is sweating and gasping for air inside an inflatable costume that’s kept afloat with a tiny battery-operated fan. He is dressed up as the dino-in-residence and runs alongside DesRochers briefly as she finishes the second loop of the five-lap course before sitting down to refuel and rehydrate in her crew tent.

“The problem with this thing isn’t the heat. It’s just that there’s no oxygen in here. If you run very far, you get oxygen deprivation,” says Bloom, 70, a three-time Western States and Hardrock 100 finisher who’s also run Javelina twice. “For me it’s all in good fun to support Lindsay. I’ve given up trying to be fast a long time ago. But what I’ve learned is that it’s not how far you go and it’s not how fast you go, it’s how you look while you’re doing it.”

Welcome to the Javelina Jundred—the biggest, wildest party in the trail running world.

It’s pretty obvious that the Javelina Jundred is the zaniest event in trail running and, to be frank, nothing even comes close to this dusty desert cavalcade of curiosities. It’s not quite the Burning Man of running, but it might just be better because, first and foremost, it’s a legit ultrarunning event.

More than 850 enthusiastic runners toed the starting line at 6 A.M. to begin the five-lap 100-miler, and about 400 more began the three-lap 100K an hour later. There’s also a single-loop, 19-mile nighttime race called the Jackass Night Trail for about 200 runners that includes a wild DJ’ed party at the Jackass Junction aid station and finishes as the Saturday night revelry is still going strong back at the race compound.

But because Javelina always happens on the weekend before Halloween, there’s a natural party vibe and a non-mandatory-yet-compelling reason for runners, pacers, and support crew to wear costumes. And, let’s face it, Halloween gives everyone license to fly their freak flag, so when you mix that with ultrarunning, just about anything goes. Only here it’s known as Jalloween.

This year’s most popular dress-up themes seem to be tropical and western, but, almost predictably, there are quite a few Barbie and Taylor Swift cosplayers, as well as a few heavy metal rock stars, glow-in-the-dark skeletons, and several very creepy clowns. Dozens more runners race through the desert wearing bunny ears, fox tails, and devil horns.

“This is a safe space for everyone to have fun in their own unique way,” adds Dan Gampon, a Hoka sports marketing representative from Hawaii. “It’s a fun way to give the people a chance to be weird and bring a part of themselves that they might have been wanting to bring out, and give them the opportunity just to have fun anyway they want to.”

Some crew tents are decorated with accouterments to match a particular theme, but most feature colorful holiday twinkle lights, camping chairs, sleeping bags, and coolers full of adult beverages. While there’s a stash of fancy engineered nutrition supplements and electrolyte drinks in every tent, there’s also the widest range of healthy and not-so-healthy snack food you can imagine. (I’m looking at you, guy simultaneously drinking a Red Bull and eating a handful of marshmallow Peeps.)

The Javelina staff and volunteers are fully into the Jalloween theme, too, especially race director Jubilee Paige, who dons several costumes during the 30-hour event—including getups she calls Race Director Barbie, Weird Barbie, The Dude, Cousin Eddie, Chef’s Kiss, and A Macaroni Penguin. She once again ends the event dressed as the Pope—a.k.a., “her Joliness”—because she considers Sunday “Jallelujah Javelina,” a day of celebration.

The Javelina Jundred was founded in 2003 by Phoenix ultrarunner Geri Kilgariff as an irreverent, party-oriented run on a multi-loop course, and gradually gained regional and then national popularity as word spread through the ultrarunning community about how much fun it was. Local ultrarunner Jamil Coury took over as race director in 2008. The next year he started Aravaipa Running, a Phoenix-based company that bought and now owns 75 other running events in Arizona, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and New Hampshire.

Despite increased popularity and significant growth, Coury, Paige, and the rest of the Aravaipa crew have been able to maintain Javelina’s grassroots experience while growing it to about 1,500 runners in three events with at least that many pacers, crew, and family members hanging around the race compound. In many ways, it represents the best of both where trail running has been, but also where it could be heading.

“The race was born from a fun spirit of running with friends and looping in the desert—shout-out to Geri Kilgariff for her creation of the event in 2003,” Paige says. “But as it’s evolved, we saw opportunities to elevate the race to an ‘event’ experience for runners and crews—an ultra festival—the music and lights and entertainment just enhances that experience. However you experience Javelina, I just want you to have fun!”

As the sun begins to set, several top competitors in the 100-miler are scattered out on the remote sections of the course in hot pursuit of four Golden Ticket entries into next summer’s Western States 100. (Two tickets each for the men’s and women’s races.) That includes Boulder, Colorado, runner Jonathan Rea, who is back after a second-place finish a year ago, and—with newfound confidence from a fourth-place finish at the CCC 100K in Chamonix, France—is tearing up the desert trails on course-record pace. Triathlete-turned-ultrarunner Heather Jackson, who splits time between Bend, Oregon, and Tucson, Arizona, also takes it out hot, hoping to make up for a frustrating fifth-lap fade last year after unbearable quad pain reduced her to a walk and forced her to settle for a fifth-place finish in her 100-mile debut.

Earlier in the day, Denver’s Rajpaul Pannu and San Francisco’s Anna Kacius made quick work of the less-competitive, three-lap 100K race, finishing first and second overall, respectively, and setting new men’s (7:15:53) and women’s (8:13:07) course records in the process, while winning by more than an hour over their nearest competitors.

Ultrarunning GOAT Courtney Dauwalter from Leadville, Colorado, is out there, too, but she’s not racing for the win. She’s running the 100K with her mom, Tracy, a 66-year-old avid trail runner from Edina, Minnesota. They attempted a 50-miler in Minnesota last fall, but were timed out before the finish, so this year they chose the big party race in the desert where Courtney set a course record in 2016 before she became a household name. They’re not in costumes, but they’re running as Team Bucket List and wearing matching white shirts, cactus-themed socks, and olive-green-and-black shorts.

Because runners constantly revolve through the turnaround point at the start/finish area, everyone else is always on the move throughout the race compound. Some are drinking craft beers and mingling as they wait for their runners, while others are watching the race livestream on their phones or from the jumbotron in the Javelina Jeadquarters circus tent. Still others are devouring freshly cooked artisan pizzas made to order in the Freak Brothers Pizza mobile brick wood-fired oven.

Rousing cheers and applause catch everyone’s attention every few moments as an elite runner arrives—including the ever-smiling Jackson, who quickly heads out on her fifth and final lap with a 30-minute lead in the women’s 100-miler.

“Heather is just amazing,” says Troy Brown, 48, a trail runner from Coto de Caza, California. “She’s always smiling. I’m just a fanboy, but I like anyone who can smile that much through pain.”

After Jackson runs out of sight, Brown quickly shifts his focus to getting his feet into an inflatable T-Rex costume so he can participate in the costume contest, an informal event that brings out a sheriff riding an inflatable rooster, Minnie Mouse, a foursome of Teletubbies and, of course, several dinosaurs. There’s also a guy dressed as Aladdin wearing a large golden lamp around his waist who is joined by a scantily clad Jasmine character who not-so-discreetly rubs the lamp in a Not Suitable for Work (NSFW) scene that draws both raucous laughs and shocked gasps from the crowd.

One of the best dressed-up groups of the event is a foursome of women from California’s Healdsburg Running Company: Dominique Chevalier (“Western Barbie”), Krista Kappus (“Alien Barbie”), Saddie Alloway (“Rootin’ Tootin’ Diva Barbie”), and Susan Oh (“Disco Bob Ross”). But the costume contest winners are the Montana Mermaids, a bikini-and-grass-skirt trio from Bozeman—Lena Romeo, Kara Haskell, and Liv Bleskin—who were there to crew and support elite runners Rachael Norfleet of Montana in the 100K and Utah’s Ryan Montgomery in the 100-miler.

The sun begins to set, but the party’s just getting started as DJ Colter Stillwell pumps tracks through the sound system as a full moon rises in the eastern sky. One of the rowdiest dancers is Brendan O’Hara, a Colorado trail runner who’s dressed up in a red-and-white mouse outfit with flashing lights similar to what popular Canadian electronic musician Deadmau5 wears on stage. As lots of energized runners entered in the Jackass race are about to head out into the night, two professional fire dancers perform a mesmerizing routine adjacent to the start line.

Just after dark, Rea comes flying into the finish area, stopping just short of the finish line to pantomime deadlifting a colossal barbell before crossing the line in a new course record of 12:43:10. Seattle runner Blake Slattengren stopped the clock next in 12:58:07 to claim the second Golden Ticket, while Montgomery ran another strong race to take the final podium spot in 13:01:14.

Redeeming herself from last year, Jackson finishes strong to win the women’s race and finish sixth overall, thanks in part to the aggressive pacing of Devon Yanko. Jackson’s time of 14:24:47 is the second-fastest women’s time ever behind Camille Herron’s 14:03:23 course record from 2021. Spain’s Ragna Debats (14:55:27) outran Riley Brady (15:29:17) to earn the second women’s Golden Ticket.

Not long after midnight, the Dauwalters finish, too. Covered in dust, sweat, and even a little bit of blood—Tracy took a tumble on the first lap early the previous morning—they cross the finish line after 17 hours of running with big smiles and hug in a classic mother-daughter moment. Late Sunday morning, DesRochers makes it to the finish line, too, in 27:31:41, battling hard to overcome dehydration, an upset stomach, and nagging hip flexor pain at various points during the race.

“I was prepared for it to be hard, and I knew I was going to hurt. At some point, I was like, Oh, right, this is what running 100 miles feels like,” DesRochers says. “It was difficult, but I kept my positive mental attitude the whole way. I have a buddy who has a saying, ‘Forward is a pace,’ so I kept repeating that and kept putting one foot in front of the other and I didn’t quit.”

Something that’s especially apparent at Javelina is that everyone is celebrated as an equal, regardless of finishing times, trail running experience, athletic ability, age, or any other dissimilar details. The event goes out of its way to create an environment that promotes visibility and inclusion for everyone, and the community of participants seems to embrace it by cheering and encouraging for everyone the same.

It has partnered with Native Women Running, Latinos Run, and Black Men Run each of the past several years to bring their runners to the race, and it was also one of the first ultra events to offer a non-binary category. This year there were six non-binary runners racing over its three races, led by Willow Dolde in the 100-miler (20:01:29), Andreas Anderson in the 100K (13:54:30), and Tasha Hartwig in the Jackass 31K (6:42:07). (Although Brady, a non-binary runner from Boulder, was competing in the women’s division because they were racing for a Golden Ticket, they were also, unofficially, the top non-binary runner in the race.)

As the golden hour comes and goes early Sunday afternoon—and final finishers Holly Sitzmann,  Jim Buckley, Brittany Edmiston, and Leslie Astle squeeze under the 30-hour cutoff with help from their pacers and crew—it’s clear that everyone at Javelina is celebrated equally and enthusiastically. That also includes two unofficial finishers—Rayna Rodriguez and Tatiana Orozco—who complete the 100-mile course just outside of the time cutoff, but are welcomed by a scream tunnel of remaining spectators and the adulation of Paige even though neither will receive a finisher’s buckle.

“Javelina is a celebration, and the invitation to run and participate at Javelina extends to everyone,” Paige says. “I want to ultimately show how amazing the community is and that this sport is for everybody and every body—the spirit of ultra is diverse and should be celebrated.”

(11/05/2023) Views: 599 ⚡AMP
by Outside online
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Courtney Dauwalter completes 100K race with her mom

After her historic year in ultra-trail, how could Courtney Dauwalter possibly squeeze in another success this season? The answer, it seems, was to add another Dauwalter.

The American trail-running legend, who in 2023 became the first athlete to win Western States, Hardrock 100 and UTMB in the same season, realized her long-held goal of completing an ultramarathon with her mother, as she and Tracy Dauwalter crossed the finish line of the 100K course at Arizona’s Javelina Jundred this weekend.

The Javelina 100K course consists of three loops that take runners through trails northeast of Phoenix. The route features rolling singletrack through the Sonoran Desert, leading past giant saguaro cactus and granite boulders in and around McDowell Mountain Regional Park.

The elder Dauwalter crossed the finish line in 17 hours, 38 minutes and 33 seconds, one second ahead of Courtney. The Dauwalter duo just cracked the top 100 in the 100K women’s division, landing in 98th and 99th place. They finished in 180th and 181st place overall among the 100K’s 301 finishers.

Before the pair toed the start line Saturday, Courtney shared in an Instagram post that it has been a “dream” of hers to run an ultramarathon with her mother.

“Last year we tried a 50 mile race together in Minnesota but got cut off for time. We decided that was just one part of our story together and are now back trying to get that sweet, sweet finish line,” she wrote.

