MISSOURI STATE HIGH SCHOOL CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS (posted November 9th)

Here are the results for our local high school cross country runners at the state championship meet held on Friday and Saturday at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia.  

In the Class 3 team standings, the Osage girls placed 10th of 16 teams. The Osage boys were 15th of 16 teams.

As is usually the case, the fastest boys and girls runners in the state were in the Class 5 race.  The boys winner finished in 14:52, and the girls winner in 18:08.  The boys winning time was 1 second slower than last year.  Surprisingly, the girls winning time was nearly a minute slower. 

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Boston Marathon: Qualifying for the Boston Marathon has becme much tougher for those 59 years of age and younger. In September, the Boston Athletic Association announced that, for the 2026 race, the qualifying standard for every age group below 60-64 would be reduced by 5 minutes. Here are the new qualifying standards:

One can't help but wonder if a man hell-bent on running Boston would claim non-binary status to get an extra 30 minutes to run a qualifying time.

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BASS PRO SHOPS FITNESS SERIES MARATHON, MARATHON RELAY, HALF MARATHON & 5K (posted November 8th)

Nineteen Lake-area runners competed at last Sunday's Bass Pro Shops Fitness Series marathon, half marathon and 5K.  That was the most number of locals at Bass Pro since 2018, when 22 toed the starting line.  (The 2014 Bass Pro still stands as the out-of-town race with the most Lake-area runners ever, with 40.)

Tucker Seise was tops among the locals in the marathon.  Tucker finished in 3:08:17, placing 2nd (of 33) in the men's 30-34 age group, and 8th overall among the 407 marathon finishers.  (Tucker needed to break 2:55:00 to qualify for the 2026 Boston Marathon.) 

Former Camdenton High School and Drury University cross country standout, Jeremy Ryan, who now lives in St. Charles, took second-place overall in the marathon, finishing in 2:39:03. 

Here are the results for our Lake-area runners. If I missed anyone in the listing below, please let me know.

Complete race results can be found here.

Total participation was up 10% from last year, with increases experienced at every race distance.  Here are the total number of finishers, by distance, since 2015.  (Note that the number of marathon finishers was the highest in the past 10 years.)

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New York City Marathon:There were exciting ends to both the men's and women's races at Sunday's New York City Marathon. The top two runners in each race were tied up until about a half-mile to go, when the eventual winners pulled ahead for good. The men's winner was Abdi Nageeye, a Somali-born runner who became a Dutch citizen, in 2:07:39.  Sheila Chepkirui of Kenyan won the women's race in 2:24:35.

We had a Lake-area runner among the 50,000+ finishers.  Bobbi Snodgrass of Lake Ozark finished in a very impressive 4:12:47, placing 104th (of 704) in the women's 60-64 age group.

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HIGH SCHOOL CROSS COUNTRY DISTRICT MEET RESULTS FOR NOVEMBER 2nd (posted November 4th)

At Saturday's district meets, fifteen of our Lake-area high school cross country runners qualified as individuals for the state championships to be held this Friday and Saturday at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia. The Class 1 and 5 championships will be held on Friday, followed by the Class 2, 3, and 4 championships on Saturday.  

For the seventh year in a row, the Osage girls team will be going to state, after having beaten all other teams at the district races.

For the first time in memory, the Osage boys team will also be going to state.  They took third place in the team standings at their district. 

The top four teams and top 30 runners at each district race qualified for the state championships.  Here are the results for the individual qualifiers:

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MARINE CORPS MARATHON, 10K & 50K (posted October 28th)

Congratulations to the Lake area's newest marathon finisher, Amy Shatto. On Sunday, Amy ran the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C., holding a consistent 11-12 minute pace throughout the race, and finishing in 4:56:03. That placed Amy 392nd (of 712) in the women's 40-44 age group. You can find Amy's results here.

There were 16,178 marathon finishers, 955 50K finishers, and 4,736 10K finishers.

