This Week In Running: September 23, 2024

That was a big weekend. This week’s race recap goes to the top of Pikes Peak and down under to Australia.

You can also check out our greater race coverage from earlier in the week:

• Tara Dower Sets New Overall Supported Fastest Known Time on the Appalachian Trail
• Mammoth Trail Fest 26k Results: Joyce Muthoni Njeru and Elhousine Elazzaoui Dominate

Mammoth Trail Fest – Mammoth Lakes, California

Dragon’s Back Ascent

Friday’s three-mile race went up 2,400 feet and paid $3,400 to its top finishers. Uphill all-star Rémi Bonnet (Switzerland) led the men to the top in 33:18, and he was mostly alone. Few other Golden Trail World Series (GTWS) runners chose to take on the double. Jonas Soldini (Switzerland) and Chad Hall were minutes back in 35:01 and 36:12 for second and third. Hall won the race in both 2023 and 2022.

Women’s winner Abby Lock topped out in 43:53, and Summer Allen and Pema Franchi Antelme (France) were second and third in 46:04 and 49:08.

Mammoth 50k

Saturday’s 50-kilometer race stretched 32 miles and with 7,000 feet of elevation gain for an $8,000 purse. Chad Hall came back from the day prior vertical race to win the long course in 4:12. He won the race in its inaugural year in 2022 too. Chris Myers and Cole Watson were on the podium next in 4:22 and 4:28.

Women’s winner Sylvie Abel led Lauren Puretz and Dayna Stimson through the course in 5:23. The chasers finished in 5:26 and 5:30, respectively.

Mammoth 26k

The race was the year’s eighth GTWS contest. It happened on Sunday and went 16 miles and with 3,900 feet of climbing for a $21,000 prize purse.

Men

Outsprinted at the finish line last week at the Headlands 27k, Philemon Ombogo Kiriago (Kenya) went to the front early. Twenty minutes into the race Obogo Kiriago had a few-second gap on Rémi Bonnet (Switzerland), Elhousine Elazzaoui (Morocco), Patrick Kipngeno (Kenya), and everyone else.

When the real climbing was done though, it was Kipngeno that hit the top first. World-class downhiller Elazzaoui was right there too though. Bonnet was now third and surprisingly 41 seconds back of Kipngeno. Kiriago, like Elazzaoui a strong downhiller, was fourth and 76 seconds behind the leader.

Ninety minutes into the race on one of the steeper downhills, Elazzaoui did exactly as expected and blew past Kipngeno. Leaning into his downhill strength, Elazzaoui was quickly out of reach. And then surprisingly, and almost as quickly, Kipngeno was back in the lead. Neither could shake the other and they traded the lead back and forth the rest of the way.

For the second week in a row the men’s race came down to a sprint, and for the second week in a row it was Elazzaoui in first. It wasn’t without controversy though. Kipngeno went for a pass meters from the finish and Elazzaoui moved just to his right enough to break Kipngeno’s form. They were a single second apart with Elazzaoui first in 1:49:35 and Kipngeno second in 1:49:36. It was Elazzaoui’s third GTWS win of the year.

Ombogo Kiriago edged out Bonnet for third. He finished in 1:52:30 and Bonnet was fourth in 1:52:59.

The top 10 men were:

• • 1. Elhousine Elazzaoui (Morocco) – 1:49:35
    2. Patrick Kipngeno (Kenya) – 1:49:36
    3. Philemon Ombogo Kiriago (Kenya) – 1:52:30
    4. Rémi Bonnet (Switzerland) – 1:52:59
    5. Daniel Pattis (Italy) – 1:59:31
    6. Marco Filosi (Italy) – 2:00:00
    7. Garrett Corcoran (U.S.) – 2:00:27
    8. Cesare Maestri (Italy) – 2:00:47
    9. Jonas Soldini (Switzerland) – 2:01:57
    10. Rémi Leroux (Canada) – 2:02:46

Women

Early on the race looked like last week’s contest. Joyce Muthoni Njeru (Kenya) led ahead of Mădălina Florea (Romania) and Lauren Gregory (U.S.). Those three were first, second, and third at the Headlands 27k race last week. Including Gregory, seven Americans were inside the top 10 at the Twin Lakes timing point roughly 30 minutes into the race. Last week’s fast-finisher Miao Yao (China) was back in 12th.

