Results from last weekend’s Golden Ultra

The Golden Ultra ran last weekend, as strong trail runners took their pick of the two different races offered at the event, both of which were designed to test the runners’ limits both physically and mentally.

Whether runners chose the ‘Half Pint’ or the ‘Full Pint’, they were in for a marathon’s-worth of distance either way. Runners also had the option of picking one stage of either the Full or Half Pint to run, too. Starting from Kicking Horse Resort in Golden, the race challenged runners by climbing high into the alpine for three days of stunning views in the upper reaches of the Purcell Mountains.

The Full Pint

The Full Pint option of the Golden Ultra covers 88 km, but it has a second–apt– name that sums up the nature of the event: Blood, Sweat, and Tears.

Runners start the ‘blood’ section with a gruelling vertical kilometre climb that is spread over five kilometres, getting their legs burning right from the start.

Next, is the ‘sweat’ portion of the run, which covered nearly 60 kilometres in distance and 2,500 metres of elevation. The second leg is precariously balanced on trails that cover 15 kilometres of ridge running, giving competitors an incredible vantage point of the valley below.

Finally, the ‘tears’ portion of the Full Pint is a rolling 22-kilometre run along the Northern Slopes of the Columbia River Valley. As the final stage of the Full Pint, this leg pulled out all the stops with 2.5 kilometres of wide down the trail that gave spectators a chance to cheer on the runners as they finished.

Results:

Full Pint Elite Women

1. Alexandra Stukator (Exshaw, Alta.) - Total Time: 10:23:33.5
2. Katheryn Cochrane (Ottawa, Ont.) - Total Time: 10:37:07.7
3. Kelly Young (Boulder, Colo.) - Total Time: 11:28:17.4

Full Pint Elite Men

1. Thomas Jefferson (Golden, B.C.) - Total Time: 9:03:59.5
2. Mathias Purden (Whitehorse, Y.T.) - Total Time: 9:12:56.4
3. Matthew Scace (Calgary, Alta.) - 9:32:05.3

Full Pint 50+ Women

1. Carrie Scace (Toronto, O.N.) - Total Time: 13:29:32.6
2. Lara Rintoul (Coquitlam, B.C.) - Total Time: 13:55:29.9
3. Janette Purdham (Vancouver, B.C.) - Total Time: 14:09:06.8

Full Pint 50+ Men

1. Alistair Munro (Toronto, O.N.) - Total Time: 10:43:41.3
2. Richard Bowry (Toronto, O.N.) - Total Time: 11:10:47.4
3. Rick Brown (Whitehorse, Y.T.) - Total Time: 12:53:24.0

Full Pint Open Women (16–49)

1. Kinley Gibson (Edmonton, Alta.) - Total Time: 10:21:12.3
2. Abby Morgan (Smithers, B.C.) - Total Time: 11:01:48.9
3. Maura Stamler (Calgary, Alta.) - Total Time: 11:07:39.0

Full Pint Open Men (16–49)

1. Jake Van Allen (Vernon, B.C.) - Total Time: 9:46:13.7
2. Daniel Krayzel (Calgary, Alta.) - Total Time: 9:57:47.0
3. Edward Choi (Calgary, Alta.) - Total Time: 10:01:52.5

The Half Pint

The name of this option of the Golden Ultra betrays its differences from the Full. The Half Pint covers half of the distance than its counterpart with runners taking on 44 km.

Like the Full Pint, the Half Pint also has a second name: Climb, Conquer, and Cruise

For the ‘Climb’ sector, competitors started their race partway up the mountain. Covering three kilometres in distance, the first sector climbs 700 metres to connect with portions of the ‘Blood’ section of the Full Pint.

For the second part of the Half Pint, ‘Conquer’, runners covered 30 km of trail and endured an elevation gain of more than 650 metres. Where the Full Pint competitors got high mountain range views, the Half Pint runners got lake views, instead.

Finally, for the ‘Cruise’ section of the Half Pint, runners covered 10.5 km on the northern slopes of the Columbia River Valley. The sector, like the Full Pint, finished with a wide section of trail where cheering spectators were able to watch the runners until they finished.

Results:

Half Pint 50+ Women

1. Ana Dennier (Vernon, B.C.) - Total Time: 5:09:00.5
2. Grace Smith (Canmore, Alta.) - Total Time: 5:32:22.2
3. Jennifer Fleck (Calgary, Alta.) - Total Time: 5:44:37.6

Half Pint 50+ Men

1. Dave Cwynar (Calgary, Alta.) - Total Time: 4:40:52.6
2. Andy Blackwell (Markdale, O.N.) - Total Time: 4:49:44.3
3. John Bonn (Flagstaff, Ariz.) - Total Time: 5:12:30.6

Half Pint Open Women (16–49)

1. Heather Henry (Calgary, Alta.) - Total Time: 4:13:30.8
2. Meagan Shields (Calgary, Alta.) - Total Time: 4:49:35.9
3. Liz Michaud (Canmore, Alta.) - Total Time: 4:53:40.6

Half Pint Open Men (16–49)

1. Mikhail Gerylo (Winnipeg, Man.) - Total Time: 3:32:05.9
2. Stephen Park (North Vancouver, B.C.) - Total Time: 4:20:30.7
3. Kail Sundholm (Fort McMurray, Alta.) - Total Time: 4:21:35.0

The Golden Ultra is part of the TransRockies Race Series that hosts similar events in other communities. The rest of the results are available online on the Golden Ultra website.

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@ZacharyDelaney
zach.delaney@revelstokereview.com
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