“To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the Gift.” – Steve Prefontaine
Without Limits is a running film based on the legendary years of University of Oregon runner, Steve Prefontaine.
What are some of the running stats of this man affectionately known as “Pre”?
Once held the American record in seven track events ranging from the 2000 meter to 10,000 meter.
Lost only three races in his college career.
Won three straight Division I NCAA Cross Country Championships.
Represented the United States in the 1972 Olympics in the 5000 meter.
The Film
The film focuses on the relationship between the University of Oregon Cross Country coach, Bill Bowerman (eventual co-founder of NIKE), and Prefontaine. Watching Bowerman sketch around a runner’s foot in order to make custom shoes to save weight and the waffle iron used to create a new sole for running shoes – classic stuff.
There is also plenty of running/racing that includes some actual footage of “Pre” from the 70s. Extremely fun, intense, edge-of-your-seat kind of stuff.
Finally, there is a cat and mouse love-interest story between Prefontaine and a fellow female college student.
The film is rated PG-13 which is probably due to a rollin’ in the hay scene. Language is tame.
Fluid moving story line – Solid acting – Running – A message that transcends sport
Inspiring! Since this is a film and not a documentary, what you see is not all completely factual, but that is understood coming into watching such a film. That doesn’t diminish the impact and in fact is irrelevant.
In Without Limits, Prefontaine embodied a passion and a message of individual excellence that can directly pertain to each one of us, in all areas of our life that we deem important. Simply, “To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the Gift.”
Soak on that for a while…
Huge.
If you would like to learn more about Steve Prefontaine:
Over the last couple weekends, the Double Trouble Trail Challenge took place down in San Antonio, Texas. On February 21st, the Eisenhower 10 km Challenge took place and the following weekend athletes could enjoy the Paesano’s Salado Creek 8 mile / 5 km.
Race director, Bart Childers, dedicates these races to his father.
“These races are dedicated to my dad, Bill Childers, now deceased. He was a retired CMSGT with 28 years in the Air Force, proudly served. He passed away in March of 2009. These races are dedicated to his memory and are as close to the date of his death possible. Some people have questioned the date of these races, but never asked the reason for the date. So there it is for those that care to ask.”
Course
The Eisnehower 10 km course is described as:
Paved trails and unpaved trails; hilly and challenging. This is a tough course, but it is fun. The hardest steepest parts of the park are not included in this race. When you are off the paved trails you will be running on some rocky areas, some areas are covered in cedar-very smooth and nice.
The Paesano’s Salado Creek 8 mile / 5 km is described as an eight mile single-track course.
Results
Eisenhower 10 km Challenge
The female race was won by Margo Martinez with a time of 46:30.
Top 3 female:
Margo Martinez – 46:30
Jennifer Cardella – 48:53
Diana Ruderman – 49:45
The male race was won handled by James Bales with a time of 36:24.
James Bales outran Robert Michell by 39 seconds to win with a time of 54:34.
Top 3 male:
James Bales – 54:34
Robert Michell – 55:13
Eric Herzoy – 58:37
Holly Stewart and Diana Ruderman was separated by less than 3 seconds after the 8 mile run. Stewart had a bit more left in the tank to take the win with a time of 1:08:24. Had to be fun to watch.
10 km – “There was a few places where it looked like they had put in speed bumps on the trail. Massive foot-high speed bumps. I think they were put in to keep the trails from washing out when it rained, but somehow the idea of putting in speed bumps to help runners manage their speeds was amusing.” by Ann @ Life According to Annabelle
8 mile – “The trail we were on was barely a foot wide at that point, so when I tried to step aside to let them pass, I had to either hug a tree or get clawed by the nearby shrubberies. Later I discover a small twig stuck in my hair.” by Ann @ Life According to Annabelle
Since my knee issue at Rocky, I have been in serious healing/recovery mode and enjoying a few too many scoops of ice cream.
