Hots update four and a half days!
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i had to wait on this one until everyone had checked in.
so much was being decided this 12 hour period!
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well, the race isnt exactly decided.
because john still has 44 miles to cover.
but he made what we call a decisive move today,
fairly flying up dunlap mountain.
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he covered 10 more miles going up the mountain,
than lupton and trinkle did reaching it.
the race is john clarke’s to lose.
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turner was another 7 miles back not quite to lusk
and durst trailed him by 11
and wasnt quite to pikeville.
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lots of people will be going thru dunlap tonight
we will find out if that mountain has some bite to go with its bark.
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we are relatively certain that john took a sleep break in pikeville.
so the odds are good he is going straight thru to the end.
henry and brian’s mileage would indicate they have also taken their last break.
john could afford another break without giving up his now huge lead
(especially considering that henry and brian still have to climb dunlap mountain)
but their prospects are dependent on who can best weather the sleep deprivation and fatigue the rest of the way.
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way back in grim reaperland,
today was equally important.
just for a different sort of race.
tomorrow morning’s checkin marks 5 days;
the halfway point of the race..
anyone with less than half the race complete is in serious trouble…
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diane taylor is the most exposed.
she caught the grim reaper today,
but it required a 22 mile surge…
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more than henry or brian either one mustered.
can she get thru the night without a total collapse?
she wont be putting on another 22 mile day tomorrow.
tomorrow the real heat returns.
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diane’s race is hanging by a thread.
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all the other people in the oprah friends club are in decent shape tonight.
they are all close enough to have a sub-par night and still be past the halfway mark.
but we cannot forget that it is going to be 100 degrees out there tomorrow.
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so, if you are curious about what these runners’ prospects are
just look on the google tracking sheet and figure out how many miles they got this last 12 hours.
it doesnt take real strong math skills to see what trajectory people are on.
those who are losing ground to the cutoff every day are in trouble.
the weather and the course are both about to get harder….
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and oprah never wavers.
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Categories: HOTS