The 2015 Last Annual Vol State 500K kicked off earlier this morning in Hickman, Kentucky. The Mississippi River was too high from all the heavy rains the area has taken on lately so the ferry was not running across the river.

So instead of starting on the banks of Missouri and running onto the ferry, runners instead started in Hickman, Kentucky next to the ferry after simulating the time the ferry ride would have taken. The race started at 7:30am CT.

Run It Fast had 13 runners sign up for this year’s LAVS and 12 that started. Here is a photo of them on the simulated ferry as they waited for the time to click off:

Last year’s ‘King of the Road’ Greg Armstrong (RIF #373) started strong and took off with the lead. Here is a photo that RIF’s Bill Baker took of Greg 7 miles into the race:

RIF’s Josh Tyner caught RIF members Marylou Corino and Lisa Van Wolde making the turn at mile 18 in Union City this morning.

Shane Tucker taking a quick break in Martin, TN:

After 12 hours, last year’s King Greg Armstrong has a 2 mile lead over Brian Pickett’s ‘Charge!’ Armstrong is 8 miles ahead of course record pace after the first 12 hours. Sweden’s Johan Steene is at 63 miles with 4th overall, first female being Sue Scholl, who set the women’s course record last year. Second female after Sue is Lisa Hazlett with 51 miles and third is Marylou Corino and Lisa Van Wolde with 49 miles.

12 Hour Standings as of 7:30pm on Day 1 – 80 runners:

1. Greg Armstrong – 68 miles
2. Brian Pickett – 66 miles
3. Johan Steene – 63 miles
4. Sue Scholl – 53 miles (F)
5. Lisa Hazlett – 51 miles (F)
6. Rick Gray – 51 miles
7. Steven Smith – 50 miles
8. Nathan Dewall – 50 miles
9. Marylou Corino – 49 miles (F)
10. Lisa Van Wolde – 49 miles (F)
11. Francesca Muccini – 49 miles (F)
12. Jeremy Ebel – 48 miles
13. John Fegyveresi – 48 miles
14. Jay Dobrowalski – 48 miles
15. Michael Callans – 47 miles
16. Marcia Rasmussen – 46 miles
17. James Adams – 45 miles
18. Thomas Alm – 45 miles
19. Tom Dekornfield – 43 miles
20. Don Winkley – 43 miles
21. Ronald Trignano – 42 miles
22. Ally Gregory – 42 miles
23. Shane Tucker – 41 miles
24. Sal Coll – 40 miles
25. Johnny Adams – 40 miles
26. Gregg Ellis – 40 miles
27. Richard McKnight – 40 miles
28. Jeff Mcgonnell – 40 miles
29. Joe Ninke – 40 miles
30. Shelly Mack – 40 miles
31. Gina Chupka – 40 miles
32. Jay Hamilton – 40 miles
33. Andrea Stewart – 40 miles
34. John Sharp – 40 miles
35. Allen Wrinkle – 40 miles
36. David Lettieri – 40 miles
37. Scott Krouse – 40 miles
38. Ben Herron – 39 miles
39. Mike Delang – 39 miles
40. Jeffrey Stephens – 39 miles
41. Bill Haecker – 39 miles
42. Tim Purol – 39 miles
43. Sandy Geisel – 39 miles
44. Jameelah Abdul-Rahim Mujaahid – 38 miles
45. Caleb Nolen – 38 miles
46. Karen Jackson – 38 miles
47. Bo Millwood – 38 miles
48. Edward Masuoka – 38 miles
49. Gilbert Gray – 37 miles
50. Thomas Skinner – 37 miles
51. Remy Brandefalk – 37 miles
52. Richard Westbrook – 36 miles
53. Joseph Kowalski – 35 miles
54. Dale Rucker – 34 miles
55. Tim Loudermilk – 33 miles
56. Sergio Bianchini – 32 miles
57. Lynda Webber – 32 miles
58. Joshua Swink – 32 miles
59. Betty Holder – 32 miles
60. Michael Melton – 31 miles
61. Fred Davis III – 31 miles
62. Sherry Meador – 30 miles
63. John Price – 30 miles
64. Garry Price – 30 miles
65. Dallas Smith – 30 miles
66. Tony Varney – 30 miles
67. Christian Mcmahan – 30 miles
68. Amanda Mcmahan – 30 miles
69. Christopher Knight – 30 miles
70. Ann Kerkman – 30 miles
71. Diane Taylor – 30 miles
72. Curt Chambers – 30 miles
73. Terrie Wurzbacher – 30 miles
74. Larry Phillips – 29 miles
75. John Rasmussen – 29 miles
76. Troy Johnson – 29 miles
77. Cathie Johnson – 29 miles
78. Paul Heckert – 28 miles
79. Ben Pennington – 28 miles
80. Timothy Daily – 21 miles

– Run It Fast®

80 runners is insane.

there are so many runners along the road,

it looks like a 10k is going on….

a really slow 10k.

day 1 was blessed with mild conditions.

the “heat index” was a paltry 97,

altho things promise to heat up tomorrow.

the runners took full advantage.

Armstrong logged a neat 68 in the first 12 hours,

but he had not buried the field.

brian pickett was well within striking distance,

and is probably the fastest pure runner in the field.

greg’s advantage in multiday experience will be tough to overcome

(over another 250 or so miles)

behind the leaders,

runners were lined up in close order.

day one is just a chance to get blooded a little bit.

things won’t start to get serious until tomorrow,

when much more typical temperatures are expected….

and greg seems pretty tight with the 110+ heat indexes.

the real story on day 1 is the response of rural Tennessee to the race.

road angels apparently were out in abundance,

offering up cold refreshment to the cooking runners.

the city of Dresden set up a “welcome center”

with cold drinks, watermelon, and various other treats.

gleason’s fire department

set up an aid station, which was just starting to get customers after 12 hours.

maybe the nicest touch so far

has been the hand lettered signs;

“Welcome Vol State Runners”

“All the way to the Rock”

“Every Step Counts”

the small towns along the way have embraced the vol state

and its runners.

this is going to be a very interesting week.