Oh how perspective can change. From a solid sweat building five hour trail run, to being grateful for a three mile continuous run without any knee discomfort. So abrupt. Little warning. Life.
As an ultra athlete that finds great pleasure and joy in the the long stuff, a three mile run is two miles short of a warm-up.
Recovering from an injury can be a hard pill to swallow. Recent running memories tease you with what use to be. Frustration and disappointment can control our mental states. But I want to be there. Sometimes it can be tough to get the mental focus out of our head.
To eliminate/reduce the mental madness and powerless victim role, I have tried to approach this situation with acceptance and active engagement in my recovery process.
Instead of concerning myself with where I have been, I focus on where I am at.
My focus is on:
Pain-free running – This is currently 3 mile runs, every other day.
A renewed focus on overall strength and core work – 4 days per week
Flexibility
Eating ice cream every day
Volunteering at Cross Timbers was another way to stay involved/connected to the sport and support others on their ultra journey.
A little over a week ago, the Cross Timbers trail run took place up on the south shores of Lake Texoma in north Texas. The event had a 50 mile, marathon, half marathon, and 5 mile run. A total of 245 athletes started the event, ready to explore the challenging Texas trail.
Course
The out-and-back course is described as mostly narrow, hilly trails with some rocky and hazardous areas. I remember participating in this event a couple years ago and there were a couple sections that you had to get on all fours to climb up the short, steep section.
The event website mentions the following elevation gain/loss for each distance:
50 mile – 10,900 feet
marathon – 5,510 feet
half marathon – 3480 feet
5 mile – 1370 feet
I would have to say these numbers are probably a bit high but the take-away is the course is not pancake flat.
Results
50 mile
31 athletes started the 50 mile adventure and 27 (87%) were able to get to the finish line.
The front-end of the male race became a two person race between Ian Ridgway and Pete Mehok. After completing 25 miles with a time of 3:37, Ridway and Mehok were still stride-for-stride. Within the next five miles, Mehok began to slow and Ridgway continued to separate himself and go on to win with a time of 7:49:15.
Top 3 male:
Iain Ridgway – 7:49:15
Pete Mehok – 8:35:49
Charles Corfield – 9:11:56
The female race ended up being an even tighter race between Rachel Lindner and Mariela Botella. Through 25 miles, Lindner had a time of 5:00 and held on to a 9 minute lead over Botella. Over the next 12.5 miles, Botella closed the gap and reduced the lead to one minute. Botella left the PawPawPoint like a hunter going after her prey (I worked this aid-station so saw this play out).
Lindner continued her consistant effort and would not be caught. She won the event with a time of 10:45:35. Botella finished just under 13 minutes later.
Top 3 female:
Rachel Lindner – 10:45:35 (*6th overall*)
Mariela Botella – 10:58:18 (*10th overall*)
Cindy Melder – 11:50:10
Marathon
The trail marathon (or something within 10% of that label) had 52 spunky athletes ready to test that tempo effort. 51 trail runners (98%) had enough spunk to complete the distance.
The female race was crushed by a name we are beginning to hear quite frequently at the top of trail running events in this region, Christine Tokarz. Tokarz passed through the half-way point in 1:59, with only two minutes separating her from the overall race lead. Tokarz remained consistent on the return run back to the finish to win with a 4:02:14 and second overall.
(Tokarz (top) and Underwood (bottom) halfway through the marathon)
Top 3 female:
Christine Tokarz – 4:02:14 (*2nd overall*)
Samantha Lambert – 4:39:19 (*5th overall*)
Laurie Underwood – 5:38:34
The male race was won with an impressive even-split by Frank Livaudais and a time of 3:54:45. The next male was 20 minutes back.
Top 3 male:
Frank Livaudais – 3:54:45
Dalton Wilson – 4:15:21
Neil Smith – 4:38:52
Half Marathon
The half marathon distance had 105 eager runners and 103 finishers.
The male race became a who-would-pop-first burn-fest between Sean Mcmahon, Tommy Swanson, and Joel Gibbs. All three trail runners hit the halfway point in 1:04. Mcmahon then made his move and separated himself from the other two runners to win with a negative split and time of 2:07:15.
