Trail Running World Champions
Adam Peterman (EnvSt, Geol’18), Allie McLaughlin (Comm, Psych’13) and Joe DeMoor (Anth, Engl’12) closed out 2022 by winning gold medals at the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships in Chiang Mai, Thailand, and the Skyrunning World Championships in Italy’s Ossola Valley.
Peterman, who only began trail racing in 2019, won the long trail race at Chiang Mai, running 48.4 miles with 16,000 feet of vertical gain in 7:15:53.
“It was incredible to represent Team USA,” he said. “The course was unlike anything I’ve experienced. The route traveled on dirt roads that connect remote villages.”
The world championship capped Peterman’s dominant 2022: first place at the Chuckanut 50K, Canyons Endurance Run 100K and Western States 100-miler.
“Last year, I won all my ultras, but I’ll get knocked down eventually,” said Peterman. “These races can be gnarly.”
McLaughlin — or “Allie Mac” — has been trail racing for a decade.
“The biggest challenge after college was learning to train the body and mind for intense downhill,” she said. “And the length of ultras.”
She won the 5.5-mile, 4,400-foot elevation gain Vertical Mountain Race in Chiang Mai and finished third in the Classic Mountain Race. Additional 2022 victories included Alaska’s Mount Marathon, the Broken Arrow Skyrace Vertical Kilometer and two Golden Trail Series stages. She’s also completed over 300 skydives and recently began paragliding and BASE jumping.
“I hope to fly and jump in the beautiful places I’ll be racing,” she said.
DeMoor earned gold in the Skyrunning World Championships Vertical — 3.1 miles with 3,000 feet of elevation gain, a staggering scramble he calls the “fun side of running.”
He credits living in Colorado for his training gains. He spends weekends running up mountains and completing fastest-known times (FKTs) for ascents. He has summited the state’s top 100 peaks and set FKTs for over 20 routes in the last two years.
“I love chasing down summits. It’s equal parts route knowledge and fitness,” he said. “I feel like a student of the mountains.”
Photos by Andrew Cochran; Peter Maksimow; Luca Dotti