Image Preview #inov8retreat

Posted on March 16, 2014 by talkultra

An incredible and inspiring weekend in the heart of the English Lakes with a committed team of athletes and employees of inov-8. It’s been a real pleasure to spend quality time discussing the brand, apparel and shoes. Watch out in 2015, inov-8 have some seriously quality products coming your way!

Here are just a small selection of images as a teaser….

No reproduction please.

Check out inov-8 at http://www.inov-8.com

inov-8 athlete retreat #inov8retreat

Posted on March 14, 2014 by talkultra

No sooner had I arrived in the English Lakes and in minutes I was dropping my bags and immediately turning around and heading out on the trails with inov-8 athletes for a 2nd run of the day. It was just an hour… up and then down in true fell running style.

It’s just the start, currently 12-athletes have arrived but later today, more runners will arrive and an intensive weekend will start in full.

Back at inov-8 HQ, breakout session are in progress, talking about new apparel, new run shoes and how the products are designed and why!

It’s all about being specific and appropriate to the required purpose. Innovative and committed are two words I hear repeatedly.

Leaving the HQ, our weekend will commence at a Youth Hostel deep within the English Lakes; keeping us close to the trail and at the heart of what we all love… being at one with nature.

More to follow as the weekend unfolds!

Follow on twitter #inov8retreat

All images and content ©iancorless.com

GB international joins world champions at Salomon Trail Team UK

Posted on March 11, 2014 by talkultra

Top sky and mountain runner Robbie Simpson has joined some of the UK’s finest trail, fell and mountain running talent at the Salomon Trail Team UK for 2014, bolstering the team to be one of the strongest domestic trail teams in the world. With such talent as Ricky Lightfoot, Tom Owens, Angela Mudge, Andy Davies and Emma Clayton already on the UK team, Simpson’s addition to the squad for 2014 will create even more interest for the team on the UK and global stage.

The world-class team of UK athletes will be unveiled at Coed y Brenin, Wales this weekend, as the 11-strong team meets for the annual training and product summit, along with its fledgling squad of five junior athletes, Salomon Avenir.

The full line-up of the UK-based team for 2014 is:

2014 Salomon Trail Team UK

Emma Clayton

Rob Hope

Ricky Lightfoot

Angela Mudge

Tom Owens

Rob Samuel

Andy Davies

Joe Symonds

Robbie Simpson

Katie Walshaw

Nathan Jones

Salomon Avenir line-up for 2014

Georgia Malir

Max Nicholls

James Hall

Andrew Lawler

Iolo Hughes

Speaking about his move back to the team which helped kick-start his international career some 4 years ago, Simpson states:

“Over the summer I was in the Alps for four months and started seeing some of the new Salomon range at a lot of big races. A few months later a conversation at a wedding with Tom Owens was what got things started. He suggested trying some of these shoes I’d seen to see how I found them. My feet are a bit strange so I wasn’t sure if they would get on well with them. After trying the Sense Ultra I knew it was the perfect shoe for mountain racing and it suited my feet really well. I tried some of the other new shoes like the Fellcross and got on very well with that too. After that I knew it was the right decision. I was very fortunate that Salomon were prepared to give me a chance on the team for 2014.

“It will be great to be working with some of the world’s top mountain and trail runners. I would say already I’ve been learning from these athletes for at least five years now and they have been definitely helped me develop. Angela (Mudge) has won pretty much every race I’ve competed in whether in Scotland or Europe so she knows so much about how everything works. Her knowledge has been very valuable to me and I still have a lot to learn. Tom and Ricky also have a lot of experience and I am very keen to learn from them too; especially about the long mountain and trail races which they are so good at. I’m hoping I can continue to improve and be a strong addition to the team.”

Commenting on some of the changes to the product in the last few seasons Robbie is impressed with what he has seen to date:

“Lots of very great kit has been developed in the last few years! Now there is a great range of off road shoes that can cope with anything from fast smooth trails to thick mud and fells. Previously the range was a bit restricted so there was a lack of a very light racing shoe or a very aggressive fell shoe; this has changed now. The Sense Ultra is one of my favourite shoes that I have tried and I look forward to using it on the mountains this season. It’s incredibly light and fast but has enough grip for most conditions. I’ve run up big hills on rough terrain in the shoe but also set road PB’s in it! I think this would be perfect for most Alpine races with reasonably good trails and also for flat races.

