Courtney Dauwalter Explained

Courtney Dauwalter
Birth Date:13 February 1985
Residence:Leadville, Colorado
Event:Ultramarathon, trail running

Courtney Dauwalter (born February 13, 1985) is an American ultramarathon runner and former teacher.[1] Widely regarded as one of the world's best trailrunners,[2]  Dauwalter became in 2023 the first person ever to win Western States 100, Hardrock 100 and the UTMB in the same year.[3]

Early life

Dauwalter was raised in Hopkins, Minnesota and competed in track, cross-country, and Nordic skiing in high school. She was a four-time Minnesota state champion in Nordic skiing during her high school career.[4] She attended the University of Denver on a cross-country skiing scholarship studying biology,[5] and then earned a master's degree in teaching from the University of Mississippi in 2010 while participating in the Mississippi Teacher Corps.[6]

She taught for several years, following in her mother's footsteps who was also a teacher, teaching biology, chemistry, and physical sciences for middle and high-schoolers in the Denver area, before becoming a full-time professional runner in 2017.[7]

Personal life

Dauwalter lives and trains above 10,000 ft in Leadville, Colorado. She is married to Kevin Schmidt, who supports her in ultrarunning events.[8] She does not have any children or pets.[8]

She is known for her positive attitude and sense of humor during races, following a relaxed approach to nutrition.[8] Dauwalter is well known for wearing baggy long shorts for comfort, including during her racing. She is also known for embracing the "Pain Cave," the mental space she refers to when entering the most challenging parts of a race.[9] She has said she has reframed the "Pain Cave" as a place she wants to reach because it signifies where real work and growth happen.[10] [9]

Dauwalter's mother Tracy also has become involved in ultrarunning, the two running Javalina Jundred 100km race in Fountain Hills, Arizona in 2023.[11]

Trailrunning

In 2016, Dauwalter set a course record at the Javelina Jundred 100K and won the Run Rabbit Run 100-mile race, finishing 75 minutes ahead of second place. She also won the 2017 Run Rabbit Run while battling temporary blindness when running the final 12 miles.[12] She won the 2017 edition of the Moab 240 race in 2 days, 9 hours, and 59 minutes, finishing first overall and beating the second-place finisher by more than 10 hours.[13] In 2017, she set the then-record for the longest run in 24 hours, at 155.391 miles during the Riverbank One Day Classic.[14]

In 2018, Dauwalter won the Western States 100-mile race, with a finishing time of 17h27m. She competed in the Big's Backyard Ultra in 2018, finishing second overall and completing a total of 67 laps, setting the women's course record at 279.268 miles.[15] [16] She also placed second in the Tahoe 200, beating the previous women's course record by over 18 hours.[17]

In 2019, she won the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc in a time of 24 h 34 min 26 sec, coming in 21st overall.[18] [19] In 2021 she would return to set the women's course record. She competed for the United States at the IAU 24 Hour World Championship in Brive-la-Gaillarde, France in October 2019, finishing 12th. In 2020, she won the American section of Big's Backyard Ultra. She ran 68 laps for 283.3 miles for a finish time of 56 hours, 52 minutes, and 29 seconds, setting the record for the longest distance recorded by a female runner in the race.[20]

In 2021, Dauwalter entered the Hardrock 100 but did not finish. In 2022 and 2023 she entered again and won, beating the previous women's course records for the Hardrock 100 set by Diana Finkel by over an hour, in each direction.[21] [22] Her time for the Hardrock 100 in 2023 was 26:14:08, beating the previous counter-clockwise course record (Hardrock changes the direction of its course each year) by an hour and four minutes.[23]

Also in 2023, she won the Western States 100, besting the previous women's course record set by Ellie Greenwood in 2012, finishing in a time of 15:29:34.[24] This set the overall record for the Western States–Hardrock double. With this she became the first athlete to set course records at Western States and Hardrock in the same year.[23] In September 2023, she then won the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc again, making her the first person in history to win the triple of Western States, Hardrock, and UTMB in a single year.[3]

In 2024, Dauwalter continued her winning streak by securing first place at the Mt. Fuji 100 Mile in Fujiyoshida, Japan, completing the 165.4 km race in 19:21:22 and finishing 3rd overall.[25] She also won the Transgrancanaria in the Canary Islands, Spain, finishing the 126 km race in 15:14:54.[26]

As of 2019, she was sponsored by Salomon.[27]