Swanson and Gibbs left the last aid-station together, with a little over 20 minutes to decide second place. Swanson was able to maintain his pace while Gibbs slowed just enough to allow Swanson a 2:20 second place margin.
Top 3 male:
Sean Mcmahon – 2:07:15
Tommy Swanson – 2:12:01
Joel Gibbs – 2:14:21
Julie Bergfield handily won the female race with a near even split effort and finish time of 2:23:12.
Top 3 female:
Julie Bergfield – 2:23:12
Merry Wolf – 2:38:04
Marlee Clark - 2:42:44
5 Mile
The five mile trail run saw 57 athletes ready to get a bit dirty. All finished the run.
The female race had four women separated by one minute with 2.5 miles to go. The largest negative split between the four was by Amber Block who won with a 58:05. Danika Trierweiler was able to hold onto second place by just under 30 seconds with a time of 1:00:08.
Top 3 female:
Amber Block – 58:05 (*5th overall*)
Danika Trierweiler – 1:00:08 (*7th overall*)
Martha Howe – 1:00:36 (*9th overall)
Keith Schoby left all male runners behind early on and hit the half-way point in 24 minutes. Schoby had enough in the tank to negative split and cross the finish line in 47:38. Second place was over six minutes back.
The final finishers of an ultra distance event are some of the toughest athletes that are willing to stick with it to the best of their current ability and cross that darn finish line.
The Tough-as-Nails award recipients:
50 mile: Paul Mastin – Mastin kept chipping away at the distance and completed the 50 mile day in 14:57:19.
Race Reports
50 mile – “…parts of the trail where you almost have to use your hands to pull yourself along, where it’s steeper than a steep staircase, or where only a mountain goat on speed could actually run down it.” – Paul @ Lean Forward Run Farther
half marathon – “I had never run the Cross Timbers Trail…and if I had, I would have thought twice about running it with a 40 lb Pack.” Dave @ …And the Adventure Continues
marathon – “In other words, when you get done with the race, if you look in the mirror at your hindquarters it may look as if you have the ass of a dancer in a rap video! Your butt is gonna be sore!” – Mark @ The Naked Runner
“…even looking back, I scratch my head sometimes and wonder how I pulled it off” – Russell Secker on the Transeurope Footrace
Texas ultra athlete, Russell Secker, the only American athlete that participated and completed the 2920 mile 2009 Transeurope Footrace was recently interviewed by an Austin radio show called INNER VIEWS.
Secker talked about what brought him to ultrarunning and his 64 day experience in Europe.
Here are a few of the moments that caught my attention.
Planting The Ultrarunning Seed
Prior to ultrarunning, Secker ran 5 km, 10 km, and marathons like most normal people.
It is always fascinating to find out about the trigger that causes people to make a change in their life. Over 10 years ago, a friend asked me to go mountain biking with him and I said, “yes.” That started my endurance sports journey.
The 2009 Transeurope Footrace
Preparation – Ran 3-4 hours a day at the peak training.
Race miles – Each stage consisted of ~30-60 miles per day. This translated to typically 6-14 hours for Secker. (We are talking about a 64 day event!)
Mind games – Secker’s approach to dealing with the magnitude of each day and the event would be to visualize himself forward in the event, whether that was the end of the day or crossing the finish line.
Complete runner – This kind of event is 100% mental and 100% physical. Small physical imbalances over 64 days become big problems.
Worst weather – Towards the end of the race in Norway, running against 20-40 mph headwinds joined with periods of sleet/hail.
One of the Best days – The day before the worst. Secker ran 10 miles with a herd of reindeer.
The experience – Secker wrote a book called Running Across Countries, that captures this huge ultrarunning experience.
To simply have the courage to attempt and then finish an event like this is amazing (…long pause…). Oh, the layers of self you must witness, and most likely layers of flesh (ouch!). Insightful interview and inspiring stuff.
