#108: Stories from the Skunk Ape Night Run

It was another year for the annual Long Haul 100! Time and time again, this is the place where so many runners take on the 100-mile distance for the first time! On the chat, we have four of those first-time 100 mile finishers! Russ Hartzell, Tina Wolfe, Daisy Weckerly, and Ivi Stangle. Russ Hartzell got it done with a time of 31:19:36! He's done races like the Ocho de Mayhem, Blaze Pioneer Trail, Whispering Pines, and the Wildcat Ultra! Tina Wolfe got her buckle with a time of 31:22:02! She's done races like the Bronze Dragonfly, Vero Beach Octopus, River to Sea, Colt 45, Pinellas Trail Challenge, and the Skunk Ape Night Run. Daisy Weckerly finished with a time of 30:45:55! She's done races like the 50 Miler at the Keys, Three Degrees of Hell, the RunFluent 7-Hour, and the Skunk Ape Night Run prior to coming out to the Long Haul. Ivi Stangle, who one half of RunFluent, she got it done with a time of 29:00:52! She's done races like the Skunk Ape Night Run, Grayson Highlands, the Trident, Wild Florida, Forgotten Florida, and Sweat Swat n Swear!

Starting the 2024 Season off where it all started, the Long Haul 100. Frequent guest Andy "Croom" Mathews returns to the podcast to go in-depth into everything about this race. He's also joined by three-time finisher and 3rd Overall at the 2022 Long Haul 100, Jeff Iosa! Also joining the chat this year is two-time finisher and captain of the Boots or Saddles Aid Station, Andrew Barrett! We analyze the course, answer some questions, talk about what it's going to take to be successful, some tips and tricks, some Long Haul 100 trivia, and yes! We make our predictions for the female and male top finishers for this year! We also chat on who we think is going to have most consistent race, some dark horses, and speculate on some Long Haul 100 rookies. The Long Haul 100 takes place at Colt Creek State Park near Lakeland, Florida and is Florida's only Western States Qualifying Race. Great for first-timers and veterans alike! The course is a 6 x 16.6 mile loops. There are 3 fully manned Aid Stations and access to your drop bags every loop. This race is truly the grand gathering of the Florida ultra and trail scene!  See y'all at Long Haul! 

On the chat, we’ve got a chat with Erin Swanson and Wiatt Bowers on the Orange Belt Trail project that’s been in the works over the past couple of years. Erin is a Pasco County Project Manager and Wiatt is a Consultant Project Manager for the Orange Belt Trail project. The Orange Belt Trail is a proposed multiuse trail spanning approximately 37 miles through Pasco County from Trinity to Trilby. It would provide key connections to the Coast-to-Coast Trail, Starkey Trail, Suncoast Trail, and Withlacoochee Trail as well as link communities such as Trinity, Odessa, Land O’Lakes, Wesley Chapel, and Dade City!   More Info: https://orangebelttrail.com http://orangebelttrail.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/OBT_Workshops_4.2023_update.pdf

The Florida Trail Runners Podcast is back! And for episode #110, the comeback episode… we’ve got Casey Denman and his Across Florida 200! Casey got it done with a time of 81 hours, 19 minutes, and 14 seconds! He's also a two-time finisher of the Long Haul 100! Joe Miller also joins the chat! Him and James Mathis run a Facebook Group dedicated to helping Across Florida 200 runners. This is a course that will take runners from Cedar Key/Inglis area from the Withlacoochee Bay Trail - West End Overlook to St Augustine ending at the St. Johns County Ocean and Fishing Pier. The Across Florida 200 has 100 miles of the beautiful Florida Trail, 20 miles of State Park trails, 45 Miles of dirt roads, 15 miles of Rails to Trails, and only 20 miles of road. It is one EPIC adventure.

This year Greg Bargo became third ever Floridian to ever finish the Hardrock 100, he joins Chris Twiggs and Matt Mahoney in that legendary feat to cross the finish line and kiss the rock. He ran a time of 47:31:42 to finish in the Golden Hour. This was a journey that took Greg 10 years in the making. Greg has also run races like the Western States 100, the DT Stone Anvil, the Grindstone 100, Pine to Palm 100, Pinhoti 100, Rocky Racoon 100, and the Leadville 100.

Heading back to the Skunk Ape Night Run with Tina Wolfe, Kimberly Pasienza, Amy Thornton, and James Mathis. Tina has done races like the Bronze Dragonfly, Badwater Cape Fear, River to Sea, the Vero Beach Octopus Ultra, Jacks 50k, and Whispering Pines. Kim, as many may know her from her "Kimspiration Stations" at races. She's done races like the River to Sea, Bronze Dragonfly, and the SWAMP 10k! Amy is the owner of the RunFit running specialty store in Lutz, Florida. She's also done races like the Sweat, Swat, n Swear and the Moon Over Croom. James Mathis has been a huge help volunteering over the years and he has also run the Skunk Ape Night Run many times. He;s done races like the Dark Anchor, River to Sea, the Funest 10k, Wild Florida 12 Miler, and Sweat Swat n Swear.