While crossing the finish line was a triumph for the mother-daughter team, the overall effort was a fuller family affair, with Courtney’s husband, Kevin Schmidt, and her father, Dick Dauwalter, crewing the duo.

“Kevin and my dad are back on crew duty so I have no doubt we’ll be plenty taken care of,” wrote Courtney.

A subsequent Instagram post showing the mother and daughter celebrating their accomplishment drew a long list of commenters sharing their congratulations—and more than a few remarks about where the younger got her famously winning smile.

“It’s not hard to see where @courtneydauwalter gets her awesome smile from,” wrote one wellwisher. Added another: “Who the heck is their dentist?”

It was also an unforgettable race for the 100K’s top finishers. Topping the men’s podium in the 100K race in 7:15:53 was Rajpaul Pannu, who broke the course record set last year by Scott Traer (7:31:46). Anna Kacius, the top women’s finisher, placed second overall in 8:13:07, beating the course record set last year by Lotti Brinks (8:36:01).

Jonathan Rea ran 12:43:10 to break the 100-mile course record set last year by Dakota Jones (12:58:02).  Heather Jackson won the women’s 100-miler in 14:24:47.

 

(11/01/2023) Views: 706 ⚡AMP
by Paul Baswick
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Australian ultrarunner makes history by racing UTMB and Ironman World champs

Ultrarunner Lucy Bartholomew made running and triathlon history on Sunday, becoming only the second woman ever to finish the 171-kilometre Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) as well as the Ironman World Championships in the same year.

Bartholomew ran remarkably well at both events, taking a tenth-place finish at UTMB in 27:39:22, and completing what was only her second Ironman in 10:43:41, with a 3:31 marathon time.

The double–nearly 400 kilometres of challenging racing–has only been conquered by one woman before Bartholomew: Ireland’s Diana Hogan-Murphy, in 2014. Bartholomew is also the fastest person of any gender to have completed both events in the same year.Bartholomew shot to fame in the ultrarunning world in 2018, when she was the third female at the Western States 100. The runner shared on social media that she lost some of the joy in racing in the years following her WSER podium, and after her 2022 race ended in a DNF, she wasn’t sure if she’d race 100 miles again.

“You show up (almost) every day to run so that you can run even more on the race day, finish and not be able to run, only to want to run, and then run to aid in the recovering of the running and to prepare for more running,” Bartholomew explained. “To take myself out of this cycle I decided to tick a bucket list idea to do an IRONMAN triathlon. It was a ‘one day, someday’ objective that I pulled forward to help pull me out of feeling stuck.”Bartholomew’s first Ironman, in Western Australia in December 2022, qualified her for the Kona World Championship event in Hawaii.

While the runner had only planned to complete one Ironman, she felt she couldn’t miss the opportunity to race in Hawaii. “Not being one who steps down from a challenge, it seemed right to go one more,” she said.

“I’ve swum, biked and run my way to fantastic recovery from UTMB and moderate triathlon fitness for Kona,” Bartholomew said pre-race. “It was a fun, fine balance to play with these two big events so close to each other.”

 

(10/21/2023) Views: 837 ⚡AMP
by Running Magazine
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He Qualified for Team USA. Then Came the Bill.

Even as trail and ultrarunning explode, the spoils of professionalization aren’t spread equally across the sport. Athletes on this year’s U.S. 24-hour team are looking to change that

Scott Traer qualified for his first U.S. national team more than a decade ago in 2012. He was new to the sport and naive about what it took to compete at the international level—even after being selected as one of the country’s best athletes in the 24-hour discipline, a niche tributary of trail and ultrarunning where athletes complete as many laps around a track as possible within 24 hours.

While the 24-hour race format may seem eccentric, well-known names like Courtney Dauwalter, Kilian Jornet, and Camille Heron have dabbled in the ultra-track scene. International governing bodies regulate the discipline with USA Track & Field (USATF), the national governing body for track and field, cross country, road running, race walking, and mountain-ultra-trail (MUT) disciplines, overseeing the American contingent. 

Traer, then 31, was working odd construction jobs in and around Boston to make ends meet while training when he got the call from USATF that he had been selected for Team USA.

“I was really excited,” says Traer. “Then, I found out that I had to pay for everything. So I was like, ‘Forget about it.’” 

That financial reality took the wind out of Traer’s sails. He didn’t have the disposable income to foot the bill for international travel and didn’t have paid time off from his jobs. While he was disappointed that he wouldn’t get to represent his country in 2012, he was still determined to pursue his dream of chasing a career in coaching and racing. 

Now, Traer, 42, is a full-time coach living near Phoenix and working with the Arizona-based event organization Aravaipa Running as an assistant race director. He has earned top accolades in the sport, including a course record at the Javelina 100K and a Golden Ticket to Western States at the Black Canyons 100K, eventually leading to a top-ten finish at the Western States Endurance Run. 

True to his blue-collar roots, he is known for racing in unbranded gear, typically a long-sleeve, white SPF shirt unbuttoned and flapping in time with his stride. Ten years after making his first 24-hour team, he re-qualified for the opportunity to compete for the U.S. again, this time for the 2023 IAU 24-Hour World Championships in Taiwan (which international sports federating bodies officially refer to as Chinese Taipei), on December 2. 

The catch: USATF is only providing a stipend of $600 to Team USA athletes.

Oregon ultrarunner Pam Smith has competed on Team USA seven times in the 24-hour and 100K world championship events. Now, she’s serving as the Team USA manager to help steward the next generation of ultra athletes. But that passion has come at a cost. 

“I estimate I’ve spent around $10,000 in personal funds to be able to compete at the world championships and to represent the USA at these events,” says Smith, 49, who finished fourth at the 2019 IAU World Championships in France. “USATF does pay for the manager’s travel expenses, but there is no other compensation; in fact, the managers have to use their own funds to cover some fees, like membership dues and background checks.”

It might surprise fans of the sport that many of their favorite athletes are paying significant money to sport the red, white, and blue uniform—and that many can’t compete because they cannot shoulder the cost. The U.S. is known for strong 24-hour runners, and the men’s and women’s teams both won gold at the previous IAU 24-Hour World Championships in 2019 in Albi, France, with two individual podium spots. 

“The U.S. has many of the best 24-hour runners in the world,” says Smith. “It’s a shame that these athletes don’t even get their airfare covered.”

While Smith’s airfare is covered, her work and that of her colleagues is presumed to be done on a volunteer basis. (A quick online search shows a flight to Chinese Taipei from most U.S. cities costs in the $1,500-$2,400 price range.)

Trail running, particularly the elite side of the sport, is at an inflection point. While some races dole out prize money, and a select few athletes at the top of the sport command respectable salaries, most runners at the elite level rely on a scattershot combination of brand partnerships and personal funding to float their racing. While the sport’s very best athletes are well compensated professionals, most “sponsored” trail runners earn between $10,000 and $30,000 per year. Between travel, gear, nutrition, and other expenses, many runners at the elite level are fronting their own cash to compete. 

When Chad Lasater qualified for Team USA after a strong run at the Desert Solstice 24-Hour Race, he hadn’t planned on making the team. But, when he found out he’d qualified, he started looking into the logistics and was shocked to discover he’d be responsible for paying his way to Taipei. 

“The cost of airfare, lodging, food, and time away from work can be significant, especially when traveling to somewhere like Taipei,” says Lasater, 51, from Sugar Land, Texas. “I feel that everyone should have an equal opportunity to be on the U.S. team, and the cost of traveling to the world championships should not preclude anyone from accepting a spot on the team. We should really be sending our best 24-hour athletes to the world championships, not the best athletes who can afford to travel.”

Teams that rely on individual brands or athletes to foot the bill will prefer runners with sponsorships or disposable income and can afford to take time off work and pay for childcare. 

At the top of the sport, like the world championships, it’s routine to see completely unsponsored runners competing with no brand affiliation, especially in the eccentric realm of 24-hour track events. Even some sponsored runners don’t always get their travel expenses covered. 

While a world championship event is certainly a big deal, it doesn’t command the same fanfare and media attention as other marquee events, like the Western States Endurance Run or Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc, where many brands prefer to focus their resources. 

Jeff Colt, a 32-year-old professional ultrarunner for On who lives in Carbondale, Colorado, publicly debated the merits of returning to Western States in California this year or competing in the 2023 World Mountain and Trail Running Championships in Austria in early June. (The trail running world championships and 24-hour world championships are different events, but the Team USA athletes who compete in each one face similar challenges when it comes to funding and market value to brands.) He ultimately decided to claim his Golden Ticket and compete at States. More eyeballs on the event mean a higher return on the investment for running brands, which in turn elevates athletes’ value to their sponsors 

“My sponsor, On, was clear that they supported my decision either way, but they were more interested in me running Western States,” says Colt. “And rightfully so. There’s a lot of media attention at races like States and UTMB, which allow brands to activate and get visibility for their logo. That support feels good as an athlete, too. It’s not just better for the brand.”

Nike has an exclusive partnership with USATF; all athletes competing at any world championship event in the mountain-ultra-trail disciplines (as well as the Olympics and World Athletics Championships for track and field and the marathon) must wear Nike-issued Team USA uniforms that are provided to the athletes free of charge, with the exception of shoes. Any photos or videos of professional runners at these events are less valuable to competing running brands because their athletes will appear bedecked in another company’s logo. This disincentivizes many brands from investing in unsponsored athletes’ travel expenses and limits athletes’ ability to get financial support, most of which currently comes from shoe and apparel brands in the trail running industry. And if athletes cannot compete because of illness or injury, they must return parts of the kit. Even if they keep the kit, many sponsored runners’ contracts prohibit them from training and racing in the gear, so it gathers dust at the back of their closets. 

Arizona runner Nick Coury, preparing to compete on his third U.S. 24-hour team, says this contract limits the economic opportunities of unsponsored athletes—partially because it disallows an athlete to place another sponsor’s logo on the Nike gear. 

“This is especially upsetting to many because Nike provides large sums of money to USATF for this arrangement, yet neither passes through significant support to national teams despite USATF being a nonprofit aimed at ‘driving competitive excellence and popular engagement in our sport,’” says Coury, 35, from Scottsdale, Arizona. “USATF is taking money from Nike, restricting elite athletes to fund themselves through sponsorship, and doing little to nothing to encourage a competitive national team.”

One athlete, sharing anonymously, reported selling parts of their Nike kit to help offset travel expenses. “It’s the same kit [100-meter and 200-meter track and field superstar] Noah Lyles wears, so it’s super valuable.”

Traer thinks it’s unfair that athletes are forced to wear Nike gear and render free labor supporting a huge company, especially when the 24-hour team isn’t fully funded. Lyles, an Adidas athlete who won the 100-meter dash at this year’s World Athletics Championships in Budapest, had to wear Nike gear while warming up and racing, too. But his travel and expenses were paid in full by USATF, and his Adidas relationship benefits because track and field stars get considerably more exposure than ultrarunners. Furthermore, in track and field, the world championships serve as a prelude to the biggest running event on the calendar, the Olympics, which take place every four years and attract an expansive viewership that reaches far beyond hardcore running fans.

“It bothers me because Nike is making a huge amount of money,” Traer says. “I don’t want to hear that there isn’t enough money to support athletes because I see smaller brands in our sport that have less money doing a much better job supporting athletes.” 

Nancy Hobbs is the chairperson of the USATF Mountain and Ultra Trail Running Council, the division of USATF that oversees the U.S. 24-Hour Team. Her executive committee has been discussing more equitable distribution of funds. Initially, funding was based on the number of years the championships had been held and how many athletes were attending. 

Ultimately though, it comes down to the relatively small amount of Nike money that USATF allocates to the USATF MUT Running Council.

“With a certain amount of money in the budget, we could choose to send fewer athletes (i.e., just a scoring team with no spares in case of injury, etc.), but the council discussion has been on the importance of fielding a full team with some additional athletes for attrition and providing more athletes an opportunity to compete internationally (provided they qualify for the team based on selection criteria),” says Hobbs. 

Though the compensation for mountain-ultra-trail athletes may feel low, it is significantly higher than in the past. In 1999, a mere $250 was distributed to each MUT subcommittee, totaling $750 for all 1999 expenses. In 2013, MUT teams received $25,000 in funding for travel. This year, $83,000 was distributed across all of the teams it sends to international championships for MUT disciplines. 

“We’ve come a long way with MUT since 1998,” says Hobbs. “We have more work to do. This is a volunteer-driven group which is passionate about our sport and trying to provide athletes opportunities through championships, teams, and programs within the structure of USATF.”

