Latest / Let's Talk Trail Running / 2026 Madeira Island Ultra Trail 115k Race Preview

Transcript

2026 Madeira Island Ultra Trail 115k Race Preview · Let's Talk Trail Running

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: Hello and welcome to Let's Talk Trail Running.
• 0:03
  SPEAKER_00: This is your host Robert Prosser.
• 0:05
  SPEAKER_00: We have another exciting episode ahead today.
• 0:09
  SPEAKER_00: We're going to preview the Madeira Island Ultra Trail 115K.
• 0:15
  SPEAKER_00: And for those of you guys new to the show,
• 0:16
  this is the show where we break down upcoming races that are
• 0:20
  going to take place on
• 0:22
  SPEAKER_00: Fantasy Free Trail,
• 0:24
  SPEAKER_00: which is Free Trail's very own fan-creating fantasy platform at
• 0:29
  SPEAKER_00: fantasy.freetrail.com.
• 0:31
  SPEAKER_00: And the goal of this show is to review upcoming races,
• 0:34
  to introduce you to athletes in the trail and ultra and sub
• 0:38
  ultra running world,
• 0:39
  and to basically just help create and build fans of the sport
• 0:44
  by telling you the
• 0:44
  SPEAKER_00: stories of the athletes,
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_00: the stories
• 0:46
  these courses and basically giving you some insight that's
• 0:49
  going to help you guys
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_00: make your fantasy free trail picks if that's what you're into.
• 0:53
  SPEAKER_00: And if not,
• 0:53
  just tell you stories about cool races and cool places with
• 0:56
  some very exciting
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_00: athletes.
• 0:59
  So today's race,
• 1:00
  like I mentioned,
• 1:01
  is going to be the Madeira Island Ultra Trail 115K.
• 1:06
  and some other housekeeping stuff before we get into it we had
• 1:09
  a big week uh what
• 1:11
  two last weekend i guess with gorge waterfalls 100k uh 50k and
• 1:16
  30k big prize money
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_00: up for uh the races which for
• 1:20
  nike acg and then we also had a calamaro sky race so i did a
• 1:24
  calamaro preview and a
• 1:25
  gorge 30k preview hopefully those were helpful to you guys and
• 1:28
  then also we had the
• 1:30
  100k and the 50k the weekend went pretty good i got bumped up
• 1:33
  from like 30th to
• 1:34
  17th place and then the 50k i should have really just picked
• 1:37
  the favorites honestly
• 1:38
  and i kind of tried to get a little too fancy and so many
• 1:40
  people basically got
• 1:41
  really high points just kind of picking the favorites in the
• 1:44
  race uh that that
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_00: dropped me back to like the 20 something place so
• 1:48
  moving on up kind of moving the right direction in the season
• 1:50
  was cracking that top
• 1:51
  20 and was looking good and then a bunch of people got a ton of
• 1:54
  points on that last
• 1:55
  day so um i think i'm somewhere but catch up and we will make
• 2:02
  it work so other
• 2:04
  housekeeping items um if at any point uh in this podcast i just
• 2:09
  say the word jets
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_00: or jets are taking off i am on a i'm actively deployed right now i'm on a
• 2:14
  military base and so the jets can get very loud and drown out
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  all the sound on takeoff.
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  So just feel free to skip forward maybe 30 seconds to a minute
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  and I'll start
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  SPEAKER_00: talking again as soon as they take off.
• 2:26
  SPEAKER_00: It's just too loud for me to talk over them and it's
• 2:29
  easiest given my situation to do the podcast outside and not
• 2:33
  disturb other people
• 2:34
  so that is that housekeeping uh we had those races last week
• 2:38
  this week and we got a
• 2:39
  big weekend besides madeira uh the madeira island ultra trail
• 2:43
  we also have the
• 2:44
  canyons by utmb races and also ultra trail mount fuji that
• 2:48
  one's not up for picking
• 2:50
  SPEAKER_00: on the fantasy free trial website
• 2:52
  SPEAKER_00: but it is also taking place this weekend.
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  SPEAKER_00: So another big weekend of ultra racing and just trail racing in general.
• 2:58
  And it does feel like the trail season in the Northern
• 3:00
  hemisphere is finally kind
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  SPEAKER_00: of in full swing,
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_00: um,
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  SPEAKER_00: between,
• 3:04
  SPEAKER_00: between Gorge and what else do we have?
• 3:08
  We had Gorge and,
• 3:10
  uh,
• 3:10
  Lake Sonoma is what I'm blanking on and Calamaro last weekend.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_00: And I think there was even one other one that I'm also missing.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_00: Um, oh yeah, the,
• 3:21
  SPEAKER_00: I'm just making sure my laptop's not freaking out.
• 3:25
  So anyways,
• 3:26
  a big weekend of racing last week that was super exciting,
• 3:28
  super fun.
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  SPEAKER_00: I mostly followed the free trail stuff.
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  SPEAKER_00: I kept an eye out on Lake Sonoma stuff.
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  SPEAKER_00: And then I also kept a close eye on Calamaro.
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  SPEAKER_00: Calamaro was super exciting.
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  SPEAKER_00: We saw Manu, Marias, and Fred Tranchand.
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  battle it out uh and then i guess other things too just kind of
• 3:46
  while i'm while i'm
• 3:47
  riffing and freestyling um one thing that i realized last week
• 3:50
  was i was really
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  excited to get out the preview early to you guys like almost a
• 3:53
  week early but
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  SPEAKER_00: there's downsides about recording previews too early so we're
• 3:57
  about five days out from madeira i'm recording this on saturday
• 4:00
  night european time
• 4:01
  more or less uh and it should be taking place friday i want to
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  say so there's kind
• 4:05
  of a delicate balance i kind of it's a little bit of a
• 4:07
  disadvantage to get a
• 4:08
  preview out too early because for the calamaro sky race manu
• 4:12
  wasn't on the preview
• 4:12
  because he wasn't announced as a starter yet uh and then
• 4:15
  eventually we had madalena
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  floria drop so there's also downsides to previewing races too
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  early because either
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_00: people get added or taken out um
• 4:22
  SPEAKER_00: Case in point, like Yao Mao getting added to the 50K.
• 4:25
  SPEAKER_00: I didn't do a 50K preview, but if I did.
• 4:27
  SPEAKER_00: So anyways, that's kind of some housekeeping stuff.
• 4:30
  SPEAKER_00: Other things,
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  SPEAKER_00: I posted an article on Substack this past week,
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_00: just kind of talking about how
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_00: quite frankly, just a little bit of a disappointing start to the year.
• 4:40
  SPEAKER_00: Nothing to do with the podcast.
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  It's been really awesome talking to all you guys and watching
• 4:44
  the growth there,
• 4:44
  but really just kind of not how I expected my year to be going
• 4:47
  and a lot of things
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  out of my control that kind of have made my year not as
• 4:53
  enjoyable as I'd hoped it'd
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  SPEAKER_00: be so far,
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_00: but
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  SPEAKER_00: Hopefully that will change and get better throughout the year.
• 4:59
  SPEAKER_00: So if you guys feel inclined, go check that out.
• 5:01
  SPEAKER_00: It's a short read, quick read.
• 5:03
  SPEAKER_00: But yeah,
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  I hope this podcast founds everyone happy and healthy and
• 5:07
  working towards their
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_00: trail goals coming up for the year.
• 5:11
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so excited.
• 5:12
  SPEAKER_00: This preview is just going to be Madeira Island Ultra Trail 115K.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_00: We got a really good field here.
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_00: There's a lot to discuss.
• 5:18
  And I also have a lot of associated media that I'm including in
• 5:22
  the show notes of
• 5:24
  the article that we're going to discuss in the podcast that I
• 5:27
  think is enjoyable
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_00: for a lot of people that like this show,
• 5:29
  SPEAKER_00: if you haven't seen it already.
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  SPEAKER_00: So without further ado,
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  let's freaking jump in and let's talk about Madeira Island
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  Ultra Trail 115K.
• 5:36
  SPEAKER_00: So Madeira, it's an island off the coast of Africa.
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_00: It's Portuguese islands and just a classic, one of those classic races.
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  You know,
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  I kind of consider the classic island crossing races,
• 5:50
  you know,
• 5:51
  Madeira.
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  Trans-Grand Canaria and Trans-Valconia are kind of three of the
• 5:55
  kind of the most
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  SPEAKER_00: storied,
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  SPEAKER_00: I would say,
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  SPEAKER_00: in the ultra trail scene.
• 5:58
  SPEAKER_00: And now UTMB's got a Tenerife race as well.
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  SPEAKER_00: But I would say Madeira,
• 6:01
  SPEAKER_00: Trans-Grand Canaria,
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  and Trans-Valconia are just all sick races where you
• 6:04
  essentially just run from one
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  SPEAKER_00: side of the island to the other.
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  beautiful terrain,
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  unique,
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  beautiful terrain,
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  unique terrain,
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  unique weather patterns.
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  SPEAKER_00: And Madeira is kind of like the moodier,
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  SPEAKER_00: kind of more rainy,
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  SPEAKER_00: jungly one,
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  SPEAKER_00: it feels like lots of steps go across the island.
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  SPEAKER_00: So it's kind of a unique terrain to go across.
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  SPEAKER_00: And it's also
• 6:22
  SPEAKER_00: just had really,
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  SPEAKER_00: really legendary performances on both the men's and women's side,
• 6:25
  SPEAKER_00: which we'll get into today.
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  SPEAKER_00: So course description,
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  SPEAKER_00: I'm pulling the description from Esther Horani from last,
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  I'm pulling descriptions from the last two years races because
• 6:35
  last year's race was
• 6:36
  SPEAKER_00: altered because if I
• 6:37
  SPEAKER_00: So last year's course description,
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  it said following a severe fire on the Portuguese island of
• 6:41
  Madeira burned about
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  SPEAKER_00: 14% of the island over 10 days before being brought under control.
