USATF open and masters competition to be intense
The USATF Trail Marathon Championships will be held in conjunction with the Moab Trail Marathon on Saturday, November 5, in Moab, Utah. Dubbed, “a magical 26 miles,” by race director Danelle Ballengee, this race course delights and challenges competitors over a loop course, with a few well-placed out and back sections near the 11 and 23 mile points. Terrain includes jeep roads, slick rock, and single track with elevations ranging from 4,000 to 5,000 feet and a cumulative gain in elevation of 3,500 feet over the 26.2-mile course.
This is the third consecutive year that the Moab Trail Marathon will host the USATF Marathon Trail Championships. Defending women’s champion (and two-time winner), Megan Kimmel will return this year, as will three of the top four runners from the 2015 men’s race – Joseph Gray, Tayte Pollmann, and Dakota Jones, second through fourth respectively. Mario Mendoza, last year’s champion, just completed a grueling 85km race at the IAU/ITRA Trail Championships in Portugal and will not defend his title. Jones was also the 2014 champion at Moab, and the 2013 champion, Mike Foote, is in the field as well.
Temperatures in the mid-60s with overcast skies are predicted for race day with a start time set for 8:00 a.m. With a $3500 prize purse and USATF championships medals up for grabs in the open and masters divisions, competition will be fierce.
The USATF open and masters contenders in alpha order include, for the women:
Addie Bracy at the World Mountain Running Championships
Open Women:
Rachel Aubert, 28, Richmond, VA
Amanda Basham, 26, Manitou Springs, CO
Addie Bracy, 30, Longmont, CO
Rachel Cieslewicz, 36, St. George, UT
Jeanne Cooper, 38, Lafayette, CO
Clare Gallagher, 25, Boulder, CO
Morgan Gonzalez, 29, Mammoth Lakes, CA
Emily Harrison, 30, Flagstaff, AZ
Ilea Heft, 31, Colorado Springs, CO
Megan Kimmel, 36, Ridgeway, CO
Emma Kosciak, 32, Ayer, MA
Sandi Nypaver, 28, Boulder, CO
Sarah Pizzo, 33, Denver, CO
Heather Utrata, 34, Greeley, CO
Kelly Wolf, 22, Silverton, CO
Chris Lundy at the 2015 NACAC Mountain Running Championships
Masters Women:
Carolyn Hicks, 59, Black Hawk, CO
Janel Lanphere, 40, Flagstaff, AZ
Rebecca Larsen, 41, Louisville, CO
Christine Lundy, 46, Sausalito, CA
Mimi Matsuda, 41, Bozeman, MT
Lynne Nielsen, 61, Lindon, UT
Anita Rawlinson, 60, Red Lodge, MT
Jana Unice, 53, Lindon, UT
Sara Wagner 44, Flagstaff, AZ
Joe Gray on his way to winning the World Mountain Running Championships
Men’s Open:
Michael Ambrose, 28, Ogden, UT
Noah Brautigam, 27, Salt Lake City, UT
Sage Canaday, 30, Boulder, CO
Anthony Costales, 28, Salt Lake City, UT
Arthur DeGraw, 36, Flagstaff, AZ
JP Donovan, 29, Incline village, NV
Andrew Drobeck, 34, Missoula, MT
Morgan Elliott, 24, Montreat, NC
Anthony Fagundes, 26, Fair Oaks, CA
Bret Ferrier, 34, Ogden, UT
Mike Foote, 33, Missoula, MT
Gordon Gianniny, 20, Gunnison, CO
Joseph Gray, 32, Colorado Springs, CO
Brendan Halpin, 32, Missoula, MT
Nick Hendrickson, 25, Salt Lake City, UT
Mark Iverson, 34, Anchorage, AK
Dakota Jones, 25, Durango, CO
Matthew Kempton, 32, Golden, CO
Joshua Korn, 35, Ogden, UT
Levi Miller, 29, Fairfax, CA
Travis Morrison, 24, Salt Lake City, UT
Jeason Murphy, 36, Carbondale, CO
Joshua Pauley, 25, Flagstaff, AZ
Michael Phillips, 39, Lititz, PA
Tayte Pollmann, 19, Sandy, UT
Clinton Rhoton, 28, St. George, UT
Justin Ricks, 36, Colorado Springs, CO
AJ Schirack, 27, Wasilla, AK
Ryan Smith, 31, Kingwood, TX
Andy Wacker, 28, Boulder, CO
Azerya Weldemariam, 37, Colorado Springs, CO
Benjamin Widmer, 39, Salt Lake City, UT
Chris Grauch at the 2015 Moab Trail Marathon
Men’s Masters:
Ray Bader, 59, Casper, WY
Eric Black, 52, Dillon, CO
Michael Bolio, 46, Concord, MA
Mike Diesburg, 49, Casper, WY
Corky Dean, 56, Denver, CO
Chris Grauch, 44, Nederland, CO
Jeff Hunt, 52, Concord, MA
Clyde Landry, 70, Colorado Springs, CO
Ted MacMahon, 50, Harvard, MA
Tom Neuman, 61, Salt Lake City, UT
Dan Nielsen, 55, Avon, CO
Matias Saari, 46, Anchorage, AK
Mark Tatum, 56, Colorado Springs, CO
Ian Torrence, 44, Flagstaff, AZ
Dan Vega, 49, Colorado Springs, CO
Robert Woerne, 51, Montrose, CO
Live tweeting, based on cellular coverage, will be available on race day @ATRATrailrunner.
