ROCK ISLAND ROAD RACE (updated June 13th)

Here are Saturday's race results: 15K 10K 5K. 

The race photos can be found here. 

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Other weekend races:

Mike Malone of Lake Ozark took second overall (of 51 competitors) in The Great Escape Triathlon's sprint distance race in Jefferson City on Sunday. Mike finished the 400-meter pool swim, 12-mile bike and 3.1-mile run in 1:10:28. He had the 8th fastest swim, the fastest bike split, and the 3rd fastest run. Full results are here.

The Cotter Bridge Ultra in Norfork, Arkansas is a modified version of its predecessor, the Arkansas Backyard Ultra Championship. Unlike conventional backyard ultras, the race offered four time options-- 24, 12, 6 and 1 hour--with the winners being determined by the fastest finish of those who make it to the final hour. Only one of the sixteen 24-hour competitors made it to the final hour, and won by default. The 12-hour race had 16 contenders reach the final hour, and 15 who dropped out early. The 6-hour race had 25 for the final hour, and 3 drop-outs. All told, there were 80 starters. Full results are here.

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GO GIRL RUN COLUMBIA HALF MARATHON & 5K (posted June 3rd)

Three local runners traveled to Columbia for Sunday's women-only Go Girl Run Half Marathon & 5K.  

Congratulations go to fourteen year-old Rose Falter of Lake Ozark, who achieved a very rare distinction for a Lake-area runner--an overall victory at an out-of-town race.  Last year, Rose finished the half marathon in 2:03:06, placing 11th overall (of 105 finishers).  On Sunday, Rose shaved 20 minutes off last year's finish time, and took home the overall race victory (over 114 others).  It's important to note that she was also the youngest finisher in the race. 

Complete race results can be found here.

Participation fell 13% from last year, to a new low for the race. Here are the total number of finishers, by distance, since 2016. 

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HOSPITAL HILL RUN (posted June 3rd)

The 51st annual Hospital Hill Run was held in Kansas City on Saturday.  Hospital Hill is one of the oldest running races in the state; only the Columbia Track Club's Heart of America Marathon, which was first held in 1960, is known to be older.

Four of our local runners participated in this year's race.  Their results are below:

Complete race results can be found here. 

Total participation was down 39% from 2023, but the decline can be easily explained.  At last year's 50th anniversary race, runners received commemorative jackets and medals. 

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Other weekend races:

The Unbound Gravel (formerly the Dirty Kanza) bike races in eastern Kansas had some remarkable results this past weekend. Check out the margins of victory in the various race distances held:

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RUNSTOCK (posted May 21st)

Thirty-seven runners turned out for RunStock this past weekend at the Lake of the Ozarks State Park. Runners had six races (5K, 10K, half marathon, marathon, 6-hour and 12-hour) from which to choose over the three-day event.

Tucker Seise was a three-race winner, winning the 5K, 10K and half marathon.

The closest race finish was in the marathon, where just 35 seconds separated the first- and second-place finishers.

Tanner Trettin of Columbia put in the most miles for the weekend.  He completed 60 miles in the 12-hour ultra run.

Abbreviated results are shown below.  The results posted on RunSignup.com have additional details.

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JOPLIN MEMORIAL RUN (posted May 20th)

Thirteen years after a devastating tornado took the lives of 161 residents, the final Joplin Memorial Run commemorating them was held this past Saturday.

In his eleventh appearance at the race, Jim McDermott finished the half marathon in 2:00:33 and placed second (of 12) in the men's 70-and-over age group.

Complete race results can be found here. 

Not surprisingly, the swan song year for the race brought out a big crowd, with total participation up nearly 80% over last year, and the largest since the mid 2010s.  Here are the year-by-year finishers, by distance, since 2015.

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Other weekend races:

The biggest race of the weekend was the St. Louis Zoo's Make Tracks Through the Zoo 5K, with 3,058 finishers. The Athlinks.com results running 62 pages long, and I didn't have time to look for any local runners.

The Kansas City Triathlon saw an increase in participation for the second year in a row. They went from 459 finishers in 2022 to 533 last year, and to 626 this year. That's more than the 550 finishers in the pre-COVID year of 2019.

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CAPITAL CITY RACE (5K/10K/HALF MARATHON) (posted May 13th)

Ten runners from the Lake area traveled to Jefferson City on Saturday for the second annual Capital City Race, which offered 5K, 10K and half marathon distance options.

