February 18-19 – For the second year in a row, the 2022 USATF 100 Mile Road Championships was hosted through the Jackpot Ultra Running Festival, which is not surprising, because the Beyond Limits Running team are clutch. Alongside the 100 Mile Champs, there were also the 72-Hr, 48-Hr, 24-Hr, 12-Hr, 6-Hr, 100-Mile & 50-Mile races. The races took place in Henderson, or You-Know-Where, Nevada.
“As shown by some wickedly fast times last year, the 1.1761616 mile USATF 100 mile certified course is extremely fast. The course is VERY, VERY different than the normal 2.5 mile Jackpot course as it consists of 95% paved or concrete surfaces and 5% crushed gravel. The course is designed to allow elite USATF participants, along with those USATF members seeking 100 mile age group records, to compete on a very fast course.”
What was super sick about this year’s race, and generally the gist of many ultra races in the recent past, is that it was televised. For free (!) via Youtube. And had excellent running commentary. I literally had it playing for a full 13 hours…Nerd alert. Very appreciated. Many thanks are owed to Steep Life Media, who made it happen. If you want to indulge, check out Part 1 and Part 2.
What was super sick X’s 2 was that you could simultaneously watch Camille Herron crush a new world record and see your friends/teammates in their cowprint shorts pass by, every, mile. You could also see the many wonderful outfit changes of the RD.
In the end Nick would take a few hours off his previous best from 2021, and earn himself a 6th place finish in a time of 15:40:48. Camille Herron would go on to win the race outright, besting her previous WR with a new WR time of 12:41:11. 2nd place OA and 1st Male was Ohio’s Arlen Glick, who’s been on a tear the past year, winning in 13:10:26. Full Results HERE!
Last weekend I ran the incredibly USATF 100mi Road Championships in 15hr 40min, for a three hour personal improvement at the distance. Big thank you to friends and family that supported me, especially @paulheartsdolphins for the companionship, @hallenotbarry for her help with fueling us both, and @meghannicole17 for her unwavering positive attitude that kept me going out there. Running with type 1 diabetes isn’t easy but, we all know that with a healthy support system, new heights (and new distances) can be reached.
My love for running is only getting stronger. Because of the ups and downs I have become more thankful for the opportunities I have to keep doing what I love.
An autoimmune disorder can be tough to deal with, especially in our current global climate but, I feel that I will become more resilient and stronger because of it.
If you’re curious: I ate lots of cake donuts, pretzel m&m’s, cheese pizza, and caffeinated protein shakes with a little less insulin than usual because my muscles were eating up that precious fuel!
– Nick Eiben
