The 31st anniversary AdventureCORPS Badwater Ultramarathon, held July 14-16, 2008, concluded at 8360' (2533m) up Mount Whitney, after Jorge Pacheco of Los Angeles, CA and Jamie Donaldson, of Littleton, CO, took impressive wins ahead of high caliber fields to record the second fastest men's and fastest women's times in the history of the event, widely acknowledged as the most demanding and extreme running race offered anywhere on the planet.
For both Pacheco and Donaldson, their victories were sweet redemption after their rookie efforts in the race in 2007 when both led the field for most of the race and seemed destined to win, only to falter in the last miles of the race and drop back to 4th man and 5th woman overall, respectively.
Pacheco, a 40 year-old machine operator, went to the front early in the men's race and despite a consistent effort by Hungarian national Akos Konya of Oceanside, CA, who placed second here in 2006 and 2007, he was able to hold on to win by a comfortable 29-minute margin with a time of 23:20:16. That left Konya in his now all too familiar 2nd place once again, in a time of 23:49:44, a PR by two minutes and the third fastest race finish in history.
Donaldson, a 33 year-old middle school math teacher from Littleton, CO, geared her entire year since the 2007 race towards her 2008 Badwater effort. She made specific changes to her fueling plan and to her clothing - to avoid chafing - and entered the race with a strategy and pacing plan to at least better her 41 hour finish from 2007. In the end, she led an impressively strong women's field with a time of 26:51:33. Not only did she shatter Pam Reed's 2002 women's record of 27:56:47, but also she bested all but two of the men running in the race. Reed also broke her own record, placing 5th overall and running fourteen minutes faster than she had in 2002.
Seven-three of the 80 starters finished the race, which was beset with uncertainty over road availability following flash floods in the northern half of Death Valley National Park and near Lone Pine in the days prior to, and then during, the race.
At one point on Monday afternoon, race organizers advised competitors of a finish location change - the plan was for racers to continue as normal to mile 102.9, then turn around and run back to Panamint Springs, a distance of 133.5 miles - only to reverse this notice a few hours later after a concerted effort by the California Department of Transportation, who put six road graders into action when a flash flood shut down the race course near Lone Pine.
With its start line at Badwater, Death Valley, the course rises from the lowest elevation in North America at 282’ (85m) below sea level. After a grueling 135 miles of paved roads, the race finishes at Mt. Whitney Portal at 8360' (2533m). The Badwater course covers three mountain ranges for a total of 13,000’ (3962m) of cumulative vertical ascent and 4700’ (1433m) of cumulative descent. The Portal is the trailhead to the Mt. Whitney summit, the highest point in the contiguous United States.
The race began with the traditional wave start, with 22 runners beginning at 6am, 27 at 8am, and 31 at 10am. This is done because of lack of parking at the start line and, even more so, to minimize congestion of runners, crew, and vehicles on the roadway in the National Park. Because hosting food and drink checkpoints along the side of the road in this forbidding environment is impossible, each entrant brings their own support vehicle and at least two support crew members to tend to all their needs.
The 2008 race roster included 43 Badwater veterans and 37 rookies: die hard ultra-runners comprising the world's elite in this sport, and athletes who have the necessary running credentials, but are primarily known for their exploits as adventure racers, mountaineers, triathletes, or in other extreme pursuits. Twelve countries were represented at this unofficial world championship - Australia (2), Brazil (2), Canada (2), France (6), Germany (6), Guatemala (1), Hungary (1), Mexico (1), New Zealand (1), Norway (1), UK (2), and USA (55) - from 19 American states. There were 21 women and 59 men. The youngest runner was 27 while the oldest was 66, with an average age of 47. More info.
The average finishing time is approximately 48 hours, while the overall time limit is 60 hours. For those who finish in less than forty-eight hours, their reward is the coveted AdventureCORPS Badwater Ultramarathon belt buckle. There is no prize money.
As the on-course action revealed, the 2008 race field was particularly competitive. Veteran contenders include Akos Konya, 33, of Oceanside, CA (Hungary citizenship), the 2006 and 2007 runner-up, Charlie Engle, 44, of Greensboro, NC (3rd place finisher in 2005 and 2006), David Goggins, 32, of Chula Vista, CA (5th place in 2006 and 3rd in 2007), and Jorge Pacheco, 40, of Los Angeles, CA (Mexico citizenship) who placed 4th in 2007. Three former champions were also competing: Dean Karnazes 45, of San Francisco, CA (2004), Marshall Ulrich, 57, of Idaho Springs, CO (1991, 1992, 1993, 1996), and David Jones, 55, of Eagleville, TN (1997).
The women's field, the largest in the history of the race, was also deep with talent, most notably Pam Reed, 47, of Tucson, AZ, the 2002 and 2003 overall champion who also won the women’s field in 2005, along with Monica Scholz, 41, of Jerseyville, Ontario, Canada, a five-time finisher who led the women’s field in 2004 and 2006. Other veteran contenders include Jamie Donaldson, 33, of Littleton, CO, who led the women’s race in 2007 for 122 miles before falling back to fifth place, as well as eight-time finisher Lisa Smith-Batchen, 47, of Driggs, ID, the 1997 and 1998 champion.
Although the weather varies from year to year, there is no such thing as “an easy Badwater Ultramarathon.” This year, as the runners passed Stovepipe Wells, 42 miles into the race, temperatures exceeded the 111F recorded for Monday at the Furnace Creek Visitor's Center, yet the main problem faced by many athletes was the 50-60% humidity from the thunderstorms letting loose on the race course just west of Death Valley.
Full Race Report.
Race Webcast Archive.