I've never looked at the MCM course map before, but it has enough out-and-backs and potential shortcuts to challenge the Mexico City Marathon course as a course-cutter's paradise.  (You may recall 11,000 Mexico City "finishers" were disqualified in 2023 for course-cutting.)  MCM has ten timing mats before the finish, so cheaters would likely get caught  MarathonInvestigation.com talked about MCM cheating six years ago.  (MCM course; Mexico City course)

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BIG DOG'S BACKYARD ULTRA / WORLD SATELLITE BACKYARD TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP  (updated October 24th)

Thursday morning update:  The race ended early Wednesday evening. Belgium won the world team championship, and by a big margin--1,147 yards, 18% more than Australia's 971 and the U.S.'s third place 969. Three members of the Belgium team each went 110 yards. That was the most number of yards completed in backyard ultra history.

Since the three Belgium competitors all stopped at 110 hours, if this were an individual race, there would be no finisher among them under backyard rules. Naturally, this has some in the backyard universe claiming that the Belgium runners didn't set a world record, and it's now being argued on Facebook.  

Running 458 miles--with essentially no quality sleep--over 4-1/2 days is beyond comprehension.

Thursday morning update:  It's over. Belgium won the world team championship, and by a big margin--1,147 yards, 18% more than Australia's 971 and the U.S.'s third place 969.

Tuesday evening update:  The race is now in its 86th hour.  The last 24 hours have resulted in major attrition.  Only four of the 61 teams that started are still in contention, and those four teams have a combined eleven runners still standing.  The U.S. team is down to two runners.  Notably, Harvey Lewis is not one of them--he lasted 79 hours.

It's very likely that the race will be over on Wednesday, and Belgium has to be the heavy favorite at this point.  Their top-two seeded team members still in the race established the then backyard world record of 101 hours at the team championship two years ago. 

Monday afternoon update: Cody Eubanks is out after 54 hours. Four others on the U.S. team are also out, leaving nine still standing. Only Australia has more, with ten.

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This is Super Bowl weekend for backyard ultra competitors and fans around the world. It all starts at 7:00 a.m. on Saturday.

The Big Dog's Backyard Ultra gives way this year to the biennial World Satellite Backyard Team Championship. Teams of 15 runners in 63 countries across the planet will be competing not only for their national teams, but also for a chance to be the last man standing worldwide, and thereby earn a golden ticket to next year's individual world championship at Big Dog's.

The U.S. team includes our friend Cody Eubanks of Jefferson City.  Cody earned one of the nine at-large spots on the team after completing 59 hours ("yards" in backyard ultra parlance) at the silver ticket Queeny Backyard Ultra in St. Louis back in March. This is Cody's second trip to Big Dog's. He competed in 2022, and lasted 48 hours.

Links:

Team U.S. tracking and results

Worldwide team tracking and results

Lazarus Lake's Facebook page

Big Dog's Backyard Ultra Run Group Facebook page

Backyard ultra home page

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GARMIN KANSAS CITY MARATHON, HALF MARATHON, 10K AND 5K (posted October 21st)

Two, young Lake-area runners were in Kansas City on Saturday for the Garmin Kansas City Marathon, Half Marathon, 10K and 5K--the biggest running race in the state. Here are their results:

Complete results can be found here.

Total participation at this year's race was up 15% over last year, and 40% over 2021, the first race after COVID.  Here are year-by-year totals, by distance, since 2015:  

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LAKE OF THE OZARKS OKTOBERFEST .5K AND 5K RUN/WALK (posted October 20th)

The second annual Lake of the Ozarks Oktoberfest .5K and 5K, benefiting Wonderland Camp, took place on Saturday at the recently opened The Sanctuary Brewery in Osage Beach.  A total of 57 participants toed the starting line (up from 54 last year), with 50 doing the 5K and 7 tackling the 0.5K.

The men's 5K was essentially a repeat of last year.   Tucker Seise won in 17:11 (versus 17:23 last year), with Nigher Alfaro taking second in 20:29 (20:15 last year).

Among the women, Elaine Mallahan finished first, in 22:54, about a half-minute ahead of Carolyn Clements of Cross Timbers.

