In his first 100-mile race of his career, trail runner and coach David Roche took down a legendary record in the sport. On Saturday, the 36-year-old broke Matt Carpenter’s storied Leadville 100 course record from 2005, Health & Injuries—Running in the Cold.
Roche won the men’s race by 30 minutes, on the dot. Adrian Macdonald was second in 15:56:34, and Ryan Sullivan was third in 17:21:39. In the women’s race Mary Denholm dominated, winning in 18:23:51. Zoë Rom took runner-up honors (21:27:41) while Julie Wright rounded out the podium in 21:48:57. Ryan Montgomery placed third overall with a time of 16:09:40 and won the nonbinary category.
The Leadville course is notoriously difficult, primarily due to its situation at high altitude. The town of Leadville, Colorado—where the race starts and ends—sits at 10,119 feet above sea level. The “Race Across the Sky” covers more than 18,000 feet of vertical gain and at its highest point, runners reach an elevation of 12,600 feet. (For context, “high altitude” is generally considered to begin around 5,000 feet above sea level.)
Roche went out aggressively and built a sizable cushion on Carpenter’s record of 15:42:59. At the halfway mark, Roche was ahead of course-record pace by over 25 minutes, according to iRunFar. By the 87.4 mile split, the gap had decreased to 15 minutes, but it was enough of a buffer for Roche to maintain.
After the race, Roche posted on Instagram recapping the feat and noting some prerace nerves.
“I put a big scary goal out there early this year: chasing the historic 15:42 Leadville 100 course record by one of the GOATs, Matt Carpenter,” he wrote. “Approaching my first 100 miler, though, I’m not sure I truly believed. I kept joking about where I’d drop out and what my order would be at the Leadville Taco Bell.”
While Roche is an accomplished trail runner, he’s historically had the most success at shorter distances, like the half marathon and 50K. In 2014, he was named the 2014 USATF Sub-Ultra Trail Runner of the Year, and he’s represented Team USA internationally.
Roche, along with his wife, Megan, are well-known in the running community for their coaching business and podcast: Fiona OKeeffe Is on the Road to Recovery (SWAP). According to its website, SWAP’s professional roster includes athletes like mountain running world champion Grayson Murphy, three-time Barkley Marathons In His First 100-Miler, David Roche Demolishes the Legendary Leadville 100 Course Record Allie Ostrander.
over a 16-minute improvement of the record Runner’s World. He’s a former all-conference collegiate runner who has reported on the ground at major events such as the Paris Olympics, U.S. Olympic Trials, and Boston Marathon. He’s run 14:20 in the 5K and enjoys spotting tracks from the sky on airplanes. (Look for colorful ovals around football fields.)