Muthoni Njeru pushed her lead further to the course’s high point, summiting over two minutes faster than second-place Florea. Rachel Drake (U.S.), making her GTWS debut for the year, was third to the top.

Nothing changed at the front the rest of the way, Muthoni Njeru won in 2:11:56 and Florea was second in 2:14:51. It was Muthoni Njeru’s third GTWS win of the year.

It was a big battle though for third. Anna Gibson (U.S.) and Drake traded the lead several times over the downhill second half as each found their advantage. Gibson won the fight with a third-place 2:20:03 and Drake was fourth in 2:20:40.

The U.S. would place six women inside the top 10.

The top 10 women were:

• • 1. Joyce Muthoni Njeru (Kenya) – 2:11:56
    2. Mădălina Florea (Romania) – 2:14:51
    3. Anna Gibson (U.S.) – 2:20:03
    4. Rachel Drake (U.S.) – 2:20:40
    5. Tabor Hemming (U.S.) – 2:21:47
    6. Lauren Gregory (U.S.) – 2:21:57
    7. Oria Liaci (Switzerland) – 2:22:31
    8. Allie Ostrander (U.S.) – 2:23:15
    9. Emkay Sullivan (U.S.) – 2:23:39
    10. Miao Yao (China) – 2:24:39

(In 2023, Ostrander was suspended for four months after testing positive for canrenone, a metabolite of spironolactone, after it was determined that she mistakenly took the drug without first obtaining a World Anti-Doping Agency Therapeutic Use Exemption.)

Full results.

Pikes Peak Ascent – Manitou Springs, Colorado

Saturday’s uphill race was a 13.3-mile climb to the top of Pikes Peak. That’s a 6,300-foot start, 7,815 feet of elevation gain, and a finish near the 14,115-foot summit. A $10,500 prize purse awarded $2,000 to the winners with money paid five deep.

Men

The race wasn’t part of the Golden Trail World Series this year of course, but the men’s race was still a bit of a Colorado mountain running showdown. Joseph Gray and Seth Demoor have starred on Pikes Peak for the last decade. Demoor is a two-time Pikes Peak Marathon winner, but Gray was a four-time Pikes Peak Ascent winner. Despite Gray’s better record, Demoor’s 2:06 climb as part of the 2021 Marathon was minutes faster than any of Gray’s Ascent times in recent years.

Gray looks to have dominated this year’s match-up though. He jumped to the lead right away and it was never that close. Gray won the race to the top in 2:11. It was his fifth win on Pikes Peak.

Demoor overtook Meikael Beaudoin-Rousseau for second place late. Demoor finished in 2:14 and Beaudoin-Rousseau was third in 2:15, 50 seconds behind Demoor.

Cam Smith came back from last weekend’s double at The Rut in Montana to finish fourth in 2:19 and Joseph Demoor was fifth in 2:22.

The top five was:

• • 1. Joseph Gray – 2:11:13
    2. Seth Demoor – 2:14:58
    3. Meikael Beaudoin-Rousseau – 2:15:48
    4. Cam Smith – 2:19:44
    5. Joseph Demoor – 2:22:45

Women

The women’s race ran as a bit of a rematch from last year too. In 2023 during the race’s competitive Golden Trail World Series year, Hali Hafeman was 11th and Allie McLaughlin was 12th. The two were again together this year, but it was McLaughlin that won the match up, and the race with 2:45 at the top. It was McLaughlin’s third Pikes Peak Ascent win. Hafeman closed hard up high to finish just 34 seconds back, having made up over a minute on McLaughlin in the last two miles.

