The U.S. Mountain Running Championships starred in Utah, the Hardrock 100 climbed in Colorado, and longtime races like Maryland’s Catoctin 50k again brought a community together.
It was a mostly U.S. schedule of races this weekend, and it was red hot.
U.S. Mountain Running Championships – Snowbird, Utah
The Cirque Series race at Utah’s Snowbird Resort ski area hosted this year’s U.S. Mountain Running Championships. The 8.7-mile course climbed and descended 3,610 feet, crossing two 11,000-foot high points.
There is no World Mountain Running Championships this year, but the top finisher will join the top two finishers from last week’s U.S. Vertical Mountain Running Championship to race at the Lagunc Kilometer Verticale race in Italy in October 2024, the final for the 2024 World Mountain Running Association (WMRA) World Cup.
Men
Utah runners swept the top three spots in the men’s race. Christian Allen earned his third straight win on this course with a 1:18 finish. That’s just about a minute slower than his 2022 best for the course. This win was a return to form after a 13th-place finish at the Broken Arrow Skyrace 23k in June.
Second-place Hawk Call finished in 1:19. Call, the son of obstacle racing pioneer Hobie Call, was sixth in that same Broken Arrow Skyrace. Third-place Zachary Erikson was just over two minutes behind Call in 1:21.
All three of the podium getters ran collegiately in Utah. Allen competed at Weber State University, Call at Utah Valley University, and Erickson at Brigham Young University.
The top 10 men were:
- Christian Allen – 1:18:17
- Hawk Call – 1:19:05
- Zachary Erikson – 1:21:07
- Mason Coppi – 1:21:16
- Taylor Stack – 1:21:41
- Anthony Williams – 1:21:46
- Seth DeMoor – 1:22:20
- David Kennedy – 1:22:38
- Cole Campbell – 1:23:17
- Cam Smith – 1:23:36
Christian Allen en route to winning the 2024 U.S. Mountain Running Championships at Cirque Series Snowbird. Photo: Zeb Watson
Women
Grayson Murphy is just a level better than everyone else in the U.S. right now. She finished in 1:36, a full four minutes ahead of her closest chaser. Murphy won both the U.S. Mountain Running Championship and the U.S. Vertical Mountain Running Championships in 2023.
Second-place Rachel Tomajczyk finished in 1:40, and she was second at last weekend’s U.S. Vertical Mountain Running Championships.
Laurel Moyer, who won the Cirque Series Brighton race at the end of June, was third in 1:40 and only 12 seconds behind second place.
The women’s top 10 was:
- Grayson Murphy – 1:36:17
- Rachel Tomajczyk – 1:40:23
- Laurel Moyer – 1:40:35
- Alexa Aragon – 1:40:45
- Emkay Sullivan – 1:42:02
- Sydney Petersen – 1:42:39
- Giselle Slotboom – 1:42:41
- Andie Cornish – 1:46:23
- Oakley Olson – 1:46:28
- Flannery Davis Love – 1:46:51
Grayson Murphy on her way to winning the 2024 U.S. Mountain Running Championships at Cirque Series Snowbird. Photo: Zeb Watson
Hardrock 100 – Silverton, Colorado
One of the iconic 100 milers in the U.S., the high altitude run totaled 33,000 feet of elevation gain on its 102-mile loop, and in a sign of the times, both overall course records were broken. iRunFar earlier reported greater detail on how the event played out.
Men
Maybe a win, but no one could’ve predicted a new course record for Ludovic Pommeret (France). The 48-year-old stunned with an amazing 21:33 overall course record, three minutes better than Kilian Jornet’s former course standard from 2022.
Diego Pazos (Switzerland) and 2016 co-winner Jason Schlarb were second and third in 24:39 and 24:48.
From right to left, it’s Ludo Pommeret, François D’Haene, and Diego Pazos in the early miles of the 2024 Hardrock 100. Pommeret and Pazos would finish one-two, while D’Haene would be forced to drop after midway. Photo: iRunFar/Bryon Powell
Women
If Pommeret’s record run was a surprise, women’s winner Courtney Dauwalter’s record run wasn’t. Dauwalter won for the third year in a row, finishing in 26:11 and bettering her own overall course record from 2023. This year’s time was three minutes faster than in 2023 when the run went the opposite direction on the loop, and it was 33 minutes faster than what Dauwalter did in this same clockwise direction in 2022.
Second-place Camille Bruyas (France) and Katharina Harmuth (Germany, living in Switzerland) finished the big mountain loop in 29:28 and 30:29, respectively.
Katharina Hartmuth and Courtney Dauwalter enjoying the early miles of the 2024 Hardrock 100. Dauwalter won the race, and Hartmuth took third. Photo: iRunFar/Meghan Hicks
Montemuro Vertical Run – Castro Daire, Portugal
The 10-kilometer race was the year’s fourth World Mountain Running Association World Cup contest and climbed 1,090 meters (3,576 feet).
Men
Thanks to two flight cancelations, Lukas Ehrle (Germany) got to town at 2:00 a.m. the morning of the race. And then he outran everyone to the top in 52:31. Ehrle ran 29:09 for 10,000 meters on the track earlier this year.
