ctrlaltdel wrote:
Interesting that the winner's time of 6:25 was considerably slower than Trason's downhill time of 5:58 back in 1997. Trason also set the a course record at the time of 6:13 on the uphill course in 1996. In both of these years she won WS 2 weeks later. I think a lot of younger readers here may not know how good Ann Trason was.
I don't believe it's fair to compare from year-to-year, as there can be significant variations in ~weather and also the measurement of the course. Last year's uphill course was apparently a little long, making Caroline's time a bit slower than it would have otherwise been. She could have likely gotten the uphill CR. I was a bit shocked to read they had done the "official measurement" on the course for this year-- you mean it's not a standardized distance that's the same every year?! What's the point of keeping records if the distance is questionable from year-to-year? This is where you have to appreciate the legitimacy of modernly measured marathons-- if they say it's a marathon, it's spot on in distance.
Additionally, from studying Ann and how she raced, she threw caution to the wind-- while she won on both the up and down courses, she also had 2 DNFs at Comrades (being ill the first yr) and also at Western States. She's admirable for putting herself out there and taking risks. I listened to the commentary, and there was a lot of talk about going out conservative and trying to negative splits. That's not how the sub 6 hr ladies raced! They prepared for the downhill to stave off late-race cramping, but they also went balls-to-the-wall from start to finish. If you're strong enough, prepared, and run within yourself, you should be able to race the full distance. I feel the same with the 100K holds true-- if women are going to go sub 7 hrs, you have to race the full distance.
It's also worth mentioning that the sub 6 hr women had legitimate leg speed from the marathon-100K. It takes 7:10 or faster 100K ability to run sub 6:00 on the downhill at Comrades. All 3 of the sub 6 women were sub 2:40 marathoners as well. Even with the Russian twins, they were exceptional marathoners (sub 2:30), but not entirely proven to be exceptional ultra runners- despite their success at Comrades. It takes all the right tools from marathon-100K to run well at ultras/Comrades.
Was there really only 2 wks between Comrades and Western States? It's usually been 3-4 wks. Nowadays, with the increasing competition, it would be challenging to do both, and do both well, with 2 wks of recovery (if true).
It was likely a great loss to the level of competition to have a few of us out with injuries (combined with the Russian ban), but the top women still ran respectably and honorably, with more South Africans than usual in the top 15! It was an enjoyable race to follow, and I'm inspired to aim for next year and hope for better luck with the health!