Here are the results for our locals:

There were 261 finishers at this year's race, almost the same as last year's 265.

Complete results can be found here. 

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TRIZOU FOR MS TRIATHLON & 5K (posted May 6th)

In the sport of triathlon, when you're over the age of 69, you're pretty much competing alone in your age group. Such was case for Jim McDermott on Saturday at the TriZou for MS Triathlon in Columbia. Jim won the 70-74 age group. (There was one competitor older than Jim at the race, but he was in the 75-79 age group.)

Jim did the sprint distance race, completing the 500-meter pool swim, 14-mile bike and 5K run in 1:30:17.  Here are his splits:

Swim:        11:06 
Run to T-1: 0:57
T-1:             2:34
Bike:          47:10  (17.8 miles per hour)
T-2:             2:17
Run:          26:14  
Finish:    1:30:17

Here's how Jim's did from 2014 to 2019, before TriZou went on a four-year hiatus.

Full results can be found here.

TriZou was once one of the largest triathlons in the state, with about 750 participants at its peak around 2013-2014.  Unfortunately, it faced the same attendance problems as running races. The race was cancelled due to COVID in 2020 by its then-owner, Ultramax Sports, in 2020, and didn't return until it was resurrected this year by Heartland Racing.

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LAKE REGIONAL FUN RUN & HONOR WALK (posted May 4th)

Revenge was sweet for Andrew Leiker at the Lake Regional Fun Run 5K & Honor Walk on Saturday.  The Columbia runner, who finished one minute slower and placed second to Nigher Alfaro last year, finished 14 seconds ahead of him this year, and denied Nigher a sixth overall race victory.  Andrew crossed the line in 21:55, and Nigher in 22:09.

Elaine Mallahan cruised to an easy victory in the women's race.  Elaine won in 25:19, about 2-1/2 minutes ahead of Macy Kauter of Kaiser.  Elaine last won this race in 2015, when she finished in 22:24 and broke the women's race record--a record that still stands nine years later.

One notable finish was turned in by 77 year-old Thom Wilkins of Lebanon, who finished in 29:34.  Eleven years ago, at age 66, Thom ran a 19:13 and took second overall to a very fast high school cross country runner, David Prather. 

There were 91 timed runners and walkers at this year's race.  That's 40% higher than last year's total of 65.

Complete results can be found here.

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LAKE OF THE OZARKS ENDURANCE RUNS  (posted May 4th)

       

It took six years, but the dry spell is finally over.  A Lake-area runner has claimed an overall victory at the Lake of the Ozarks Endurance Runs.  Two runners, in fact.  Harley Owens of Eldon topped the list of 32 competitors in the LOZ Traverse (32 miles of trail running; 3 miles of paddling), while 14 year-old Charlie Boyle eked out a 33-second victory over younger brother Connor, plus 17 others, to win the Wandering Bobcat 5-mile trail race.

LOZ Traverse

Harley finished sixth overall at last year's LOZ Traverse, in 6:59:56.  He shaved 31 minutes off that this year, and won with a comfortable margin of victory of 30 minutes over Phillip North of Jonesboro, Illinois.  (Phillip knocked nearly two hours off of his finish time from last year.)

First-timer Marianne Stone of Kansas City won the women's race, in 7:09:15--thirteen minutes ahead of another newcomer, Ashley Lesniak of Spring Mills, Pennsylvania.

Trail of Four Winds 25K

The oldest of the LOZ Endurance Runs--the Trail of Four Winds 25K--continues to be dominated by out-of-town competitors. This year's overall winner was Jimmy Montalto of Lenexa, Kansas. He won by a mere six seconds over Peter Dawson of Kansas City, making this the closest finish in the race's six-year history. Both were making their first appearance at TOFW.  This year's winning time was the slowest in race history.

Another first-timer, Alexandra Luechtefeld of Columbia, won the women's race, in 2:27:19.  Alexandra had a 31-minute lead at the finish over yet another TOFW newbie, Ashley Nelson of Alexandria, Minnesota.

The top local runner was William Faulconer of Lake Ozark, in 2:52:41.  The former Osage High School cross country runner placed 12th overall, among 59 finishers.

Wandering Bobcat 5-Mile

Charlie Boyle knocked about a minute off his second-place finish time last year to take the overall crown this year, winning in 50:21.  Without that improvement, Charlie might have had to settle for another second-place finish, as his 13 year-old brother, Connor, finished in 50:54. (Connor shaved over five minutes of of last year's finish time, setting the stage for a bigger sibling duel at next year's race.)

