The stars are out. We got our first 2025 looks at Jade Belzberg, Janelle Lincks, Rod Farvard, and Hannes Namberger, and some cash and course records to go with it.
Happy St. Patrick’s Day, friends, to those who celebrate!
Chuckanut 50k – Bellingham, Washington
It was the longtime race’s 31st running. A prize purse sent $550 to the winners, with money going three deep. Conditions were characteristically U.S. Pacific Northwest with muddy trails and rainy skies.
Women
Second in 2024, Jade Belzberg edged Klaire Rhodes for this year’s crown. Belzberg finished in 4:22 and Rhodes in 4:24. Belzberg will move south in April for Oregon’s Gorge Waterfalls 100k, and Rhodes will be there too. Sarah Carter was third in 4:29.
The women’s top 10 was:
- Jade Belzberg – 4:22:40
- Klaire Rhodes – 4:24:44
- Sarah Carter – 4:29:07
- Abigail West – 4:34:22
- Sarah Paxson – 4:35:16
- Heidi Ohrling – 4:37:45
- Jenny Quilty – 4:44:17
- Mercedes Vince – 4:45:09
- Katherine Boere – 4:46:13
- Sarah Trautman – 4:46:32
Men
The first seven men went under four hours, but it wasn’t that close at that top. Chris Myers crushed it with a 3:39 finish that was 10 minutes faster than everyone else. Myers was earlier third at the Black Canyon 50k in February and is returning to the Western States 100 in June, where he was 10th in 2024.
Karl Augsten (Canada) and Andrew Rylaarsdam chased to second- and third-place runs in 3:49 and 3:51.
The men’s top 10 was:
- Chris Myers – 3:39:10
- Karl Augsten (Canada) – 3:49:04
- Andrew Rylaarsdam – 3:51:13
- Tracen Knopp – 3:51:41
- Ryan Sullivan – 3:54:02
- Chris Balestrini – 3:58:48
- Matt Seidel – 3:59:19
- Will Murray – 4:00:56
- Greg Krathwohl – 4:01:07
- Gus Gibbs – 4:01:32
SkySnow European Championships – Tarvisio, Italy
The first SkySnow European Championships had Vertical and Classic races. The uphill-only race went 3.6 kilometers and with almost 1,000 meters of climbing, and the Classic discipline went 15k but with only 515 meters of elevation gain. Runners from 16 different countries took part, and only national team members were championships eligible. That caused some mingling between the open race and championships podiums.
Vertical
Benedetta Broggi (Italy) won her first of two golds on the weekend in 42:01. Corinna Ghirardi and Lena Hofer, both also from Italy, were next in 42:12 and 42:14. Hofer wasn’t in the championships race though and that vaulted fourth-place Emily Collinge (U.K.) onto the championships podium in 43:35.
Italy’s Daniel Thedy and Tadei Pivk went one-two in the men’s championships race, and Luca Kovacic (Slovenia) was third. The three ran 33:53, 34:41, and 34:44. Slotted in between the group as the second finisher, but not in the championships classification, was Christian Hoffman (Austria) in 34:14.
The 2025 SkySnow European Championships Vertical race men’s podium (l-to-r): 2. Tadei Pivk, 1. Daniel Thedy, and 3. Luka Kovacic. Photo: International Skyrunning Federation
Classic
Again, the championships were limited to national team athletes, but Elisa Desco (Italy) ran unattached and finished first in 71:24. [From 2010 to 2012, Elisa Desco served a two-year doping ban from the IAAF after she tested positive for EPO at the 2009 World Mountain Running Championships.]
While second, third, and fourth across the finish line, the next three runners were first, second, and third in the official championships results then. That meant that Benedetta Broggi again scored women’s gold for the host country in 72:42, and Joana Soares (Portugal) and Silvia Lara (Spain) were second and third in 73:35 and 74:24.
The 2025 SkySnow European Championships Classic race women’s podium (l-to-r): 2. Joana Soares, 1. Benedetta Broggi, and 3. Silvia Lara. Photo: International Skyrunning Federation
It was again an Italian one-two in the men’s race. This time, Lorenzo Rota Martir and Luca Del Pero led the way in 60:56 and 61:40, and Alvaro Osanz (Spain) was third in 61:52.
Additional Races and Runs
Mountainman Wintertrail – Reit im Winkl, Germany
Kim Schreiber and Hannes Namberger, both of the home country, won big over 31k in 2:23 and 2:05. Namberger, last year’s UTMB fourth-place finisher, is expected to race the Canyons by UTMB 100k in California in April. Full results.
Nine Trails 35 Mile Endurance Run – Santa Barbara, California
For the women, Charlotte Cox took home the win in 6:46, with oodles of real estate between her and second place, in her second victory in the event. For the men, Jim Walmsley’s 5:12 course record had stood since 2019. Rod Farvard was fourth that year in 5:43. Farvard’s now a different runner than he was in 2019 though, and the course record’s not the same now either. Farvard went 5:08 to win and set a new course best. Full results.
Old West Trail Runs 50k – Julian, California
At the Mohave Desert race in Southern California, Olivia Horgan set a new women’s course record in 4:24, and Robert Webber was the men’s winner in 3:48. Full results.
Olivia Horgan, 2025 Old West Trail Runs 50k women’s champion. Photo: Old West Trail Runs/Paksit Photos
Robert Webber, 2025 Old West Trail Runs 50k men’s champion. Photo: Old West Trail Runs/Paksit Photos
XTERRA Black Canyon Trail Run – Black Canyon City, Arizona
Black Canyon, Arizona, we’ve been here before, last month. The half marathon ran through the trail’s water crossings, desert mountain views, and spring wildflowers, and it was the year’s seventh XTERRA Trail Run World Series race, too. Janelle Lincks had her first results of 2025 with a 1:48 win alongside men’s champ Caleb Kirchhoff in 1:45. Full results.
Mid South 50k – Stillwater, Oklahoma
Held as part of a gravel biking event, the 50k run saw Sofie Schunk and Aaron Taylor speed to 3:30 and 3:34, respectively, as the winners. Full results.
Grasslands Trail Run – Decatur, Texas
The North Texas event dates back to 1999. Lindsay Duffield and Nick Petterson won the 100 miler in 22:48 and 15:25, and Sarah Loch-Test and Brantley Grantham led the 50 miler in 9:15 and 7:47. Full results.
Get Lucky 50/50 – Canal Fulton, Ohio
The 50-mile winners were Hannah McCorkle and Alec Cline in 8:02 and 5:33, and Alex Borsuk and Zach Crim won the 50k in 3:54 and 3:14. Borsuk’s time was a new course record for the seventh-year race. Full results.
Rabid Raccoon 100 Mile – Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania
Rachel Moore and Oliver Bieser were tops in 23:43 and 20:49. Full results.
The Cove 50k – Chickamauga, Georgia
The second-year race had Shannon Wheeler-Deboef and Mac Dean go 5:51 and 4:54 for the wins. Full results.
Bel Monte Endurance Races – Waynesboro, Virginia
The Blue Ridge Mountains race saw Tricia Denardis and Matthew Wilson lead the 50 miler in 12:57 and 9:37, and Erin Schneider and Adam Schwendt out front in the 50k in 6:05 and 5:00. Full results.
Call for Comments
- Extreme weather forced some race postponements and cancellations in the American Southeast, including at the Three Days of Syllamo in Arkansas. Were you impacted by weather this weekend? Our thoughts go out to those affected by this weekend’s severe weather.
- Were you able to spot any trail runners crossing over to the roads within either the Los Angeles Marathon or New York City Half Marathon results?
- What else can you share in the comments section about this week in running?
