We are starting off the New Year in good fashion with the Freedom Park New Year's Ultra Run this Thursday, 12/31. You can choose from 6 hours, 12 hours, and 24 hour races around a 1 mile slightly rolling chip timed loop in Morganton, NC. New Inov-8 team member Dave James will be going big in taking on the 24 hour race. The 24 hour races starts at 8am tomorrow and finishes in 2010.
This Saturday is the Tsali Frosty Footfest in the Tsali Recreation Area in Almond, NC. There are 3 race distances to choose from at this Inov-8 sponsored event. Dwight Shuler will be tackling the 50k distance while Amber Moran will race the 8k course.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Who's Racing This Week & Weekend
Monday, December 28, 2009
Mt. Mitchell Challenge and Black Mountain Marathon
For the past three years, this wonderful race has been the focal point of my early season training. Being more of a medium distance racer, I found that training for a February ultra gives you enough motivation through the dark winter months to enter the spring season with a fantastic base. The races are sold out and usually do so in the first few days but if you're intested in next year's edition, I made a couple of low-budget videos to give you an idea of what they're like. These were made in November and early December. Since then we have had more than 24" of snow. It should be an epic race again this year. Inov-8 has been a force in the past with Mark Lundblad winning the Challenge in last year's contest and Anne Lundblad taking the Woman's Marathon, (as well as past Challenge victories).
The races are out and back, mostly on trail and very treaturous. The weather is the main monster, (expect EVERYTHING), but the footing can be just as frightening. The Challenge is a 40 miler (5000'+ in the first 20 miles) taking you from the town of Black Mountain to the top of the highest point on the East coast, Mt. Mitchell, then back . The Marathon follows the same path but turns around at the base of Mt. Mitchell. Race day is Feb 27th. Hope everyone is out working off those holiday calories. Enjoy...d
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Excited to be on the Team!
I have never blogged before so I apologize if I butcher this process. I am so greatful to have been invited to join Team INOV-8 for 2010 and represent a great company. There are so many amazing runners on the team that are now my teammates. Happy Holidays to all! Type your summary here
Type rest of the post here
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Announcing 2010 Team Inov-8
We are pleased to announce 2010 Team Inov-8. We have some new athletes and some familiar faces as well. We have 2 Adventure Racing teams and 44 individual athletes representing several athletic disciplines, which is a testament to our diverse shoe line. Our athletes were chosen not just based upon high performance levels but also ambassadorship qualities to their respective sport and a strong eco-conscious ethic. Last year was once again an extremely successful year for Team Inov-8 and we hope to build upon that in 2010. We look forward to many more inspiring performances and stories in 2010. Here is this year's team:
Sean Andrish - Ultrarunning
Jonathan Basham – Ultrarunning & Speed Hike
Todd Braje – Ultrarunning
Lainie Callahan - Ultrarunning
Eric Charette - Ultrarunning
Yassine Diboun - Ultrarunning
Lainie Callahan - Ultrarunning
Eric Charette - Ultrarunning
Yassine Diboun - Ultrarunning
Scott Dunlap - Ultrarunning
Greg Feucht - Mtn / Trail
Emma Garrard – Xterra
Joe Grant - Ultrarunning
Joe Grant - Ultrarunning
Joe Gray - Mtn / Trail
Michael Green – Ultrarunning
Michele Hartwig – Ultrarunning
Dave James – Ultrarunning
Jim Johnson – Mtn / Trail
Amy Lane - Ultrarunning
Michele Hartwig – Ultrarunning
Dave James – Ultrarunning
Jim Johnson – Mtn / Trail
Amy Lane - Ultrarunning
Aliza Lapierre - Ultrarunning
Camilo Lopez - Climbing (approach)
Paul Low - Mtn / Trail
Gina Lucrezi - Mtn / Trail
Cristina Luis - Orienteering
Cristina Luis - Orienteering
Mark Lundblad - Ultrarunning
Anne Lundblad – Ultrarunning & Trail
Kelli Lusk - Mtn / Trail
Abby Woods Mahoney – Mtn / Trail
Brendon Mahoney – Mtn / Trail / Crossfit
Peter Maksimow – Mtn / Trail
Abby Woods Mahoney – Mtn / Trail
Brendon Mahoney – Mtn / Trail / Crossfit
Peter Maksimow – Mtn / Trail
Amber Moran – Road / Mtn / Trail
Brian Morrison - Ultrarunning
Ben Nephew - Mtn / Trail / Ultrarunning / Snowshoe
Alex Nichols – Mtn / Trail
Alex Nichols – Mtn / Trail
Dewey Peacock - Mtn / Trail
Anna Pfaff - Climbing (approach)
Jeremy Ramsey - Ultra
Chris Reed - Ultrarunning
DeWayne Satterfield – Ultrarunning
Dwight Shuler – Xterra / AR / Ultrarunning / Duathlon
Sophie Spiedel - Ultrarunning
Dwight Shuler – Xterra / AR / Ultrarunning / Duathlon
Sophie Spiedel - Ultrarunning
Andrew Thompson - Speed hike / Ultrarunning
Kevin Tilton - Mtn / Trail
Todd Walker – Ultrarunning
Serena Wilcox - Ultrarunning
Serena Wilcox - Ultrarunning
Scott Williamson -Long Hike no support
Joe Ziegenfuss - Ultrarunning
Joe Ziegenfuss - Ultrarunning
Team Yoga Slackers – Adventure Racing
Team Granite – Adventure Racing-
Friday, December 18, 2009
Team YogaSlackers returns from Abu Dhabi, capturing 19th and top Rookie honors!
