Courtney Dauwalter, 2023 Western States 100 Champion, Interview

[@joshuasasfire2759]

She’s so nice for being insane!

[@andrearatkovic4048]

🤣😂

[@obsidiantain]

It’s amazing that she so often refers to “we” rather than “me”. Such an incredible athlete.

[@tillsen]

kind of eeks me out, i know its a team effort but forcing it feels lika disassociation and engrandizing.

[@Bhov713]

@@tillsennot at all, she just realizes that she is part of a team, it’s not an individual sport. Courtney is literally the opposite of aggrandizing

[@Paspa1801]

@@tillsen She talked about herself as an individual lots too. The fact that acknowledging her team made you feel weird just makes me think you’re an ego maniac

[@rmsrmsrmsrms]

The royal we!

[@jillsy2815]

@@tillsenShe acknowledges that her husband does all the thinking and planning. Plus all the help with nutrition which is a HUGE thing to actually get right. I do understand it can sound funny at times but she only says it in the most humble way. Peace.

[@Mr_Fairdale]

She just “gets it.” It’s so rare when an athlete not only has her once in a generation level talent, but she also has the self awareness and personality to match. Nothing controversial about her, just a focus on rational positivity and excellence.

[@pasadenaphil8804]

The most fascinating thing about Courtney is how she handles (and explains) the psychology of her running approach. She has found a way to enjoy the agony of pushing herself to the limit (which never seems to be the limit). These races are pure agony.

[@kellysmith1135]

Congratulations on such an impressive win! So talented but yet so humble and appreciative. Best of luck at Hardrock!

[@jampuppy]

Love Courtney. Great interview and unbelievable time! 🎉🎉🎉

[@trailahead]

She's so humble and seems like a nice person. It seems insane that she's going to go for it again in just 3 weeks. I hope physiologists are working with her I'm fascinated by what the human body can do under intense stress like this

[@jerseyboy8017]

My new athletic hero. She was amazing from start to finish and smiling all the time. The top women were all crazy strong. Oh and #2 broke the previous record too. Wow. Just wow.

[@shawnbrennan7526]

Such a great ambassador for the sport. I remember running pikes peak with her a few times before she got famous. Just such a natural runner - who has built on that with such incredible focus and effort.

[@Sunnydaypicnic]

Courtney makes it REALLY hard to route for an underdog! 😻

[@LDuquetteLD]

I love her! I loved hearing what went through her mind and body during the race. I was so mad when her interview was cut so suddenly right after her win. It was midnight for me and was waiting for her to finish and hear her, and she didn’t have the chance because of the rest of the man were finishing their race. I get why they did it, but I hated it. She accomplished something unbelievable. She has set the bar super high now for the rest of the women field.

[@deskotjes6536]

A little further into the stream they said she actually threw up after the interview attempt und had to take a little medical time out and they didn't wanna bother her further but let her recover.

[@LDuquetteLD]

@@deskotjes6536 Yes, I saw that later. I feel like they had a small window for her to talk while the adrenaline was still pumping after that massive effort and they missed it. I understand how it played out since they are doing the interviews right next to the finish line, so runners would cross right in front of them, but I am a big fan of hers and took it a little personal Lol. She is fresh as a daisy here! How amazing is that.

[@yorkbeachrunner]

🎉Yay🎉Love her!!!Great job!looking forward to Hardrock. Hope they have amazing live feed like Western States!!!

[@jillsy2815]

Last year they had a link too where you could see every single runner and the elevation was drawn. It was amazing. (Hardrock)

[@jasonwooden]

Mega-Congrats Courtney! Wow- what a race!! So inspiring. Wonderful interview you two. What synergy.

[@haraldk.2551]

and megan: love your interviews, always such a pleasure! 👍

[@tombriggs-hx2gm]

What an attitude. She doesn’t even mention winning at the end, just making it to the track. And you could tell she bristled a little at the Eye of the Tiger comment. A very interesting person and unconventional athlete.

[@fiveafterseven]

This was a great interview! Amazing questions that really catered to Courtney’s outlook and personality!

