Ultra runner Jim Walmsley delivered another resounding victory at the Mesquite Canyon 50k, shaving more than 20 minutes off the previous record in gruelling desert terrain.
Walmsley, who's expected to run in the Western States in a few month's time, crossed the finish line at the Arizona race in just three hours, 40 minutes and 18 seconds on Saturday. That's an average pace of more than 14 kilometers, or roughly 8.7 miles, per hour.
Compared to the best marathon runners, that might not exactly seem like something to write home about – Harry Styles ran the Japan marathon in less than that last week and he's not even an elite athlete. But a video that was shared to social media, which you can view below, shows how impressive Walmsley's time truy is,
In the clip, which was shared by race organizers Aravaipa Running, a cameraman meets Walmsley in the Ford Canyon section of the race and attempts to keep up with him through extremely technical terrain, and it seems like those Hoka Tecton X 3s are still giving Walmsley magical powers. Looking as fresh as ever, Walmsley tears through desert wash and leaps over boulders at neckbreaking speed, almost like he's running a road race.
As the video goes on, the cameraman falls further and further behind and soon the sound of him trying to catch his breath drowns out those of Walmsley's shoes hitting the dirt. After less than three minutes, he gives up and lets the 35-year-old athlete charge on to the finish line, where he was met 20 minutes later by econd-placed Eric Lipuma of Vermont.
Growing up in Phoenix, Walmsley seems exceptionally comfortable in desert terrain, and we'll find out in June whether this training run keeps him in good stead to set another record at WSER – he still holds the title after finishing in 14:09:28, set in 2019.
In the women's race, Canada's Ailsa Macdonald also threw down, coming in at the front in 4:46:20, just 11 seconds behind the third-placed man Jesse Carr. She shares on Instagram that the race was meant to be a "little tune up race" ahead of the Canyons 100k next month as she recovers from injury, but even that wasn't enough to keep her from the podium.
"Running 20 min slower than last year was kinda humbling but I’m not gonna let that play on my confidence too much. There are too many variables to compare one race to another," says Macdonald.
You can view the full race results at Aravaipa Running.