A brutal battle in Abu Dhabi led to the YogaSlackers barely squeaking by with a place in the top 20 in a field of 40 of the best teams in the world. They also took fought hard and took home the honors (and cash that comes with it) as the top Rookie team from North and South America....read the whole gripping story here on the Wend blog! Special thanks goes out to Team Checkpointzero/Inov-8 who raced strong and pushed us hard. They also were super friendly and helpful when we needed it most! Congrats to Dirty Avacados and Crested Butte too - strong USA teams all.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Who's Racing This Weekend
Anne and Mark Lundblad will be racing at the 2nd annual Lookout Mountain 100k in Chattanooga, TN on Saturday. This race is part of the Rock/Creek 2009 trail series and has a 10k trail option as well. There is approximately 8k of climbing for the 100k on mostly single track and jeep trails through scenic land trusts and the historic Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Parks. This event like all the Rock/Creek trail races, benefits The Boonies Wilderness Trail Running Association. (check out their website with lots of great info on trail running in this area)
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Andrish is Awesome at Hellgate 100k
Sean Andrish won the Hellgate 100k with a time of 12:16 yesterday. Very cold starting temps and throughout most of the race I would imagine. Jenny Anderson was 4th female in 13:57 and Rebekah Trittipoe finished in 17:10. Great job everyone.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Xterra World Trail Running Championships
I leave Hawaii depressed. Not because I didn't win, but because it was in the 80's there and now I'm back home in freezing conditions. The race was a great experience. From the startlist I knew I was in for a battle. The hype was getting started that Max and I would have an epic battle. I would like to say it ended up being that way but after about 7 miles I really lost sight of him. Not knowing the course really hurt me. Ben and Max were able to run quite aggressive in sections I was a bit skeptical if I was going the right way. On one section I backtracked about 40 seconds to figure if I had made a wrong turn, eventually I said screw it and went sliding down this muddy, lush trail I thought was the wrong path. Not having mile markers at any point also scrapped my race strategy.
After the opening 5k, which featured some ondulating hills throughout, Max and I started to seperate from the pack of Ben Bruce, Max, and I. From that point Max and I ran pretty close. I had expected some mile markers to determine when to push the pace. I figured I would try to make my move in the mountains to get some space between Max and I.
I waited way too long and by time we got there I was quite a ways back. Once I lost sight of Max in the switchbacks I really turned off the gas because I had to question whether I was going the right direction most of the way. Once we hit the valley I knew the general direction of the course and I surged hard to secure 2nd 
The course was extremely tough and I loved it beyond the fact that I was not able to run the course prior to the race (private land) and no mile markers. I think that made this race all the more of an adventure, and I hope next year there are no mile markers again (now that I know the course!). There were alot of flat sections, but also some good climbs and descents. A mixture of everything really. The heat and humidity combo definitely made this a true trail runners race.
Along the way you pass some really nice views of the ocean, islands, and at the peak you can see huge peaks just across the valley. One of the most picturesque courses I have seen. Definitely looking forward to coming back out next year!
