Molke says one line at 40 miles turned his Javelina race
The Javelina 100 Mile champion credits Matt Zupan for snapping him out of a bad patch before his third loop.
Rob Molke says the 2026 Javelina Jundred turned on something another runner told him around 40 miles. Speaking in a clip posted by Freetrail, the men's champion credited Matt Zupan, who was on the podium with him at Big Alta and ran in and out of the aid station with him on the second and third loops.
Molke said the reminder was simple. You are 40 miles into a 100 mile race, you are not supposed to feel good, and the people ahead of you look worse than you do.
"And I went off on that third loop, and I started to pick people off slowly," Molke said.
And I went off on that third loop, and I started to pick people off slowly.
Patience won the day
That matches how Zach Bitter and Jeff Garmire read the race on Bitter's Run The News. Javelina traditionally goes out very fast. This year, they said, it rewarded restraint. Bitter's notes describe Molke as the more conservative runner who closed late, and on the women's side Carla's first loop was slower than the year before, when she dropped out.
The finishes were tight. The men's top five came in within about 15 minutes, with first through third separated by roughly seven minutes. The women's first and second were 55 seconds apart, and the top five fit inside 24 minutes. Neither eventual winner led at the start of the final loop.
Conditions did not help anyone who went out hot. Heavy rain, mud, lightning and humidity in the 70 to 80 percent range made it a hard year, with the front runners catching a better weather window while runners past 24 hours dealt with downpours and wash crossings that turned into streams.
One more thing Bitter and Garmire flagged. All five of the top women were 40 or older, which they put down to long term aerobic development and the experience to hold a high percentage of capacity for many hours rather than raw speed.
Dylan Bowman welcomed Molke into what he called a Minnesota club that includes Courtney Dauwalter, Scott Jurek, Drew Holmen, Stephanie Howe, Charlie Lawrence and Mark Dowdle.
Full results and the golden ticket picture are in our earlier report.
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