By Jordan Chavez
March 20, 2017
After a week off from this weekly post due to both my SXSW excursions as well as few races of major importance I bring you This Week in Trail Running.
Chuckanut 50K
Bellingham, Washington played host to a stacked race this weekend as a spot on the IAU Trail World Championship USA team was up for grabs. Max King took the win in 3:33:15, breaking his own course record and solidifying yet another opportunity to represent the US at a world championship event (to take place in Italy in June). Hayden Hawks was a close second in 3:31:41 also breaking Max’s record from 2014 as he closed the final 11 miles with a 4:56/m average! Rounding out the top three was Sage Canaday, who admitted he faded in the final 10K due to not packing enough calories to sustain his early quick pace. The course itself boasts over 5,000 ft. of elevation gain in the middle 30K, with the opening and closing 10k both being flat.
The next three runners were Travis Morrison, Tyler Sigl, and David Laney running 3:45:30, 3:49:55, and 3:50:25 respectively.
The women’s side saw first time 50k-er Ladia Albertson-Junkans take the win in 4:17:44, earning her a spot on Team USA as well. Though new to the distance, Albertson-Junkans is no stranger to the steep climbing on the course as she raced for the U.S. at the World Mountain Running Championships in 2016. Runner-up was YiOu Wang, recently signed to Under Armour, who traversed the muddly course in a time of 4:23:31. Finishing out the podium placing was 41 year old and 2016 Olympic Marathon Trials qualifier Rachel Jaten. After a tough climbing section she closed out the final 11 miles with a quick 6:16/m average to finish in 4:33:13.
Trans Americana
Though not an official race by any means, Rickey Gates is currently in the midst of his East-West traverse of the United States. This ~4,000 mile journey will take him across some of the most well known trails in the States – the Appalachian, Colorado, and Tahoe Rim trails to name a few. Gates stated that this is more of a run of self-reliance and discovery:
They say that you cannot know the world without knowing your own backyard. In a time of uncertain politics and a crescendo of differences, I have chosen to slow things down, simplify my life and get to know my country at a step-by-step intimacy.
He plans to run un-aided, relying on $1,000/month for food and necessities in order “to get close to strangers, make friends, share bread, be uncomfortable, be happy and carry on.” You can follow his journey on his blog and Instagram. Here are a few of his posts thus far.
Till next week! Please comment with any additions, edits, suggestions, etc.
Jordan Chavez
Photographer. 1/3 of A Runner's Eye. Founder of the Twitter formerly known as Runners & Cats. Often writes overly romanticized recollections of his running experiences, which include being a Richmond Spider and USA Mountain running team member. Has used the same Garmin for more than 10 years and in middle school he broke Colby Lowe's district-wide mile record.