2009 Team Inov-8 Year in Review
As team manager for the past two years, I’ve listed many notable achievements by our team throughout the year. This year was no exception as we had just as many if not more stellar performances. So many in fact, that it was impossible to chose which specific ones I’d list here, as I do not want to exclude anyone. Goals are relative to each individual athlete, so pointing out first place performances to me, is not what our sport is all about. More important than podium finishes is seeing team members giving 100% effort, demonstrating fine sportsmanship and ambassadorship. I feel we certainly exceeded as a team in all of those areas in 2009. (continued under "read more")
In 2008, I pointed out many great performances achieved by athletes wearing the new Roclite 295 and the women’s version, the Roclite 268. That model definitely continued its popularity this year but I’d also say 2009 was the year of the X-talon 212. This shoe took the trail scene by storm and I heard nothing but positive feedback, not only from team members but also other runners talking about the merits of this shoe. What surprised me most was that this super lightweight shoe (7. 5 ounces) was not only ideal for shorter distances but also that it performed quite well on trails at distances up to the marathon and even the 50k. Our performance-lasted shoes are generally marketed for shorter distances but the X-talon with its superior traction and sticky rubber outsole was a proven performer at a variety distances throughout the year.
More exciting feedback came in this year, as team members started training and racing in the F-lite 230, F-lite 301, and the newly released F-lite 220, not only on trails but on the roads. The F-lite 230 is primarily marketed as ideal for hard packed mountainous terrain but its versatility was proven through many great road and trail race performances. While the F-lite 220 and F-lite 301 fall under the umbrella of our urban off-road Parkour line, they still perform flawlessly as a road shoe and on hard packed trail. That comes as no surprise to anyone who has tried them. The uppers on the F-lite 230 and F-lite 220pk fit like a glove and the sticky rubber is a plus, especially on wet roads. Much like the X-talon, the 220pk and 230 excelled even at longer distances up to the marathon.
Throughout the year much of this positive feedback from team members was posted on our team blog. We have witnessed an expansion of the versatility in the Inov-8 lineup. The Roclite outsole (our most popular) is already a proven winner on multi surfaces and now we have newer Inov-8 models that can stake that claim as well. Not many trail shoe companies can brag about their footwear being so successful over as many surfaces and distances. This is extremely important feedback for the average consumer, who may be trying to decide between purchasing a road or trail shoe in these tough economic times. I believe our shoes take care of that dilemma, because not only can use your road shoes on the trails, you can also use your Inov-8 trail shoes on the roads! A refreshing new way of thinking. Who can argue with over 175 podium finishes by Team Inov-8 athletes in 2009?
Thanks to all the Team Inov-8 athletes for making 2009 another successful year!
Monday, December 7, 2009
INOV-8 goes D1
I have been privileged to speak to several groups in the last couple of weeks. The purpose was to encourage and motivate these athletes, my topic being "Ordinary to Extraordinary: The Road Best Traveled."
I encourage you to share your love of athletics and look for ways to impact young athletes.
Incidentally, they all loved my black INOV-8 jacket that I proudly wore and asked if they could get one. It was a nice opportunity to tell them about the company!
Weekend Results
Joe Gray ran to a stellar 2nd place OA finish (1:17) at the Xterra Trail Running World Championships in Oahu, HI yesterday. The runners had pleasant race day conditions but had over 3k of climbing on the 12 mile scenic course. Scott Dunlap also had a great race and won his age group (40-44) in 1:35.
In Charleston, SC at the Reindeer Run 5k, Amber Moran placed 2nd OA female in a speedy time of 17:19. Racers here had very rainy conditions to contend with on Saturday.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Who's Racing This and Next Weekend (revised)
The 7th annual Hellgate 100k is on tap next weekend. This 100k has a unique starting time of 12:01 am and a point to point course from just outside of Natural Bridge Station, VA to near Fincastle, VA. Weather has been very unpredictable every year and who knows what next weekend will bring. Rebekah Trittipoe, Sean Andrish and Jeremy Ramsey will all be taking on this grueling race.
At a slightly warmer venue, Joe Gray and Scott Dunlap will be racing at the Xterra Trail Running World Championships this Sunday in Oahu, HI. A half-marathon course with a nice prize purse of over $10k. Good luck everyone!
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Team YogaSlackers off to Abu Dhabi
While Sam is off on an all expense paid trip to Malaysia to race and show off his 12 pack abs to the ESPN Asia audiences, Chelsey, Daniel, Eric and I are off to search for Nermal. Who is Nermal? Glad you asked. Nermal is the cousin of the famous cat Garfield. He is lost somewhere in Abu Dhabi and we are determined to find him.
You can follow us here: ABU DHABI SEARCH FOR NERMAL
Isn't he cute???
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