After spending 6 days in Yellow at the 2009 Tour de France and boasting the title as the lightest (225g’s) production cycling shoe on the market with a mechanical closure, the 2010 Specialized S-Works is a pure performance machine featuring the new Boa S1 Lacing System. The new Boa S1 represents the smallest, lightest, lowest profile reel in the arsenal of Boa Lacing System products. While still delivering on the durability, uniform closure, on-the-fly adjustability, and secure fit provided by other Boa products, the S1 brings multi-adjustability to a completely new level. Put simply, it allows a “righty-tighty, lefty-loosey” approach to achieving the exactly precise fit in a matter of split seconds.

On the scale, the 2010 S-Works is the lightest production cycling shoe on the market with a mechanical closure...The Boa S1 Lacing System. 225 g's! Almost 100 grams lighter than the comp.

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Many ultramarathoners comment that if they wanted a sure thing, they’d run a road 10K. Many of them learn to appreciate the uncertainty that comes with tackling distances of 30, 50 or even 100 miles. Whether it’s Mother Nature, injury, or stomach problems, an entire day’s worth of challenges can present itself in such a long race. And, at the August 22 Leadville Trail 100 Mile Endurance Run, two Boa employees experienced all of the above.

The Leadville Trail 100 is widely held as one of the most difficult foot races in the world. The race takes place entirely above altitudes of 9,200 feet, in the Central Rockies of Colorado. It also crosses over two mountain passes twice each (the course is an out-and-back).

Still running strong, Jason Deugan arrives at the Mile 40 Twin Lakes Aid Station

Over the years, Leadville has consistently held the lowest finishing rate of any 100-mile runs. Roughly 44% of starters endure to cross the finish line under the 30-hour cut-off.

This year, Boa Inventory Coordinator Jason Deugan and Boa Marketing Manager Garett Graubins toed the starting line in downtown Leadville. With the blast of a shotgun (starter’s pistols are left for the Olympics), they bolted into the pre-dawn darkness with over 500 other wildly enthusiastic runners.

Graubins, who had completed three previous Leadville Trail 100s, had decided to push his pace as much as he comfortably could during the morning hours. And, by 12:45 in the afternoon, he hit the turnaround point more than 20 minutes ahead of his target pace, which would get him to the finish in under 20 hours.

Graubins arrives at the Mile 50 Turnaround, the dusty ghost town of Winfield. PHOTO COURTESY OF SANDRA HALVERSTADT PHOTOGRAPHY

“Even though I hit the turnaround pretty quick, I was running on eggshells,” he says. “It was hot – near-record heat, in fact. And the sun was blasting. I was going through water like nothing and my stomach couldn’t hold much beside energy gels, blocks, and the occasional banana.” Graubins turned around and began the long trip back to Leadville with his pacer, Rich Rodgers of Cultivator Design, one of Boa’s creative partners.

On the way back up 12,600-foot Hope Pass, Graubins bumped into Jason Deugan, who was also dealing with his share of troubles, but of a different variety. Knee pain. IT bands, to be more specific. “I assumed that while attempting my first 100 mile foot race I would be happy, tired, hungry, thirsty, wanting to quit, etc.,” he says. “But I never expected to have such severe knee pain that would eventually take me out of the race.”

Deugan hobbled down the Pass and dropped at the 50-mile turnaround. Just 36 hours later, he was already talking of redemption, however. The mountains will still be there.

Meanwhile, Graubins battled his touchy stomach and the heat. At Mile 60, he was still moving strong, despite the fact that he could not eat. “I knew I had to get some calories or I’d pay dearly for it later.” He picked up a fresh pacer who fed him Clif Blox every 10 minutes all the way to Mile 71, where he arrived still ahead of his sub-20-hour splits … but losing ground fast.

With his pacer providing some much-needed levity, Graubins covers the river plains outside the Mile 60 Aid Station. PHOTO COURTESY OF CLIFFORD PHOTOGRAPHY

As the sun sank in the Rocky Mountain sky, it became a race to beat both the approaching night and his quickly fading energy. After pushing the pace on a five-mile paved stretch, Graubins and his pacer arrived at Mile 76, the Leadville Fish Hatchery. Two pieces of watermelon and two cups of Sprite went down, and the duo continued moving forward.

