Ultrarunning Style – The Board Short Dude

Jamil CouryUltra Thoughts

I got to thinking about ultrarunning style after reading a post from ultrarunner and race director Candice Burt about “The Style of the Elite Runner Girl”. She was contemplating how to differentiate herself as a female ultrarunner and create her own unique style. Her post explored her frustration in finding that for every good idea she came up with, that look was already taken by some other girl. I”m not someone that has consciously been concerned about my style (or lack thereof), but I am aware I have inadvertently created my own in the sport. My own “look” has evolved quite considerably over the past seven years as an ultra runner and I have come to …

HOM100 – A run to kick some ALS-ass

Jamil CouryRace Report

I first heard about the HOM100 when I stumbled upon Trevor Davenport‘s Facebook page. I didn’t really know what HOM stood for at first or why he would be running 100 miles around a 2 mile loop around his neighborhood, but it sounded interesting and like something I would do myself. Trevor has run many of the Aravaipa Running DRT Series ultra events over the past couple of years including this year’s Mesquite Canyon 50 Mile and is active in the local running community including penning a few articles for Trail Running Club. I spoke with Trevor about the HOM100 when he volunteered at the Sinister Night Run (he was the guy with the rainbow …

Running Scrappy In The Old Pueblo

Jamil CouryRace Report

I was exhausted, tired and dammit my feet hurt. I was trudging through dry grasslands not sure of why I had even decided this was a good idea. I was in the foothills of the mighty Santa Rita Mountains South of Tucson, walking along the Arizona Trail bound for Kentucky Camp, under the shadow of Mount Wrightson and just a couple small towns and a few dozen miles from the Mexico border. I had put myself through an ordeal and at the end of the day had absolutely nothing to show for it except a stinging, biting DNF. No, this was not the 2013 Old Pueblo Endurance Run, I am rewinding back to April 2011 when I …

Zane Grey 2013 – Jamil Coury’s Race Report

Jamil CouryRace Report

The Zane Grey 50 Mile Endurance Run spans the length of the historic Highline trail beneath the Mogollon Rim, an escarpment on the edge of the Colorado Plateau.  The entire Mogollon Rim stretches for over 200 miles across Arizona, but our little run along the highline trail spans a mere 51. While dense Ponderosa Pine forests cover much of the land above and beneath the rim (pretty much as far as the eye can see), the 1990 Dude Fire burned over 28,480 acres of land beneath the rim (affecting many miles of the highline trail between Washington Park and See Canyon), destroyed 63 homes and claimed the lives of 6 firefighters. This fact is important to …

Black Diamond to Sponsor Insomniac Night Run Series

Jamil CouryNews, Press Release

Black Diamond Equipment has stepped on board to sponsor the inaugural Insomniac Night Trail Running series. Black Diamond will be offering discounted pricing on two of their headlamp units that may be purchased with registration or on-site at each Insomniac events. Lighting is important for all types of night running whether it be on the streets around town or hitting the local trails. Not only is it critical to light your path while running to avoid rocks, curbs and other obstacles, being seen is something that shouldn’t be brushed off. Trail and road running safety at night is as much about being seen as being defensive and a good light will go a long ways …

2013 Crown King Scramble

Jamil CouryNews, Race Report

The 2013 resurrection of the Crown King Scramble did not disappoint in either fast times nor good times. With registration opening just 6 weeks prior to race day, a field of 147 runners signed up for the race from Lake Pleasant to Crown King up the old Crown King Trail 4×4 road. With a total of 6,750 feet of climbing along a point to point course from the Sonoran Desert to the ponderosa pines of the Prescott National Forest, this is a classic and tough ultra. The starting line was moved to the shores of Lake Pleasant, giving runners at the starting line a nice view of the Bradshaw Mountains they would be climbing to the …

The Resurrection of the Crown King Scramble

Jamil CouryNews

The road to the 2013 return of the Crown King Scramble was a long one. I ran my first ultra in 2005, the first year the Crown King Scramble wasn’t held since it’s inception in 1987. For some reason it was never on my radar to enter the race when it made its return in 2006 and 2007 under the direction of Gary Culver and the Arizona Road Racers, so I never toed the line. I did run the Castle Hot Springs “fun run” a couple times and even directed it one year, so I was familiar with the first 9 miles of the course. I remember having a conversation with Gary Culver in 2007 after he …

Crown King Scramble Contenders

Jamil CouryNews, Race Preview

Once Arizona’s most competitive ultra, the Crown King Scramble is making a big splash in its first year back with a stacked field of runners on both the men’s and women’s side. Here we take a few minutes to highlight some of the amazing athletes that will be toeing the line this weekend. These athletes will be competing not only for the win at one of Arizona’s most historic ultras, but $250 in prize money going to the top man and woman to reach the finish in Crown King. In addition to the $250 to the winner, runners are eligible for a $500 course record bonus. Men will need to break Dermot McGonigle’s 1996 record …

Tips For Crown King Scramble Virgins

Jamil CouryNews, Press Release

Ok, so you’ve heard the hype, caught the Crown King Scramble bug, somehow convinced by a friend this was a good idea and signed yourself up for this point-to-point monster of a course. Now you are just one week away from scrambling your way from the desert to the pines, driven forward by that elusive cold brew at the finish line. “Wait, did you just say one week away, holy crap!” With so many first timers taking on the race this year, we thought it would be a good idea to pass on some wisdom from those who know this race intimately, in the good times and the bad. James Bonnett has shared some tips he considers …

Prize Money For Crown King Scramble

Jamil CouryNews, Press Release

March 28, 2013 (Phoenix, Arizona) – Aravaipa Running today announces prize money for the return of the Crown King Scramble 50K. The first place male and female runner in the April 6, 2013 ultramarathon foot race will each receive $250.  The Crown King Scramble has a long history as one of Arizona’s oldest and most competitive ultra marathons. Jamil Coury, who is reviving the race after a 5 year hiatus talks about the reason for adding in prize money: “Back in the day, this race would attract many of the top names in the sport of ultramarathon running from across the country. Some of the battles at the front of the pack are legendary. We want to re-foster this …