Ultramarathon Daily News | Fri, Feb 26

Legendary adventurer Aleksander Doba dies at the summit of Kilamanjaro. If you’re not familiar with this man, check him out.

Yesterday I wrote about a high school track meet taking place in a parking lot, and today, an ultramarathon held in a shopping center in the UK, circa 1990. Yep, Eleanor Adams, Don Ritchie, Roy Pirrung and more, all running laps in a mall for 24 hours.

Gary Robbins sets up another trail running scavenger hunt for this Spring. Love this idea!

Semi-Rad: I hate running and you can too.

Stephanie Case is awarded a Canadian Meritorious Service Award for her work with Free to Run. Huge congratulations to Stephanie and the organization. (Here’s our last interview with Stephanie. Definitely give it a listen.)

I don’t listen to running podcasts, but I plugged this one in yesterday as it covers a topic I’m keenly interested in. (I believe you have to subscribe to get this episode.)
Jason Koop’s guest was Emma Hilton, a PhD from the UK who studies Developmental Biology and has written a paper on transgender athletes. Jason and Emma both did a great job navigating sensitive waters with respect, speaking honestly about the topic, and not getting into the scientific weeds. Very well done from a podcasting and listener perspective.
In terms of the message, hers was quite clear: Regardless of T levels or time, trans women will always have an advantage over biological women and in most sporting scenarios, should not compete against one another. Any drop in testosterone will not offset the natural male advantage.
Aside from the common sense and science of it all, another takeaway for me was how we need race directors to have clear policies set forth. Just as I wrote six years ago with regards to doping, it’s incumbent for RDs to make clear whether or not trans athletes (self ID’d or otherwise) compete against their gender or sex. Maybe for all athletes, maybe just for elites/podiums, but we need transparency (no pun intended.) Yes, it’s uncomfortable, and yes, you might get blowback from social media, but who else is going to ensure the playing field is level?
Big kudos to Koop for discussing this important topic.

Trailrunner/Bracy: Athlete identity and self worth. Good read about goals, our identities, and letting go if sh*t hits the fan.

Beer: Brewers Association announces guidelines for four new styles of beer and I’ve only tried one of them.

Wired: How an old school runner learned to love virtual races. And on that note, I’m hoping we’re close to seeing an end to virtual races.

Happy Friday everyone. I’ve got some luscious springtime trails and rivers to navigate this weekend. You?

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