Stacy Roberts, who reached the half-century mark this year, managed to eke out a four-second win over his wife, Katie.  (Katie must have raced with two broken legs for that to happen. Get well soon, Katie.)

Click for the the complete results:  5K and 0.5K

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HIGH SCHOOL CROSS COUNTRY MEET RESULTS FOR OCTOBER 14th (posted October 15th)

Camdenton and Macks Creek cross country runners competed at the Dixon Invitational on Monday.  Gunner Rhoads and Luke Webb finished 1-2 (of 35 competitors) in the boys race.  Gunner crossed the line in 18:05, and Luke in 18:12. 

One week after running the fastest 5K of any Lake-area girl this season, Averie Hotle finished a fraction of a second behind teammate Payton Canales. Payton took second place (of 29 competitors) by finishing in 22:12.00.  Averie crossed in 22:12.27, earning third place.

Complete results can be found here.

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CHICAGO MARATHON (posted October 14th)

For the second year in a row, a world marathon record was smashed at the Chicago Marathon.  Last year, Kelvin Keptum won in a record 2:00:35, breaking Eliud Kipchoge's previous record of 2:01:09. (Tragically, Keptum was killed in an automobile accident last February.)

On Sunday, it was the women's world record that fell--and by a big margin. Ruth Chepngetich of Kenya won in 2:09:56, beating the previous record of 2:11:53 (set last year in Berlin) by nearly two minutes. Just as breaking 2:00:00 is the holy grail among the men, breaking 2:10:00 has been the same for women.  

The men's race was won by John Korir, also of Kenya, who finished in 2:02:43.  That stands as the second-fastest finish time ever at Chicago, trailing only Keptum's record.

You can read more about the race here. 

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FROG HILL HALF MARATHON & 10K and LEAPFROG 5K (posted October 7th)

The eleventh annual Frog Hill Half Marathon & 5K/10K in Waynesville on Saturday was sadly marred by tragedy.  Eighteen year-old Rudy Zevallos, Jr., a senior at Lebanon High School, crossed the half marathon finish line in 1:57:28, soon fell ill, and then collapsed.  Despite immediate medical attention and transport to a hospital, he was soon after pronounced dead. His parents were at the finish line, and witnessed the horror of seeing their son pass away.  The exact cause of death is not yet known.  (If indeed it's ever determined, it may not be disclosed publicly.)

It was warm on Saturday morning, with the temperature around 61° at the 8:00 a.m. start, and 72° at 10:00 a.m.   Skies were clear throughout the race.

Not to play Internet doctor, but if you look at the sequence of Rudy's finish line photos posted by Split Second Timing, there are some body movements that appear rather unusual at a finish line, and facial expressions that show signs of stress.  (Take a look for yourself.  They're posted here.  Note that Rudy was wearing full-length running tights.) 

Deaths at running races are extraordinarily rare.  (In 250+ races with a total of perhaps 100,000 participants over the last 22 years, I've never been in or at a race where a death occurred.)  They're the absolute, worst nighmare of a race director, and the deaths caused by sudden medical issues are essentially impossible to prevent.

Jim McDermott was the lone Lake-area runner in the race.  Jim ran the half marathon, finishing in 2:12:04, and winning the men's 70-and-over age group.

Complete results can be found here.  The race's Facebook page contains many photos, and more information about Rudy.

Here are the number of finishers of each distance since the inaugural race in 2014:

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THE RUNNING OF THE KNIGHTS 5K/1-MILE (posted October 7th)

The King's Academy's Running of the Knights 5K Run/Walk and 1-Mile Fun Run on Sunday had 46 participants in the 5K, and an unknown number in the 1-mile run. The top male and female 5K finishers were Aidan Bethurem (21:33) and Betsey Spica (25:26). Complete 5K results can be found here.

Check out King's Academy's Facebook page for photos from the event.

