Run It Fast®

Here is the finisher’s belt buckle from the 2011 Heartland 100 Mile ‘Spirit of the Prairie’ Ultramarathon that was held on October 8-9, 2011 in Kansas.

Heartland 100 Website

More Marathon and Ultramarathon Medals & Belt Buckles

[Heartland 100 buckle submitted by ultramarathoner Joseph Nance.  Congrats to Joseph on his first 100 miler.]

Marathon running, like any extreme sport or life in general has its risks, today firefighter William ‘Will’ Caviness, from North Carolina, died while running the Chicago Marathon.

He was declared dead at a Chicago hospital after collapsing in the last 500 yards of the 26.2 mile race.

Caviness was running the Chicago Marathon to raise money for burn victims.  He had raised well over $2,000 before the race and donations have since reached over $3,400 since his passing.  You can still DONATE HERE!!

Asked what his family felt as the charity effort transformed instantly into a tragedy, his uncle, Bill Caviness of Tennessee, choked back tears and came up with one word.

“Disbelief,” he said.

“He was very fit, a tremendous runner.”

His death marked the first in the marathon since 2007, organizers said. Caviness’ death was the sixth fatality at the event since 1998, according to Tribune archives.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family in this time of grief and sadness.

Read LOTS MORE about the life of Will Caviness!

[image: facebook photo]

Several marathons and ultramarathons took place today but none bigger than the Chicago Marathon.  Here is the finisher’s medal from the 2011 Chicago Marathon.

“Let’s Run Together”

Congrats to all of the finishers today at the Chicago Marathon.

Top 10 Male and Female Finisher’s at the 2011 Chicago Marathon

[medal photo submitted by marathoner Mike Tully. You can follow him on twitter @mtulls.  Special thanks to @BhamAlex and @bobbiwilson for submitting photos as well.]

VIEW THE ENTIRE RUN IT FAST MEDAL CASE

Also See: 2011 Rock ‘n’ Roll Denver Marathon Medal

Here is the newly minted 2011 Rock ‘n’ Roll Denver Marathon medal from the race that took place today in the ‘Mile High City.’

Congrats to all of the finishers of the Rock ‘n’ roll Denver Marathon & 1/2 Marathon.

2011 Rock ‘n’ Roll Denver Marathon Results

[medal photo submitted by Scott Stader. You can follow him on twitter @scottstader]

VIEW THE ENTIRE RUN IT FAST MEDAL CASE

Also See: 2011 Chicago Marathon Medal

You can search the link below for searchable results from the 2011 Chicago Marathon after the race.

Male Results
1. Moses Mosop – 2:05:37
2. Wesley Korir – 2:06:15
3. Bernard Kipyego – 2:06:29
4. Bekana Daba – 2:07:59
5. Ryan Hall (USA) – 2:08:04
6. Evans Cheruiyot – 2:10:29
7. Kouji Gokaya – 2:12:15
8. Hirunori Arai – 2:13:17
9. Takashi Horiguchi – 2:14:48
10. Madani Shinoju – 2:17:49

Female Results
1. Lilya Shobukhova – 2:18:20
2. Ejegayehu Dibaba – 2:22:09
3. Kayoko Fukushi – 2:24:38
4. Belainesh Zemedkun Gebre – 2:26:17
5. Christelle Daunay – 2:26:41
6. Claire Hallissey – 2:29:27
7. Yue Chao – 2:32:57
8. Askale Tafa – 2:33:35
9. Cruz Nonata da Silva – 2:35:35
10. Jeanette Faber (USA) – 2:36:58

Searchable 2011 Chicago Marathon Results

I will be updating this post after the race as soon as I can obtain a WIFI signal to publish the top 10 men and women finishers.

LIVE BLOG
Tweets from Ryan Hall’s Wife and Runner’s World:

“@runnersworld: Shobukhova, first threepeater in #ChiMarathon history, wins in unofficial 2:18:19. 2nd fastest woman ever behind Paula Radcliffe.”

