TNT Visions

Almost 200 registered and 180 finished!!! The weather held out again. Erik Skaggs won for the second year in a row and lowered his own course record by 33 seconds to finish in 35:02. Jenn Shelton won the ladies race in 41:09 a new course record by six minutes and 39 seconds. In fact, five ladies broke last year's course record!!! Thanks to all of the wonderful volunteers that made the race a huge success. Thanks for all the participants in making the TNT another fine event. See you next year! Same time and place.


(l to r)Chuck Whitley, Krista Olsen, Carly Varner and Darcy Kleiman work as volunteers at this year's race...it was folks like them that made the event run smoothly!


The Start...runners and walkers head out for six miles of pure pleasure!

Joe Vale and Sarah Wilson run side by side on a portion of The Ditch Road.

Megan Heuberger and Anne Reid enjoy the course together.

Jamil Coury, from Arizona, sprints up Strawberry Hill.

Jessica and Duane Miller came up from California for the race.

Colin Anderson is happy to be a part of it all.

Jenn Shelton wins the ladies race in course record time.

Your top three finishers: (l to r)Bob Julian (third), Ryland Karlovich (second), Erik Skaggs (first)

Tar 'n Trail Preliminary Results

Tar 'n Trail

6 mile

Ashland, OR

3/14/09

Skaggs, Erik 26 0:35:02
Karlovich, Ryland 18 0:37:24
Julian, Robert 40 0:37:52
Loftus, Justin 37 0:39:49
Olsen, Jeff 24 0:40:22
Coury, Jamil 24 0:40:25
Hakanson, Guy 21 0:40:28
Wikander, Chad 36 0:40:38
Bugg, Colin 24 0:40:44
Shelton, Jenn 25 0:41:09
Eisen, Jeremy 38 0:41:13
Luksich, Aaron 32 0:41:48
Engstrom, David 43 0:43:42
Callans, JC 41 0:43:43
Miles, Ali 25 0:43:50
Mueller, Greg 38 0:43:54
Ryan, Chuck 54 0:44:03
Cortell, Adam 37 0:44:07
Olson, Jeff 39 0:44:15
Bruner, Mike 25 0:44:23
Haug, Colin 16 0:44:25
Jantzer, Travis 15 0:44:25
Sotos, Michael 33 0:44:26
Ruhland, Zach 0:44:28
DioDato, Alex 24 0:44:36
Christensen, Zechariah 14 0:44:53
Jenks, Jocelyn 23 0:45:17
Frantz, Seena 17 0:45:27
Naversen, Douglas 60 0:45:45
Staha, Stephen 29 0:46:03
Stringer, Michael 34 0:46:17
Mondello, Freeborn 29 0:46:51
Elbert, Chad 37 0:47:00
Fralich, C.B. 36 0:47:05
Vale, Joe 34 0:47:25
Wilson, Sarah 31 0:47:25
Davis, Mike 49 0:47:54
Daniel, Paul 28 0:48:03
Avila, Thomas 21 0:48:05
Marshall, Dave 44 0:48:09
Raber, Laura 30 0:48:15
Anderson, Priscilla 32 0:48:24
Hacker, Becky 38 0:49:04
Stemple, Camden 13 0:49:25
Ewing, Hannah 16 0:49:32
Miller, Jessica 33 0:49:32
Miller, Duane 36 0:49:34
Bott, John 50 0:49:36
Potocki, Stan 52 0:49:40
Stoiber, Daniel 13 0:49:41
Faulkner, Terry 57 0:50:30
Bolz, Darrin 41 0:50:34
Combs, Chris 30 0:50:36
Wewerka, Ben 32 0:50:42
Lowe, Jacob 12 0:51:13
Brown, Zoe 12 0:51:16
Barnes, Desiree 26 0:51:32
Stemple, Lela 11 0:51:38
Rogan, Mike 49 0:51:40
Dinger, Nikki 32 0:51:52
Kiesling, Alex 14 0:52:22
Mayfield, Camelia 16 0:52:22
Caballero Uhtoff, Marie 33 0:52:36
DuVivier, Dana 36 0:52:37
