Ultramarathon Daily News | Friday May 26

Yikes! Woman attacked during Ragnar Relay is saved by stranger who heard her cries.

Three years ago, but worth another read by any endurance runner or ultramarathon fan: Why we choose to suffer.

Anyone looking for a condo rental for Broken Arrow? Most seem to be sold out, but I know someone who’s taking a DNS and can’t use hers. Email me for more info if you need it. The entrant list is looking crazy and the place will be packed.

Need to acclimatize for Leadville or any other high-alt race? Consider renting a Hypoxico. More here.

AJW’s six interesting points about Western States this year. One thing I noticed is that Marty Hoffman is no longer the medical/research director. Curious why he’s no longer working with the race.

URP Partner: Check out Camelbak’s new lineup of ultra trail packs, bags, and handhelds. Need a soft flask that’s insulated? Check it out the Ultra Handheld Chill.

–>>How have I never seen this film? It won the Indy Film Festival Audience Choice Short Award and follows Buck as he dreams about, trains for, and runs PIke’s Peak double. Haven’t made it through the whole thing yet, so no spoilers!

Friday Funny: Nike releases sports bra designed to be worn under baggy sweatshirt while shambling around grocery store while hungover.

ultramarathon

New podcast! I emceed a discussion (with audience Q&A) at Trail Heads Escape trail running camp last week that featured Meghan Arbogast, Zach Bitter, and Hayden Hawks talking about nutrition, trail secrets, how pros make a living, and more. Check it out right here.

One of the more influential brewers of the last 2 decades is moving on to a new venture. Anxious to check it out. Might have to road trip to Fort Collins once it’s up and running!

The secret’s out. The new North Face course will finish at Crissy Field in San Francisco (not “San Francisco“) after competitors run across the iconic Golden Gate Bridge for the final mile. How freaking cool will that be???

Muslim woman says to hell with tradition and cultural pressures and becomes mountaineer and Everest guide. That is strength and courage.

Releasing another podcast today with Wally Hesseltine. He’s 72, has run over 500 races, almost 200 ultras, and is truly an inspiration. He’ll also be running WS100 training camp this weekend. Stay tuned.

18 Responses to "Ultramarathon Daily News | Friday May 26"

AJW says:

May 26, 2017 at 8:37 am

Pretty sure Marty is still working with the research projects at WS he is just no longer the medical director.

Reply
varner says:

May 26, 2017 at 11:01 am

Ugh. This change guarantees 2-3 miles of pavement at the end of the race (bridge is 1.5 miles by itself, add on getting on to it via the twisty parking lot paths, and the descent via roads/bike path to Crissy Field). Not ideal. Plus with a Marin start, you now have a point-to-point race which is a pain for crews/spectators/organizers. Not to mention the fact that they’ll HAVE to shut down a sidewalk on one side of the bridge or else the runners will have to deal with bikers/tourists at mile 48. This is not an improvement (despite the wow factor of running across the bridge).Reference

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1. Sarah Lavender Smith says:
  
  May 26, 2017 at 11:08 am
  
  I’m glad you posted this Alex so I’m not the only one less than excited about the change. I agree with your points and think running over the GG Bridge is overrated due to the traffic noise and dodging tourists.
  
  Reply
  1. eric schranz says:
    
    May 26, 2017 at 11:16 am
    
    If the race is on the sidewalk, it’ll be a shitshow, no doubt. Assuming it’s on the street, it’l be awesome! You two both live in the Bay Area and see it all the time. Imagine the people coming from out of the area who’ll have a chance to finish by running across the most famous bridge in the world!
    
    Reply
    1. varner says:
      
      May 26, 2017 at 11:50 am
      
      there’s no way they’re closing down 2 car lanes (1 for runners, 1 for buffer) on the bridge from 10am-5pm (or later possibly) on a saturday (assuming they close it 1 hour before the leader arrives and keep it open until the cutoff). the route basically has to be run on one of the sidewalks, likely the western one, as its typically reserved for bikes only. so now you push bikes over to the east side on a saturday, which will piss off both cyclists and pedestrians. frankly, i’m really surprised whoever oversees the GGB closures allowed this.
      
      it also raises the question of whether or not all race distances will share the same start/finish… will they end the 50k and marathon and half marathon and 10k and marathon relay on crissy field? if those all start in marin, then they all become point to point races suddenly and the 10k is half roads… and how do you even begin to logisticate the marathon relay? seems like that distance would have to disappear.
      
      i know i’m being a major debby downer on this, but while it seems great in theory (run the bridge to the finish! yay!), it really seems terrible in practice (bikes/tourists/pavement/point to point/other distances?).
      