Coury qualified for his third U.S. 24-hour team in 2021 and broke the American 24-hour record. He’s had to fund his travel out of pocket for all three international appearances. He says the lack of funding limits the team’s ability to compete on the world stage. 

“I’ve found it extremely challenging to train for a 24-hour event while holding a full-time job, as have others, and I know I haven’t and won’t hit my personal potential as a result,” says Coury. “We’ve seen an explosion in the competitiveness and interest in trail races, and part of that is the ability for ultrarunners to make a living as professional athletes. We see very few runners in the 24-hour space who can go professional, which reflects in our team’s competitiveness.”

While Team USA won both gold medals in 2019, international competition is escalating. Coury says opening up additional funding would help draw elites and strong amateurs alike to try their hand at the 24-hour format, which would help Team USA’s standing on the world stage. 

“Athletes like Courtney Dauwalter and Camille Herron have represented Team USA multiple times and been key to our results,” says Coury. “Yet I am certain they must weigh training, qualifying, and representing Team USA against the sponsorship opportunities in trail ultrarunning, where financial support is much greater. I imagine there would be more interest from some of our most capable athletes if we had a better financial story around the team, providing a path for it to fund an athlete’s career instead of costing out of pocket. Given the prospects of making a living at a trail race versus paying to represent Team USA, I’m positive we’re discouraging some of our best athletes from even wanting to try.”

In previous years, Team USA has resorted to raising money through bake sales and selling T-shirts to raise funds for the team’s travel expenses. Past team captain Howard Nippert made and sold ice bandanas to support the team. This year’s captain Smith is hosting fundraising dinners. Coury says that the ultrarunning community has stepped up to support the team where traditional funding has failed. 

“It reminds me in some ways of the amateur athlete situation back in the 1970s, where representing your country came at a significant financial burden and really made athletes reconsider it,” says Coury. “Why isn’t USATF making it desirable to train and compete for Team USA? Why is it seemingly doing the opposite?”

The 24-hour team is at a crossroads: either it will receive adequate funding and support to send the best team possible to the world championships, or it will maintain this status quo while Team USA falls further and further behind on the international stage. Traer has launched a petition on Change.org to draw attention to the funding issue and is determined to sound the alarm about how a lack of funding holds athletes and all of Team USA back. 

“No one should have to decide that they made Team USA but can’t afford to pay to wear their country’s flag,” says Traer. “If an athlete earns their spot on the team, they should get the support they need to compete. End of story.”

(10/07/2023) Views: 627 ⚡AMP
by Outside Online
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New prison marathon documentary chronicles San Quentin's 1,000 Mile Club

26.2 To Life, by San Francisco filmmaker Christine Yoo, documents the story of the San Quentin Marathon–a marathon that takes place every November inside the walls of a maximum-security prison, and which, for several men, has represented a path to rehabilitation and a new life. The film opens in U.S. theatres on Sept. 22.The club, which evolved sometime after a small group of volunteer coaches were given permission to start a running club in the prison 16 years ago, is called the 1,000 Mile Club–the idea being that interested inmates could rack up 1,000 miles during their period of incarceration.

The club’s leader is volunteer coach Frank Ruona, a veteran of 78 marathons (including many Boston Marathon finishes) and 38 ultras. Other regular volunteers include Western States Endurance Run board president Diana Fitzpatrick and popular ultrarunner Dylan Bowman.The film documents the 2018 San Quentin Marathon, which involves 105 laps of the prison yard–a combination of gravel, pavement and dirt, with six 90-degree turns in each loop. Twice, that year’s marathon was delayed–once by wildfires in the area, and once by deaths in the prison due to drug overdoses. Sometimes the race itself is interrupted by alarms. When an alarm sounds, everyone in the yard must drop to the ground. The first time an alarm sounds during the 2018 marathon, the men are sitting on the ground for seven minutes.

Then the race resumes.As he does every year, the club’s fastest runner, Markelle Taylor (nicknamed “The Gazelle”), won the race. As it happened, Taylor’s sentence was commuted the same year, and he went on to run the 2019 Boston Marathon as a charity runner, finishing in 3:03–a nearly seven-minute personal best.

San Quentin is a Level 4 maximum security prison, and many of the men depicted in the film are serving life sentences for murder. Each describes what led to their incarceration, but Ruona says he’s not interested in their crimes–he will lend an ear if an inmate wants to talk, but he does not ask what brought them to San Quentin. He is simply there to help–and to be a witness to the transformative power of running to change lives that are sometimes without hope. “I just feel like I am my brother’s keeper,” Ruona says, citing an Old Testament verse about Cain and Abel. “If he needs help, I’m gonna try and help him.”At the time the film was made, another runner, Tommy Wickerd, had been sober and gang-free for 18 years, and had recently completed his high school diploma. He applied for a commutation of his sentence, but never got a response.

His earliest possible release date is in 2053; he will be 86 when he gets out. But he’s philosophical. His wife, Marian, is determinedly loyal, and he has a son with whom he has a strong relationship. “If I keep running, I’ll be all right,” he says.

26.2 To Life opens in theatres in New York City, the San Francisco Bay area, Los Angeles, Milwaukee and Seattle on Sept. 22, and there will be a 72-hour virtual premiere from Sept. 29 to Oct. 1. There are currently no screenings scheduled in Canada, but we’ll provide updates if that changes. For more information, consult the film’s website, here. 

(09/16/2023) Views: 1,517 ⚡AMP
by Running Magazine
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2023 UTMB Women’s Race

Was there actually any doubt that American Courtney Dauwalter (pre-race interview) would actually win UTMB? If her performances throughout the summer were any indication, it would have been foolish to bet against her. After winning and setting course records at both Western States 100 and Hardrock 100 earlier this summer, this win might just be the cherry on the cake, or the cerise sur la gateau, as the French would have it.

The legend of the sport led from the early miles, and in typical Courtney fashion, smiled and joked her way to the win with a time of 23:29:14.While Emma Pooley, of Switzerland, led for the initial kilometers of the race, it didn’t take long for Dauwalter to move to the front. Sporting her trademark smile and happily interacting with volunteers at aid stations whenever the opportunity presented itself, Dauwalter simply makes it look good.

The top three women, Dauwalter, Pooley, and France’s Blandine L’Hirondel, came into Les Contamines, 32 kilometers into the race, within seconds of each other. It would be the last time we would see the front of the race together, as by Col du Bonhomme, 12 kilometers later, the gap between Dauwalter and second-place Manon Bohard Cailler, of France, was nearly 10 minutes. L’Hirondel and Chiina’s Fu-Zhao Xiang (pre-race interview) came through another two minutes later. Germany’s Katharina Hartmuth (pre-race interview) came over the dark col another five minutes in arrears. The situation remained essentially unchanged through Les Chapieux at 51 kilometers and Lac Combal at 69 kilometers, except the gaps were growing. 

Nearly 10 hours into the race, Dauwalter came through Courmayeur at 81 kilometers, not even bothering to stop at the aid station. Bohard continued to keep the gap manageable at 18 minutes, but it was really starting to look like another runaway victory for the American for the top step of the podium. But the race for the rest of the top spots was just starting to get interesting. L’Hirondel and Xiang remained close in third and fourth, just a few minutes back of Bohard, and Hartmuth continued to lurk another 20 minutes back. This early in the race, there were still many within striking distance. Coming through Refuge Bertone at 86 kilometers, the top five remained unchanged and Canada’s Ailsa McDonald, Poland’s Katarzyna Solińska, the U.S.’s Sabrina Stanley and Leah Yingling, and Claudia Tremps of Spain filled out the top 10. 

Somewhere before Arnouvaz at kilometer 99, Bohard took a fall that would ultimately take her out of the race. She entered the aid station walking gingerly, but was determined to keep going. This development opened up podium possibilities even further, and Xiang and L’Hirondel continued to run together at Grand Col Ferret, 50 minutes behind the ever-steady, smiling, and happy Dauwalter. Hartmuth was just 15 minutes off a podium position. 

With the arrival of Saturday morning came renewed spirits for many. Dauwalter arrived to sun at La Fouly running 26 minutes under her own course-record pace. L’Hirondel and Xiang came in just under 50 minutes back, but now there was daylight, in the form of a couple of minutes, between the women. Hartmuth remained in fourth, 65 minutes down, Solińska in sixth, Yingling in seventh, and Spain’s Maite Maiora came through in eighth looking relaxed and focused. Stanley remained in the top 10. Bohard finally succumbed to injuries from her fall and would withdraw from the race.

By La Giète, 130 kilometers in, the gap between Dauwalter and second place was over an hour, but the fight between the rest of the top five remained tight. Xiang moved into second and Hartmuth third, just minutes apart, as L’Hirondel began to feel the distance and time in her legs and dropped back. Solińska and MacDonald continued in fourth and fifth, running together almost two hours behind Dauwalter and nearly 50 minutes behind second and third places. Things remained relatively unchanged at Trient at 144 kilometers. Dauwalter looked good, Xiang was 66 minutes back, and Hartmuth was a mere minute behind her. Solińska and MacDonald followed another 50 minutes back, with Maiora trailing them by 15 minutes.

With victory seemingly all but assured for the American, the battle for the other two podium spots started to get heated on the closing climbs and kilometers. Through Vallorcine at the base of the final major series of climbs, Hartmuth moved up into second after biding her time the entire race, now seven minutes ahead of third-place Xiang and fourth-place L’Hirondel, a further nine minutes back. Maiora led Solińska in fifth and sixth just under two hours behind the leader. 

Near the top of the final climb at Tête de Béchar, 161 kilometers in, it was Hartmuth in second, 56 minutes down. L’Hirondel moved into third 15 minutes back and Xiang kept the pressure on for the final podium spot, trailing by just four minutes. The next gap to Maiora remained about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, Dauwalter made short work of the final descent to the finish line in Chamonix, finishing in 23:29:14 and completing the ultimate trifecta of ultrarunning, winning the Western States 100, Hardrock 100, and UTMB all in one year. “Anytime you have a chance to take on a crazy challenge, I think we should,” she said afterward.The battle for the final two podium spots didn’t let up until the very end. Coming through La Floria, just four kilometers from the finish, Hartmuth led L’Hirondel by a mere nine minutes, and both women looked strong all the way to the finish. They would finish just over 40 minutes behind Dauwalter, Hartmuth in second at 24:10:52. L’Hirondel, the multi-time trail world champion, finished in third at 24:22:50 for her debut 100 miler.Xiang would fade away from podium contention in the final kilometers but held on for an incredible fourth-place finish, improving on her seventh place in 2022. But really, the excitement of her race finish was only added by receiving a marriage proposal on the finish line. Having met her now-fiancé — she said yes! — four years ago at UTMB, the proposal really was a perfect ending to her race. 

Maiora finished fifth, an impressive result after her DNF in the race in 2021. 

(09/03/2023) Views: 932 ⚡AMP
by Eszter Horanyi I run far
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North Face Ultra Trail du Tour du Mont-Blanc

North Face Ultra Trail du Tour du Mont-Blanc

Mountain race, with numerous passages in high altitude (>2500m), in difficult weather conditions (night, wind, cold, rain or snow), that needs a very good training, adapted equipment and a real capacity of personal autonomy. It is 6:00pm and we are more or less 2300 people sharing the same dream carefully prepared over many months. Despite the incredible difficulty, we feel...

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Jacquie Mannhard, JP Giblin take the honors at Leadville 100

Americans Jacquie Mannhard and JP Giblin took the spoils at the Leadville 100 with two exhilarating performances at the race in Colorado, USA. The pair dominated the women’s and men’s races respectively – each winning by a comfortable distance.

Mannhard completed the 100-mile out and back course in a time of 21:24:55, finishing almost two hours ahead of her nearest rival. Giblin, runner-up in 2022, crossed the line first overall in a time of 17:07:25, over 40 minutes ahead of Luke Paulson in second.

Both victors were some way off the course record times set by Matt Carpenter (2005, 15:42:59) and Ann Trason (1994, 18:06:24).

Magnificent Mannhard

The Boulder-based ultra runner, who is at home in the Colorado mountains having won the Kessel Run Ultra (60KM) in November, 2022, produced a strong performance to set a time of 21:24:55 – the slowest women’s time since 2010. Despite that fact, she was the class of the field taking the win by one hour, 51 minutes and 56 seconds.

Second over the line was fellow American Lucie Haines. Haines had enjoyed a pair of victories in Colorado Spings in May and June winning the Valkyrie Trail Race (50K) and Ring the Springs (100K). But at Leadville she was unable to keep apace with Mannhard as she finished in a time of 23:16:51.