Bruner, Larissa 24 0:52:39
Clementi, Maria 27 0:52:46
McPherson, Timothy 11 0:53:06
Hazel, Felicia 45 0:53:26
Spears, Leshaya 27 0:53:31
Hodge, Charles 58 0:53:40
Millan, Rene 36 0:53:41
Preboski, Leisa 42 0:53:42
Stone, Jeff 53 0:53:48
Engstrom, Amy 40 0:54:05
Reynolds, Bruce 49 0:54:26
Ellis, Tamara 39 0:54:36
Wyszynska, Karolina 31 0:54:37
Murphy, Jack 17 0:54:57
Abrans, Arnie 55 0:55:27
Minter, David 42 0:55:33
Swenson, Renee 37 0:55:36
Ward, Todd 41 0:55:39
Rogan, Mary 43 0:55:52
Hunter, Whitney 23 0:55:55
Gramley, Molly 42 0:56:00
Wiesen, Josh 28 0:56:20
Kling, Alison 53 0:56:40
Fernbacher, Tara 39 0:56:42
Strickler, Sarah 30 0:57:15
Wipfli, Tess 23 0:57:20
Olsen, Esther 16 0:57:26
Sallee, Jennifer 38 0:57:33
Hoisington, Jenine 46 0:57:43
Bosworth, Heidi 36 0:57:53
Miller, Dusty 61 0:58:08
Ali, Shahid 23 0:58:24
Zowada, Lydia 16 0:59:03
Stone, Don 52 0:59:25
Pedersen, Scott 48 0:59:40
Bischoff, Thomas 62 1:00:35
Bauer, Brooke 35 1:00:36
Sayre, Kouba 37 1:00:49
Nelson, Joseph 27 1:01:08
Luksich, Laura 29 1:01:12
Geygan, Kelly 36 1:01:22
Eadie, Annie 45 1:01:26
Fralich, Zack 9 1:01:42
Britting, Sarah 16 1:01:46
Ball, Leah 14 1:01:52
Fralich, Ian 7 1:02:09
Thompson, Darian 14 1:02:09
McFadden, Tim 34 1:02:23
O'Neill, Jocelyn 45 1:02:35
Christensen, Stephen 10 1:02:36
Thompson, Jennifer 35 1:02:52
Justice, Tracy 41 1:03:54
Pereman, Maya 27 1:04:03
Hyland, Ken 18 1:04:59
Hyland, Mike 48 1:04:59
Lovett, Rebecca 31 1:05:01
Reid, Anne 34 1:05:14
Heuberger, Megan 28 1:05:18
Pidgeon, Jessica 26 1:05:18
Murphy, Cindy 59 1:05:21
Fralich, Maisie 11 1:05:27
White, Theo 28 1:05:36
Hill, Jeremiah 11 1:05:41
Fralich, John 8 1:05:57
Reckard, Rob 37 1:05:57
Wood, George 44 1:06:00
Hill, Maegan 13 1:06:19
O'Connell, Rebecca 33 1:07:22
Randall, Lyric 16 1:07:22
Reynolds, Kathryn 16 1:07:22
Green, Diane 52 1:07:53
Livni, Joseph 12 1:07:54
Kenning, Kirsten 34 1:08:20
Haag, Steve 42 1:08:54
Cuddy, Amy 47 1:09:18
Bestor, Nancy 41 1:10:00
Levy, Kimberly 22 1:10:00
Anderson, Jessa 21 1:10:03
Levy, Lisa 27 1:10:04
Atleberry, Heidi 45 1:10:28
Murphy, Anna 15 1:10:31
Avila, Olivia 23 1:10:32
Elbert, Nikki 35 1:10:40
Boylan, Gretchen 40 1:10:45
Hecox, Kerri 36 1:10:50
Lyons, Kai 12 1:10:56
Drake Donohue, Jenny 41 1:11:03
Nixon, Laurie 34 1:11:04
Wethaiser-Kent, Dan 37 1:11:28
Anderson, Colin 25 1:11:30
Jones, Megan 23 1:11:32
Levy, Kathy 56 1:11:44
Shaskey, Norman 61 1:12:03
Winslow, Julie 41 1:12:03
Fralich, Kristian 6 1:14:13
Fralich, Erinn 38 1:14:26
Fralich, Eunora 30 1:14:26
Howell, Danica 34 1:14:27
Dugan, Chuck 37 1:14:46
Dugan, Christy 31 1:15:45
Voorheis, John 58 1:23:53
Carole, Jana 51 1:29:00
Haag, Jody 41 1:30:19
Ring, Eric 46 1:40:35
Becker, Katie 48 1:43:44
Livni, Gabriele 10 1:43:44
Ring, Barbie 54 1:43:44
Mara 45 1:47:35
Scionti, Lynne 55 1:47:35
Van Heuit, Maura 47 1:47:35
Cutler, Mary 49 1:47:45
Livni, Kat 42 1:49:19
Becker, Jayden 10 2:06:40
Becker, Ken 54 2:06:40
Livni, Maya 8 2:06:40
Ring, Hannah 12 2:06:40


