When you put Badwater, Burning River, and Buckin’ Hell together it sounds pretty demonic.
Really, it’s just another fun mix of global races in spectacular places, so happy Monday, runners!
Giir di Mont – Premana, Italy
It was the race’s 30th year, and it was also the year’s sixth World Mountain Running Association (WMRA) World Cup race. The contest went for 32 kilometers, or 20 miles, in a loop spiked by three big climbs.
Men
Third at last week’s WMRA race in France, Michael Selelo Saoli (Kenya) led all of this one. It was really close at the finish though, as he held off a fast-closing Daniel Pattis (Italy) and an even faster-closing Antonio Martìnez (Spain).
Saoli won in 3:21:02. Pattis closed the gap to just seven seconds at the finish, and Martìnez rocketed through the downhill to leap from fifth to third and make up five minutes on the leaders on the downhill section. All three finished in 3:21. Saoli in 3:21:02, Pattis in 3:21:09, and Martìnez in 3:21:30.
The top 5 men were:
- Michael Selelo Saoli (Kenya) – 3:21
- Daniel Pattis (Italy) – 3:21
- Antonio Martìnez (Spain) – 3:21
- Luca Del Pero (Italy) – 3:24
- Jack Kuenzle (U.S.) – 3:25
Michael Selelo Saoli, 2024 Giir di Mont champ. Photo: World Mountain Running Association/Marco Gulberti
Women
The women’s race mirrored the men’s with a from-the-start leader, but lacked the tight finish. Ioana Madalina Amairei (Romania) won in 4:09, and was most closely followed by second- and third-place Ikram Rharsalla (Spain) and Sara Willhoit (U.K.) in 4:14 and 4:19.
The top 5 women were:
- Ioana Madalina Amairei (Romania) – 4:09
- Ikram Rharsalla (Spain) – 4:14
- Sara Willhoit (U.K.) – 4:19
- Martina Cumerlato (Italy) – 4:24
- Elisa Presa (Italy) – 4:37
The WMRA World Cup will be back on August 10 with Switzerland’s famed Sierre-Zinal race.
Ioana Madalina Amairei winning the 2024 Giir di Mont. Photo: World Mountain Running Association/Marco Gulberti
Badwater 135 Mile – Death Valley, California
In its 47th year, the popular race started at nighttime on Monday, July 22. The invitational field of about 100 ran that classic route from the 280-feet-below-sea-level Death Valley start to a finish at the base of Mount Whitney.
Men
Simen Holvik (Norway) struck first, opening a 50-minute lead on Shaun Burke by mile 42. Burke pulled even near mile 100 though and mercied Holvik. Burke won in 23:29 and Holvik, the race’s 2023 winner, did not finish. Burke improved considerably on his fourth-place 27:32 finish from a year ago.
It was over four hours before the next man would finish.
Iván Penalba Lopez (Spain) was second in 28:06 and Michael Ohler (Germany) was third in 28:24.
Women
Women’s winner Line Kaliskaner (Norway) was also second overall. She finished in 27:36.
Micah Morgan was second in 29:11 and Caryn Lubetsky was third in 33:25.
Additional Races and Runs
Buckin’ Hell 50k – North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Todd Marwick (Canada) and Jennie Labrie (Canada) won the Coast Mountain Trail Running race at Mount Seymour in 5:19 and 6:15. Full results.
Resurrection Pass 100 Mile – Cooper Landing, Alaska
The race was just highlighted in AJW’s “Under the Radar Races” series. Torrey Short won the men’s race in 25:36, but Meg Inokuma was the overall winner in 20:52. Inokuma’s finish was a new women’s course record. Full results (when available).