Canada’s Madeline Wighardt denied the Americans a clean sweep on the women’s and men’s podium by finishing third in a time of 23:32:57. The 22-year-old finished second in the Quebec Mega Trail (QC) 110K race in 2022 as she starts he fledgling career.

Colleen Noonan was next over the line – another who has enjoyed 2023 success in the state. The American won the North Fork 50 Mile/50K at Buffalo Creak and Chase the Moon 12-hour Solo. Noonan had to settle for bronze at Leadville, however, as she finished over two hours behind Mannhard in a time of 23:33:57. Carrie Stafford (23:48:50) was fifth over the line just under the 24-hour mark.

Glorious Giblin

Another Colorado-native took the victory in the men’s race as Giblin topped the podium. The 29-year-old, who finished 18th at Western States in June as well as second at Bandera 100K in January, finished in a time of 17:07:25.

He was followed over the line by Luke Paulson (17:47:55). The 31-year-old, who won the Yamacraw 50K in Kentucky in May, was 40 minutes and 30 seconds off the pace.

Scott Tarer was third over the line in a time of 17:54:12, just six minutes, 17 second further back. The 42-year-old won the Crown King Scramble 50K in May and finished 15th at Western States in June. He is a previous winner of the Javelina Jundred, the Hennepin Hundred and the Vermont 100.

Great Britain’s Ry Webb finished fourth in a time of 18:38:13 – an hour and a half behind the race winner. Webb has +800 rating on the UTMB Index won the 2021 Lakes in a Day 50 miler, Patrick Cabe (19:34:54) rounded off the top five.

 

(08/21/2023) Views: 901 ⚡AMP
by Stuart Dick
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Leadville Trail 100 Run

Leadville Trail 100 Run

The legendary “Race Across The Sky” 100-mile run is where it all started back in 1983. This is it. The race where legends are created and limits are tested. One hundred miles of extreme Colorado Rockies terrain — from elevations of 9,200 to 12,600 feet. You will give the mountain respect, and earn respect from all. ...

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Canadian trail superstar Priscilla Forgie shares plant-based tips and treats

Edmonton’s Priscilla Forgie is one of the hottest names in Canadian ultrarunning right now, and she has a wealth of knowledge about training and fuelling. The top Canadian at the epic Western States 100–miler in July (Forgie finished in eighth place), Forgie has taken the podium in a startling number of races in the past year, including first at the Squamish 50-mile and 50/50 (50 miles and 50K) a second-place finish at Canyons Endurance Run, plus an overall win at the Near Death Marathon, where she set a course record.

Forgie eats a plant-based diet and has some great tips for those of us who are looking to move toward plant–based fuelling.

“One of the biggest things I’ve learned with plant-based baking and cooking over the years is to stay curious and don’t be afraid to try new things,” she says. “Plant-based options do not need to be complex,” Forgie adds, and says being open to modifying recipes is key. “Be gentle with yourself, have fun, and fuel your body well.”

Quick plant-based meals and snacks

“These are all on-the-go meals full of protein and nutrition and are all delicious,” says Forgie.

Tempeh or chickpea salad sandwichesEdamame with salt and pepperPopcorn with coconut oil, salt and nutritional yeastHummus with veggies or crackersAir-fryer tofu bites

Oat bake with raspberries

“This is a recipe I’ve created over the past year, and it provides so many variations that I never get sick of them,” she shared. “I have the flexibility to use what I have in my pantry any given week.” Feel free to mix it up and use what you have in these delicious healthy treats.

Base

Mix the following together in a large bowl:

2 cups of oats (large flake or quick)1 tsp baking powder1 tsp cinnamon1/2 tsp salt (regular or sea salt)2 cups of milk (soy, almond, coconut, hemp)1/4 cup maple syrup (or brown sugar, agave, mashed bananas or applesauce)2 Tbsp of flax or chia seeds3 Tbsp of melted coconut oil (can substitute applesauce or mashed banana)

Add-in options (can also use any of the following as toppings after pouring into dish)

1/3 cup raisins or chocolate chips2 cups frozen fruit, sliced bananas or thinly-chopped apples1-2 scoops of desired protein powder1/2 cup of chopped walnuts, pecans, peanuts or a combo2/3 cup coconut flakes6 Tbsp cocoa powder

Directions

Pour into an 8×8, 9×9 or 11×7–inch greased baking dish (a muffin tin also works) and bake at 350 F for 35 to 45 minutes or until the top is golden.Can drizzle maple syrup, chocolate or brown sugar on top after baking. Allow to cool, slice and serve.Great to freeze for future adventures.

(08/16/2023) Views: 919 ⚡AMP
by Keeley Milne
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Montreal ultrarunner Mathieu Blanchard to join star-studded UTMB field

Montreal’s Mathieu Blanchard has confirmed he will toe the start line at Ultra Trail du Mont-Blanc in two weeks, joining an elite lineup that organizers of the 171-km race are billing the strongest elite field since the race began 20 years ago.

Blanchard will be vying for his third consecutive podium finish in Chamonix on Sept. 1. He ran last year’s race in 19 hours, 54 minutes and 50 seconds to finish a close second behind Spain’s Kilian Jornet, who ran 19:49:30 for a new course record. In 2021, Blanchard finished third behind French runners François D’haene (20:45:59) and Aurélien Dunand-Pallaz (20:58:31).

In June, Blanchard ran 15:37:02 to finish sixth in his Western States Endurance Run debut. He told Canadian Running after the race that Western States presented a uniquely difficult challenge: “I pushed through, I fought hard, my body was super painful like never before,” he said, adding he was proud to earn the “mythic buckle” awarded to Western States winners.

Among the giants of trail running Blanchard will be up against at UTMB is British runner Tom Evans, who ran the fourth-fastest time in Western States history (14:40:22) to win this year’s men’s race, and who finished behind Blanchard at last year’s UTMB to place third (20:34:35).

“I’m incredibly enthusiastic about the idea of taking part in the UTMB this year,” Evans recently told UTMB. “I’m coming into the event in a much better position than last year when I was fresh from a knee operation. The race is so full of history and for the 20th anniversary, I want to be part of the story by doing a Western States 100 Endurance Run and UTMB double. It’s a big challenge and with the strength of the peloton, it won’t be easy, but it’s a contest I’m looking forward to and believe I can achieve.”

In addition to Jornet, this year’s men’s field will see the return of American Jim Walmsley, who finished fourth in last year’s race (21:12:12) and who has held the Western States course record (14:09:28) since 2019.

Other notable entries in the men’s field include Swiss runner Jonas Russi (winner of the Lavaredo Ultra Trail by UTMB 2023), fellow Swiss runner Jean-Philippe Tschumi (who shared victory at the 100K Trail 100 Andorra by UTMB with the American Ben Dhiman) and Sweden’s Petter Engdahl.

Arguably the most compelling storyline from this year’s UTMB will be American trail running phenom Courtney Dauwalter‘s quest for the triple crown following her resounding victories at Western States (where she ran 15:29:33 to smash the 16:47:19 course record set by Canadian Ellie Greenwood in 2012) and Hardrock 100 (where she set a new course record in 26:14:08). The Golden, Colo.-based runner won UTMB in 2019 (24:34:26) and again in 2021, when she set the current women’s course record (22:30:54).

She stands to face fierce competition from an elite field that includes New Zealand’s Ruth Croft (who finished second at Western States last year), Germany’s Katharina Hartmuth (winner of this year’s Eiger Ultra Trail by UTMB), Italy’s Martina Valmassoi (winner of the 2022 TDS in Chamonix) and Hungary’s Eszter Csillag, who finished fifth at last year’s UTMB.

(08/16/2023) Views: 716 ⚡AMP
by Paul Baswick
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North Face Ultra Trail du Tour du Mont-Blanc

North Face Ultra Trail du Tour du Mont-Blanc

Mountain race, with numerous passages in high altitude (>2500m), in difficult weather conditions (night, wind, cold, rain or snow), that needs a very good training, adapted equipment and a real capacity of personal autonomy. It is 6:00pm and we are more or less 2300 people sharing the same dream carefully prepared over many months. Despite the incredible difficulty, we feel...

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New to Pacing? Three Expert Running Pacers Share Their Best Practices.

acing at long distance running events is common in North America, but it can also be intimidating. Here are seven essential tips from veteran ultra athletes. Emily’s stomach had definitely gone south. She couldn’t keep anything down, vomiting every few steps. Her pacer Buzz Burrell, a fixture in the ultra scene, had encouraged various forms of nutrition and drink with a side of optimism—it’s just a rough patch, aid station’s in a half-mile, the sun will be up soon. After all, that was his job, right? To lend the moral, emotional, and logistical support Emily needed to get to the finish line.

But when the hurling continued, he got out a flashlight and inspected the latest effluent. “It was blackish red, like a stomach lining,” he noticed. “And that’s when I said to my runner: ‘You know, I don’t think we ought to do this.’”

While that scene might be uncommon, it’s an example of the dire scenarios a pacer might encounter during an ultra-distance race. A pacer may need to be prepared to play all sorts of roles in service of helping a runner achieve their goals, even if it means knowing when to call it quits. They can be cheerleaders, drill sergeants, nutritionists, aide-de-camps, trail doctors, raconteurs, and comedians. It’s an art, one that requires close communication between pacer and runner.

While pacing is uncommon in European ultras (it’s not permitted in UTMB races, for example), it is a frequent feature in the U.S. Both on the track and in marathons, pacers are in from the start and step off somewhere halfway, but those who are pacing an ultra usually pick up their runner after the halfway point and accompany them for some or all of the last part of the race.

Some purists argue that the psychological advantage of having clear-thinking, uplifting company in the later stages contravenes the spirit of the endeavor, while others find it a way for friends or family to share in what might otherwise be a time-consuming and self-centered undertaking.

The practice of pacing originated as a safety precaution—race directors didn’t want runners to get lost or collapse out on the trail alone. The 345 percent increase in participation in ultras over the last twelve years guarantees that, while some runners are very experienced, there’s also an influx of neophytes who could benefit from the company of a pacer. And yet, at the same time, there’s a contingent who have never worn a pacer bib.

For those new to pacing, or some of us who have been thrown into the fire to pace a friend without any guidance, here are seven essential insights on the art of pacing from a few of the sport’s veteran pacers. Unsurprisingly, these three pacing pros are also experienced ultrarunners. In fact, it’s been suggested that pacing is an excellent way to learn the tricks of the trade before signing up as a competitor.

After interviewing these three experts, several themes emerged on what to expect when pacing a runner, and how to prepare and execute on your responsibilities:

Buzz Burrell: “You might be trudging along while your runner is throwing up, but I put a different spin on it. As a pacer, I’ve skipped the first 50 miles of the race, which means I’m feeling good, walking into aid stations, eating sandwiches. I haven’t paid a thing for this race! As a pacer, I can enjoy the beauty of the course. This runner might be a dear friend of mine, and I want to help him, but I’m also a free food kind of guy.”

Justin Grunewald: “I think the most common reason is to help someone you care about conquer their demons, and get from point A to point Z. For me, Tyler [Green] is a friend, but he’s also hugely accomplished. I learned so much from him by pacing, I think I could take 30 to 60 minutes off my time from what I learned from pacing.”

Nicole Bitter: “To be a part of a loved one’s attempt at achieving a goal, that’s almost better than if I did it myself. Some people can’t run 100 miles or don’t want to—pacing is a way to share in the experience. A lot of people find fulfillment in pacing, maybe more so than racing.”

BB: “This is critical. It’s not just two friends saying ‘Let’s go for a run together.’ First, discuss goals. Talk about possible scenarios.”

JG: “We talked about Tyler’s objectives. He’d finished second and fourth at States in past years and was completely overlooked as a top finisher this year, so he really wanted to go for it. He had dropped his pacer before, so he wanted someone who could go 32-33 miles. We talked about his intricate cooling routine and how it was going to go at aid stations.”

NB: “It’s critical to understand your runner and what makes them tick. I love to talk when I have a pacer. I want them to tell me funny stories, what happened earlier in the day. Some people don’t want to talk; they’re just in the zone.”

BB: “Be well-fed and well-hydrated, and know when your start time will be. Never become part of the problem; don’t be a liability. Know the pacer rules, like no physical assistance. Usually “muling”—carrying your runner’s food or gear—is not allowed, though it is at Leadville, so be aware of the rules. Know the course, the aid stations, and cut-off times.”

JG: “At Western States, cooling is 15 percent of the race, so everything had to go right at aid stations. Typically, about a half-mile out from an aid station, I’d ask what he wanted to drink. I’d get Coke, ice cubes, water in one bottle, Tailwind in the other.”

