Sacramento Running News

Meghan Arbogast on her way to a new American age group record for 50 miles. (SRN Photo)

If you were looking for a top finish at this weekend’s Jed Smith Ultra Classic, you’d better have brought your “A game” because some of the country’s top talent was there throwing down.

There are many (many!) ultras in California and they are all, for the most part, pretty long. Some of them are known to be beautiful. Others are popular, mountainous, hot, sadistic, and sometimes famously hard to get into. Jed Smith has always been about speed.

The Jed Smith Ultra Classic, put on by the Buffalo Chips for the past 34 years, includes three events–a 30km, a 50km, and a 50 mile race. They are all run on an accurately measured, 4.85 mile loop course along the American River that is ideal for setting records and running 100k team qualifying times–as long as the weather on the first day in February is fine.

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All you need to know in one image!

Everyone knows you slow down and get weaker with age, right? In fact the data shows that 37 percent of senior citizens have disabilities.

Well, how much of that is simply due to the unavoidable effects of aging, and how much of that decline is due to sitting around on our butts?

To answer that question, some smart scientists at the University of Pittsburgh conducted a study of masters athletes and discovered that there was a huge, enormous even, difference between older people who had been training diligently as they aged and those that did not.

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The new face of Western States 100!

The Western States Endurance Run Board just announced their selection of a new race director to replace the departing Greg Soderlund.

As of today, all the details I have are:

The WS Board is pleased to announce the selection of Craig Thornley of Eugene, OR, for the RD position.

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Copper thieves hit the American River Parkway Foundation’s Volunteer Center last night.
The theft knocked out the power and left significant damage at the building near the entrance to William Pond Park. No word yet as to the price tag for repairs.

I’ve never been a fan of wearing headphones while running. I’ve had bad experiences in races with other runners getting in my way because they are isolated by the music they’re listening to.

It turns out that headphones aren’t just annoying–they can be deadly!

The number of headphone-wearing pedestrians seriously injured or killed near roadways and railways has tripled in six years, according to a U.S. study.

Read more about it at Business Week.

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Time to plan for 2012!

I’ve just added a bunch of races for 2012 to the Calendar of Events, so start planning your year now!

If you are a race director, be sure to check the accuracy of my information. If your event is not there, be sure to let me know!

Lloyd Levine

By Lloyd Levine, Special to the SRN

(Editor’s Note: This is a follow-up to two recent, data filled articles that Lloyd Levine wrote on the status of American marathon running. You can find them here.)

The Olympic Trials have come and gone, and on the Men’s side we had what is being touted as a “record breaking” race.  Unfortunately, the records that were broken were soft and old.  The race was interesting and exciting, but rather than illustrate a resurgence in U.S. running, it illustrated how far behind the rest of the world the United States really is.

(A personal note: I do not mean to be negative, just realistic.  I am a fan of running. I love running and watching races.  I love Kenyan runners, Ethiopian runners, and U.S. Runners, as well as runners from many other countries.  I like good races, fast races, and good stories. I would love to see the U.S. be competitive with the rest of the best runners in the world.  I am not anti-American runner; I am pro-realism.)

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I was standing on my driveway yesterday morning, watching a neighbor bundled up against the cold as she minced down the street in her new Vibram Five Fingers and remembered a friend telling me about the mountain of them available at the REI Used Gear Sale.

“They all have a little tag on them where you can see why they were returned,” he said. “Almost all of them said “Uncomfortable.””

You either love them or mock them, but they are everywhere. Last time I was at REI, I noticed that there is now even a “dress shoe” available in the Five Finger style.

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You are probably by now aware that the Olympic Marathon trials were held in Houston this past Saturday.

During your long run this morning, you may have asked your running buddies something like, “I wonder how that woman from our club did? I think her name is Susan. Or maybe it’s Suzanne. I’m not quite sure but, you know, she’s has kind of brown hair and is kind of skinny? You know who I’m talking about?”

No. I don’t know, but I did look through the results and tried to pick out as many locals as I could find and collected their results here.

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Desi in the lead! (Photo by Stephanie Ward)

Almost instantly, USATF”s official live update site has been overwhelmed. It’s here if you want to join in the fun.

Flotrack has mile by mile updates that you can follow here for the men and here for the women.

Letsrun has an official Olympic Trials Marathon discussion thread here.

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