laz

_____________

Day-by-Day Vol State 5ooK Recaps

• Day 8: The Vol State 500K Live Blog/Standings (2015)
• King of the Road, Greg Armstrong’s Vol State 500K Race Report (2015)
• Day 7: The Vol State 500K Live Blog/Standings (2015)
• Day 6: The Vol State 500K Live Blog/Standings (2015)
• Greg Armstrong Repeats as 2015 Vol State 500K King of the Road
• Day 5: The Vol State 500K Live Blog/Standings (2015)
• Day 4: The Vol State 500K Live Blog/Standings (2015)
• Day 3: The Vol State 500K Live Blog/Standings (2015)
• Day 2: The Vol State 500K Live Blog/Standings (2015)
• Day 1: The Vol State 500K Live Blog/Standings (2015)

Vintage Vol State 500K Race Reports

• One Mutant’s Last Annual Vol State 500K Race Report (2012)
• Charlie Taylor’s Vol State 500K Race Report (2012)
• Naresh Kumar’s Last Annual Vol State 500K Race Report (2011)
• Joshua Holmes Vol State 500K Photo Journal + Race Report (2011)
• ‘King of the Road’ Don Winkley’s Winning Vol State 500K Race Report (2011)

Historical Vol State 500K Results

• 2014 Last Annual Vol State 500K Results
• 2013 Last Annual Vol State 500K Results
• 2012 Last Annual Vol State 500K Results
• 2011 Last Annual Vol State 5o0K Results

– Run It Fast®

The 2014 Last Annual Vol State 500K is underway. The race started in Dorena Landing, Missouri and will finish atop Sand Mountain in Georgia covering 314 miles along the way with 90% of those in the great state of Tennessee.

Greg Armstrong won the 2014 Last Annual Vol State 500K early this morning in a blazing 3 days 17 hours 50 minutes 52 seconds, the third fastest time ever. Read more about his win and race splits HERE.

Randy Ellis was the first to come in during the last 24 hour stretch and she rounded out the top 5 with a time of 5d 5h 34m 26s. Juli Aistar, a former ‘King of the Road’ had her time this year was her fastest finish in 5 days and 6 hours. A slew of a total of 12 more finishers reached ‘The Rock’ with several more on target to do the same today.

Top 10 Vol State 500K Standings After 168 Hours (in past 24 hours)

1. Greg Armstrong – 314 miles (3 days 17 hours 50 min 52 sec)
2. Johan Steene – 314 (4 days 2 hours 5 min 16 sec)
3. Sue Scholl – 314 miles (4 days 12 hours 48 min 4 sec)
4. Emilio Nunez – 314 miles (4d 23 hours 21 min 4 sec)
5. Randy Ellis – 314 miles (5d 5h 34m 26s)
6. Juli Aistars – 314 miles (5d 6h 16m 5s)
7. Cyndi Graves – 314 miles (5d 10h 3m 1s)
8. Jim Ball – 314 miles (5d 12h 45m 21s)
9. John Sands – 314 miles (5d 15h 37m 6s)
10. Elaine Stypula – 314 miles (5d 18h 37m 6s)
11. Dale Holdaway – 314 miles (5d 21h 32m 54s)
12. Eric Moening – 314 miles (5d 21h 32m 34s)
13. Thomas Skinner – 314 miles (5d 22h 23m 29s)
14. Brad Compton – 314 miles (5d 22h 56m 44s)
15. Richard Westbrook – 314 miles (5d 23h 49m 59s)
16. Frank Dahl – 314 miles (6d 0h 0m 54s)
17. Sal Coll – 314 miles (6d 3h 43m 51s)
18. Karen Jackson – 314 miles (6d 5h 2m 46s)
19. Salt Shack – 314 miles (6d 5h 11m 36s)
20. Jeff McGonnell – 314 miles (6d 11h 5m 27s)
21. Tim Scott – 314 miles (6d 12h 30m 40s)
22. Alex Morton – 314 miles (6d 12h 50m 9s)
23. Marcia Rasmussen – 314 miles (6d 13h 13m 4s)
24. Edward Masuoka – 314 miles (6d 18h 49m 32s)
25. Steven Smith – 314 miles (6d 19h 12m 8s)
26. Elizabeth Thompson – 314 miles (6d 19h 23m 4s)
27. Johnny Adams – 314 miles (6d 19h 54m 7s)
28. Joel Gat – 314 miles (6d 21h 50m 31s)
29. Sherry Meador – 314 miles (7d 0h 32m 10s)
30. Garry Price – 294 miles (42)
31. Kathleen Wheeler – 288 miles (38)
32. John Price – 288 miles (44)
33. Frederick Davis III – 288 miles (45)
34. Marjorie Pugh – 280 miles (47)
35. Becky Lockard – 280 miles (45)
36. Mike Samuelson – 275 miles (49)
37. John Hanson – 272 miles (37)
38. Karen Riddle – 272 miles (38)
39. Don Winkley – 255 miles (28)
40. Caleb Nolen – 248 miles (28)
41. Paul Heckert – 236 miles (34)
42. Wayne McComb -235 miles (29)
43. Abi Meadows – 225 miles (23)
44. Patrick McHenry – 218 miles (38)
45. Kimberly McHenry – 218 miles (38)

Complete 2014 Vol State 500K List of Finishers
Full List of 2014 Vol State 500K Standings (Spreadsheet w/ Splits)

Best of luck to all runners at VS500 and especially our Run It Fast members running the race this year: David Wingard, Mike Samuelson, Diane Taylor, and Charlie Taylor.

• Mike Samuelson – 275
• Diane Taylor – 202-DNF
• David Wingard – 43-DNF
• Charlie Taylor – (relay 1st place/relay record: 2 days 18 hours 50 minutes 59 seconds)

Complete LAVS Standings

The casualty list is up to 20 names as 16 remain on the road and 30 have finished.

Congrats to Greg Armstrong on winning the 2014 Last Annual Vol State 500K and all of the starters and finishers!

Greg Armstrong is the 2014 ‘King of the Road‘ after dominating the Last Annual Vol State 500K from wire to wire (full story).