“The Fellcross is another great shoe that gets taken out for the really wet or muddy conditions. It has very aggressive grip and is also very comfortable on long runs. I think it would be the best shoe for most UK hill and fell races. As well as these I have tried the Fellraiser which is another shoe with very good grip but it also copes well with firmer ground like forest tracks. It’s perfect for runs of mixed terrain where you need good grip and it is very comfortable.”

After another very strong season in 2013 which saw the Scot pull-off a tremendous 5th place finish at the world-renowned Sierre-Zinal race, Robbie has spent some time this winter honing his speed on the roads of Scotland, with PBs and wins at such events as the Cupar 5 (24:02) and a win at the Inverness Half Marathon (66:03) only this weekend. Looking ahead to the coming year he concludes:

“The aim is to run at the European and World championships plus some other big mountain races like Sierre Zinal once again. Last year I was very happy with my season in the Alps but this year I want to perform even better. I’m planning to go to the Alps for a few months over the summer so I can focus on preparing well and get used to racing against some of the world’s best. In the months before then I will be aiming to improve my road PB’s and also to do a few hill races to get in as good shape as possible.”

Commenting on Simpson’s addition to the team for 2014, team co-ordinator Matt Ward states:

“We are very pleased to see Robbie back with Salomon in 2014. He was on the squad as a teenager, which was perhaps a little young for someone to be thrown into a brand team with so many top-class internationals and this is one of the reasons that we brought in the Avenir squad project with senior team ‘mentors’. Robbie is now 22 and has matured over the last 2-3 years to be one of the UK’s brightest trail and mountain running talents, so naturally we are very happy to have secured him on the team for the coming season.

“However, the UK team is much more one one athlete. We have some of the best athletes in the world on the team for 2014 and Robbie will hopefully gel into what has been a phenomenal set-up under the guidance of Tim Lloyd over the last decade or so. This weekend we will all meet in Wales to discuss the season ahead, look at product from our main sponsors Salomon, Suunto, Petzl, Super Feet and Kinetica, share some runs on the amazing trails of Coed y Brenin, and hopefully have a little fun whilst we are at it!”

Trail Running Magazine – Skyrunning

Posted on March 10, 2014 by talkultra

The new issue of Trail Running is on sale now! In selected WHSmiths,

Asda, Booths, Co-op, Martin McColls, Sainsbury¹s, Spar & all good

newsagents.

Or subscribe & save at www.greatmagazines.co.uk/tr

SCOTT sports partner with Skyrunning

Posted on February 28, 2014 by talkultra

Marco De Gasperi ©iancorless.com

The ISF is pleased to announce SCOTT Sports will partner with the 2014 Skyrunner® World Series, joining other prestigious outdoor brands: Salomon, Arc’teryx, inov-8, La Sportiva and Compressport.

SCOTT Sports will be present not only with a team of top international runners, but will again be present as main sponsor at the successful Matterhorn Ultraks, fourth race in the Sky Series.

The international team of world-class athletes includes Italian Marco De Gasperi, six-time World Mountain Running Champion and top level skyrunner; American Joe Gray, USA Mountain Runner of the year and top finisher at the Course de Sierre-Zinal; vertical and sky specialist Celine Lafaye from France, 10^th on the ISF Sky Ranking; and, from Spain, Pablo Villa, a top placer in the 2012 TDS and the 2013 Gore-Tex Transalpine Run.

The SCOTT team also counts American distance runner Meghan Arbogast, a top finisher at UTMV and Western States, she recently won the USATF Trail National Championship together with new entry Jodee Adams-Moore who will be launching her skyrunning season at the Transvulcania Ultramarathon on May 10. SCOTT Running Director, Scott McCoubrey commented, “Jodee is a perfect fit for the SCOTT team. She is an extremely versatile runner, with a passion for the mountains and running on the trails. Based on her recent success, it should be a blast watching her performances this year.” New British talent Stu Air will join her at Transvulcania.

SCOTT ambassador Ian Sharman, 100-mile champion – winner and record holder of the Grand Slam of Ultrarunning – is director of the newly launched US Skyrunner® Series.

SCOTT Sports has enjoyed much success with the Kinabalu trail shoe – named after the 4,000m Malaysian mountain which has represented the final of the Skyrunner® World Series on many occasions. SCOTT athlete Marco De Gasperi set the standing race record here.

Marco De Gasperi ©iancorless.com

Alongside the Kinabalu, new styles include Trail Rocket and Grip 3.0 are proposed for 2014 together with the new runningcollection – available at the principal Skyrunner® World Series races.

