Ultramarathon Daily News, Mon, May 18

So at TNF Australia this past weekend, the top four guys essentially missed the turnaround, and were given a 15 minute penalty. Dylan Bowman was one of those leaders, and he ended up finishing first, just 6 minutes ahead of second place. Tough situation, and the RDs had to make a tough call. How should these situation be handled in international ultramarathons? Learn all about it here.

By now you’re heard that Dean Potter, a “luminary in the pantheon of climbing gods” and a friends of his died while BASE jumping/wingsuiting in Yosemite. But hey, when it’s time to die, die doing something awesome like flying off a freakin cliff in one of the most beautiful places in the country. Meanwhile, in another beautiful park, some dumba$$ almost died in a less awesome way.

Eleven of the best trail running camps in the US. Hey, Team RWB is on there! Here’s the crazy video from last years’ elite obstacle course.

How to race like an ultra veteran with Sally, Sage, and Kaci.

This girl is awesome: Blind pole vaulter from Texas finishes third at state meet.

Hey, your Fitbit isn’t going to help you lose weight. Just back away from the table…

It’s craft beer week in Chicago. Anyone going? I see a lot of larger breweries on the list, amongst those I’ve never heard of.

Five reasons every runner should cross train. What do you do? I inline skate and chase kids.

Kawauchi is one my running heroes too.

What “Wild” has wrought. Traffic on the PCT?

Notable weekend results

Karl Meltzer and Angela Shartel won the Cruel Jewel 100something in Georgia and Brian and Amy Rusiecki both podiumed (he won it) for the Massanutten Mountain Trail 100 in Virginia.

On the West Coast, Mark Austin and Emily Richards won the Silver State 50, which is directed by WS100 Prez John Trent. Full results here.

And deep down south, Vanderlei Pereira and Tammy Walther took wins at Keys 100 in Key Largo. Full results here.

17 Responses to "Ultramarathon Daily News, Mon, May 18"

Mic Med says:

May 18, 2015 at 6:41 am

Ask 10 people and I think you’d get 10 different answers. BUT, I’d like to think that the correct answer doesn’t include having them “rest and refuel” for 15 minutes as a “penalty” mid-race.Reference

Reply
1. Rob says:
  
  May 18, 2015 at 7:28 am
  
  Yeah, a fifteen minute rest at aid in exchange for skipping 8-10 minutes of the course is pretty weak sauce penalty.
  
  Reply
2. John says:
  
  May 18, 2015 at 4:54 pm
  
  But 15 min of rest is now followed by having to exert more energy to play catch up…and it’s not like Hawker was some plodder. He was having a solid day. Not sure the 15 min R&R argument holds. Tough call to make for the RD, but seems as good as any. And for the ‘two race argument,’ backtracking still makes for two different races, no? Rob Krar went off course at Leadville, ran a longer race, won anyway, and still had detractors. Can’t please everyone.
  
  Reply
Emir says:

May 18, 2015 at 7:23 am

The RD the best possible decision here. What else could he have done, send them back to the original turn? That would have taken way longer than 15 minutes. Tell them about the penalty at the end of the race and possibly screw up the winner? DQ them?Reference

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1. Rob says:
  
  May 18, 2015 at 7:45 am
  
  Pretty standard to backtrack to get back on course or get DQ’d. Pretty odd to grant a short course with siesta to a few. Two different races were run; no one knows who won.
  
  Reply
Dean G says:

May 18, 2015 at 7:34 am

The girl in Yellowstone didn’t die.

Reply
eric schranz says:

May 18, 2015 at 7:40 am

Tough call, and one the RD had to make on the fly (as I understand.) I think the guys from Ultra168 had it right: Respect the decision and move forward.Reference

Reply
1. Dan - Ultra168 says:
  
  May 18, 2015 at 4:14 pm
  
  Thanks for posting this Eric and also thanks for the comments. I was nervous about writing this, but felt that it was something that warrants debate as people have rightly pointed out, there is no standard across races and it is very much to the discretion of the RD. I’m always of the belief that you respect the decision and move forward. Some might not agree with that decision, but it’s been made and the guy ultimately in charge has that call. Perhaps there should be some standards for this type of situation. I believe the call was made on the fly, which is probably not the best way to do things. Thanks again guys, I know Ultra168 does get quite a bit of US readership, thanks to Eric and his brilliant team, so I wanted to make sure that the article was balanced, fair and above all, stimulated some debate as to what we should do for future cases. Cheers all, Dan – Ultra168
  
  Reply
Doug says:

May 18, 2015 at 7:43 am

From the second article:

“The injuries were described as serious, but not life threatening.”Reference

Reply
Erin Good says:

May 18, 2015 at 8:12 am

Max King leaping through a tire = amazing. Camp was a blast. Are you returning this year, Eric?Reference

Reply
1. Dan says:
  
  May 18, 2015 at 6:37 pm
  
  Eagle Nation!
  
  Reply
John says:

May 18, 2015 at 11:15 am

I think it’s interesting that the “Standard” is to backtrack. Who exactly came up with this standard. Most consider it common knowledge but over the past several years I’ve seen varied ways by which wrong turns are handled. At HR a few years ago somebody was trucked back to where they went off course. I think it’s about time to admit that there is no standard. RD’s discretion in my opinion.Reference

Reply
John says:

May 18, 2015 at 11:21 am

RIP Dean. You will be missed.

And Geez. Back away from the 1 ton creatures people. Am I the only one that is super cautious with animals that are 1/6th my weight or heavier? For the others I’m just cautious.Reference

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Nicole says:

May 18, 2015 at 2:04 pm

Dean was also a kickass trail runner: http://www.grindtv.com/nature/dean-potter-sets-yosemite-half-dome-running-record/#ZdWCROrr35dxYVYF.97

Reply
Jason Green says:

May 18, 2015 at 2:54 pm

John- I’m with you -the “standard” has never been defined. I put on races and agree it’s the RDs decision . Period.

Reply
Jess says:

May 18, 2015 at 3:39 pm

Dean Potter was a legend, but also illegally BASE jumping in Yosemite… maybe both of these are good reminders to follow rules set in place for safety?Reference

Reply
www.hfsalem.com says:

May 20, 2015 at 12:27 am

In fact no matter if someone doesn’t know after that its up to other users that they will
assist, so here it happens.

Reply

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