TITUS VAN RIJN INVITATIONAL ONE-HOUR DISTANCE CLASSIC AND OTHER NEWS

What kind of invitational is it? Just an informal one-hour track run held at your local track during the month of June. How far can you run in one hour? Here's a list of records (World, American and Titus Van Rijn Invite):

ONE-HOUR TRACK RECORDS
World, women: 18,517 meters (~11.5 miles)
Dire Tune (Eth), Ostrava, Czeh Republic 6/11/08
World, men: 21,285m (~13.2 miles)
Haile Gebrselassie (Eth), Ostrava, Czech Republic 6/27/07

U.S., women: 17,273m (~10.7 miles)
Nancy Conz, Amherst, MA 6/25/81
U.S., men: 20,547m (~12.8 miles)
Bill Rodgers (GBTC), Boston, MA 8/9/77

TVR, women: 12,800m (~7.96 miles)
Kate Jennings (WA), Winthrop, WA 6/2/2007
TVR, men: 18,115m (~11.25 miles)
Greg Crowther (WA), Seattle, WA 5/27/2006

More locally, here's how it panned out here in Ashland at the Southern Oregon University Stadium Track on 6/22/08:
Trevor Palmer, 24, Central Point, OR - 17,300 meters
JJ Moses, 25, Rogue River, OR - 16,495 meters
Bob Julian, 40, Medford, OR - 16,495 meters
John Leuthold, 40, Phoenix, OR - 15,800 meters
Neil Olsen, 40, Central Point - 15,036 meters
Ian Torrence, 35, Ashland, OR - 15,036 meters
Maria Clementi, 26, Ashland, OR - 10,460 meters

We'd be remiss if we didn't talk about some of the local races that have occurred in southern Oregon in the past few weeks. We'll work from most recent...

The Longest Day Run

An awesome, flat and fast run on the longest day (6/21/08) of the year along the Bear Creek Greenway. Held in the evening at Railroad Park in Medford, OR. Rogue River's JJ Moses started from the back of the chase pack and picked his way through the field to out-distance himself from some of the area's talented high school runners in 16:22. Phoenix's John Leuthold runs away with the master's race finishing 3rd overall in 16:48. Visitng from out of town, Danielle Jordan wins the women's race in 19:36. Susan Holt, like Leuthold, finishes third overall in 20:28 and wins the ladies' masters race. Go HERE for full results.

Evans Valley Duathlon

One June 14th, a group of southern Oregonians and RVR favorites took their running talents and added the bicycle for this event in individual and relay format. A great inspirational story and full results can be found HERE.

Granite Man Mountain Race

June 7th, 2008. Held at Applegate Lake (west of Ashland and Medford deep in the Siskiyou Mountains). Roughly 11.5 miles of single track running and racing. 1,500 feet of gain in the first two miles to the summit of Collins Mountain. Followed by a sweet ridge line run with views of Grayback Mountain (still snow covered) and the Carberry Valley. Then a knee jarring descent back to the lake. The last four miles sweep along the lake shore on the Da-Ku-Be-Te-De Trail. Being part of the new USATF Oregon Mountain Running Series brought out some deeper competition than last year's first running of the event.

Erik Skaggs, of Ashland, fought off surges from Portland's Richard Bolt to win in a new course record in 1:14:04. Jenn Shelton, also from Ashland, won the women's race handedly in 1:28:47 (also a new course record). A full race report can be found on La Sportiva's mountain running website, here. Full results can be found HERE. Photos of the race are HERE.

Good enough on race reports. How about what's coming up?

Five Rogue Valley Favorites are headed to northern California and theWestern States 100 Miler this weekend. Billed as the most prestigious 100 mile ultramarathon in the country, 400 runners will be pitted against altitude, snow, temperatures in the upper 90's, river crossings, sunburn, blisters, dehydration, cramps, spasms, the biggest "bonks" of their life and 100 miles of the roughest, rockiest and dustiest trails they've ever seen.

Let's give it up for Rogue Valley Runner's owner, Mr. Hal Koerner, last year's Western States winner and defending champion, Ashland's Jenn Shelton, who ran her last 100 mile race (Rocky Raccoon 100 Miler in TX) in 14:57, and Central Point's Neil Olsen, vying for the master's record at Western States this year. Rob Cain, has spent quality vacation time heat training in the Grand Canyon (AZ), Mt. Diablo (CA) and along the Rogue River Trail (OR) in preparation for the race. Tom Pelsor, from Yreka, CA, is merely using Western States as his first race of four in order to complete the Grand Slam of Ultramarathoning. Watch how they progress through the day(s) on the Western States Run Webcast, which will post up-to-the-hour updates on all of the runners. Follow them on race day, this Saturday, June 28th-29th, 2008. Good luck you all!

Phew! And now, like Jon Stewart says, for your "Moment of Zen"...
Mount McLoughlin from Howard Prairie Lake (photo taken by Ian Torrence).