B.C.’ s Emilie Mann smashed the ladies’s course report on the Run Rabbit Run 100-miler in Steamboat Springs, Colo., on September fifteenth, ending in 19 hours, 48 minutes, and 5 seconds. Mann shattered the earlier report of 20:16:54 (set by Colorado’s Michele Yates in 2013) by practically half-hour—and he or she credit extra than simply logging miles for her success. The race, infamous for its punishing altitude (it begins at over 2,000 metres and consists of 6,000 metres of climbing) pushes athletes to their limits; right here’s what Mann informed Canadian Operating helped her dominate RRR.
It was a formidable 100-mile debut for Mann, who, in 2023, gained the Golden Extremely 60K distance, the Sinister 7 50K and the Squamish 50-Mile (operating the third-fastest ladies’s time within the race’s historical past). Again in 2019, she gained the Canadian Lengthy Distance Mountain Operating Championship and went on to compete on the World Mountain Operating Championships in Argentina, the place she completed 57th within the lengthy distance (41.5-km) class. Mann, who’s sponsored by Merrell, at the moment makes her house in Kelowna, B.C.
Operating with legends
From the beginning, Mann discovered herself operating alongside by a few of the greatest names within the ultra-trail world. Quite than being intimidated, Mann felt lifted up by the highest ladies rivals. “It was so enjoyable to fulfill them in particular person,” she stated, of operating alongside Leah Yingling, Emily Caldwell and different elite ladies. “After I handed every of them, it was like passing your greatest fan; even after they had been in a low, they had been so supportive.” These trail-running “celebs” turned a part of Mann’s motivation to push by means of, including a particular spark to her 100-mile journey.
A group effort
Mann had her companion, Tim Ropchan, crewing for her each step of the way in which, and he or she credit their teamwork as a big a part of her success. Their first assist station transition didn’t go as deliberate—Mann by chance left carrying two totally different footwear! “Tim sprinted after me with the right shoe,” she says. “We nailed all the opposite assist stations, although.” His regular help was crucial in preserving her grounded because the miles piled up.
A coach who set the bar excessive
Mann credit her coach, Dave Stevens of Nelson, B.C. (Stevens additionally gained RRR in 2019), with giving her the technique that finally led to her victory. “He informed me to respect the space however set a lofty purpose,” she explains. She fought the urge to start out too quick and held again her velocity within the early levels. “It actually paid off. I had no main lows other than an upset abdomen for possibly 15km.” This cautious pacing, so difficult to do in an extended race, helped her preserve momentum and set her up for a robust end.
Inspiration from the perfect
Mann, who grew up in Fernie, B.C., additionally carried private inspiration together with her within the type of a reputation written on her thigh—that of beloved Fernie race director Abi Moore, who was killed in a automobile accident in July. “I wrote Abi Moore’s identify with a coronary heart beside it,” she shared, paying tribute to a fellow runner who continues to be an enormous inspiration. Abi’s husband, Mike, informed Mann that RRR was one of many races Abi had all the time needed to do. “I’d have beloved to race together with her,” Mann stated. Abi’s identify was a robust connection that helped Mann energy ahead.
The kindness of fellow runners and volunteers was one other key factor that lifted Mann all through the race. Whether or not competing within the elite class or as common runners, “everybody was so type and completely happy to speak—even at 3 a.m.,” she stated. The path operating neighborhood’s camaraderie gave her the psychological increase she wanted through the hardest elements of the race. Mann’s unbelievable race-day efficiency was not solely attributable to her health and quick ft, but in addition credited to the help, technique and inspiration that carried her throughout the end line.
