Ultra Trail Running Daily News | Wed, Jan 17

The 268 mile Montane Spine Race is underway in the UK with live updates right this way. URP guest Gavin Woody is running it…the dude just can’t get enough ultra adventures!

This story reminds me of when restrictions were considered for groups of runners in the Grand Canyon. Individuals were fine, but groups would be verboten. In this instance, photographers can use whatever equipment they’d like to on the trails in Zion NP, but if they’re part of a group, the restrictions start to kick in. Pro photogs: Does this make sense?

Speaking of National Parks, let’s talk about trail running in Yosemite. Lots of great info.

Releasing new episode today with a mid packer who’s name just got drawn for UTMB. Did I mention he used to train mine-detecting dolphins and has given himself a Vegas-inspired moniker? At the interview, Gear Guy Ben gives us the beta on the new Rob Krar shoe from The North Face that has a very very unique “selling point.” Stay tuned.

If you’re running Leadville, I’d recommend following along with Wyatt’s journey to his 6th buckle at the storied race. He knows his stuff.

What’s it like running while high? Is it any more “helpful” than ibuprofen, caffeine, and using a pacer?

So more people bought Steph Curry jerseys than they did for Kobe, Lebron, or any other player. In light of the current UROY countdown, which MUT “stars” jerseys would sell the best?

Ten unique ways people enjoy coffee around the world.

Slow news day today! What did I miss?

15 Responses to "Ultra Trail Running Daily News | Wed, Jan 17"

Adam Wilcox says:

January 17, 2018 at 8:13 am

Uh, you missed Ultrarunner of the Year: https://ultrarunning.com/featured/herron-and-walmsley-named-2017-ultrarunners-of-the-year/

Reply
1. eric schranz says:
  
  January 17, 2018 at 8:15 am
  
  I published before it came out. Thanks for sharing it.
  
  Reply
scott says:

January 17, 2018 at 8:23 am

“In light of the current UROY countdown, which MUT “stars” jerseys would sell the best?”

I have a gym in my garage and the walls are just barren because I don’t follow any normal sports.
Where’s my Zach Miller fathead??

Reply
Ben says:

January 17, 2018 at 8:44 am

Big results matter more than multiple, big DNFs to the UROY voters it appears. It’s interesting that in the six, true trail races Camille won she DNFed three of them and won one of the six.
I also think one of the Tims should have won on the men’s side. Comparing just Freriks to Walmsley for a second – TV and North Face were WAY more competitive and deeper than anything Jim won last year. CRs do matter I suppose but I just think the voters got the men’s vote wrong this year.

I believe ultrarunning releases the results so we can see how close the vote was?

Reply
1. sabineheilandunihd says:
  
  January 17, 2018 at 9:30 am
  
  Well said, Ben.
  
  Reply
2. Ben Zuehlsdorf says:
  
  January 17, 2018 at 11:17 am
  
  …six, true trail races Camille *ran (not won)…
  
  Reply
  1. Nelson says:
    
    January 17, 2018 at 12:03 pm
    
    Are “true trail races” more significant than road or track ultras, in your opinion?
    
    Reply
    1. Guy Cheney says:
      
      January 17, 2018 at 12:14 pm
      
      Historically, I thought the UROY voters overvalued Western States specifically, and 100 mile mountain runs in general. However, considering Cat was 5th and Tim 3rd, if that was ever true, it wasn’t this year. Also, Camille winning over Courtney suggests that trail runs are not valued higher than road wins… I’m still unclear why Cat was not fourth. She beat Magda head to head while winning the most competitive 100 mile race in the US…
      
      Reply
      1. Andrew S says:
        
        January 17, 2018 at 12:22 pm
        
        Guy, I think you essentially get punished for not racing regularly.
        
        Also, I guess Magda was ahead of Cat because she raced 4, and did excellent in 3, races that are usually considered high quality. I understand the head to head argument though. Cat nailed her one focus and should be credited for that of course.
    2. Ben Zuehlsdorf says:
      
      January 17, 2018 at 5:56 pm
      
      At the chance you are baiting me I’ll answer anyways – yes. At least from a competitive standpoint. With the exception of Comrades and the 100k world championships the vast majority of the most competitive ultras, at least in my opinion, are on the trails.
      
      Reply
      1. Nelson says:
        
        January 18, 2018 at 5:13 am
        
        I’m not baiting you, it’s an honest question. The thing about road and track ultras is that it’s easier to compare performances to other editions of the same race or even other races, because there’s less variability in course conditions and profile. So, even if a track or road ultra isn’t stacked with speedsters, you can still have a decent measure of any individual performance.
        
        Personally, I put more value on a fast time than winning a slower, more tactical race. Regardless of surface.
        
        Camille’s 100-mile World Record was, in my view, the strongest performance of the year in ultrarunning, on any surface, distance, and by any gender. Well, maybe not counting multi-day FKTs because I don’t follow those much and can’t really compare.
        
