It’s a short week with not a lot of racing happening. We’ve got scattered results from the Desert Solstice track races and a few other races around the U.S.
Also, this is the last This Week in Running article of 2023! We’re taking Christmas Day off next Monday, so happy holidays and we will catch you in the new year!
Desert Solstice – Phoenix, Arizona
This year’s field must’ve been thinned by the race’s proximity to the recent IAU 24-Hour World Championships two weeks ago. There were only eight starters. It was a group made up of three women and five men.
It appears that Sierra DeGroff stopped after 100 miles in 18:18 in the women’s race. Megan Alvarado went just a bit farther, totaling 106.6 miles.
For the men, Scott Traer came ready to play. He led the race with 161.3 miles over 24 hours. Traer totaled just 84 miles at the IAU 24-hour World Championships on December 1, barely two weeks earlier. Call that a warm up because he was in form at Desert Solstice. It’s early in qualifying, but the 161-mile run likely earned Traer a spot on the U.S. team that will compete at the 2025 IAU 24-hour World Championships in France.
Zach Bitter was targeting a fast 100k run, trying to get a position on the U.S. 100k national team, but stopped after just 33 miles of running.
Additional Races and Runs
Paramount Ranch Trail Runs 50k – Calabasas, California
A small group of 36 was led by Sonia Ahuja in 4:52 over 50k, and men’s winner Kevin Russ ran 5:34. Full results.
Otter Creek Trail Marathon – Brandenburg, Kentucky
Race winners Tavi Wallace and Adam Togami did 26.2 miles in 4:15 and 3:10. Full results.
Pilot Mountain Goat – Pilot Mountain, North Carolina
Both the seven- and three- mile races finish at the mountain top. Sarah Swertfeger and Benjamin Godfrey won the uphill seven miler in 1:10:46 and 55:55, and Brooklyn Lester and Jason Bryant topped out first over three miles in 37:26 and 28:43. Full results.
Lookout Mountain 50 Mile – Lookout Mountain, Georgia
Did they sprint it out or did they mean to tie? Women’s frontrunners Shannon Wheeler Deboef and Jaclyn Noshay both finished in 10:31 and with only a single second apart. Wheeler Deboef’s clock reads 10:31:30 and Noshay’s one second slower. The men’s race was close too. Seth Wall was only two minutes in front of James Brooks. The pair ran 9:02 and 9:04. In the accompanying 18-mile race, Lyndi Chapman and William Sickenberger won in 2:44 and 2:26. Full results.
Ancient Oaks 100 Mile – Titusville, Florida
The race was run on a 3.46-mile trial loop inside the Enchanted Forest Sanctuary. Race winners Jenn Bonaskiewich and Maxwell Bennett finished in 22:49 and 17:33. Full results.
2023 USATF Mountain Ultra Trail Runners of the Year
It’s award season and USA Track & Field announced their annual winners.
- Mountain Runners of the Year: Joseph Gray and Grayson Murphy
Grayson Murphy, 2023 World Mountain Running Championships Up and Down race winner. Photo: iRunFar/Sarah Brady
- Masters Mountain Runners of the Year: Max King and Kasie Enman
- Trail Runners of the Year: Jim Walmsley and Sophia Laukli
- Masters Trail Runners of the Year: Max King and Alicia Vargo
Max King on his way to taking fourth at the 2022 Trail World Championships 40k. Photo: iRunFar/Meghan Hicks
- Ultrarunners of the Year: Jim Walmsley and Camille Herron
- Masters Ultrarunners of the Year: Bob Hearn and Camille Herron
Call for Comments
- Have you results to share from this week in running? You know what to do in the comments section!
- It happens once a year, we’re taking next week off. We’ll catch you back here on Monday, January 1, 2024.
