If you’re like us and can’t sleep – on the eve of the marathon – we here with some reading/sleeping material. Let’s take a look at some of the numbers that have been published this week.
First is a conspicuous absence: Maureen, 10x finisher, was absent this year. But don’t fret – she’s already signed up for 2024 and we can’t wait!
We’re looking at an impressive week from Rebecca Kruisselbrink, who has won every Stage, including a new Stage 5 record. Rebecca joined an exclusive club last year and has the pole position to add “ENDURrun Champion” to her bio on Sunday.
We have a closer race in the men’s field, with Aidan Rutherford winning 4 of 6 Stages so far and entering Stage 7 with a lead of 8:30. This is Aidan’s third Ultimate and fastest so far. The flip side to this coin is that while Rob has been chasing his own goals, ghosts of past times, and a few challengers over the years, Aidan is the most formidable yet! 2023 is the first time Rob has not been leading into Stage 7 since he first joined the field in 2015.
Some of the closer battles we see in the table are Vicki and Val for second overall and first master (4:54 gap), and the 8-10th place men (Merlin, Holger, Mark M) separated by 4:38. These gaps work out to just over 2 seconds per kilometre so far.
Speaking of Mark M, we don’t know the secret but this has consistently been one of his fastest years, currently only 14 seconds behind his cumulative best ever result out of 10 previous Ultimate finishes! Wow! (Vicki and Jack are also sitting on the record of 10 finishes going into this year’s final Stage).
Other notable cumulative finishes in 2023 are Sara (9th), Denis (8th), Rob (7th), Holger and Dee (6th), Val, Merlin, Ian, Rebecca, and Ron (5th)!
We’ve seen lots of Holger over the years, but this 6th Ultimate is his first since 2014! So great having you back in the field Holgi!
Third time’s the charm!? Derek has started the Ultimate twice before, but in 2023 he’s looking strong and poised to finally claim the One Tough Runner title!
Shoutout to Jonah, Diane, Mark R, Tammy, and Katelin, who have consistently bettered their Rookie times (from 2022, 2019, 2022, 2016, and 2023 respectively)!
Bruce is the top Rookie and while we don’t publish this age group, after Stage 6 he is over 2.5 hours better than the current 60+ record (Andrew Moizer, 2019). Sarah H has led Rookie wire-to-wire.
We’re running out of time so let’s speed up. Ian and Mitch are having great weeks – coincidence they trained at ENDURrun Sport? Wayne has raised over $2000 for Terry Fox! John signed up way back in 2019…did ENDURrun exist back then? Amanda has participated in some form or another since 2011! Sonja’s first two Ultimates were 8 years apart, then her second and third are six years apart. See you again in 2027!?
Last but least, we can point to three Ultimates who started the week with the intention of finishing, but were left unable to continue due to a variety of injuries and illnesses. It’s been nice seeing you out later this week and we hope to see you back Tyler (2022 alumnus) and Rookies Kristen and Tim!
What is in store for tomorrow? Check back with live results as we expect runners to finish by noon Sunday. Now get some sleep!