I'm still out in Boston. Hence the dearth of messages from me in the
past couple days, but here's a good story to follow up on if you want to
write into one of these papers or find mention of it in one of the local
papers.
J
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: DawnWatch: Vegan ultramarathoner wins Badwater for second time
in a row -- 7/25/06 (Coverage 7/27)
Date: Thu, 27 Jul 2006 15:42:21 -0600
From: DawnWatch <news@dawnwatch.com>
Reply-To: DawnWatch <news@dawnwatch.com>
To: keto0011@umn.edu
An update on Saturday's New York Times article about vegan ultra-marathoner Scott Jurek who won the Western States race seven straight times between 1999 and 2005, and the Badwater last summer: He just won the Badwater for the second time in a row.
The Thursday, July 27, Washington Post article on the race, headed, "Marathon Melt" (p C01) tells us:
"When the National Park Service records the official daily maximum temperature, it takes the measurement in the shade. On Monday, it reached 123 degrees Fahrenheit."
"Naturally, given these conditions that morning, a group of 85 runners assembled at the dry lake bed known as Badwater, 280 feet below sea level, the lowest, often hottest point in the Western Hemisphere -- to race in the Badwater Ultramarathon. Organizer Chris Kostman describes it nicely as 'the most demanding and extreme running race offered anywhere on the planet.'
"The race covers 135 miles, nonstop, from Badwater in Death Valley to the trailhead of Mount Whitney in the Sierras, the highest mountain in the Lower 48. The successful runners cross three mountain ranges with a combined, cumulative vertical ascent and descent of 17,400 feet, which is like a flight of stairs three miles high."
We learn: "Jurek wins the race again, in 25 hours 41 minutes and 18 seconds."
You can read the whole fun article on line at: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/26/AR2006072602001.ht
While it mentions attempts to get competitors to eat, one, for example, being offered some chicken, there is no mention in the piece, or in any of the articles I saw after the race, that the winner is vegan. (Of course any time anybody who happens to be vegan does something reprehensible like starving their baby to death, the parents' diet is part of the headline!) But Jurek's win presents a great opportunity for letters from those who share his vegan diet.
The Washington Post takes letters at letters@washpost.com
Wednesday's Los Angeles Times article on the race ("Hot on her heels" pg D1) is on line at:
http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-runner26jul26,0,1841861.story
The Los Angeles Times takes letters at letters@latimes.com
Some major Canadian papers covered the race on Thursday, July 27:
The Vancouver Sun: "A race to the Death" (pg F1) -- Letters may be sent at http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/letters.html
The Hamilton Spectator, "City woman conquers Death Valley again" (pg A2) -- Letters to letters@thespec.com
and The Calgary Herald: "Calgary runner masters the desert" (pg B1) -- Letters may be sent at http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/letters.html
And if you see anything in your local media about the race then you have a perfect opportunity for a veg-friendly letter to the editor. Some smaller papers publish close to 100% of letters they receive, so why not write?
Always include your full name, address, and daytime phone number when sending a letter to the editor. Shorter letters are more likely to be published.
Yours and the animals',
Karen Dawn
(DawnWatch is an animal advocacy media watch that looks at animal issues in the media and facilitates one-click responses to the relevant media outlets. You can learn more about it, and sign up for alerts at http://www.DawnWatch.com. To unsubscribe, go to http://www.dawnwatch.com/cgi-bin/dada/dawnwatch_unsubscribe.cgi You are encouraged to forward or reprint DawnWatch alerts but please do so unedited -- leave DawnWatch in the title and include this tag line.)
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Date: Thu Jul 27 15:33:22 2006