“@higdonmarathon: Moses won in a course record 2:05. Ryan Hall 5th in 2:08”

“@runnersworld: If Shobukhova breaks 2:19, she’ll be only the third woman in history to do so. #ChiMarathon”

“@runnersworld: Wesley Korir second, 2 minutes under his old PR, Kipyego 3rd. #ChiMarathon”

“@runnersworld: Mosop wins in unofficial 2:05:36, 5 seconds under course record. #ChiMarathon”

“@runnersworld: First-time marathoner Dibaba (in 2nd) on pace to break 2:21 – could be 2nd fastest debut after Paula Radcliffe’s 2:18:56. #ChiMarathon”

“@runnersworld: Mosop will run a huge negative split–his first half was 1:02:54, and his second half will be under 1:02. #ChiMarathon”

“@StepsFoundation: 4:54 23rd mile for Mosop. Let’s go Ryan, you can get that AR!!!”

“@runnersworld: Barring a disaster Mosop will be more than a minute under the current course record of 2:05:41. #ChiMarathon”

“@StepsFoundation: 4:40 last mile for Mosop. He’s up on his toes sprinting! Can’t see Ry”

“@runnersworld: Mosop opening up lead. He’s on 2:04:30 pace. Shobukhova leading women. #ChiMarathon”

“@runnersworld: Korir 1:28:46 at 30K, Mosop 1 second back. That last 5K went in 14:31. It’s now a two-man race. #ChiMarathon”

“@StepsFoundation: New American record for 30k! Yay Ryan! 1:29.47”

“@StepsFoundation: Ryan’s riding out the surges and staying even, but he’s got some work to do to catch the lead pack, they are rolling! A 4:38 last mile”

“@runnersworld: Hall is now 15 seconds behind the five men in the lead pack at 15 miles. #ChiMarathon”

“@StepsFoundation: 9 sec of the 25k American Record- so close! He’s got a good one going, can get the 30k by maintaining pace”

“@StepsFoundation: Here’s @RyanHall3 at Mile 13. #chicagomarathon  http://t.co/N1trzH4Z”

“@runnersworld: Hall and Gomes dos Santos gone from immediate lead pack. Lead pack just ran a 4:36 mile. #ChiMarathon”

“@StepsFoundation: Halfway- 62:53. 2:05.47 pace”

“@StepsFoundation: Still a tight pack, they are under course record pace! 6th mile 4:46, 10k- 29:38. He got his cytomax at 2nd stop!”

“@StepsFoundation: 7th mile-4:43. They are ROLLING! Ryans still chilling in the back, no ones broken from pack”

“@runnersworld: Women’s pace is erratic (5:09 7th mile, 5:25 8th mile). May cause problems for new marathoner Dibaba and 2nd-timer Fukushi. #ChiMarathon”

“@StepsFoundation: Ryan’s got a great shot at the 25k and 30k American Records!!!”

“@runnersworld: Women on low 2:18 pace through 15K, men on course record low 2:05 pace. #ChiMarathon”

“@StepsFoundation: For the Tv commentators wondering, it’s normal for Ryan to blow his nose this much!”

“@StepsFoundation: Cytomax successfully grabbed again! Ryan still content to sit in the back. No ones broken from the back of 9”

“@StepsFoundation: Correction- they are on 2:05.24 pace”

“@StepsFoundation: 4:44 last mile, rabbits are going half way, their goal 62:40. will be interesting to see what happens when they pull out.”

Here is a look at the list of all of the elite runners that will be running at the 2011 Chicago Marathon on Sunday, October 9, 2011 in Chicago, Illinois.

Many are looking at American Ryan Hall to put down a spectacular time and perhaps win it all after he set the U.S. marathon record earlier this year at the Boston Marathon.

RELATED: Ryan Hall Nude in ESPN’s ‘Bodies We Want 2011’ Issue

Check back on Sunday for results from the Chicago Marathon

We asked on Twitter (@runitfast) where you were running this weekend and 39 of you responded!

The most popular race this weekend is the flat and fast Chicago Marathon.  However, you guys are running some very cool races and training runs all over the globe this weekend.  Best of luck to all of you! Run It Fast!!!!

Joshua Holmes – @bayou – Short runs in prep for 4th 100 miler next weekend.

Sara – @sarakschroer – last longish run (taper week for full marathon on 10/16). 8mi planned along the SoCal shoreline!

