When I signed up for the Eagle Up Ultra in Canal Fulton, Ohio, it was for the sole purpose of earning a belt buckle. The course was newbie friendly, a five mile loop on a flat tow path and had nice swag like a headlamp.
Many comparisons have been made to modern-day ultrarunners and the Pioneers who crossed the continent in covered wagons back in the 1840s and 1850s. The Pioneers risked everything and took on a massively arduous 2,000-mile trek, often for a dream or nebulous “better life” out west. As with ultrarunners, a common question from onlookers was: “why?”
A spacious and versatile crew or travel bag with durable construction and thoughtful compartmentalization. It can be carried as a duffel bag, but does not have dedicated straps for this purpose
I stood at the finish line of my first half marathon, confused. I was surrounded by people who had somehow found a singular, defining experience that morning. Was this why people run? What had I done wrong that prevented me from reveling in a sense of accomplishment?
Among the many alternative cross training and recovery methods out there, I’ve found the one true, revitalizing cure-all: the steam room.
Mild temperatures and a gentle breeze in Central Pennsylvania’s Moshannon State Forest ushered in the daylight at Mid-State Regional Airport for the fifth annual Allegheny Front Trail Run.
Let’s face it, ultrarunning is a really difficult activity. It requires a huge time and lifestyle commitment. But many people are attracted, like moths to flame, to the opportunity to do something epic. And often once they do a few ultras they realize there is a steep learning curve and they achieve faster, and faster, times. Soon, they are pulled into the drive to reach their highest potential by racing ultras – they are all-in.
I first ran the Peterson Ridge Rumble 40-Mile two years ago – my first ultra. This year the race was a 65th birthday present to myself.
When I first found out I was pregnant, I googled “running while pregnant” and was disappointed in the lack of information out there. There was information about Olympic athletes and information for recreational runners, but not much for someone who fell in between these two categories.
A gentle “angelic” loop around the valley floor gives you a chance to adjust to the altitude, enjoy the pine forest and valley meadows, and picturesque mountain cabins and ski chalets. The “fire” comes when you begin the 18.5-mile out and back over the top of the ski resort and down the other side, topping out at about 11,000 feet where you feel like the sun is microwaving your exposed skin.
Running your first ultramarathon is a great commitment to make to yourself. It’ll hurt you in ways that you didn’t know running could hurt you and it will force mental fortitude that you didn’t know you possessed.
The back of the pack runners come straggling in to Wyeth Campground. Thirty-one miles is a tough distance no matter what day it is, even if running sixty-two is your goal, and these runners have endured thirty-one rocky, rooty, sloppy, and gorgeous trail miles in the Columbia River Gorge.
On April 8, 2017, 83 Midwesterners came together to run one of Iowa’s few ultras. The Hawkeye 50K starts in Solon and sends runners on two laps around the man-made Lake MacBride.
The only woman to have finished the California Triple Crown of ultrarunning.
A humorous look at apps that are not really available to ultrarunners – but that should be.
It gets confusing to tell the difference between being exhausted from training/racing and being tired due to illness. But it takes just a few hours to get it checked it out and get answers, and then create a plan towards recovery.
It all started when I was a teenager. I would see people out “going for a jog” and it looked so carefree and enjoyable. I wanted to be able to do it.
This run in Nicaragua takes you over two volcanos while traveling around the island of Ometepe completing tasks that imitate daily local Nicaraguan life. It forces you to adapt to the challenges you face as you run 60 miles through a brutal course and the chances are that you will not finish.
With each passing year, it’s a race we know we shouldn’t be running. But often, against our better judgment, knowing full well the runner we were last year, or 10 years ago, or 20 years ago could be far different from who we are today, we run it anyway.
This was my first attempt at running 50 miles. I had run a couple 50ks but the San Francisco 50 Mile Endurance Run was incomparable to anything I had raced before.
We have officially revived this old-school race, established in 1991, and are quietly, in an unknown corner of the ultrarunning world, building something great.
Vashon Ultra is an island gem smack in the middle of the Seattle-metro area but you would never know it as it’s a small community and is organized by some of the friendliest folks!
Last week at the Cayuga Trails 50 Mile, Dani Filipek won the US 50 Mile National Championships and secured a spot on the 2018 Trail World Championships team. A new face in the sport, having made her ultra debut this year, Filipek sports a speedy marathon PB of 2:41:32 and ran at the 2016 Olympic Marathon Team Trials.
The North Face Ultra Vertical is an offshoot of the company’s Ultra MT trail runner, with an aggressive outsole, high breathability in the upper, and a nice blend of cushioning and protection through the midsole.
Never had I experienced a landscape like that of the Zion 100-Mile. The race takes place adjacent to Zion National Park, through the dry valley floor and up onto giant mesas dwarfing runners with their enormity.
The Memorial Weekend Western States Training Camp is a three-day un-timed event wherein runners cover the final 70 miles of the Westerns States 100 Mile Endurance Run. Here are my top ten reasons to do it!
Injinji has introduced a couple of new products in advance of their Fall 2017 release, and one of them may take you by surprise because of what it’s missing: Injinji’s classic toe sock design.
The Terror was not about Leadville. It was my subconscious awareness that every difficult emotion I had been avoiding was coming with me out on that course.
New hip + no spleen + slightly less pancreas = 25th annual Bull Run Run 50-Mile start
It was a tough day out at the Rockin’ K races. The storm dumped a lot of water on the area, making for wet and slippery running—and cold, miserable conditions for the volunteers. A year to remember for sure!