Long Inseams and Candy

September 2, 2023 4:10 PM

Wearing her now iconic extra-long inseam running shorts, Courtney Dauwalter has cemented her status as the greatest ultrarunner of all time by completing the unprecedented hat trick of winning the Western States 100, the Hardrock 100, and UTMB in the same summer.

Courtney now holds the women's course record for all three events. Dauwalter set a new record during the both the Western States 100 and Hardrock 100 earlier this summer, and holds the UTMB course record from 2021.

“Any time we’re given the opportunity to try something difficult or crazy, we should absolutely take it. "

Additional Coverage:
Pre-UTMB Interview with iRunFar
The Secrets of Courtney Dauwalter's Success
What Courtney Dauwalter Learned in the Pain Cave

posted by SegFaultCoreDump (21 comments total)

I watched a good deal of the race yesterday, and she is completely unstoppable. I saw the men's finish (go Walmsley!), but unfortunately in my time zone I fell asleep before Dauwalter finished. She was so far ahead by the time I went to bed that it was basically a foregone conclusion though.

Dauwalter is so far ahead of the competition here (I mean ultrarunning in general) that it is almost impossible to comprehend.
posted by Literaryhero at 5:02 PM on September 2, 2023 [1 favorite]

from the NYT article link above (aug 31):

"Now she is trying to do something even the most accomplished ultrarunners would consider extraordinary: win three highly competitive 100-mile races in a single summer. Twenty days after her performance at Western States, she won the grueling Hardrock 100 in Silverton, Colo., breaking her own record by 20 minutes and placing fourth overall. This weekend, seven weeks after winning Hardrock, she will toe the line at the Ultra Trail du Mont-Blanc, a brutally steep, 106-mile race in Chamonix, France, with terrain more suited to billy goats than humans. She has won the race twice and currently holds the women’s record.

“In general, I am pretty tired,” said Dauwalter, whose mottos when things get tough in a race are “This is fine” and “Be brave and believe.” She said running all three races was not the plan at first, but that she just had to try it."


When I was 25? after 3 months of serious training, I ran a 10k and thought I was going to vomit when I finished.
posted by bitterkitten at 6:18 PM on September 2, 2023 [9 favorites]

I went to high school with Courtney! Wasn't a close friend or anything but it's always cool to see her name pop up like this. Her accomplishments are astounding.
posted by StruggleBus at 7:16 PM on September 2, 2023 [5 favorites]

Great Glob! I was on the cross country team in high school in the mid-1980s. We did some long training runs of at least 10 miles, so I can sort of see how someone could run a marathon. I cannot fathom what it takes to run and complete, let alone win, these sorts of races.
posted by mollweide at 9:16 PM on September 2, 2023 [1 favorite]

Sorry, I’m not a follower of ultramarathon running, but what is so special about her shorts that it’s the first line in the post? Just because she wears longer shorts that runners usually do? Why is that important enough to comment on? Does she have her own line of long running shorts or something? Is this something that she is super proud of or mentions a lot? I went through the articles to see if they explained why that would be so important but none of them mention her clothing (couldn’t read the NYT as it’s paywalled)

Sorry to be negative, but this woman is totally bad ass but the first thing I learned about her is her clothing choices. It’s just all too common that women’s clothing choices are commented on over their achievements.
posted by LizBoBiz at 10:36 PM on September 2, 2023 [3 favorites]

Most runners (men and women) wear pretty short shorts. Courtney’s board shorts are different and at this point have become iconic. Like, I dunno, Federer’s headband or Bill Bellicheck’s cutoff hoodies — an iconic part of the look.
posted by dorothy hawk at 10:57 PM on September 2, 2023 [5 favorites]

Anyway: what an incredible achievement: watching her run was so damn exciting! Her transition at Courmayeur really sticks with me: she was in and out in less than sixty seconds, just so damn efficient.

I’m not sure I’m quite ready to call her the GOAT — Ann Trason will always be the GOAT in my book — but it’s Courtney is absolutely right up there and I won’t argue too hard with anyone who puts her above Ann now.

So great. Can’t wait to see what she does next. Barkley, maybe?
posted by dorothy hawk at 11:05 PM on September 2, 2023 [1 favorite]

Goddamn, what a spectacular human being. What guts.
posted by dancestoblue at 11:22 PM on September 2, 2023

LizBoBiz, the shorts are actually mentioned in the NYT piece: "Dauwalter’s approach to the business of running reflects her desire to lift others in the sport. She used her sponsorship with Salomon to influence a new line of women’s running shorts that are longer and looser than most shorts on the market. Dauwalter hopes that the shorts will give women another option to be comfortable and that maybe “the length is the thing that makes someone get out on the trail and try.""
posted by taz at 11:26 PM on September 2, 2023 [12 favorites]

Ah thanks Taz! It is unfortunate that the NYT piece is the only one that mentions them, and also the only one I couldn’t read.