"Shortney" Shorts

Dauwalter is famous for her distinctivly long, "baggy" shorts, which she frequently wears during ultrarunning competitions. These shorts were dubbed "Shortney" shorts by Salomon,[28] when it launched a "Shortney" capsule collection in 2023 including oversized technical trail shorts and a T-shirt.[29] Her shorts have been described as making runners feel "rebellious" against the trend of shrinking women's running shorts.[30]

Awards and recognition

Dauwalter was named Ultra Runner of the Year in 2018 by Ultrarunning Magazine after winning 9 of the 12 races that she entered, including two where she finished first overall.[31]

In 2020, she received the George Mallory Award at the Wasatch Mountain Film Festival for pushing the boundaries of physical human achievement.[32]

Selected race results

2024Hardrock 100Silverton, CO, USA1st100 mi26:11:49Women's course record
Mt. Fuji 100 MileFujiyoshida, Japan1st100 mi19:21:223rd overall, Women's course record[33]
TransgrancanariaCanary Islands, Spain1st126 km15:14:54[34]
2023Ultra-Trail du Mont-BlancChamonix, France1st100 mi23:29:14[35]
Hardrock 100Silverton, CO, USA1st100 mi26:14:12Women's course record (ccw)
Western States 100California1st100 mi15:29:34Women's course record
Bandera 100kTexas1st100 km8:59:34WSER Golden Ticket
TransgrancanariaCanary Islands, Spain1st128 km14:40:39Women's course record[36]
2022Grand RaidRéunion island1st164 km24:37:47[37]
Hardrock 100Silverton, CO, USA1st100 mi26:44:36 Women's course record (cw)
Collegiate Loop TrailTwin Lakes, Colorado, CO, USA1st160 mi40:14Fastest Known Time[38]
2021Ultra-Trail Cape Town[39] Cape Town, South Africa1st100 km11:20:04
The Barkley MarathonsFrozen Head State Park, TN, USAN/A100 miDNF
Hardrock 100Silverton, Colorado, USAN/A100 miDNF
Ultra-Trail du Mont-BlancChamonix, France1st100 mi22:30:54 Women's course record
2019Ultra-Trail du Mont-BlancChamonix, France1st100 mi24:34:26
Tarawera UltramarathonRotorua, New Zealand1st100 km9:28:04
2018Western States 100Olympic Valley, CA1st100 mi17:27:00
Ultra-Trail Mt. FujiShizuoka, Japan1st100 mi23:57:48
Tahoe 200Homewood, California1st 200 mi49:54:362nd overall
Squamish 50Squamish, British Columbia1st 50 mi8:22:15Women's course record
2017 Moab 240 Moab, Utah1st 240 mi57:55:13Overall win and course record
2016Javelina JundredFountain Hills, Arizona1st100 km8:48:25
Run Rabbit Run Steamboat Springs, Colorado1st100 mi21:23:37
2014Ouray 100Ouray, Colorado1st 100 mi26:46:20