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  SPEAKER_00: They didn't cancel the race.
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  SPEAKER_00: The organizers decided to reroute 60% of it last year.
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  SPEAKER_00: They created a route that was
• 6:52
  pretty similar in distance and elevation gain um but i don't
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  think it went over a
• 6:56
  lot of the major peaks that you usually do uh and so people did
• 6:59
  race it last year
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  and katie shide threw down so far as i can tell the course
• 7:03
  record performance but
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  it's tough to say because it was that altered course um so it's
• 7:07
  tough to say if it
• 7:07
  was faster so we'll talk about that a little bit and then the
• 7:11
  2024 race description
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  SPEAKER_00: also from esther horiani of uh i run far uh
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  SPEAKER_00: said with 7,200 meters of climbing.
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  SPEAKER_00: So about 23,600 feet, uh, and it's 115 kilometers around 75 miles.
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  SPEAKER_00: I want to say 80 times 0.6.
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  SPEAKER_00: So yeah, something like that.
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  SPEAKER_00: Um,
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  SPEAKER_00: And so,
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  SPEAKER_00: yeah,
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  the race is starting at sea level and finishing on the eastern
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  end of the island at
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_00: Machico.
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  SPEAKER_00: Back at sea level again,
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  SPEAKER_00: runners travel over countless mountains,
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  including the routes high point Pico Ruivo at about 1,800
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  meters or about 5,900
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  SPEAKER_00: feet above sea level.
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  There's thousands of stairs and there's also that are infamous
• 7:52
  on this race course.
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  SPEAKER_00: So like I said,
• 7:54
  it's known to be kind of awkward to run on because you kind of
• 7:56
  have to space your
• 7:57
  SPEAKER_00: steps going up and down the stairs,
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  SPEAKER_00: which isn't always natural to trail runners.
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  And then it also,
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  yeah,
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  the stairs add a unique element to the racing experience.
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  SPEAKER_00: The route treats runners to stunning views of big mountains,
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  SPEAKER_00: the ocean,
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  SPEAKER_00: and everything in between.
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  SPEAKER_00: So if you look up pictures of Madeira or look up stuff on Instagram,
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  SPEAKER_00: I mean,
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  SPEAKER_00: Madeira is a really beautiful island.
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  SPEAKER_00: It gets targeted for a ton of itineraries for hiking across the island,
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  SPEAKER_00: kind of like multi-day hikes.
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  But also this race just seems like it'd be epic to run across
• 8:26
  the island in one day
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  SPEAKER_00: and see all these different climates and microclimates and go from
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_00: you know, C to Summit to C and back.
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  SPEAKER_00: So I think that all sounds pretty sick.
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  SPEAKER_00: So with regards to course records,
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_00: if you look at it,
• 8:40
  SPEAKER_00: technically,
• 8:40
  SPEAKER_00: the fastest times on the course were last year's.
• 8:43
  SPEAKER_00: But like I mentioned, the course was altered.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_00: So last year, the men's winner was Paul Cornu Chauvinck.
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_00: I'm sure I'm butchering that French guy.
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  SPEAKER_00: 1254.52.
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  SPEAKER_00: And the women's winner was
• 8:53
  was none other than Katie Scheid running a 1420 and kind of
• 8:56
  blowing away the field
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  SPEAKER_00: by a couple hours.
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  SPEAKER_00: With that being said,
• 9:00
  SPEAKER_00: the previous course records before that,
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  SPEAKER_00: the fastest ones I could find,
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  SPEAKER_00: and I don't have a lot of historical context for this course,
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  SPEAKER_00: but the fastest I could find would be
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  SPEAKER_00: Jim Walmsley's time when he ran it was 12.58, I believe, in 2022.
• 9:13
  SPEAKER_00: And then, yes, and then Courtney also ran it in 2022 in 14.40.
• 9:17
  From what I can tell,
• 9:18
  that's the OG course in the fastest times that I found.
• 9:21
  SPEAKER_00: But it's tough to tell,
• 9:22
  SPEAKER_00: like we said,
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_00: how much last year's course affected those finishing times.
• 9:27
  SPEAKER_00: So,
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  SPEAKER_00: for this preview,
• 9:29
  SPEAKER_00: we're going to go into the men's field first,
• 9:30
  SPEAKER_00: which is looking really good,
• 9:31
  SPEAKER_00: and I have a lot of interesting insights on those guys.
• 9:33
  SPEAKER_00: And then the women's field,
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_00: it kind of feels like there's three really heavy favorites,
• 9:36
  and then a mix of other women who could get some points and get
• 9:40
  a top five or top
• 9:41
  SPEAKER_00: ten here.
• 9:42
  SPEAKER_00: on the day.
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  SPEAKER_00: So we're going to dive in the men's field first.
• 9:45
  Uh,
• 9:46
  when I talk about men's field,
• 9:46
  we'll talk about last year's 2025 results.
• 9:49
  SPEAKER_00: Um,
• 9:49
  SPEAKER_00: first through fifth place was a really tight race last year,
• 9:52
  SPEAKER_00: and it was a really,
• 9:52
  SPEAKER_00: really good battle between a lot of good racers.
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_00: Like I said,
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_00: the win was Paul Cournot,
• 9:56
  SPEAKER_00: uh,
• 9:57
  SPEAKER_00: from France,
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  SPEAKER_00: 1254,
• 9:59
  SPEAKER_00: 52,
• 9:59
  SPEAKER_00: and then first through fifth and a 13 hour race,
• 10:02
  SPEAKER_00: more or less were separated by,
• 10:03
  SPEAKER_00: uh,
• 10:04
  SPEAKER_00: less than 25 minutes,
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_00: which is really impressive.
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  SPEAKER_00: So second place,
• 10:07
  SPEAKER_00: Miguel Arsenio,
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_00: who we'll talk about here in a little bit,
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  SPEAKER_00: he finished 13 hours,
• 10:10
  SPEAKER_00: uh,
• 10:11
  SPEAKER_00: Third place, Raul Butachi, the Romanian crusher, 13.03.
• 10:14
  SPEAKER_00: Fourth place, Jean-Philippe Schumi of Switzerland, 13.17.
• 10:18
  SPEAKER_00: And fifth place, Jermon Grandier, 13.19.
• 10:22
  SPEAKER_00: So storylines on the men's field.
• 10:24
  I think the race is really up for grabs with a strong lineup of
• 10:27
  super consistent
• 10:28
  SPEAKER_00: runners this year.
• 10:29
  SPEAKER_00: I'm excited to see a strong U.S.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_00: field here selfishly,
• 10:31
  SPEAKER_00: but I'm also definitely bummed that Caleb Olsen won't be racing today.
• 10:35
  um i also included this kind of tends to be a good early season
• 10:38
  indicator for
• 10:39
  people uh setting up to have a good race here last year's
• 10:42
  winner uh went on to win
• 10:44
  utmb nice 100 miler which presumably punched a stick at the
• 10:47
  utmb this year and
• 10:47
  that's his goal and then the year before ben demon won to go on
• 10:51
  to have podiums at
• 10:52
  utmb indora he got second and i own the day food he got third
• 10:55
  that year so yeah
• 10:57
  SPEAKER_00: it's kind of a good early season indicator um
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_00: And with that being said, we'll get into the men's field.
• 11:02
  First runner on the list is Miguel Arsenio,
• 11:05
  Portuguese trail runner for Kyles Fuga.
• 11:08
  Very familiar racing here with two attempts at the 115K race
• 11:11
  and three times racing
• 11:12
  SPEAKER_00: Ultra Sky Marathon Madeira as well.
• 11:14
  SPEAKER_00: So he's very familiar with the island's terrain.
• 11:17
  SPEAKER_00: His results at MI-UT1-15 have been a toss-up.
• 11:20
  SPEAKER_00: One time he got second place,
• 11:22
  SPEAKER_00: which was last year,
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_00: only six minutes,
• 11:25
  SPEAKER_00: less than six minutes off the win.
• 11:26
  SPEAKER_00: And then the year before that, he DNF'd the race in 2024.
• 11:30
  SPEAKER_00: Miguel Olsen is a really talented racer.
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_00: Historically, he can kind of be hit or miss at big races.
• 11:36
  SPEAKER_00: In my couple of years of fantasy free show,
• 11:38
  SPEAKER_00: he kind of has DNFs and then big results at big races.
• 11:42
  SPEAKER_00: But to his credit, looking back at his race results since 2024,
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_00: He has not DNF'd a single race since UTMB 2024.
• 11:50
  SPEAKER_00: So essentially,
• 11:51
  SPEAKER_00: past two and a half years,
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_00: hasn't had a DNF,
• 11:54
  SPEAKER_00: or I guess year and a half,
• 11:55
  SPEAKER_00: hasn't had a DNF.
• 11:56
  And that's impressive because he's actually raced 12 ultras
• 11:59
  since then without a single DNF.
• 12:00
  SPEAKER_00: So he has been really consistent.
• 12:02
  SPEAKER_00: Seems like he's kind of figured out whatever was bothering him.
• 12:04
  And that's a good indicator,
• 12:05
  really,
• 12:06
  really good recency bias there,
• 12:07
  I guess.
• 12:08
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I actually really like his chances here.
• 12:09
  SPEAKER_00: He knows the trails really well.
• 12:11
  SPEAKER_00: Like I said,
• 12:11
  SPEAKER_00: he's been really consistent for 18 months without having a DNF and,
• 12:15
  SPEAKER_00: uh,
• 12:15
  SPEAKER_00: and he's raced a good bit in the past seven months.
