Karl Meltzer, 38, has some new traditions at the Hardrock 100– mile Endurance Run, and they have nothing to do with kissing a massive boulder.
Meltzer, who won the race for his third time, in 28 hours, 29 minutes and 15 seconds, ran up and over the Hardrock three times, did a few push-ups and promptly celebrated with a cheeseburger and fries specially prepared by the chef at the Grand Imperial Hotel.
“The early miles in the race were tough but I felt better after 50,” Meltzer said. “Virginius (climb) wasn’t that bad but the Wasatch Saddle and Grant Swamp were brutal.”
In Ouray, at the 57.7-mile mark, Meltzer was only in third place, trailing Nate McDowell and Paul Sweeney (above), last year’s winner. McDowell dropped out of the race at Chapman (82 miles) with “frozen legs” while Sweeney finished second in 30:02.28.
Meltzer, who ran without a pacer, opted to pass the time listening to music by Strangelove, a band from Vermont.
“I think I listened to the tape about five times,” Meltzer said. “I almost felt like doing a little dancing out there.”
Even with three wins and course records running the race in both directions, it has not been easy for Meltzer, who has also dropped out of the race twice.
On the women’s side, Sue Johnston (32:07.41) outpaced a strong women’s field for her second win in three attempts.
Johnston, 39, from Waterford, Vermont, was running near three other women, Betsy Nye, Betsy Kalmeyer and Emily Baer, until Cunningham (9.1 mile mark), when she broke away.
“I never knew how close the other runners were,” Johnston said. “Usually I have my husband crewing for me but he wasn’t there this time helping me out.”
Johnston had a difficult time running between Telluride and Oscar’s at 3:15 a.m. on Saturday, but she was comfortable not having pacers with her.
“I tend to get whiny with others around,” Johnston said.
Training for Hardrock was not difficult for Johnston; she doesn’t follow a specific plan but rather runs how she feels.
“I’m a low mileage runner and I only average 30-40 miles per week,” Johnston said.
While Meltzer and Johnston were cruising to victories, many of the other 125 runners who started the race were having their share of difficulties.
Jigger and Paul Staby, five-year veteran volunteers from Durango, were working the aid station at Grouse Gulch (44.1 miles) and it looked like a MASH unit.
“There were runners (lying down) everywhere,” Jigger said.
Paul worked the communication side of things.
“We had two runners missing and that kept us up all night,” Paul said.
Back at race headquarters, Pete Lewis and Mike Hirshman, from Steamboat Springs, who are part of the medical rescue crew, and Chris Nute, from La Plata County Search and Rescue, were already mobilizing efforts to find the lost runners. Both were found quickly.
Brett Sublett (32:57.48) from Durango worked his way up to third place at one point but eventually dropped to tenth.
“I couldn’t keep any food down,” Sublett said. “My pacers were practically force feeding me but it wasn’t enough.”
Sublett wants to come back next year and try the race in the other direction.
“It’s almost a shame that it has to get dark out because it’s so beautiful out there, and you have to miss some of the views,” Sublett said. “I think if I could get this thing figured out a little better, I could work my way up (to a higher finish).”
Emily Baer, 29, (36:11.43) from Silverton was the third women’s finisher and twentieth place overall. It was Baer’s sixth time at the Hardrock and her fourth finish.
“This was my fastest time by about 45 minutes but it was still one of the harder years,” Baer said. “I had a difficult climb out of Ouray and Virginius with all the snow and slippery footing.”
Rickey Denesik, former race winner, from Telluride, paced Baer.
“He reminded me to keep breathing, and I started taking longer and deeper breaths,” Baer said. “I caught about seven people going up Grants Swamp.”
Nye (36:58.25), 41, who finished fourth for the women, had a baby in September and is the wife of Sweeney – last year’s men’s champion.
“I had my ups and downs but Handies was the toughest part of the race for me,” Nye said. “I ate too much food before going over the pass and then my stomach went off.”
Brett Gosney, from Durango, who finished Hardrock two years ago, was one of the many casualties at Grouse (44.1 miles).
“I was on a 39-hour pace when I left Sherman (29.2 miles) but I fell apart going up Handies,” Gosney said. “I was suffering from fatigue, nausea and a headache. It’s just the nature of this type of event.”
Gosney took baby steps and gutted it out over Handies but the suffering and dehydration caught up to him, and he dropped out after the descent. After being taken to race headquarters, Gosney was administered two liters of IV fluid to help him recover.
“It was just a bad day for me at Hardrock, but maybe I’ll come back next year and try it in the other direction,” Gosney said.
Odin Christensen, a six-time Hardrock finisher from Mancos, also dropped out at Grouse.
“My stomach went sour, and I couldn’t keep any food down,” Christensen said.
Richard Hayes, 54, was the 71st and final race finisher in 47:54.13. He finished six minutes before the 6 a.m. race cutoff on Sunday morning.
“I’ve done 22 other 100-milers and no question about it, this is the toughest,” said the exhausted but happy runner. “I was on all fours on the last climb.”
Runners, pacers, crew, families and communications staff were treated to a banquet and awards celebration following the race.
Complete race results and registration information for next year’s event is atwww.run100s.com/HR/.
