It's Tuesday,  August 9th, 2016   User not logged in!       Mad City 100K      Title: Top Ultramarathoners to compete April 9 in Madison, WI USA Date: Monday March 28th, 2011 Author: Rick Smith Madison, Wisconsin - Some of the top ultramarathoners in America are entered in the U.S. national championship 100-kilometer footrace here on Saturday, April 9. Already committed to the race are some of the toughest and fastest men and women. An ultramarathon is a footrace longer than the standard marathon distance of 26 miles, 385 yards. The 100-kilometer race is over 62 miles in length. The men’s race will feature veterans of the sport going head to head against some up-and-coming “young guns.” Probably the longest resume’ belongs to Chad Ricklefs of Colorado. Ricklefs, age 43, was the national champion at this distance in 2002 when he was also named the nation’s male Ultramarathoner of the Year. “Chad can still really pick ‘em up and put ‘em down,” said race director Tim Yanacheck, who saw Ricklefs take third place at last year’s national championships and then go on to finish 14th in the world championship in Gibraltar. Challenging Ricklefs is expected to be Todd Braje, 34, of California, who, with Ricklefs, was a member of the U.S.A. national 100-kilometer team in 2010. In 2010 Braje ran the third-fastest 50-mile race in the nation, won the prestigious Ice Age Trail 50-mile run, and ran a 100-mile footrace in less than 15-1/2 hours. Mark Godale, 41, of Ohio, also ran a sub-16-hour 100-miler in 2010 and has been a member of past American national teams. A fresh new crop of ultramarathoners will test their mettle here, led by Zach Gingerich, 31, of Chicago. Gingerich has won nearly every race he has entered, including the legendary Badwater Ultramarathon, a footrace of 135 miles across Death Valley, in 2010. Gingerich also ran the fastest 50-mile race in the nation last year in just 5-1/2 hours. Wisconsin’s Scott Jansky, 37, won the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon in 2010 and will now give ultramarathoning a try at the highest level. Hometown runner David Krall, 30, will step up to the 100-kilometers distance this year after finishing second in the Mad City 50K last year. Another Madison runner, Ryan Dexter, 34, won the 200-mile McNaughton trail race in Vermont and also completed more than 125 miles in a 24-hour run in 2010. A runner who seems to be on a hot streak is David Riddle, 29, of Cincinnati. Among other fast races in 2010 Riddle, placed second in the nation’s largest ultramarathon, the renowned JFK 50-miler near Washington, D.C., in under 6 hours. Another promising sub-6-hour 50-mile runner entered in the Mad City 100K is Andrew Henshaw, 25, of Washington state. Henshaw’s time put him among the top ten in the nation for 2010. Although the men’s field is very deep, the women competing in the Mad City 100K national championship are expected to put on a good show, too. “The headliner should be Devon Crosby-Helms,” predicted Yanacheck. Crosby-Helms, 28, of San Francisco, finished second here in the 2008 national championship and was named to the USA national team. She also holds the course record for women at the JFK 50-mile race. Not to be overlooked though is Sonya Decker, 44, of Minneapolis, who ran one of the fastest 50-mile times among US women in 2010. And Angie Radosevich, 36, of Wisconsin, returns after her fifth-place finish in last year’s national championship race.. In addition to the championship 100-kilometer run, Mad City hosts a competitive, non-championship 50-kilometer run at the same time. The most popular event of all, though, may be the five-runner, 50-kilometer relay race. The relay, dubbed “The Race for the Ages”, puts teams into categories according to the total age of their runners. Registration for all three Mad City 100K events is still open through the race website, http://www.madcity100k.com. Volunteer and sponsorship opportunities and spectator information are also found online. Posted: March 28th, 2011 8:23 am Viewed: 3145 Last View: August 9th, 2016 9:49 am ©2006-2016 : All rights reserved