From Town to the Top in
13 Hours
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| Tina Ure on top on Mount Shasta. Ure went from the city plaza to he summit in a little over 13 hours. |
Ultra runner and climber Tina Ure set a one-of-a-kind record last June 2nd when she ran and climbed 14,162 foot Mt. Shasta from downtown to the summit in 13 hours, 30 minutes.
Ure was supported by her husband, Keith, along with Linda Chitwood, Kim Schwartz, Dusty Miller and her dog, Meiko.
Ure said she conceived the climb after Laurie Bagley, the women's speed record holder from Horse Camp to the summit, told Ure she should try and break her record of 2 hours and 13 minutes because she is such a strong runner.
"I know I could never even come close to her record and I prefer longer distances, so I thought of the downtown starting point," Ure said. "As far as I can tell it's never been attempted before."
Beginning at 9 p.m. at the city plaza fountain, Ure began running to the mountain with Meiko and Miller.
Ure sped up trails to Bunny Flat, arriving at midnight.
"After resting and ingesting fluids my climbing partner Kim Schwartz and I began our ascent of the mountain at around 2 a.m.," Ure said. "There was a full moon and shooting stars."
Ure said climber Linda Chitwood and Keith Ure went ahead to Lake Helen, with Chitwood heading to the summit to meet her.
"Keith waited at Lake Helen to supply Kim and I with extra climbing gear, warmth and encouragement," Tina Ure said.
She said the climb went smoothly, but was more difficult than she had imagined.
"My legs felt fatigued, especially the last push up Misery Hill. I now fully appreciate the name given to that stretch," Ure said. "We rested frequently. Kim was patient and encouraging, a perfect climbing partner. She gave me chocolate covered espresso beans whenever I yawned or looked like I might fall asleep on the mountain."
With Chitwood waiting at the top, Ure summited at 10:30 a.m., going over 10,500 vertical feet from downtown to the top of Mount Shasta.
"It was harder than I thought it was going to be, but I'm used to pushing tired legs onward, in this case upward, to get to the finish," Ure said. "It wasn't the farthest I've ever run, 62.5 miles, or the most climbing, 15,000 vertical feet, in the same race, but because the uphill was continuous rather than broken up with downhills, it was one of the toughest."
Four hours of downhill climbing and sliding brought Ure back to her car.
"I'm glad I did it," she said. "But in the future I think I'll stick with the basic climb, which is more fun."
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