Awesome that she is using her success to bring others in with the possibility of more comfortable sportswear!
posted by LizBoBiz at 11:59 PM on September 2, 2023 [1 favorite]

The shorts are also the second thing mentioned in her bio on Instagram.
posted by St. Oops at 1:06 AM on September 3, 2023 [3 favorites]

Incidentally, I just happened to turn the UTMB stream on and runners are still finishing. Phew.

To un-derail, Dauwalter is being interviewed right now and is delightful. Also even though others are finishing now, she's had about 20 hours to rest. Must feel good.
posted by Literaryhero at 3:41 AM on September 3, 2023

I know some people who run those races -- they aren't contenders for the win, but they do manage to complete them somewhere in the middle of the pack. As someone who isn't a runner, this kind of endurance running boggles my mind. I have no interest in ever trying it myself, but it's so cool to see what the human body is actually capable of.
posted by Dip Flash at 6:17 AM on September 3, 2023 [3 favorites]

The mention of the long shorts is what got me to click through, in a good way! I love that she is normalizing individual comfort over appearance, but also it's kind of a gender bending thing? As a casual runner who is feminine-presenting, it seems like the two dominant socially acceptable options are so-called (much shorter) "runner's shorts" or compression-style leggings, and those don't fit/feel great for all femme folks. It's great to have another one, and I hope it catches on. I also appreciate that she's using the novelty of the style as a hook to get people interesting in trying something they wouldn't have considered before. Like, yeah, it's absolutely driving the impulse-buy capitalism machine, but hopefully in a way that tends toward sincere enjoyment, better health, and basic hope (which is as optimistic of an attitude as I can muster some days).
posted by unknowncommand at 6:52 AM on September 3, 2023 [2 favorites]

I know very little about sport, but noting that she is 38, it occurs to me that I feel other top names in ultrasporting also seem to be not "spring chickens", it leads me to wonder if the mental aspect is nearly greater than the physical and that it takes some time to develop?
posted by Iteki at 11:12 AM on September 3, 2023

I totally looked up her shorts because I’m into fabric and fashion, and it makes my day to see someone my age cheerfully giving the bird to “flaunt it or go home” underpants while also crushing it. Yes, she’s amazing regardless of the fashion; but it is absolutely also a cherry on top here that she is disproving the fashion habits of a sport in the process.
posted by Callisto Prime at 11:38 AM on September 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

Post Race Coverage: The always entertaining and enlightening iRunFar post race interview. (Released Sept 3rd)
posted by SegFaultCoreDump at 4:25 PM on September 3, 2023

I've completed two ultra-marathons (as a walker, not a runner) and have always been astounded at the strength and energy of people who run in these events. It took us 29-30 hours to complete 96km (60m) - that the top runners took less than a third of that and still look as fresh as when they started is mind-boggling.

It's great to see someone who isn't the 'normal' long-distance runner portrayed by almost every sporting company and I hope it encourages more women and more mature anyone to get out there and try pushing themselves.
posted by dg at 7:07 PM on September 3, 2023

> it leads me to wonder if the mental aspect is nearly greater than the physical and that it takes some time to develop

Somewhat, but there are bigger factors:

• Ultra-running is a pricier hobby if you’re interested in traveling to races if you’re not a sponsored athlete so most decent amateurs tend to be people in their 30s-40s with high-paying white-collar jobs.
• Given the option, the fastest people don’t want to do ultras. They’d rather run track or marathons to earn their sponsorship money (which is bigger than the money most sponsored ultra-runners earn). It’s becoming less common now as ultra-marathons as a career is becoming slightly more viable but the common career path is to spend your fast years on track or in marathons before coming to trails/ultras.
• You don’t need high top speed to win ultras, you need to be pretty quick for a long time. So age isn’t quite as big a factor as it is in shorter races where as soon as you lose a few steps you’re yesterday’s news.

posted by paulcole at 2:34 PM on September 4, 2023 [1 favorite]

I dunno.... I've completed a bunch of ultras, I wouldn't say it's particularly pricey. Nor would I say the ranks of my fellow mid-packers are mostly from white collar jobs. We're not triathletes.

That said, it does take a certain type of patience and drive that one associates with engineers and whatnot. Analytic skills help -- you have to be able to take a long term view of things, literally pace yourself in both races and training.
posted by ph00dz at 8:30 AM on September 6, 2023

I had the same reaction to the shorts being the first thing mentioned, so I'm happy to see there's a reason behind it. And it's a reason I can get behind! Trying to find shorts that are long enough and loose enough that I'm comfortable is a real hassle. I hope her success leads to there being more options than short-shorts or leggings for female athletes.
posted by The corpse in the library at 9:03 AM on September 7, 2023