Johnny Luciano – @RunJohnnyRun99 – disney xc classic

Lisa G. – @its_elleG – 8 mile training run for ING Miami

Brad Dulay – @braddulay – 20 Miler in James Morris Park during my trip to Suburbia

Humberto Vazquez – @jhvv99 – 10k Sportcity , San Pedro N.L. , México

Tracy Pellizzari – @pizzalarry – Portland Marathon!

Anders Edström – @anders_edstrom – #Sweden #Gävle tomorrow intervalls, sunday distance 10-15km

Rew Landells – @RewMdS – taking part in the Nottingham, Men’s Health Survival of the Fittest on Saturday, good bit of training and fun!

Alen Zelenika – @alenAdepto – Zagreb halfmarathon

Luciana Oliveira – @luciana_lf – in the Aclimacao park, Sao Paulo, Brasil.

Katie – @WillRace4Carbs – Denver Rock n Roll Half marathon!

Laura Raeder – @LauraRaeder – bloomingtom/normal IL

Massiel Sanmartin – @massielSm – Running 11 miles as part of 1/2marathon training around Turtle Creek Dallas Tx

Dwight Williams – @dwighty_boy – Chester marathon Sunday

Luciana Oliveira – @luciana_lf – At Aclimacao Park, Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Troy Eldredge – @troyeldredge – Army Ten Miler!

Dean – @deanlu1 – 15 miles on Saturday in Rehoboth Beach, DE.

Maureen Mackenzie – @memobe – Valley Harvest Marathon in Nova Scotia

Dana Flosi – @pixiedustgirl79 – Chicago Marathon!!

Ani – @goldylocks_a – running 10K Ashford, Kent.

Tim McWilliams – @timw95 – running the Portland Marathon in the rain.

Casey – @caseycanrun – Anthem Great Pumpkin 5K in Reston, VA

Ryan Price – @PTwebprofits – Regent Park, London!

Joseph House – @House_0911 – running Chicago Marathon

Susan Eastman – @FITchatblogger – Running at least 7-8 miles Saturday in Centerville MA area; kayaking on Sunday

Jamie Bodner – @PinnacleGym – running trails at Kennesaw Mtn, in Kennesaw GA lots of deer to spot and b-e-a-utiful weather!

Alexa B. Hüni – @maxcima – Running my first marathon in Munich on Sunday!!!

Leanne Burgess – @LeanneBurgess24 – Running on Sunday….. Liverpool Marathon !!

Affinity Home Design – @REMODELING_PDX – running the Portland marathon on Sunday.

Romana DL – @Romana40 – 10K race in Sant Andreu de la Barca #Barcelona #Spainhoping reach category podium W40-45 🙂

Frank S. – @WCPrairieBoy – the @VictoriaMarathn Sunday Oct. 9th

Seven Races – @7races42011 – last fast run on Sunday before the STWM on 16th! Resting & relaxing next week.

Lourdes Hagar – @lulihagar – #chicagomarathon

Mike Stout – @mikebstout – Prairie Fire Marathon in Wichita, KS!!!

Julie – @ROJRunning – Jack O Lantern Jog 5K. The best race in Akron, OH all year!

Robyn Wilson – @bobbiwilson – the chicago marathon!

GA Running Club – @GARunningClub – 10 for Texas (The Woodlands, TX) on Saturday!

Jessie O. – @AdkRunner – Windsor Vt for the @harpoon_brewery Oktober festival!

Lisa Gonzales – @runlikeacoyote – I’m hoping I’ll be able to run this weekend. If I do, it’ll just be in the neighborhood. Crossing my fingers.

Houston marathoner Suzy Seely recently became the second woman to run a sub-4 hour marathon in all 50 states.

She finished the Casper Marathon in Wyoming to reach 50 states but had to go back to New York to run a sub-4 hour marathon there to reach the historic milestone.  Seely had run and finished the ING New York City Marathon there back in 1997 but it took her over 4 hours. She ran the marathon that day with her daughter.

How she became interested in running a marathon in all 50 United States:

Seeley, who was named an “outstanding marathoner” in 2005 by marathonguide.com, has now run 161 marathons. She undertook the 50-state effort at the urging of Steve and Paula Boone, the Humble couple who founded the 50 States Marathon Club (website). But it wasn’t until Seeley had completed more than 30 that she started to take it seriously.