Meghan Goodrich of Crocker won the women's race, in 1:05:34.  She defeated Kelsey Ross of Troy by about 8 minutes.

Complete race results can be found here. 

Participation was little changed from 2023 and 2022.

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OZARK GREENWAYS FRISCO RAILROAD RUN  (posted April 29th)

The 17th annual Ozark Greenways Frisco Railroad Run (Facebook) (50M/50K/marathon/half/8K) was held on Saturday at the pancake-flat Highline Trail in Willard. 

Tucker Seise and Brittany Parrish represented the Lake area well at the race, with Tucker placing 6th overall in the marathon, and Brittany placing 10th among the 69 women in the 8K. Tucker finished in 3:29:57; Brittany in 45:19.

Complete results can be found at UltraSignup.com.

Participation was up 20% over last year.  Here are the number of race finishers each year since 2014:

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KENTUCKY DERBY FESTIVAL MARATHON & MINI MARATHON  (posted April 29th)

The Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon & mini Marathon (the worst monicker for a half marathon, ever!) was held on Saturday, one week before the 150th running of the world's most prestigious horse race. Eight runners from the Lake area were among the ten thousand participants.

Seven of the Lake-area participants, plus Cristan Rayl of Kansas City. Three-time previous Kentucky Derby Marathon finisher April Leonard was away at the time the group photo was taken. (Photo provided.)

Here are the results for our local runners:

Complete race results can be found here.

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Other weekend races:

While most races this past weekend saw an increase in attendance over last year, the CCVI Trolley Run 4-miler in Kansas City experienced a 27% decline. There were 1,962 finishers on Sunday, down from 2,704 last year. While the weather was dry during the race, steady rains Saturday night and early Sunday morning may have kept some away. The prize purse for this race always attracts some elite runners. The winner, from Grand Prairie, Texas, crossed the line in 17:52--a pace of 4:28 per mile--and took home $1,500.  (The Athlinks.com results run 40 pages long, and I don't have time to scroll through them to look for local runners.  If you ran it, let me know.)

The remodeled Greater St. Louis Marathon (formerly known as the GO! St. Louis Marathon) had its biggest turnout since 2017, and has returned to its pre-COVID size. While it still has quite a ways to go to match its peak size of the early 2010s, the race no longer appears to be in danger of a major downsizing.  I scrolled through the 26 pages of marathon results posted on Athlinks.com, and didn't find any local runners.  I didn't have the time (nor patience) to scroll through another 90 pages of results for the other races in search of locals, so let me know if you ran the race, and I'll post your results.

Michelle Waters of Camdenton ran the Lub Dub 5K in Sedalia on Saturday. Michelle finished in 48:01, placing 6th (of 8) in the women's 50-59 age group. The Sedalia triumvirate of Kim Ream, Millie Cavanagh and Lori Hurt, who race several times a year in the Lake area, were among the 10K finishers.

Mike Malone of Lake Ozark moved up from 8th overall last year to 5th this year at the Molly Miles 5K in Columbia. Mike finished in 18:52, giving him a victory in the men's 30-39 age group.  There were 588 5K and 125 10K finishers this year, little changed from last year.

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TCS London Marathon: With four of the fastest women marathoners in the world competing at the TCS London Marathon, it didn't come as a big surprise that the current world record would be broken on Sunday.  Peres Jepchirchir of Kenya set a new record by winning in 2:16:16. (Faster marathons have been run, but official world records require that the women race separately. The faster marathons were run in mixed races.)

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The Garmin Olathe Marathon, Half Marathon & 10K had a big increase in turnout for this year's race.  There were 2,629 finishers on Saturday, up 41% from last year, and a surprising 75% more than two years ago.   Below are year-by-year totals, by distance since 2014.

One runner from the Lake area was among the competitors.  Callie McDonald of Eldon ran the 10K, finishing in 1:14:48 and placing 14th (of 27) in the women's 50-54 age group.

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GO GIRL RUN - SPRINGFIELD HALF MARATHON (posted April 15th)

It looks like Marlisa Nolan of Osage Beach was our only local runner to toe a starting line this past weekend. Marlisa, who ran the Polar Bear Strut 5K, the Whobilation 5K, and the Bridge & Dam 10K in recent months, ran the half marathon at GO Girl Run - Springfield on Saturday. (There's no word whether this was her first half.) Marlisa finished in 2:24:12, placing third (of four) in the women's 55-59 age group.

