KANSAS ULTRARUNNERS' SOCIETY
FOURTH ANNUAL HEARTLAND 100 & 50
MILE CROSS COUNTRY RACES
CASSODAY, KS
OCTOBER 11 & 12, 2003
RACE REPORT
By:
Randy Albrecht RD
In adverse weather conditions a run
in the prairie can be brutal. This
year’s race provided the runners with a sample of all of the different types of
fall weather in one 24-hour period. Conditions
at the start of the race were mild with temperatures in the low 60’s. By mid morning the runners were greeted by
the ever-present Kansas winds as a cold front moved rapidly through. The front brought mostly light rain,
although heavy at times. By early
afternoon the storm had passed and the runners were greeted by a crystal clear
sky and nearly no wind. With a full
moon and not a cloud in the sky, the runners were able to experience the
panoramic views of the tall grass prairie, which is a unique feature of the
race. The peace and tranquility of the
prairie was only occasionally broken by the coyote’s serenades, which welcomed
the runners into their home.
Too often we think of ultrarunning
as an individual sport, which pits the runner against the course and what ever
Mother Nature has in store for race day.
And yet without the support team helping the runner, very few would
actually ever finish a race. The
individual runners crew members and race volunteers make up a team whose sole
mission is to help the runners safely get to the finish line. The importance of the team was clearly
demonstrated at this year’s event. Some
early morning problems resulted in a mad scramble to get the first few aid
stations set up. At Heartland, every
aid station is manned by experienced ultrarunners. As ultrarunners you learn how to adapt and deal with many adverse
situations during a race. We are
blessed at Kansas Ultrarunners’ Society (KUS) to have a team of volunteers,
which are second to none. With everyone
including several runners crews pitching in to make the needed adjustments, the
race went on with the runners only noticing some disorganization at the early
morning aid stations.
Each aid station at Heartland tries
to add at least one specialty item to their menu. This years runners were treated to breakfast burritos, sloppy
joes, lentil, potato and broccoli and cheese soup, pancakes and bacon, homemade
cookies and of course the ever-famous prairie power pellets. As the overnight temperatures dropped into
the low 40’s the importance of the race team was again demonstrated. As I greeted the runners to the finish line
with the traditional ringing of the cowbells, I again witnessed the importance
of the team as several runners finished with various articles of clothes
provided by aid station volunteers or other runner’s crews.
Each year at the finish line it is
interesting to listen to the runners comments.
The beauty of the prairie is the most frequent topic, followed closely
by “I could not believe how tough the race was.” And yet when you ask the runner why the race was tougher than
expected, few can provide a definitive reason.
“The spirit of the prairie” was chosen as the race theme when we started
four years ago. It may just be that the
spirit or uniqueness of the prairie is what makes the race seem tougher than
anticipated.
This year’s race saw many fine
performances. Mark Henderson took the
lead by 30 miles into the Heartland 100 and was never challenged finishing in
18:41:03. Yen Nguyen won the women’s
race in 24:53:29. The 50-mile race saw
two course records set. Phil Sheridan
won in 7:23:29 in spite of being abandoned by his crew. Actually Stacy, his wife and KUS president,
in true ultrarunner fashion, stepped in to help us get through the early
morning problems. Molly Gibb was the
women’s winner in a course record time of 9:22:33 as she held off a late
charging Kelly Woodmansee.
While the perception is that the
race is more difficult than anticipated the finishers rates have historically
been very high. Over the last four
years 81% of the starters have finished the 100-mile race and 97% have finished
the 50-mile race. Vincent Swendsen,
Mark Henderson and Louise Mason have now finished all four of the Heartland
100’s. This year’s race featured
several first time 100 milers, which included Dennis Haig, this year’s first
Kansas finisher. Each year we strive to
make the race better, so mark your calendars for the second weekend of October
and experience first hand “The Spirit of the Prairie” at the 2004 Heartland
Races.