Auburn, California, April 9. Dave Mackey overcame a 10-minute half-way deficit to win the 32nd annual American River 50 Mile Run. Mackey caught early leader Jason Loutitt in the 38th mile and pulled away for the victory.
Loutitt came through the marathon in 2:38 with a 10-minute lead over Ian Sharman with Mackey in third, another half-minute in arrears. Nick Clark made a strong late-race move, passing Sharman in the last mile and catching Loutitt at the top of the three-plus mile climb to the finish, but Loutitt had one last sprint over the last two hundred yards hold onto second place.
The women’s race was an epic battle between the last two world 100-kilometer champions, Ellie Greenwood of Banff, Alberta and Kami Semick of Bend, Oregon. The two ran step-for-step together for more than 30 miles, but Greenwood proved too strong at the end and pulled away for a decisive 9-minute win. Both women ran a brilliant tactical race as they came through the marathon in 18th and 19th place overall, yet finished 7th and 8th.
Runners enjoyed a perfect running day with cool, sunny skies and high temperatures of about 60F. There were a record 601 finishers within the 13-hour time limit.
Men
1. Dave Mackey, 41, Boulder, CO, 5:55:37
2. Jason Loutitt, 36, Vancouver, BC, 5:59:55
3. Nick Clark, 36, Fort Collins, CO, 6:00:08
4. Ian Sharman, 30, San Jose, CA, 6:00:29
5. Ryan Burch, 31, Fort Collins, CO, 6:09:09
Women
1. Ellie Greenwood, 32, Banff, AB, 6:25:43
2. Kami Semick, 44, Bend, OR, 6:34:37
3. Jennifer Pfeiffer, 39, Sacramento, CA, 7:04:09
4. Roxanne Woodhouse, 48, Weaverville, CA, 7:30:25
5. Tera Dube, 38, San Luis Obispo, CA, 7:48:58
Photo top left: Dave Mackey on the final climb to the finish (John Medinger photo)
above: Ellie Greenwood along the American River at mile 46 (John Medinger photo)