So on Sunday, Suzy ran the Wineglass Marathon in Corning, NY in 3:22:16 to reach the sub-4 hour, 50 state feat.

Suzy is now part of the prestigious 50Sub4 Marathon Club (website).

Seely’s PR is a 3:14:52 at the 2006 Austin Marathon.

Congrats to Suzy on an amazing accomplishment.

Read More on Suzy Seely

[hat tip to Chuck Engle]

Elite marathoner and devout Christian Ryan Hall is nude as can be in ESPN’s 2011 ‘Bodies We Want‘ issue.

In the photo, Hall is seen running nude through the woods while displaying his perfect form that led to his fastest U.S. marathon time ever at the 2011 Boston Marathon.

The issue often ruffles up feathers and creates controversy for the athletes included in the spreads.

I have to admit that Hall is one of the last athletes I expected to see baring all for the camera in the 2011 edition.

You can view Hall’s perfect naked running form through the woods HERE at ESPN (SFW).

You can view all of the 2011 ‘Bodies We Want’ photo spreads HERE at ESPN.

Other athletes including in the ‘Body Issue’ include: Hope Solo, Blake Griffin, Jose Reyes, Alicia Sacramone, Steven Jackson, Gretchen Bleiler, Zera Zvonareva, Belen Mozo, Sylvia Fowles, Natasha Hastings, Julie Chu, Jon Jones, Apolo Anton Ohno, Sergio Martinez, Ryan Kesler, Stephanie Gilmore, Jeremy Campbell, Suzy Hotrod, Kelly Kulick, Louie Vito, and Helio Castroneves.

2011 Signal Mountain Tennessee (Stump Jump 50K):

This was my first attempt at any trail race and like I pretty much always do, I tackled one of the meanest 50K’s to see if I would like it or not. Stump Jump 50K is sometimes called “The meatgrinder” and I really had no idea why. I had read as much as I could about it and knew that it was a tough one. One of my friends, Brent Fuqua, had run this race in 2008 in about 7:40 or so and he had talked about the hills that made your ears pop when you went up or down. Anyway, I was determined to get my first 50K under my belt.

My summer and fall training did not go exactly as I would have liked it to go, I did get a lot of miles in, having put in a tad over 2,300 as of Sept 30. A lot of them were not real quality miles, but even bad miles are better than no miles. I kept my weeks pretty steady at 50-60 per week and most Saturdays I was knocking out at least 14 and a lot of 20 milers. Since the first of July, our running group had been doing a hill run on Thursdays that we called HAT day (Hilly A– Thursday) which consisted of a mile and a half run from Station Camp HS to the bottom of Longview hill. Then we ran from Longview to Long Hollow Pike and then back to the bottom of Longview for a total of 2.2 miles and about 500 feet of climb. We would run this loop about 3-4 times, then back to the high school. 1500 feet of climb in a 10 mile run was about all you wanted. I’m really glad that we decided to do the HAT run because as it turned out, that was really the only preparation I had made for the hills that I had to run at Stump Jump.

We had to be in Chattanooga Thur and Friday for a Sunday School retreat and were staying at the Choo Choo. We made it to the expo Friday about noon and picked up our race packets and had time to mingle just a bit, ask questions, pick up free samples and register for the giveaways (which we did not win). My wife, Terri, had signed up for the 11 mile trail run. She was really excited about her first trail run also. Some other Hendersonville Running Club buds were also running the 50K with me. Jamie Abbott, Scott Jordan, and Dave Morris. Terri and I made it back to our retreat, attended classes until 8PM and then had a giant piece of key lime pie from City Cafe.

The Clock went off in the morning and we quickly got dressed, excited like it was Christmas or something. We got out the door and decided to stop at Waffle House and put a little protein in our bellies. That was a great idea! Then we were Back in the van and headed up Hwy 127, around the twisty curvey hill up to Signal Mountain and to the High School. I am glad that we had checked out the location the last time we were in Chattanooga because there was absolutely NO directionals telling us where to go and it was foggy. We did make it on time and was directed to park on the back side of the school which was a pretty good walk from the start/finish.