Other sub-5 day finishers are Johan Steene (new uncrewed course record), Sue Scholl (new female course record while running uncrewed), and Emilio Nunez.

Last Annual Vol State Solo Runners Results

1. Greg Armstrong – 3 days 17 hours 50 minutes 52 seconds
2. Johan Steene – 4 days 2 hours 5 minutes 6 seconds (uncrewed)
3. Sue Scholl – 4 days 12 hours 48 minutes 4 seconds (uncrewed)
4. Emilio Nunez – 4 days 23 hours 21 minutes 4 seconds 
5. Randy Ellis – 5 days 5 hours 34 minutes 26 seconds
6. Juli Aistars – 5 days 6 hours 16 minutes 5 seconds
7. Cyndi Graves – 5 days 10 hours 3 minutes 1 second
8. Jim Ball – 5 days 12 hours 45 minutes 21 seconds (uncrewed)
9. John Sands – 5 days 15 hours 37 minutes 6 seconds(uncrewed)
10. Elaine Sypula – 5 days 18 hours 37 minutes 6 seconds
11. Dale Holdaway – 5 days 21 hours 32 minutes 54 seconds (uncrewed)
12. Eric Moening – 5 days 21 hours 32 minutes 34 seconds(uncrewed)
13. Thomas Skinner – 5 days 22 hours 23 minutes 29 seconds
14. Brad Compton – 5 days 22 hours 56 minutes 44 seconds (uncrewed)
15. Richard Westbrook – 5 days 23 hours 49 minutes 59 seconds(uncrewed)
16. Frank Dahl – 6 days 0 hours 0 minutes 54 seconds (uncrewed)
17. Sal Coll – 6 days 3 hours 43 minutes 51 seconds (uncrewed)
18. Karen Jackson – 6 days 5 hours 2 minutes 46 seconds (uncrewed)
19. Salt Shack – 6 days 5 hours 11 minutes 36 seconds (uncrewed)
20. Jeff McGonnell – 6 days 11 hours 5 minutes 27 seconds (uncrewed)
21. Tim Scott – 6 days 12 hours 30 minutes 40 seconds (uncrewed)
22. Alex Morton – 6 days 12 hours 50 minutes 9 seconds (uncrewed)
23. Marcia Rasmussen – 6 days 13 hours 13 minutes 4 seconds (uncrewed)
24. Edward Masuoka – 6 days 18 hours 49 minutes 32 seconds (uncrewed)
25. Steven Smith – 6 days 19 hours 12 minutes 8 seconds (uncrewed)
26. Elizabeth Thompson – 6 days 19 hours 23 minutes 4 seconds (uncrewed)
27. Johnny Adams – 6 days 19 hours 54 minutes 7 seconds (uncrewed)
28. Joel Gat – 6 days 21 hours 50 minutes 31 seconds (uncrewed)
29. Sherry Meador – 7 days 0 hours 32 minutes 10 seconds (uncrewed)
30. Kathleen Wheeler – 7 days 6 hours 15 minutes 4 seconds
31. John Price – 7 days 7 hours 7 hours 48 minutes 1 second (uncrewed)
32. Mike Samuelson – 7 days 7 hours 57 minutes 9 seconds
33. Garry Price – 7 days 8 hours 30 minutes 37 seconds (uncrewed)
34. Marjorie Pugh – 7 days 11 hours 52 minutes 31 seconds (uncrewed)
35. Becky Lockard – 7 days 12 hours 53 minutes 38 seconds (uncrewed)
36. Frederick Davis III – 7 days 14 hours 36 minutes 12 seconds (uncrewed)
37. John Hansen – 7 days 19 hours 0 minutes 59 seconds (uncrewed)
38. Karen Riddle – 7 days 19 hours  40 minutes 6 seconds (uncrewed)
39. Don Winkley – 8 days 11 hours 23 minutes 58 seconds 
40. Caleb Nolen – 8 days 14 hours 5 minutes 58 seconds (uncrewed)
41. Wayne McComb – 9 days 7 hours 29 minutes 12 seconds (uncrewed)
42. Abi Meadows – 9 days 8 hours 1 minute 22 seconds
43. Paul Heckert – 9 days 9 hours 55 minutes 31 seconds (uncrewed)
44. Kimberly McHenry – 9 days 20 hours 3 minutes 6 seconds (uncrewed)
45. Patrick McHenry – 9 days 20 hours 3 minutes 33 seconds (uncrewed)

Armstrong’s time is the third fastest in the race’s history. Steene’s time is a new uncrewed course record. Scholl’s time is a new record for fastest female finish (crewed or uncrewed)

Vol State 500K Relay Division

1. Taylor Relay – 2 days 18 hours 50 minutes 59 seconds

Vol State 500K Standings After 168 Hours (Day 7)
Vol State 500K Standings After 144 Hours (Day 6)
Vol State 500K Standings After 120 Hours (Day 5)
Vol State 500K Standings After 96 Hours (Day 4)
Vol State 500K Standings After 72 Hours (Day 3)
Vol State 500K Standings After 48 Hours (Day 2)
Vol State 500K Standings After 24 Hours (Day 1)

Congrats to these finishers and everyone who started this tough and barbaric race!

The 2014 Last Annual Vol State 500K is underway. The race started in Dorena Landing, Missouri and will finish atop Sand Mountain in Georgia covering 314 miles along the way with 90% of those in the great state of Tennessee.

Greg Armstrong won the 2014 Last Annual Vol State 500K early this morning in a blazing 3 days 17 hours 50 minutes 52 seconds, the third fastest time ever. Read more about his win and race splits HERE.

Johan Steene will finish shortly as he had just 14 miles to go at the checkin this morning. Sue Scholl had a strong fourth day with 54 miles and sits at 270 miles currently. Fourth place is Emilio Nunez with 253 miles and has opened a 6 mile gap over the great Juli Aistars. Perhaps the biggest surprise on the day though was Cyndi Graves putting down 60 miles to move up to 7th place overall with 227 miles.