Marino Giacometti, ISF president, commented, “We’re very pleased to welcome on board SCOTT with their team and excellent products. Since the age of 17 when Marco De Gasperi ran his first skyrunning race on Monte Rosa, he has been a great ambassador for the sport and we’re proud to see him at the pinnacle of his career. We look forward to have the rest of the talented team competing at the races – who knows who the next great champion will be!”

Joscha Harms, SCOTT Softgoods and Running Marketing Manager, concludes, “SCOTT Sports is a leading brand for high functioning sporting goods, and is known for innovative products with unique designs. We are happy to collaborate with the Skyrunner World Series to position our Running division as a high functioning trailrunning brand in a very competitive market. We believe that this, paired with our strong products and outstanding performances of our athletes, will increase our brand credibility and integrity within the market.”

SCOTT Trail running team members

Marco De Gasperi (ITA)

Ian Sharman (GBR)

Joe Gray (USA)

Jodee Adams-Moore (USA)

Meghan Arbogast (USA)

Ryan Bak (USA)

Celine Lafaye (FRA)

Pablo Manuel Villa (ESP)

Simona Staicu (HUN)

Stu Air (GBR)

Jeremy Humphrey (USA)

Fabian Alraun (GER)

Gerd Frick (ITA)

Adam Kovacs (HUN)

Stephan Wenk (SUI)

SCOTT Sports

Stuart Air heads to Honk Kong for the MSIG Sai Kung 50

Posted on February 26, 2014 by talkultra

Stuart Air at Ice Trail Tarentaise ©iancorless.com

Brit, Stuart Air (Scott Running) heads to Hong Kong this weekend to participate in the MSIG Sai Kung 50. Stuart had an incredible 2013, new to Skyrunning, he performed exceptionally well at the very tough Andorra Ultra Trail, Ronda dels Cims with a 13th place. Stuart then followed this up with a top placing at Ice Trail Tarentaise against world class competition.

Post Ronda dels Cims ≠©iancorless.com

Not content with two tough races, Stuart placed himself on the start line of Tor des Geants. Placing well overall, Stuart set a fastest time for any Brit at the event.

Stuart’s participation at MSIG Sai Kung 50 starts 2014 on the right foot, arguably, Stuart has an incredible year ahead. Hardrock 100 awaits… yes, Stuart was extremely fortunate to be drawn out of the hat and will now line up against one of the most competitive fields ever assembled at the race.

Stuart very much considers himself an Alpinist; embracing the opportunity to go to the mountains, fast and light, Stuart loves vertical and technical terrain.

Coming from a relatively mild but wet UK winter, Stuart feels prepared for the challenge ahead, ‘Training has gone well in the Lake District and Wales’ Stuart said in an interview by Michael Maddess, ‘I have clocked up 60-70 miles and 4000m of vertical per week. The weather has been a challenge, but strong winds, rain and snow all help with the training.’

LINKS

Race website – HERE
Scott Running – HERE
ISF – HERE

Robbie Britton fired up for Skyrunning debut

Posted on February 25, 2014 by talkultra

The new team inov-8 recruit has revelled in a phenomenal past 12 months and is now looking ahead to a 2014 calendar stacked with some of the world’s toughest ultra distance races.

Having smashed the course record at the recent 66-mile Pilgrims Challenge, Robbie is now preparing for his Skyrunning debut at Transvulcania La Palma the first race in the 2014 Skyrunner World Series.

In his first inov blog, 27-year-old Robbie writes:

“My 2014 season is underway and I’ve already snared two victories, including the two-day Pilgrims Challenge 66-miler on the North Downs Way. Four years ago the Pilgrims Challenge took me a total of 15 hours to complete, and the on the second day alone I was running for nine hours. This year I broke the course record, clocking a total time of 8 hrs 8 mins for the two days combined. Next up is Transvulcania, on the island of La Palma, one of the Canary Islands. This is the first race in the 2014 Skyrunner World Series calendar and all the world’s best ultra-distance mountain runners will be there. I have been to La Palma once before, taking in a few epic days in the mountains before setting off to sail the Atlantic in a boat built by a crazy old man advertising for crew on Gumtree! At 51 miles, Transvulcania is a little bit short for me but it has more ascent – there’s 2,000m in the first 11 miles – than the 24-hour stuff. I will go there, chuck myself in the mix and see what happens. I am always up for challenging myself. After that I have the World 24hr Running Championships. The target this year is a top-10 finish. I’m already feeling good about my chances as I feel fitter and stronger than I was last year. And what year would be complete without a trip to the Alps? The 103-mile TNF Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) was shortened due to awful weather conditions the last time I ventured to Chamonix in 2012, but the atmosphere of the race got into my blood and this year I will return. I can’t wait.”