NB: “Make sure you and your runner are a good fit, that you’d want to spend some time with this person. Be confident you can cover the distance you’ll be pacing easily. Take care of yourself or you won’t be equipped to pace.”

BB: “It’s unlikely your runner will be feeling great. They may be sick. They may be on a bummer. It might be hot or stormy. I tell first-timers: ‘You feel bad. So does everybody else. This is what it looks like.’”

JG: “They might be too mentally fatigued to know what they need. Tyler told me his arms were numb, which told me he needed electrolytes. Hyponatremia and dehydration are really tricky to differentiate, but, in my experience, they almost always need more electrolytes.”

NB: “Expect the unexpected. You don’t know what could happen. You might not even get the chance to pace if your runner drops out. Keep a positive outlook, and be a problem-solver.”

BB: “The first-time runner needs stability, support, and mild encouragement. Remind them to start eating and drinking 45 minutes into it. Don’t wait until your stomach starts to go. The veteran probably knows this so you can get into actual pacing, behind or in front of them, moderating the ups and downs. For someone who just wants to finish, concentrate on putting one foot in front of the other.”

JG: “Normally, Tyler takes it out slower and picks people off, but this time the theme was ‘no regrets,’ so I reminded him of his objectives, of who he is, of how proud his family will be. He ran in front of me so I wouldn’t distort his view of rocks and roots.”

NB: “It’s nuanced. My husband is competitive so I usually talk about how we need to catch that runner in front of us. The hunt mentality. Or if we need to pick it up, I joke, ‘Wow, are you keeping up with me?’ Some races, like Western States, are dialed in to the tech, and can feed the pacer info on how far ahead or behind their runner is.”

BB: “‘It’ll be fine’ is our mantra, as long as it’s just a mental or emotional low. You can always come back from that. I’ve had runners say, ‘I’m out. I can’t do this.’ I have them sit down, take some deep breaths, let their heart rate come down. Heck, you can take 30 minutes at an aid station, change your socks, and march back out.”

JG: “I told him [Tyler Green] he was looking great. He hit a rough patch, so we focused on hiking 10 steps, running 10 steps. Relentless forward progress. I’d tell him things like, ‘In 800 meters there’s a downhill.’ Late in the race, no one wants to eat, so I kept thinking of what’s going to sound good, to get in some calories.”

NB: “My husband is usually in the zone, not talking, but he enjoys when I tell him stories and point out nice views.”

BB: “Personally, I’m always going to protect my runner’s health first. Finishing is second. There are thousands of stories of people getting through awful circumstances, but I’m not going to encourage them to go on if I think it’s damaging to their health.”

NB: “In the 2016 Western States, my pacer called my day. I had hyponatremia and we didn’t feel it was safe. It’s good to have a close friend make those tough calls.”

Being a good pacer is perfect training for becoming an accomplished ultrarunner. All of our expert pacers routinely switched roles in their many years in the sport. And for those new to the sport, pacing is a great way to dip your toes before actually signing up for a long-distance race. Regardless of whether you ever intend to go the full distance or not, the many roles of the pacer make for a rich, fulfilling experience.

(08/05/2023) Views: 605 ⚡AMP
by Outside Online
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Courtney Dauwalter to race UTMB this year

The U.S. ultrarunning phenom, hot off her record-breaking finishes at Western States and Hardrock 100, will be looking to best her own course record in Chamonix in September.

Ultrarunning sensation Courtney Dauwalter has announced she’ll be toeing the start line at Ultra Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) in Chamonix, France on Sept. 1, setting the stage for what is sure to be one of this year’s most highly anticipated ultras, following her recent record-breaking wins at the Western States 100-mile Endurance Run and the Hardrock 100.

The 38-year-old shared on social media Friday morning—with an apparent mix of excitement and trepidation—her decision to take on the famed 170-km course, which features 10,000m of vert around the base of Mont Blanc.

“We decided to do UTMB!” she wrote. “I have no idea how this will go, or what I’ll be able to squeeze out of my body & brain in one more 100 mile race this summer, but that makes it even more interesting to try! Mont Blanc, here we come! Race date: Sept 1”

The big question surrounding the September race will be whether Dauwalter, who holds the UTMB course record following her 22:30:54 finish in the race two years ago, will be able to best herself to claim the championships and course records at Western States, Hardrock and UTMB within a span of less than three months.

On June 24, Dauwalter not only demolished the Western States women’s course record that had stood for more than a decade (16:47:19 set by Canadian Ellie Greenwood in 2012), but beat most of the men, finishing in 15:29:33 and sixth overall.

Just three weeks later, she turned in another mind-blowing performance at the Hardrock 100 in Silverton, Colo., crossing the finish line in fourth place overall in 26:14:08. Dauwalter’s run was more than an hour faster than the counter-clockwise record set by Diana Finkel of South Fork, Colo., in 2009, and 30 minutes faster than Dauwalter’s own overall women’s course record set last year.

In addition to holding the course records at UTMB, Western States and Hardrock 100, Dauwalter, who is based in Golden, Colo., holds the record at Diagonale des Fous on Reunion Island.

 

(07/28/2023) Views: 716 ⚡AMP
by Paul Baswick
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North Face Ultra Trail du Tour du Mont-Blanc

North Face Ultra Trail du Tour du Mont-Blanc

Mountain race, with numerous passages in high altitude (>2500m), in difficult weather conditions (night, wind, cold, rain or snow), that needs a very good training, adapted equipment and a real capacity of personal autonomy. It is 6:00pm and we are more or less 2300 people sharing the same dream carefully prepared over many months. Despite the incredible difficulty, we feel...

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Don’t tell me what’s impossible – Tom Evans confirms UTMB is up next

Tom Evans has announced that he will run at this year’s Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc (UTMB) after a late alteration to his 2023 plans.

The British runner claimed a “dream” victory at Western States last month to add to his “super fun” Ultra-Trail Snowdonia win in May and second place at Black Canyons 100K in February.

Evans crowned his return from knee surgery to finish third behind Kilian Jornet at last year’s UTMB, but had not scheduled in the iconic Chamonix race for 2023.

Western States recovery

His race calendar for this year, which he shared on Instagram in January, included a Fastest Known Time (FKT) attempt of the Bob Graham Round in September, but there was no mention of UTMB following Western States.

However, after his dominant win in California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains, a defiant Evans suggested that UTMB could still be on the cards.

“If I recover well from this, I’ll race UTMB this year,” Evans said at the end of adidas TERREX’s documentary on his Western States win.

“People have said it’s impossible to do. Don’t tell me what’s impossible or not.

Irresistible challenge

Over the next three weeks, Evans’ recovery clearly went to plan and yesterday he revealed that he was unable to resist the allure of UTMB, which takes place next month.

“Couldn’t resist the chance to make more memories like this,” he wrote on Instagram. “See you in Chamonix!

“Next up… UTMB.

“The Western States 100 / UTMB double is something that has always interested me. It wasn’t on my original plan but things have to change with how you’re feeling!

“And now, I can’t wait for the challenge!”

(07/27/2023) Views: 705 ⚡AMP
by Olly Green
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North Face Ultra Trail du Tour du Mont-Blanc

North Face Ultra Trail du Tour du Mont-Blanc

Mountain race, with numerous passages in high altitude (>2500m), in difficult weather conditions (night, wind, cold, rain or snow), that needs a very good training, adapted equipment and a real capacity of personal autonomy. It is 6:00pm and we are more or less 2300 people sharing the same dream carefully prepared over many months. Despite the incredible difficulty, we feel...

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Three things ultra beast Courtney Dauwalter can teach all runners

Courtney Dauwalter has been stunning the ultratrail world over and over: not only does she keep winning every race she runs, but she’s been obliterating course records and beating almost all of the men. On Sunday, the Leadville, Colo.-based athlete annihilated the Hardrock 100 course record, finishing an incredible fourth place overall, only three weeks off setting a blistering new Western States 100 record. Here’s what you can learn (no matter your distance of choice) from the way Dauwalter trains and races.

1.- Run with joy and gratitude

It sounds simple, right? Running and racing should make us happy, but training can all too easily get filed as a chore on an endless to-do list. Dauwalter exudes joy and gratitude when she races, no matter the day or situation. Dauwalter is known by competitors and fans alike for the big smile she shares with everyone on the course. 

She effusively thanks volunteers and takes time to ask how her crew is doing. She high-fives all the little kids. On the Some Work All Play podcast, coach and ultrarunner David Roche asked Dauwalter what she would like her legacy to be. The trail phenom answered with her trademark humility and graciousness: “In general? That I made people smile and laugh and have a good time.”

Most of us won’t win a course record at a world-renowned event, but we can embody Dauwalter’s attitude in our own training and races. Checking in with others, savouring the fun of moving our bodies, and that simple thing, smiling, will make everything feel a little bit easier and a lot more fun.

2.- Adjust your training according to how you are feeling

Dauwalter has no coach, doesn’t follow a strict training plan, and goes by feel. She’s clearly perfected the art of self-awareness over time, but there’s a takeaway there for all of us. Even though it can be incredibly helpful for runners to follow a program or have guidance while they train, keeping a reserve of flexibility and using self-check-ins can help the regular runner optimize their performance.

“There are so many ways to train, enjoy, and go after running goals. Having a training plan, using devices and analyzing data, or not doing any of those things, are all great options,” Dauwalter recently explained to trailrunnermag.com “I think it depends on the person and how they find joy. But I also think there is no downside to occasionally leaving the watch at home and heading out the door for a run where you just listen to your body and not worry about metrics.”

Keep things loose, and be willing to adjust your plans if you feel the need for a data-free jaunt or when you note that your body is needing more rest.

3.- Eat with exuberance

Dauwalter is known for her sweet tooth and habit of fuelling long races with cheese quesadillas. She’s often heard asking for her post-race beer, and even her Instagram tagline declares her a lover of long inseams and candy. Dauwalter told Roche that she refuses to restrict what goes into her body: “If it sounds good, if it tastes good, if it fulfills a craving, then it’s exactly the thing that I’m eating.” Eating makes her happy.

Eating has a complicated dynamic for some, and runners come from a wide array of nutritional needs and preferences. Whatever your relationship with food and fuel, bringing Dauwalter’s enthusiastic spirit into your kitchen or food choices can make food more fun.

(07/17/2023) Views: 835 ⚡AMP
by Keeley Milne
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2023 Hardrock 100 Women’s Race

If it wasn’t for Courtney Dauwalter (pre-race interview) running the Western States 100 just three weeks prior, crushing the women’s record there, and potentially being a bit worn out at the start line of the Hardrock 100, it would have been hard to find someone to bet against her winning the race this year. But if she were to falter, there were several women who were ready to jump at the opportunity.

For the first part of the race, it seemed like France’s Anne-Lise Rousset Séguret was going to do just that. While Dauwalter led in the very early miles of the course, Rousset opened up a sizable gap coming through Maggie Gulch at mile 15.5 and was moving with enthusiasm toward Pole Creek, the next aid station. She came into Sherman at mile 30 in seventh overall in 6:29, looking strong. Dauwalter was just six minutes behind, and Annie Hughes (pre-race interview) came in next, 52 minutes off the lead. With still many miles to run, it was still anyone’s race. Frenchwoman Claire Bannwarth (pre-race interview) came through just seven minutes later and was followed by Japan’s Kimino Miyazaki (pre-race interview), who was 1:22 off the lead but looking spry and happy.

The top-two women came back together through Grizzly Gulch at mile 36 with Hughes trailing them at just under an hour back. When Rousset led Dauwalter into Grouse Gulch, mile 43.5, by nearly 10 minutes after traversing Handies Peak, the course high point, it seemed like maybe the Western States 100-Hardrock 100 double was going to be too much for Dauwalter to handle.

But it’s never a good idea to bet against the most dominant female trail ultrarunner of this generation. By mile 50, she’d closed the gap to four minutes, and in Ouray at mile 58.5, it was down to two minutes. When it came to the climb out of Ouray, Dauwalter made her move, and the elastic to Rousset finally snapped over the top of Virginius Pass. Dauwalter never looked back.

Meanwhile, Hughes stayed steady in third place while dealing with stomach issues and the rest of the women’s pack, including Miyazaki, Bannwarth, Christina Bauer, Whitney Mickelsen, Darla Askew, Becky Bates, and last-minute waitlist entrant Emily Halnon, who only got into the race the morning before, continued to chase — all within close proximity to each other.

 

Dauwalter ran into Telluride at mile 74.5, her pace still hovering just a few minutes over course-record pace, but now 23 minutes ahead of second-place Rousset, and executed the fasted crew stop of the Telluride aid station, getting in and out in under three minutes. She was on a mission.