Total participation was down 18% from last year.  Last year's race was the first time it had been organized by Heartland Racing. They resurrected it after its original owner, Ultramax Sports, cancelled it due to a double whammy years of declining attendance and COVID.

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Other weekend races:

For years, Bridge & Dam has been used as a final training test of sorts for some Missouri runners running the Boston Marathon a few weeks later. That was the case year, as well, as Bridge & Dam's 25K winner, Tim Glavin of Jefferson City, finished Monday's Boston Marathon in 3:14:22.

The most popular race of the weekend was the Cardinals 5K in St. Louis. Just under 2,000 runners turned out for it, up from 1,853 last year.  I didn't have time to go through the 40 pages of race results looking for any Lake-area participants.  If you let me know that you raced, I'll pass on your results.

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ROCK THE PARKWAY HALF MARATHON & 5K (posted April 8th)

Nearly 4,500 runners turned out for the Rock the Parkway Half Marathon & 5K in Kansas City on Saturday. Two were from the Lake area.

Ty Herrenbruck of Sunrise Beach ran the half marathon, finishing in 2:19:08 and placing 182nd (of 214) in the men's 25-29 age group.

In the 5K, Avery Ward of Camdenton finished in 32:15.  That placed Avery 6th (of 21) in the women's 15-19 age group.

Complete race results can be found here.

Like many other races held so far this year, Rock the Parkway had a much-improved turnout compared to last year, though still below pre-COVID participation levels--especially in the half marathon.  Here are the number of finishers, by distance, over the last eight races.

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BRIDGE AND DAM 25K, HALF MARATHON, 10K & 5K (posted March 25th)

Despite cloudy skies and temperatures that never made it out of the 30s, turnout increased 17% over last year for the tenth annual Bridge and Dam 25K, Half Marathon, 10K & 5K (Facebook page) in Lake Ozark on Saturday.  The race is organized by and benefits the Lake of the Ozarks chapter of the non-profit Missouri Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA).

There were 367 finishers at this year's race, with increases experienced at every race distance.  Shown below are the number of finishers, by distance, since 2015.

Bridge & Dam still retains its status as the largest running race in the Lake area, and one of the largest running races in Missouri held outside of a large metropolitan area. 

Race Results

Complete race results can be found here. 

25K

The overall 25K winner was Tim Glavin of Jefferson City. Tim finished in 1:44:33, nearly six minutes ahead of last year's winner, Jarden Angell of Centralia. 

Finishing behind the top two men was the women's winner, 24 year-old Alexis Krogman of Quincy, Illinois.  Alexis finished in 1:54:43, about 20 minutes ahead of last year's women's winner, Millie Cavanagh of Sedalia.

Both the men's and women's winning times represented new course records. 

The only Lake-area runner whose name I recognize in the results was Dan Beck, who finished in 2:42:02.  (The much-hated Athlinks race results don't list the cities or home states for the finishers, so I may have missed some of our locals.  Please let me know if I missed you.)

Half Marathon

Local runner Tucker Seise brought his overall race victory total to five this year by winning the half marathon, in 1:19:35. This was Tucker's third Bridge & Dam half, after placing 10th overall in 2021 and 6th in 2022.  He switched to--and won--last year's 10K.   

In winning the women's race, Olivia Durant of Shawnee, Kansas broke one of the very few Bridge & Dam records that has stood since the inaugural race in 2015.  Olivia won in 1:23:01, breaking former Lake-area runner Lizzy Handschy's record time by 19 seconds. This was Olivia's second Bridge & Dam women's half victory. She won in 2022, and took second in 2021.

10K

Eddie Grier of Manhattan, Kansas won the 10K, in 39:24, about a minute ahead of Bryan Hollenberg of St. Louis.  This was Eddie's first time at Bridge & Dam, and Bryan's third.  Finishing a few minutes behind them was our top local finisher, Nigher Alfaro,  

The women's race was won by Jamie Fitzpatrick of Sherman, Illinois.  Jamie won in 48:56, shaving over a minute from last year's 50:08.  Only equaling last year's time would have cost her a victory this year, as second-place finisher Hanna Jones crossed the line in 49:20.

5K

Both the men's and women's 5K course records were broken this year.

