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Two men are traveling through Utah this week, crossing the entire country on foot. They're running, not walking, trying to set an all-time speed record; and a Utah woman has joined them for a sizable chunk of their ordeal.
A stretch of U.S. 50, called "The Loneliest Road in America," is a perfect place for ultra-ultra-marathoner Marshall Ulrich. "Right now we're getting some rolling hills. That suits me just well. I like the variation of terrain," he said.
A few miles back is his colleague on the cross-country run, Charlie Engel. "It's certainly a personal quest to see if something like this can even be done, because I'm not sure," he said.
Engel has company the next few days with Utah ultra-marathoner Lorie Hutchison. She said, "I figure if he can run across America, hopefully I can make it across Utah."
Think about it, they're out of bed every day and running about 70 miles, every day. "Yeah, this is a whole ‘nother challenge for me because this is day after day after day of running," Hutchinson said. We asked her why she punishes herself when she could be sitting at home on the couch. Her response: "Yeah, why sit at home is what I say. There's no reason to sit on the couch when you can be outside. I mean, this is beautiful out here."
The Utah section is about 350 miles, stretching from Delta to Spanish Fork to Vernal. It will take five or six days to cross the Utah canyons, deserts and mountains, 45 days to cross the continent.
"On some level it's very painful and there's a lot of suffering that's involved with it, so you just have to block that out," Ulrich said.
It has been done before. The previous runner went 3,000 miles in a little over 46 days. The goal of the two men is to beat that record.
"In those low, low spots you just have to understand that you'll come back," Ulrich said.
The runners are partnered with United Way, raising funds and awareness for youth fitness. As Engel says, "To show them what can be done."
Physical problems have slowed them down, so they're about a day behind schedule. You can follow their progress and contribute to their charity by clicking on the related link at the right.
E-mail: hollenhorst@ksl.com