Meg Inokuma after winning the 2024 Resurrection Pass 100 Mile. Photo: Brandon Wood
Cirque Series – Alyeska, Alaska
What’s this, two Alaska races this week? The Last Frontier showed out with a 6.2-mile course that totaled 3,890 feet of elevation gain. David Norris scored a 59-second win over David Kennedy for the men’s victory. The two ran 1:04 and 1:05, and Joshua Taylor was a distant third in 1:18. Women’s winner Kendall Kramer gapped Aly Walford (Canada) and Laurel Moyer with a 1:18 finish time. Walford was second in 1:24 and Moyer was third in 1:25. Full results.
Crazy Mountain 100 Mile – Lennep, Montana
Seth Swanson and Rachel Entrekin won in 22:08 and 25:06. It was the race’s third year and Entrekin broke the course record. Entrekin won the May 2024 Cocodona 250 Mile and is riding a long winning streak. Full results.
Tushars Mountain Runs – Eagle Point Ski Resort, Utah
The Aravaipa Running race ran at high altitude. Most of the course is around 10,000 above sea level. Adam Loomis and Stacey Marion won the 100k in 11:39 and 15:45, and Ryan Raff and Addie Bracy were best over 70k in 8:42 and 9:36. Full results.
Never Summer 100k – Gould, Colorado
The Gnar Runners race was in State Forest State Park in little-visited north central Colorado. Justin Grunewald was the daylong leader with an 11:39 finish time. Geoff Burns and Benjamin Bruno dueled through the race and finished four minutes apart. Burns ran 12:54 for second to Bruno’s 12:58 third-place finish. Lindsey Anderson took the women’s race in 13:46. Sandi Nypaver and Lea Mulligan were second and third in 14:02 and 14:16.
The accompanying 60k crowned Austin Gliottone and Taylor Bacon as its winners in 6:36 and 7:41, respectively. Full results.
Ridge running not long after the 2024 Never Summer 100k’s high point of Diamond Peak. Photo: iRunFar/Bryon Powell
Pikes Peak Ultra – Colorado Springs, Colorado
It was the 10th year for the Mad Moose event. The 50-mile winners were Lewis Price and Larissa Marcich in 8:45 and 10:17, and Zach Eagle and Regan Sikes led the 50k in 5:53 and 6:34. Full results.
Minnesota Voyageur 50 Mile – Carlton, Minnesota
The race dates back to 1982 and was run on alternate course this year, but still went out and back near Lake Superior and Duluth. William Howard and Amy Whelan won in 8:36 and 10:05. Full results.
William Howard after winning the Minnesota Voyageur 50 Mile. Photo: Jarrow Wahman
Burning River 100 Mile – Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio
The 100-mile race went out and back and Heath Goshorn and Brenda Johnson did it in 15:23 and 19:19. Justin Bean and HollyAnn Swann won the 50 miler in 6:53 and 7:15. Full results.
On the Rocks Trail Runs 50k – York, Pennsylvania
Joshua Richardson and Maeve Thistel led a small group through the 50k in 5:13 and 5:49. Full results.
World Trail Majors Team’s League
It’s year one for the World Trail Majors and the 10-race circuit is adding a team’s league for 2025. Each race will crown an individual champion and a team champion, and the same for the series as a whole. There’s a greater explanation on the World Trail Majors site.
Trail Running Memoriams
Abi Moore, co-owner of British Columbia’s Stag Leap Running Company, was killed in an auto accident on July 17, 2024. Moore was also the race director for the Elk Valley Ultra in British Columbia. The race, which was scheduled for July 27, was canceled. “Canadian Running” has a longer tribute.
The community also mourns the loss of Yoshiko Jo, a road and trail runner from Japan who lived — and ran — on the U.S. East Coast for decades. Jo, a veteran of more than 100 marathons and 50 ultramarathons, passed away on July 20, 2024, following a brief illness. Swarthmore College, where Jo worked as a Senior Lecturer, has memorialized her professional work and running passion.
The iRunFar team sends its condolences to the loved ones of these runners.
Call for Comments
Was your weekend all trail running and ultrarunning, or did you catch some of the Olympics too?