        She set 3 World Records. If that’s all she had done, it would’ve been enough to be UROY in my book.
      2. Ben Zuehlsdorf says:
        
        January 18, 2018 at 5:25 pm
        
        I’ll see your Camille 100mi WR and raise you a Francois UTMB CR (and beating nearly all the best 100mi trail runners in the process) or a one-armed Kilian Hardrock win! I think ultra trail races have a lot more depth at the top-end than road or track ultras. With a few exceptions the majority of the fastest ultra-runners stick almost exclusively to the trails in my opinion these days.
      3. Nelson says:
        
        January 18, 2018 at 6:57 pm
        
        UTMB had route changes that made the course one hour faster according to most sources, so while it was one hell of a race by François, that CR has to be put into context. And the fact that Kilian won Hardrock with a dislocated shoulder does say something about the depth of the race (where would he have finished if it were UTMB?).
        
        By which I don’t mean to say those performances weren’t two of the strongest of the year, but Camille brough the female 100-mile record to a level on par with Kouros’, imo. Of course, there aren’t that many fast American ladies chasing this record as there are running Western States, but this was a World Record that had stood for… was it 20 years? I’m sure plenty of fast women all over the world had gone after it and come short.
        
        In the US, in most of Europe, it seems the best known ultrarunners run trail and mountain races. That doesn’t necessarily mean deep fields, with so many races to choose from. Sure, UTMB had a deep field. Several European ultras have every year. TNF50 does too. Western States had a deep female field last year. Now consider Comrades. Not even UTMB has that kind of depth.
        
        And I can only imagine the depth in Japanese road ultras.
        
        Most fast trail ultrarunners stick mostly to trails. Are they faster on the roads than most fast road ultrarunners? Could Kilian, Walmsley, Luis Alberto, Hawks, Tollefson, Sage, take down Yannis Kouros’ 6-day record? Or the Spartathlon?
        
        I don’t think we can assume any particular surface is more competitive, we have to judge each race and each performance on its own merits. A track ultra may have a thin field, but the stopwatch doesn’t care. A track performance can be compared not only to the other runners that lined up on that day, on that race, but to all runners who’ve ever raced that distance.
        
        Btw, I think FKTs should count towards UROY. Sure there are KFTs with fewer attempts to give a good measure of how good of a performance it was, but so happened this year with Courtney’s win at Moab. The panel just needs to use their judgment in such cases.
        
        Let’s face it, it’s always going to be subjective to some degree.
Ben says:

January 19, 2018 at 8:38 am

All great points Nelson. Where I still disagree with you a bit is that the majority of what I believe are the fastest ultraruners in the world, have not made consistent, or in some cases any, attempts at road or track ultras. My assumption is simply because they find trail ultras more inspiring and choose to focus their energies on those races.

No, I don’t think many truly fast women have attempted the 100mi track or road record in the last 20 years. The fastest endurance runners stick to road marathons and below. The fastest ultra runners primarily stick to the trails in recent years. With modern training techniques and technology / gear the fastest / best of nearly every sport are walking around today. They may simply be focusing on different events, distances, etc.

If we could somehow convince 10 (of the how many hundred?) 2:08 or faster East African men or 10 of the low 2:20s women to truly go after any road or track ultra record we would see incredible records reset. Running economy + speed kills at endurance events.

Reply
1. Nelson says:
  
  January 19, 2018 at 12:05 pm
  
  Part inspiration, part where the money and sponsors are right now. And, heck, running trails is beautiful (although I enjoy roads just as much).
  
  I meant fast women in ultramarathon terms, of course. No Mary Keitany running 2-mile loops for 12 hours straight, haha. I don’t know if the best ultrarunners are racing today, although it’s worth considering. Marathoners in the US have now more means and more science to back their training than ever before, yet they still lag behind the marathoners of the 70s (or 80s, not sure). Back to Kouros, he didn’t have gels, tech clothing, Hokas, Body Glide, hydration vests, compression gear, a GPS watch, if he wanted music mid-race he’d use a bulky Walkman, etc., yet his records are undeniable. I don’t know that the best ultrarunners are competing today, definitely some of them, but what’s certaing is the sport is more competitive as a whole, maybe due to its increased popularity and because now there’s some money in it.
  
  Top marathoners running ultras? That’d be interesting indeed. Although marathon skills wouldn’t necessarily translate to ultras. I’d be surprised if Camille didn’t beat a number of women with faster marathon PRs than hers at Comrades. From what little I know, the training of the top marathoners is very specific to their goal race pace, and while their economy may be fine tuned to paces around goal race pace, they may be less efficient at the much slower ultra-paces. Of course, talent is talent, and with the kind of engine those people have developed, and suficient ultramarathon training, they should demolish records at least up to the 100-mile distance. And maybe on the trails too, lots of top Kenyans train on very hilly terrain.
  
  But there’s not enough money in ultra to attract those kinds of runners. Maybe it’d be easier to get some ultrarunners to start training like East Africans (which also means resting like an elite, no late night beers with your friends and so on).
  
  Reply

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