Kyle Merber becomes 1st human to run sub-4 mile outdoors in Alaska

Fitzpatz Sensol wrote:

The fastest 50K at the Olympics was won by three doped up Russians in Sochi, the winner went just under 1:47 for 50K, which is pretty much equal in performance level to the dog teams mentioned.

50k mass start is generally a tactical race that doesn't get serious until the latter stages. It's also not run that often because nobody wants to spoil the rest of their season.

1:46 in a tactical 50k passes 41.6k (26 miles) in 88 minutes, comfortably ahead of the dogs and still continuing for another 8.4k. In a 41.6k race they'd be a minute or two quicker, plus another minute or two if it were an individual start, good for an 85 minute performance at worst. So yes, that's better by a long shot.

Humans 1, animals 0

Me 1, you 0

Hating me for being right is really hating yourself for being wrong. You should learn to be more emotionally mature.

Neither Northug, Hellner nor the doped up Russians can keep this kind speed on the flats for any duration that would match the dogs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chN7WdlZ3JY

I know more about skiing and mushing than you. Face it.

Suddenly curious if there are any cases of doping or other PEDs in sled dogs.

If those dogs are tied together would their sub fours even be official?

It doesn't make them faster obviously but it may be one of those funny DQs.

And you need a certified measurement on a legit track.

Kyle is the first official legit sub four of any animal in Alaska.

A bit more for comparative purposes.

2015 NA skijoring championship (1 dog attached to 1 skier), in Wayzata MN. - the leaders covered 6.6K in 10:32, 1:36/km. These days sprint skiers will do about 11-12 minutes for a 5K relay leg but I've never heard of anyone going under 10. The 1.4K sprint races in the 2015 World Championships in Falun Sweden did it 2:59 (winner of the prelim, which is an all out time trialed sprint, but Oly Gold Medalist Kriukov of Russia, in 2:59.9 and Peter Northug won the final in 3:02.4. So about 2:07/km.

Just saying the dogs go faster for 6.6K than the skiers go for 1.4.

Sorry I was a little harsh there, Bad. You're smart guy. But there is good empirical evidence that dogs are faster than skiers.

These dogs love to run...this video is crazy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOGRBK3yXA8

Fitzpatz Sensol wrote:

A bit more for comparative purposes.

2015 NA skijoring championship (1 dog attached to 1 skier), in Wayzata MN. - the leaders covered 6.6K in 10:32, 1:36/km. These days sprint skiers will do about 11-12 minutes for a 5K relay leg but I've never heard of anyone going under 10. The 1.4K sprint races in the 2015 World Championships in Falun Sweden did it 2:59 (winner of the prelim, which is an all out time trialed sprint, but Oly Gold Medalist Kriukov of Russia, in 2:59.9 and Peter Northug won the final in 3:02.4. So about 2:07/km.

Just saying the dogs go faster for 6.6K than the skiers go for 1.4.

Sorry I was a little harsh there, Bad. You're smart guy. But there is good empirical evidence that dogs are faster than skiers.

+1

Star wrote:

If those dogs are tied together would their sub fours even be official?

It doesn't make them faster obviously but it may be one of those funny DQs.

And you need a certified measurement on a legit track.

Kyle is the first official legit sub four of any animal in Alaska.

To be clear, Jack Bolas is the first (and fastest) "official legit" sub four in Alaska.

That was more amazing than I would have imagined. What a finish!

mjohnson5 wrote:

These dogs love to run...this video is crazy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOGRBK3yXA8

sebcoe7 wrote:

[quote]Star wrote:

(Quote)To be clear, Jack Bolas is the first (and fastest) "official legit" sub four in Alaska. (Quote)

http://bringbackthemile.com/news/detail/bolas_posts_first_sub_4_minute_mile_in_alaska_history

Hey, Bolas is the legit first guy indoors. Merber is the first guy outdoors. Bolas ran in perfect conditions. Merber ran in a virtual windstorm. If you're going to grade in terms of " legit", Merber's is much more legit. In that wind, it was at least a 3:55 effort.