180 finishers

After All That Chocolate 5K Run

Runners await the "Go"!

What do you do after you've eaten all that chocolate? That was Karolina Wyszynska's thought after orchestrating much of the Oregon Chocolate Festival at the Ashland Springs Hotel last weekend. So...she organized the first annual "After All That Chocolate 5K" in order to burn off all those "to die for" calories.

Camden & Scott Stemple

(l to r) Eric Poole, Maria Clementi, Jocelyn Jenks

The course started at The Plaza in downtown Ashland, looped well-known Lithia Park and finished just above the Ashland Springs Hotel. The hilly, but scenic 5K, had more than 50 entrants. Here are the results:

Last Name First Name Time Bib # City State
1 Moroney Andrew 17:54:00 28 Woodinville WA
2 Poole Eric 19:39:00 55 Ashland OR
3 Shelton Jenn 19:57:00 57 Ashland OR
4 Ray Bree 20:39:00 29 Seattle WA
5 DioDato Alex 20:51:00 53 Ashland OR
6 McKay Levi 20:52:00 26 Ashland OR
7 Stemple Scott 21:20:00 41 Medford OR
8 Meriy Ray 22:20:00 30 Stillwater MN
9 Stemple Camden 22:24:00 42 Medford OR
10 Ray Suzanne 22:44:00 31 Medford OR
11 Alvarez Marco Antonio 23:05:00 32 Ashland OR
12 Hacker Becky 23:11:00 51 Ashland OR
13 Janousek James 24:20:00 25 Ashland OR
14 Jenks Jocelyn 24:27:00 38 Ashland OR
15 Clementi Maria 24:27:00 12 Ashland OR
16 Montes Joel 25:13:00 40 Ashland OR
17 Hacker John 25:24:00 52 Ashland OR
18 Brettner Nick 26:18:00 54 Ashland OR
19 Gardiner Greta 29:28:00 24 Ashland OR
20 Rudd Nina 29:40:00 27 Ashland OR
21 DuBois Tom 30:01:00 35 Ashland OR
22 Noles Dodie 30:44:00 6 Talent OR
23 Segner Doris 32:00:00 33 Ashland OR
24 McConnell Torrey 33:20:00 14 Ashland OR
25 Miller Rob 33:56:00 34 Ashland OR
26 Hearn Susan 34:33:00 61 Ashland OR
27 Friedman Jill 36:58:00 8 Ashland OR
28 Ogden James 37:11:00 37 Vocaville CA
29 Nasra Ali 37:40:00 47 Ashland OR
30 Ogden Bonnie 39:05:00 36 Vocaville CA
31 Oppenheimer Priscilla 40:19:00 15 Ashland OR
32 McCloskey Susan 49:24:00 44 Ashland OR
33 O'Brien Kate 49:24:00 43 Ashland OR
34 Weber Meredeth 51:38:00 56 Central Point OR
35 Owens Ava 51:41:00 22 Talent OR
36 Reynolds Anji 52:04:00 4 Ashland OR
37 Lair Cathi 52:05:00 21 Ashland OR
38 Bloom Laura 52:07:00 3 Ashland OR
39 Downey Magee 52:09:00 20 Ashland OR
40 Hood Wendy 52:11:00 5 Ashland OR
41 Clark Habeeba 52:11:00 2 Ashland OR
42 Duerfeldt Emily 57:55:00 7 McMinville OR
43 Early Selisha 1:01:02 50 Ashland OR
44 Christensen Alexis 1:01:02 58 Talent OR
45 Harper Hillary 1:02:00 60 Ashland OR
46 Glass Michelle 1:02:00 10 Ashland OR
47 DeRosier Ava 1:02:00 11 Ashland OR
48 Tattershall Paige 1:02:00 48 Ashland OR
49 McMillan Melissa 1:02:00 9 Ashland OR

