Ultra Runner Ron Nicholls

Portland OR -Scott Boettcher from Washington won the Winterhawk 50 Mile Trail Run with the fourth fastest time of the 10 year history, 6:43. The front running pack was tight on the return from the turnaround, but Scott was able to hold them off. Amy Coffey of Portland won her second trail ultra, finishing in 8:49. Amy was running well and made a strong improvement over her McDonald Forest second place finish. Amy has a good coach in husband John, who held many 50K and 50 Mile records in the 80's.

In addition to the 45 finishers in the 50 mile, 40 participants finished the Trail Marathon. Lance Dayton from Oregon won in 3:17 and Tina Unre of California was the first woman in 3:49. The Trail Marathon is equally as popular as the 50 miler is and this year saw the addition of a Trail Marathon Walk.

June 5 on the Wildwood trail appeared to be a perfect day for a fast 50 miler or trail marathon; cool dry weather and good trail conditions. Lurking under the surface, however, were the unpleasant facts that the bodies of 3 young women had been recently found in Forest Park and that a landslide had blocked access to the trail by race volunteers. There was nothing we could do about the bodies except feel saddened. We could overcome the trail access. Instead of the Salzman aid station coming to us, we would detour 0.4 miles up a hill then climb over the very impressive landslide and go to the aid station. Coming back down we were instructed not to miss the Wildwood trail entrance and if we did, to tear off our race numbers and disavow any knowledge of race director Red Fisher as we would be in the crime scene. Jim Kerby took a brief detour into the crime scene that may have cost him first place.

The Winterhawk 50 Mile Trail run has always been an out and back of 25 miles each way, using the same aid stations on the return. This year, with the Salzman aid station relocation and dropping just a little extra distance at the turnaround, the race was closer to 51 miles. Slight consolation for those of us that had slow times.

Steve Smucker, Jerry Duncan and Ron Nicholl have completed all ten Winterhawks and were presented with finisher's sweatshirts and other awards including a first grab at Red's special prizes. Steve's first ultra was the Winterhawk in 1990 and in the ten year history he has won the race 6 times, holds the course record of 6:15, and a lifetime Winterhawk average of 6:48. Steve is the undisputed "King of the Wildwood."

The Winterhawk Trail races are used to fund the Winterhawk Semler scholarship for the nearby Gladstone High School. A ten year poster was prepared incorporating present and past shirt designs with pictures of Winterhawk during his running career. Winterhawk's untimely accidental death has provided all of us with a chance to honor his work with the students, his Native American ancestry, and most of all to carry on his "Spirit of the Hawk."

A special thanks to Race Director, Red Fisher, Becky Semler, Milt Scholl, and all the others that have given us a chance to be a part of the "Spirit of the Hawk" over the past ten years.

Ron Nicholl and Cheri Gillis
ronn@wolfenet.com
cherig@wolfenet.com

Winterhawk Trail Runs
Wildwood Trail, Portland OR
6/5/99

50 Miler
  1. Scott Boettcher, 33, WA                           06:43
  2. James Kerby, 36, WA                               06:53
  3. David Terry, 36, OR                                  06:55
  4. Steve Smucker, 45, OR                            06:58
  5. Tom Moritz, 29, OR                                   07:14
  6. Mike Miller, 42, WA                                   07:58
  7. John Robinson, 33, OR                             08:25
  8. Jason Moyer, 26, OR                                08:27
  9. Mike Burke, 48, OR                                  08:30
10. Richard Day, 43, WA                               08:30
11. Dave Dutton, 42, WA                               08:46
12. Amy Coffey, 39, OR                 F              08:49
13. Eb Engelmann, 57, OR                            08:58
14. Hollis Lenderking, 49, CA                        09:00
15. Louis Banks, 52, AZ                                 09:07
16. Fred Stafford, 42, WA                              09:08
17. James Klarich, 36, WA                            09:22
18. Janet Stadshaug, 41, WA       F              09:22
19. Jerry Duncan, 55, OR                              09:25
20. Robert Lynes, 60, WA                              09:28
21. Brent Spilsbury, 51, WA                          09:40
22. Tom Dubos, 39, WA                                09:46
23. Rob Markwardt, 36, WA                          09:47
24. Rick Klocke, 37, OR                                 09:48
25. Pat McGloughlin, 55, WA                         09:51
26. Michael Paulson, 25, CA                         09:56
27. Ron Nicholl, 56, WA                                 09:57
28. Lynn Yarnall, 48, WA                F             10:10
29. Michael Moser, 31, WA                           10:21
30. Michael Skeels, 50, OR                          10:23
31. Scott Flynn, 30, ID                                   10:24
32. David Olsho, 48, WA                               10:25
33. Frank Fleetham, 56, WA                         10:28
34. Steve Frederickson, 52, WA                  10:30
35. John Bandur, 61, WA                              10:31
36. Dann Fisher, 35, KS                               10:31
37. Tom Chapman, 40, OR                           10:35
38. Lynne Werner, 47, WA            F             10:36
39. Cheri Gillis, 47, WA                 F             10:39
40. Miller Myers, 60, WA                               10:45
41. Bob Ross, 56, OR                                   11:40
42. Margie Lopez-Reed, 46, CA   F             12:14
43. Sid Snyder, 49, OR                                 12:17
44. Jim Weston, 55, CA                                12:57
45. Gerald Bretag, 56, CA                            13:10

Trail Marathon
  1. Lance Dayton, 36, OR                             03:17
  2. Dave Taylor, 48, OR                                03:30
  3. Steve Petersen, 44, OR                          03:46
  4. Tina Ure, 39, CA                      F             03:49
  5. Jeff Dean, 42, WA                                   03:54
  6. Jodi Kartes, 28, OR                 F             04:08
  7. Bob Lemon, 43, OR                                04:10
  8. Jeri Botsford, 48, OR               F             04:21
  9. Nick Rocco, 54, OR                                 04:29
10. Mel Van Houten, 59, WA                        04:32
11. Tim Englund, 32, WA                              04:33
12. Frank Purdy, 45, WA                               04:36
13. Pat Warner, 53, WA                F             04:37
14. Ron Warner, 55, WA                               04:37
15. Karen Godman, 53, WA         F             04:39
16. Kevin Johnston, 30, OR                          04:40
17. Ross Filley, 46, OR                                 04:45
18. Bo Matthews, 54, OR                             04:57
19. Jeff Brooks, 44, OR                                04:59
20. Dusan Pavcnik, 51, OR                          04:59
21. Neal Yasami, 26, OR                              04:59
22. Kati Knudsen, 27, OR             F             05:02
23. Steve Pierce, 37, ID                               05:03
24. Ann Shatz, 33, OR                   F             05:07
25. Bernadette Wiskerchen, 28    F             05:07
26. Julie Peyton, 42, OR               F             05:16
27. Mary Croft, 53, MN                  F             05:17
28. Jesse Pace, 46, WA               F             05:19
29. Kimberly Girard, 30, OR         F             05:25
30. Mary Jo Rutten, 37, OR           F            05:25
31. Terry Downey, 34, OR                            05:34
32. E David Grannum, 52, OR                     05:39
33. Joe Dana, 63, OR                                   05:43
34. Gary Parcher, 52, OR                             05:43
35. Colleen Moyer, 29, OR            F            05:46
36. Joanne Ross, 58, OR              F             06:15
37. Bill McCracken, 54, OR                           06:20

Trail Marathon Walk
  1. Suzy Edwards, 52, OR            F             09:54
  2. Rosemary Ellis, 40, OR           F             09:54
  3. Natalie Lubomudrov, 46, OR   F             09:54

Submitted by
Ron Nicholl

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