In 2013, Robbie won the high-profile 2013 South Downs Way 100 miler in a new course record, ran at the World 24hr Running Championships and completed the gruelling 152-mile Spartathlon race in Greece.

Next month Robbie will attend inov-8’s 2014 UK and European athlete retreat, to be held in the Lake District.

Transvulcania Vertical Kilometer® – Skyrunner® World Series

Posted on January 30, 2014 by talkultra

Vertical Kilometer, Transvulcania La Palma, ≠©iancorless.com

From sea to sky, 1,000 metres high, the 2014 Skyrunner® World Series kicks off with a cracking new race on the magical island of La Palma, Spain. Transvulcania, renowned for the Ultramarathon, launches the Transvulcania Vertical Kilometer® on May 8. Starting at sea level, it ascends the steepest, most technical section of the Ultra and offers incredible views of the Atlantic coast – for those with the courage to look down.

Vertical Kilometer, Transvulcania La Palma ©iancorless.com

The course was designed to complement the SWS Transvulcania Ultramarathon (May 10) and the half and marathon distances. From the black Tazacorte beach, the 6.6 km single track course ascends the imposing cliff face with a 40% incline before settling into a “flatter” final section to finish at 1,160m altitude. The overall incline averages 30%.

The upper section of the course follows an ancient goat-herders’ path and finishes at the El Time antenna, (the last aid station of the Ultra), rewarding runners with incomparable views of the Aridane Valley and the ocean in the distance.

With the world’s top vertical specialists leading the way, entries open on Saturday, February 1^st, limited to 200 places. Not for the faint-hearted, as the race slogan says, “Get ready to meet your fate”!

See here for entry and race information.

2014 Skyrunner® World Series

Follow us on Facebook and twitter for updates

ROCKTAPE sponsor Skyrunning UK

Posted on January 30, 2014 by talkultra

Skyrunning UK is pleased to announce that ROCKTAPE will be the first sponsor to support the Skyrunner® Series UK.

Just like all our participants in the Skyrunner® Series UK, the ROCKTAPE team are avid athletes. ROCKTAPE already supports various UK based events and athletes in a variety of sports; notably Ultra runner and Lakeland 100 winner Terry Conway and Salomon International athlete, Anna Frost.

AnnaFrost_©peignee_verticale.com

TerryConway_UTLD100

No matter how carefully we prepare and train, injuries happen and unfortunately they can happen on a frequent basis, especially when pushing at the limits. ROCKTAPE is not just for the injured athlete, it can also be used to help delay fatigue and improve posture/running form.

Today, ‘Kinesiology Tape’ is widely used throughout the world to treat injuries and pain. ROCKTAPE is the only tape specifically engineered to meet the demands of elite athletes. Why is it unique? Stick and Stretch. Its unique glue means that unlike many other tapes ROCKTAPE stays on the skin come hell or high water. ROCKTAPE stretches twice as much as most kinesiology tape and is engineered to mimic human skin. The ‘stretch’ is the secret behind ROCKTAPE!

How does it work? When applied properly, ROCKTAPE lifts the skin away from the muscle, which promotes positive changes in the body’s fluid, mechanical and neurological systems. Commonly people wearing Rocktape report less pain, swelling and tightness, greater awareness of the area and later onset of fatigue.

Paul Coker, Medical Director, Rocktape UK explains, “We are really pleased to be able to support the Skyrunner® UK series in its inaugural year, we hope it’s the beginning of a long term-relationship. ROCKTAPE offers lots of great benefits to runners, this partnership is a perfect way to showcase our product and increase awareness of ROCKTAPE amongst the trail and ultra running community. As a very enthusiastic but distinctly average runner myself its also a great reason to be at Sky races and witness some of the worlds best athletes run.”

Skyrunning UK is well aware of the benefits that may be obtained both pre-exercise, during exercise and post exercise from ROCKTAPE.