Kristin Johnson was third in 3:01, and Anna Mae-Flynn and Kasey Sutherlin took the other prize money spots in 3:07 and 3:08, respectively.

The top five was:

• • 1. Allie McLaughlin – 2:45:36
    2. Hali Hafeman – 2:46:10
    3. Kristin Johnson – 3:01:40
    4. Anna Mae-Flynn – 3:07:06
    5. Kasey Sutherlin – 3:08:17

Full results.

Pikes Peak Marathon – Manitou Springs, Colorado

Sunday’s up-and-down, out-and-back marathon was cut short due to snow on the higher parts of the mountain. The race turned around at Barr Camp halfway up and instead went for just 15 miles.

The prize purse matched that of the day prior Ascent, $10,500 in total with $2,000 to the winners.

Men

The course was different than the last two years, but the result was the same. Jonathan Aziz won for the third year in a row. Aziz finished in 1:46, and got out front from a big chase group. The shorter distance certainly made the finish times closer this year and less than a minute separated the second through second- through fifth-place finishers. Tate Knight was second in 1:49 and 24 seconds behind him, Kevin Vermeulen (France) was third also in 1:49.

The full top five was:

• • 1. Jonathan Aziz – 1:46:10
    2. Tate Knight – 1:49:25
    3. Kevin Vermeulen (France) – 1:49:49
    4. Anthony Williams – 1:49:59
    5. Darren Thomas – 1:50:05

Women

Second in 2023, Sarah Guhl stepped up to the top spot this year. The women’s race mirrored the men’s with a leader out front and a tightly packed group behind. Sarah Biehl was at the front of the chasers in 2:13 and then less than a minute split third-, fourth-, and fifth-place. Shannon Dowlearn was the best of that group in 2:15 for third.

The top five were:

• • 1. Sarah Guhl – 2:10:55
    2. Sarah Biehl – 2:13:22
    3. Shannon Dowlearn – 2:15:13
    4. Flannery Davis-Love – 2:15:53
    5. Marcela Vašínová (Czech Republic) – 2:16:08

Full results.

Grindstone by UTMB – Swoope, Virginia

The 17th-year event hosted 1,000 runners across its four race distances. The courses discovered high ridges, deep valleys, and the best of the Shenandoah Valley between the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Allegheny Mountains.

100 Mile

The 100-mile race was uniquely a Western States 100, Hardrock 100, and UTMB qualifier. The race was nearly 105 miles and with over 20,000 feet of climbing.

It wasn’t until 90 miles into the race that the leaderboard showed Gavin Prior at the top. He won in 21:23. After a drop at the Canyons by UTMB 100 Mile in April, this looks to be Prior’s first 100-mile finish. And he ran down a legend to get the win. Anton Krupicka was second in 21:52. This was his first 100-mile finish since a third-place run at the 2021 Leadville 100 Mile and only his second 100-mile finish in over a decade. Alex Proctor was third in 22:17.

Katti Jackson topped Jill Dennes in the women’s race. Both ran under 24 hours with 23:31 and 23:54 finish times. Tatiana Rypinski was third in 24:51.

50k

Dan Curts won his 50k debut in 3:57. A week earlier, Curts won and broke a David Sinclair course record at New Hampshire’s Kismet Cliff Run. Alex Forte and Brian Atkinson trailed the winner in 4:02 and 4:12, respectively.

Sarah Bergeron-Larouche (Canada) separated from Ashley Brasovan in the second half to win the women’s race in 4:31. Brasovan closed in 4:34 and Karin Strickland was third in 5:31.

Full results.

Julian Alps Trail Run by UTMB – Kranjska Gora, Slovenia

Hayden Hawks (U.S.) won the CCC 101k three weeks ago, and Francesco Puppi (Italy) was second at the OCC 55k that same week. Both could’ve called it a year after those stellar runs, but instead they came back to race the 34-mile Sky Trail distance and its 8,000 feet of climbing.