Dave Elliott is a Texas ultra/trail runner and the first Ultrarunning for a Cause profile on Endurance Buzz.
Dave will share with us his ultrarunning journey, the charity he is raising funds for, and the event he is preparing for in association with the charity.
Check it out.
What brought you to this wacky sport? Why ultra/trail running?
Two years ago I was sitting on the couch watching the White Rock Marathon, fat and out of shape. Over the past 12 years I had run two marathons prior, but swore off such foolishness after each of them. That Sunday afternoon after watching the Rock, I ran/walked/crawled two miles and lamented to myself how far I had fallen from grace.
Just 14 months later I completed the Grasslands 50 miler. How I got to the point of running ultras is something I am still not sure about. My innate personality has always been drawn to extreme endurance events. The difference between this running streak and my previous “six month marathon training streaks” is that this ultra/trail running stuff has embedded itself deep in my soul.
The ultra community has aided in my love for ultra/trail running. They are truly the best in the world. You can share the trail with a runner for a 50K and by the end of that run you have become friends for life. Don’t ultras do that…boil down life’s lessons in a raw, brutal, and honest way that would normally take months, maybe years. I love that about ultras and ultra runners. I am humbled at how the ultra community, even the really good runners, is ever so helpful. I am just a middle of the pack kind a guy just trying to get’er done!
What charity are you currently raising funds for within your ultra/trail running journey?
You may also know I served in the U.S. Marine Corps for 6 years…and without ever receiving a scratch. I am blessed.
Unfortunately, not all that defend our Freedoms in this great country serve without peril and harm. So when I decided to run the Bataan Memorial Death March (marathon) on March 21st, 2010, I thought that this would be a great opportunity to raise money for the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund.
This organization raises money and supports Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines that have been gravely injured in combat. They help with specialized equipment, transportation, remodel of homes to handle wheel chairs, etc. Many times the families of the servicemen cannot afford to travel to the location of their loved one while they are rehabilitating. This organization helps with this too.
Here is one short story of the Semper Fi Fund in action:
Tell us more about the Baatan Memorial Death March and the type of training you are doing to get ready for this event.
In mid December 2009, I decided that I wanted to run the Bataan Memorial Death March (marathon) the next year. I have always been a history guy and knowing the perils and trials that the Bataan Death March survivors endured during World War II, this just seems like a natural race for me. Additionally they have some of the survivors of that fateful event at the race, so the time was now rather than later.
This is a unique event in itself. First it is held in the desert of White Sands New Mexico and second, they offer the option of running the marathon heavy…meaning running it with a 35 lb pack. That is really my only option. I don’t think I could show my face to my Marine buddies if I did it any other way.
The training for this has been a bit unique as well. Having a good running base, I really started focusing on core training. After completing the Palo Duro 50 miler this past year, I vowed to become more overall fit.
I kept up with cardio, but started doing four hours of core/upper body work a week. I started hitting two 5:30 A.M boot camps a week and two strength weight classes a week.
My running included doing a weekly speed workout, usually mile repeats….of course speed work is relative. My weekend runs became paramount as I ran “long” with a 40 lb pack on Saturday and five miles with that pack on Sunday. The Saturday run would range from 15 to 18 miles and the Sunday run was more a mental thing than a physical…making my mind deal with something it would rather not deal with so early in the morning. I run four minutes and walk one minute during these long runs. On benign terrain, I can average about 14.5 minutes a mile.
This race will be run with the back rather than the legs. It is the back that always starts to tighten up before the legs give out. I have to give a shout out the Karen Riddle who gave me advice on running with a pack, and a couple of personal trainers who have helped with my core training: my blog buddy, Shannon Tipton who constantly reiterated how important core strength would be for this race and Adrian Gipson who implemented the training.
I also want to thank all my North Texas Trail running buddies who encourage me and to my wonderful wife, Bren, and three rugrats, Luke, Macy, and Hope….who know Daddy likes to run a long way.