• 12:17
  He's,
• 12:17
  uh,
• 12:18
  the past seven months,
• 12:19
  he raced a 17th at world's long trail in September.
• 12:21
  SPEAKER_00: He had a win at,
• 12:22
  UTMB Ethanon 50k one weekend and then the one at the Chiang Mai
• 12:26
  100k the next weekend.
• 12:27
  SPEAKER_00: That's the back-to-back UTMB Thailand races that they do.
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_00: And then he also raced a 50k in Portugal in March.
• 12:33
  SPEAKER_00: So a good but not altogether unreasonable low racing.
• 12:37
  SPEAKER_00: And I think he's poised to do well at Madeira.
• 12:41
  SPEAKER_00: Next athlete we're going to talk about is none other than Rod Favard,
• 12:44
  SPEAKER_00: the Hoka athlete from Mammoth,
• 12:45
  SPEAKER_00: California.
• 12:47
  SPEAKER_00: Recently swapped to full-time in the past year.
• 12:49
  And if you haven't listened to his podcast with Debo on Free
• 12:53
  Trail that came out in
• 12:53
  SPEAKER_00: December,
• 12:54
  SPEAKER_00: I really recommend you should.
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_00: I think it's called Staying the Path or something along those lines.
• 13:01
  SPEAKER_00: or life on the path or something like that.
• 13:03
  SPEAKER_00: I have it linked in the show notes.
• 13:04
  SPEAKER_00: So check that out.
• 13:05
  SPEAKER_00: It really is a good conversation just about life as much as running.
• 13:09
  SPEAKER_00: But I thought it was a really enlightening and really,
• 13:11
  SPEAKER_00: really enjoyable conversation that they had.
• 13:14
  SPEAKER_00: So Rod Farvard is the Rod Father,
• 13:16
  SPEAKER_00: potentially the most feared mustache in the ultra running world.
• 13:19
  SPEAKER_00: He's got a very powerful mustache, like Tom Selleck level facial hair.
• 13:24
  SPEAKER_00: His training has been really huge this winter.
• 13:26
  SPEAKER_00: He's swapped over to a CTS coach.
• 13:28
  SPEAKER_00: I don't remember.
• 13:30
  SPEAKER_00: if it's Cliff or John,
• 13:31
  SPEAKER_00: Cliff Fittman or John Fitzgerald,
• 13:32
  but I feel like it's one of the two and we've seen him third on
• 13:34
  some really big
• 13:35
  SPEAKER_00: weeks.
• 13:36
  SPEAKER_00: Um,
• 13:37
  SPEAKER_00: in two,
• 13:39
  SPEAKER_00: three months ago,
• 13:40
  SPEAKER_00: late January or February,
• 13:42
  SPEAKER_00: he had back-to-back 19 hour weeks with 140 miles of running.
• 13:45
  SPEAKER_00: Uh,
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_00: And I think he even might have had three of those in a row.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_00: He's pulled back from that a little bit,
• 13:50
  but he did just recently put up an 18-hour week with 120 miles
• 13:53
  and 30,000 feet of
• 13:54
  SPEAKER_00: vert at the end of March.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_00: So needless to say, his training has been really big.
• 13:58
  SPEAKER_00: He's put in a lot of big blocks.
• 14:00
  And he was getting a lot of running in Mammoth since they
• 14:01
  didn't have a ton of snow.
• 14:03
  SPEAKER_00: And I think he goes down to Bishop.
• 14:04
  So it's kind of like a high desert out there in California
• 14:06
  where he can still
• 14:07
  SPEAKER_00: put down a lot of miles.
• 14:09
  So Rod's training has looked really,
• 14:13
  really good,
• 14:13
  and I really like his chances to do well here.
• 14:15
  SPEAKER_00: I'm excited to see what his year is going to look like.
• 14:18
  SPEAKER_00: I wish him and Caleb could have thrown down here,
• 14:19
  SPEAKER_00: but I also think that Rod is looking really strong in this
• 14:22
  could be a big statement win coming into his main objective
• 14:25
  this year,
• 14:25
  which is UTMB.
• 14:27
  SPEAKER_00: Last season, he kind of had up and down here.
• 14:28
  SPEAKER_00: He had ninth places at UTMB and Canyons,
• 14:31
  SPEAKER_00: which were kind of disappointing for both races for both of him,
• 14:34
  SPEAKER_00: having won Canyons before and having high expectations for UTMB.
• 14:37
  And then he also had a disappointing DNF at Western States
• 14:40
  where he was sixth place
• 14:41
  all the way until mile 90 and then kind of had a rhabdo episode
• 14:44
  and had to pull
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_00: super late.
• 14:45
  He is kind of like Caleb and like Chris Myers and is putting
• 14:49
  his eggs in the UTMB basket.
• 14:51
  SPEAKER_00: He's done what he wants to at Western.
• 14:52
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe not completely.
• 14:54
  SPEAKER_00: I mean,
• 14:54
  SPEAKER_00: I'm sure he wants to win,
• 14:55
  but he's decided to try other things because he spent a lot of
• 14:58
  his life on Western.
• 15:00
  SPEAKER_00: So...
• 15:01
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I think he can win here.
• 15:02
  I think it'd be a huge vote of confidence leading into the
• 15:04
  biggest goal of the
• 15:06
  SPEAKER_00: year,
• 15:06
  SPEAKER_00: which would be UTMB later in the year.
• 15:07
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm excited to see him race Madero.
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_00: Next athlete,
• 15:11
  SPEAKER_00: really big favorite of mine,
• 15:13
  SPEAKER_00: not as well known in the U.S.
• 15:15
  SPEAKER_00: scene as he should be,
• 15:16
  SPEAKER_00: but definitely very popular in the French trail scene.
• 15:19
  SPEAKER_00: And that's Arulian Dunant-Payaz, French athlete for Scarpa and Coppa.
• 15:25
  SPEAKER_00: Compress Sport,
• 15:26
  SPEAKER_00: previous Hard Rock winner in 2023,
• 15:28
  SPEAKER_00: as well as UTMB runner-up,
• 15:29
  SPEAKER_00: I wanna say in 22 behind Francois.
• 15:33
  SPEAKER_00: And like I said,
• 15:33
  SPEAKER_00: he's usually slept on by the US crowd,
• 15:35
  SPEAKER_00: but he's silently kind of a really amazing trail runner.
• 15:38
  SPEAKER_00: There's a really good YouTube video about him
• 15:40
  that compress sport kind of sponsored or whatever leading up to
• 15:43
  UTMB race last year
• 15:45
  gives great insight to him and his life and his training and I
• 15:48
  think it just had
• 15:49
  English subtitles or they might even have an English dub over
• 15:52
  but either way I
• 15:52
  SPEAKER_00: include it in the show notes if you want to check that out
• 15:55
  SPEAKER_00: It gives a good insight into him for this largely U.S.
• 15:59
  SPEAKER_00: or Western-based English audience that listens to this podcast.
• 16:02
  SPEAKER_00: Definitely worth checking out.
• 16:03
  SPEAKER_00: He's a likable guy.
• 16:04
  SPEAKER_00: I have a lot of respect for him.
• 16:05
  SPEAKER_00: I think he's a really, really good athlete.
• 16:08
  SPEAKER_00: Last year, he put all his legs in the UTMB basket.
• 16:10
  SPEAKER_00: And was competitive for the first half of the race.
• 16:12
  SPEAKER_00: I want to say I remember him being for sure top 10,
• 16:14
  SPEAKER_00: but maybe even top five and pushing in the front half.
• 16:17
  SPEAKER_00: But he really fell off in the back half,
• 16:18
  SPEAKER_00: finished for him a disappointing 20th place,
• 16:20
  SPEAKER_00: you know,
• 16:21
  SPEAKER_00: having been a UTMB runner up before,
• 16:23
  SPEAKER_00: which was well off his stage of goal to win.
• 16:25
  SPEAKER_00: the race.
• 16:25
  SPEAKER_00: Before that, earlier in the 2025 season, he won the UTMB Verbier 80k.
• 16:31
  SPEAKER_00: And after UTMB,
• 16:33
  he bounced back to a third place at Diago Nottefu behind
• 16:36
  Baptiste Chassain and
• 16:37
  SPEAKER_00: Yannick Noel,
• 16:38
  SPEAKER_00: but in front of Ludo Pomeray.
• 16:40
  SPEAKER_00: He has also won diagonal day food as well.
• 16:43
  So,
• 16:43
  you know,
• 16:44
  really accomplished ultra trail runner for France that does
• 16:47
  good in grindy races.
• 16:48
  Um,
• 16:49
  he has raced once at the Madeira to a second place in 14 hours,
• 16:53
  19 minutes in 2019.
• 16:55
  SPEAKER_00: So it's been a while,
• 16:56
  but he is familiar with the train and this kind of race
• 16:58
  honestly suits him in my
• 16:59
  SPEAKER_00: opinion.
• 17:00
  SPEAKER_00: It's a grindy race, lots of up and down.
• 17:02
  SPEAKER_00: That's kind of his bread and butter.
• 17:03
  SPEAKER_00: He's a really, really good climber.
• 17:05
  So I think he's a really,
• 17:06
  really strong pick for top five,
• 17:07
  probably even top three.
• 17:08
  SPEAKER_00: If I had my way, um,
• 17:11
  SPEAKER_00: And yeah, I'm excited to see him race here.
• 17:13
  SPEAKER_00: Next athlete is going to be a longtime Nike trail athlete.
• 17:17
  SPEAKER_00: And now we call it Nike ACG, all conditions gear.
• 17:20
  That's Tyler Green from Portland,
• 17:22
  Oregon,
• 17:23
  but now living in Salt Lake City.
• 17:26
  Coming fresh off fourth place at Gorge 30K just a week ago and
• 17:30
  the multiple time
• 17:32
  SPEAKER_00: Western States Endurance Run second place finish.
