Course records broken at 2009 Silver State 50/50
By John Trent (5/20/2009)

Silver State 50: Course records in 50M, 50K fall by the wayside
By John Trent
Course records in Reno have never fallen easily, whether it is because of the challenging terrain, the possibility of heat in mid-May, or the fact that Reno is situated at about 4,500 feet elevation.
But for whatever reason, the 23rd annual Silver State 50/50 Endurance Runs in Reno on Saturday, May 16 featured a pummeling of course records that will likely not be seen for many more years to come.
All four races – the men’s and women’s 50-mile, the men’s and women’s 50K – saw course records substantially lowered by four runners with notable prior ultrarunning portfolios who ran strongly and courageously on a day that saw temperatures reach into the mid-80s.
The high of 86, though warm, was in contrast to 2008, when the mercury hit 97 during Silver State.
In the men’s 50M, Jasper Halekas of Oakland, Calif., shaved 35 minutes off Erik Skaden’s course record of 7:46. Halekas ran 7:11 and looked no worse for the wear afterward, showing that the 2007 Tahoe Rim Trail 100-mile champion is poised to be a prime contender in June’s Western States 100-mile Endurance Run.
August Brautigam, 23, of Reno, normally a standout on the regional Nordic skiing circuit, finished second in 7:35, followed by the “Dynamic Duo” of Mark Lantz, 43, of Gold River, Calif., and Skaden, 37, of Folsom, Calif., who tied for third in 7:40.
In the women’s 50M, local standout Jenny Capel demonstrated why she is difficult to beat on courses such as Silver State’s, which features more than 9,000 feet of climbing and 9,000 feet of descent – making it one of the more challenging 50-milers on the West Coast.
Capel, 36, of Reno, took more than an hour off her course record. Capel finished in 8:24, well ahead of her 2008 CR of 9:28.
Former Wasatch 100 champion Betsy Nye, 44, of Truckee, Calif., was second in 9:22 – “The first time I really felt like I had a great Silver State,” the always personable Nye beamed at the finish – followed by Molly Zurn, 38, of Reno, in 9:28.
“It was a really great day,” Capel said. “I felt strong almost from the beginning and felt like I was running well.”
Capel started somewhat conservatively, pacing herself to a shade slightly under two hours to the 12.5-mile aid station at Peavine Peak. The 5.5-mile climb from the Pond aid station at mile 7 left Capel energized, and over the next 21-plus miles she ran exceptionally strong and well ahead of her goal pace of a sub-9-hour finish.
Her husband and crew, Steve, expected to meet Capel at the 33-mile River Bend aid station at around noon, or after about six hours of running. He showed up at River Bend at about 11:40 a.m., figuring he would have to kill 20 minutes of his own time. He was told by the volunteers at the aid station that Capel had already been through the aid station … a half hour earlier.
“That’s when I knew Jen was having a really good day,” Steve said with a smile and a shrug. “There was nothing for me to do at River Bend.”
Capel made extraordinarily good time from River Bend to the finish, climbing back up Peavine and then down to the finish – 17 miles in all – in 3:15. Considering the stout 3-mile climb out of River Bend up the Deer Trail to the Sandy Hill Road aid station, followed by another 3-mile climb to the Peavine Peak aid station at about 8,200 feet elevation, Capel’s time was one of the fastest ever recorded for that stretch of the course.
In the men’s 50K, Peter Fain, who had run 5:05 to win in 2008’s scorching conditions, had one of the day’s most remarkable performances.
The talented 37-year-old from Truckee, Calif., ripped the course in 4:25, holding off a challenge from Chikara Omine, 26, of San Francisco. Both runners’ times were not only new course records, they represented new event records, eclipsing one of the race’s more legendary performances when Sean Crom – a two-time recipient of the Ted Corbitt Award as the nation’s top ultra runner in the 1990s – ran 4:39 in 1992.
In the women’s 50K, the versatile and seemingly indefatigable Beverley Anderson-Abbs, 45, of Red Bluff, Calif., ran to a new course record, breaking Kami Semick’s 2008 mark of 5:16. Abbs’ final time was 4:58.
Julie Young, 43, of Auburn, Calif., was second in 5:02, while Amber Monforte, 31, of Reno, was third in 5:15.
Abbs, who is known for her warm and gentle personality, surprised one of the race directors, Scott Glogovac, by handing him her Moeben sleeves moments before the 7 a.m. start of the 50K when it became apparent that the day was going to be warm.
“Maybe we could put them on E-Bay,” Glogovac quipped afterward, perhaps thinking of a new revenue stream for the race.
In the trail half-marathon, Rene Olea, 39, of Reno, took first place in 1:43. The women’s race was decided by less than a second, with Amy Bottenberg, 36, of Reno, winning in 1:50:48 to Lynice Anderson’s 1:50:49.
A total of 173 runners completed the 50M, 50K and trail half-marathon.
Judging by the response of the runners, who enjoyed the cold drinks, an ice pool, and food and fixings offered at the start/finish in Rancho San Rafael Park in Reno, this year’s Silver State 50/50 was a success on many levels.
In terms of the record book, there probably hasn’t been a more record-filled day in the history of the event.
The 24th annual Silver State 50/50 is scheduled to be held on Saturday, May 15, 2010.