The Ladies at the finish. (l to r) Jenn Shelton, Susanne Ray, Bree Ray, Greta Gardiner, Becky Hacker

Races Galore

So much going on, so little time...

Let's start with this weekend:

The First Annual "After All That Chocolate" 5K gets underway at 8AM on Sunday morning at The Plaza in downtown Ashland. The course circumnavigates Lithia Park. It's run in conjunction with the Oregon Chocolate Festival at the Ashland Springs Hotel. Want info about the race or the Chocolate Festival go here.

Can't make it Sunday morning, try the Shamrock Five Mile Run at Crater High School in Central Point, OR. The race starts at 9AM on Saturday morning. It's an official Pear Blossom Run tuneup. Flat and fast! Go to the Southern Oregon Runners web site for more information.

Don't Forget next weekend is the second annual Tar N' Trail Six Mile Run. The run starts at 9AM at Lithia Park. It's the only organized race that runs the trails through Lithia Park! A challenging and beautiful mix of trails and roads. Go to the Rogue Valley Runners web site for entries and information.

Looking forward, there are two great events coming up:

The Siskiyou Outback 15 and 50 Kilometer Trail Races just opened for registration. These two races, that traverse the Pacific Crest Trail near Mt. Ashland, are bound to fill quickly this year. Don't get left out! The race falls under new management this year John Price and Rob Cain bring their excellent organizational and people skills to the task. Go to the newly revamped SOB web site for entry and course information.

Entry for the Pompadour Half Marathon is now open. Don't waste your excellent Pear Blossom training, keep it up and increase the challenge. Try this course that takes place on the roads east of Ashland. Go to Rogue Valley Runners web site for more information. Oh yeah, there will be prize money for the first three men and women!!!

Trails, Roads and Volcanos

Over the past several weeks some Rogue Valley Runners have been turning in some impressive racing results.

Running to the Volcanoes in Hawaii!
Back in late January, Ashlander Jenn Shelton traveled across the Pacific Ocean to visit our 50th state. Though she didn't soak in as many rays as she had hoped (she was visiting the rainy side of the islands) she did capture a victory at the Hilo to Volcano 50 Kilometer Ultramarathon. The uphill road race started in the ocean-side town of Hilo, HI and traveled up to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Jenn won the ladies race, finished third overall and set a new course record for women; 4 hours, 15 minutes, and 10 seconds.

Fall Creek Reservoir
This past weekend Phoenix, OR's John Leuthold went north to Lowell, OR to use a comp entry he won back at a race on New Year's Eve. John started the Fall Creek Run Around 20 Miler, a mix of asphalt and gravel roads, and found himself running in the lead after a few miles. Challenged once just past the half-way mark, John "put the hammer down" and gapped the competition for the win. John turned in a 2:08, roughly three minutes ahead of second place.