[@jillsy2815]

I didn't think I could love Courtney more nor be more amazed and awed but sitting here with tears in my eyes! Meghan INCREDIBLE job bringing out the details of her mindset🎉🎉🎉❤️❤️❤️🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽

[@puravida05tica]

Great interview! Love how Megan doesn't press her like other interviewers about how she 'must' be aware of how great she is and how she 'must' be calculating her splits and just not just running by feel--despite courtney repeatedly saying no, and them apparently not taking her seriously. Feel like we hear so much more detail from her in these lovely irunfar interviews than most others. :) Thanks Megan and Courtney!

[@bugbean5500]

So true, I really love Megan's interview style and the dynamic between them. I've noticed something similar at the trail running world championships in Innsbruck some weeks ago. Most interviewers have asked the same kinds of questions, oftentimes digging into things not going perfectly for the athlete who seemed to feel quite uncomfortable, only giving short answers etc. And then there have been some Austrian dudes who run a running podcast who were just celebrating this great sport of trail running with the athletes in their interviews, being nice and appreciative about their achievements, getting them some beer etc. And guess what: they laughed, talked a lot, provided many details, shared stories and so on. It was so nice to see and I don't understand why so many sports interviewers are behaving in this dickish kind of way.

[@tabe5686]

She will always be on the Mr. Rushmore of Ultras! Awesome stuff. I love following her journey. She's truly an inspiration! She has opened the door and put a spotlight on ultras.

[@t5kcannon1]

Congratulations Courtney Dauwalter! Amazing athlete.

[@lbanderson40]

SHE IS ALREADY SUCH A ICON! What a beautiful soul!

[@louisdore-savard8429]

That was by far the best Ultra performance I am aware of. Truly history-making. But let's contemplate the remote possibility that Courtney Dauwalter might win Hard Rock in three weeks. How huge would that be?

[@Bhov713]

Agreed, but it’s not remote at all!

[@jillsy2815]

I don't think that possibility is remote at all. I wouldn't be surprised.

[@tubesockets120v]

She avenged her DNF in savage fashion.

[@koosticdead]

Yep. She’s amazing. Hardrock repeat?! LFG

[@RachelWhelton]

One of the top ten ever iRunFar interviews!

[@amyfriesland723]

Such class!! I absolutely love her!! Congratulations, Courtney!! You are amazing and such an inspiration!!

[@cameronmueller]

So down to earth. Purely her. Keep at it Courtney best of luck at Hardrock in 3 weeks!!

[@joanneleyva4942]

THE GOAT!!! So humble and down to earth.

[@madr309]

If this woman has a pain cave, she sure doesn't show it on her face. I watched her coming down from Robie Point and on to the track, and she looked like she was finishing up a 3-mile fun run - laughing, smiling, high-fiving the crowd. Amazing athlete.

[@timlofton6595]

She looked the same at Rucky Chucky. Like a day at the fair.

[@madr309]

@@timlofton6595 "Hi, this is Courtney!...oh, nothing much, just going for a little run in the woods.... Yeah, 100.2 miles in 15:29:34, new course record, no biggie. Same old same old, y'know?"

[@lindal986]

Such a great dynamic between you two, now this is the race people will talk about, great win Courtney!

[@insiderugbywithmark]

There have been moments in the history of sports where a generational performance transformed the sport, its so called barriers and open the door to incredible periods in those sports. Roger Bannisters sub four min mile, Eliud Kipchoge sub 2hr marathon and now Courtneys performance at WSER 2023. This moment in time will be forever remembered for what women CAN do in the sport of Ultra distance running. All previous believed myths have been removed. Amazing performance Courtney and Team.

[@therescueheart892]

Agree on the love of the "we". So unlike the outsized declarations of the Hollywood folks at award time always saying "thank you to MY producer", seriously? as if they own folks. Courtney gets what is really the deal with living a good fulfilled life, hands down :)

[@fitnessonthemovellc]

So awesome. You just have to love Courtney. She's such a joy to watch compete and is so easy to like! What an incredible athlete!

[@jp05598]

One of the best performances I’ve ever seen! Where is Courtney getting all of these exclusive ass Salomon shirts?! Lol, this one is friggen doppppppe

[@urbancanyons8871]

She's sponsored by Salomon

[@jp05598]

@@urbancanyons8871 lol dude, I know that but I haven’t seen some of the shirts she wears by them be commercially available

[@bernardknoll-ej5nq]

@@jp05598 most brands keep stuff just for their athletes.

