We are pleased to announce 2011 Team Inov-8. We have some new athletes and some familiar faces as well. This year’s team is smaller in numbers but we feel this team is even stronger. A bold statement considering the 2010 Team produced some incredible performances with over 215 podium finishes. These results ranged from victories at the local level to national level events. We won several US National Championships at various running distances. In addition we had athletes representing the team and the US at World Cup Events.
Our athletes are chosen not just based upon high performance levels but also ambassadorship qualities to their respective sport. We hope to build upon both in 2011. We look forward to many more inspiring performances and stories this upcoming year. Here is this year's team, their sport(s) of choice and a notable accomplishment or two from 2010:
Viktor Alexy – Trail/Mtn/Ultra - X-Trail Mont Sutton 21k & X-Trail Mont Orford 23k Champion
Sean Andrish – Ultrarunning – Bel Monte 50k Champion, Southern Massanutten 54 Mile Champion
Jonathan Basham – Ultrarunning & Speed Hike - Finisher Barkley Marathons (9th finisher ever)
Katie Caba – Trail/Mtn/Road – USATF Trail Marathon Female National Champion
Eric Charette – Ultrarunning- Keyes Peak Trail Marathon Champion
Yassine Diboun – Ultrarunning – Peterson Ridge Rumble 60k & Silver State 50k Champion
Scott Dunlap - Ultrarunning - USATF Ultra Men Master Runner of the Year
Gary Gellin – Ultrarunning – 4th OA / 1st Master - Way to Cool 50k
Joe Gray - Mtn/Trail – USA Mtn Running Team Member (3 yrs), USATF Mtn Runner of the Year
Michele Hartwig – Ultrarunning – 2nd OA Female Fans 12 Hr and Illinois Ultra Grandslam
Camille Herron – Mtn/Road – Palos Bank Half Marathon Champion, 3rd Female Papa Johns 10 Mile
Dave James – Ultrarunning – WV RRCA State Marathon Champion, 2nd OA USATF 50 Mile National Championships
Jim Johnson – Trail/Road – GSSS Series & WMAC Series Snowshoe Champion, Soapstone 24k Champion
Amy Lane – Ultrarunning – Pittsfield Peak 54 & Stonecat 50 Mile Female Champion
Gina Lucrezi - Mtn / Trail – USATF Trail 10k National Champion, USATF Trail Series Female Winner
Mark Lundblad – Trail/Ultra– Uhwarrie & Pine Mtn 40 Mile Champion
Anne Lundblad – Trail/Ultra – Umstead Trail Marathon Champion, 2nd OA USATF 24 Hr. National Championships
Abby Mahoney – Mtn/Trail – 2010 WMAC Grand Tree Series - Women’s Champion
Peter Maksimow – Mtn/Trail/Road – Pikes Peak Winter Series Champion, Mt Baldy Run Champion
Tommy Manning – Mtn/Trail/Road- Coal Creek XC, Pony Express Trail, Berry Picker Trail Champion
Andy Martin – Ultrarunning – Gore-Tex Transrockies Elite Men’s Team Champion, Chuckanut 50k Champion
Dane Mitchell – Trail/Ultra– Mt.Cheaha 50k, Oak Mtn 50k, Rock/Creek Scenic City Marathon Champion (all CR's)
Joe Moore – Trail/Road – Roanoke Canal Trail Half & Inside Out Sports Half Marathon Champion
Sabrina Moran – Trail/Ultra/Road- 2nd Female Umstead 100 mile, Back On My Feet 24 HR Champion (CR)
Amber Moran – Trail/Road – Chichester Priory 10k, Dupont 12k Trail, The Bear 5 Mile Champion
Ben Nephew - Mtn/Trail/Ultrarunning– Stonecat 50 Mile and Escarpment 30k Champion
Alex Nichols – Mtn/Trail – 2010 American Discovery Trail Marathon Champion (CR)
Chris Reed – Ultrarunning – 2nd OA MMTR 100 Mile, Grindstone 100 Mile & Hellgate 100k
Sam Robinson – Trail/Road – Xterra Redwood Park Trail Race & PCTR Big Basin Trail Run Champion
DeWayne Satterfield – Ultrarunning – Dizzy Trail Ultra 40 miles and Black Warrior 50k Champion
Jared Scott – Mtn/Trail/Road – Soulstice Trail Race and Flagstaff Half Marathon Champion
Jamesina Simpson – Mtn/Trail/Ultra – Shiprock & Grizzly Half Marathon Champion
Dwight Shuler – Xterra/Ultrarunning – Tsali Challenge & Elk River Challenge Champion