“We strongly believe that our partnership is a great step forward not only for the Skyrunner® Series UK but also all our athletes who will perform in our series” explains Ian Corless, Director of Skyrunning UK “Paul and myself have had plenty of communication over the past 2-years. I have used ROCKTAPE to help recover from injuries and I have also used products in training to prevent onward injuries. I fully understand and believe in the product. It’s great to have a sponsor on board that will directly benefit every participant in a Skyrunner® Series UK event. Why is this? Well, ROCKTAPE will be present at our events and provide on hand advice, show taping techniques and directly get involved with each and every runner. It’s a really exciting prospect.”

BenAbdelnoor_inov8

The 2014 Skyrunner® Series UK is developing each and every day. Skyrunning UK has already announced two ULTRA events, the V3K in Wales for June and the 3×3 in the Lakes for October. With the imminent announcement of new events to the 2014 calendar and the sponsorship of ROCKTAPE the Skyrunner® Series UK is already proving to be one of the most exciting race series prospects for those who love to run over technical and demanding terrain with plenty of vertical gain within the UK.

Less cloud. More sky!

Skyrunning UK website – www.skyrunninguk.com

ROCKTAPE – www.rocktape.net

V3K Race Website – http://www.vegan-welsh-3000s.co.uk

3×3 Ultra Website – http://www.highterrainevents.co.uk/24.html

Episode 53 – Pavel Paloncy, Marcus Scotney, Johan Van De Merwe

Posted on January 24, 2014 by talkultra

Episode 53 of Talk Ultra is once again a packed show… We have two interviews from the Montane Spine race, regarded as one of the toughest races out there. We speak with Pavel Paloncy who won the 268-mile event with a new course record and Marcus Scotney who won the 106-mile Challenger event. We also speak with South African long distance runner, Johan Van De Merwe about ultra running in South Africa and his new African 24-hour record. The News, a Blog, Talk Training, Up & Coming Races, Smiles and Miles and Speedgoat is back from the Love Boat!

00:13:42

NEWS

The Spine

Pavel Paloncy 110h 45min (4.5 days)
Steve Holyoak 119h 26m
Matt Davis 119h 28m

Debbie Brupacher 153h 24min

Hurt 100

Gary Robbins does it again… 21:34:00
Timo Meyer 22:34:00
Alex Nuun 22:50:00

Gina Slaby 27:06:00
Candice Burt 27:58:00
Heather Anderson 29:22:00

00:14:47

INTERVIEW

I caught up with 106-mile Challenger Winner, Marcus Scotney about his win.

Sage Canaday 2:22 marathon

HK100

Tirtha Bahadur Tamang 10:02 – Ryan Sandes still holds the CR
Bed Bahadur Sunuwar 10:06:37
Vlad Ixel 10:11:53

Francesca Canepa 12:59:19
Chow Pui Yan 13:32:48
Agnes Cheng 13:46:36

Notables, Lizzy Hawker dropped. What happened to Cassie Scallon. Dave Mackey was doing well but faded at the end. Jez Bragg 10th. Great performances by Australian and NZ runners.

Bandera 100k

Jorge Maravilla 8:02:27
David Laney 8:07:06
Chikara Omine 8:16:42

Meghan Arbogast 10:12:57
Liza Howard 10:39:00
Melanie Peters 11:00:44

Rocky Raccoon coming up

I’m going to Costa Rica for the TCC with an incredible race field: Frosty, Jo Meek, Julia Bottger, Clarky, Wardian, Reiter, Martin Gaffuri and Carlos Sa – going to be pretty awesome!

01:21:48

BLOG

Ellie Greenwood, Patience Part Two on iRunFar – http://www.irunfar.com/2014/01/patience-part-two.html

“A quick summary of the last eight months would be: start getting pain in fibula, cut back running, pain continues, find out I have a stress fracture, stop running entirely for seven weeks, start running and gradually build up from 10 minutes to a marathon in 2.5 months, get new injury, cut back running, pain still there, stop running entirely for four weeks, build up slowly starting with a run/walk program at end of November. Yeah, this is a whole new level of patience.”

01:26:21

INTERVIEW

Niandi Carmont and myself caught up with South African distance runner, Johan Van De Merwe and we discussed SA running, Comrades and his record breaking 24-hour run that broke a long standing Wally Haywood record.

02:27:47

INTERVIEW

Pavel Paloncy set a new course record for the 268-mile Montane Spine Race. I caught up with him just a few days after the event when he had returned home to the Czech Republic, Website HERE

03:04:37

MELTZER MOMENT

Good

Bad

Ugly

03:09:35

TALK TRAINING with MARC LAITHWAITE

03:34:09

SMILES AND MILES with EMELIE FORSBERG

03:50:59

UP & COMING RACES