Ultramarathon Daily News | Tuesday, Jan 2

Wyatt’s list of ten things that’ll make you a better and more durable ultra runner.

If you’ve ever been sidelined (and recovered) from injury, you must read Amelia Boone‘s latest post about her past year and how she’s navigating the future. Excellent perspective.

Thoughtful essay in iRunFar about the commercialization of ultra trail running and the #outdoorlife. Plenty to agree with and disagree with in there. What do you think?

Oh, here we go: Should ultra endurance athletes go keto? Chris Carmichael weighs in.

Do you have the need and desire to be alone? I know that’s one of the main reasons I run trails: No responsibilities, no expectations, just per selfish time for me and me alone.

“When I saw my 5 km split it was the first time in a race I’ve ever thought, ‘Why am I doing this?'”

Nevertheless, Kawauchi persisted and ran his 76th sub 2:20 marathon in freezing temperatures, taking an astonishing 30 minutes off of the CR.

Mario Fraioli calls Kawauichi’s run the POY, but I’m assuming he’s being witty. More in his Shakeout right this way.

I believe this is the Roche life coaching model: Be more like a dog.

I’m guessing someone here would love this job: Bicycle painter in Chattanooga.

ultra trail — Which do you want to know more about? The Hoka Challenger ATR4 or the North Face Flight RKT?

Chime in! Which shoe should Ben start running in and review next? The Hoka One One Challenger ATR 4 or The North Face Flight RKT (aka the ‘Krar shoe’)? Comment below.

Just announced yesterday: Kaci is heading to Altra and Patrick Caron got picked up by Salomon. Both really good moves from both sides.

Men resist environmental action because they see it as “unmanly” and feminine. I’d like to see more of this study and drill down on the demographics.

Eric takes us on a rad trail run in a part of California that’s new to me.

It’s the beginning of the year. Meb shows us how to set good, realistic running goals.

Less stress, lower blood pressure, better thought processes, altered states of consciousness, and myriad other health benefits. Ultra trail running? Nope, drumming.

I posted my complete UROY ballot over at the URP Patreon page. I’d love to have your support as a Patron, even if you tell me my picks are crazy. Thanks!

28 Responses to "Ultramarathon Daily News | Tuesday, Jan 2"

Sabine says:

January 2, 2018 at 7:24 am

I would like to hear about the Hoka One One Challenger ATR 4.

Reply
Lyndsay Galbraith says:

January 2, 2018 at 7:43 am

Hoka!

Reply
Ben says:

January 2, 2018 at 8:23 am

Following

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1. John A says:
  
  January 2, 2018 at 3:00 pm
  
  Agreed. Great topic and some valid points but was thrown off by how the author chose to convey certain sentiments. I feel most readers will be thrown from the authors true intention because of this.
  
  Reply
scottywk2 says:

January 2, 2018 at 8:43 am

I don’t think I’m dumb or anything, but I don’t even understand that Irunfar article. What’s the point I should be getting out of it?

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1. eric schranz says:
  
  January 2, 2018 at 12:49 pm
  
  Yeah, my first take on it was…oh geez, here’s another guy posting about the evils of money. I especially bristled as he painted IRF as a site/company that’s somehow above advertising and is focused on small races. Pfffft.
  But I think there’s a bit more to it. Not buying junk we don’t need. Not falling prey to marketers telling us what we should be buying…
  There’s some good stuff in there, but it reads like something written by a stoned college student.
  
  Reply
William says:

January 2, 2018 at 9:19 am

Using carbs more strategically would be a much better option for long-term health and performance: a lot of dangers, especially female specific, with respect to hormone health when going keto. Make it your goal to find balance in long-term health and eat real food!

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1. Rob says:
  
  January 2, 2018 at 10:07 am
  
  I know it’s an easy target, but many of us are like solitude guy. We enjoy the experience of running in our favorite spots all alone, not bothered by the crowds, but afterwards we still need an audience or a community to appreciate it with us. Not everybody, just some of us need social media or some other outlet to share our longing for solitude. Ironic.
  
  Reply
Andrew says:

January 2, 2018 at 9:59 am

Excited to see Kaci join a company that (from an outsiders perspective) supports and promotes its athletes much more than the mysterious Nike Trail does.

Reply
1. eric schranz says:
  
  January 2, 2018 at 12:42 pm
  
  Agreed, and now with Caroline Boller with Altra too, they’re a really well rounded team.
  