Just 10 miles later, she was well below course-record pace, crushing the Bear Creek Trail climb out of Telluride and moving herself into third overall as some of the lead men began to falter. Rousset also continued her relentless march, and while she was 48 minutes back on Dauwalter at mile 84, she was only three minutes up on course-record pace.

In the end, there was no catching Dauwalter as she ran back to Silverton to kiss the rock with a new women’s counterclockwise course record of 26:14:08, besting the one set by the legendary Diana Finkel in 2009, and finishing fourth overall. She also set a new overall women’s record, beating her old time of 26:44:36, which she set last year.

Not only that, she set a new overall record for the Western States 100-Hardrock 100 double with a combined time of 41:43:42, beating Jeff Browning’s old record of 42:12:43 that he set in 2016.

Rousset would finish second after a gutsy run with a time of 27:29:55, which registers as the fifth-fastest time in event history, and Hughes would hold onto third with a time of 32:13:03 after spending nearly 100 miles battling stomach and breathing issues.With large gaps between the first, second, and third women, all eyes turned to the competition between fourth and 10th where the time gaps were tight and the women were often in the aid stations together in the back half of the race. Miyazaki and Bannwarth ran in close proximity to each other battling for fourth and fifth, while Mickelsen, Halnon, Bates, Askew, and Bauer seemed to maintain the same overall pace as the miles ticked by.

(07/16/2023) Views: 666 ⚡AMP
by Eszter Horanyi -I run far
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Hardrock 100

Hardrock 100

100-mile run with 33,050 feet of climb and 33,050 feet of descent for a total elevation change of 66,100 feet with an average elevation of 11,186 feet - low point 7,680 feet (Ouray) and high point 14,048 feet (Handies Peak). The run starts and ends in Silverton, Colorado and travels through the towns of Telluride, Ouray, and the ghost town...

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How to Properly Prepare for Hot-Weather Races

Ah, summertime! It's one of the best seasons for long trail runs, but it's also the hottest and one of the most difficult times to train.  

As temperatures and UV indices climb, runners in many regions can feel the dew point explode, and that can make it seem like any semblance of fitness gained over the winter and spring is suddenly gone. We can all recall an early summer run that makes us not only question our confidence, but whether we're going to make it through the next few months.

There are notoriously warm races on the horizon, and there's a lot of talk about heat and how to mitigate it: sauna training, layering, topical cooling-all the tools to get amateur and elite athletes alike through challenging conditions. Many of the runners who just raced the Western States 100 had relied on mid-afternoon runs when temperatures were at their highest, as well as sauna or hot water immersion training. The race, as with many other summer and early fall races, typically boasts soaring high temperatures along sections at lower elevations.

For decades, the three most-watched sporting events worldwide-the Summer Olympics, FIFA World Cup, and the Tour de France-are typically held during the hot summer months of the Northern Hemisphere. However, prior to 2012, most of the scientific literature on heat acclimation for athletes was based on laboratory testing and controlled environments, and not from real competitions in scorching conditions. With eight of the hottest years in recorded human history having been logged since 2015, global sport organizations such as the International Olympic Committee have finally placed enormous emphasis on providing up-to-date guidelines and recommendations in order to keep athletes safe.

The COVID-19-delayed Tokyo Olympics in 2021 were the hottest Games in modern history with temperatures soaring into the mid-80s and humidity hovering at 82 percent during the women's marathon. The good news is that it sparked considerable discussion and hypothesizing in sport-science communities about best ways for the athletes and their teams to prepare and endure heat. Ultrarunners everywhere watched as the world's best distance runners implemented topical cooling techniques such as pre-competition ice vests and bags of ice during the marathon-a relatively new or at least a more aggressive tactic to attenuate the impact of heat before and during competition.

Heat is considered an equalizer, an element that everyone has to manage, no matter if you're attempting to train or race through it. But does it have to be a performance-sapping equalizer? Can heat training (potentially year round) be viewed as an opportunity to improve fitness, tolerance, and mental strength for challenging race day conditions?

How Heat Impacts Performance

First up, let's discuss what happens when athletes exercise in the heat. Blood flow to the skin, as well as sweat rate, increase to promote heat dissipation. While aimed at keeping the human body safe, these processes increase physiological strain and the chance for dehydration in prolonged endurance events, leading to a subsequent increase in cardiovascular strain. This creates a chain reaction that negatively impacts aerobic performance. Researchers globally agree that the most salient way to lessen the strain that heat imposes is to perform a heat acclimation period ahead of race day.

Improvements in aerobic performance and thermal comfort achieved through heat acclimation are bolstered by these processes, as outlined in a 2011 scientific article from the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine.

Heat Acclimation

Let's dive even further into what the science says about heat acclimation, when and how to implement it, and what athletes of all levels can do to mitigate heat stress before, during, and after exposure to a hot endurance event.

A study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine in 2015 provided the first-of-its-kind, gold-standard consensus recommendations for heat acclimation, and remains one of the most cited pieces of recent literature regarding training and competing in heat, along with Julien Periard's comprehensive review from 2021 for the American Physiological Society. In both reviews, the authors discuss heat acclimation, hydration, and cooling strategies as the pillars of successfully competing in the heat.

The authors report that most adaptations happen within the first week and more slowly within the following ten days. In order to achieve near complete adaptations to fully optimize aerobic performance, athletes need to plan for two weeks of focused acclimation. A pre-Tokyo Olympics study from 2020 suggests following the gold standard of 10-14 days of long-term heat acclimation followed by a shorter five-day reacclimation period just ahead of competition (during the taper period) in order to get the most out of "peak weeks" of training without compromising the health of the athlete with the added stressor of heat training.

It is important to note that the average loss of heat acclimation is roughly two-point-five percent per day following 48 hours without exposure to heat. But reacclimation happens quickly. The rate of decline varies from individual to individual and typically occurs at a slower rate than induction to heat acclimation.

The literature favors training in the same environment as the upcoming race, and if that isn't possible, training indoors in a heated room is the next best option. These once-a-day sessions should last at least 60 minutes, at an easy effort, while keeping a close eye on heart rate (preferably at about 75 percent of max heart rate). Athletes should expect to see their heart rate decrease as adaptations continue to occur, and as such, the duration or intensity of the session should be increased in order to maintain the training stimulus.

What if you don't have access to the same outdoor environment nor the set-up to train in a heated room? A study from 2007 demonstrated that 12 sessions of post-exercise sauna bathing at approximately 190 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes at a time over the course of three weeks enhanced endurance performance.

What about dry heat versus humid heat and acclimating to either? The science demonstrates that acclimating to dry heat improves exercise in humid heat and vice versa. But acclimating in humid heat evokes higher skin temperatures and circulatory adaptations. In other words, the stereotypical dad statement: "But it's a dry heat!" holds somewhat true.

Are there benefits to heat acclimation when your race is in temperate or cool environments? A study from 2010 on cycling performance demonstrated a five percent increase in VO2max in cool conditions versus an eight percent increase in hot; a six percent improvement in time-trial performance in cool conditions vs. an eight percent improvement in hot; and an equal increase in power output at lactate threshold in both cool and hot conditions of five percent.

Hydration

Training in hot conditions increases sweat rate, which leads to progressive dehydration (if fluid intake is not increased), causing a similar cascading effect that is essentially the reverse of what happens during heat acclimation: decrease in plasma volume, evaporative heat loss, and cardiac filling all leading to a reduction in capacity to tolerate the effort in the heat.

A 2015 study in the British Journal of Sports Medicine underscores the importance of starting training or competition in the heat in a well-hydrated state with sodium supplementation before and during the event, minimizing body water mass losses during prolonged exercise in the heat, and being sure recovery hydration regimens include sodium, carbohydrates, and protein.

A 2010 study published in the Journal of Applied Physiology demonstrated enhancement and acceleration of heat adaptations, as well as further increases in blood plasma volume by taking in a protein-carbohydrate mix (0.3g of protein/kg of body weight and 3.6kcal of carbohydrate/kg of body weight) within 10 minutes of heat training.

Cooling Strategies

Numerous studies underscore that cooling strategies implemented immediately before, during, or after competition should be used in addition to heat acclimation, not as substitutes. Cooling strategies provide the most benefit during sustained exercise, but should not be used for sprinters. They include both external methods like ice bandanas and saturated towels, cold water immersion, fanning, topical menthol sprays, and internal options such as the ingestion of cold fluids or ice slurries. (Did someone say post-run slushies?!)

Ice bandanas and saturated towels demonstrate the ability to lower skin temperature (without lowering muscle temperature and risking injury) and effectively lower cardiovascular strain. Ice slurries have been shown to be more effective at cooling athletes than cold fluid ingestion, as the latter has also shown reductions in sweating and evaporation. The literature encourages combining techniques (external and internal), as doing so has a higher cooling capacity than the same techniques used in isolation.

 

A meta-analysis from 2020 found that topical menthol spray caused cooler thermal sensation and improved thermal comfort, but no significant differences in sweat production, core temperature, or heart rate were demonstrated. Findings showed external application, warmer environment, and higher body mass indices as improving menthol's effects on endurance performance without compromising the body's response to the heat.

How to Apply This in Training?

For athletes targeting a warm or hot race, we have a few options in how to structure heat acclimation. As a coach, I recommend against adding in heat acclimation as a novel stimulus without an anticipated hot race on the calendar, because most athletes still have a lot of other low-hanging fruit to grab first. (Looking at you, quality sleep!). If you are a highly trained athlete, chat with your coach prior to initiating heat acclimation in the absence of a warm-weather event on your schedule.

If you have a history of RED-S (Relative Energy Deficiency In Sport), work closely with your coach and medical team to be absolutely certain you aren't adding in too much stress to your training all at once. Taking body weight measurements can be a part of hydration monitoring, but it's important to contemplate the pros and cons of doing so. Another consideration is making sure you have a clear picture of your iron/ferritin status prior to initiating a robust heat acclimation protocol, as iron is lost through sweat.

(07/15/2023) Views: 973 ⚡AMP
by Trail Runner Magazine
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Hardrock 100 preview: will Courtney Dauwalter do it again?

The Hardrock Hundred Mile Endurance Run (HR100), known for its high altitude, deep elite field and challenging entry process, begins Friday at 8:00 a.m. E.T. This year’s event, the first ever to be live-streamed, promises to be a thriller. Runners will encounter over 10,000 metres of elevation gain while facing extreme weather conditions, navigating treacherous terrain and attempting to avoid altitude sickness.

Only 140 participants get to line up at Hardrock each year, and this year’s contenders include the remarkable Courtney Dauwalter, fresh off a jaw-dropping performance and course record at the Western States 100, and other well-known elites. The race will be live-streamed on the Run Steep Get High YouTube channel. Here’s what you need to know to follow along.

HR100 both begins and ends in Silverton, Co., and athletes are above 3,300 metres elevation for much of the race. It was founded in 1992 as a tribute to the miners who used to follow “their mules and instincts, prospecting the San Juans for gold, silver, and other metals,” the race website explains. With a finishing cutoff time of 48 hours, athletes know they are in for a long haul. The course switches directions every year, and this year runners are moving counter-clockwise around the looped course.

The women’s race

All eyes are on the phenomenal Dauwalter this year (but when are they not?) after a stunning performance three weeks ago at Western States, where she set a blistering new course record (78 minutes faster than Canadian Ellie Greenwood’s from 2012) and placed fifth overall. Canada’s Stephanie Case, who was second last year, has withdrawn from this year’s event. 60-year-old legendary ultra machine Pam Reed of Jackson Hole, Wyo., will be tackling the third part of her WSER/Badwater 135/HR100 triple this year.

Leadville, Colo.-based Dauwalter holds the course record for HR100 in the clockwise direction (26:44) from 2022; this year runners will move counter-clockwise, and that course record is 27:18 for women, set by Diana Finkel in 2009, and Dauwalter will most certainly be looking to challenge that time. Will her legs be tired? Will she win the entire thing? We can’t wait to find out.

Also from Leadville, 23-year-old trail phenom Annie Hughes won the Run Rabbit Run 100-Miler and High Lonesome 100 Mile in 2022, and the Leadville 100 Mile in 2021. She’s a high-altitude ultrarunning champ, and has also compiled some wins in really long races–she won the Cocodona 250 Mile in 2022 and Moab 240 in 2021.

If you haven’t heard of France’s Claire Bannwarth, it’s time to brush up: she was the first woman in the 432-kilometre 2022 Winter Spine Race (by more than 24 hours), and will be making her North American racing debut at HR100. Bannwarth races prolifically and runs long–she will be jumping into the Tahoe 200 Mile race a week after HR100.