Sophie Speidel – Ultrarunning –1st Female Master MMTR 50 Mile, Three Bridges Marathon Champion
John Storkamp – Ultrarunning - Zumbro 100 Mile & Fans 12 Hour (85.5 miles) Champion
Kevin Tilton - Mtn/Trail/Road – Cranmore Hill Climb, Merrimack Trail Race, & Mtn Epic Champion
Ryan Woods – Trail/Mtn/Road – Squaw Valley Mtn Run, Jemez Mtn Half, Mt Penn Mudfest Champion
Team Yoga Slackers – Adventure Racing – Gold Rush 24 hr, Desert Winds 24hr and Sprint Champions
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Introducing 2011 Team Inov-8
Monday, December 27, 2010
Jim Johnson Wins Race #1 of WMAC - Dion Snowshoe Series
Congrats to Jim Johnson who won the I Love Woodward 3 Mile Snowshoe Race on December 26th in Woodford, VT. Jim ran 20:28 to break the CR wearing the F-lite 230's with his snowshoes.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Scott Dunlap Wins Bay Trail Marathon
Scott Dunlap finished his 2010 season with another successful race, by taking the overall title at the Bay Trail Marathon in San Francisco, CA. Scott's time was 3:04:05, winning by a comfortable 9 minutes.
Thursday, December 16, 2010
This Weekend's Starting Line
Just one team member racing that I'm aware of this weekend. We have Scott Dunlap at the Bay Trails Marathon this Sunday, in the beautiful Bay Area of San Francisco, CA.
Monday, December 13, 2010
2010 Year in Pictures
Let me first say that none of this would be possible without the support of my friends, family, crew, my dogs and Team inov-8 USA. Looking back, I have had an amazing year of running races and adventures across the country as shown by the photos and captions below. I am thankful for each step I take in running shoes and constantly counting my blessings that I am healthy enough for my feet to carry me to these destinations.
I hope that you enjoy looking through the pictures as much as I enjoyed being on these adventures.
In January I was lucky enough to sneak away from a sales meeting at work to discover the hidden gem known as Camelback, located in the Echo Canyon Recreation Area of Phoenix. I was running against daylight but made it to the top of this 1,280' climb over less than 2 miles to take in some great sights of the valley below.
Attempting to run fast from the start was not a recipe for success at Mountain Mist 50km as despite a strong first 25 miles, I was eaten up by McKay Hollow and finished off of my goal with a time of 4:35:09. It marked my second consequtive 6th place finish at this mighty race.
Planning for a May 1st start, Rob Youngren and I state our intent to set the fastest known time on the 335 mile Pinhoti Trail. This photo becomes the banner of the website that would track our progress and January marks the start of a long and brutal training schedule to get ready.
Going for one final tune up before Mount Cheaha 50km the week after, I tested the waters at Black Warrior 25km. The course was as muddy and wet as ever, and my strategy to keep Dane Mitchell in sight proved to be fool hardy as I slipped from 2nd into 4th as stronger runners Tim Vinson and Rob Youngren made short work of me at the 15km mark.
Running the course for the first time, I was able to notch the 11th fastest time ever at Mount Cheaha 50km in late February. This was a very fast year as 5 others posted times in the top 10, all time. My goal was to be under five hours, so I was very happy with a 4:54:07. The day after, Eric Fritz and I ran from Adams Gap back to the lodge as training for Pinhoti Adventure Run was full on.
While in Seattle for business I was able to get away to Mount Si, which features a 4 mile trail to the summit, climbing nearly 3,200' along the way. After the 8 miles up and down to take in views of Mount Rainer, I put in 13 more miles at the more tame Tiger Mountain, picture here along the aptly named "Lost Beagle Trail."