• 17:35
  SPEAKER_00: Sure, he did that twice.
• 17:37
  His race selection the past few years has been really awesome
• 17:39
  and diversified since he stepped
• 17:41
  away from just returning to Western a lot so I tip my cap to
• 17:44
  him last year he raced
• 17:45
  at Ultra Trail Mount Fuji 100 miler to a fourth place and I
• 17:50
  think he went off
• 17:51
  course for a little bit if I'm not mistaken on that race so
• 17:54
  that and this year
• 17:55
  SPEAKER_00: Mount Fuji
• 17:55
  SPEAKER_00: He's the same weekend,
• 17:57
  SPEAKER_00: but doesn't have a fantasy free trail bike,
• 17:58
  SPEAKER_00: so it'll be happening this weekend as well.
• 18:01
  SPEAKER_00: Last year, Tyler also raced Lavarado 120K to a ninth place.
• 18:04
  I think he kind of fell off towards then and had to manage some
• 18:06
  stomach issues,
• 18:07
  SPEAKER_00: but that was a good competitive race.
• 18:08
  SPEAKER_00: And then he raced at Worlds to a 31st place on the Long Trail.
• 18:12
  If I'm confident that any one of these runners is going to
• 18:15
  finish the race and run
• 18:16
  SPEAKER_00: a smart race,
• 18:17
  SPEAKER_00: I would say it's Tyler 100%.
• 18:18
  SPEAKER_00: I think Rulian is up there,
• 18:21
  but I think Tyler is probably my top pick for somebody who's
• 18:23
  going to for sure
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_00: finish and is going to for sure get points.
• 18:27
  SPEAKER_00: I think,
• 18:28
  SPEAKER_00: you know,
• 18:28
  SPEAKER_00: he is a lock for points and will very likely end up in the top six,
• 18:33
  SPEAKER_00: in my opinion.
• 18:34
  SPEAKER_00: He hasn't raced here before,
• 18:35
  SPEAKER_00: so he does have that gun against them,
• 18:36
  SPEAKER_00: but he's raced plenty internationally and done very well internationally.
• 18:39
  SPEAKER_00: We've seen him finish his highest seventh place at UTMB in 2023.
• 18:42
  SPEAKER_00: And that was after doubling back from a second place at Western.
• 18:45
  And he also has third places at Ultra Trail Hong Kong 100K and
• 18:49
  Trans-Great Canary
• 18:50
  SPEAKER_00: Classic to his name.
• 18:51
  SPEAKER_00: So I'll be rooting for him.
• 18:52
  SPEAKER_00: I think he is a sure bet to get points.
• 18:55
  And I think it's very likely he ends up in the top six,
• 18:58
  like almost guaranteed.
• 19:00
  SPEAKER_00: So next athlete is a new one for me,
• 19:02
  SPEAKER_00: Gautier Arie,
• 19:06
  SPEAKER_00: French runner and Scott athlete,
• 19:08
  SPEAKER_00: but has some really,
• 19:09
  SPEAKER_00: really good results.
• 19:09
  He was the runner up at TDS last year in a tight race behind
• 19:13
  Antoine Charvelin.
• 19:15
  SPEAKER_00: I think it was only like 10 minutes off of winning it.
• 19:17
  SPEAKER_00: And fourth place at Marathon de Montblanc, 90K last year.
• 19:20
  SPEAKER_00: He hasn't raced here before.
• 19:22
  Most of his races are in France,
• 19:23
  but it does seem he's really good with the up and down stuff.
• 19:25
  SPEAKER_00: So I'm curious to see how he stacks up in this deep field.
• 19:29
  He's already raced once this year at the French Short Trail
• 19:31
  Championships,
• 19:33
  SPEAKER_00: which is the qualifier for the Euro Trail Champs this year,
• 19:36
  SPEAKER_00: this summer.
• 19:36
  SPEAKER_00: And he got a 10th place finish there.
• 19:41
  SPEAKER_00: Next athlete is going to be Vincent or Vincent Esmiel.
• 19:45
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm sorry with these French names.
• 19:47
  SPEAKER_00: I'm doing my best.
• 19:49
  Another French runner who finished just behind Gautier in the
• 19:51
  short trail champs for France.
• 19:53
  SPEAKER_00: So he was 11th place.
• 19:54
  SPEAKER_00: I first came across him when I saw
• 19:56
  his ishepebel results um after doing some research on the
• 20:01
  course um i this is the
• 20:04
  race that moi has been talking about in the boulder boy podcast
• 20:06
  that's even steeper
• 20:08
  and more vertical than utmb in a shorter amount of distance um
• 20:12
  i looked up the race
• 20:13
  and i found the course on strava and the the race just looks
• 20:16
  gorgeous it looks
• 20:17
  SPEAKER_00: brutal um and it's just a really really impressive like
• 20:22
  SPEAKER_00: Technical or seemingly technical,
• 20:23
  SPEAKER_00: if not,
• 20:24
  SPEAKER_00: at least it's very,
• 20:25
  SPEAKER_00: very steep,
• 20:25
  SPEAKER_00: but the course looks gorgeous.
• 20:27
  SPEAKER_00: So this guy,
• 20:27
  SPEAKER_00: Vincent,
• 20:28
  he broke the course record last year and took it from none
• 20:32
  other than Francois
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_00: Dane,
• 20:33
  SPEAKER_00: who set it in 2019.
• 20:35
  SPEAKER_00: So a very, very fit Francois Dane.
• 20:37
  SPEAKER_00: And he shaved about 20, or excuse me, 17 minutes off of the course.
• 20:41
  SPEAKER_00: I've included the Strava file in the show notes.
• 20:43
  SPEAKER_00: It's something around 94 miles and about 38,700 feet of climbing.
• 20:49
  So 154 kilometers and 11,470 meters of elevation gain for my
• 20:53
  metrically inclined friends.
• 20:56
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so this race looks crazy.
• 20:58
  SPEAKER_00: He set the course record on it.
• 20:59
  From what I can gather,
• 21:00
  it looks like he might've used to been a competitive mountain
• 21:02
  biker.
• 21:03
  SPEAKER_00: So he has kind of like that all day climbing capability.
• 21:06
  Uh,
• 21:06
  and it also looks like he just got signed with Kip Run,
• 21:09
  which is a perfect fit.
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_00: French guy,
• 21:11
  SPEAKER_00: not a super big following,
• 21:12
  but somebody who I think could really be running under the
• 21:16
  radar and have a really,
• 21:17
  SPEAKER_00: really good race here.
• 21:17
  SPEAKER_00: So,
• 21:18
  SPEAKER_00: um,
• 21:19
  SPEAKER_00: other impressive results last year for Vincent,
• 21:22
  SPEAKER_00: uh,
• 21:22
  SPEAKER_00: include seventh place at Marathon to Montblanc,
• 21:25
  SPEAKER_00: 90 K race.
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_00: And yeah,
• 21:29
  SPEAKER_00: I think there's one other one, but I'm missing it.
• 21:30
  SPEAKER_00: So like I said,
• 21:32
  I think most people in the US are totally unfamiliar with him
• 21:34
  and maybe more in
• 21:35
  SPEAKER_00: France will be familiar,
• 21:36
  SPEAKER_00: but he doesn't have a big social media following on Instagram too.
• 21:38
  SPEAKER_00: So I don't think he's,
• 21:39
  SPEAKER_00: he's probably kind of low key known right now,
• 21:41
  SPEAKER_00: but he's definitely a dark horse,
• 21:42
  SPEAKER_00: definitely somebody to keep an eye on.
• 21:44
  SPEAKER_00: And I think he's poised to do really well here.
• 21:45
  SPEAKER_00: So look out for Vincent Esmiel.
• 21:48
  SPEAKER_00: I think he could be up and coming in the game.
• 21:50
  SPEAKER_00: So.
• 21:51
  Next athlete is going to be Marcos Ramos Gonzalez,
• 21:54
  Spanish athlete for ASICS.
• 21:57
  SPEAKER_00: Last year had some really good results,
• 21:58
  SPEAKER_00: including a win at UTMB Mallorca 50K,
• 22:01
  SPEAKER_00: 21st place in a stacked OCC field,
• 22:03
  SPEAKER_00: and third at UTMB Chianti Marathon behind Friendship
• 22:06
  Francesco Pupi and fourth at Trans Grand Canary Marathon,
• 22:09
  also behind Francesco.
• 22:10
  He has a lot of good results in the 50 to 80K races ranging
• 22:13
  from fourth to eighth places.
• 22:16
  SPEAKER_00: He hasn't competed in longer trail races for a bit,
• 22:18
  so I'm curious how he's going to step up in the distance or how
• 22:21
  the step up in
• 22:22
  SPEAKER_00: distance will go.
• 22:23
  This is essentially racing twice as long as most of his races
• 22:26
  are in that four to
• 22:27
  SPEAKER_00: eight hour range,
• 22:27
  SPEAKER_00: and he's going to have to be out there for essentially 13 to 15 hours.
• 22:33
  SPEAKER_00: And he hasn't raced here before,
• 22:34
  so I kind of have some question marks around him as well with
• 22:37
  it being a longer
• 22:37
  SPEAKER_00: race.
• 22:38
  SPEAKER_00: Next athlete is Ethan Peters,
• 22:41
  SPEAKER_00: the Canadian ultra runner for Norda,
• 22:43
  who's really impressed me with his win on a very difficult
• 22:46
  ultra trail Snowdonia
• 22:47
  SPEAKER_00: 100 mile course pretty dominantly last year and an impressive time.
• 22:51
  SPEAKER_00: And then he followed it up with a win at Canadian Death Race.
• 22:54
  SPEAKER_00: 188K, if I'm reading that right, and 23rd at TDS, ending the season.