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HIGH SCHOOL CROSS COUNTRY MEET RESULTS FOR OCTOBER 4 - 5TH (posted October 7th)

Camdenton High School cross country runners Gunner Rhoads and Averie Hotle ran their fastest races of the season to take the top local finishes at the Laker Invitational on Friday and Saturday at Ha Ha Tonka State Park.   Averie shaved more than a minute off her fastest previous finish this season to became the only female to break 20:00.

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HIGH SCHOOL CROSS COUNTRY MEET RESULTS FOR SEPTEMBER 28TH (posted September 28th)

All of our local high schools were represented at the Hermitage Dam Invitational on Saturday.   Below are the results for our local runners.  The full meet results can be found here.

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World marathon record: A new world record was set at Sunday's BMW Berlin Marathon, although it had nothing to do with winning times. The race had the largest number of finishers--54,280--than any other marathon in history. The cutoff time was 8 hours.

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Disappointing news:  Two local runners who beat their qualifying standards to be able to apply for entry into the 2025 Boston Marathon were victims of the cut-off time to be accepted into the race.

In August, Elaine Mallahan beat her qualifying standard by 5:13 at the Leading Ladies Marathon, while former Camdenton Laker cross country runner Ellie Webb beat her standard by 44 seconds at Grandma's Marathon in June. However, the Boston Marathon announced last week that, for entry into the 2025 race, you had to beat your qualifying standard by 6:51 or more.  That's the second-biggest cutoff time since 2012, and was made necessary by a record number of qualified applications. For 2025, there were 36,393 applications, of which 24,069 were accepted, and 12,324 rejected. 

Here are the cutoff times for Boston Marathon entry since 2012:

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HIGH SCHOOL CROSS COUNTRY MEET RESULTS FOR SEPTEMBER 21st (posted September 23rd)

Here are the top finishers for some of our local high school cross country teams at meets held on Saturday.

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Other weekend races (September 21 - 22):

The biggest race of the weekend was the Kansas City Zoo Run.  There were 2,148 finishers of the 4-mile race, just about the same as last year.

The Boulevard 10K in Kansas City had a 22% year-to-year increase in participation over last year. There were 329 finishers this year, versus 269 last year.

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HIGH SCHOOL CROSS COUNTRY MEET RESULTS FOR SEPTEMBER 14th (posted September 11th)

Here are the top finishers for some of our local high school cross country teams at meets held on Saturday.

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Other weekend race results (September 14 - 15):

Besides our high school runners, we had two locals compete at races this weekend.  Both traveled to Cooper's Landing (along the Missouri River, south of Columbia) to do the Do Hard Things 5K & 9.11-Mile Ruck & Run.   Tammy Hoecker of Osage Beach ran the 5K, finishing in 43:09.  (Tony Rigdon of Columbia cruised to victory in that race, winning in 18:00.) Bryan Greenwalt of Eldon did the 9.11-mile ruck, finishing DFL (of 68 competitors), in 3:14:12.  (Andy Emerson took second, in 1:13:51.)

The biggest race of the weekend was also the newest.  The inaugural WoodsStock 10K in Kansas City had 364 finishers. The race is part of the Heartland 30K series that also includes the Plaza 10K and Boulevard 10K.

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HIGH SCHOOL CROSS COUNTRY MEET RESULTS FOR SEPTEMBER 7th (posted September 11th)

Here are the results for Camdenton, Osage, Versailles and Macks Creek runners at the SWCCCA Richard Clark Invitational hosted by Bolivar High School on Saturday.  Complete results are here.

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Other weekend race results (September 7 - 8):

The Plaza 10K in Kansas City had 1,764 finishers at Sunday's race--up from 1,695 last year--including two from the Lake area. Brian Dickerson and Jenna Hagen, both of Osage Beach, ran and crossed the finish line together in 1:13:21.

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TRIFEST FOR MS (posted September 3rd)

Jim McDermott returned to Bentonville, Arkansas over the weekend for his fifth appearance at the TriFest for MS triathlon.