In an apathetic performance, I ran out too strong at UAH 10km and would fall from 2nd (shown above) into 4th overall in the final 5km. All of the endurance training and lack of speed work had officially taken its toll.
In early March at Delano Park, I set out to run just my second 50 mile race on the flat and fast 1-mile looped course. I held strong for the first 50km, but then began to lose focus and the pace fell dramatically until mile 40. I managed to catch a second wind and actually thought I was on the lead lap for awhile, passing into first at mile 45, but I was still a lap down and took 2nd place in a time of 7:14:16.
Bearing the pressure of wearing the number 1 bib for the second year in a row and being far from in short distance trail shape, I lead the race for the first half before David O'Keefe passed me and never looked back. David had been training specifically for this race since the turn of the year and I was no match for him. Making things worse, I was passed on the final approach to Death Trail by David Purinton and mentally had given up on the final climb. I finished with a disappointing 2:02:50 and 3rd place overall. My streak of lackluster performances continued on...
The day after Mckay Hollow, our Pinhoti AR crew ran the first annual (maybe to never be repeated) Bushwhacker Marathon. After a few test runs, some recon work and plenty of map studying, the crew set out on Monte Sano and ran the ridgeline south to the Tennessee River in a time of 6:15:58 with a 4-way tie for first overall.
Continuing the preparation for Pinhoti, Eric Fritz and I drive over to the Sipsey Wilderness for a long run, taking frequent dips into the icy streams. Along the way, we manage to locate "Big Tree" which is one of the oldest and biggest trees in the state. Shown here, it is easy to tell how big it really is.
Trying to feel fast one more time before Pinhoti Trail AR, I went over to run Swampers 5km in Florence for the first time. This flat and fast course finishes with a lap on the track in one of the best venue's out there for a 5km. I ran smart and even for 17 minutes and 29 seconds, finishing in 3rd place overall.
After months of training and hundreds of miles run, we set out from Flagg Mountain Alabama as the start of the 335 mile Pinhoti Trail Adventure Run where Rob Youngren and I would attempt to set the fastest known time for the trail. Here were are in the fog at the start of day 1, where we would log 52.3 miles
Laying atop a rock on Stairway to Heaven on Day 2 of Pinhoti, this picture shows the utter fatigue in my body. Joining us on day two was John Nevels through this brutal section and later David Riddle would pace along with us as well. We logged 48.7 miles on day two in just over 14 hours. In the first 38 hours, we had run just over a hundred miles.
Issues with my footwear on the 3rd and 4th day of Pinhoti caused me to fall back from Rob and the rest of the pack. I managed 35 miles on day 3 and decided that it was in my best interest to push through to the state line and then move on to a support role. Picture here is a sample of how badly my feet were chewed up.
In what can only be described as an emotional moment, I make it to the Alabama/Georgia State line with the help of my pacers and crew in 4 days 5 hours 39 minutes and 25 seconds for the 171.2 mile trail from Flagg Mountain to the Alabama/Georgia State Line. I was joined along the way by Joey Butler, Eric Fritz, Blake Thompson, Sarah Bowden and Dink Taylor on the final 10 miles. I spend a few minutes quietly at the state line by myself considering the pain of the journey, before coming down off the mountain.
On the final day of the Pinhoti Trail Adventure Run, Rob Youngren reaches to the Benton Mackaye Trailhead in 6 days, 8 hours and 48 minutes, earning him the distinction of having the fastest known time for the 335 mile trail. I put aside my pain to run the final 25 miles with him on this day and here we are shaking hands at the "finish" line.
Yearning to have immediate success after after Pinhoti, I traveled to Chattanooga with friends to race the Scenic City Half Marathon atop Raccoon Mountain. Mentally I was healed from the the battle wounds of Pinhoti, but physically I was in shambles. Despite a 4th place finish, I was passed by quite a few people running the two-loop marathon. After this race I was forced to re-evaluate my running for the rest of the year.
With just a few weeks of speed work, I was able to run a personal best 36:16 at Cotton Row, placing me 27th overall, matching my 27th bib (seed) number. In the process, I also earned my first age group award in the 10km. Just 90 minutes and a jersey change later, I came back and ran the 5km in 18 flat, finishing in 8th overall and taking another age group medal. Five months through the year and three weeks after Pinhoti, things seem to be turning around.