Marilyn Bailey running at Hagg Lake.
A huge congratulations to Marilyn Bailey and Ben Benjamin (both of Ashland, OR) who, two weeks ago, successfully finished the Hagg Lake 50 Kilometer Ultramarathon. This northern Oregon ultra is known for it's mud, but this year, things weren't so bad. Ben finished his fourth Hagg in 6:04:15 and Marilyn Bailey crossed the line in 7:00:35, her seventh Hagg Lake 50K finish.

Ben Benjamin at Hagg Lake
Nice work everyone!!!(photos of Ben and Marilyn were taken by Thomas Riley)

Couples Truffle Shuffle 5K

Spend your Valentine's Day with a loved one or good friend! This past weekend a huge group did just that on the rural roads between Phoenix, OR and Jacksonville, OR. Here are some glimpses of the morning's relay event (each person does a 5K).

Todd and Holly Ragsdale

Camden and Lela Stemple

Mike Sotos

Sarah Wilson and Joseph Vaile

Justin Loftus and Jon Obesoso

John Leuthold

John and Molly Leuthold

JJ Moses

Jenn Shelton and Brian McGuire exchange just behind Zach Elliott and Kayleigh Tyerman.

Full results can be found on the Southern Oregon Runners website. More photos by Andy Atkinson can be found here at the Mailtribune.

Old Guys Do It With Style

"Old runners never die, we just look that way." -Ben Benjamin



Tom Pelsor running in Arizona.

We'd be remiss if we didn't recognize two recent and outstanding performances by two of the older representatives of the Rogue Valley Runner ultra community. Tom Pelsor, 64, of Yreka, California, escaped the winter of northern Cali and found the Arizona sun to his liking. Tom traveled to the southwest and turned in some awesome results for the Across the Years 72 Hour Footrace (Yup, that's three days!). Tom covered 161.246 miles in that amount of time. Tom was quoted on the ATY web site as to his ultra roots.

"I ran track in high school. I started running again in the 80's - 10k's and half-marathons. Some friends got me hooked on trail running in the late 90's when I was training for a marathon. Since then I've been running slower and enjoying it more. Finished 4 JJ's and 2 Rocky Raccoon's with a best time of 27 hours. Last year was my first ATY, and I did 93 miles in the 24-hour. What a great event!"

Ben Benjamin doing what he loves.

A few weeks ago, Ben Benjamin, 61, of Ashland, Oregon, headed to the woods outside of Huntsville, Texas for the Rocky Raccoon 100 Mile Trail Race. Ben beat the trail for more than a day and finished the race in 25 hours, 9 minutes and 31 seconds. 84th place out of 239 starters!

Ben said, "The trail had a lot of roots. I fell four times! It was scenic; 5 loops around a lake."

We should all be so lucky to be doing what these fellas are doing at their age. Congratulations gentlemen!

The Beach of Clams

Although we had heard stories of dreary weather descending upon runners in 2008, a large band of Rogue Valley Runners traveled west to the Northern California Coast to test their luck at the Trinidad to Clam Beach Run. The race began in the 60s in Humboldt County, CA as a 8.75 mile winter training race for track and field athletes attending Humboldt State University and continues today alluring over a thousand participants between the 3 races (3 mile, 5 3/4 mile, 8 3/4 mile).

At high noon, runners began scampering along the windy, undulating paved roads on their way to Clam Beach. At mile 3 the race enters the smallest incorporated city in California, Trinidad, and begets beautiful views of the misty and rugged coastline. From there, the course weaves down to the beach where race volunteers help runners cross the Little River. At last, after 2 brutal miles of sand and beach, runners find their way to a festive finish.