Top 10 Vol State 500K Standings After 96 Hours (in past 24 hours)

1. Greg Armstrong – 314 miles (3 days 17 hours 50 min 52 sec)
2. Johan Steene – 300 (60)
3. Sue Scholl – 270 miles (54)
4. Emilio Nunez – 253 miles (52)
5. Juli Aistars – 247 miles (47)
6. Randy Ellis – 227 miles (40)
7. Cyndi Graves – 227 miles (60)
8. Thomas Skinner – 223 miles (42)
9. Jim Ball – 219 miles (44)
10. Frank Dahl – 215 miles (41)

Best of luck to all runners at VS500 and especially our Run It Fast members running the race this year: David Wingard, Mike Samuelson, Diane Taylor, and Charlie Taylor.

• Mike Samuelson – 147
• Diane Taylor – 121
• David Wingard – 43-DNF
• Charlie Taylor – (relay)

Complete LAVS Standings

The casualty list is up to 16 names as 48 remain on the road and 1 has finished.

Congrats to Greg Armstrong on winning the 2014 Last Annual Vol State 500K

Greg Armstrong, of Lebanon, Tennessee, won the Last Annual Vol State 500K in the early hours on Monday, June 14, 2014.  Armstrong blitzed the course, running in his trademark sandals and shirtless almost the entire way, finishing with a time of 3 days 17 hours 50 minutes and 52 seconds.

He was the first person to reach ‘The Rock’ atop Sand Mountain by hours.

Greg’s time is the third fastest in the race’s history and just 8 minutes behind DeWayne Satterfield’s time of 3 days 17 hours 42 minutes and 12 seconds, set in 2009, that was the untouchable course record for years before Georgia native Joe Fejes toppled it last year in 3 days 8 hours 10 minutes and 16 seconds.

Top 9 All-Time Vol State 500K Times

1. Joe Fejes – 3d 8h 10m 16s (2013- course record)
2. DeWayne Satterfield – 3d 17h 42m 12s (2009)
3. Greg Armstrong – 3d 17h 50m 52s (2014)
4. Johan Steene – 4d 2h 5m 16s (2014 uncrewed course record)
5. DeWayne Satterfield – 4d 8h 39m 44s (2006)
6. Alan Abbs – 4d 11h 31m 27s (2013 uncrewed)
7. Sue Scholl – 4d 12h 48m 4s (2014 uncrewed-female course record)
8. Sung Ho Choi – 4d 13h 39m 52s (2013)
9. John Fegyveresi – 4d 16h 19m 1s (2013)

Armstrong has run under the first names of ‘Greg’ and ‘Nelson’ during his running career. He had a strong 2013 winning the inaugural Pistol Ultra 100, winning the Run Around the World 24 Hour with 130 miles, and a second place at the Run the Hard Way 24 Hour with 138.5 miles.

Armstrong’s 2014 Vol State 500K Splits:

• 12 Hours – 67 miles
• 24 Hours – 106 miles
• 36 Hours – 145 miles
• 48 Hours – 179 miles
• 60 Hours – 217 miles
• 72 Hours – 252 miles
• 84 Hours – 289 miles
• Finish 314 miles: 3 Days 17 Hours 50 Minutes 52 Seconds (89 Hours 50 Minutes)

Greg started the non-profit Run 4 Water that raises money and awareness to help solve the water crisis around the world in impoverished countries. You can read more about Run 4 Water HERE!

The 2014 ‘King of the Road’ on his throne! (Vol State lore: the chair is called the ‘thrown’ because after every finisher has sat in the chair upon finishing, it has to be ‘thrown’ away due to the intense stench and stains.

All-Time Kings of the Road (Castle Rock 314 Mile Course)
2014 – King Greg Armstrong (TN) – 3d 17h 50m 52s
2013 – King Joe Fejes (GA) – 3d 8h 10m 16s
2012 – King Dan Fox (WA) – 5d 3h 9m 33s
2011 – King Don Winkley (TX) – 5d 14h 21m 32s
2010 – King Juli Aistar (IL) – 5d 22h 1m 33s
2009 – King DeWayne Satterfield (AL) – 3d 17h 42m 12s
2008 – King Kevin Dorsey (TN) – 4d 23h 45m 3s
2007 – King Carl Laniak (GA) – 6d 6h 11m 1s
2006 – King DeWayne Satterfield (AL) – 4d 8h 39m 44s

Kings of the Road (Monteagle 270 Mile Course)
2005 – King Barry Crumrine (AL)
2004 – King Mark Henderson (TX)
2003 – No Finishers
2002 – King DeWayne Satterfield (AL)

Congrats to Greg on his impressive and inspirational Vol State 500K finish! Way to Run It Fast!

2014 Last Annual Vol State 500K Results

Vol State 500K Standings After 120 Hours (Day 5)
Vol State 500K Standings After 96 Hours (Day 4)
Vol State 500K Standings After 72 Hours (Day 3)
Vol State 500K Standings After 48 Hours (Day 2)
Vol State 500K Standings After 24 Hours (Day 1)

The 2014 Last Annual Vol State 500K is underway. The race started in Dorena Landing, Missouri and will finish atop Sand Mountain in Georgia covering 314 miles along the way with 90% of those in the great state of Tennessee.

It’s still a tie after 48 hours with Nelson Armstrong and Johan Steene going head to head. Sue Scholl is having a great race and isn’t too far behind them as the legendary Juli Aistars remains close to the top three tied with Emilio Nunez at 145 miles.

Top 10 Vol State 500K Standings After 48 Hours (in past 24 hours)

1. Nelson Armstrong – 179 miles (73)
2. Johan Steene – 179 miles (73)
3. Sue Scholl – 160 miles (69)
4. Juli Aistars – 145 miles (55)
5. Emilio Nunez – 145 miles (63)
6. Randy Ellis – 134 miles (57)
7. Thomas Skinner – 133 miles (50)
8. Jim Ball – 131 miles (49)
9. Elaine Stypula – 131 miles (50)
10. Brad Compton – 125 miles (43)

Best of luck to all runners at VS500 and especially our Run It Fast members running the race this year: David Wingard, Mike Samuelson, Diane Taylor, and Charlie Taylor.