Early June is spent at Glacier National Park in Montana exploring the US Rockies.
Leaving Montana and heading for Banff enables me to spend some time in the Canadian Rockies and climb the nearby peaks around Lake Louise with some amazing vistas.
In the race that I love to hate, yet keep running every year is the Alabama A&M 10km. Each year I run great through the out and back first 5km section and then suffer on the two loop final 5km. I walked up the hill both times and after being passed by Jon Elmore, I pass back late and finished strong for 3rd place overall. You have to love a 10km race where the coveted trophy is for runners under 40 minutes.
In one of my proudest moments as a runner, I returned home to compete in the first ever Keyes Peak Trail Marathon. It was a two man race from the start and after pulling away after the first 5 miles, I went on to run 3:19:55 and set the standard for future runnings of this race. Keyes Peak is just 30 minutes from my parents home in Kingsford, MI and the race featured a swim across the quickly moving Pine River at mile 18 which was very unique. Picture here was the proud winner with his even more proud father on the cover of the Iron Mountain Daily News sports page.
In an event that I had wanted to contest for many years, I managed to find the time for the Run the Keweenaw Stage Race in July. This unique, three event race features a 6km hill summit on Saturday morning up Mount Baldy (pictured here), 12km trail race on Saturday night and a 25km trail race on Sunday morning. I managed 4th, 3rd and 3rd for the three events, earning me 3rd place overall for the weekend. This was a great experience to catch up with old friend Danny Dehlin and his wife Lindsay and spend time in beautiful Copper Harbor Michigan.
Making my way back to Huntsville for a weekend of work, I ran the very competitive Twilight 5km on UAH Campus. The conditions were very warm and humid for this evening race and I was able to run one second faster than the previous year and finish in 4th, behind the best runners in town, Josh Whitehead, Lucas Sieb and Blaise Binns. I looked at this race as a mark in the sand for my training which was starting to improve steadily.
On the final day of July, I decided to drive over to Iron River, Michigan and run the Windsor Rodeo 10km. Not having any idea on the level of competition in advance, or knowing which runners were contesting the 5km versus the 10km, I went out hard in this hilly course. I took the lead at the 2 mile mark, realizing then that the two runners I had just passed were in the 5km, which made for a long and lonely final 4 miles. I stayed focused for the duration and ran a season best sub 36, taking the overall win.
On the final day of my summer stay in Michigan, I laced up my new inov-8 x-talon 212's for the Lake Antoine Classic 15km. I had previously finished 2nd in the 15km trail race and won the 5 mile race two years prior. I ran the first 8 miles with Anders Nienstaedt, a collegiate cross country runner who attended Kingsford High School, my alma mader. He had never raced at this distance, but he proved to be too strong for me as he pulled away late and I finished in 2nd place again. My time was just a second off of my personal best for 15km which was very encouraging as this trail course is not fast whatsoever and it was very warm on race day. I would happily take the 2nd place as I began the long drive back to Huntsville.
During a stretch where I was racing nearly every weekend, I went to Decatur to contest Brooke Hill 5km. This race uses the same course as the Frosty Freeze, which I had run in December of 2009. One of my goals is to run every race in this northern Alabama area at least one time, so this race fit into my schedule well. In the back and forth battle that I was in with Donald Bowman, he and I ran neck and neck through the first mile. Unfortunately, the split was in the wrong location, so despite us running 5:30 pace, the time was called slow and Donald picked up the pace, putting time and distance on me that I would not be able to reclaim. It turned out to be another 2nd place finish where I ran too fast at the start and died in the final mile.
While on business in Seattle, I found a local trail half marathon on Saturday morning at Squak Mountain which made the fact that I had a Friday meeting on the west coast not seem so bad. This course featured a killer climb from miles 2 to 4 where there was a 1,400' climb to the summit. My goal for the day was not only to take the win, but also to run under 2 hours, enabling me to make it to the airport in time to fly home. Any later than two hours and I would miss my flight home. I held onto the lead early but was no match for the winner on the hills and would go on to finish in 2nd place with a time of an hour and 55 minutes, barely making my flights home!