• 23:00
  SPEAKER_00: That's a little bit below his standard.
• 23:03
  SPEAKER_00: Ending his season with a win at UTMB, Bariloche, 130K.
• 23:05
  SPEAKER_00: He has raced here.
• 23:09
  SPEAKER_00: in 2024 to a 14th place.
• 23:12
  So he knows the course in terrain,
• 23:13
  but I think he's kind of leveled up since then.
• 23:15
  SPEAKER_00: I could see Ethan Peters being that five through 10 range.
• 23:17
  SPEAKER_00: And I think the tougher the conditions are.
• 23:19
  SPEAKER_00: So if they have a sloppy, tough weather day, then the higher he finishes.
• 23:23
  SPEAKER_00: So that's Ethan Peters.
• 23:26
  SPEAKER_00: Next athlete is going to be Philippe Osterhofer,
• 23:28
  SPEAKER_00: a runner and a super talented creator from Italy.
• 23:32
  SPEAKER_00: But I think he lives in Stubai, Austria in the Tirol region.
• 23:36
  SPEAKER_00: So one of those German speaking Italian guys, he runs for Scarpa.
• 23:41
  SPEAKER_00: And I have included his Instagram profile in the show notes.
• 23:46
  He's extremely good photographer and kind of videographer and
• 23:49
  really just takes
• 23:50
  SPEAKER_00: beautiful videos and photos in the mountains,
• 23:54
  SPEAKER_00: like prime lighting,
• 23:55
  SPEAKER_00: prime.
• 23:56
  time scenery paramo whatever it doesn't hurt that he lives in a
• 23:59
  really beautiful
• 24:00
  part of austria and stuba which the mountains look amazing and
• 24:03
  i plan to do as like
• 24:05
  my pre-wedding adventure doing some kind of adventure out there
• 24:08
  so i'm looking at a
• 24:09
  SPEAKER_00: lot of his routes and things like that out there um
• 24:12
  SPEAKER_00: But yeah,
• 24:12
  SPEAKER_00: he runs for Scarpa,
• 24:13
  Italian guy living in Austria and had some good results last
• 24:17
  year and is going to
• 24:18
  SPEAKER_00: be competitive in this race.
• 24:19
  Last year's results included good day at UTMB Tenerife 73K
• 24:23
  where he got six plays,
• 24:24
  SPEAKER_00: went at UTMB Slovenia 60K,
• 24:28
  SPEAKER_00: got sixth place at Lavarado 120K in a deep field and in a good time.
• 24:32
  and a disappointing 66 that utmb which i know was his main goal
• 24:36
  uh and a lot lower
• 24:37
  than he had hoped to finish he has racist uh once this year
• 24:41
  early in march at a 66k
• 24:43
  and he got second place and it seems to be like a good tune-up
• 24:46
  for madeira
• 24:48
  essentially a 66k with 3 500 meters of elevation and he
• 24:52
  finished it around six
• 24:52
  hours and 44 minutes that's essentially a race that's half the
• 24:55
  distance of madeira
• 24:56
  SPEAKER_00: so
• 24:58
  um he hasn't raced on the island from what i can tell and i
• 25:00
  think his best day out
• 25:02
  here might be uh finishing five through seven and is likely a
• 25:06
  top 10 but with a
• 25:07
  small chance of being nothing too because sometimes he'll uh
• 25:11
  have a rough day out
• 25:11
  there so i'll be rooting for him i think he has a good chance
• 25:14
  of getting points and
• 25:15
  i think he is going to be an exciting one to watch as well and
• 25:18
  he's just a person
• 25:18
  SPEAKER_00: to be the likable guy and a really talented creative
• 25:21
  SPEAKER_00: Next athlete is going to be Eric source,
• 25:23
  SPEAKER_00: Eric Sorensen,
• 25:23
  SPEAKER_00: sneaky fast under the radar runner from Western Colorado.
• 25:28
  Uh,
• 25:28
  if I'm not mistaken,
• 25:29
  I think he was living in Durango around there for a bit.
• 25:31
  SPEAKER_00: And then we're like, right.
• 25:33
  SPEAKER_00: You're a teller ride.
• 25:34
  SPEAKER_00: One of those places.
• 25:35
  SPEAKER_00: Um,
• 25:36
  multiple times speed go 50k runner up including last year he
• 25:39
  was only 17 seconds
• 25:40
  off the win from ryan becker uh and then 2022 he was only six
• 25:45
  minutes off the win
• 25:46
  from david st clair uh we also saw him come out hard in utmb
• 25:50
  2022 being in the hunt
• 25:51
  slash lead back through for my air and then falling off to dnaf
• 25:54
  uh i really like
• 25:55
  him he's kind of a low-key crusher and i think he could shock
• 25:58
  some people with a
• 25:58
  SPEAKER_00: podium here
• 25:59
  SPEAKER_00: on a good day.
• 26:00
  He does have a non-trivial chance of DNFing because he does
• 26:03
  like to go out and
• 26:03
  SPEAKER_00: stick his nose and stuff,
• 26:04
  SPEAKER_00: but I think if he sticks it,
• 26:05
  SPEAKER_00: he could go,
• 26:06
  SPEAKER_00: he could podium at this race,
• 26:07
  SPEAKER_00: quite frankly.
• 26:09
  SPEAKER_00: Last athlete we want to talk about is going to be Tommy Sullivan,
• 26:12
  SPEAKER_00: runner for Kraft from Reno,
• 26:14
  SPEAKER_00: Nevada.
• 26:14
  Husband to MK Sullivan and coming off of a strong year last
• 26:17
  year with a second
• 26:18
  place finish at UTMB Cannons 100 miler in a very fast time and
• 26:23
  a fourth base at
• 26:23
  SPEAKER_00: Iger 1.
• 26:24
  SPEAKER_00: but that was the alternate shortened course due to thunderstorms.
• 26:27
  SPEAKER_00: Year before that, he had 23rd place at CCC and 11th place at Speedgoat.
• 26:31
  SPEAKER_00: So he likes and does well these vertical type races.
• 26:33
  SPEAKER_00: I think his ceiling here is top five as well,
• 26:36
  SPEAKER_00: but he could very well be in that seven to 10 range with a finish.
• 26:41
  SPEAKER_00: So that is the men's preview.
• 26:44
  SPEAKER_00: With that being said, I will make my picks with the usual caveats.
• 26:48
  What I should have caveated last time was it is still five days
• 26:52
  and four hours out to this race.
• 26:54
  SPEAKER_00: So a couple of things.
• 26:58
  SPEAKER_00: One,
• 26:58
  SPEAKER_00: you want to make your picks,
• 26:59
  SPEAKER_00: but two,
• 26:59
  SPEAKER_00: you want to check them before the race closes,
• 27:01
  SPEAKER_00: like pretty close,
• 27:02
  SPEAKER_00: within maybe 12 hours,
• 27:04
  because people will scratch last minute and also additions
• 27:07
  sometimes get made last
• 27:08
  SPEAKER_00: minute.
• 27:09
  So keep an eye out and make sure that you don't pick somebody
• 27:11
  that gets scratched.
• 27:12
  SPEAKER_00: because that happened since I did the last preview about a week out.
• 27:16
  There's some disadvantages to doing preview too far out,
• 27:18
  and that's one of them.
• 27:19
  SPEAKER_00: And then the other caveat is, so we pick five deep.
• 27:23
  SPEAKER_00: If you pick somebody who gets in the top 10, they get you points.
• 27:26
  SPEAKER_00: And then I'm picking based solely off of results.
• 27:29
  SPEAKER_00: And if people DNF kind of more frequently,
• 27:32
  I'm less likely to pick them because the DNF is not going to
• 27:34
  get you any points.
• 27:36
  SPEAKER_00: So we'll go five through one on the men's field.
• 27:40
  SPEAKER_00: And this one is definitely tough, and I'm likely to mix these up.
• 27:45
  SPEAKER_00: That's my other caveat is that I will almost definitely jumble these.
• 27:47
  SPEAKER_00: But for right now, here are my picks five days out.
• 27:50
  SPEAKER_00: Fifth place, I've got Tyler Green.
• 27:52
  SPEAKER_00: Fourth place, I've got Vincent Esmiel.
• 27:54
  SPEAKER_00: Third place, Miguel Arsenio returning on the podium.
• 27:57
  SPEAKER_00: Second place, Rod, the Rodfather, Farvard.
• 27:59
  SPEAKER_00: And first place, Aurelion, Dunant, Payaz.
• 28:02
  SPEAKER_00: Honestly, I could see Tyler Green going top three.
• 28:05
  SPEAKER_00: I could see Miguel Arsenio winning.
• 28:07
  SPEAKER_00: I could see Rod Farvard winning.
• 28:08
  SPEAKER_00: This is a tough field.
• 28:11
  SPEAKER_00: And there's a lot of really, really strong choices.
• 28:13
  SPEAKER_00: But that's kind of who I have right now.
• 28:17
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm kind of picking off least likely to DNF slash most likely to win.
• 28:21
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that...
• 28:26
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 28:26
  SPEAKER_00: And yeah, so that's kind of who I have right now.
• 28:28
  SPEAKER_00: And I actually really like my picks.
• 28:29
  SPEAKER_00: I feel pretty strong about those.
• 28:31
  SPEAKER_00: But we'll see.
• 28:32
  SPEAKER_00: I haven't had the best picking this year.
• 28:34
  So those are my picks tentatively right now on the men's side,
• 28:37
  women's side.
• 28:38
  SPEAKER_00: So storyline.
• 28:41
  SPEAKER_00: I put not as deep as the men's field.
• 28:42
  There's three clear favorites that I feel are all just about
• 28:46
  equally suited for
• 28:47
  SPEAKER_00: potential to win here.