In the 5 and 3/4 mile Todd Ragsdale and Joe Griffin finished one two with respective times of 34:22 and 34:27. They were hagled mercilessly at the finish for not competing in the 8 and 3/4 mile race, but Todd laughed all the way home with his $25 earnings for the victory.



The bulk of the Rogue Valley residents were entered in the 8 and 3/4 miler with students representing both Crater and Ashland High. It was a fierce battle all day and when the fog cleared Bob Julian had claimed top RVR resident with a 5th place finish and a time of 49:18. Hal Koerner finished one place back in 49:58 and Ryland Karlovich from AHS follow in the top ten with a 50:04 showing. RVR teammate John Leuthold worked hard for his 11th place finish in 51:36 and placed 2nd in the Masters division behind the aforementioned Bob Julian. On the ladies side, another AHS runner, Seena Frantz finished with a solid 4th place 59:53 and Carly Varner bolted across the beach to finish in 1:09:45.



Hal tries to real in Bob.





The Crater girls ford the not so mighty Little River.



We thought we'd better preserve the wonderful weather.

The Rogue Valley Runners 2009 Race Schedule: Tar N' Trail, Pompadour Half Marathon, and the Lithia Loop Trail Marathon

Here are they are! Three great races in 2009 brought to you by Rogue Valley Runners.

The first race of 2009 is the Second Annual Tar N' Trail 6 Mile Run. Race day is March 14th at 9am near The Plaza in downtown Ashland, Oregon (same place as last year). The course is the same as well.

Entries for the TNT can be picked up at RVR or printed from the image below and mailed to Rogue Valley Runners.


The second race of 2009 is the Pompadour Half Marathon. Don't let your Pear Blossom training go to waste!

Recover from Pear and a month later (May 30th at North Mountain Park) try your skills along the roads on Ashland's east side. We'll have entries available as soon as we get our final approval letters. Here's a preview of the course.


The third race of 2009 will be the setting for the 2009 and 2010 USA Track and Field National Trail Marathon Championships.

The Second Annual Lithia Loop Trail Marathon will take place on November 7th. Interested runners can register now at Active.com.
The course will stay the same, except for some added single track in the second half of the race (just before the White Rabbit Aid Station) in order to get you a better taste of the dirt.


We hope to see you there!

S.O.F.A. and Recent Marathons

SOFA 50 KILOMETER TRAIL RUN
The Group assembled at the start of the SOFA 50 Kilometer Trail Run.

Looking down the Wild and Scenic Rogue River from Graves Creek.

This year's Southern Oregon Fat Ass (SOFA) 50 Kilometer Trail Run was marked by beautiful weather and a myriad of "bonks." The annual gathering of runners, orchestrated by unofficial race director Tim Turk, along the Wild and Scenic Rogue River took place this past weekend. The after-holdiay tradition started at the Graves Creek Trailhead then traversed the Lower Rogue River Trail through the gorge for fifteen miles and returned the same way. Twenty-eight runners showed up to participate. Runners from the Rogue Valley and as far away as Eugene took part in this non-race event. Some of the runners included:

Erik Skaggs, Hal Koerner, Dan Olmstead, Todd Braje, Kurt Eisele, Eric Poole, John Price, Darcy Kleiman, Chris Rennaker, Tim Olson, Aaron Brian, Lewis Taylor, Meghan Arbogast, Craig Thornley, Nathan Blaine, Ken Ward, Dennis Gamroth, Chip Collins, Annie Crispino-Taylor, John Liebeskind, Mel Bailey, Sander Nelson, Tim Turk, Ben Benjamin, Kyle Skaggs

"The Train" of runners heads out from Graves Creek and a good day of running.

REDDING MARATHON
The setting for the Redding Marathon.
Two weeks ago several runners from the Rogue Valley traveled south for the Redding Marathon. We'd like to acknowledge their hard work and finishes.