This was the 50th Year of the Western States 100 that starts in the Olympic Valley and ends at the Placer High School in Auburn. On the chat, we've got three of the four Floridians who took on the course! This year Tyler Peterson, Joseph Pinter, and Zach Hanna crossed that finish line to get that belt buckle. Tyler Peterson has done 100 Milers like the Long Haul 100 here in Florida, the Yeti 100, Burning River 100, Mohican 100, Kettle Moraine 100, Indiana Trail 100, and the Umstead 100. He finished the Western States 100 this year with a time of 25:24:44. Joseph Pinter has done races like the Cruel Jewel 100, Grindstone 100, Massanutten Mountain 100, and the Pinhoti 100. He also ran at the 2019 Western States 100! In 2019, he ran a time of 29:42:39... this year he ran a time of 29:13:11. Zach Hanna has done races like the Hennepin 100, Pinhoti 100, No Business 100, Rio Del Lago 100, and the Umstead 100. He finished the Western States 100 this year with a time of 28:37:16. For almost five decades, the Western States 100 has been home to some of the sport’s most amazing and legendary competitions. It's essentially the Super Bowl of the trail running scene in the United States. With more than 1,500 dedicated volunteers helping to create a once-in-a-lifetime experience, the race has stirred the spirit of runners from all walks of life and from all over the globe.

This year four Floridians traveled to New York for the Great New York 100 Mile Exposition, also known as TGNY. Mark Cudak, Luis Cocco, Amy Rae, and Diane Romero-Lopez all got those belt buckles! The TGNY starts in Times Square and goes through Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens, Rockaway Beach, Coney Island, and the Brooklyn Bridge back to Manhattan and Times Square. Mark Cudak got it done with a time of 22:12:01! He's done races like the Keys 100, Daytona 100, Lake to Ocean 100k, the Long Play, Colt 45, and the Long Haul 100. He's also the head Course Marshall for the Keys 100. Luis Cocco got it done with a time of 25:37:40! He's the Race Director for the Miami 100, Miami 50/50, Ride the Wave 50k, and the Co-RD for the Space Pirate 100. He's done some crazy stuff like completing the Lollipop 240 and his HERO 200 Mile. He's done races like the Daytona 100, Long Haul 100, LOST 118, Lake to Ocean 100k, Badwater Salton Sea, Pier 2 Pier 200k, and the Vero Beach Octopus 100. Amy Rae, the Banana Champ, she placed third overall for the females with a time of 23:04:30! She's done races like the Trident, the Sand Spur, the Barkley Fall Classic, the Keys 100, and the Pinhoti 100. Diane got it done with a time of 29:45:40. She is also the Race Director for the Monroe Cross Trail 50 Mile Ultra in DeBary! She's done races like the Long Haul 100, the LOST 118, Brazos Bend 100, the Yeti 100, the Pinellas Trail Challenge, and the Skunk Ape Night Run.

This year is the 50th year of the Western States 100 in the Olympic Valley. For this episode, we’ve got “Mr. Western States” Andy Jones-Wilkins back for a second time for the "Pre-Western States Chat" with a Florida runner! He's joined by Matt Murphy who got into the race on June 10th, only a two week notice for the Western States 100. They're also joined by Matt's wife, Karen, who will also be out there crewing and pacing! Matt Murphy has done races like the Holcomb Valley 50k, the Long Play, Croom Zoom, the Javelina 100, the San Diego 100, Sweat Swat n Swear, Colt 45, the Black Hills 100, and the Long Haul 100! His wife Karen, not only does she crew and pace, but she's also ran races like the Skunk Ape's Revenge, the Long Play, Angry Tortoise, Croom Zoom, the Vermont 100k, and the 50 Miler at Umstead. AJW has done the Western States 100 ten times, placing 2nd in 2005. Over his ten years he has placed in the Top 10 numerous times. He continues now with parking cars out at Robinson Flat, cheerleading, announcing, and helping make things happen! He also has his own podcast called "Crack a Brew with AJW!" So whether he's out there on the course, chatting it up with Trail Runner Nation, or writing articles on iRunFar... He's always representing the sport of trail and ultra running well!

We are back with the 2023 Lake to Ocean 100k, this is one of my favorite races in the state of Florida! I'm always fascinated on how each runner takes on the course. On the chat, we've got Sarah Flowers, Bailey Freer, and Scott Hoover! All three of them absolutely crushed it out there on the course that takes you from Lake Okeechobee to the ocean at Hobe Sound Beach. Sarah has done races like Death at DuPuis and the Dunes 50k. She's been taking the trail and ultra scene head on! Ofcourse, that makes sense when Leo Acosta could talk about anyone into trying out the trails! Bailey has done races like the Quest for the Crest, Croom Fools Run, the Croom Zoom, Forgotten Florida, and the Georgia Jewel 50 Miler. Now for Scott Hoover, don't his let mellow tone fool ya! He has done races like the Trident, Skunk Ape Night Run, the Long Haul 100, the Pinellas Trail Challenge, Skunk Ape's Revenge, Quest for the Crest, and Colt 45. He's also taken first place male at the Sand Spur 50k and won overall at the SWAMP 50k, and a third-place finish at the Skunk Ape's Revenge 60k. He's also the Co-Race Director for the Tick Tock and the Funest 50k! He's an all-around great guy that is always willing to help! Shout-out to Jeff Stephens and Andrea Moxely who make this race possible; as well to Lulu Yun-Pelz for also being out there for all of the hours! So many people from Susan Anger and the Florida Trail Association with endless support and trail maintenance over the years. Without the Florida Trail Assocation, there is no trail for us to enjoy.