pass mountain

Pass Mountain Trail Runs 2016

Melia CouryRace Report

Rays of light blew in with a cooling breeze making the desert air chilly in the early morning. The 50K runners worked their way to the start line and began just as the sun crept over the horizon. Truly poetic how their newest running journey began with the promise of a new day. The other runners experiencing the remaining distances would soon get to join. Singing Happy Birthday It just so happened that there were two runners celebrating their Birthdays with a 25K run! Of course it was only right for us to sing “Happy Birthday” to both of them as the runners lined up to the start line.  Robert Herron (Left) and Robby Organ …

snowbowl

Flagstaff Sky Race Recap 2016

Melia CouryRace Report

Hands and feet gripping the ground saturated with rain, they are trying to discover the next sturdy tuft of grass or rock to bare some weight. Each step of progress feels satisfying until the eyes glance up the mountain with a chilling realization of just how far you have traveled. Head down and keep moving becomes the mantra. This was the scene for the runners in the Vertical K and the last climb for the 39K and 55K at the Flagstaff Sky Races. Vertical K Race The clouds glided along as they hugged the peaks. With some fierce wind the runners of the Vertical K set out to conquer the slopes of Snowbowl, without snow and on …

Mogollon Monster 2016 Race Recap

Melia CouryRace Report

Ultra Running Family Mogollon Monster is a race for the (ultra) family. The ultra community finds its strong foundation from the hearts and soles (feet variety) of each runner, volunteer, radio personal, pacer and even those following the story from twitter posts, that never seem to come fast enough. It is not often anymore that we are able to find a race that embodies so much of what we love about the ‘classic’ races of yesteryear. These races have a few ingredients that create an undeniable attraction and Mogollon Monster is one of them with: ‘ultra-crazy’ people (those long time supporters, runners and volunteers), traditions and a course that is unlike anything in the world. ‘Ultra-Crazy’ …

2016 Crown King Scramble – Recap

Hayley PollackRace Report

Every race is special, but sometimes a race just has something about it which dictates that the feelings and emotions of the day will never leave you. That was what this past weekend’s Crown King Scramble was like for me. I fell in love with this race last year during a course recon with Jamil (blog post). The 2015 race was also my first solo attempt at race directing and was just about the scariest experience ever. No pressure. just one of the oldest continual footraces in Arizona with a lot of history and meaning to a lot of people. I started planning 2016 almost immediately after the conclusion of last year’s race. This year …