In the sprint triathlon on Saturday afternoon, Jim finished the 400-meter pool swim, 15-mile bike and 5K run in 1:26:31 (versus 1:21:44 last year).  He took second (of two) in the men's 70-74 age group.  Here are his splits:

Swim:        11:12 
T-1:             3:28
Bike:          38:08
T-2:             1:36
Run:          32:10 
Finish:    1:26:31

In the morning, Jim did the Olympic distance race, consisting of an 800-meter swim, 13-mile bike, and 5K run, followed by another 700-meter swim, 13-mile bike and 5K run. He finished in 3:20:40 (versus 3:16:36 last year).  He placed second (of three) in his age group.   Here are his splits:

Swim:        24:00
T-1:             3:01
Bike:          37:39
T-2:             1:58
Run:          28:37
T3               4:24
Swim:        24:57 
T-1:             3:26
Bike:          39:26
T-2:             2:18
Run:          31:01  
Finish:    3:20:40

In both races, Jim finished behind an elite 72 year-old triathlete from Oklahoma City who competed annually at the now-defunct Redman Triathlon.

Tony Rigdon of Columbia, who's a perennial winner at the Rock Island Road Race, placed 13th overall (of 228) in the sprint triathlon. 

Complete results can be found here.

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Weekend race results, August 31 - September 2:

There were 114 solo finishers and 38 relay teams at the Heart of America Marathon in Columbia on Labor Day. The only familiar name in the results was that of Andy Emerson, who finished 8th overall, in 3:34:30. By a mere 30 seconds, Andy beat the Boston Marathon 2024 qualifying standard for 55-59 year-olds.

Gary Cantrell (aka Lazarus Lake) only made it 56 of his planned 100 miles at last weekend's A Race for the Ages. I'm not sure if it was his back, his feet, the heat or the thunderstorms that led him to call it quits, but he seemed confident last week that he'd be able to reach his goal.

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SIOUX FALLS MARATHON, HALF MARATHON & 5K (posted July 21st)

With the window of opportunity to qualify for the 2025 Boston Marathon coming to a close on September 13th, runners still hoping to qualify are heading to the relatively few marathons held in late summer. Our own Tucker Seise is one of those hopefuls who traveled to Sioux Falls, South Dakota this past weekend for Sunday's Sioux Falls Marathon.

Unfortunately, with a 75° temperature and 96% relative humidity at race time, the marathon was cancelled. (A local hospital is the main race sponsor, so that may have factored into the decision.) It's not much consolation, but Tucker ran the half marathon and placed 15th overall (of 993 competitors) and 2nd (of 81) in the men's 30-34 age group.  He finished in 1:26:51.

Former Lake-area runner Todd Raney, who moved to Kansas City years ago, finished the half in a leisurely (at least by his former standards) 2:42:44.

Complete race results can be found here.

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LEADING LADIES MARATHON (posted August 26th)

If you want to increase your odds of running a Boston Marathon qualifying time, look for a race with a course that is almost entirely downhill. Elaine Mallahan did that in 2019 at the Jack & Jill's Downhill Marathon in Washington State, but while her finish time beat her Boston age group's qualifying standard of 3:50:00 by 38 seconds, it was about a minute shy of what was needed to be accepted into the 2020 race. (Even if she had been able to enter, Covid made it a virtual-only race.)  Elaine did go on to qualify at the Run for the Ranch Marathon in 2021, and finished Boston in 2023.

Two weekends ago, Elaine traveled to Spearfish, South Dakota to run the Leading Ladies Marathon, and ran a 2025 Boston Marathon qualifying time of 3:44:47, beating the women's 40-50 age group standard of 3:50:00 by 5:13 margin. She'll have to wait a few months before knowing whether or not that was enough to be able to run Boston next year.

For the record, here are the cutoff times for past Boston Marathons, meaning you had to beat your qualifying standard by this much just to be able to apply for entry:

Elaine is the second Lake-area runner to run a 2025 Boston-qualifying time this year.  At Grandma's Marathon in June, former Camdenton Laker cross country runner Ellie Webb beat her qualifying by 44 seconds.

Finally, below is a glimpse of the Leading Ladies Marathon course profile. The point-to-point course started at an elevation of around 6,000 feet, and dropped to about 3,800.

