The 2007 USATF National Cross Country Championship in Boulder, for Open and Masters.

And Mud Be Thy Name

When most people think of cross-country running, they think of high schoolers racing on nicely manicured golf courses.  Well, to most of the rest of the world, cross-country means mud and slop, dirt and dust – the messier the better.  And, if that’s the case, then the 2007 USA Track & Field National Championships in Boulder, Colorado certainly met the definition of true cross-country.

On Saturday, February 10^th, 3 Montana athletes took part in what was locally billed as “The Mud Run”.  Representing the Big Sky Distance Project, Tony Banovich and Alan King of Billings and Dewey Peacock of Bozeman joined the best distance runners in the United States on the 2-kilometer loop course held on Boulder’s Flatirons Golf Course.  In a race billed as the super bowl of running, an unprecedented collection of talent was primed to partake in a distance racing showdown.

On the men’s side, the excitement was at frenzied pitch at the prospect of seeing a race between the likes of Dathan Ritzenheim, Abdi Abdirahman, Alan Culpepper, Adam Goucher, Jorge Torres, Dan Browne and Fisul Bizuneh.  Of the top American talent, only Athens Silver medalist Meb Kefleszghi and new half-marathon American Record holder Ryan Hall were missing from the field.  And, on the women’s side, Deena Kastor’s dominance was being challenged by Shalane Flanagan, who had just set an American Indoor Record at 3,000 meters.

After a record year of snowfall in the Boulder area, the weeks leading up to the race melted much of the snow off the golf course; and, the City of Boulder did an admirable job of plowing the race loop.  But, nature still wasn’t quite ready to play nice.  The course preview on Friday afternoon gave notice that there would be plenty of mud and slick footing come Saturday morning.   The questions of the day were which length of spikes to use (the consensus was 3/8” or ½”) and if there was any way to effectively maneuver across the irrigation ditch and its muddy banks that had been nicknamed the Jonesy surprise (the common answer seemed to be probably not).

Race morning arrived under a veil of thick fog, but blue skies were trying to peak out  from above.   Things were still pretty chilly and the ground pretty firm as the masters women’s races took off.  By the time the masters men were ready to run, the sun had mostly burned through the fog and clear skies were going to be on order for the rest of the day.  After a 4-loop battle, Dennis Simonaitis of Utah won the championship (in 26:28) over Boulder runner Andy Ames and master cross country ace Peter Magill.  Tony Banovich of Billings placed 17^th overall and 15^th in the 40-44 age group with a time of 28:34 for the 8K distance.  Over the course of the race, the footing became softer and muddier with each successive loop, promising a real mud-fest by the time of the open men’s and women’s races.

After junior (under 19) races for the boys and girls, it was time for the open women to toe the line.  And, right from the gun, it was clear that Deena was out for championship number eight.

By the end of the first loop, Deena was leaving no doubt that she remains the dominant force in U.S. women’s distance running.  Although she ran a strong, solid race, Shalane Flanagan still finished a minute behind Deena.  It was awe-inspiring to watch in-person as Deena demonstrated why she may very well be the greatest ever American female distance runner.

Then, it was on to the race that the crowd was most excited about.  With attendance estimates around 7,500, spectators lined the entire course.  At the start and finish areas, they were stacked 2 and 3 deep.  And, once the gun went off, there was a steady stream of cheers, applause and ringing cowbells.  Why so much excitement?  Aside from the fact that Boulder may be the epicenter for fitness and endurance sports in the U.S., Culpepper, Goucher, the Torres brothers and Ritzenheim are all former University of Colorado runners.  In addition, all but Goucher still live and train in the Boulder area.

Dathan Ritzenheim took the race out hard and fast, building up a lead of up to 50 meters by 5K.  The chase pack included most of the favorites.  Absent up front were Abdi and Dan Browne, both who were having off days.  Initially, it also appeared that Culpepper was in trouble and lagging at the back of the lead group.  But, by halfway through the 12K course, it was apparent that Culpepper was just being smart and patient.  With the altitude and the muddy conditions, he was saving his strength for a late race surge.  Through 9K Ritzenheim continued to lead, with Goucher, Culpepper and Jorge Torres holding solid positions of 2 though 4.  At about 10K, Culpepper put on a long surge; and, in the space of about 500 meters, he caught and passed Goucher and Ritz.  As he made his move into first place, the crowd let out a roar that could be heard across the entire golf course.  You could easily follow his location on the course as the cheers followed him around the entire last lap.  Behind Culpepper, the former Buffs scored a 1 to 4 sweep as Goucher pulled into 2^nd, Ritz held on for third, and Torres was a solid 4^th.

Dewey Peacock and Alan King both represented the Big Sky Distance Project extremely well.  With a course chewed up by mud, the super fast pace resulting from the championship atmosphere and the top quality field, they both ran strong, solid races.  Out of field of 141 athletes, they finished 97^th and 103^rd overall.

What a pleasure it was to be able to participate in and watch this first class event from a first hand, front row perspective.  It was well worth the long drive to be able to witness such a collection of distance running talent.  One of the goals of the Big Sky Distance Project is to continue to coordinate participation by Montana athletes at events such as this. 

by Tony Banovich