Colorado’s Darcy Piceu, fresh off the waitlist, is a veteran of HR 100, with the 2023 edition being her 10th running. Piceu boasts three wins and five second-place finishes, and she was fourth in 2022.

The men’s race

With Kilian Jornet, last year’s winner (and course record holder in the clockwise direction) not returning this year, the podium seems up for grabs. None of the other top four men from 2022 will be headed to the San Juans, but a very accomplished group of athletes will be lining up and fans will be eager to see who holds up to the HR100 test.

Ohio’s Arlen Glick is a master of the 100-mile distance, running 12:57 to win the Umstead 100-miler in April and taking a speedy third at October’s Javelina 100. Like Dauwalter, Glick raced at WSER last month. He placed 14th, while he took third in 2022. Glick will be a hot contender and fascinating to watch at HR100.

California-based Dylan Bowman is a Hardrock veteran, placing second at the 2021 edition. Bowman has had a lower racing profile in the past year while working on Freetrail, a media business and trail running community. He’s been training in the San Juans pre-race and is eager to showcase his ability.

France’s Aurélien Dunand-Pallaz has over 10 years of ultrarunning success, but gained notoriety in 2021 when he took second at UTMB and won Spain’s Transgrancanaria. He missed the 2022 edition of HR100 for the birth of his child and is a favourite in his debut this year.

Oregon-based trail running legend Jeff Browning will be taking on his sixth Hardrock at age 51. Browning won in 2018, and finished fifth the past two years. In October, Browning won the Moab 240 in 57 hours, and more recently, he showcased his fitness by winning the Bighorn 100.

 

(07/13/2023) Views: 754 ⚡AMP
by Keeley Milne
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Hardrock 100

Hardrock 100

100-mile run with 33,050 feet of climb and 33,050 feet of descent for a total elevation change of 66,100 feet with an average elevation of 11,186 feet - low point 7,680 feet (Ouray) and high point 14,048 feet (Handies Peak). The run starts and ends in Silverton, Colorado and travels through the towns of Telluride, Ouray, and the ghost town...

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When you consistently stress the body and the mind, you are changing your chemical makeup. Here’s what the latest science tells us about burnout

Kieran Abbotts is a PhD student at the University of Oregon, studying human physiology. He earned his master’s degree in Metabolism and Exercise Physiology at Colorado State University. The lab where he now works studies exercise and environment and stressors on physiology. In other words, he’s an expert on how the chemicals in the body work during exercise, and what happens when things get out of whack.

“Essentially, there are two kinds of training. There’s functional overreaching, which means you stress the body with hard workouts and long runs. Then you provide adequate time to recover, and you induce adaptations,” Abbotts said. This kind of training is ideal—your body is getting stronger. “You want to be functionally overreaching as an elite athlete—so that you’re making progress and becoming a better runner, but also giving yourself adequate recovery.”

And then there’s non-functional overreaching, which can feel the same to many athletes, but it’s very different. “With non-functional overreaching you’re essentially doing the same thing—big workouts, stressing the body—but not giving yourself enough time to recover. And so you start doing damage.” That damage might take a long time to show itself, Abbots said, but it eventually will.

This might be the most important thing to know about being an athlete at any level. Non-functional overreaching is exactly the same as very healthy training, except without enough rest. And rest is different for everyone, which makes it exceptionally easy to slip from functional overreaching into damaging non-functional overreaching without realizing it. Without adequate rest, the body begins to break down instead of build stronger.

Stress Is Stress

Professional ultrarunner Cat Bradley, 31, living in Hawaii, has experienced fatigue and burnout in various forms, including just after she won Western States in 2017.

Winning a big race is great, but it also means all eyes are on you—the pressure is high to stay on top. “After winning Western States, I took a month off, but I was still running at a high level. And for lack of a better term, I felt like I had a gun to my back,” Bradley said. “I wanted Western States so badly, and after I won, so many things happened and I never shook that gun-to-the-back feeling. After a while, it led to burnout. I had to take a mental break.”

For many athletes, finding success can be the stress that makes non-functional overreaching feel necessary. How can you take an extended break when you’re winning and signing new sponsor contracts?

A second version of burnout for Bradley came when she went through an especially stressful situation outside of running. She was dealing with such extreme daily emotional stress in her personal life that everything else was affected, including running and training. When the body is enduring stress, it doesn’t know (or care) what the cause is. We can’t put our life into silos. If there’s stress in one’s life, everything else needs to be adjusted. It doesn’t matter if that stress is “just work” or illness, or relationships.

When you’re overtraining or chronically overstressed, your body is creating higher levels of “catecholamines,” hormones released by your adrenal glands during times of stress like epinephrine, norepinephrine, or adrenaline. “Having those chronically high levels of overstimulation and not enough recovery, you wind up with a desensitization,” Abbotts said. “Overstimulation also causes decreased levels of plasma cortisol. Cortisol is the stress hormone, and it plays a very important role in your physiology.”

When you’re exercising or stressing the body, cortisol will go up, to help the body deal with the stress. But if you’re constantly requiring lots of cortisol, your body will eventually down-regulate. It will adapt and then you’ll have low levels of cortisol. This means trouble dealing with physical and mental stress.

In February, Bradley experienced her most recent version of burnout, and it happened mid-race. Bradley was running the Tarawera 100-miler in New Zealand. Besides training for such a big race, she was also working full-time and planning and preparing for her wedding, which was just days after the race. On top of everything, travel to the event was incredibly stressful.

“I was in fourth place, I could see third, and at mile 85, I passed out and hit my head on a rock,” Bradley said. “We can talk about the reasons that I fainted, but I really think my brain just shut down—it was too much.”

For Bradley, reaching burnout has a lot more to do with outside stressors than the actual running. But now she’s aware of that—she continues to work on not reaching the “gun-to-the-back” feeling. The need to please others. The fear of losing fitness in order to take care of her body. It’s an ongoing process, but an important one.

Overdoing Is the American Way

Professional ultrarunner Sally McRae said, based on her observations, Americans are really bad at taking time off. “I’ve traveled the world and Americans are really bad at resting,” she said. “It’s part of our work system. You go anywhere in Europe and everyone takes a month-long holiday. You have a kid and you take a year off. We’re not conditioned like that in America. It’s like you get one week and then after you work a decade, you get two weeks of vacation.”

For McRae, avoiding burnout and overtraining has a lot to do with creating a life that’s sustainable. She started working when she was 15-years-old, so she realized earlier than most that life couldn’t just be working as hard as possible to count down to retirement.

“Perspective is massive when it comes to burnout. My goal every year is to find the wonder and the beauty and the joy in what I do. Because it’s my job, but it’s also my life,” McRae said. “And I really believe we’re supposed to rest—it should be a normal part of our life. Whether that’s taking a vacation or taking an off-season. I take a two-month offseason and I have for a long time.”

One of the most important parts about rest and not overstressing the body is that everyone is different. An overstressed body can lead to hormonal imbalances, which in turn affects everything.

“When you’re overtraining, you tend to get mood changes and have trouble sleeping,” Abbotts said. “Two of the big things that stand out are, you’re exhausted but you can’t sleep. And the other is irritability—mood swings, and depression.” When you get to the point that you’ve overstressed your body for so long that the chemicals are changing, pretty much everything starts falling apart.

And even though everyone is different, you’d never know that from looking at social media. “I know social media makes it seem like ultrarunners are running 40 miles a day, doing a 100-mile race every other weekend,” McRae said. “And that’s insane. You’ve got to be in touch with yourself. It’s very different to wake up and feel sore or tired, but if you wake up and feel like you have no joy in the thing you’re doing, you need a real break from it.”

How Can the Running Community Do Better?

Elite ultrarunner and running coach Sandi Nypaver wants runners to get more in touch with how they’re feeling and less concerned about numbers or what anyone else is doing.

“I have to have honest talks with people I’m coaching. I need them to feel like they can tell me how they feel, because sometimes they think they have to stick to the training plan for the week no matter what,” she said. “But the plan is never set in stone. It’s meant to be adjusted based on how you’re feeling. Some weeks we might feel great and not need to change anything, while other weeks we might have to totally crash the plan and do something else.”

It’s easy to judge ourselves against everyone else, especially when results and reactions are so public and available.

“It’s easy to say, ‘if that person only took three days off after a big race, and now they’re already back to training, that must be what you’re supposed to do,’” she said. “But even at the highest level, training is different for everyone. Resting is different for everyone.”

“Something that’s really, really hard for many runners to understand is that once you’re not sore anymore, that you’re still not recovered,” Nypaver said. “A lot of research says that things are still going on in your body for up to four weeks after, for certain races, depending on the distance.”

Sometimes it’s difficult to be aware of subtle signs when the soreness is gone. “Convincing people that they need to chill out for a while, even past the soreness, can be really difficult.” But after a huge effort, and before the next, people rarely end up saying things like, “I really wish I hadn’t rested so thoroughly.” Part of it is actually having a recovery plan. Putting rest days on the calendar, focusing on foam rolling and mobility on days that you’re not “doing.”

“And, actually just relaxing. Taking it easy. It’s not just a running model, we live in a culture where we’re always being asked to do more,” Nypaver said. “I wish instead of always thinking about doing more, we’d focus on how we want to be more. A lot of us want to be more relaxed and less stressed and happier and enjoy our lives. We need to put our attention on that instead of trying to do so much. It’s something I struggle with all the time.”

We don’t get validation for resting, relaxing, and being present because there’s no tangible thing to show for it. There’s no “be really calm often” challenge on Strava. But the bigger rewards are great. You just have to trade in immediate dopamine hits for a much more balanced, happier life.

Simple, right?

“One thing I’m doing, and asking my athletes to do, is to write down your intentions,” Nypaver said. “One of my intentions is to chill out more this summer and enjoy it. I grew up thinking it’s all about running, and I have to go all-in on running. But having other outlets, other things that I like to do, is so important.”

When you’ve reached burnout—an extended period of non-functional overreaching, prolonged rest is the only way to let the body fix itself.

“Once you are overtrained, you need to stop training,” Abbotts said. “It’s just kind of the bottom line. Maybe some people can get away with greatly reducing their training load, but most of the time you need to stop. You need an extended amount of time off.”

There’s nothing glamorous about rest. There’s no prize money in relaxing. But it’s the absolute key ingredient in extended performance, and in a much healthier, happier life.

(06/29/2023) Views: 780 ⚡AMP
by Outside Online
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Courtney Dauwalter breaks record at Western States 100 by almost 80 minutes

Ultramarathon runner Courtney Dauwalter crushed the women’s course record at the Western States 100-mile race in California, taking more than an hour off the previous best time.

Dauwalter finished the Western States 100 – the world’s oldest 100-mile race – in 15 hours, 29 minutes and 34 seconds, almost 80 minutes faster than Ellie Greenwood’s record set in 2012. The race was first run in 1974.

“I just kept asking [my legs] to do one more mile for me and they kept responding, so I was very thankful for that,” Dauwalter told iRunFar about the last 20 miles of the race.

“I was definitely, though, deep in the pain cave and really focused on every single step, every single second.”

Cooler weather contributed to faster times at this year’s Western States 100, which started in the early hours of Saturday morning in Olympic Valley, California.

Snow covered much of the initial stages of the course before runners descended into a recently unshaded section scorched by last year’s Mosquito Fire.

After running with fellow American Katie Schide, Dauwalter started pulling away around the 30-mile mark, steadily eating away at Greenwood’s course record.

Covering 18,000 feet of climbing and almost 23,000 feet of descent across Californian trails, the race finishes on a high school running track in the city of Auburn in Placer County.

“I couldn’t believe when the track suddenly showed up and you make that turn, I was like: We did it! We’re here!” Dauwalter told iRunFar.

“Because that was the moment where I let myself actually believe that we had finished and we were about to be able to stop moving.”

Dauwalter, who is set to defend her title at the Hardrock 100 in Colorado in three weeks’ time, also won the Western States 100 in 2018, though her time this year was nearly two hours faster.

Most people’s idea of fun wouldn’t involve running for hours on end through brutal, undulating terrain – but ultra-marathon sensation Courtney Dauwalter is no ordinary person.

While an ultra-marathon is technically defined as any race longer than 26.2 miles, Dauwalter’s exploits tend to take place at distances far greater than that, usually between 100 to 250 miles. 

The 38-year-old’s list of achievements is almost interminable. Dauwalter, a four-time ‘Ultra Running Magazine Ultrarunner of the year,’ holds multiple course records for the obscenely long races around the US and abroad. 

Dauwalter’s breakout moment came at the Moab 240 – an annual 240-mile race in Utah. At the 2017 edition, shortly after making the decision to become a full-time ultra-runner, Dauwalter completed the course a scarcely believable 10 hours ahead of all other competitors – male and female.