Philemon Kiriago (Kenya) edged out Andrea Elia (Italy) for second 53:29 to 53:40.
The full top five were:
- Lukas Erhle (Germany) – 52:31
- Philemon Kiriago (Kenya) – 53:29
- Andrea Elia (Italy) – 53:40
- Cesare Maestri (Italy) – 54:27
- Henri Aymonod (Italy) – 55:20
Lukas Ehrle, 2024 Montemuro Vertical Run champion. Photo: World Mountain Running Association/Marco Gulberti
Women
It was close at the top, but Scout Adkin (U.K.) repeated as women’s winner with 60:52 on the clock. Third and second at last weekend’s WMRA World Cup race, Gloria Chebet (Kenya) and Philaries Kisang (Kenya) flipped their order this week. Chebet finished second in 61:02, and Kisang was third in 63:18.
The women’s top five were:
- Scout Adkin (U.K.) – 60:52
- Gloria Chebet (Kenya) – 61:02
- Philaries Kisang (Kenya) – 63:18
- Susanna Saapunki (Finland) – 64:07
- Joyce Njeru (Kenya) – 65:24
Scout Adkin with a repeat win at the 2024 Montemuro Vertical Run. Photo: World Mountain Running Association/Marco Gulberti
Additional Races and Runs
XTERRA Snowdonia Trail Marathon – Wales, U.K.
The event was the 16th stop on the XTERRA Trail Run World Series, and the marathon included a summit of Snowdon Peak. Sean Merryweather (U.K.) kicked hard to run down Emily Cowper-Coles (U.K.) for the overall win. Both finished in 4:09 with Merryweather 10 seconds in front. Harry Jones (U.K.) and Rebecca Sleath (U.K.) won the 57k ultra in 5:06 and 6:56. Full results.
Sean Merryweather, 2024 XTERRA Snowdonia Trail Marathon champion. Photo: XTERRA
Sinister 7 Ultra – Crowsnest Pass, Alberta, Canada
The race is named for the Sinister Seven Mountain that looms around the course. Brendan Morphet (Canada) and Émile Vogel-Nakamura (Canada) were fastest in the 50 miler in 9:18 and 10:45. Full results.
Knee Knackering North Shore Trail Run – North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Race locals Brandon Gardiner and Jessie Collison won in 4:55 and 6:02, respectively. The point-to-point race runs from the Baden-Powell Centennial Trail in Horseshoe Bay, West Vancouver to Deep Cove, North Vancouver. Full results.
Jessie Collison, 2024 Knee Knackering North Shore Trail Run champion. Photo: Salvador Miranda
Siskiyou Out Back – Ashland, Oregon
Official results with finish times aren’t yet online, but social media points to Nate Trimble and (longtime iRunFar reviewer) Anne Behrend as the race’s 50k winners. Full results (when available).
Mount Hood Races – Timothy Lake, Oregon
Ryan Maize won the men’s 50 miler in 6:46, and Michelle Buncke was the overall winner in 6:39. Buncke set a new course record too. Most of the race course was on the Pacific Crest Trail in the shadow of Mount Hood. Full results.
Beaverhead Endurance Runs – Salmon, Idaho
“Please come prepared,” the race advised runners of its challenging, true mountain courses. Ben Saelens and JT Wynn were quickest around the 100k in 9:34 and 12:06. For Wynn, this was a course record. Ben Hathaway and Amy Kramer slayed the 55k in 6:40 and 7:20. Full results.
Ben Saelens, 2024 Beaverhead Endurance Runs 100k champion. Photo: Beaverhead Endurance Runs
Teton Mountain Runs – Teton Village, Wyoming
The races ran above Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. The 50k winners earned $300 each, and the 30k winners $200 each. Luke Galloway ran away with the men’s 50k in 5:37, and Meridyth Moore won the women’s race in 6:55. A day earlier, Timmy Parr and Amy King won the 30k in 2:40 and 3:21. Hat tip to Parr for his longevity. Fifteen years earlier he instead would’ve been competing at the top of the U.S. Mountain Running Championships. Full results.
Tale of Two Trails – Shawnee, Kansas
Four race distances between 10 miles and 100k took place at Shawnee Mission Park. In the 100k race, Travis Jewell was the men’s winner in 13:01, and Jenny Overstreet won overall with an 11:53 finish. Full results.
Jenny Overstreet, 2024 Tale of Two Trails 100k overall and women’s champion. Photo: Rick Mayo/Mile 90 Photography
Queen City Trail Scramble 50k – Waynesville, Ohio
A small field contested the race inside Caesar Creek State Park, and Spencer Olds and Kate Gordon won in 4:34 and 5:50. Full results.
Catoctin 50k – Frederick, Maryland
The out-and-back run dates back to 1995. Patrick Blair and Kristen Kelman were this year’s fastest in 4:54 and 6:33. Full results.
Great Hill Ultra – Middlesex, New York
The second-year 100k goes all around the Finger Lakes. Carson Albanese and Allison Jacquemont (Canada) led the small field in 11:36 and 13:48. Full results.
Call for Comments
It’s summer for just about all of us. How hot is it where you are, and are you doing just mountains or a little beach too?