We already had everything laid out that we wanted to carry and such so we loaded up, got our shoes and gaiters on and was pretty much ready to run. Since Terri was doing the 11 miler, she wore a fuel belt with about 20 oz of water and I had just purchased a Nathan hydration vest which held 80 oz of water and had a lot of pockets for whatever I wanted to put in them. I didn’t carry a lot, a Cliff bar, My Ipod, My running camera (Olympus Stylus Tough), some bandaids and tape, a squirt bottle of Hammer gel, and a container of Kramer body gel. After a couple bathroom breaks, we were ready for the race to start.

I normally try to start near the front and somehow I was in the wrong place at the wrong time when the gun went off and found myself in the back of about 350 trail runners. I knew that if I had any chance at all of getting in the upper third, i would need to take every advantage I could when I had opportunity. Most of the first 3 miles or so was a bit spread out so when I could, I would pass as many runners as I could get around. I’m sure I pissed some people off, but, that’s how it goes. By the time we got to Mushroom Rock (mile 4), I had probably passed 150 runners and was running with folks with my same speed.

After Mushroom rock, we headed down the first (of many) big hills into Suck Creek. I see why they call it Suck Creek, it really sucks. Very steep descent, big rocks to jump over, twists and turns, bridges to cross, and then you cross another bridge and up another hill and across a guardrail onto a highway. Run up the highway for 200 feet and immediately turn left up and embankment and back into the woods. A lot of this race is pretty level running trails, however, most of it you are either going up or down. Not a lot of level running. Even when it could be level, the demons who designed the course, would have you go downhill a couple feet so you could make a hard turn and go back up. This part of the trail had a lot of big cliffs and pretty much immediately, we were running on the side of some pretty massive dropoffs with big cliffs on our right side. In many places, if you had taken a step to the left, you would have hurled 200 feet to your death (or dismemberment). After about 2 miles we could see the Tennessee river way down below us and we made our way around the side of the cliffs, exposing ourselves more and more to the widening views to our left. It was a most beautiful sight, really makes you glad (as Charlie Daniels used to say) to be alive and be in Tennessee!

Many places were so rocky that you had to watch every place you put your feet for fear that your ankles would turn. I did manage to turn ankles 5 or 6 times throughout the race, none to the point of sprains. There were places where nature had cut through the rock and we ran between 2 giant rocks that were only 2 feet apart. There were giant rocks as big as a house just sitting on the side of the mountain like somebody just dropped them out of an airplane. There had been a tornado in this area a year or so ago and there were a lot of downed trees. Several places, someone had simply sawed the tree into on each side of the trail, you just ran between it. Other places, the tree was still there and you had to crawl over or jump up on it and throw yourself off. The 10 mile aid station was called Indian Rock House and it was under a big cliff (I’m sure that Indians used to live under these cliffs). They had a great selection of food items, PNB, M&Ms, pretzels, and much more. I made it a point to eat a bit at each station. At that point I started drinking Mt Dew that they had in cups. Mt Dew added a good sugar burst and you could also wash down whatever you ate. I noticed that some of the runners that had passed me a while back were still at the aid stations. Some folks were wasting a lot of time at these stations. I quickly deducted that if you spent only 5 minutes at each station, you would finish 35 minutes later than if you kept running. My time at the stations were less than half a minute, then back to the trail.

At Indian Rock House, we continued on around the bluffs overlooking the river for a 10 mile loop around the mountain. I believe they called this Mullins Cove Loop. Again, many big downhills ad uphills. I remember one place in particular where up on the hill above us, big rocks were laying all over the side of the mountain. I meant to get a picture of them but didn’t. I want to hike back there sometime just to get a picture of those rocks!

Several miles later we came through the Snoopers Rock Aid Station, which was on the point of a big bluff, then winding on around the mountain and to Haley road Aid station. This was just a bit past the halfway point and my enthusiasm was not in the best of shape. I was getting tired, my quads were starting to hurt after all the rock jumping, and it was getting hillier. Maybe a couple miles after Haley Road, we came upon the rock garden which consisted of several hundred feet of trail that was nothing but big rocks, you could not see the flags at all and you pretty much had to guess which way to go. I’m sure there were some who got off the course at this point. I was running with a couple guys and we figured out after a couple short wrong ways which way to go and once we got out of the rocks, we were back on the trail.

