| Leadville Trail 100 | |
|---|---|
| Date | August 21–22 |
| Location | Leadville, CO |
| Event type | Ultramarathon trail run |
| Distance | 100-mile (160 km) |
| Established | 1983 |
| Course records | Matt Carpenter 15:42:00 (2005); Ann Trason 18:06:24 (1994) |
| Official site | http://www.leadvilleraceseries.com |
Leadville Trail 100 Ultramarathon (aka The Race Across The Sky or the LT100) is an ultramarathon held annually on trails and dirt roads near Leadville, Colorado, through the heart of the Rocky Mountains. First run in 1983, runners in the race climb and descend 15,600 feet (4,800 m), with elevations ranging between 9,200-12,620 feet. It is common for less than half the starters to complete the race within the 30 hour time limit.
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The course is a 50-mile (80 km) out-and-back dogleg, starting at 10,200 feet (3,100 m). The centerpiece of the course is the climb up to Hope Pass at 12,620 feet (3,850 m), encountered on both the outbound trek and on the return.
Race co-founder Kenneth Chlouber, an avid marathon runner, conceived of the race as a way to make Leadville famous and bring visitors during a period of economic downturn. When he told the local hospital administrator about his idea he was told, "You're crazy! You'll kill someone!" Chlouber responded, "Well, then we will be famous, won't we?"
Leadville is one of the four 100-milers in the United States that make up the "Western Slam", completing four western 100-mile (160 km) events: the Leadville 100, the Western States 100 in northern California, the Wasatch Front 100 in Utah, and the Angeles Crest 100 in southern California. Leadville is also a part of the Grand Slam of Ultrarunning (the Vermont 100, Western States 100, Leadville and the Wasatch Front 100) and an optional part of the Rocky Mountain Slam (Hardrock 100 plus three of four other races in the Rocky Mountains: Leadville, the Bear 100, the Bighorn 100, or the Wasatch Front 100). Leadville is also one of the valid qualifying events for the Hardrock 100.
Leadville was also the venue for the American debut of the Tarahumara runners of Mexico. Tarahumara teams competed in the Leadville 100 in 1993 and 1994 and won the event outright. In 1993, 52 year-old Tarahumara runner Victoriano Churro came in first, followed by his 41 year-old teammate Cerrildo in second. In 1994 a five-man Tarahumara team took on Ann Trason in a much-publicized race in the ultra community. 25 year-old Tarahumara runner Juan Herrera won in a record time of 17:40 that stood for 11 years until Matt Carpenter's record-breaking run in 2005. Trason's time of 18:06 was good for second place overall and is still the current course record for female runners.
The LT100 is distinctive in having no entrance lottery. Returning finishers are likely to be accepted, but otherwise the race is strictly first-come, first-served. In the past, race entry packets were mailed out soon after the first of the year, and some racers would over-night their entrance forms to become one of the 500 or so people accepted every year. The registration process is currently done online.
Matt Carpenter is the current course record holder. His time of 15 hours and 42 minutes in 2005 shattered the previous Leadville Trail 100 record. The publisher of Colorado Runner magazine, Derek Griffiths, said afterwards, “It was a perfect race for him. He finished in daylight for crying out loud — no one has ever done that before. I think he has just raised the bar of ultra racing to a whole new level.”
Ann Trason holds the female LT100 record, 18:06:24, which set in 1994. As of 2003, her mark was the eighth best ever by any runner.[1]
Charles Williams holds the record of the oldest man to ever complete the race at the age of 70 in 1999. He was featured in the August 1999 issue of GQ magazine, which compared his training for the race to that of a pro football player.
Bill Finkbeiner became the first person ever to receive the "Leadville 2000-Mile Buckle" in 2003 for his twenty LT100 finishes.[2] Finkbeiner, Tim Twietmeyer at the Western States 100, Rick Gates at the Wasatch Front 100, Jussi Hamalainen at the Angeles Crest 100, and Garry Curry at the Angeles Crest 100 are the only 20-time finishers of 100-milers in the modern era.
The LT100 is only one of the races presented under the Leadville Trail 100 banner. The Trail 100 10k is an open event the week before the main Trail 100 race, comprising the first and last portions of the full Trail 100 course.
In 1994 the Leadville Trail 100 MTB mountain bike race was added. This USA Cycling (USAC) sanctioned race is held on a course that roughly parallels the LT100 run course, with some sections in common. It is held the same weekend as the 10k, and has attracted cyclists such as Dave Wiens, Lance Armstrong and Floyd Landis. In 2010 Levi Leipheimer won the Leadville Trail 100 MTB in a record time of 6:16:37, breaking the previous course record of 6:28:50 set in 2009 by Armstrong.
The Silver Rush MTB race is a USAC sanctioned 50-mile (80 km) mountain bike race through the mining districts east of Leadville, in late July. The Silver Rush 50 run is a running race introduced in 2008. It is held on the same course as the Silver Rush Trail Run race on the following day. The Silver Rush Trail Run race follows the same route as the MTB course. The event occurs the day after the MTB event. Competitors who complete both Silver Rush events are recognized with the Silver Queen or Silver King award.
In early July, the Leadville Trail Marathon, a 26.2-mile (42.2 km) marathon, is contested through the mining districts east of Leadville. In 2006 a “heavy” half marathon event of 15 miles was added.
A competitor who officially finishes the Trail 100 Run, Trail 100 MTB, the Marathon, the Silver Rush bike or run, and the 10K is called a "Leadman" or "Leadwoman", a nod to the Ironman Triathlon. Charles Bybee currently holds the most Leadman titles, with 4 consecutive years of finishing all events (2007-2010).