2 JC Callans 41 M Eagle Point 02:54:45
26 Becky Hacker 38 F Ashland 03:26:40
41 Robert S. Hodge 48 M Grants Pass 03:40:33
42 Vic Harris 51 M Grants Pass 03:40:33
48 Tom Bell 39 M Medford 03:47:54
55 Aaron Ramirez 31 M Medford 03:53:36
63 Jim Fety 59 M Rogue River 04:01:39
67 Michael Sotos 33 M Ashland 04:05:25
89 Jeffery Proulx 40 M Ashland 04:26:39
107 Steve Lorenz 45 M Medford 04:43:34
135 Israel Mathewson 35 M Talent 05:17:55

MIAMI MARATHON
Meanwhile, across the country, on the opposite coast, Ashland resident Karolina Wyszynska wins the award for traveling the furthest this month for a marathon. She completed the Miami Marathon in 4:19:42.

Ashland Ultrarunning Stars Make Print

Rogue Valley Runner and New Balance sponsored Kyle Skaggs was voted second in the "2008 Ultrarunner of the Year" voting.

The Rogue Valley's MailTribune covered the recent Ultrarunner of the Year voting. They interviewed the five Ashland'ers who garnered votes; Kyle and Erik Skaggs, Hal Koerner, Jenn Shelton and Tony Krupicka. To read the full article click here.

S.O.F.A

Come out and enjoy the SOFA.

It just so happens that a lot of Oregon ultrarunners celebrate birthdays on the same weekend. Tim Turk, Craig Thornley, Jeff Riley, Marcus Mayfield, Clayton Gillette and Hal Koerner are all celebrating on the same weekend. The plan is to run the Wild and Scenic Rogue River trail. We'll leave Graves Creek about 9AM on Saturday, January 24th and run out-n-back for a total of 50k. Remember, out-n-back means you can cut it short or make it long. Last year we had a record turnout as well as record times! I hope to see you there! We'll have hot soup at the finish courtesy of the SOBs.

This is a self-supported run that crosses countless streams that many of us have drunk from for years without incident. Do I need to mention rain, after all this is Oregon, right? Oh yeah, poison oak, and dead bears too.

From the north, take the Wolf Creek exit #76 to the Graves Creek trailhead.

From the South, take the Merlin exit #61 and do the same.

Give me a call or email if you have questions,

Tim Turk
541-264-0262
ultrarunning@gmail.com

The Frostbite Returns!

The typical dense, freezing fog that hangs low in the valleys this time of year in southern Oregon gave runners a perfectly timed reprieve. A cold, but sunny morning greeted the entrants of this year's Frostbite Returns 10K and 5K races. The courses, that run on the rural roads on the outskirts of Talent, OR, are far from forgiving. Only the first mile (and last) of the out and back routes can be construed as flat. The bulk of the ten kilometer course undulates like the ocean in a tempest; leaving most runners gasping for the frozen air that surrounds them.
J.J. Moses (in yellow) strides across the last quarter mile, catching air as he goes, to win the 10K.

In the men's 10K race, J.J. Moses took the lead from the start and never looked back. J.J. galloped away from both the nearest 10K and 5K runners with ease winning in 34:15. Elliot Jantzer ran with the chase group until the turnaround and then blazed back to finish second overall in 36:04. A tight trio of runners followed suit consisting of Eric Poole, Chris Rennaker and Ian Torrence. At the finish line Rennaker and Torrence fought, with teeth gnashing, for a third place tie in 37:40. Poole finished fifth three seconds behind. Jeremy Eisen was sixth in 38:52 and Joe Griffin brought in seventh in 39:40.

In the women's 10K race Dorsey Dobry was crowned the ladies' winner in 42:18. Maggie Donovan followed in 43:37. Laura Raber was third woman in the 10K, across in 53:59. Kierra Huggins finished fourth in 44:28.

