Ultramarathon Daily News, Thurs, Dec 3

Yesterday Ethan pointed this out on Facebook and created quite a discussion: At the bottom of IRF’s female preview for “podium favorites” at TNFEC, Elisa Desco is listed, and in her brief bio it states that she was suspended for a positive EPO test. It’s a tough situation. Many are pointing to her partner/husband(?) Marco deGaspari, who insists that the test was compromised, protocols weren’t followed, etc. He’s a bit too close to the person in question for me to take his opinion seriously, but one thing that holds true is that the governing and testing bodies are about as credible as politicians right now. However, Elisa is Italian and that country is wrought with allegations (and convictions) for doping. This is a discussion we need to continue to have, and unfortunately it takes incidents like this to force us to talk about it.

Skyrunning USA (led by Ian Sharman) banning convicted dopers for life. Now there’s a start!

Justin writes a solid TNFEC preview for Runner’s World right here.

I’ll be at TNFEC this weekend bouncing around watching the race unfold. Probably even have a growler with me. Stop and say hi.

Eleven miles of lush trail with a gentle 700′ of gain. Only problem is, sometimes it’s closed because of lava flows.

If there’s one masters runner who stands out, it’s Meghan Arbogast. Here’s a quick piece on longevity in ultrarunning.

You should be running XC this fall and winter.

Yesterday you read Lorraine Young’s report from JFK50, here’s Matt Flaherty’s interview with winner Sarah Bard.

Will these new Grand Canyon proposals dissuade you from visiting the park?

Short news day today. I’ll write about it at some point, but this remodel has many similarities to a loooong crazy race. We’re at about mile 60 of a ~100 miler. Technically most of the mileage is behind us, but the hard part lies ahead. My pacer is crying and wants to quit, each aid station charges $10k for food, and we’re not entirely sure where the finish is…

No Daily News tomorrow. I’ll be at North Face.

19 Responses to "Ultramarathon Daily News, Thurs, Dec 3"

David R. says:

December 3, 2015 at 5:45 am

I don’t know enough about Elisa Desco or North Face’s doping policy to comment with certainty, but I think there are three general cases for races:

1. Lots of doping tests, including out-of-competition (IAAF track, world marathon majors)
2. Authority from doping policy (usually through IAAF, though some races do it independently) to conduct doping tests, but extremely unrealistic unless you win or are “randomly” selected (IAAF/US champs trail races, Pikes Peak–even the World Mtn Champs where Desco got caught only tests a few people. She just happened to win on the first year of real testing.)
3. No chance of being tested, no out-of-competition testing (private races like TNF and US Skyrunning)

In point 1, I can see why dopers would be allowed to return to competition (even if I’m not in favor).

In point 2, I can also see why they’d be allowed to return legally, though would lobby hard against it.

In point 3, dopers simply cannot be allowed to race and races have that authority. Allowing dopers to race without testing would erode the faith in trail running.

Anyway, this situation has no good outcome at this point. Desco has likely traveled to the US and incurred lots of expenses. North Face is not in a great situation either way.

Reply
1. eric schranz says:
  
  December 3, 2015 at 6:44 am
  
  In your opinion, how should TUEs be handled? Should some athletes be allowed to use banned substances if they have a note from the doctor?
  
  Reply
  1. David R. says:
    
    December 3, 2015 at 8:18 am
    
    Great question Eric. I really think that all TUEs should be public. If you opt in to events that involve competing for prize money, then you should lose the right to confidentiality since we’ve seen the system abused. And it’s probably been abused far more than is public.
    
    Reply
    1. eric schranz says:
      
      December 3, 2015 at 8:32 am
      
      Yes. Transparent TUEs are key. I’m against them all together, but being prone to extremes, that’s probably nor surprising.
      
      Reply
      1. David R. says:
        
        December 3, 2015 at 10:41 am
        
        Thank you for beating the drum on this Eric!
Sabrina says:

December 3, 2015 at 8:01 am

Doping’s not really forgivable because it’s not something that can be taken back. Your body is changed by doping, in many cases, in ways that last longer than the 2-4-year bans. A hard line like lifetime bans seems tough–especially in a sport where we’re all about redemption and hospitality–but it’s the only actually fair option. Get it away.

Reply
Will T. says:

December 3, 2015 at 8:14 am

I like how the proposed permit system is not banning any certain outdoor exercise group. It is not saying only X amount of runners in the canyon per day and X amount of hikers. I can live with this.Reference

Reply
1. eric schranz says:
  
  December 3, 2015 at 8:31 am
  
  I agree. Seems fair to everyone.
  
