Marathon & Beyond's "On the Trail" columnist Meghan Hicks finished the Silver City Endurance Runs 100K on June 22, 2013, with a time of 12:54, good for first place woman and second place overall. Meghan ran a consistent race and moved up through the field with "extra juice in the tank to let 'er rip" for the last eight miles. Directed by Pickled Feet Ultra Running, the Silver City trail race in southwest Idaho features a friendly vibe and full complement of high desert terrain. Photo courtesy of Tony Salazar, Tempus Photo Design.

New this year on a breathtakingly beautiful course is Vail, Colorado's only trail marathon. Race directors Carl and Cynthia Bruggeman of Speckled-Hound Racing are ecstatic about the scenic route on the northern side of Vail that takes runners along high elevation dirt roads and climbing single track trails in the White River National Forest. 

"We're fortunate," says Carl "that the USFS has agreed to permit our event in this remarkable backcountry." Granted for one year only on this route to Lost Lake, the Vail Victory Trail Marathon is a must-do marathon for trail runners who want to experience the incredible beauty of the Colorado Rockies in fall. 

As former associate publisher of Trail Runner magazine, Cynthia is familiar with some of the most spectacular trail runs in the U.S. "We wanted to create a course," she states "that would not only showcase our incredible mountain vistas, but also remind athletes why they run and reinforce what we all intrinsically know: that trail running feeds the soul."

Ron Duncan became an M&B subscriber in the late 1990s after noticing "an intriguing, magazine/book" at a local book store. When not running, he is a manager and technologist at a Silicon Valley company that makes software for chip designers. Ron and his wife, Kyla, have two sons and live in Los Gatos, a suburb of San Jose.

Tell me about your running background. When did you start running?

Not sure how to answer that. I think I've always been a runner. As a 6-year-old growing up in Iowa, I used to race a schoolmate one mile on the way home everyday. I was an 800 meter track guy when I was in junior high and high school. I was more into basketball at the time so I never formally ran cross-country. Our high school track and cross country coach always encouraged me to run races longer than the 800, but I resisted...Ha! If he could only see me now!

Have you been running consistently since then?

I moved to the Bay Area after going to college in Boston and Ithaca, NY. I immediately enjoyed the year-round running environment in northern California. I started out running a few miles at lunchtime with co-workers. I ran a few 5Ks, then a 10 miler. In 1992, I ran San Francisco as my first marathon. Over-ambitious and under-trained, I took on the challenge of another runner to "see if I could run a Boston qualifier." Like many inexperienced marathoners, I went out too fast and crashed and burned after about 22 miles and a 3:05 pace turned into a 3:22 finishing time. My work and life got really busy, and I didn't try the marathon again until 1998. I had a nearly identical performance and crashed in the last few miles, posting another 3:22 time. I guess it took me a while, but I decided to make running part of my lifestyle instead of gearing up for a particular race. I'm not a "streaker" by any means, but I've been pretty consistent. Since our second son was born twelve years ago, I haven't gone a full week without at least one run. The week he was born, I decided that I wanted to stay in shape long enough to run a marathon with him - if and when he wants to run one. If he's like me, that might mean I'd need to stay in shape for 28 years! I started logging miles and tracking my progress against an annual mileage goal as a way to stay consistent. In 2001, my goal was 1000 miles. In 2002, it was 2000 miles. In 2003, 3000 miles... on New Year's Eve of 2004, after hitting a new high of 4000 miles my wife wisely commented that this trend "was not scalable." Since then, I've consistently logged between 2500-4000 miles a year.

Did that extra training pay off?

You bet! I learned a lot about myself as a runner. First, I learned that I could find the time and energy to train a lot more than 40-50 miles a week. I thought I was maxing out by running 6-7 miles a day, every day. After getting in several 100+ mile weeks, I found that my body actually started to respond quite well to high mileage. Second, I learned to be more patient early in races, got my first BQ in 2002 (running 3:08) and have posted many BQ and sub-3:00 times over the last 11 years. Last summer, I ran San Francisco again for the first time since my inaugural marathon in 1992. I set a goal of beating "younger Ron Duncan" from 20 years ago. I learned that, through consistent training, I was faster at 48 years old than I was at 28!

Do you run anything other than marathons?

I love running and would run anything from a 5K on up. I usually plan my year around 3-4 marathons but will hop into a half marathon or an ultra on a whim or for a training run. After 43 marathons, I consider myself mostly a road marathon guy that "masquerades" as an ultra-marathoner. I've run about 20 ultras, mostly trail 50Ks, a few 50-milers, a 100K, and several fixed-time events. I used to say that I'd never run a 100-miler, but I've stopped saying that.

What are your most memorable races?

Hmmm...The Silicon Valley Marathon of 2002 has a place in my heart because it was the first well-executed marathon I ran and my first Boston Qualifier. Every time I've run Boston has been memorable - even the hot years, like 2004 or 2012. I have lots of favorite places to hang out and many good memories from having lived there. The Napa Valley Marathon in 2009 was one of the few races where everything came together perfectly, and I set a PR (2:54). But, I think I'm hard pressed to top the "accidental" marathon I ran in Osaka in 2006...

How do you "accidentally" run a marathon?

I was in Japan on business for a week, returning to the U.S. on Saturday afternoon. On Saturday morning I got out to do my usual run on the trails near the Yodo River in Osaka. After about 3 miles, I merged into the back of a stream of runners wearing race bibs. My Japanese is not very good so it took a while for me to move up in the pack enough to find someone to chat with in English. I found another engineer, so we talked technology while running. We got to a turnaround point, and he informed me that I was halfway through with the Osaka Cherry Blossom Marathon and that I might as well turn around with him and pace him in. I paced him in to a new PR of 3:40 (he was hoping to break 4:00), and we celebrated at the finish. After taking pictures together and swapping contact information, I realized that I would have to sprint to my hotel, check out, and run to the bus to make my flight on time. I barely made it onto the plane in time (sans shower!) and squeezed into my seat. Needless to say, I got pretty stiff sitting on the long flight back to San Francisco. My wife picked me up at the airport and noted how gingerly I was walking. Her: "Rough flight, huh?"... Me: "Well, not too bad, but I accidentally ran a marathon..." Her: [Rolling her eyes] "Accidentally?! How do you accidentally run a marathon?!... Me: "Well..."

Do you have any running goals?

Running has been so good to me. I'm (almost) satisfied with my accomplishments. Perhaps it's just denial, but I think I still have one more marathon PR in me before I get too old. Also, I'd love to set a new distance PR - I've never run a race longer than 70 miles. Right now I'm ramping up training for 2014. I will turn 50 in January, and I want to kick off the year with a 50-mile birthday run. Everyone reading this is invited to come to San Jose and join me! Since it's a new age group for me, I hope to be competitive and plan to track new 50+ PRs for every distance I run. Maybe I'll get that sub-2:54 marathon time next year, too. PRs are great, but my number one running goal is longevity. I'd love to run with my grandkids one day. My dream is to be one of those octogenarians you see shuffling along at the back of the pack of a marathon or ultra and finishing with a smile! 

All hand-held water bottles are not created equal. M&B has added a new product to our selection of running gear - Hanteens by Rainbow Racing Systems. These water bottles have a unique, ergonomic design that lets you carry aid without changing your normal hand/finger position. Our staff, along with some of our loyal subscribers, have tested these out and given them "two hands up."