  Reply
  1. Kaci says:
    
    January 2, 2018 at 6:01 pm
    
    I am so excited too!! Thank you! 🙂
    
    Reply
2. keepeyesopen says:
  
  January 3, 2018 at 2:07 am
  
  And there goes another Nike athlete. Who’s still on their team?!? The Nike Trail team is an urban myth.
  
  Reply
  1. eric schranz says:
    
    January 3, 2018 at 5:52 am
    
    Mocko, Varner, Herron, McRae.
    
    Reply
    1. Todd says:
      
      January 3, 2018 at 6:30 am
      
      Isn’t David Laney still on the team?
      
      Reply
      1. Andrew says:
        
        January 3, 2018 at 7:14 am
        
        In Mocko’s URP interview he listed a few more I think. Laney seems to wear Nike products but is always only promoted his Trails & Tarmac brand.
      2. eric schranz says:
        
        January 3, 2018 at 7:16 am
        
        Yeah, I believe Pat Smyth is as well.
        How terribly screwed up is is that we have to have this conversation though? Shouldn’t Nike be promoting their team rather than hiding it? So, so very strange.
    2. Geo says:
      
      January 3, 2018 at 1:45 pm
      
      One of those names does not belong with the others.
      
      Reply
Mike Bonnell says:

January 2, 2018 at 10:02 am

Re: (Not) Going Keto
No doubt, there’ll be a shitstorm of comments regarding this article..and though I often enjoy kicking the hornet’s nest to see what comes out … this time I’ll just say the following: because there’s more to life than running Ultras (for 95% of us MUT runners who are not professional athletes) going Keto has me worried about the long term negative ramifications on overall health. ZERO longterm studies have been done on Keto diets.

We can all agree that plenty of professional athletes have adopted detrimental health habits in order to win (think PED’s in cycling and track) and I wonder if going Keto is one of them. Of course this saddens me…but I’m not in those shoes. As such, I just don’t think that we ought to be encouraging everyday people to do the same. And like it or not, when our Ultra heroes advocate/push going Keto as a means to improving results, it’s as if they’re suggesting that everybody do so. I’ve heard many interviews with top athletes that push the benefits of Keto. I’ve yet heard any of them say, even once: it may not be good longterm OR it should only be used by the very few as a means to an end.

Needless to say, I liked Carmichael’s article.

Reply
Charlie says:

January 2, 2018 at 1:21 pm

Ben,
I would like to vote for the Hoka Challenger ATR 4.
If you review it, I would be interested in how the toe box height compares to the ATR 3. I found it to be low personally.
Thanks!

Reply
1. Charlie says:
  
  January 3, 2018 at 5:19 am
  
  Brian answered alot of my questions. I would change my vote to the Krar.
  
  Reply
Cb says:

January 2, 2018 at 1:53 pm

I’d rather read a review about the North Face shoe. The Challenger 4 has the same midsole and outsole as the 3 with some tweaks to the upper. I’ll likely be buying a clearance pair or two of them when the 5’s come out. 😉

While I’m unlikely to buy an expensive trail shoe as lightweight and with as low a stack height as the Krar shoe, I’m still curious how it performs.

Reply
Brian says:

January 2, 2018 at 2:26 pm

Challenger 4 is one of the best Hoka’s I’ve ever ran in. Good cushioning that is comfortable and protective, but also responsive and not too “squishy”. Improved upper. Lightweight. Good traction on the outsole. Toe box and length of the shoe fits me better than the Challenger 3.

Did a 20+ miler on them right out of the box with no issues.

Reply
Gary Collina Jr says:

January 2, 2018 at 2:44 pm

Krar

Reply
clare says:

January 2, 2018 at 2:54 pm

the ATR4! specifically…is the upper more durable than the 3s?? i was super disappointed with how quickly the upper of my 3s fell apart…so should I pick up reduced price 3s while they are available or is it worth forking out more for the 4s!?

Reply
Robin says:

January 2, 2018 at 3:48 pm

More interested in the Krar!

Reply
Paul says:

January 2, 2018 at 8:33 pm

TNF

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Ben Zuehlsdorf says:

January 2, 2018 at 11:44 pm

Just when it looked like there would be a clear majority for the ATR4 the Krar fans have spoken! 4 votes to 4 votes as of this evening. Who’s going to break this deadlock?! Next vote determines which shoe gets the miles on it first, starting tomorrow.

Reply
1. Julian Robinson (@trailjules) says:
  
  January 3, 2018 at 1:35 am
  
  I’ll vote for the Krar shoes. Mainly because I think there’ll be plenty of Hoka reviews, and few Krar.
  
  Reply

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