[@moxerl]

Love the shirt, too! Would buy!

[@bctrailbagger]

What a great trail and ultra ambassador and gracious bearer of the torch in full respect for Ellie's contribution for the sport!

[@jillsy2815]

Yes!!! And how she then said she hoped other women would crush her own record!!! Brought me to tears

[@stevedryer2229]

GOAT...

[@shawnbrennan7526]

Q: Will your record hold for a long time? A: I hope not. True class!

[@jillsy2815]

yesssssss that one got me

[@shawnat8799]

I love you Courtney!!!

[@millermiller75]

Great interview.

[@tonybowen455]

So good, congrats! GL at hard rock!

[@outdoors2476]

The take-away for a strategy here was run fast, blow through aid stations, and smile. 🥵😂

[@kristinegoodman7534]

LOVE Courtney!

[@richvantol6585]

What an immense accomplishment!

[@nathanj31]

Great interview!

[@kentuckyhills454]

Very inspiring 👏 🙌 #GOAT

[@DnBarPoet77]

She's wonderful! What an amazing finish time!

[@brookie_cuqui]

All class. Courtney and her team are total 🔥

[@LukasD89]

Beating Mathieu who battled Kilian to the brink at UTMB is quite insane (though I don’t know how his race went)

[@ColdMamba78]

Blanchard never won a race, Battled Kilian? I would say Kilian kept him in respect at (short enough) distance. This beeing said, Salomon should question their men athlete choice... Women, job is done. Great Courtney!

[@LukasD89]

@@ColdMamba78 well in my opinion being beaten with 10k to go over a distance of 170k and ending up five minutes behind Kilian also doing sub 20h is quite remarkable

[@ColdMamba78]

@@LukasD89 of course. My point is : Why to do such races if he still have 0 win year after year. Maybe he should see with Salomon to be less ambitious. His best resultat was when he was not sponsored by Salomon 😅. Truth is : he is behind his female Salomon colleague. His year of "preparation" all over the world, with a catastrophic environmental footprint, has a terrible result... It's hard to say, but in the end, what kind of message can be adressed by Salomon or even to any standard trailer to the next generation for this nature sport?

[@contrelecourant]

Elle est tellement exceptionnelle!

[@mathews0618]

Love her. What a vibe

[@rochellesherman5159]

Congratulations! 🎉

[@TempoKemp]

Would love to have heard her thoughts on not having pacers. I know she almost always runs solo, but why for her.

[@durianwalker]

Nice work C!

[@mjrose6606]

all class 🐐🔥

[@tjflash60]

Awesome👏🏼

[@Nayz13]

I love how inclusive she is of everyone’s efforts around her own, she’s one of a kind and a huge inspiration for women.

[@myphone9831]

I am fascinated at their ability to stand up and function the day after booking 100 miles

[@MarkGriffith]

I was at Pointed Rocks when Courtney came through and Kevin left himself in a run to get to the car to get to the finish line :)

[@iRunFarMedia]

I mean, can you IMAGINE the all-day sprint of her crew to stay ahead of her pace?! -Meghan

[@ericverploeg6980]

@MarkGriffith Maybe you can answer this question I had from watching the live stream. Courtney didn't even stop at several of the aid stations. How did she get enough food and liquids? Did her crew supply her right before or after each of those aid stations?

[@MarkGriffith]

Hey Eric - depended on aid station. At Devils Thumb she for sure stopped, refueled, water and iced down. At Forest Hill she stopped along the road before the aid station with her crew and then just ran through - which is why it looked like she didn’t stop and then at Pointed Rocks - just a bottle switch since it was like 6 miles left. So she got what she needed for sure.

[@ericverploeg]

@@MarkGriffith Thanks for the on-the-ground info!

[@helaynelehman668]

Go GET IT!!! 🎉🎊🎉😂

[@JTM197]

She is the definition of a dawg! So rad!

[@dweyhrauch09]

Every time I play a video of Courtney, my laptop runs faster

[@justrione]

Congratulations

[@Shevock]

What A High point for the sport!