• Mike Samuelson – 89
• Diane Taylor – 67
• David Wingard – 43-DNF
• Charlie Taylor – (relay)

Full Standings: Click HERE

The 2014 Last Annual Vol State 500K is underway. The race started in Dorena Landing, Missouri and will finish atop Sand Mountain in Georgia covering 314 miles along the way with 90% of those in the great state of Tennessee.

Top 10 Vol State 500K Standings After 24 Hours

1. Nelson Armstrong – 106 miles
2. Johan Steene – 106 miles
3. Sue Scholl – 91 miles
4. Juli Aistars – 90 miles
5. Thomas Skinner – 83 miles
6. Emilio Nunez – 82 miles
7. Jim Ball – 82 miles
8. Brad Compton – 82 miles
9. John Sands – 82 miles
10. Dale Holdaway – 81 miles

Best of luck to all runners at VS500 and especially our Run It Fast members running the race this year: David Wingard, Mike Samuelson, Diane Taylor, and Charlie Taylor.

• Mike Samuelson – 49
• David Wingard – 43
• Diane Taylor -41
• Charlie Taylor – (relay)

Full Standings: Click HERE

I don’t know about you guys but I’m exhausted! Kidding! I had the easy part and it was fun watching the race unfold the past 9 days. Today is the last day of the 2013 Last Annual Vol State 500K. It’s been quite a ride! There are still 6 runners out there trying to make their way to the rock before the Grim Reaper gets there. I hope you’ll send them lots of luck and Run It Fast wishes today.

Make sure you check back throughout the day to see how things are going out there!

Links you might find fun/useful:

To catch up on previous days: Day1   Day2   Day3   Day4   Day5   Day6   Day7   Day8   Day9

Last Annual Volstate 500K Spreadsheet & Map – for runner tracking (updated twice a day).
Carl’s 2013 Last Annual Volstate 500K Album, Day 2 Drive Thru, and Day 3 Photos

Twitter:
RunItFast: @runitfast
Joshua Holmes: @bayou
Shannon Burke: @s4121burke
Dallas Smith:  @smithbend
VS500: #VS500 or #VS500K

Facebook:
UltraJoshua – Facebook page for Joshua Holmes
Last Annual Vol State Road Race – Facebook page for VS500K

So far today:

Lisa: Well, that’s it for this year’s Last Annual Vol State 500K. We hope you enjoyed our coverage of the race…and maybe inspired you to give it a try next year! Congratulations to all 33 runners and 5 teams that completed this year’s VS500K! Way to Run It Fast!

Lisa: Holy cow! What a finish! Congratulations to Brian for completing the Last Annual Vol State 500K! I gotta say…I am relieved he made it under the cut off. I kept waking up when I heard an email come in and would look to see if there was any word. After 10 days and 314 miles, still so much excitement and drama…and that’s what is so great about this race!

Email from Carl Laniak at 6:54 am:

9:23:08:40 – Brian Curro

Email from Carl Laniak at 6:11 am:

Drama at Vol state

Message from Curro:
“Help, I am totally lost, have been wandering around this hill for hours.
I’m delirious, I was talking to trees last night.”

There are now less than 90 minutes left. We think we ascertained his location and have directed him. If his description was accurate, he’s got 3 miles to go…..

Carl

Email from Carl Laniak at 5:14 am:

Brian Curro

If you read this, we suggest you drop that giant backpack and run.

Carl

Email from Carl Laniak at 5:10 am:

Vol state suspense 

There are less than 2.5 hours til the 240 hour cutoff at the volstate.

Brian Curro last checked in nearing the Tennessee river crossing, 11 miles from the finish.

That was more than 6.5 hours ago…..

Word is, he lost his maps early yesterday. His last checkin included the tidbit that his phone was malfunctioning.

At 7:31 this morning, we’ll know whether he makes it or not.

Go Brian!

Carl

Lisa: Congratulations to Joe and RIF #276 Diane Taylor for finishing the VS500K! This was Diane’s 3rd finish of the Last Annual Vol State 500K. Just one runner left now…

Email from Carl Laniak at 2:32 am:

Diane Taylor – 9:18:44:23

Email from Carl Laniak at 10:43 pm:

9:15:08:12 – joe kowalski

Wow

Carl

Lisa: Here is John Feyveresi’s VS500K race report (it’s a great read!): Lakewood’s Wanderings and Scribbles

Lisa: So now there are just 3 runners left on the course! At 7 pm, this is where they were…

Joe Kowalski 306 miles
Diane Taylor 300 miles
Brian Curro 295 miles

Just 12 hours left! They should all be in by the time I wake up in the morning. I will update this post with their times.

Lisa: Mike added a race report tab where the links for this year’s race reports will be gathered. John Fegyveresi is the first to have his written up.

Email from Mike Dobies at 7:56 pm:

Vol State – 228 Hour Update

Tracking Sheet:
http://www.tinyurl.com/Volstate2013

Map:
https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=200687420624110668378.0004e1fafd1b000ee49ad&msa=0&ll=35.775486,-87.40448&spn=1.994288,4.22699

Email from Carl Laniak at 7:06 pm:

9:11:29:54 – Paul Heckert

Email from Carl Laniak at 6:16 pm:

Jan Walker – 9:10:11:42

Email from Carl Laniak at 5:30 pm:

Re: Who will finish?

Jan is in the woods. Paul is in Alabama.

Kowalski, Curro and Taylor to follow…?

Carl

Lisa: I missed Marcia’s finish. She reached the rock in 9 days 2 hours 26 min 29 sec. Congrats Marcia!

Lisa: Here’s a recap of the race so far…

• 5 relay Teams (2 w/men only and 3 mixed) and 40 runners (31 men & 9 women) started the 2013 Last Annual Vol State 500K.
• 32 runners were Screwed (un-crewed).
• All 5 teams finished along with 27 solo runners…so far.
• 7 runners dropped out.