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PAT JONES YMCA "TRI AT THE Y" TRIATHLON (posted August 26th)

Jim McDermott was in Springfield on Saturday for the Tri at the Y triathlon organized by Heartland Racing and the Pat Jones YMCA.  There were 38 competitors at this year's race.

Jim won the men's 70-79 age group over one other competitor. He finished the 300-meter swim, 8-mile bike and 5K run in 59:45.   Here are his splits:

Swim:          9:20  (3:06 per 100 meters)
T-1:             1:05
Bike:         24:18  (17.6 miles per hour)
T-2:             1:14
Run:          23:50  (7:41 per mile) 
Finish:       59:45

Complete race results can be found here.

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Weekend race results (August 24 - 25):

Two of our locals were in St. Louis on Sunday for the Summer Sizzler 5K/10K/15K. Joe and Cheryl Smith of Camdenton did the 5K, finishing in 53:23 and 53:51, respectively.

Karolina Zavisiute of St. Charles, who was the second female to cross the finish line at the 2019 Trail of Four Winds 5K (seconds behind Lake part-timer Jaime Maher), beat 78 others and won the 50K at the Shawnee Hills ultramarathon in Ozark, Illinois this weekend. She finished in 5:44:19.

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Weekend race results (August 10 - 11):

The Kansas City Backyard Ultra took 26 hours (108.33 miles) to crown a winner this weekend.  The race was down to just two, diehard competitors after the 18th hour.  Twenty-seven started; that was up from 23 last year. 

Cody Eubanks of Jefferson City won his third Leaky Hourglass Ultra in a row.  He needed 19 hours to do so this year, versus 18 and 17 the past two years. There were twelve competitors at this year's race--the smallest in the event's four-year history.

The winner of the inaugural Market Mile in downtown St. Louis on Sunday was supposed to be determined by gun time, but because the top two males both finished in 4:20.2, they used chip times to declare a winner.  The top runner's chip time was 4:19.9, a mere one-tenth of a second faster than the second-place finisher.  The women's winner crossed the line in 5:07.5 (chip time), one second ahead of her nearest competitor.   A total of 356 runners competed.

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OLYMPIC MARATHONS (posted August 12th)

Women's marathon:  One day after the men's Olympic marathon record was broken, the same happened in the women's race.  An Ethiopian now running for the Netherlands, Sifan Hassan, won in 2:22:55, three seconds ahead of the second-place finisher.  (She won bronze medals in the Olympic 5K and 10K.) You can read more about it here.

There's also a feel-good story about the final finisher in the women's race, who finished in 3:52:59--about an hour behind the nearest finisher.

The top American woman was Dakotah Lindwurm of Minnesota, who finished 12th overall in 2:26:44.  She's a two-time winner of the Grandma's Marathon. After the race, she announced her engagement.

Men's marathon:  Despite warm temperatures and one of the toughest Olympic marathon courses, Tamarat Tola of Ethiopia set a new Olympic marathon record, winning in 2:06:26.  He's no stranger to winning--he won last year's New York City Marathon in a course record 2:04:58. 

Eliud Kipchoge fell off the pace halfway through the marathon, and was reduced to a walk on a tough hill at mile 18.  His back was hurting, and he DNF'd for the first time in his career.  (He's 39 years old, and may still run marathons, but his Olympics career is almost certainly over.)

The top American finisher was Conner Mantz, who finished 8th in 2:08:12, just ahead of his friend and fellow American, Clayton Young (2:08:44).

More about the men's race can be found here.

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Weekend races, August 3 - 4:

Andrew Bartelsmeyer's wedding day 5K
went off as planned in St. Louis on Saturday, with 104 participants, including many family members.   Andrew finished 26th overall, in 24:11. His bride, Lauren Cawein, was the women's overall winner, finishing in 21:24.

Well, despite the Olympics organizers' claims that the Seine River would be safe for swimming, a Belgian triathlete came down with e.coli and was hospitalized over the weekend. This came after several training sessions had been cancelled days before last week's race. Another triathlon was scheduled to take place on Monday, but I don't know as to whether it took place. (France said it had spent $1 billion cleaning up the Seine.  It was money well wasted.)