• 28:48
  SPEAKER_00: And then a few other wild cards.
• 28:50
  SPEAKER_00: A lot of these island races,
• 28:51
  the women's field can get a bit strung out over a few hours for
• 28:55
  the podium.
• 28:56
  I lean towards picking women who I'm confident are going to
• 28:58
  finish a lot of times
• 28:59
  SPEAKER_00: because if they have a decent index and don't be enough races like this,
• 29:02
  they'll end up somewhere in the top 10 to get points so long as
• 29:05
  they finish.
• 29:06
  SPEAKER_00: So I expect the winner to have over an hour plus gap on fifth place,
• 29:09
  SPEAKER_00: possibly even multiple hours.
• 29:11
  hours historically uh last year katie had a four the the
• 29:15
  difference between first
• 29:16
  and fifth place in the women's field with katie running it was
• 29:19
  four hours and 19
• 29:20
  minutes so that's kind of crazy it's one part katie and then
• 29:24
  one part just the
• 29:24
  field getting strung out because of the race um and then the
• 29:27
  year before that with
• 29:28
  martina vala maswa uh she had two hours on fifth place so i
• 29:32
  think it's a little bit
• 29:33
  more typical but these races can kind of get strung out um
• 29:36
  especially if somebody
• 29:37
  SPEAKER_00: tries to go out with
• 29:39
  fast people early on so compared to the men's race like I said
• 29:41
  which was only separated by 25
• 29:44
  SPEAKER_00: minutes in a 13 hour race.
• 29:46
  SPEAKER_00: So it was a much more condensed and less strung out field.
• 29:50
  SPEAKER_00: Uh,
• 29:50
  SPEAKER_00: last year's results just,
• 29:52
  SPEAKER_00: uh,
• 29:53
  as a recap or like as a kind of basis for some potential time
• 29:57
  ranges last year,
• 29:58
  SPEAKER_00: Katie Scheid won in 1420,
• 29:59
  SPEAKER_00: uh,
• 30:01
  SPEAKER_00: second place,
• 30:01
  SPEAKER_00: Martina Klonschik,
• 30:04
  SPEAKER_00: uh,
• 30:04
  SPEAKER_00: 1658,
• 30:04
  SPEAKER_00: third place,
• 30:05
  SPEAKER_00: Mathilde Dujon,
• 30:06
  SPEAKER_00: 1826,
• 30:07
  SPEAKER_00: uh,
• 30:08
  SPEAKER_00: fourth place,
• 30:09
  SPEAKER_00: Marta Muichi from Spain,
• 30:11
  SPEAKER_00: 1829,
• 30:11
  SPEAKER_00: uh,
• 30:13
  SPEAKER_00: And fifth place, Dominique Van Michgelen from Belgium, 1839.
• 30:16
  SPEAKER_00: So,
• 30:16
  SPEAKER_00: like I said,
• 30:17
  SPEAKER_00: a little bit more strung out,
• 30:18
  SPEAKER_00: but also probably objectively not as deep of a field as this year.
• 30:22
  SPEAKER_00: So, all right, let's start off women's field.
• 30:27
  SPEAKER_00: First runner to talk about is Jasmine Louther,
• 30:29
  Canadian mountain crusher and previous Grand Teton FKT holder
• 30:34
  running for Arc'teryx
• 30:35
  SPEAKER_00: these days.
• 30:36
  Her Arc'teryx teammate,
• 30:37
  Jane Moss,
• 30:38
  took her record after she said it last year.
• 30:43
  SPEAKER_00: All right.
• 30:44
  SPEAKER_00: So Jasmine had a good year last year,
• 30:47
  SPEAKER_00: a strong year last year,
• 30:48
  SPEAKER_00: including a fourth place at Spigo 50k.
• 30:50
  SPEAKER_00: It was a historically fast time, but there was Jen Lichter on the course.
• 30:54
  SPEAKER_00: So the times got obliterated.
• 30:56
  SPEAKER_00: And I want to say top two went into the course record.
• 30:58
  SPEAKER_00: And the third one was like one of the top 10 times all time.
• 31:04
  SPEAKER_00: So Jasmine also got eighth place at OCC last year in a stacked field,
• 31:09
  and she had a killer fourth place finish at Worlds Long Trail
• 31:13
  where she ran through
• 31:14
  SPEAKER_00: the field in the back half.
• 31:15
  SPEAKER_00: I think she moved up from like 40th or 50th place to fourth.
• 31:18
  So she basically came out super conservative and then just
• 31:21
  mowed down a lot of the
• 31:23
  SPEAKER_00: top runners in the back half of the field.
• 31:25
  SPEAKER_00: She has not raced at Madeira before,
• 31:27
  SPEAKER_00: but she has had success at island races,
• 31:29
  SPEAKER_00: including a second place at Trans-Grand Canary,
• 31:31
  SPEAKER_00: a classic behind Courtney DeWalter in 2023.
• 31:34
  I think there's a squad of Arc'teryx people showing out here
• 31:37
  for some MIUC races.
• 31:40
  I'm pretty sure Jane Moss is on the island and planning to race
• 31:42
  one of the shorter
• 31:42
  SPEAKER_00: ones,
• 31:43
  SPEAKER_00: which would make sense too,
• 31:44
  SPEAKER_00: because Jane won the 50K for Black Canyon.
• 31:49
  year of i think it's 46k is the other because they're doing a
• 31:54
  world trail majors
• 31:55
  like short and long course awards so i think if jane wins the
• 32:00
  46k then she's
• 32:01
  looking really really good for getting some money from the
• 32:03
  world trail majors as
• 32:04
  SPEAKER_00: well so that's exciting for jane moss um
• 32:08
  SPEAKER_00: But Jasmine, anyways, is definitely one of the three favorites here.
• 32:11
  SPEAKER_00: I expect Jasmine to be up front battling.
• 32:13
  SPEAKER_00: And if she races like she did at Worlds,
• 32:14
  SPEAKER_00: she might let Helen,
• 32:15
  SPEAKER_00: you know,
• 32:15
  SPEAKER_00: Faulkner kind of run off to an early hot start.
• 32:17
  But Priority is being really strong in the back half and kind
• 32:20
  of closing hard.
• 32:22
  SPEAKER_00: So, and I think Jasmine's kind of in the middle of,
• 32:25
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know.
• 32:26
  SPEAKER_00: I expect Helen Mino Faulkner to come out really hard and to lead early,
• 32:30
  SPEAKER_00: and then we'll see how she sticks it.
• 32:32
  And I expect Jasmine and Katarina to kind of be people who are
• 32:35
  a little bit more
• 32:36
  conservative and finish really strong in the back half and have
• 32:39
  a lot less drift.
• 32:39
  SPEAKER_00: So it's going to
• 32:40
  to be interesting kind of like tortoise and the hare um jasmine
• 32:43
  is by no means a
• 32:44
  hare she's definitely super speedy uh and has really really
• 32:47
  good like speed i think
• 32:49
  she kind of slots in between helen and katarina like uh helen's
• 32:53
  even though she
• 32:54
  SPEAKER_00: wants you to think that she just kind of
• 32:55
  plays the mountains and like is dismissive of her speed she's
• 32:59
  really really fast
• 33:00
  and then katarina really does well these grindy long mountain
• 33:03
  races um so i think
• 33:05
  jasmine's kind of like a perfect in between it's going to be
• 33:07
  interesting to see
• 33:08
  these three ladies race um i'm actually going to check and see
• 33:14
  if they've raced
• 33:15
  SPEAKER_00: head to head before thanks to travis long cars uh
• 33:21
  SPEAKER_00: Travis Longcar is head-to-head, so we'll go Jasmine and let's go Helen.
• 33:28
  Alright,
• 33:28
  Jasmine and Helen have raced once at CCC in 2022,
• 33:32
  and Jasmine beat Helen.
• 33:35
  Jasmine and Katarina I doubt have raced,
• 33:39
  but we will look at Katarina Hartness.
• 33:47
  SPEAKER_00: Katarina and Helen have not raced, and then Jasmine and
• 33:53
  Katerina have raced at Trans Grand Canaria,
• 33:56
  and Jasmine beat her in 2023.
• 33:59
  So they have raced before,
• 34:02
  and Jasmine won when she got second place at Trans Grand
• 34:05
  Canaria.
• 34:06
  SPEAKER_00: And then Helen has not raced either.
• 34:14
  SPEAKER_00: Excuse me, Helen has raced Jasmine as well and Jasmine Beat as well.
• 34:17
  SPEAKER_00: So Jasmine's beat both of them once.
• 34:22
  SPEAKER_00: Anyways, I digress.
• 34:24
  SPEAKER_00: Let me go back to my picks for Madeira.
• 34:26
  SPEAKER_00: All right, cool.
• 34:27
  SPEAKER_00: So...
• 34:29
  SPEAKER_00: We talked about Jasmine.
• 34:30
  SPEAKER_00: Next athlete is going to be Katarina Hartmuth,
• 34:31
  SPEAKER_00: German trail runner for Hoka,
• 34:32
  SPEAKER_00: who lives in Zurich and excels at the longest,
• 34:35
  SPEAKER_00: hardest,
• 34:36
  and most vertical races you can possibly offer with podium
• 34:39
  finishes at Hard Rock
• 34:40
  SPEAKER_00: two times,
• 34:41
  SPEAKER_00: UTMB and TDS,
• 34:43
  SPEAKER_00: and then World's
• 34:44
  SPEAKER_00: long trail under her belt.
• 34:45
  So she really has finished on the podium of a lot of the most
• 34:48
  prestigious races in
• 34:49
  SPEAKER_00: the world,
• 34:50
  along with setting the course record at the famous Tour de Gion
• 34:54
  two years ago,
• 34:54
  SPEAKER_00: I want to say.