Bring Back the Mile wrote:

Rowbeast wrote:

Now that Alaska is checked off the list. Any other states yet to have the 4 minute barrier broken?

NOTE: Jumpin' Jack Bolas clocked the first sub-4 in Alaska (indoors), four years ago to the day of Merber's outdoor AK sub-4; see:

http://www.bringbackthemile.com/news/detail/state_mile_guide_49_alaska

While it would have been nice if the writer of the linked Blankenship article

( hockey reporter Doyle Woody) mentioned Bolas when The LetsRun.com Editorial Crew re-captioned the thread a reference to Bolas and the first sub-four should have been included.

As I understand it, the downhill half of the Mt Marathon race involves a snow bank, which runners are free to slide down. Has anyone ever broken 4-minute mile in that race? It wouldn't be running a sub-4, but it should count for something to break 4 in a foot race. Anyone want to look for Strava data?

Fooey wrote:

sebcoe7 wrote:

[quote]Star wrote:

(Quote)To be clear, Jack Bolas is the first (and fastest) "official legit" sub four in Alaska. (Quote)

http://bringbackthemile.com/news/detail/bolas_posts_first_sub_4_minute_mile_in_alaska_history

Hey, Bolas is the legit first guy indoors. Merber is the first guy outdoors. Bolas ran in perfect conditions. Merber ran in a virtual windstorm. If you're going to grade in terms of " legit", Merber's is much more legit. In that wind, it was at least a 3:55 effort.

Bolas was legitimately the first to run sub-4 in Alaska. Nothing to debate regarding that. Merber's time was legitimately more difficult, but that doesn't supersede what Jack did in being the the first to do it four years earlier.

Ben Blankenship was the only runner to go Sub-Four at the Kodiak Miracle Mile today. His 3:57.85 establishes a new outdoor and absolute record for the mile in the state of Alaska.

Article and results from the Kodiak mile. If you get blocked, it opens in an InPrivate/Incognito window:

https://www.adn.com/sports/running/2017/09/16/blankenships-357-85-is-fastest-mile-recorded-in-alaska/

Star wrote:

If those dogs are tied together would their sub fours even be official?

It doesn't make them faster obviously but it may be one of those funny DQs.

And you need a certified measurement on a legit track.

Kyle is the first official legit sub four of any animal in Alaska.

The last skijoring race of every season in Fairbanks has a LeMan's mass start one dog one mile on the Alaska Dog Musher's Association trails (Musher's Hall, Farm Loop Road). The skijors run with their dog about 30 feet to their skis, put their skis on, which is difficult when a dog is excited and pulling, and then do the 1.0 mile loop. The time includes the chaotic start, so the speed is actually quite a bit faster than the times indicate. I think the race record is from this race in 2005, a 3:49.

There are plenty of sled dog races with faster average times per mile for even 27.5 miles, but I point this one out because it is an actual mile race.

Mt Marathon downhill pace? wrote:

As I understand it, the downhill half of the Mt Marathon race involves a snow bank, which runners are free to slide down. Has anyone ever broken 4-minute mile in that race? It wouldn't be running a sub-4, but it should count for something to break 4 in a foot race. Anyone want to look for Strava data?

That snow, in the years that it is there, doesn't add up to more than a small fraction of a mile. The total downhill from the top to the base/road to the finish is about 1.5-1.6 miles, and the unofficial record for that downhill is 10:00. It's way too rough to be as fast as even a flat road.

I've been wanting to run a Strava downhill mile PR, inspired by Dave Torrence's Big Wave thread (since before he died), for about a year. I love running downhill fast and has some longer Strava downhill CRs. But I'm probably too old for sub-4:00, and have been sidelined from faster running with an Achilles injury since last year. I'll take a shot at beating my flat mile PR and setting a Strava estimated best effort 1 mile on a downhill when I heal up though.

Just found this thread... so perhaps they should add an outdoor 1-mile race to the winter olympic events just to see who can run the fastest mile through snow in < 20 degrees temp. The Kenyans and Kiprop will suck at this event. My money is on Kyle Merber!!

Didn't Merber and another guy battle a Heps XC race in the cold and sleet that put both of them in the hospital ?