Meyer posts historic 50K win

November 5, 2018

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Maryland man moves into 4th on all-time performance list

* Overall results – with midway splits
* Age group winners
* Women’s race recap
* All-time performance records (PDF)
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* Photos by Mitch Hawbaker (on FB)
* Register for FOTM 2019

LITTLE ORLEANS, Nov. 4, 2018 — Move over, Eric Benjamin. There’s a new guy taking over the fourth-best all-time performance.

Photo by Kevin Spradlin
Lucas Meyer held a 23-minute lead over Adam Lowe as he approached Aid Station 6 at Mile 23.9.

Lucas Meyer, a 35-year-old Connecticut transplant now living in Silver Spring, Maryland, led from Aid Station 1 at mile 5.6 to the finish line of the eighth Fire on the Mountain 50K in Green Ridge State Forest in dominating fashion. He cruised to victory in a time of 4 hours, 43 minutes and 9 seconds, a record time for the race since it converted to an out-and-back course in 2016. The event record remains the property of Michael Daigeaun, who ran a 4:31:59.5 in 2014.

The effort pushes down Benjamin’s 2010 win to the fifth slot, which drops the 2013 run from Dana Sanford — incidentally, from Silver Spring — off the all-time top 10 list.

Meyer’s effort is only the sixth performance under five hours. His win is further distinguished by being the only male runner to earn an all-time top 10 time since the course was changed to an out-and-back event in 2016.

Coming into the race, the men’s field figured to be a fight between Meyer, Adam Lowe, Cody Harris, Wouter Zwart and Trevor Wolfe. Barring a setback, though, Meyer had put first place out of the reach of anyone else by the midway point. He led by four minutes at Aid Station 2, where the Long Pond (red) Trail intersections with the Big Run/Deep Run (green) Trail at mile 8.9.

Seven miles later, at the “oasis” at mile 16.4, Meyer held an 11-minute advantage over his closest competitor in Lowe, 36, of Hancock. Lowe competed in the 2017 event as a relay teammate, and ran the first half of the course 12 months ago in 2 hours and 33 minutes. At that point, he led the field by two minutes.

Photo by Kevin Spradlin
Lucas Meyer holds his prize — a full-length bear carved by Garrett County artist Bob Wilt — after racing to FOTM victory in historic fashion.

On Sunday, the mud and dozens of stream crossings failed to slow him down as he pushed to a 2:31 first half — and still couldn’t see Meyer.

At that point, it became a race for second for Lowe and the chase pack. Harris, 31, of Blandon, Pa., reached the midway point in 2:44, 13 minutes behind Lowe. Michelle Kent reported to the oasis in fourth in 2:45 — she placed sixth overall — while Wolfe was fifth, also in 2:45.

Lowe, 36, of Hancock, Md., maintained second place and stopped the clock in 5:28:50. Zwart, 28, of Tucson, Arizona, took third overall in 5:43:38 while Harris placed fourth in 5:46:19. Wolfe, 30, of Maidsville, W.Va., posted a 6:04:48 before racing back home in time to travel for a work-related event in Chicago.

Photo by Kevin Spradlin
Lucas Meyer is the first of more than 60 runners to earn a chance to throw a log onto the fire after completing the 32.8-mile trail race.

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