The crux of the final quarter of the Leadville Trail 100 is Sugarloaf Pass. It consists of five false summits on its way to an altitude of 11,200 feet. Graubins’ pace slowed to a crawl here and his stomach turned to a churning bubble, ready to erupt at any time. “At that point, the finish line seemed impossibly far away,” he says. “More than once I wondered if my race was over … if I would end up walking back to the previous aid station rather than continuing upward and onward.”

As the sun sank behind the mountains to the west, Graubins reached the top of Sugarloaf Pass. From here, it was matter of shuffling the feet and trying to make good time on the downhill before switching on the headlamps. “Soon enough, the legs seemed to loosen up and I began to make pretty good time again.”

Graubins cross the finisher’s tape in 19:38. Good for 7th place. PHOTO COURTESY OF SANDRA HALVERSTADT PHOTOGRAPHY

At Mile 87, Mayqueen Campground, Graubins realized he had a chance to crack the 20-hour mark if he could make good time over the remaining sections of trail and road. “It took a long, hard push – especially to climb the last three miles into Leadville – but I had a good pacer and was able to hold my stomach together one last time.”

Finally, at 11:38 at night, Graubins’ feet hit the red carpet signifying the finish line of the Leadville Trail 100. A crowd of family and friends stood nearby and camera flashes lit up the finisher’s tape. “It was a blur – the last couple hundred feet – but in the same way that many of life’s most memorable moments are.” After a medal was placed around his neck, Graubins hunched over with his hands on his knees, exhausted and elated. His final time of 19:38:57 placed him seventh out of approximately 270 finishers.

For complete results, visit www.leadvilletrail100.com

GEAR NOTES: Both Deugan and Graubins wore Boa Lacing System prototypes throughout the Leadville Trail 100. A very special thanks goes to the Boa Technology Product Development Team, which worked with them throughout the spring and summer to find just the right configuration to complement the footwear that suited their gaits, footshapes, and race terrain. Deugan wore the Pearl Izumi Seek III. Graubins wore the Pearl Izumi Peak XC and later the New Balance 904 Road. Says Deugan: “My trail shoes with Boa were great. Once I got the fit at the start, I stopped only one time to adjust them: at mile 41 after a river crossing.”

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Boa takes its message to where the rubber literally meets the road, visits Wheat Ridge Cyclery

As part of a high-priority initiative to increase overall awareness of the features & benefits delivered by the Boa Lacing System, Boa employees have been reaching out to specialty retail stores to spread the gospel.

Mark Soderberg speaks to 15 employees at Wheatridge Cyclery

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The Vasque PROJECT is coming to a trail near you. Click Here for race dates, venues and registration info. Get out and run!

The Vasque PROJECT, presented by the Boa Lacing System, promotes multiple trail races of all distances in communities across North America. By selecting the best race series in vital and active running communities across the US and Canada, the Vasque PROJECT ensures the best trail experience for runners. In addition, the PROJECT seeks to give back to the sport of trail running and the environment in each community it sponsors. Through linking trail race experiences across the country under the Vasque PROJECT umbrella, we create a larger web of trail races, communities, and environment-based endeavors throughout the country and eventually the world.

Mission Statement:
The Vasque PROJECT is about giving back, developing relationships and contributing to trail PROJECTs, and parks in every PROJECT community. It is about protecting our trails, supporting our athletes, and providing outdoor enthusiasts with an opportunity to establish and nurture their relationship with nature.

The Vasque PROJECT 2009 is equal part competition, community, and stewardship. Through sponsorship of trail races from coast to coast, we have created a greater community of runners who are dedicated to the advancement of the sport and the preservation of the land they run. It is here on the trail that Vasque has built its foundation.

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Boa Technology, Inc., makers of the award-winning, patented Boa Lacing System, has retained Backbone Media, of Carbondale, Colorado, to manage all public relations efforts. The move follows the recent hiring of industry veteran Garett Graubins as Marketing Manager.

“We needed a partner that thoroughly understands the many categories in which we play, knows our product first-hand, and is not afraid to challenge the status quo,” said Boa Technology Founder and CEO Gary Hammerslag. “Backbone’s ability to do all of the above impressed us and we’re thrilled to begin work with them.”

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