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REPUBLIC TIGER TRIATHLON (posted July 29th)

After skipping the race the past two years, Jim McDermott returned to the Republic Tiger Triathlon in Republic on Saturday to mark his sixth appearance since 2012.

Jim won the men's 70-74 age group over one other competitor. He finished the 300-yard swim, 12.2-mile bike and 5K run in 1:14:57.   Here are his splits:

Swim:          7:45  (2:35 per 100 yards)
T-1:             1:49
Bike:         37:46  (19.4 miles per hour)
T-2:             2:00
Run:          25:39  (8:16 per mile) 
Finish:    1:14:57

Complete race results can be found here.

There were 106 and 56 finishers of the sprint and super sprint distances, respectively.  By comparison, there were 119 and 70 finishers of those races in 2023.

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CHRISTMAS IN JULY 5K RUN/WALK (posted July 21st)

Race results:   By finish order    By division

The race photos are posted here.

A race report is coming.

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Weekend races, July 20 - 21:

The Get Your Butt Kicked @ Route 66 6-hour race in Eureka (west of St. Louis) Saturday evening was ruled by the geezers. Of the top 10 finishers, six were age 55 or older. Our friend from Columbia, Andy Emerson, was the youngest of those six, and finished second overall (of 88 competitors), completing 39.0 miles. The 58-year winner went 1.4 miles farther than Andy.

Not surprisingly, results haven't yet been posted for any of the events of interest at the weekend's Show-Me State Games. SMSG will get around to it eventually.

The Tour de France was a virtual blow-out this year.  The (now) three-time winner, Tadej Pogacar of Slovenia, had a 6-minute, 17-second margin of victory at this year's race.  That may not sound like a lot for a 21-stage race, but for the TdF, it's big.  Pogacar won five of those stages.   A big raspberry goes to NBC for moving almost all of its TdF coverage to its Peacock paid streaming service.

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Vol State 500K (Sunday morning final update): 

This year's Vol State 500K is in the bag. 

Of the 121 starters, 81 (67%) reached the finish line.

Eight of the finishers cross the line within the last 12 hours of the race.  The final finisher cut it close, finishing with just 2-1/2 hours to spare.  The oldest finisher was 75 years old.

Links:   Race tracker   Facebook page    Website

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Weekend races, July 13 - 14:

Mid July is not the best time of year to hold a half marathon in MIssouri, yet there were three held this post weekend. Not surprisingly, participation was rather sparse at all of them. The Donot Stop Half Marathon in St. Joseph was the largest of the three, with 25 finishers, while the half marathons at Branson's Great Bacon Race and the Miner Tough Weekend each had 17.

July, on the other hand, is a great time of year to entice runners with a pair of free sunglasses. The Sunglasses Run 5K in Kansas City had 397 finishers on Saturday, making it the biggest running race of the weekend. Big Shark's New Town Triathlon in St. Charles had about the same number of participants.

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Weekend race results (July 4 - 7):

The top finishers of the Firecracker 5K in Eldon on July 4th are pictured in the photos posted on the Parks and Recreation Dept.'s Facebook page.  Tucker Seise was the overall winner. Pete Groce, Sarah Wood and Janelle Burke were the only other podium finishers I recognize.

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ZOU-MANIA (posted July 2nd)

Tucker Seise nearly pulled off a complete sweep at the inaugural Zou-Mania event last weekend in Columbia. The Friday evening and Saturday morning event included four races of varying distances--1-mile, 2.8-mile, 5K and 10K. The races had staggered starting times, so participants could compete in all of them.

Tucker won the 1-mile, 2.8-mile, and 5K races.  He took second in the 10K, and the 10K's King of the Hill quarter-mile challenge, both behind a runner from New Jersey.  Here are the results for our Lake-area runners:

Complete race results can be found here.