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Byerly . Rebecca . The gruelling sport in which women appear to hold a psychological edge . . February 1, 2019 . en . December 8, 2018.
  2. Web site: Fader . Mirin . Inside the Pain Cave With Courtney Dauwalter, the GOAT of Ultrarunning . The Ringer . 2022-08-30 . 2023-09-07.
  3. Web site: 2023-08-31 . Jim Walmsley and Courtney Dauwalter win the UTMB in a historic American double . 2023-09-02 . Runner's World . en-GB.
  4. Web site: Courting Success: An Interview with Courtney Dauwalter. 17 January 2019.
  5. News: 2018-12-05. The Woman Who Outruns the Men, 200 Miles at a Time. en-US. The New York Times. 2022-01-17. 0362-4331.
  6. Web site: Education Edge Magazine features MTC Alumnus, Courtney Dauwalter '08. September 1, 2017. Mississippi Teacher Corps.
  7. Web site: Courtney Dauwalter, queen of Ultra Running . 2024-07-05 . The Pill Outdoor Journal . en-US.
  8. Web site: 2022-03-14 . Who Is Courtney Dauwalter? Meet The Woman Who Crushes Ultras . 2024-07-05 . en-US.
  9. Web site: Debutify . 2022-10-14 . Inside the Mindset - 4 Things we can Learn from Courtney Dauwalter . 2024-07-05 . Mindsetverse . en.
  10. Web site: Fader . Mirin . 2022-08-30 . Inside the Pain Cave With Courtney Dauwalter, the GOAT of Ultrarunning . 2024-07-05 . The Ringer . en.
  11. Web site: Tilton . Morgan . 2023-11-21 . Courtney Dauwalter and Her Mom Are Tackling Ultras Together Now . 2024-07-05 . Trail Runner Magazine . en-US.
  12. Web site: Schranz . Eric . Courtney Dauwalter Blind Perseverance at RRR100 . Ultrarunnerpodcast. 2017-09-15 .
  13. Web site: Rojek . Taylor . There's No Stopping Ultrarunner Courtney Dauwalter . Runners World. 2018-08-03 .
  14. Web site: Mitka . Nate . 238 Miles On Foot: Courtney Dauwalter Wins Moab Ultra . Gearjunkie. 2017-10-16 .
  15. Web site: Golden woman ran 4-mile loop for 67 hours aiming to be the last person standing in a crazy ultra-race. 2018-10-22. The Know. en-US. 2019-12-14.
  16. Web site: Big's Dog's Backyard Ultra: The Last Man Standing. 2018-11-13. YouTube.
  17. Web site: Scacco. Justin. Colorado ultrarunners shatter Tahoe 200 course records. 2020-07-01. www.sierrasun.com. en-US.
  18. Web site: 'Sluggish' Courtney Dauwalter looks back on UTMB win . 2019-12-14 . Trail Running . en-US.
  19. Web site: Strout . Erin . 2019-09-18 . Ultrarunning Star Courtney Dauwalter's Superpower? Don't Overthink It . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20191214213953/https://www.womensrunning.com/2019/09/training/ultrarunning-star-courtney-dauwalters-superpower-dont-overthink-it_103069 . 2019-12-14 . 2019-12-14 . Women's Running . en-US.
  20. Web site: 20 October 2020 . Courtney Dauwalter Wins U.S. Big's Backyard Ultra with a Record-Tying Effort .
  21. Web site: 2017-04-26 . Pacing Diana . 2023-07-15 . Trail Runner Magazine . en-US.
  22. Web site: OpenSplitTime: Full results - Hardrock 100 2023 . 2023-07-15 . www.opensplittime.org.
  23. Web site: Courtney Dauwalter Obliterates Another 100-Mile Course Record. July 16, 2023. Runner's World.
  24. Web site: Ultra runner Courtney Dauwalter breaks record of world’s oldest 100-mile race by almost 80 minutes . 2023-06-26 . CNN . en-US.
  25. Web site: Turner . Jonathan . 2024-04-26 . Mt. Fuji 100 2024 results: Courtney Dauwalter crushes women's race and is third overall . 2024-07-03 . RUN247 . en-GB.
  26. Web site: Courtney Dauwalter and Raul Butaci win The North Face Transgrancanaria Classic TRANSGRANCANARIA - WEB OFICIAL . 2024-07-03 . en-US.
  27. Web site: Michelson . Megan . 2019-10-08 . Inside the Mind of Ultrarunner Courtney Dauwalter . 2019-12-26 . REI Co-op Journal . en-US.
  28. Web site: Pineda . Leonard . 2023-06-06 . ‘Shortney’ Running Shorts Worn By Courtney Dauwalter Now Available At Salomon . 2024-07-05 . Backpackers.com . en-US.
  29. Web site: 2023-05-10 . You Can Now Buy Courtney Dauwalter’s Signature Long Shorts: "The Shortney" . 2024-07-05 . Runner's World . en-US.
  30. Web site: 2023-09-14 . Why Are Women's Running Shorts So Short? . 2024-07-05 . LYFTLYFE APPAREL . en.
  31. Web site: Dauwalter and Walmsley 2018 UltraRunners of the Year. 16 January 2019.
  32. Web site: George Mallory Award . 2020-12-16 . Wasatch Mountain Film Festival . en-US.
  33. Web site: Courtney Dauwalter makes history again in Fuji! . worldtrailmajors.com . April 30, 2024 .
  34. Web site: Courtney Dauwalter and Raul Butaci win The North Face Transgrancanaria Classic . transgrancanaria.net/ . Feb 24, 2024 .
  35. Web site: Courtney Dauwalter secures historic treble with UTMB 2023 victory . run247.com . 2 September 2023 .
  36. Web site: Courtney Dauwalter dominates Transgrancanaria in record-setting fashion. Canadian Running . February 26, 2023 .
  37. https://grandraid-reunion-oxybol.livetrail.run/coureur.php?rech=1950
  38. Web site: Courtney Dauwalter sets a remarkable FKT in Colorado . Canadian Running . September 1, 2022 .
  39. https://sportraxs.com/races/661/leaderboard