If you are a TALON (Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, or New Mexico) ultra/trail runner that is raising funds for a specific charity and would like to be profiled on Endurance Buzz, please send a message through my Contact page.
The 50 km out-and-back course is ran mostly on trail but does include one mile of road running. Athletes also enjoyed four climbs in the 400 feet range plus two water crossings to get those little toes wet.
The 25 km trail runners get to experience one big climb and the two water crossings.
The 50 km adventure had 123 athletes complete the distance within the nine hour time limit.
The male race was highlighted by the dash for cash between the two top runners, David Riddle and Nick Lewis. The course record of 3:40:37 held by Dink Taylor has remain untouchable since 2000. Both of these guys were going for it.
How did things shake out?
Dink kindly provided the following race action highlights:
Riddle and Lewis hit the turnaround in 1:49:30, 97 seconds ahead of record setting pace.
Riddle remained on record pace until the last aid-station.
Riddle continued on to won with a time of 3:48:24 but the course record still stands.
Lewis finished second with a time of 3:55:37.
Top 3 male:
David Riddle (AL) – 3:48:24
Nick Lewis (TN) – 3:55:37
Ben Creehan (MO) – 4:23:35
Top regional male athlete – Stan Ferguson (AR) – 4:30:59.
The female race was controlled by Anna Assenmacher with a time of 5:07:35. The next female was 24 minutes back.
Top 3 female:
Anna Assenmacher (MO) – 5:07:35
Rosie Laughlin (MO) – 5:41:08
Karen Martin (AR) – 6:00:48
25 km
The 25 km trail run had 140 athletes complete the challenge.
The female race was a close challenge between Vanessa Jacoby and Laureen Coffelt as a little over three minutes separated the two at the end of the 25 km run. Jacoby outran Coffelt to win with a time of 2:37:26.
Top 3 female:
Vanessa Jacoby (MO) – 2:37:26
Laureen Coffelt (TN) – 2:40:37
Veronica Battaglia (AR) – 2:45:11
The male race filtered down to a duel between Tennessee runners, Charlie Duke and Trapper Pressler. Pressler crossed the finish line first with 2:19:31. Pressler followed almost 2.5 minutes later.
Top 3 male:
Trapper Pressler (TN) – 2:19:31
Charlie Duke (TN) – 2:21:57
Greg Halliday (TN) – 2:26:34
Top regional male athlete – Steve Appleton (AR) – 2:28:44
The final finishers of an ultra distance event are some of the toughest athletes that are willing to stick with it to the best of their current ability and cross that darn finish line.
The Tough-as-Nails award recipients:
50 km: Johnny Eagles (AR) – Eagles displayed huge determination to arrive as the last official finisher at 8:50:18.
There were also eight other athletes that finished the distance after the time cutoff. Congratulations on completing the 50 kms.
Race Reports
50 km – “…It was all true, except I was pleasantly surprised to find that the freezing, crystal-clear water only reached mid-thigh during the river crossings!” by Kevin @ Can’t Stop
25 km – “decided to run hard until my foot said not to. I rarely run that hard, but this was racing… I didn’t decide I was racing until about 5 min past the turnaround.” by CBD @ CBDUKE
50 km – “The second climb was awesome. It was steep, rocky, technical, I knew I was gonna have fun coming down this later.” by Nick @ SkooshMagoo
50 km – “Awesome! Incredible!! Mind Bending!!! OK, enough with the adjectives. The Sylamore 50K Trail Race was an experience.” by runninghound @ Running Hound’s Weblog
The final finishers of an ultra distance event are some of the toughest athletes that are willing to stick with it to the best of their current ability and cross that darn finish line.
Two years ago I was sitting on the couch watching the White Rock Marathon, fat and out of shape. Over the past 12 years I had run two marathons prior, but swore off such foolishness after each of them. That Sunday afternoon after watching the Rock, I ran/walked/crawled two miles and lamented to myself how far I had fallen from grace. 
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