      Reply
      1. eric schranz says:
        
        May 26, 2017 at 12:05 pm
        
        From what I know the marathon relay, the 5K, and the 10K all start and end at Crissy Field (course is around Presidio) while the longer distances start in Marin.
      2. Aylwin says:
        
        May 26, 2017 at 1:52 pm
        
        Agree with Varner on all points. The traffic into the city (AND PARKING!) can already be a nightmare on the weekends. It’s going to be a massive headache for any crew to try to make it to the finish on time if they’re crewing out in Marin.
        
        Also, I really am surprised how this was approved. Limiting Golden Gate Birdge access for road races here in the city is already a big deal, like the San Francisco Marathon or Nike Women’s Half, but those don’t last till the late or even mid afternoon! What’s the cutoff for the 50 miler? 13 hrs? There’s no way they’ll restrict the west sidewalk just for the racers for that long….
2. Char says:
  
  May 26, 2017 at 11:28 am
  
  Agreed 100%. Not too excited about dodging iPad-wielding tourists on pavement at mile 48. If they close off the bike lane it might not be terrible, but there will still be noisy traffic and likely some wind + Karl. I get that people love running over the GGB, but UGH.
  
  Reply
3. Tatum N. says:
  
  May 26, 2017 at 11:46 am
  
  I’m really disappointed that it’s going to end at Crissy Field. Who wants the last 2.5-ish miles of their trail run on pavement? Running across the GG Bridge always sucks. Sure it’s beautiful and the views are amazing but it’s also really windy, cold, loud and navigating through all of the tourist is a nightmare. I highly doubt they will close a lane of traffic or even shut down a sidewalk on one side Saturday AND Sunday, too many commuters.
  
  Reply
varner says:

May 26, 2017 at 12:12 pm

i mean it’s not like they have any other choice, but that’s a huge downgrade from the headlands…Reference

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JAY in FoCo says:

May 26, 2017 at 1:00 pm

I’ll chime in since I’m 1) born and raised in The City and 2) live in Fort Collins

1) Awful idea to run across the bridge. Regardless of how iconic the bridge is or how stunning the views might be. And I say might cause there’s always a great chance for fog hogging all the views. I’ve run across the bridge a few times and it fails in comparison to running around the headlands. And no way in hell they’ll be able to afford shutting down 2 lanes race day. Though my CHP friends would love that OT pay rate if it were offered to them.

2) I live minutes away from the soon to be opened Purpose Brewing and I’m way pumped! One can run the stunning Quad Rock course put on by Gnar Runners and once done head over to Purpose. Trailhead to brewery in 15 minutes. We got it good in the Fort!

Reply
1. eric schranz says:
  
  May 27, 2017 at 7:06 am
  
  So Quad Rock is in May. Brewery should be running by then I suppose. See you then.
  
  Reply
Mark says:

May 26, 2017 at 2:22 pm

Meh…. now that the news is out there, what will testing after the race change ? Do people really think that cheaters will dope on race day ? C’mon !Reference

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1. AJW says:
  
  May 26, 2017 at 3:13 pm
  
  It’s better than burying head in sand or looking the other way. C’mon, at least they’re doing something.
  
  Reply
  1. Mark says:
    
    May 28, 2017 at 12:47 pm
    
    Sure, it’s definitely better than nothing. But even if they catch cheaters, what are they going to do ? we’ve seen the punishments are pretty laughable so far. several months without competition and then back at it again. I’ll start cheering when the tolerance zero will happen. Banning for life, period.
    
    Reply
2. eric schranz says:
  
  May 26, 2017 at 4:19 pm
  
  It’s more an idiot test than anything. There are athletes who get popped during in-comp testing and I don’t want anyone like that sharing the trails with me.
  
  Reply
3. Guy Love says:
  
  May 27, 2017 at 7:44 am
  
  Wake up sheeple!
  
  Reply
Ashley O'Neill says:

May 27, 2017 at 7:12 pm

Thank you for posting the short film about Pikes Peak–I actually ran it that year and spotted myself in the first few minutes of the marathon!!

Reply

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