Top 3 Men
1. Joe Fejes (with a new course record of 3 days 8 hours 10 min 16 sec)
2. Alan Abbss (with a new Screwed course record of 4 days 11 hours 31 min 27 sec)
3. Sung Ho Choi (4 days 13 hours 39 min 52 sec)

Top 3 Women
1. Sherry Meador (7 days 2 hours 42 min 52 sec)
2. Diane Bolton (7 days 14 hours 13 min 5 sec)
3. Psyche Wimberly (7 days 23 hours 14 min 59 sec)

Top 3 Teams
1. Team Stinky Feet (2 days 19 hours 14 min 17 sec)
2. Team Country Gentlemen (4 days 4 hours 5 min 46 sec)
3. Team Two Step (4 days 12 hours 29 min 12 sec)

Tweet from Dallas Smith about the VS500K menu…maybe:

Lisa: Final day! Marcia should be finished by now, I think, and all the rest should be able to finish if they keep putting one front in front of the other. Let’s hope they don’t run into wild weather or anything else to hold them up. Also, apparently, blogging while running is not suggested:

Tweet from Dallas with great advice for future VolStaters:

Email from Mike Dobies at 10:27 am:

Vol State – 216 Hour Update

Tracking Sheet:
http://www.tinyurl.com/Volstate2013

Map:
https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=200687420624110668378.0004e1e8a03a66d4541d7&msa=0&ll=35.773258,-87.401733&spn=3.618637,5.152588

Email from Laz at 9:15 am:

day 10

with 9 days in the bank
we settle in on the rock
to watch the final stories unfold.

these are the ones who have fought the longest.
day after day, for 9 days,
they have watched oprah in their mirrors;
counting the miles,
measuring their reserves.
doing what it takes to achieve the impossible.

now it all comes down to one final push.

some will coast home.
marcia and jan have proven worthy warriors;
gaining strength with each passing day,
burying oprah in the distance.
they will come home “easily” within the time limit,
and deserving of accolades given to athletes
who have achieved their potential.

others will face,
in this final day,
all the pressure of the race,
knowing that one bad stretch without water,
one unleashed fury of nature
(a thunderstorm, blazing sun, or suffocating heat)
can erase the safety margin
and leave the reward for their long hard struggle
out of reach.

and then there is giant back pack.
he has the added burden
of overcoming the time lost when he was detained by the police last night.

and what is the reward for all they have endured?
to run the final mile in solitude,
thinking the thoughts
that only those who have come from the ferry to the rock can understand.
to find the finish line still open.
(pity those who see us driving away as they enter the beanfields)
to look out over the sequatchie/tennessee valley.
to feel the feelings that champions feel,
when a great opponent has been vanquished.
for these are champions,
vanquishing heat, hills, humidity, and their own human frailty.

all hail king joseph,
and his worthy minions.

laz

Email from Carl Laniak at 8:31 am:

216hours

Diane 275
Curro 279
Kowalski 282
Heckert 290
Jan 295
Marcia 309

Carl

Yesterday, we saw 6 runners and 2 teams finish! A few more finished overnight and sadly, I hear there are 2 more runners who dropped. But there are still runners on the course though so this race isn’t over yet!

Check back throughout the day to see how things are going out there!

Links you might find fun/useful:

To catch up on previous days: Day1   Day2   Day3   Day4   Day5   Day6   Day7   Day8 

Last Annual Volstate 500K Spreadsheet & Map – for runner tracking (updated twice a day).
Carl’s 2013 Last Annual Volstate 500K Album, Day 2 Drive Thru, and Day 3 Photos

Twitter:
RunItFast: @runitfast
Joshua Holmes: @bayou
Shannon Burke: @s4121burke
Dallas Smith:  @smithbend
VS500: #VS500 or #VS500K

Facebook:
UltraJoshua – Facebook page for Joshua Holmes
Last Annual Vol State Road Race – Facebook page for VS500K

So far today:

Lisa: TJ did drop so we are down to 6 runners. Here’s where they were at the 204 Hour Update:

Marcia Rasmussen – 279 miles
Jan Walker – 278 miles
Paul Heckert – 277 miles
Brian Curro – 268 miles
Joe Kowalski – 266 miles
Diane Taylor – 266 miles

Joe and Diane are .9 miles behind the Grim Reaper but are steadily moving forward. They have less than 36 hours to get to the rock now. Like Laz said in the email below, “I am anxious to see where they will stand when the sun next rises.”

Email from Mike Dobies at 9:23 pm:

Vol State – 204 Hour Update 

Tracking Sheet:
http://www.tinyurl.com/Volstate2013

Map:
https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=200687420624110668378.0004e1e810fbc145f67ed&msa=0&ll=35.163143,-85.757217&spn=0.520363,1.056747

Email from Laz at 9:18 pm:

FW: Now the real fun begins!

for me, the race remains as compelling as it has been for the past 8+ days.
I find the challenges faced by people who are stretching the limits of their ability
and competing to the end
equally compelling,
regardless of their level.

we have one last pack of runners on the course.
with only a tiny distance separating the last 6 heroes,
I am anxious to see where they will stand when the sun next rises.

I have watched these people compete for more than a week;
I have seen them in their moments of weakness,
and I have seen them rise to the challenge.
I have come to feel like I know something of them,
from how they have faced the demons.

I cannot wait to see the great victories to be won tomorrow…
and tomorrow night.

and great victories will be won.
anyone who does not back down,
who gives their all,
is a great champion.
whether they finish 1st,
or 40th.

Lisa: Having been at the back of the pack in a few races, I can appreciate that email!

Email from Frank Lilley at 6:42 pm:

Now the real fun begins!

Not to take a single thing away from all the unbelievable achievements of Vol State finishers to this point . . . but now it starts getting REALLY tough! These next folks to finish are my peeps!!!

These folks have been out there suffering away, every day with no notoriety! Everyone rightly focuses on Joe Fejes and Alan Abbs and Bruce Sung Ho Choi and Ray Krolewicz and Psyche Wimberly and all the others that have finished already. What they have done is awesome!

But here come my peeps!

I love the back of the packers! The folks that are slow and not all that gifted when it come to speed and endurance. See . . . I am siure that part of our performance is a genetics gift! Oh . . . those with the “gift” . . . they work hard at excelling I know. But there is love in my heart for everyone else!

