@trevormeding

200s

Is 200 the New 100?

As one of the persons who absolutely love the long distances (i.e. 100 Mi) I was drawn to the idea of 200s pretty early on, even though I was not sure if it was possible. I am certain this is just the process that everyone must wrap their mind around initially until you do the distance, or you witness the feat up close firsthand, say by crewing or pacing runners at these extreme events. 200 Mi events provide a very unique perspective into oneself, and I believe is a very true way to see your own potential, internal drive and motivation, as well as a great way to discover many things you may not otherwise been exposed to or perhaps even believed prior. #200isthenew100 is a hashtag coined by Destination Trail Races (RD: Candice Burt) and has been used many times in the past few years. With the popularity of 100 Mi races and the explosion of races, the 200 Mi event has also slowly become more popular as ultrarunners continue to explore the edges of their potential. 

Below is a chronological list (newest to oldest) of the 200 Mi & beyond events I have taken on. you bet there will be more in the future.



#007. The Divide 200

(2023-Sep). I have had Sinister 7 on my bucket list for a while now, and when I saw that Sinister Sports were putting on this 200Mi event (Canada's first) this year I immediately put my name into the application/lottery process. The race was an incredible route in the Canadian Rockies that transversed the most remote and rugged terrain I have run. The full loop had high ridge running, scree fields, creek crossings, route finding (sort of using your .gpx), cold nights, warm days, and rocks: lots of rocks! This trip back home to Alberta was definitely worth it.


#006. Tahoe 200

(2023-Jul). A blessing in disguise as getting into this event late due to the 2023 date change combined with my unfortunate cancellation/delay of AC100 led me to get into Tahoe. This has been on my bucket list for a while and was worth it for sure. Running in the high Sierra alpines and terrain was spectacular.  My only wish is that the course was still the full loop. I was still modified due to closure of wilderness area and was not the full loop around the lake - perhaps reason to go back one year.


#005. Hong Kong Four Trails Ultra Challenge (HK4TUC)

(2023-Jan). I can't recall exactly how I discovered the actual event itself but had followed it online during the event for 2 years and found out how to apply which led me to find my way into receiving an invitation for the 2023 edition. This challenge was very unique in that it required international travel, setting up a local crew support, being able to navigate alone (although with my .gpx) on the trails. Having the expectation of being one of the hardest events in the East and Asia region for ultrarunners I now see why as it was a tall order. This was the adventure of a lifetime thus far and was simply amazing to be able to cross the Hong Kong country in all directions in under 3 days.


#004. Cocodona 250

(2021-May). Aravaipa Running hosted event and wow did they put on a good event. As the inaugural year for this event, it was cool to run a point-to-point adventure up through the state of Arizona. A great trip from the low deserts all the way through old mining towns to the high mountains training grounds of Flagstaff. 


#003. Tour De Los Tejas 600km

(2021-Feb). This event came up from TROT (Trail Racing Over Texas) as an adventure run to explore the central Texas area on foot. A giant loop starting at the Texas capitol that would take us to multiple Buc'ees & to 7 different Texas State Parks. What an adventure!


#002. The Franklins 200

(2020-Feb). The fast Rob Goyen said this was a one-and-done event and then somehow decided to bring it back for a second edition meant I just had to do it (I was 1 of 5 repeat offenders). I came back as a personal challenge to race against myself and my prior time. I ran the entire run by myself, except the times of passing people on the loop. This was a great run and capped off by a victory and lowered my time slightly from the year before.


#001. The Franklins 200

(2019-Feb). This was my first venture into the beyond 100Mi domain. Once TROT (Trail Racing Over Texas) Race Director Rob Goyen, decided to put this challenge out there I instantly was intrigued by the idea as the Franklin Mountains had become one of my favorite areas to run and explore with  each of the last couple November events. I had a blast out there on my first attempt at 200 Mi and truly enjoyed the challenge of chasing John Kelly (BM Finisher) around the mountains for 2.5 days.

  • 197.97 Mi (318.60 km)
  • 43,648 ft+ (13,304 m+)
  • 64:24:45 | 3rd overall
  • Race Report: The Franklins 200




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