On the flat and fast Running of the Bulls 5km, I decided to employ a smarter strategy against Donald Bowman than the one I used two weeks prior at Brooke Hill. I would stay with him through the duration, drafting and pacing closely behind and make my move in the final stretch near the high way crossing. Together we ran through 2 miles at an even 5:28 pace but it proved to be too much for me on this day and I faded slightly with a half mile to go and finished in 2nd place again. This would mark four second place finishes for me in the month of August; I was ready to step up my training to another level to be competitive for the win, not a second best.
Traveling to the flat and fast Care Center 5km in New Hope, Alabama proved to be the winning formula that I had missed in August as I took the pace out quickly and ran away from the pack for the overall win. More importantly, I was able to run under 17 minutes for the first time in nearly two years after numerous unsuccessful attempts since. My time of 16:47 was 36 seconds better than David O'Keefe as the minimal turn course treated me well and my hard work on the track and with tempo runs finally paid dividends.
In possibly the biggest debacle of my running career, I ran the first 5 miles of the Monte Sano 15km in well under personal best pace, to mentally quit at Monte Sano Elementary School and walk off the course. Fighting some personal demons that were too much to handle, I walked back on the course, taking a DNF. I did some soul searching out on the trails of McKay Hollow and Death Trail for a few hours after, feeling miserable about giving up on myself and my team. This race would be the pivotal point in my training for 2010 as I decided that in order to achieve my goals, I would have to put aside the emotional struggles I was facing and harden the f&ck up.
Coming off of a disaster at the 15km, I toed the line at Liz Hurley amongst some truly phenomenal athletes on a perfect race day. The modified course featured 15 turns, making it difficult to post a fast time, the final downhill stretch would make up for that. After fighting through the pack in the first mile at 5:20 and a 5:25 mile two through the neighborhoods, I pulled almost even with Brandon Mader atop Adams and ran the final half mile at under 5 minute pace to post a blazing final mile and shatter my personal record with a time of 16:36. It marked the second consecutive sub 17 minute 5km and I bettered my old 16:42 record which I thought would be forever untouchable and finished 7th overall.
Not wanting to hinder my marathon training or risk an injury on the technical trails, I opted for the 5km distance at the Xterra Monte Sano race. Co-race directing this event with Dirty Spokes, I was fortunate enough to have laid out both courses and the knowledge helped me crank out sub six minute miles to hold on for the overall win by a narrow margin over a runner who came down from Tennessee just to win this race.
In possibly the greatest race I had ever run (to date) on a brilliant racing day, I ran stride for stride with Hirbo D. Hirbo at the Life Without Limits Half marathon for the first 10 miles, splitting it in a personal best 57:17. As we approached the bridge crossing, Hirbo dropped the pace down to a low 5 and put 30 seconds on me, which proved to be enough and I finished in second place with a time of 1:15:32. I never thought that I would break 1:16 for a half marathon and felt that I was running over my head during this entire race, but it turned out that it was completely in line with the level of training I had been logging. Basically I had just been under performing and this was where I should have been all along!
While attending the Huntsville Track Club annual awards banquet to support my friends, I was overwhelmed to discover that I was receiving the Admiration Award. During a tumultuous year personally where there were more downs than ups, running was my solace and it was an honor to serve the club. Special thanks to friend Eric Fritz for an outstanding speech.
On a windy day, I decided early on to push the pace and go it alone, as opposed to staying with the chase pack. I paid for this dearly after making the turn on the green way and by mile 11, George Dewitt and Donald Bowman had erased a minute lead and together we ran through the hill and together in the final mile. As we made the final 's' curve into the finish, Donald pulled ahead and I was able to respond only enough to stay ahead of George and as the picture shows, we finished within 3 seconds of each other.
After nearly missing the race as they ran out of timing chips, I relied on friend Jon Elmore for the last minute hook up, enabling me to race. I chased a younger runner for the first half mile, but then took the lead and never looked back. I split the first two miles in a near personal best time of 10:38 before slowing slightly on the final hill climb to run my third sub 17 minute 5km in an official 16:41.9. The overall win meant a little more on this day as it was also my 35th birthday.