Us slower, maybe undertrained, maybe overweight folks who just “try.” Those people that know they will be the tail of the dog . . . and they just don’t give a rat’s ass! They are there just simply to see if the can do it! Period.

Finishing is not an absolute given for my peeps! This is a gut wrenching testament to pure desire! The desire to accomplish the seemingly impossible!

So I honestly do love all you guys and gal that have already achieved greatness by finishing Vol State . . . but here come my peeps!!

frankenlilley

Lisa: There is no medal or prize for finishing this race but a couple of runners had these souvenirs made. Pretty cool, huh?

Tweet from Dallas Smith that shows a couple of his souvenirs:

Email from Joel Gat at 3:02 pm:

Texas Jeff – 8:07:26:06

“It was long… if my feet hadn’t been blistered, it still would have been long.”

Lisa: Great clip of RIF #79 Dallas finishing the VS500K (thanks to @bayou for sharing!): https://vine.co/v/hmFQZgOBhET

Lisa: Congratulations to David and Dallas! This is the first Last Annual Vol State 500K for both of them and they did it uncrewed! Love that Dallas sprinted at the end! 🙂

Email from Joel Gat at 1:10 pm:

Dallas Smith – 8:05:34:11

“Whoa! Slow down!” – as Dallas charged at a sprint to the finish…

Email from Joel Gat at 12:26 pm:

David Wingard – 8:04:48:43

Lisa: Pics from life on the road at Vol State 500K…

Photos from RIF #1 Joshua Holmes:

RIF #79 Dallas Smith with 1st time finisher RIF #159 Diane Bolton

RIF #79 Dallas Smith

With RIF #101 David Wingard

Tweet from Dallas at 9:40 am:

Email from Joel Gat at 9:52 am:

Becky Lockard 8:02:09:55

“I did this because I didn’t know if I could.”

Email from Joel Gat at 9:48 am showing a sleeping RD:

But what about us? 

The runners come in at all times of the day and night, so Carl and Laz have slept a total of about 6.5 hours since Sunday. That’s been one 4 hour sleep and a few 15-45 minute snoozes.  This one lasted about five minutes…

Lisa: It looks like Jeff Stephens is a definite drop. And rumor on the list is that TJ Nagies is a drop too though he’s not listed as that on the spreadsheet. He is, however, still at the same mileage he was for the 180 Hour Update. 🙁 Here is where the rest of the runners were at during the check in:

Becky Lockard – 303 miles
David Wingard – 300 miles
Dallas Smith – 300 miles
Jeff Venable – 290 miles
Jan Walker – 267 miles
Marcia Rasmussen – 266 miles
Paul Heckert – 258 miles
Brian Curro – 256 miles
Joe Kowalski – 252 miles
Diane Taylor – 250 miles
TJ Nagies – 201.5 miles

It looks like we should have 3 more finishers very shortly including two of our RIFers – RIF #101 David Wingard and RIF #79 Dallas Smith!

Email from Mike Dobies at 9:46 am:

Vol State – 192 Hour Update

Tracking Sheet:
http://www.tinyurl.com/Volstate2013

Map:
https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=200687420624110668378.0004e1de5957d190f0809&msa=0&ll=35.775486,-87.40448&spn=1.994288,4.22699

Lisa: Congrats to Jeff and Psyche! We are glad Psyche found her way to the rock! W

Lisa: Here’s what happened overnight…

Email from Carl Laniak at 6:50 am:

Psyche – 7:23:14:59

An epic struggle the last 2 miles….

Carl

Email from Carl Laniak at 5:44 am:

From laz:

This is the longest Monday if my life.

The sun keeps coming up and going down, while runners are fed out from Kimball at regular intervals. I spent this last dark period smoking camel filters and listening to “let’s kill all these morherf#ckers,” by Lair of the Minotaur.

Psyche found a way to buy time for the next runner to start by getting lost at mile 312 (of 314).
She’s now laying in a ditch a half mile off course, refusing all offers of assistance, while regrouping for another attempt to locate the state of Georgia.

I’m entertained by the view from the rock, 4 acre lily pads in the ocean below. I may be hallucinating from lack of sleep…..

They call it the volstate.

Laz

Email from Carl Laniak at 1:09 am:

Jeff McGonnell – 7:17:32:38

Thanks to RIF #286 for sharing this photo of Diane shopping for antiques yesterday. It’s not all about the grind out there! I think it’s more about the little moments. At least, it seems that way reading the emails from the ultra list about this race. Something must keep them coming back every year. They can’t all be masochists for the pain, right?

I hope you’ll check back here throughout the day to see all of today’s happenings!

Links you might find fun/useful:

To catch up on previous days: Day1   Day2   Day3   Day4   Day5   Day6   Day7

Last Annual Volstate 500K Spreadsheet & Map – for runner tracking (updated twice a day).
Carl’s 2013 Last Annual Volstate 500K Album, Day 2 Drive Thru, and Day 3 Photos

Twitter:
RunItFast: @runitfast
Joshua Holmes: @bayou
Shannon Burke: @s4121burke
Dallas Smith:  @smithbend
VS500: #VS500 or #VS500K

Facebook:
UltraJoshua – Facebook page for Joshua Holmes
Last Annual Vol State Road Race – Facebook page for VS500K

So far today:

Email from Mike Dobies at 12:18 am:

Vol State – 180 Hour Update

Tracking Sheet:
http://www.tinyurl.com/Volstate2013

Map:
https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=200687420624110668378.0004e1d640b50ee4dcbac&msa=0&ll=36.011339,-87.426453&spn=1.988357,4.22699

Email from Carl Laniak at 11:37 pm:

Scott Krouse – 7:16:01:53

Lisa: Here is where the runners still out there were at the 180 Hour check in:

Scott Krouse – 300 miles
Jeff McGonnell – 299 miles
Jeff Stephens – 297 miles
Psyche Wimberly – 295 miles
Dallas Smith – 293.5 miles
David Wingard – 290 miles
Becky Lockard – 290 miles
Jeff Venable – 283 miles
Paul Heckert – 252 miles
Marcia Rasmussen – 252 miles
Jan Walker – 247 miles
Joe Kowalski – 235 miles
Diane Taylor – 235 miles
Brian Curro – 233 miles
TJ Nagies – 201.5 miles

Looks like there will be a bunch of finishes tonight too. Don’t think Laz and Carl will be getting much sleep again.