  Reply
2. Don says:
  
  December 3, 2015 at 3:58 pm
  
  I agree too. It won’t dissuade me; in fact it will make it more likely that I’ll return. Things have been getting crazy below the rim the last few years. They’ve regulated boaters for many years, and it has enhanced the whole experience for everyone.
  
  Reply
Alex says:

December 3, 2015 at 8:57 am

TNFEC has prize money, and no testing. All the motivation, no deterrent. The only reasonable option, given those circumstances, is to ban dopers outright; but it’s probably too late for that, in this specific case.

An aside, regarding TUEs, since they were mentioned above: I think the whole thing is too easy to abuse – we’ve seen that – and should be done away with. It’s crass, and unfortunate in some cases. But if you’re not an elite athlete without hormone therapy, then you’re not an elite athlete.

Reply
1. eric schranz says:
  
  December 3, 2015 at 9:09 am
  
  Exactly. And re TUEs, I’ll just leave this here: http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424127887323550604578412913149043072
  
  Reply
  1. David R. says:
    
    December 3, 2015 at 10:40 am
    
    Eric, I will almost certainly get my ass handed to me this weekend (losing out on $2000 of prize money and incentives), so that article is certainly relevant right now for me. That being said, I think the TUE issue is probably far more complicated than PEDs, and I have more sympathy for people named in the article.
    
    Reply
Caroline Boller says:

December 3, 2015 at 9:07 am

In the absence of any drug testing at prize money ultras such as the North Face Championships, I believe that Skyrunning is taking the right approach in migrating to lifetime bans — at least as a first step.

Here we have the case of a woman who has gone through the process and been found culpable. We are talking about EPO, not the wrong brand of cold medicine. There is no way of knowing if she is now clean, no testing at the race (and I tend to side with Sabrina on this issue given the permanent effects of something like EPO).

To allow her to compete for prize money would be a disgrace to our sport. If you agree with me, speak up! Tell @thenorthface @thenorthfaceECS and their publicist: [email protected] how you feel. They have an opportunity here to do the right thing and show that the brand does not condone drug cheats. To remain silent on the issue suggests that they don’t see a problem here.

Reply
1. Runcandice says:
  
  December 3, 2015 at 12:26 pm
  
  Thanks for the email Caroline!
  
  Reply
2. Matt Flaherty says:
  
  December 3, 2015 at 2:04 pm
  
  YES. This is key: if we are not vocal about these issues, nothing is going to change. Lauren Fleshman’s blog post on the subject (linked in yesterday’s URP news) is oustanding (http://asklaurenfleshman.com/2015/12/why-athletes-dont-speak-out-about-doping/).
  
  We need to change the culture. For all of us who believe in #cleansport, please, please, let’s use this moment to try to effect some change. Like Caroline suggests, tweet @thenorthfaceECS, write on the event wall for the TNF ECS, etc.
  
  I posted this on the TNF ECS wall (https://www.facebook.com/RunFlaherty/posts/509344732568682), and I will be emailing them the same now.
  
  The vast majority of us don’t want known dopers in the sport, period. We need to make sure our voices are heard.
  
  Reply
Jeremy Johnson says:

December 3, 2015 at 10:05 am

Personally I don’t care whether Desco races or not. It is just as likely that Desco is cheating as anyone else in this race.

Oh, you might say that the probability that Desco is cheating is actually 100% (maybe). Would you argue that the rest of the elite field is maybe 50/50? Without testing there is no way to tell.

This isn’t a professional sport anyway. We shit in the forest and wear trucker hats off kilter. Stop pretending like we’re legit.

Reply
1. David R. says:
  
  December 3, 2015 at 10:49 am
  
  Haha, Jeremy, if a trail runner wears a trucker hat off kilter in the forest, does it make a sound? Wait, I think I got confused there.
  
  To your point though, the sport is becoming increasingly professionalized. I could quit my real job, and I’m not even good compared to these guys/girls. There are probably two dozen athletes at TNF50 that are more accomplished and higher earners than I am. Any one of those athletes could probably increase their income by $10,000 to $20,000 in prize money/incentives alone by doping, and possibly more by leveraging those performances into better sponsorship offers (not to mention all the other parts of being a professional endurance athlete, like coaching and appearances). Professional forest-shitting is already here, and the stakes will only get higher.
  
  Reply
jesse says:

December 3, 2015 at 10:41 am

I’ll be NF working in the parking lots as a volunteer. They have me in the VIP which should be interesting…

Reply
beriba says:

December 3, 2015 at 2:21 pm

I live in the UK so probably get more skyrunning coverage than the US. I have therefore read a lot about Elisa desco’s “comeback” this season but the first i heard about the positive drug test was in that I run far preview. It’s just not being reported.

Reply

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