Written by U.S. Team manager Andrew Simmons. Andrew is also head coach at Lifelong Endurance and head coach at Peak Performance Running. Courtesy of the American Trail Running Association.
The 15th annual International U18 Mountain Running Cup started out with a bang on Sunday, June 26, in Saluzzo, Italy. The U.S. U18 Mountain Running Team featured 4 girls and 4 boys tackling the 4.4 km course with 155 meters of ascent and descent.
Girls’ Race Recap
As each country could only put one athlete on the start line, with the remaining team members behind, Rosie Mucharsky-O’Boyle of Denver was in front for Team USA girls. A tight right turn and 500 meters of jockeying took place before the girls headed upwards on the course. Alyssa Sauro rallied to the front and after the initial climb through the castle, she was running shoulder to shoulder with Rebecca Flaherty of England. This game of cat and mouse would continue through the next mile of up with Flaherty putting a gap of 5 meters on the downhills, Sauro minding the gap on the uphills. Sauro would go into the final meters tied up with Flaherty before Sauro put down a dominant kick for win. At the finish line Murchasky-O’Boyle finished in 18th, Almonte (of Edwards, CO) 20th and Rodriguez 23rd. Team USA’s score of 39 put them in fourth place among the 12 teams with England finishing for gold with 12 points.
Boys’ Race Recap
Porter Middaugh of Eagle was the lead on the line for the U.S. team at the start with Benji Anderson of Highlands Ranch chasing his shadow in the first 100 meters. Through the first climb Middaugh and Anderson kept close contact with the leaders cresting the climb in 3rd and 4th overall. They continued to push through the vineyards and onto the stone steps, not giving an inch. William Wachter of Highlands Ranch was only a shade back through the first third of the course.
Wachter experienced some significant breathing issues and lost contact with the group as they headed into the castle. As the course made its way back to the Piazza, the Italian team began to apply pressure that eventually pushed Middaugh back into 4th place at the finish and a few other countries fighting for the next 2 positions resulting with Anderson finishing in 7th. As temperatures grew hotter and hotter, they began to take a toll on Stickley and Wachter. They pushed themselves to the limit with Stickley collapsing at the finish line with his 32nd place effort, and Wachter not far behind in 39th.
The boys’ team nearly made history with a team medal, but a tie resulted in a 4th place team finish just off the podium (France and USA each had 43 points, but France’s third scoring runner secured the bronze for France with a higher finish than USA’s third scorer).
Here’s what the Colorado athletes had to say after the races.
Porter Middaugh | Avon, CO (4th place)
The race started out pretty conservatively and I stuck mid-pack to try and keep a good position. As soon as the climb started people started to fall back. I was trying to work my way up as best as I could and once we got to the grass section it got super tough. On the climb, I was probably in my best position of the whole race, I think I was in second or maybe third and then started to roll downhill. Unfortunately, I got caught on the uphill after a fast rolling downhill where I dropped back to fifth. Leaving the castle I just tried to roll as fast as I could; I had two runners in sight which was a good motivator. Thankfully, I was able to catch one of them and finished fourth.
Benjamin Anderson | Highlands Ranch, CO (7th place)
It was a good race for me. We were out fast for the first loop and then everyone kind of put the brakes on a little bit. Once we got to the top of the first cobblestone climb and into the castle the pace accelerated. I was pretty excited because I saw we had all four USA boys right there and we all just tried to stick together. Leading into the grass climbs I felt really strong although; I wish I could’ve pushed harder on the hills because I was worried about saving energy for the downhill. I was in fifth place leading into the final downhill and I just couldn’t move my legs any faster. Into the finish I just let gravity do its thing on the downhill and it carried me to 7th. I’m certainly hungry for more!
William Wachter | Highlands Ranch, CO (39th place)
I am really grateful for the experience. Looking back I took it out a little harder than I probably should’ve, which cost me but I think overall I put in a really good effort considering the circumstances and I was happy to do it with a great team.
Rosie Mucharsky-O’Boyle | Denver, CO (18th place)
It went pretty well. I started off pretty fast for the first 500 meters and there was a lot of pushing and shoving from all the other teams. The first cobblestone section was pretty hot and difficult for me. From the castle to the top of the first major hill was probably one of the hardest parts for me. I was sort of doubting myself a little at that point. Once I hit the stairs I felt like I found a rhythm. My feet were so hot on the way down on the Dow hill but I had to put that behind me. I feel like the downhill is where I could really move my legs. I passed a lot of people in the last half mile of the downhill because I was focused on catching as many people as I could.
Milaina Almonte | Edwards, CO (20th place)
The starting pace was really intimidating and I started out towards the back. I had a hard time keeping up with the starting pace but once I got to the hills I was able to run a lot faster than I expected through the steepest parts of the course without overthinking it. By the time I got through the castle and onto the downhill I pushed really hard and pushed for the finish.