The two were together for the early miles, but then it was all Puppi. He finished first in 4:31. Hawks was second in 4:52, and Dimitri Chapelle (France) was third in 5:08.

The women’s race ran closer at the top with barely three minutes separating the podium. Eliska Sieglova (Czech Republic) won the race in 6:23, and second- and third-place Anne Barber (Germany) and Federica Zuccollo (Italy) both finished in 6:26 and only three seconds apart.

Full results.

Maga SkyMarathon – Zorzone, Italy

The race was the year’s 14th Skyrunner World Series contest and it went for 39k and 3,000 meters of gain through the Orobie Alps. That’s 24 miles and 9,800 feet in the Italian Alps in the northern part of the country.

There were four steep climbs on course to the summit of four peaks and, as per usual for Skyrunner races, there were extremely technical sections aided by fixed ropes.

The top three men and the top three women all broke the former course record. Italian men swept the first five finish spots. Local runner Nadir Maguet was first in 4:21, and Cristian Minoggio and Gianluca Ghiano were next in 4:24 and 4:35.

Hillary Gerardi (U.S., lives in France) beat back a challenge from Ioana Madalina Amariei (Romania) at the front of the women’s race. Gerardi won in 5:31 and Amariei was second in 5:36. Oihana Kortazar (Spain) was third in 5:45.

Full results.

Additional Races and Runs

La Skyrhune – Ascain, France

The technical 21k mountain run gained 1,700 meters, or 5,577 feet, on a course spiked by three big climbs. Race winners earned €500. Sylvain Cachard (France) championed the men’s run in 1:56. Robin Juillaguet (France) and Daniel Alonso (Spain) were second and third in 1:59 and 2:00, 50 seconds apart. Sara Alonso (Spain) took the women’s crown in 2:13. Cecile Jarousseau (France) and Malen Osa (Spain) ran 2:16 and 2:20 for second and third. Full results.

Surf Coast Century – Anglesea, Australia

The race’s 13th edition happened with 1,500 runners across the 100k, 50k, and relay races. The races happen in part along the Great Ocean Road. Nigel Hill and Holly Ranson won the 100k in 8:49 and 9:03, and Ranson’s time broke an eight-year-old course record. Matthew Whitaker and Miah Noble won the 50k in 3:28 and 3:53, respectively. Full results.

Three Sisters Skyline 50k – Sisters, Oregon

The Alpine Running race is highlighted by incredible views of the Three Sisters and other high Cascade peaks. The race hits a high point near mile 10 and then runs downhill the rest of the way. Mario Mendoza won the men’s race and just missed the course record in 3:47, and Carmen Bango was first woman in 4:28. Full results.

Mountain Lakes 100 Mile – Olallie Lake, Oregon

Sixty miles of the 100-mile race are on the Pacific Crest Trail, and the route takes in dozens of mountain lakes. Will Guzick and Julija Soryte won in 17:15 and 19:45, respectively. Full results.

Flagstaff to Grand Canyon Stagecoach Line 100 – Flagstaff, Arizona

Edwin Miller and Andrea White led the point-to-point 100 miler in 19:53 and 21:17. Full results.

IMTUF 100 Mile – McCall, Idaho

He didn’t match his 2018 course record time, but David Ayala won for the third time with 22:17 on the clock. Madison Liechty won the women’s race in 24:22. It was the race’s second-fastest finish ever. Full results.

Barkley Fall Classic 50k – Wartburg, Tennessee

Tim Landy (U.K.) ran his way into the 2025 Barkley Marathons with a first-place 9:06, and obstacle course racing pro Chris Rugloski repeated as women’s winner in 9:32. Full results.

Georgia Jewel – Dalton, Georgia

James Ebert and Debbie Boyett went the fastest across the 100 miler in 22:03 and 26:54. Full results.

Call for Comments

It’s a big world out there, what else happened?