UltraRunning February 2019
- Inspiration Comes in All Shapes and Sizes
- The Year in Review
- Women Ultrarunners of the Year
- Men Ultrarunners of the Year
- Most Notable Fastest Known Times
- Pete Kostelnick’s Ke2Key
- Pushing for the Grand Canyon R2R2R FKT
Pounding out the last half mile, there was the strange sensation of overwhelming joy and pending loss. Though I didn’t know it then, this would be my last race.
Running came into Lulu Martinez’s life exactly when she needed it. Growing up in Mexico, Lulu was not sporty. “I actually failed PE class. I graduated with honors, but not in PE. I was never a person who enjoyed any physical activity whatsoever.”
In its best years, the first 15 miles of the JFK 50 are difficult. An unusually wet fall in western Maryland was bound to make conditions on the course even more miserable, especially for those of us in the mid to rear pack. We were not disappointed.
We just needed a couple’s weekend. The last of our three kids left the nest this year, and now they are all in college. Is there a better way to sort out and plan your golden years than with a 7-hour drive to spend 30 hours in nature?
Since turning 40 almost seven years ago, Jeff Browning has reacquainted himself with strength training. As a professional ultrarunner, he attributes his recent success to his “Tough 21” routine that helps him handle the volume and stress of 100-milers. Read and watch more about this circuit he does a few times per week.
The Ultrarunner’s Beer & Run Pairing Guide aims to provide runners with the perfect beers to enjoy after a run. Countless years of “research” went into creating this guide. All pairing suggestions are based solely on the taste buds of the author and only include beers that are relatively easy-to-find in regional craft beer stores and that the author has personally sampled.
A rigid yet mobile and adjustable contraption that can be used for stretching most of the major muscle groups in your body, with primary effectiveness in the core muscles of your trunk, spine and hamstrings.
Kostelnick became the first person to complete a self-supported run, without relying on an accompanying support vehicle, from Alaska to Florida.
For the past three years, I’ve been volunteering for the running club at my kids’ school. Kindergartners through fifth graders have the option of using their recess to run laps instead of play on the playground. Some of them choose to run a couple, while others run as many laps as they possibly can in their 20 minutes of free time.
There’s been a wave of participation in our sport in the last 10-15 years, even in the 60, 70 and 80+ age groups. It’s revealing of both the sport and its participants that it’s possible to stay in the sport and run a 100-miler every year. For decades.
Each year a few races attract a large number of elite runners. In this analysis, we have examined the races in which those who received votes for Runner of the Year competed. Giving the runners of the year 40 points, the runners-up 39 points, and so on, we have devised a system for determining which races had the most competitive fields.
I can run 32 miles. I do that almost every weekend for my training runs. This may sound like an odd thought to be having upon arriving at the mile 68.5 aid station. But before we get to that, a little about me.
Like many spots in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Stringers Ridge is rich in Civil War history. Who knew that 155 years later, this former war zone would host The Cannonball – an annual, last-runner-standing battle.
On the eve of Matt Klein’s first Vermont 100-mile race in July 2014, he found himself in tears. He had come a long way since his darkest days nearly a decade earlier.
Courtney Dauwalter is the 2018 Ultra Runner of the Year. Dauwalter had a prodigious year, running 12 ultras and winning nine of them. She showed remarkable range, winning races from 50K to 279 miles. She had major wins at Western States, posting the second fastest women’s time ever, and Japan’s Ultra Trail Mt. Fuji. Perhaps her most talked about race was Big’s Backyard Ultra, a quirky-format event where runners have to complete a 4.1-mile loop every hour to stay in the competition. She did this for 68 consecutive hours before yielding. A star cross-country skier at the University of Denver, Dauwalter lives in Golden, Colorado with her husband Kevin.
Jeff Browning is the second ranked runner in 2018. Browning had an impressively consistent year, winning three 100-milers, placing third at Run Rabbit Run and fifth at Western States. A graphic artist, gear designer and running coach, ”Bronco Billy” lives in Logan, Utah with his wife Jennifer and their three children.
Darcy Piceu is the third ranked woman for 2018. Piceu was undefeated at the 100-mile distance, impressively winning on four significantly different courses – the highly technical HURT 100, the severely mountainous Ronda dels Cims in Andorra, the mountainous but runnable Angeles Crest, and the swift Javelina 100. A psychologist and counselor, the three-time Hardrock champion lives in Boulder, Colorado.
Two thin but exceptionally warm gloves with high merino content designed for aerobic activity.
Dylan Bowman is ranked fourth in the Ultra Runner of the Year balloting for 2018. “DBo” had an outstanding year, winning two major international races, Ultra Trail Mt. Fuji in Japan and Tarawera 100K in New Zealand. He also placed a very close second at Sur les Traces des Ducs de Savoie (TDS), the 119km race in the UTMB series.