Another Fantasy Run: Badwater Ultramarathon

I have written about Hardrock and Western States, mountain trail runs I would love to run in someday.  Because of its notoriety, I have to put the Badwater Ultramarathon on that list, too.  I don't know if this would be a fantasy run or a nightmare run.  Unlike those other two races, Badwater is run all on pavement.  Hot, oozing asphalt.  In Death Valley.  In the middle of the summer.  Temperatures during the race can reach 130 degrees.  Runners' shoes melt on the hot pavement, necessiting frequent changes.

Here are some runners struggling through the 2009 Badwater Ultramarathon.

Not content with the standard 100 mile ultra distance, Badwater starts in Death Valley and runs 135 miles to Mount Whitney.  They call it the "world's toughest foot race."  I don't know if this would be tougher than Hardrock.  I think the challenges would be different.  The elevation change is a huge factor (from 280 feet below sea level to almost 8300), but the heat would be the greatest challenge.  I have heard of people training by running in sweat suits all summer, putting their treadmills in the sauna, or strapping heat blowers to their treadmills.  But I'm not sure any of that can prepare runners for the Death Valley heat.

How's that for a climb?

This year's winner: Zach Gingerich, who finished in 24:44:48.  That's quite an improvement over his 2008 finish, which was over 37 hours.  In the women's field, Badwater veteran Jamie Donaldson won for the third time, in 26:16:12.  Out of 80 starters, an impressive 73 finished.  Most impressive of all was another Badwater veteran, Jack Denness, who finished in 59:13:02.  Why is that impressive, given a finish time well over double that of the winner?  Simple: Denness is 75!  He became the oldest Badwater finisher 5 years ago, and topped his record this year, his 12th finish.  I don't know the details, but I'm sad to report that Amy Palmiero-Winters dropped about 1/3 of the way through.

I may never make it to Badwater.  But I'm keeping it on my list.  Maybe someday. . . .

Western States 100 Course Record Shattered

Many runners can run a mile in 9:03.  Some can sustain that for a while; if a runner can run 9:03 for a marathon, that's a 3:57:06 finish.  Pretty respectable.  But to sustain that pace for over 15 hours at Western States, on mountain trails, climbing and descending, that defies belief.  But that's exactly what Geoff Roes did Saturday, his time of 15:07:04 breaking Scott Jurek's course record by 30:37.  And that's not all: two-time Leadville 100 winner Anton Krupicka was only a few minutes behind, clocking in at 15:13:53.  Phenomenal performances by both runners.  Roes, now 7-0 in 100 mile races, and Krupicka, 15-0 in ultras before Saturday, were both first-timers at Western States, but have certainly left their marks.

Another important record was set Saturday by Amy Palmiero-Winters.  Readers of this blog may recall her as the amputee I saw at White Rock last year.  She is now the first and only amputee to finish Western States, finishing in 27:43:10.  Another amputee, Amy Dodson, dropped at 34.4 miles.  Both of these women deserve our admiration.

Two of the race's pioneers started the race Saturday but didn't finish.  Cowman A-Moo-Ha (I'm assuming this is Ken "Cowman" Shirk) dropped at 23.8.  Gordy Ainsleigh made it 98.9 miles, but didn't finish before the 30 hour cutoff.

Closer to home, all three NTTR runners had strong finishes, earning the coveted bronze belt buckle.  Cindy Melder came in two hours before her male counterparts at 27:39:17.  In what must have been a real duel to the finish Drew Meyer edged Fred Thompson by one second!  Drew's 29:39:42 beat Fred's 29:39:43.  I don't know if they stayed together the whole time, but it must have been fun for them to pace each other.

When I was in the throes of my last-place finish at Cross Timbers earlier this year, Drew was manning the final aid station before the finish.  He was very encouraging, expressing surprise that I was running that 2 weeks after Rocky Raccoon.  Yet, according to the NTTR website, he is slated to run the Vermont 100 Endurance Race on July 17.  So two weeks between 50 milers is impressive, but 3 weeks between 100 milers is no big deal?  Good luck to Drew as he recovers and prepares for Vermont.

24 incredible hours of running

I just can't let this go without comment.  The International Association of Ultra Runners just held their 24 hour world championship.  Shingo Inoue of Japan won, running 273.708 kilometers in 24 hours.  That's a pace of 8:28 minutes/mile, about the pace I ran my fastest marathon (3:35:32).  To keep up that pace for 24 hours boggles the mind.  Scott Jurek, who has won Western States 7 times and Badwater twice, took second, running 266.677 km, setting an American 24 hour record.  Amy Palmiero-Winters, the first amputee to ever make the American team, was the fourth female American finisher, running 199.544 km.  (I saw her at White Rock last year.)

Jurek celebrates breaking the American record.

It must take a huge amount of mental toughness to finish this type of race.  These races are typically run on a short loop; this one was 1.25 km.  The sheer monotony of the course must be enough to drive many runners nuts.  As crazy as this race sounds, it has a strange appeal to me.  Maybe one of these days I'll run one.

Article here.
Official results here.

Things Seen While Running: One Inspiring Duo

I mentioned in yesterday's post about my experience at the White Rock Marathon that I had seen a number of inspiring runners, particularly the lady with the prosthesis pushing the little girl in a wheelchair.  I did a little digging and found out more about them, and now I am even more moved, so I thought I'd share it here.

Amy Palmiero-Winters, a high school swimmer and runner, lost her leg due to a motorcycle accident in her early 20s.  Determined to keep competing, she was fitted for a prosthesis and continued to race.  She now holds a bucket full of world records for amputee athletes, but competes with the rest as well.  In October she was the overall female winner in Heartland 100 Mile Endurance Run!  She competes around the country and frequently visits children who have lost limbs.

When she came to town for White Rock, she paid a visit to Texas Scottish Rite Hospital, which is the beneficiary of the White Rock Marathon.  While there, she met Ryanne Carr of Mineola.  Ryanne's right hand and legs were severed while she was still in utero.  The Carr family adopted Ryanne, one of 4 children born in Kazakhstan and adopted by them.

Amy asked Ryanne if she would like Amy to push her in her wheelchair for the marathon, and Ryanne jumped at the chance.  Amy pushed her most of the race, but down the homestretch Ryanne switched to her racing wheelchair so she could finish under her own power.  In my passing meeting with them, I could tell both ladies were joyful to be on the course.  Ryanne has been fitted with prosthetic legs and has begun running in races on her own; I won't be surprised to see her racing at White Rock on prosthetic legs in a few years!  My guess would be that she has a new role model in Amy to look up to.

In yesterday's post, I made the comment, "What a blessing to be able to run!"  I can't even begin to understand that blessing.  What a blessing for Amy and for Ryanne.  Amy and Ryanne, I will probably never meet you, but you are both on my hero list now!  Thanks for the inspiration!

A video interview with Amy, including clips from the marathon here.
Story in the Dallas Morning News here.
Story about Amy, a Runner's World 2007 Hero of Running here.