On a day when months of training and preparation came together with flawless execution, I was able to realize a dream of running faster than the old sub 2:50 Boston Marathon qualifying standard at California International Marathon. In what seemed like a blistering pace, turned out to be the pace that I had trained at and I split the first half through the rolling hills in 1:20 and went on to run a personal best 2:43:40 and finish 94th overall of over 6000 starters. The competition was stifling in that the top 150 people ran under 2:50 and the top 300 were under 3 hours. After dozens of marathons, I felt that on this Sunday I finally conquered the 26.2 mile road distance.
Just 6 days after CIM in Sacramento, I ran the 2010 Rocket City Marathon as the 3:40 pacer. Helping people realize their marathon dreams and qualify for the Boston Marathon was equally, if not more rewarding than qualifying myself for the first time in 2007. It was a perfect way to end the year by giving back to the sport and to other runners.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Ramsey and Reed #1 and #2 at Hellgate 100k
On Saturday, Jeremy Ramsey won the Hellgate 100k with a stellar time of 11:24:20. Chris Reed was 2nd OA and took 35 minutes off his 2nd place time last year with a 11:48:50 clocking. Chris wore the Roclite 318gtx with the Debrisoc to help combat the snow on the course.
Friday, December 10, 2010
Middlesex Fells Fall 40 Miler by Ben Nephew
Middlesex Fells Fall 40 Miler 2010
This is a small informal race that I’ve wanted to get to for a couple of years. The course consists of 5 loops of the extremely technical Skyline Trail in the Middlesex Fells Reservation. I didn’t think I was going to get a spot this year, but one runner cancelled, and the RD, Steve Latour, let me in.
The Middlesex Fells trails just north of Boston were responsible for keeping me sane during my graduate school years at Tufts from 1998-2002. I grew up in a town of 20,000 in northern NY, went to a college with 2,000 students, and moving a couple miles from Boston for graduate school was a bit frightening. Although I wasn’t a trail racer at that point, I did a lot of miles in the woods, and wasn’t a big fan of urban running. Despite all this, I was excited to start graduate school, and just figured I’d adapt to city life. The only town close to Tufts that is affordable is Malden, so I spent one day looking at some scary apartments, found a small studio I could afford on my stipend, and got ready to start school. I knew there was some green space somewhere north of Malden, but didn’t know if I’d be able to run there regularly.
During my first run in Malden, as I was weaving through the residential streets, I spotted some trees up a hill. I ran up to find a trailhead, and 10 minutes later was thoroughly lost in the Fells, and happy beyond belief. I proceeded to get lost for the next three days before I finally started to figure out the confusing network of trails. The trailhead was only a mile from my apartment. Besides track practices with the Greater Boston Track Club and a weekly track workout on my own, I spent the next four years doing most of my runs on the tight single track of the Fells, and soon decided that I was trail runner. Steph joined me in Malden a few weeks later, and it is safe to say that running in the Fells was one of the best parts of our graduate school years.
There are about 25 miles of trails that weave through the Fells, with a mixture of carriage road and single track. The most difficult circuit is the Skyline Trail, which is reportedly 6.9 miles of small rocky climbs and very technical footing. I’ll never believe it is that short. In 1999, I could run 5:20 pace for 10k, but could only manage to average 7:30 pace for one loop of the Skyline trail during a very competitive race with my GBTC teammate John Blouin. They stopped having the Skyline race shortly after 1999, and that is still the course record (52:08) as far as I know. I still can’t figure out how the trail is so slow without a real significant amount of climbing. It’s as if there is some sort of black hole where you lose time.
Although I haven’t run in the Fells for years after moving south of Boston in 2002, I was guessing that 1:15 loops should be manageable for 40 miles. I was partially right. The day started out with Steph waking me up at 6:20 after I slept through my alarm. I was going to just bag the race at that point, since it was starting in 10 minutes and I was 45 minutes away from the start. Steph suggested I just go and start late, and I needed to get some sort of run in, so I got packed as quickly as possible and jumped in the WRX. It ended up working out pretty well, as I was able to get to the start right about the time that Ryan Welts and Adam Wilcox were finishing their first 8 mile loops. The race loops are about 8 miles due to a short out and back section required to reach the Skyline trail.