Lisa: Both Team Saturday and Team Dancing Bears (Patrick) also finished. I don’t have their times yet but will post those as soon as I know. It’s just 15 solo runners left on the course now.

Lisa: Woo! This was her first time running the VS500K! We are so proud of her! Congratulations Diane!

Email from Carl Laniak at 9:55 pm:

Diane Bolton – 7:14:13:05

Lisa: Apparently flavoring was an autocorrect. LOL! But then he let us know that she had just a mile to go about 20 minutes ago! The waiting is killing me!

Facebook post by RIF #1 Joshua Holmes:

Email from Carl Laniak at 5:32 pm:

Joseph Nance – 7:09:56:26

“That’s some good stuff”

Carl

Facebook post by Diane Bolton’s crew RIF #286 Phil Min showing the “cool” weather on today’s course (as if running 314 miles wasn’t hard enough!):

Lisa: Here are 2 great photos that RIF #1 Joshua Holmes shared as he wanders the course cheering on runners:

Josh with RIF #79 Dallas Smith

Josh with RIF #159 Diane Bolton

Lisa: There are no ties at the VS500K and because they want runners to enjoy their time at the “rock”, they set up a sprint line 30′ from the rock so whoever gets to that line first, gets to go to the rock first. Congrats to Johnny and Charlie! Way to Run It Fast! Here’s a great quote from RIF #2 Naresh Kumar about Johnny and Charlie’s finish:

Just amazing how a 314 mile race ended up to be a sprint finish for two runners. Epic!! Congrats CT and Johnny! Way to finish it. ~Naresh Kumar

Email from Carl Laniak at 2:36 pm:

correction – Johnny Adams – 7:05:30:36

Sorry, sleep deprivation at work…Johnny was ahead of Charlie

Carl

Email from Carl Laniak at 1:07 pm:

Charlie Taylor – 7:05:31:03

Johnny won the sprint to the finish-order-line, so got the right to approach the rock first. It was closer than the 30 second finish difference. A true sprint.

Carl

Email from Carl Laniak at 1:05 pm:

Johnny Adams – 7:05:31:03

Sprint finish!

Carl

Email from Mike Dobies at 12:36 pm with the solo runners finishing rates since 2009:

For solo runners:

2009 – 75% (12/16)
2010 – 43% (6/14)
2011 – 68% (13/19)
2012 – 61% (14/23)

2013 – 40% (16/40) so far, with 19 still on the course (almost 3 days remaining)

Tweet from Dallas at 11:38 am sharing some of the views from the road:

Lisa: And here is a great tweet from the Awesome RIF #79 Dallas Smith earlier this morning:

Lisa: Here’s a great quote from the 2012 Last Annual Vol State 500K winner Dan Fox:

It’s just that Vol State is so huge that it can contain a lot of life’s vicissitudes.

It’s big enough to go to hell and back, and still have time left over. ~Dan Fox

Lisa: Congrats to Roy and Sherry! Oh, and Sherry is the 1st Woman to complete this year’s VS500K! Woo!

Email from Carl Laniak at 10:20 am:

Tamez & Meador, 15 & 16

Roy Tamez – 7:00:42:51
Two hours later…
Sherry Meador – 7:02:42:52
She wants a yoohoo.

Carl

Lisa: There are now 21 runners and 2 teams out on the course. Here’s where they are:

Roy Tamez – 310 miles
Sherry Meador – 304 miles
Joseph Nance – 296 miles
John Adams – 296 miles
Charlie Taylor – 296 miles
Team Saturday – 296 miles
Team Dancing Bears – 291 miles
Jeff Stephens – 291 miles
Jeff McGonnell – 274 miles
Scott Krouse – 274 miles
Psyche Wimberly – 274 miles
Diane Bolton – 272 miles
David Wingard – 265 miles
Becky Lockard – 265 miles
Dallas Smith – 262 miles
Jeff Venable – 259 miles
Paul Heckert – 235 miles
Marcia Rasmussen – 233 miles
Jan Walker – 230 miles
Joe Kowalski – 217 miles
Brian Curro – 213 miles
Diane Taylor – 213 miles
TJ Nagies – 197 miles

I guess Team Dancing Bears is back on the road as Patrick has decided to continue on his own. Two more runners should be finishing any minute now and more are very close. Sadly, 4 runners are behind the Grim Reaper (219.8 miles which is the daily avg miles needed to complete the VS500K in 10 days). 🙁 But like Brad mentioned in his email below, they all are determined to make it so send them all the Run It Fast vibes you can today!

Email from Mike Dobies at 8:34 am:

Vol State – 168 Hour Update

Tracking Sheet:
http://www.tinyurl.com/Volstate2013

Map:
https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=200687420624110668378.0004e1c933660745f7095&msa=0&ll=35.619349,-89.01123&spn=1.998196,4.22699

Lisa: Here’s what happened overnight… 3 more runners finished in sub 7 days! John Price finished in 6:15:36:26, Jeff Kasal finished in 6:22:03:21, and Tim Purol finished in 6:22:03:22! Congrats to John, Jeff, and Tim!

Email from Carl Laniak at 7:33 am:

Kasal and purol – done

Sub 7 days.
They finished alone at the rock.
Race management had been up for 2 days and somehow didn’t make it to the Rock. Glad they stopped at the finishline.

Carl

Email from finisher Brad Compton at 6:53 am:

Driving home

Getting breakfast in Pelham – Harry & Ollie’s.  seen several runners.  No look of “quit” in any of their eyes; just grim determination.

Email from Laz at 12:16 am:

RE: John price – done.

06:15:36:26…

in the rain.

Email from Carl Laniak at 11:39 pm:

John price – done.

Time to follow

Carl