In the closest finish of the day, Seamus McCarthy of Jefferson City finished two seconds ahead of Camdenton High School sophomore cross country runner Luke Webb.  Seamus' 18:04 finish time broke Cooper Vickers' record of 18:23 that stood for seven years.

Finishing next in line behind the top two men, in a very impressive 19:03, was Alicia Engelbrecht, a 24 year-old former Helias Catholic High School and William Woods University cross country runner. Alicia broke the course record that Cierra Hiland has held since 2017.

For the fourth straight year, the oldest competitor in the 5K was Carol Cange, who at age 84 this year finished the 5K in 56:32.

Legacy Half Finishers

Seven of the eight runners who had finished every Bridge & Dam half marathon (or longer race) since its debut in 2015 returned this year to extend their streaks. (2020 is excluded from the tally since the race was virtual only.)  Jeanne Pfetsch's streak ended this year. Below is the list of the diehards. Their ages appear in parentheses.  The competition to be the very last legacy runner remaining could go on for many years.

Russell Burkett (52) (O'Fallon, MO)
Alisha Eldridge (43) (Eldon)
Ryan Garlock (47) (Lincoln, NE)
Lindsay Garlock (47) (Lincoln, NE)
Lori Hurt (42) (Sedalia)
Kim Ream (41) (Sedalia)
Heather Skouby (54) Eldon

Results for Lake-area runners

Here are the results for our Lake-area runners, by race distance and finish order.  (If I missed anyone, please let me know.)

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Other weekend races:

The Liberty Hospital Half Marathon & 5K had a 17% decline in participation this year compared to last.  The race has shrunk in size by one-third since its peak in 2020.

No results have yet been reported for the Weldon Spring Trail Marathon & Half.

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BARKLEY MARATHONS (posted March 25th)

At least three records fell at this year's Barkley Marathons.  The most surprising is that there were five finishers of the race.  This is a race where it's not uncommon that no one finishes.  There have been three years when there were two finishers, and two years when there have been three.  To have five finishers in a single year would have been unthinkable. 

For the first time in race history, there was a female finisher. Jasmin Paris, an ultrarunner from Great Britain, finished the five-loop, 100+ mile, 60-hour race with 93 seconds to spare.  This was not her first Barkley attempt.  She finished three loops--a "fun run", in Barkley parlance--in 2022 and 2023.

Jared Campbell broke his own record of three Barkley finishes by completing his fourth.  Had he not done so, John Kelly, a previous two-time finisher, would have tied Jared's record.

Harvey Lewis had navigational issues on his second loop, and failed to finish.

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SHAMROCK SHUFFLE 5K/15K & BEER MILE (posted March 18th)

Three Lake-area runners traveled to Springfield on Saturday for Fleet Feet's Shamrock Shuffle 5K/15K & Beer Mile.  All three competed in the 15K.

Tucker Seise finished in 54:15, taking second overall among the 108 finishers.  Tucker crossed the finish line about three minutes behind the race winner.  Kalise Lischwe finished in 1:30:40, placing 5th (of 16) in the women's 30-39 age group.  Placing 6th in that group was Brittany Parrish, who finished in 1:32:51.

Despite the nice weather, participation was down quite a bit from last year.  There were 108 15K finishers, down 30% from 155 last year, and 239 5K finishers, down 25% from last year.

Complete race results can be found here.

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Other weekend race results (March 16-17):

The St. Patrick's Day Parade Run was the biggest race of the weekend in the state, with 1,889 5-mile finishers, and 603 3K finishers. The number of 5-mile finishers was nearly unchanged from last year's 1,913; the 3K was up 20% over last year. If anyone local competed, let me know, and I'll report it. (The Parade Run results are posted on the awful Athlinks.com website.  Searching through 51 pages of results just isn't happening.)

There were over 1,000 participants at the Creve Coeur St. Paddy's Half Marathon & 5K/10K at Creve Coeur Park on Saturday.  That was way up from about 800 last year.

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CAMDENTON BANDS SHAMROCK SHUFFLE 5K (posted March 11th)

A nice crowd of 59 runners and walkers turned out Saturday for the Shamrock Shuffle 5K, benefiting the Camdenton Bands.

Tucker Seise cruised to victory, finishing in 19:17--over four minutes ahead of second-place finisher Lukas Davis.  Camdenton High School freshman cross country runner Averie Hotle easily won the women's race, in 23:20.

Complete race results can be found here.