I ran out with Ryan, holder of the record for the fastest winter ascent of all 48 peaks in the White Mountains over 4k feet, who was surprised with my late entry. He was going clockwise, which is the direction that I prefer, so we ran together that whole loop. Despite taking a few nasty spills that seemed to hurt me more than him, Ryan led through his second loop in 1:15, which was identical to his first loop. We started the next loop together, but separated when he made a pit stop. I picked up the pace a bit, but could not manage to stay on trail. I missed several turns, and probably lost about 5 minutes wandering around. It was too early to be forcing the pace, but I was aiming to run under the 6:18 that Josh Katzman ran during the spring version of this race. I grabbed another bottle at the start of my third loop, and wasn’t surprised to see that Ryan was close behind. However, he was having some hydration issues, so was calling it a day after 3 loops. Adam ended up stopping after 4 loops.
My 3rd loop was a decent 1:16, but my hips were starting to get a bit tight from 4 hours on technical trails. I thought I was running a similar pace on my fourth loop, but it ended up being a 1:19, which finished any hopes of running under 6:18. I also lost some time having to refill a bottle that had leaked, so the fifth loop was the slowest one by far at 1:25. My final winning time for the 40 miler was 6:34, and even on a good day I think I would have a hard time running under 6:20. Although it seems pretty slow for 40 miles, you have to sample a loop of the Skyline to appreciate how difficult it is to hold a decent pace on that mess of rocks, roots, and leaves. While I would like to come back and give it another try, I’m not sure I’d do all 40 miles. I think 32 miles with that much technical running would be enough, and much more enjoyable. Although I wasn’t happy with how I was climbing during the run, I managed to avoid falling, and only had a couple close calls, so my technical running was good. My Roclite 320’s probably helped keep me upright, and I didn’t have a single blister or hot spot on my feet at the end of the day. I’m guessing that my hurried start probably contributed to the stiffness in my hips over the last couple loops. I find that a warmup helps even in ultras. You can clearly see how the Skyline wears people down in the full results with lap splits:
http://sites.google.com/site/fellstrailultra/results/2010-fall-results
My Garmin file, complete with detours!
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/59019047
Thursday, December 9, 2010
This Weekend's Starting Line
Jeremy Ramsey and Chris Reed will be racing at the Hellgate 100k. A point to point course that lives up to it's name, with a starting time of 12:01 am this Saturday morning. The start is at the Hellgate Parking lot near Natural Bridge , VA and finishes at Camp Bethel, near Fincastle, VA.
Monday, December 6, 2010
Three Bridges Marathon Report
On Sunday I ran the Three Bridges Marathon in White Hall, VA. For my report, go here to my blog. After racing on pavement in road shoes, I can't wait to test out the new inov-8 road model in 2011!
Weekend Results
Eric Charette had a great race at the California International Marathon. Eric ran 2:43:40 and finished 94th overall out of 8,000 starters and cut 10:31 off his PR for the marathon distance. Mark Lundblad won and set a new CR in 6:00 at the Pine Mountain 40 Mile in GA. Sophie Speidel was 1st female overall at the Three Bridges Marathon in 3:37. Race day conditions were slow with big headwinds and cold temps.
Thursday, December 2, 2010
This Weekend's Starting Line
Sunday racing seems to be the theme this weekend. Abby Mahoney will look to build on last week's successful race as she takes on the Mayor Higgins Hot Chocolate Run 5k in Northhampton, MA. Eric Charette is ready for a speedy performance at the California International Marathon. It is a flat and fast, point to point course from Folsom Dam to the front steps of the State Capitol in Sacramento, CA. Anne Lundblad and Mark Lundblad will both be racing the Pine Mountain 40 Mile. This technical single-track race is on the beautiful Pine Mountain Trail system of the FDR State Park in Pine Mountain, Georgia. Sophie Speidel will be racing the Three Bridges Marathon in Crozet, VA. A mostly flat paved course that is hosted by the Ragged Mountain Running Shop in Charlottesville, VA.