Battling a head cold, John Leuthold started conservatively and worked his way through the pack to win the 5K race in 18:18. With this being John's first win of 2009; inquiring minds want to know if he will continue on to break his "ten wins in a year streak?" Guy Hawkason ran hard to stay in stride with Leuthold. Guy finished second in 18:20. Todd Ragsdale, returning to the racing circuit since injuring his knee in November, took third in 18:23.
John Leuthold (5K winner), Todd Raggsdale and Chris Redfeldt celebrate after a well run 5K.

In the women's 5K, Suzanne Ray took the win in 21:12. Jane Podolski finished second in 22:17. Melanie Neilitz rounded out the top three in 22:59. A special kudos to RVR Thursday Night Ladies Group Run leader Maria Clementi who finished the 5K in 23:39.

Congratulations to race director Krista Peterson for a job well done and to the rest of the Southern Oregon Runners' volunteers that helped the 160+ runners cover the course. Full results will be posted here soon.
A Good Group Assembled. (Standing left to right; Torrence, Eisen, Leuthold, Moses, Scott, Lela and Camden Stemple. Kneeling l to r; Brian, Poole. Lying; Rennaker.

Ultrarunner of the Year

The results are in! The annual voting for Ultrarunner of the Year has wrapped up and half of the staff here at Rogue Valley Runners have found their way onto the lists.

Ultrarunning Magazine holds the voting at the end of each calendar year. Using a panel of twenty anonymous voters spread across North America all results from 2008 are complied, analyzed, scrutinized and voted upon. Ultrarunner of the Year and Performance of the Year are considered in both an open category and age group category (over 50).


After the votes were tallied, Rogue Valley Runner employee Kyle Skaggs found himself in the runner-up position for Ultrarunner of the Year (missing first by a mere three votes) and first in the Performance of the Year category. Kyle's win and course record at Colorado's Hardrock 100 Mile Endurance Run pushed him to the top in both categories.


New store employee Tony Krupicka found himself sitting at number four in the voting for Ultrarunner of the Year. Tony's wins at Moab's Red Hot 50K (tie with Kyle), Zane Grey 50 Miler, American River 50 Miler (also received points for Performance of the Year) and Dogwood 50K (three way tie with Kyle) threw votes his way.


Rogue Valley Runners' owner Hal Koerner found himself poised at number seven for Ultrarunner of the Year. Hal's big wins at the Angeles Crest 100 Mile Endurance Run and at the Dick Collins Fire Trails 50 Mile Run scored points with the judges.


Missing the top ten for Ultrarunner of the Year by one spot, RVR employee Erik Skaggs still came away with a fifth place showing in the Performance of the Year category. Erik's win and course record at the Quad Dipsea put him there.


We'd also like to congratulate fellow Ashlander and running partner, Jenn Shelton for receiving votes for both Ultrarunner of the Year and Performance of the Year on the women's side.

On a personal note, we are disappointed to see that Central Point's Neil Olsen's Where's Waldo USA Track and Field National 100 Kilometer Trail Championship win and course record was neglected by all the voters.

Check out the full results and write-up here while the other fifty percent of us here at RVR try and catch-up!

Running in the New Year

Local Rogue Valley Runners John Leuthold (Phoenix, OR) and Joe Griffin (Central Point, OR) decided that running would be a good way to see the New Year in. They traveled north to Eugene for the 2009 First Run. Both John and Joe would run their first ten kilometer road race on Wednesday night (starting just before midnight) and their second 10K race Thursday morning. Somewhere in between, we trust, they fit in a good New Year's toast.

Leuthold won the New Year's Eve 10K in 36:51. This was John's tenth race win in 2008. Griffin finished third in 39:07. The next morning, in a faster, more invigorated crowd, Leuthold, running almost a minute faster than the night before, finished third in 35:58. Griffin finished sixth in 40:30. Full results for both races can be found here. Nice work gentlemen.

Local Channel 16 News was on the scene too. See John Leuthold interviewed after his New Year's Eve win. Select the video titled "First Run of the New Year" located on the left side bar.