Don’t want to say it was unseasonably warm Saturday at the 25th running of the Soulstice Mountain Trail Run across the shade-deprived prairie in Parks, but there were camels out there.
Actually, there’s a fascinating story behind the camels — click here to read — but let’s talk about the race, a celebration of running in the greater Flagstaff community put on by that civic treasure, volunteer race director Neil Weintraub.
Olympian Rachel Smith was the repeat women’s winner (and second overall) in 1:12:37 over the 11.2-mile course, a minute behind overall winner Ray Langlais in 1:11:38. Both are high-profile on the Flagstaff running scene. Smith, of course, runs professionally for Hoka, and Langlais is part of Team Run Flagstaff, a guy you’ll often see timing races, not running them.
Saturday, Langlais got to don the bib instead of keep track of them and clicked off a 6:31 pace on a flat, but at times rocky, course.
“It was nice to mix it up,” Langlais said. “This is my first race in a year. The course is great, flat but with some of the rocks, you’ve got to pay attention. But it was beautiful out there today.”
Langlais hasn’t raced in almost a year. His last event was The Running Event’s Indie 5K, a cross-country race, in Austin, Texas, last November. He finished fourth overall in 15:36. Before that, he ran 2:33:17 in the 2023 Chicago Marathon.
Smith, on the other hand, essentially is in her offseason after a busy track and road-race season. But she said she always wants to run Soulstice.
“This is one of my favorite events of the year,” Smith said. “It’s such a beautiful community event. Neil does so much for the Flagstaff running community, through NATRA (Northern Arizona Trail Runners Assn.) and through Big Brothers and Big Sisters, which is dear to my heart, makes it special to be a part of.”
As for her pro prospects for 2025, Smith said: “I hope to do a mix (of track and road) and, down the road, I’d love to try a marathon. I have so much respect for the marathon distance and the type of training it takes to do it on the elite level, so when I do try it, I want to make sure I really dedicate myself to that endeavor. Maybe next year or the year after.”
Finishing behind Langlais and Smith in third overall was Flagstaffian Will Drexler, 41, in 1:12:53. Drexler also took home the masters victory. Kam Harder rounded out the men’s podium in 1:18:25. The second and third women behind Smith were Canadian masters ace Allison Blackmore, who at age 58, ran 3:07:55 at the Vancouver Marathon in May, and Flagstaff’s Jean Marie Rieck. Blackmore ran 1:27:54, Rieck 1:30:30.
Across the board, in the long course, times were slower than last year, perhaps due to the heat — for instance, Smith ran 2:12 slower than her winning time in 2023.
The short course (6 miles) winners were Damien Hiser in 43:15 and Parks’ Selena Langner in 45:15.
Full results from Soulstice here.
— World Mountain Running Association World Cup VK: Saturday, in the vertical climb, Rachel Tomajczyk, who lives in Williams and is ranked 17th in the world in sub-ultra mountain running, finished 11th in 41:55 — just two seconds off a top 10 finish. The race is 2.2 miles with 2,300 feet of elevation gain, including 2,000 stairs. Next weekend, in the Ascona-Lorcano region of Switzerland, Tomajczyk, sponsored by Merrill, will compete in the Golden Trail Series Final (23.5K).
— UTMB Kodiak 100 Mile Race: Flagstaff elite trail runner Cordis Hall finished third Saturday at the Kodiak 100 Mile in Southern California, featuring 13,507 feet of elevation gain in the Big Bear Lake area and on parts of the Pacific Crest Trail. Hall covered the course in 18 hours 31 minutes 33 seconds, finishing behind winner Sam Wood (18:24:08) and runner-up Mike Lavery (18:27:19).
Leave a Reply