Two-time Olympic marathoner Ryan Hall continued his post-retirement running career Sunday, finishing the 13.1-mile XTERRA Trail Run World Championships in 1:43:39, good for 18th place.

“It was definitely an adventure out there,” said Hall, shortly after finishing 26 minutes behind winner Joe Gray on the course just outside Honolulu.

Hall, 33, owner of the fastest American marathon time at 2:04:58, wasn’t disappointed with his race, or surprised. “Based on my 2:04 marathon PR, you would think I would be the favorite,” he said before the event. “But I have a different, more athletic and stronger body now. I would have a better chance at winning American Ninja Warrior than I would winning this race.”

Gray, of Colorado Springs, Colorado, won the race in 1:17:15, six minutes ahead of runner-up Nick Arciniaga, of Flagstaff, Arizona. Gray was in a tight battle with three-time champion Patrick Smyth early in the race. But Smyth veered off course at about mile six and was disqualified.

It was Gray’s second XTERRA Trail Running World Title and his second running World Championship in 2016. He led Team USA to Gold at the World Mountain Running Championships earlier this year.

Winner Joe Gray (red singlet) leads the pack at the start of the race. XTERRA/Mike Adrian

“It was a tough year out here with all the mud, slipping and sliding the whole way,” said Gray. “Mud or not, I’m glad to be here and not Colorado where it was like 19-degrees today. This win means a lot because I’ve spent a lot of time focusing on mountain running this year and this is different. It isn’t as steep, it’s more runnable, and it’s important to show diversity and how you can compete across a variety of distances and different types of events.”

Polina Carlson, of Kailua, Hawaii, was the top female finisher, coming in in 1:38:06. Caroline Veltri of Butler, New Jersey, was second in 1:45:26.

Carlson’s win was her second overall XTERRA Trail Run World Championship in four years. “I’m so happy to be here, it was such a great day,” she said. “This race is hard, but it’s so adventurous and so fun. I love to run trails, especially here at Kualoa where it is so beautiful.”

Gray and Carlson each won $2,000 for their victories.

Hall, of Redding, California, retired from professional racing in January, and has channeled his energy into weightlifting. Once weighing 127, he now weighs 170, and weight trains roughly two hours a day. He took part in the Asics Beat the Sun trail race in the Alps in June, which he says was “extremely hard,” and runs mountain bike trails occasionally at home in Redding, but hasn’t been training for running and didn’t train specifically for the race in Hawaii.

When asked if running trails in his new, stronger body felt differently than it did racing cross country at Stanford University, more than 40 pounds lighter, he replied: “I think it helps to be strong. Now I can squat way more than I could ever do when I was running seriously. I can sprint faster than I could before, but doing the distance with the extra weight…it’s not an advantage if you’re going longer than a half a mile. I feel stronger in general, though.”

Hall, who gave a talk the day before the race on training and racing, traveled to Hawaii with his family, which includes four adopted daughters. Hall said the only running he’s been doing lately is with his wife, Sara, on her easy days. “I’m way more scheduled with my weightlifting training,” he said. During his time in Hawaii, he’s been getting up a 4 or 5 a.m. to lift at a 24-hour Fitness before spending the day snorkeling, hiking, and watching the Triple Crown Classic surf comp at Sunset Beach.

Hall said that hiking to waterfalls on Oahu the week leading up to the race gave him a taste of what Hawaii trails are like. “Some were super muddy, really slick,” he said. “I was thinking, ‘If it’s gonna be like this, it’s going to be an adventure.”



He added that he didn’t do much research on the course (which climbs 1,700 feet) because he wanted to maximize that feeling of adventure. “But whenever you hear there are ropes on the course, you know there’s something pretty gnarly coming at you,” he said.

Hall said he was struck by the beauty of the race, held on a ranch in Hawaii. XTERRA/Mike Adrian

The course is held annually on a private ranch, used often as a set for movies and television shows. “When I was out there running, I thought I was running in a movie,” said Hall. “I was running and thinking, ‘This is part of Jurassic Park, this was part of Lost.’” Hall said that he likes how trail running goes by “so much faster” than road running, and that “you’re in epically beautiful places.”

On the flip side, Hall said his least favorite section was a technical muddy downhill, where there was a rope to hold onto for safety. “I was walking down,” he said, “and people were flying past me. I thought, ‘I can’t believe people run down this.’ I was taking zero risk.”



Still, the retired marathoner was pleased with the day. Ryan’s younger brother, Chad Hall, placed third. Hall’s older girls won their age groups in the 5K, and the younger girls ran the kids’ race. The Halls will spend a few more days in Hawaii before returning home.

And since Hall seems to be enjoying new challenges, what about testing himself as an American Ninja Warrior, as he joked about before the race? Hall chuckled. “It would be fun. Honestly, I don’t feel fit and strong enough. But maybe it’d be a fun challenge someday.”



Information from a press release was used for part of this report.

Lisa Jhung Lisa Jhung writes about all things adventure and is the author of Running That Doesn't Suck: How To Love Running (Even If You Think You Hate It) and Trailhead: The Dirt on All Things Trail Running.

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