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TIME TO PADDY 5K/10K & LUCKY 13.1 - SPRINGFIELD (posted March 11th)

Tucker Seise and Brittany Parish made it a two-fer weeked, doing the Camdenton Bands Shamrock Shuffle 5K on Saturday, followed by the inaugural Lucky 13.1 half marathon in Willard on Sunday.

Tucker was the overall winner, finishing in 1:18:40.  He finished more than 15 minutes, or about two miles, ahead of his nearest rival.  Brittany finished in 2:21:19, placing second (of two) in the women's 30-34 age group.

There were 47,13 and 23 finishers of the 5K, 10K and half marathon, respectively.

Complete race results can be found here.

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QUEENY BACKYARD ULTRA (posted March 4th)

The fourth annual Queeny Backyard Ultra at Queeny Park in suburban St. Louis drew a record crowd of 95 competitors (up 35% from last year's 70), all hoping to win the highly coveted ticket to Big Dog's Backyard Ultra--the Super Bowl of backyard ultras--by being the last runner standing.

Last year's winner, Cody Eubanks, looked like he was headed for a return trip to Big Dog's, where he lasted 48 hours (200 miles) in 2022's race.  Despite lasting a personal best of 59 hours (247 miles) at Queeny, more than twice as long as he needed to win last year's race, it still wasn't enough.  A runner from Arlington, Virginia 27 year-old, Dave Kwiatkowski outlasted the 40 year-old Cody and earned a slot at Big Dog's. Dave and Cody were the only runners still in contention after the 36-hour mark of the race.   

Full results can be found at the race's Ultrasignup page.

Photos and video clips can be found at the race's Facebook page.

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WHOBILATION 5K RUN/WALK (updated March 3rd)

The race results can be viewed by finish order or by age group.

The photos have been posted. You can view them here.

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POLAR BEAR STRUT 5K RUN/WALK (updated February 28th)

Perfect running weather (low 40s, sunny skies and no wind) brought out a big crowd for the 23rd annual Polar Bear Strut 5K on Saturday.  A total of 84 runners and walkers participated in this year's race, a drop from 98 last year.  The event raised $4,856 for Special Olympics Missouri.

Tucker Seise finished in 17:07 and claimed his third overall Strut victory.  The women's race was won by first-time winner Jamie Johnston in 30:55.  (Only the results for the winners have been posted.)

   

The race photos are posted here.  

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ROCK 'N' ROLL LAS VEGAS HALF MARATHON, 10K & 5K (posted February 27th)

The above logo dates all the way back to 2012--the very last time that Lake-area runners competed at Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas.  That race was where Todd Raney, who now resides in Kansas City, first crossed a marathon finish line, before going on to finish 150+ more. (The marathon distance was dropped from Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas after the 2019 race.)

Seven of our local runners traveled to Las Vegas last weekend for this year's race.  Their results are shown below. 

Complete race results can be found here.

Scott Page passed along a photo of Natasha Boettcher with her 5K and half marathon finisher's medals.

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PUBLIX FLORIDA MARATHON, HALF MARATHON & 5K/10K (posted February 13tj)

Tucker Seise spent last weekend in warm, humid and breezy Melbourne, Florida, kicking off his race season at the Publix Half Marathon.  He ran a great race, finishing sixth overall (of 847 competitors) and second in the men's 25-29 age group, with a finish time of 1:22:20 (6:17 per mile). 

Here's something I've never seen before: Tucker is listed in the half marathon results not once, but twice.  He also finished in 803rd place, in a leisurely finish time of 3:17:11 (15:03 per mile).  The screwy results can be found here.  

In two months, Tucker will be competing at the Boston Marathon.

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Weekend race results (February 10 - 11):

We actually had two locals listed in this weekend's race results--both from Camdenton, and both competing at the Couple Shuffle 5K at Queeny Park in suburban St. Louis on Saturday. Mary Norris finished in 34:48, placing second (of 6) in the women's 50-59 age group. Marcia Reed took a more leisurely approach, finishing in 1:08:06 and taking fourth (of 5) in the 60-64 age group.

The biggest race of the weekend was the Snowball Series 5-miler in St. Charles, with 737 finishers. They had 803 last year.

The Sweetheart Run 5K/10K in Kansas City had 624 finishers, up from 600 last year.