At the 19 mile mark, many had left drop bags with a change of socks, meds, etc. i had elected to carry what i needed and did not do a drop bag. I had worn my Swiftwick Merino wool 5″ socks, which turned out to be a blessing. No blisters, not slipping around in my shoes, and they had quite a bit of cushion. Got another drink of Mt dew and kept on running. It was only a mile or so until we came back upon the Indian Rock House station. I was surprised that we were back there that quick, go some more Mt Dew and headed out again. i actually started feeling pretty good again and picked the pace up a bit. My original goal was to run this thing at a 10:00 pace (What a fool i was!). I had been noticing my Garmin splits and I was running 12:00 miles on average.

After Rock House, I started running with a guy from Nashville, Gavin Duke, and we ran together for about 5 miles, carrying on pretty good conversation as we ran. My left hip had been giving me fits since maybe mile 10, and I started stopping for 20 seconds or so and stretching, which made the pain go away for 3-4 miles. During one of these stops, my new friend, Gavin, went on in front of me.. We wound around, back through the cliffs and river overlook, through the tight rocks, down the ladders and back into the suck creek area, down the Highway, crossed the guardrail and down into the creek. I had kinda forgotten how much of a hill it had been coming down, but it was really bear going back up. I think I walked the entire up hill. My half mile split on that hill was 17 minutes!

Once i got to the top, wound around a bit, I came back upon mushroom rock. my Garmin had lost some measurement and I was thinking I still had almost 6 miles to go. When the people at the aid station told me I only had 3 1/2 miles to go, I about jumped out of my skin with excitement!. Now all of a sudden I have new life. Another big drink of My Dew, some M&M’s and I am ON MY WAY. At that point, I was thinking I might be able to break 6 hours 30 minutes. My pace picked up to sub 10:00 minute miles and I found it easier to run the more gentle hills. As I got closer, I could hear the announcers talking and that made me go faster. I did log one 7:50 mile at mile 30 due to some gentle downhills and flat running. During the last 3 1/2 miles, I did pass probably 15 runners and as we came out onto the road leading to the school, I passed my friend from nashviile that I had run with a few miles back. I like to finish hard with a smile on my face, so as I made the turn,I saw Terri and my son Matt and his girlfriend Madeline cheering for me at the corner and I powered it to the finish line as the clock read 6:35:15. My watch time was 6:34:14. I think that when the gun went off, everybody’s time started, instead of using the mats to start your time when you crossed the start line.

I was finished!! I was really glad too! That was one tough race. I see why they call it the meatgrinder. I walked around a bit, my quads were screaming, I got something to drink and decided to change my shoes. I told Terri that I was going to the van and when I got there (remember that it is 1/2 mile away), I discovered that she had the key, so I get to walk back to the finish line area without my fresh shoes. Got a hamburger and more to drink and watched my buddies come in. Terri had finished her 11 miler in 3:09. In my race, Expedition Dave Morris came in at 6:43, Jamie in 6:47, and Scott 7:11. I met and had my picture made with Rob Apple who had just run his 600th ultra race since 1982 and he is only 50.

Official time 6:35:15. I know its only a minute in a 31 mile race but I’m gonna count my time as 6:34:14. i was 133rd overall out of about 400 and 9th in the masters division (age 45-55). If grandmasters was 50 and over,like in most races, I would have been 4th grandmaster.

What did I learn? I learned that I like ultras. Being out there in God’s creation all alone for 6+ hours is a really peaceful time. Really makes you aware of the awesomeness of God and appreciate being able to live in such a diverse place.

Would I do this again? What do you think? As soon as I got home, I signed up for Mountain Mist 50K which is in northern Alabama Jan 28. Big mountains, lots of climbing, maybe snow, maybe cold, lots of fun. I’m also signed up for Recover from the Holidays 50K on new Years eve in Huntsville. What a way to end a great running year!

What would I do different? I would start more up front. I would have run some trail runs (with hills) (I did No trail runs at all), I would have taken more pictures than i did, although I did get a lot. I would have talked Doug Boomer into running this with me (although he would have beat me)

Ill be more ready next year for this puppy!