[@iRunFarMedia]

Accurate statement. -Meghan

[@fuscia13]

GOAT 🐐🎉

[@IndyRickHikes]

What did we see? A human Secretariat. Complete dominance. 🍿

[@roustabout4fun]

Good stuff! Get that lady a Colgate commercial~ The future Is so bright she has to wear shades! Good luck with your next challenge~s~.

[@leorunsoregon2082]

😍😍😍😍

[@michaelaustria208]

💙🌱💙

[@jimduyck]

I 100% knew this was going to be a laugh fest before clicking play! 🤣

[@dilochetty9332]

what a time..well done.. comrades marathon next?

[@jillsy2815]

Hardrock 100 miler in 3 weeks

[@NevadaJohn1]

Can anyone translate this? All I heard was BAAAAAAAAH BAAAAAAAAH. Sorry I don’t understand GOAT

[@urbancanyons8871]

She's a fantastic runner but her interviews are consistently frustrating and almost impossible to get any detail beyond "it was so fun".

[@urbancanyons8871]

Until the interviewer got her pace wrong and she was all over it... Weird.

[@billbraski]

Legend. G.O.A.T status obtained

[@brucerhodes8197]

She obtained legend status long ago, she's just padding the resume now.... in 2017 she destroyed the entire field at the moab 240, finishing over 10 HOURS ahead of the 2nd place finisher, a male....

[@philipstapert3517]

I've been around long enough that I remember watching the same interview with Ellie Greenwood 11 years ago. At that time Ann Trason's record was considered unbeatable. All 3 are very classy and amazing women! kzbin.info/www/bejne/sKSqgKmJrtZojMU

[@afurmuzan]

Incredible achievement, but the title is misleading. She was not the champion. She finished 6th.

[@iRunFarMedia]

There are two races at events like these, a women's race and a men's race. Tom Evans won the men's race, Courtney won the women's race. Both are champions. -Meghan

[@millermiller75]

Did the weather play a big part in this record?

[@louisdore-savard8429]

For sure, place the same people on the same course, but at 86F (30C), we are not looking at the same times today. Some say Jim Walmsley would break 14 hours at last weekend's temperatures but hey, you gotta race it!

[@bernardknoll-ej5nq]

Weather definitely has a impact on records at WS100.

[@jillsy2815]

But they also had that 15 miles of snow to slow them down.

[@timwildauer5063]

**smashes the course record** “my main goal was to make it across the finish line” 😂

[@johnnyd.j.6068]

rad

[@SOTGAce]

She beat the all time course record of 14:30ish?

[@iRunFarMedia]

There are two races at this event, a women's race and a men's race. Accordingly, there are also two course records, one for each race. The men's course record is held at 14:09:28, set by Jim Walmsley in 2019. The women's course record is now held at 15:29:33, set by her this weekend. -Meghan

[@1519Spring]

The women's race course record Courtney shattered Saturday was 16:47, set by Ellie Greenwood in 2012.

[@1519Spring]

I would have liked a question on Courtney's reported vomiting shortly after finishing and what she thinks caused or contributed to that.

[@bernardknoll-ej5nq]

Running 100 miles in the heat. Just a guess.

[@jillsy2815]

@@bernardknoll-ej5nq😂😂😂😂😂

[@slowjamcdub]

👏👏👏👏🫶🫶🫶🫶

[@davidaldridge5716]

•• She’s due to go back on Joe Rogan ✌🏽

[@mclifton1250]

If you don’t like her then you have some serious issues.

[@bearcub1811]

Love love this woman but someone please buy her a bottle of sunscreen. She cannot beat records and win races if she dies at 40 from skin cancer.

[@RunnersHighCompany]

Courtney is my wife …. She just don’t know it yet

[@molder2233]

*doesn’t. If you want her to be your wife, you had better learn how to speak and write properly.

[@mmmmmmmk]

*every breath you take starts playing*

[@elvay6847]

You must have really low standards....

[@jillsy2815]

She's married

[@SergiuSalcau00]

Happy for Courtney ❤ she s such a beast!

[@nightsyrkahcum]

Congrats!

[@haraldk.2551]

nothing but love and respect for this woman! she definitely has a different approach to running and as it seems also to life itself. it seems to me more of a spiritual matter. 🤍

[@jillsy2815]

Absolutely!!! 🙏🏽❤️