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Other weekend races (June 29 - 30):

The fastest runners in the St. Louis area, plus some from elsewhere, competed last Saturday at The Macklind Mile, . The men's winner finished in 4:17, and the women's winner in 4:57. Eighty-seven of the men finished in under 5 minutes. The women's winner was the only one to break 5:00; fifty-nine others managed to break 6:00. Full results can be found here.

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GRANDMA'S MARATHON, HALF MARATHON & 5K (posted June 24th)

Four former Camdenton Laker cross country runners reunited on Saturday to run Grandma's Marathon in Duluth, Minnesota.  Grandma's is a very popular summer marathon because of its flat course and Duluth's cool weather.  (With 7,500+ finishers, I believe it's the largest summer marathon in the U.S.)  The race is one of the best summer options for those hoping to qualify for the 2024 Boston Marathon, whose qualifying window ends in mid September. 

Temperatures on Saturday were in the mid 50s, but the weather was marred by rain and 15-20 mph winds.

The top finisher among the former Lakers was 2023 graduate Ellie Webb, who just finished her freshman year at Truman State University.  Ellie ran an outstanding 3:29:16, and beat the qualifying standard for next year's Boston Marathon by 44 seconds.  (Note:  Beating one's qualifying standard does not guarantee entry into Boston; it merely allows you to submit a registration application.)   

Cambrie Kowal, a 2021 Camdenton graduate now running for St. Cloud State University in Minnesota, again came close to breaking four hours.  Cambrie finished this year in 4:02:31--less than a minute slower than last year's 4:01:16, and ten minutes faster than 4:14:09 in 2022, when she ran with her St. Cloud State teammates.

Georgi Carolus, who graduated with Ellie in 2023, finished in 4:13:28. Georgi ran for Drury University this past school year.

Clare Holmes ran her final cross country season at Missouri S&T this past year.  She crossed the finish line in 5:06:34.  (With that finish time, I can't help but think Clare was running with an injury, or had an unusually bad day.)

Complete race results can be found here.

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LAZARUS LAKE'S TRANSCONTINENTAL HIKE (posted June 22nd)

Laz watch: Lazarus Lake's transcontinental hike reached a significant milestone on Saturday.  After 83 days and 1,716 miles, he pulled the plug on his transcon after reaching Foyil, Oklahoma--the birthplace of Andy Payne, the winner of the International Transcontinental Foot Race in 1928. 

At one point during the transcon, Laz was considering splitting it into two segments, but it looks like that isn't happening. Because his foot and ankle issues slowed him down, there won't be time to finish the hike in September, as he originally hoped.  (He needs to be home for Big Dog's Backyard Ultra in mid October.)  

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CONCRETEMAN TRIATHLON (posted June 17th)

Jim McDermott won the 70-and-over age group (over three others) at Saturday's ConcreteMan Triathlon in Springfield.  Concreteman dates back to 1982, making it the oldest triathlon in Missouri, and probably among the oldest in the country, since In the sport of triathlon didn't originate until the early 1970s.

Jim did the sprint distance race, completing the 500-meter swim, 14-mile bike and 5K run in 1:27:20.  Here are his splits:

Swim:        18:15 
T-1:             1:58
Bike:          39:07  (19.9 miles per hour)
T-2:             2:01
Run:          26:01  
Finish:    1:27:20

Full results can be found here.

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RUN FOR THE HORSES 5K/10K RUN/WALK (posted June 17th)

The five-member Stolzenbach family was about to head home to Chicago after spending their vacation fishing and cycling at the Lake, when they decided to compete at the Run for the Horses 5K on Saturday in Linn Creek.  It was a fruitful decision, as they took five of the top six places in the race.  Oldest daughter, Julia, was the overall winner, in 23:00. Julia's dad, Stephen, and one of her two younger sisters, Evelyn, both finished in 23:38.

A total of 32 human runners and walkers turned out for the race.  Representing the four-legged participants from the rescue were Chuckles, a miniature horse, and Shazam, the first full-size horse to appear at Run for the Horses.

Full race results can be found here.

Many more photos can be found here.

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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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