• 34:55
  SPEAKER_00: Her resume is really stellar,
• 34:57
  SPEAKER_00: and she's a very gutsy racer who thrives the harder the course gets.
• 35:00
  SPEAKER_00: Last year, she only raced twice, but had two good results.
• 35:02
  SPEAKER_00: Third place at Hard Rock in a disappointingly slow time for her,
• 35:06
  SPEAKER_00: but I think she was coming off injury.
• 35:07
  And the third place at UTMB behind only Ruth Croft and Cammie
• 35:10
  Brutus in a very,
• 35:12
  SPEAKER_00: very tough weather condition year.
• 35:14
  SPEAKER_00: I think Katarina is definitely a favorite out here.
• 35:16
  SPEAKER_00: I think she's a lock for top three.
• 35:17
  SPEAKER_00: If she's racing, she's going to finish it.
• 35:20
  SPEAKER_00: In the worst conditions, the better off she does, more likely.
• 35:23
  SPEAKER_00: Sorry, I'm allowed to truck pass.
• 35:27
  SPEAKER_00: In the worst conditions,
• 35:28
  SPEAKER_00: all right,
• 35:28
  SPEAKER_00: for Katarina,
• 35:28
  SPEAKER_00: the better off she does,
• 35:29
  SPEAKER_00: slash more likely she is to beat Helen,
• 35:31
  SPEAKER_00: potentially even Jasmine,
• 35:32
  SPEAKER_00: I would say.
• 35:33
  SPEAKER_00: Next athlete is going to be Helen Mina Faulkner,
• 35:35
  SPEAKER_00: probably the speedest of the three favorites like we talked about.
• 35:39
  SPEAKER_00: But the least tested in races of this distance or difficulty.
• 35:42
  SPEAKER_00: Longest thing she has run, so far as I can tell, is CCC.
• 35:47
  And then she's,
• 35:48
  like I said,
• 35:48
  trail runner for Hoka,
• 35:49
  based out of Reno,
• 35:50
  Nevada.
• 35:50
  SPEAKER_00: Former collegiate runner at University of Reno, Nevada, I'm pretty sure.
• 35:55
  SPEAKER_00: Nevada, Reno.
• 35:57
  SPEAKER_00: Last year's results included second place at Broken Arrow 46K,
• 36:00
  SPEAKER_00: which was the U.S.
• 36:01
  SPEAKER_00: long trail qualifier.
• 36:02
  SPEAKER_00: She was just behind Jim Likder.
• 36:04
  SPEAKER_00: She took a spot on the U.S. team.
• 36:06
  Didn't have a good day at Worlds because of a knee nickel
• 36:09
  coming into Worlds.
• 36:10
  She also raced at TerraWire at 100k to a fourth place and got
• 36:12
  the golden ticket but
• 36:13
  SPEAKER_00: decided to pass on it.
• 36:16
  SPEAKER_00: 2024 saw her race UTMB to a DNF and the most comparable race
• 36:21
  race she has had success at a ccc where she finished third
• 36:23
  place in 2023 and that
• 36:25
  race took her 12 hours and 38 minutes so this race is going to
• 36:28
  be at least two
• 36:29
  hours longer uh than her she had a ccc finish around 13 hours
• 36:34
  as well so you know
• 36:36
  optimistically i mean i guess if she wins maybe it's going to
• 36:39
  be her longest race
• 36:40
  by at least an hour and a half unless she finished uh utmb and
• 36:43
  got really really
• 36:44
  SPEAKER_00: far in the race
• 36:44
  So I'm hesitant to pick her to win only because she doesn't
• 36:47
  have as much experience
• 36:49
  SPEAKER_00: on this long or technical of a course.
• 36:51
  But I think if she has a good day out there or if the
• 36:53
  conditions are favorable,
• 36:55
  SPEAKER_00: she easily is the fastest of the three favorites,
• 36:57
  SPEAKER_00: but is the least proven at the distance.
• 37:00
  SPEAKER_00: That's kind of the stuff to consider out there.
• 37:02
  SPEAKER_00: Next out,
• 37:02
  SPEAKER_00: he's going to be Valerie Arsenault,
• 37:04
  SPEAKER_00: Canadian speedster,
• 37:05
  SPEAKER_00: last year's winner of Ultra Trail,
• 37:06
  SPEAKER_00: Huracana,
• 37:08
  SPEAKER_00: 100K in Canada.
• 37:10
  SPEAKER_00: Other than that, last year, she had a bit of a down year.
• 37:11
  SPEAKER_00: She DNF'd at Black Canyon, 100K, Kings 50K, and Javelina 1.
• 37:15
  100 miler year before that she had a dnf at ccc so not really
• 37:18
  sure what's going on
• 37:19
  or what to expect from her uh her ultra trailer hurricana
• 37:22
  finish is in a comparable
• 37:24
  time frame but with less vert than here at miut so she has the
• 37:28
  potential to do well
• 37:28
  here in this type of long race but she does have a lot of dnfs
• 37:32
  past two years so
• 37:32
  SPEAKER_00: that kind of has me skeptical to pick her
• 37:35
  SPEAKER_00: Next athlete's going to be Rebecca Horman.
• 37:37
  SPEAKER_00: She has a Swiss flag next to her name on the UTMB profile,
• 37:40
  SPEAKER_00: but she appears to be a U.S.
• 37:41
  SPEAKER_00: transplant.
• 37:42
  SPEAKER_00: And she,
• 37:43
  SPEAKER_00: even though she appears to live in Switzerland,
• 37:48
  SPEAKER_00: I think she's living in the U.K.
• 37:49
  SPEAKER_00: now because all of her races more or less are in the U.K.
• 37:51
  SPEAKER_00: And it seems like she only posts from the U.K.
• 37:53
  SPEAKER_00: So maybe she's U.K.-based now.
• 37:55
  SPEAKER_00: She really has a penchant for the super long and tough races.
• 37:58
  SPEAKER_00: Finished second place at the Winter Spine Race in 2025.
• 38:01
  And last year she won the West Highland Way Race,
• 38:03
  which is right around 100 miles.
• 38:05
  SPEAKER_00: And it took her about 19 hours to finish.
• 38:08
  SPEAKER_00: She also won the Dragon Crystal Race last year.
• 38:10
  which was another 100 mile race in about 20 hours she seems
• 38:13
  gritty she doesn't d
• 38:14
  enough and she's very very likely to slug out a finish i think
• 38:17
  the women's field
• 38:18
  can get strung out in these island races like i mentioned
• 38:20
  earlier but i think she's
• 38:21
  super likely to finish and therefore uh is likely to also
• 38:25
  finish in the top 10 and
• 38:26
  SPEAKER_00: is worthy of a pick and some kid consideration as well
• 38:30
  SPEAKER_00: So that's Rebecca Horman.
• 38:32
  SPEAKER_00: She also,
• 38:32
  SPEAKER_00: uh,
• 38:32
  SPEAKER_00: just recently did a podcast on trail talk,
• 38:35
  SPEAKER_00: uh,
• 38:35
  SPEAKER_00: podcast with Aaron Simmons that I saw on her Instagram profile.
• 38:39
  SPEAKER_00: I have not listened to it yet,
• 38:41
  but I have it up in my queue and that would be a good way to
• 38:44
  get to know her as
• 38:45
  SPEAKER_00: well.
• 38:46
  SPEAKER_00: Um,
• 38:46
  SPEAKER_00: I don't have included in the show notes cause I just thought about that,
• 38:49
  SPEAKER_00: but,
• 38:50
  SPEAKER_00: uh,
• 38:50
  SPEAKER_00: you can go check it out if you look up trail talk and it should be,
• 38:53
  SPEAKER_00: I think three or four episodes back.
• 38:56
  SPEAKER_00: Next athlete is going to be Madeleine Hawkins, Canadian trail runner.
• 38:59
  Last year's results included 33rd at CCC,
• 39:02
  third place at Cannons 100 miler.
• 39:04
  SPEAKER_00: The year before that,
• 39:05
  she went race to eighth place at UTMB Thailand 100K and had a
• 39:09
  win at the Fat Dog
• 39:09
  SPEAKER_00: 100K.
• 39:10
  SPEAKER_00: She doesn't appear to have any DNFs and she likes longer races.
• 39:13
  So if she's lining up here,
• 39:14
  I think she's likely to finish and looking good to go.
• 39:17
  SPEAKER_00: We have a lot of Canadian females in the preview today.
• 39:20
  So it seems like the Canadians are excited to come out and race
• 39:23
  at Madeira and get
• 39:24
  SPEAKER_00: out of that cold,
• 39:25
  SPEAKER_00: cold winter.
• 39:28
  SPEAKER_00: Next athlete is going to be Patricia Ribeiro.
• 41:06
  SPEAKER_00: All right, apologies for that.
• 41:07
  SPEAKER_00: I am back.
• 41:09
  SPEAKER_00: Hopefully that wasn't too annoying.
• 41:10
  It just shakes the entire place,
• 41:13
  and there's no world in which I can talk over it.
• 41:16
  SPEAKER_00: So it's easiest just to kind of let it go and then talk after.
• 41:21
  SPEAKER_00: So anyways,
• 41:22
  SPEAKER_00: Patricia Ribeiro,
• 41:23
  SPEAKER_00: Portuguese runner,
• 41:24
  whose race results are all pretty much Portuguese races that I
• 41:26
  am completely
• 41:27
  SPEAKER_00: unfamiliar with.
• 41:28
  SPEAKER_00: And it doesn't mean they're not valid or not impressive.
• 41:31
  SPEAKER_00: I don't really know any races in Portugal, quite frankly.
• 41:34
  SPEAKER_00: And so I don't really have a lot of feedback on her races.
