2013 IMTR RD report
The 2013 Iron Mountain Trail Run ended up being an interesting, wet event. Eager (and some would argue, crazy) runners toed the starting line on Saturday, August 31, 2013 in Damascus, VA. At 7 AM, they were off. Initially, the weather was great, with overcast skies, temperatures not too high, but high humidity. While the runners were starting out on the trails, a great group of volunteers were setting up aid stations, prepping for the post-race picnic, and doing all the behind-the-scenes work needed to hold a race.
The trails started off in great conditions, with plenty of rocks for all the runners to enjoy, but not too much mud. By the end of the day, the rocks were still there, but with plenty of additional mud to go around. Anthony Corriveau was the first runner to leave those rocky and muddy trails and cross the finish line, winning the IMTR 16 mile event 2:27:53. Syndey Sumner won the women’s IMTR 16 in a time of 2:39:20 at the tender age of 18 (boy, I feel old!) and set a new women’s record in the process. Clay Hickman led the 30 milers to cross the line at 4:26:37 and Jamie Swyers won the ladies IMTR in a time of 5:01:27.
Sometime after the 30 milers started coming in (I think, the day blurred together for me), it started to sprinkle. Well, maybe down pour is the better description. At least twice during the race storm systems passed overhead and gave us a good drenching. Each time the skies opened up, everyone at the finish line would crowd in under the gazebo. Then some poor bedraggled runner would appear out of the rain and a cheer would erupt. For all of those runners who finished early in the day, be glad you ran down Mock Hollow (the final technical descent) in good conditions. As the day progressed, the trail turned into a stream and the water level continued rising!
For the 50 milers, there was still a race out on the trail. Current record holder, Eric Grossman, was being pushed by former record holder, Shaun Pope, for the 2013 IMTR win. And Frank Gonzalez was right behind them both. While the bad weather didn’t allow for a new record, Eric was able to pass Shuan and take a commanding lead into the finish in a time of 7:43:21. Shannon Johnstone captured the IMTR 50 women’s award in a time of 9:20:27.
Even with the damp weather, we had a good finishing rate for the 50 mile IMTR. About 78% of the runners who started out on the 50 mile course finished it. In the past, we’ve had about a 70% finish rate. So rain seems to be more favorable than heat and humidity!
As in the past, we also had the Iron Mountain Man/Woman award for the runner who did the most push-ups, sit-ups, and pull-ups within5 minutes of finishing. In case you haven’t realized it, I get a lot of entertainment in asking exhausted runners if they’d like to do some calisthenics after a 16/30/50 mile race- there can be a lot of interesting responses! Surprisingly, many runners actually take me up on it. Johnathan Justice finished 2nd in the IMTR 16 in a time of 2:35:20 and still had the energy to pump out 55 push-ups and 50 sit-ups for a score of 105, winning the 16 mile Iron Mountain Man award. Sydney Sumner was just a few minutes behind in 2:39:28 and she was able to crank out 136 sit-ups for a score of 136. So Sydney came in 3rd overall, 1st woman, won the 16 mile Iron Mountain Woman award and set a new course record for 16 mile distance and a new 16 mile Iron Mountain Woman record. Way to go Sydney- 2 records in one day!
Kristin Chang finished the 30 mile IMTR in a time of 5:37:48 and captured the 30 mile Iron Mountain Woman award with a score of 129 by doing 35 push-ups and 94 sit-ups. Kevin Price ran the 30 mile IMTR in 7:55:40 and did 132 push-ups and 40 sit-ups to win the 30 mile Iron Mountain Man award with a score of 172.
David Mackanic won the 30 mile Iron Mountain Man award in 2012. This year he came back and tackled the 50 mile event and crossed the finish line in 9:21:35. He then powered through 30 push-ups, 128 sit-ups, and 24 pull-ups to set a new 50 mile Iron Mountain Man record with a score of 230. Lisa Hazlett finished her 50 miles in 11:06:09 and then pumped out 98 sit-ups and 5 push-ups to win the 50 mile Iron Mountain Woman award with a score of 103.
Thanks to everyone who braved the rain to come out and support the 2013 IMTR. Special thanks go out to the volunteers- this race could not happen without their hours and hours of work. Thank you, volunteers!!
For those interested in the 2014 IMTR, the date should be Saturday, August 30, 2014, and registration should open on June 1.
See you on the trails!
Kevin Townsend