The Transgrancanaria event on February 24 – Dauwalter’s most recent escapade - resulted in her 15th straight race win by gender dating back to March 2021, according to results database Ultrasignup. 

The Minnesota native completed the grueling 128km course (79.5 miles) – including over 7000 meters of elevation gain - around the Canary Island in a course record 14 hours 40 minutes: over 90 minutes ahead of her closest competitor.

(06/26/2023) Views: 1,401 ⚡AMP
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2023 Western States 100 Women’s Race

None of the first four women from last year’s race — Ruth Croft, Ailsa MacDonald, Marianne Hogan, Luzia Buehler — returned. That made Zimbabwe’s Emily Hawgood (pre-race interview) the highest returning finisher from 2022. Hawgood’s pretty much a race local now too, living in nearby Roseville, California. But it was 38-year-old Courtney Dauwalter (pre-race interview) that came into the race as a favorite. She won here in 2018 in 17:27 and was looking to avenge a late drop at the 2019 race.

Dauwalter was first up the Escarpment. At 2,500 feet, it’s the race’s biggest climb and it happens right away in the first three miles. But 2022 UTMB winner Katie Schide (pre-race interview) was right there too. Schide, an American who’s lived in France for the past seven years, hit the top in 46 minutes with Dauwalter and the two dropped into the Granite Chief Wilderness together. Already Dauwalter and Schide, age 31, had a three-minute lead on third-place Ida Nilsson (pre-race interview) from Sweden.

By mile 11, Lyon Ridge, Dauwalter and Schide’s lead on third-place Nilsson had ballooned to eight minutes. And then it got even bigger as the two completely broke away from everyone else. At mile 16, Red Star Ridge, no one was within 14 minutes of the front two. Nilsson, Hawgood, 2023 Black Canyon 100k winner Keely Henninger (pre-race interview), Taylor Nowlin, professional triathlete-turned-ultrarunner Heather Jackson, Canada’s Priscilla Forgie and Jenny Quilty, and 2022 sixth-place finisher Leah Yingling (pre-race interview) all ran inside the early top 10.

The Mosquito Fire limited crew access this year and everyone met their crews for the first time at mile 30, Robinson Flat. Dauwalter was in at 5:07 and out within a minute, and still on her 2019 splits. Schide took a longer break and changed shoes, exiting the aid station three minutes behind the leader. The two had completely broken open the women’s race. Nilsson, in her 100-mile debut, had been alone in third to this point, but was now joined by Henninger, Hawgood, and Nowlin.

At mile 34, Miller’s Defeat, the course record watch started. Dauwalter and Schide were under Dauwalter’s own 2019 splits and Ellie Greenwood’s 2012 course record pace. Dauwalter was five minutes up on Greenwood’s splits, and Schide was three minutes faster. Even more, the two were over 30 minutes in front of third-place Hawgood at mile 38. Dauwalter and Schide were out front for the win and the course record, and the other contenders grouped behind them.

Dauwalter was red hot up the Devil’s Thumb climb at mile 48, but Schide hadn’t given up much time. She took longer in aid and left six minutes after Dauwalter. Hawgood, Nowlin, and Henninger came in together next, now 40 minutes behind second-place Schide.

At Foresthill, Dauwalter was 25 minutes up on record pace. Schide conceded only another two minutes over the last stretch and was 11 minutes behind Dauwalter. While Dauwalter and Schide were still off the front, the race dynamic was heating up behind. The third- through eighth-place women were all in Foresthill together with only three minutes separation. Hawgood was there first among the chase group, but Hungarian living in Hong Kong Eszter Csillag quickly jumped from eighth at mile 52 to fourth at mile 62. Nilsson was fifth, and Henninger, Katie Asmuth, and Nowlin were all there too.

Dauwalter ran 2:10 from mile 62 Foresthill to mile 78 at the American River. Only the men’s winner would run a quicker split on this day, and only eight men have ever run a faster split in the race. Dauwalter was five levels better than everyone else, and she was boldly racing without a pacer too. Schide stayed comfortably in second, but fell further behind Dauwalter’s quickening pace and river conditions necessitated that everyone cross the American River in a boat this year.

From Foresthill to the river, Katie Asmuth vaulted into third, past Eszter Csillag and Ida Nilsson. Asmuth was seventh at Foresthill and picked up four spots on the downhill Cal Street stretch, outrunning common expectations in coming back from injury. All three women split faster from Foresthill to the river than Schide did and even if the front two were gone, the women in general were running really fast. There’s bound to be some bad luck in a 100 miler though, and Henninger fell just before the river and dislocated her shoulder. She would then drop from the race at mile 80, Green Gate, due to that injury.

Dauwalter’s incredible second half and incredible race brought her to the Placer High School track finish in 15:29. Dauwalter completely shattered the record books and set a new standard that is likely to last for a lifetime. Ellie Greenwood’s 16:47 course record had stood since 2012. Dauwalter will next race the high altitude 2023 Hardrock 100 in Silverton, Colorado, on July 14. Dauwalter is the Hardrock course record holder, too, but Western States plus Hardrock will certainly be a challenging double.

Schide challenged Dauwalter early, and outpaced the rest of the women’s field in doing so. Schide was in second for much of the day, ultimately finishing as runner up in 16:43. That was also under the old course record.

Csillag, who was fifth at the 2022 UTMB, had a remarkable second half to finish third in 17:09. It is the race’s fourth-fastest run ever. And she just edged out Asmuth, who moved up from last year’s ninth-place run to finish fourth in 17:21. Asmuth’s time was just inside of Ruth Croft’s winning time from last year, and is the race’s fifth-fastest ever.

Hawgood earned a second straight fifth-place finish. In 2022 she was able to finish fifth in 18:16 and in this year’s faster race Hawgood was fifth in 17:26. That time ranks eighth-best ever and is just faster than what Dauwalter ran to win in 2018.

Taylor Nowlin improved her finish place by one from prior year, but like Hawgood greatly improved her finish time. Nowlin was sixth in 17:40. One-hundred-mile debutante Ida Nilsson was seventh in 17:43, and Priscilla Forgie was just minutes back in eighth at 17:46. Leah Yingling was a repeat top-10 finisher in ninth at 17:49. For perspective, no year had seen more than three women finish under 18 hours before. But this year nine women finished under 18 hours. It is the new standard for women’s racing at Western States.

The 25-year-old Meghan Morgan took the prized 10th-place finish in 18:11, thereby guaranteeing a chance to automatically return next year.

(06/25/2023) Views: 953 ⚡AMP
by Justin Mock I Run Far
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Western States 100

Western States 100

The Western States ® 100-Mile Endurance Run is the world’s oldest and most prestigious 100-mile trail race. Starting in Squaw Valley, California near the site of the 1960 Winter Olympics and ending 100.2 miles later in Auburn, California, Western States, in the decades since its inception in 1974, has come to represent one of the ultimate endurance tests in the...

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2023 Western States 100 Men’s Race

There’s nowhere to go but up at the start of the Western States 100, and Jia-Ju Zhao from China charged the opening climb. Despite snow, Zhao hit the top in 42 minutes. Slower to the top, Frenchman Mathieu Blanchard (pre-race interview) and Brit Tom Evans (pre-race interview) turned to greet the brilliant sunrise together.

Zhao won the Ultra-Trail Mt. Fuji 100 Mile in April 2023 and is a two-time winner of the Doi Inthanon by UTMB 100 Mile in Thailand. He pushed his early lead to five minutes at Lyon Ridge, mile 11, while 2022 fourth-placer Tyler Green led the early chase group. Green had finished as high as second here before, in 2021, but was running more aggressively toward the front earlier than ever before.From mile-15 Red Star Ridge to mile-25 Duncan Canyon, the chase group started to make up time on Zhao. Tom Evans, Chinese runner Jia-Sheng Shen, and Dakota Jones (pre-race interview) were among a group that cut four minutes from Zhao’s lead over just nine miles. Evans was third here in 2019 in 14:59, and Jones had just biked 680 miles from his home in Utah to the race start.

Zhao was quickly swallowed up in the next five miles to Robinson Flat, mile 30, and soon fell out of the top 10. A lead trio of Tom Evans, Dakota Jones, and Jia-Sheng Shen came into aid at 4:45, meeting their crews for the first time. At mile 30 and with Zhao falling backward, Anthony Costales (pre-race interview) was fourth, and then he was with Tyler Green at mile 38 in fourth and fifth. The two would barely separate the rest of the race.Evans and Jones dropped Shen on the climb to Devil’s Thumb, mile 48, and the two leaders came into aid together in 7:03. Four minutes back Costales had caught Shen on the big climb, and Tyler Green, Jeff Colt, New Zealand’s Daniel Jones, Ryan Montgomery, Mathieu Blanchard, and 47-year-old Ludovic Pommeret were inside the top 10. Those six were 14 minutes apart. 2022 third- and second-place finishers Arlen Glick (pre-race interview) and Hayden Hawks (pre-race interview) were back in 11th and 16th, respectively. After earlier moving up, Hawks had just lost several places and would later drop with injury at mile 55. Other top-10 finishers from 2022 Cody Lind, Scott Traer, and Alex Nichols were all noticeably outside the top 10 too.

As the race shifted to its mile-62 Foresthill hub, Evans gained some separation on Jones and entered the aid station first, but as Evans changed shoes and socks, Jones didn’t wait and exited first. Jones was now in the lead by himself for the first time and he was overheard voicing his intention to break Evans. Some 11 minutes back of those two leaders, Green and Costales were again together and in third and fourth. Shen and Jeff Colt were just minutes back of those two, and Colt was remarkably almost an hour faster than a year ago when he finished 11th.Jones and Evans separated leaving Foresthill and anticipation ran high for their next steps. The two had been together for nearly the entirety of the race to this point. Jones wanted to make a move and Evans wanted to keep up with (the) Jones. The duel ended quickly and dramatically though. Tom Evans dropped a 5:54 downhill mile and hit Cal 2, mile 71, in 10:12. That surge pushed Jones eight minutes back at mile 71. It was just nine miles from Foresthill to that split on Cal Street, but the front two had shattered and moved in opposite directions the rest of the race.

Evans ran alone to the river crossing at mile 78, and ultimately to the finish. Tyler Green, Anthony Costales, Jeff Colt, and Jia-Sheng Shen all overtook Dakota Jones on the way to the river too. Forget about Elm Street, Jones was having a bit of a nightmare on Cal Street.

Evans, the 2022 UTMB third placer, continued to put time on the field the rest of the way. He finished in 14:40 and that’s the race’s fourth fastest finish ever. The mark trails only Jim Walmsley and Jared Hazen in 2019, and Walmsley’s 2018 mark too. Evans was a runaway winner, but the rest of the top 10 was much more closely packed.Tyler Green pushed on in second, and held off an Anthony Costales chase over the last 15 miles. Green finished in 15:04. It was his second runner-up finish and a big personal best for the course. He was able to finish with his baby boy on his shoulders. Green’s 15:04 was the race’s 11th-fastest finish ever. Costales was third in 15:09, the race’s 13th-fastest finish ever.

Jia-Sheng Shen and Daniel Jones both finished fast. Shen clocked 15:19 and Jones was fifth in 15:22. Mathieu Blanchard and Ryan Montgomery both overtook Jeff Colt late. Those three — Blanchard, Montgomery, and Colt — finished in 15:37, 15:38, and 15:42, respectively. Local runner Cole Watson bettered his 2022 14th-place finish with a ninth-place 15:54.

In 2019 the top 10 all went under 16 hours. This year’s 10th-place man Janosch Kowalcyzk from Germany just missed matching that feat. He finished in 16:09.

Seven of last year’s top 10 returned, but only Tyler Green was able to again make the top 10. The 2022 top 10 finishers Ludovic Pommeret, Arlen Glick, Scott Traer, Cody Lind, and Alex Nichols finished 12th, 13th, 15th, 16th, and 28th this year, respectively. As earlier mentioned, 2022 runner-up Hayden Hawks dropped.

After running near or in the lead through Foresthill, Dakota Jones finished 17th in 17:00.

Early leader Zhao’s high risk, high reward start ended with a drop at Michigan Bluff, mile 55.

(06/25/2023) Views: 814 ⚡AMP
by Justin Mock I Run Far
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Western States 100

Western States 100

The Western States ® 100-Mile Endurance Run is the world’s oldest and most prestigious 100-mile trail race. Starting in Squaw Valley, California near the site of the 1960 Winter Olympics and ending 100.2 miles later in Auburn, California, Western States, in the decades since its inception in 1974, has come to represent one of the ultimate endurance tests in the...

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