• 41:36
  But what I can analyze is that she hasn't eaten up to single
• 41:39
  race since 2024.
• 41:40
  And that includes finishing three 15 plus hour races,
• 41:43
  which she podiumed at.
• 41:45
  So she's comfortable racing longer and has finished races whose
• 41:47
  profiles look very
• 41:48
  SPEAKER_00: similar to MIUT on paper.
• 41:50
  SPEAKER_00: And she's Portuguese,
• 41:51
  so she speaks the language and is likely to feel a little bit
• 41:53
  more comfortable on
• 41:54
  SPEAKER_00: the island.
• 41:55
  And she's completed those races as recently as one in October
• 41:59
  of last year.
• 42:00
  She also seems likely to finish,
• 42:02
  and so I think she's a really good pick for here.
• 42:04
  SPEAKER_00: She might not have quite as high of the index as some of these ladies,
• 42:08
  SPEAKER_00: but I think she's very,
• 42:09
  SPEAKER_00: very likely to finish the race,
• 42:10
  SPEAKER_00: and if she finishes,
• 42:11
  SPEAKER_00: also go top 10 as well.
• 42:13
  SPEAKER_00: So that's Patricia Ribeiro.
• 42:15
  SPEAKER_00: Next athlete is going to be Kelsey Hogan, another Canadian ultra runner.
• 42:19
  SPEAKER_00: Her UTMB profile says,
• 42:22
  SPEAKER_00: and I quote,
• 42:23
  I grew up in Newfoundland where I spent a lot of time outside
• 42:27
  getting curious about
• 42:28
  SPEAKER_00: bugs,
• 42:28
  SPEAKER_00: rocks,
• 42:28
  SPEAKER_00: mud,
• 42:29
  SPEAKER_00: water,
• 42:29
  SPEAKER_00: and just about anything else that I could discover.
• 42:31
  My brothers and I used to chase each other around the mountains
• 42:33
  and the trails in
• 42:34
  SPEAKER_00: my hometown,
• 42:35
  SPEAKER_00: often with the promise of good snacks after a long outdoor adventure.
• 42:38
  Running on trails reminds me of being a little kid,
• 42:40
  skipping through the woods.
• 42:41
  SPEAKER_00: It makes me very happy.
• 42:42
  SPEAKER_00: So that's Kelsey Hogan.
• 42:43
  She was a Norta athlete,
• 42:44
  but I don't think she's running for Norta this year.
• 42:46
  She already has raced and had a good result earlier this year
• 42:49
  with a sixth place at
• 42:50
  SPEAKER_00: Trans Grand Canaria and is bouncing back from Island Race No.
• 42:53
  SPEAKER_00: 2, bouncing back for Island Race No.
• 42:56
  SPEAKER_00: 2 this season.
• 42:56
  Last year,
• 42:57
  she finished 16th at UTMB,
• 42:59
  third at Quebec Megatrail 80K and DNF Black Cannon 100K.
• 43:02
  SPEAKER_00: The year before that,
• 43:03
  SPEAKER_00: she finished second at UTMB Puerto Vallarta 152K,
• 43:06
  SPEAKER_00: the long race,
• 43:07
  SPEAKER_00: and 25th at UTMB to go with a second at Quebec Megatrail 100K.
• 43:12
  miler 100k i didn't put it she has raced here before in 2024 to
• 43:15
  11th place so
• 43:16
  she'll be looking to crack the top 10 this time around that's
• 43:19
  kelsey hogan um and
• 43:21
  her transgender canary was in a good fast time so i think she's
• 43:24
  looking in pretty
• 43:24
  prime form last athlete to mention is jasmine volmer aussie
• 43:28
  runner uh she's got a
• 43:30
  SPEAKER_00: couple top five finishes at uta 100 miler and uta 100k so that is
• 43:36
  the women's field um and with that being said we'll go into the
• 43:40
  picks same caveats
• 43:41
  keep an eye out for anyone that's going to drop or get added to
• 43:44
  the list and then
• 43:46
  uh i'm very likely to swap these up and then only women or only
• 43:51
  any athletes that
• 43:52
  or i guess gender like any women that finish in the top 10 are
• 43:55
  going to get points
• 43:56
  so you want to pick somebody that you think is going to finish
• 43:57
  and is going to
• 43:58
  finish in the top 10 so i'll go five through one as well i'm
• 44:01
  going to go fifth
• 44:01
  place rebecca hoorman uh american by way of switzerland by way
• 44:06
  of the uk uh just
• 44:08
  SPEAKER_00: lots of really really good grindy long races
• 44:12
  SPEAKER_00: Excuse me.
• 44:13
  Not a lot of DNFs or no DNFs from what I could see and really
• 44:17
  just kind of thrives
• 44:17
  SPEAKER_00: in these really long 19,
• 44:19
  SPEAKER_00: 18,
• 44:19
  SPEAKER_00: 20 hour races.
• 44:22
  SPEAKER_00: Winter spine finish as well.
• 44:24
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I don't even think I put...
• 44:28
  i forgot to mention rebecca hormon's results i'm actually
• 44:30
  pretty sure um but she
• 44:32
  yeah west highland way 100 miles in 19 hours dragon coastal
• 44:36
  race 100 miles in 20
• 44:37
  hours uh and i think also yeah winter spine is what i said as
• 44:40
  well so uh rebecca
• 44:42
  hormon for fifth place i'm gonna go fourth place patricia
• 44:44
  ribero and then top three
• 44:46
  i think everyone's gonna have the same top three and it just
• 44:48
  kind of depends on
• 44:49
  SPEAKER_00: what order you put them in
• 44:50
  SPEAKER_00: Third place, I'm going to go Helmina Faulkner.
• 44:53
  SPEAKER_00: She's the one I'm the least confident about.
• 44:55
  I think she has the biggest upside and could win and run a
• 44:58
  really fast time here.
• 44:59
  But I also think she's the most likely to go out too hot and
• 45:02
  then kind of fall off
• 45:03
  SPEAKER_00: in the back half.
• 45:05
  SPEAKER_00: Second place, I'm going to go Katerina Hartmuth.
• 45:06
  Really consistent,
• 45:07
  really good at hard races,
• 45:09
  really,
• 45:09
  really good gamer and racer.
• 45:11
  SPEAKER_00: And then first place, I'm going to go Jasmine Louther.
• 45:13
  SPEAKER_00: So that's my picture right now.
• 45:15
  SPEAKER_00: With regards to four,
• 45:17
  SPEAKER_00: five,
• 45:17
  SPEAKER_00: and six,
• 45:18
  SPEAKER_00: I could see Kelsey Hogan being subbed in there instead of Patricia.
• 45:25
  SPEAKER_00: And then I really like Rebecca's chances.
• 45:27
  SPEAKER_00: I think she's looking pretty good.
• 45:28
  SPEAKER_00: And Madeline Hawkins looks pretty good as well.
• 45:31
  SPEAKER_00: All good options, but that's generally my top five as well.
• 45:36
  SPEAKER_00: So this has been our preview for Madeira Island Ultra Trail 115K.
• 45:40
  SPEAKER_00: I am working on notes for the 100K and 50K at Canyons,
• 45:44
  SPEAKER_00: which are also getting opened for picks here hopefully soon this week.
• 45:50
  SPEAKER_00: In some ways,
• 45:50
  it's good that I think the podcast will come out a little bit
• 45:53
  closer to the race
• 45:54
  SPEAKER_00: because it gives a little bit more accurate information.
• 45:57
  I know that free trial already put out their preview podcast
• 45:59
  and it's really helpful.
• 46:00
  But there's a couple of names that I have in mind that free
• 46:03
  trial didn't mention,
• 46:04
  SPEAKER_00: mainly just because UTMB makes it really hard to search.
• 46:07
  SPEAKER_00: And if they don't consider you elite, they don't show you.
• 46:09
  So we know a lot of the elite list runners,
• 46:11
  but there's a couple other people that I
• 46:12
  have in mind uh on the at least for the men's race in the 100k
• 46:17
  um that i think will
• 46:18
  be for sure in the top 10 and potentially even competing for
• 46:21
  golden tickets so i am
• 46:23
  working on notes for canyons 100k i'm hoping to get that out
• 46:26
  probably in about 24
• 46:27
  hours after this comes out and then canyons 50k as well those
• 46:30
  fields are looking
• 46:31
  good the men's field looks the best for the 100k for the
• 46:34
  women's field the 50k
• 46:35
  SPEAKER_00: looks really good but the 100k looks a little bit uh
• 46:38
  the 100k looks deep but not as deep for golden ticket
• 46:41
  competitions so um 100k is
• 46:44
  going to be interesting and have some interesting storylines
• 46:46
  but either way i'm
• 46:46
  going to try to get that podcast out if not in the next 24
• 46:49
  hours then at least the
• 46:50
  next 48 because cannons 100k is the closer race and i think
• 46:55
  we're still at least
• 46:57
  SPEAKER_00: five six days out from that happening so um
• 47:02
  so that is my plan i hope you guys enjoyed this podcast i hope
• 47:05
  i sound a little bit
• 47:06
  more upbeat i'm a little bit better placed now today than i was
• 47:09
  last time things
• 47:10
  are looking up it's been a little bit chiller since the
• 47:12
  ceasefire i'm outside but
• 47:13
  there's not an aqi over 200 that's wrecking my throat so yeah
• 47:17
  things are just
• 47:18
  looking up a little bit i got some running buddies and some
• 47:20
  people i can do some
• 47:20
  workouts with on base which i didn't have last time so that's
• 47:23
  exciting hopefully
• 47:24
  SPEAKER_00: i'm going to come home as soon as you guys
• 47:28
  SPEAKER_00: tuning in and listening.
• 47:30
  So look forward to talking to you guys here soon and have a
• 47:34
  beautiful day wherever you are.