At the Cabin Fever Reliever 5K/10K/20K in Rogersville, Springfield's phenomenal Kimi Reed, who doesn't do many races in the area, walloped the rest of the field in the 5K, finishing in 19:36--a leisure pace for her.  A couple fellow geezers, 71 year-old Henri Coeme and 78 year-old Robert Dewar, both of whom have raced at the Rock Island Road Race in Eldon, ran the 20K and 10K, respectively  Another familiar name, Randy Acklin of Marshfield, who usually paces the 1:45 group at the Bass Pro half, finished the 20K in ... 1:45:12. 

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Terrible tragedy:  Kelvin Kiptum, the Kenyan marathoner who broke Eliud Kipchoge's world record at the Chicago Marathon last fall, died in an automobile accident in his home country on Sunday. He was only 24 years old, and could one day have been recognized as the greatest marathoner of all time.  He and Eliud were going to race head-to-head at the Summer Olympics marathon.  You can read about the tragedy here.

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Weekend race results (February 3 - 4):

It looks like our local runners went back into hibernation this past weekend.  I didn't see any familiar names in the weekend's race results, although a few races still haven't posted their results.

Bodies Race Company, which puts on themed races around the U.S., held their Couple Shuffle 5K/10K in both St. Joseph and Springfield on Sunday.  They had 56 total finishers in St. Joseph, but a mere 11 in Springfield.  Ten of the Springfield participants won their respective age groups.

The Argo Half Marathon in Kansas City covets its reputation for being a tough race, with its semi-annual races being held in the coldest and hottest times of the year.  Temperatures were in the 40s for Saturday's race, so that reputation took a bit of a hit.

The Kickoff 5K in Kansas City had 662 finishers, down from 720 last year.  The overall winner crossed the line in a blistering 15:20 (a 4:57/mile pace), a full minute and a half ahead of his nearest rival.

The Castlewood Cup 15K in St. Louis had a slightly bigger turnout this year (285) than last (267).

A spammer's delight:  The St. Louis Track Club's Frostbite Series results contain all of the participants' e-mail addresses.

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Weekend race results (January 27 - 28):

The Columbia Track Club's Runner's Choice Trail Run had 39 and 14 finishers of the 10K and 20K, respectively.  The ageless Andy Emerson took second overall in the 20K in 1:55:31.  Two-time Eldon Rock Island Road Race 5K winner Tony Rigdon was third overall in the 10K, finishing ing in 53:09.

The Bleak Midwinter Endurance Run (12/6/3/1-hour races) in Springfield had 60 participants on Saturday, nearly double the total of 36 at last year's inaugural race. No familiar names were spotted in the results.

We finally have our first Lake-area race finishers of the year. Tom and Stacy Mosher ran underground at the Groundhog Run in Kansas City. They ran and finished the 5K together, in 1:04:18. There were 1,717 and 591 finishers of the 5K and 10K, respectively, compared to 1,358 and 488 last year.

The Wildwood Frozen Feet Trail Race in suburban St. Louis was shortened to 10 miles this year, after having been a half marathon for the last 10 years. They had 102 finishers this year, versus 151 last year.

The Nippy Niner (9-mile and 9K) in St. Louis also had fewer finishers this year (75 in total) versus last year (94).

The inaugural Time Travel Half Marathon, 10K and 5K in Springfield had 30, 10 and 19 finishers, respectively.

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Weekend race results (January 20-21):

The deep cold that caused a few events to be postponed or cancelled this past weekend is probably to blame for the low turnouts at the few events that did go on as scheduled.

The St. Louis Track Club's Frostbite Series half marathon had 233 finishers, down one-third from 345 last year. In Mountain Home, Arkansas, there were 124 finishers at the David's Trail Endurance Run (50K/25K/7K), down 36% from last year's total.

Interestingly, the one event held indoors this weekend--the Blood, Sweat and Gears One-Hour Run at the St. Louis Auto Show--had just 35 participants. The winner completed 8.74 miles in 59:40.

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RACE PARTICIPATION UP IN 2023

Interest in running grew last year, using the number of half marathon, marathon and ultramarathon finishers as our gauge. There were 30,044 finishers at such races last year in Missouri, up 14% from 2022 and 33% from 2021. Still, 2023's total falls short of the 35,731 finishers in 2019--the last year before COVID reared its ugly head.

2024's number will be eagerly awaited. If it exceeds 2019's total, it will mean that the long decline in participation that started around 2014 will finally be over. If, on the other hand, it declines from 2023, it could suggest that the long-term decline isn't over, and that the last few years were just a rebound from 2019's disastrous results. (A "dead cat bounce", in Wall Street lingo.)

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