Registration numbers up, times could be down in cool conditions – Boulder Daily Camera
With rain falling gently outside the Embassy Suites in Boulder on Sunday, former Colorado standout Alan Culpepper made a notable correlation between the weather and the prospects of the 45th Bolder Boulder.
This year’s Memorial Day 10K will mark 30 years since the race records were set, with Josphat Machuka winning the men’s pro race in 27 minutes, 52 seconds while Delillah Asiago won the women’s pro race with a mark of 32:13.
Both records still stand. In fact, the top two all-time marks in the men’s pro race and four of the top six all remain standing from that 1995 race. The common thread 30 years later? Boulder was marked by cool and overcast conditions on Memorial Day in 1995. The same sort of forecast is in the picture for Monday.
“We all ran the course on Saturday, which was nice,” said former CU Buffs runner Joe Klecker, referring to Bolder Boulder teammates Aidan Reed and Drew Hunter on the men’s USA White team. “We got a lot of advice from Aidan because he’s run the race before, and Drew and I haven’t. I feel like even though we haven’t raced here, we were able to kind of get an understanding of how the race can play out.
“Aidan is a real student of the sport, and he was telling how fast the mile would go out. I feel like we got some good information, but at the end of the day you’re racing your competitor, not the course.”
Whether the conditions make the 45th Bolder Boulder an inordinately fast event remains to be seen, but the pre-race news conference Sunday revealed an event returning to its pre-COVID pandemic participation numbers.
On Sunday, race director Cliff Bosley said there has been more than 50,000 registrations. The Sunday ahead of the race and race day itself often feature around 1,000 additional registrations, but while the weather might lend for a fast field, it also could put a damper on last-minute registrations.
Regardless, the Bolder Boulder is set to feature 50,000 registrants for the first time since the pandemic, which forced the cancellation of the Memorial Day 10K in 2020 and 2021.
In the final 13 pre-pandemic races between 2007 and 2019, the Bolder Boulder reached 50,000 entrants 10 times. It has been a gradual return to form since, starting with just 33,991 entrants in the return year of 2022, and 40,044 in 2023, before reaching 43,971 last year.
Sunday’s event featured the introduction of the 11 professional teams — six men, five women — as well as the wheelchair athletes. Guest speakers included first-year CU chancellor Justin Schwartz, as well as CU athletic director Rick George and superfan Peggy Coppom. George and Coppom will serve as the official starters for the race, firing the starting gun for all 97 waves (including the wheelchair races).
Coppom drew laughter from the packed room when she was led to the microphone and quipped, “I didn’t know I had to do anything here but eat.” Among the other Bolder Boulder dignitaries in attendance was four-time winner Arturo Barrios, the only runner to win the men’s pro race more than twice. Two-time defending champion Conner Mantz will take aim at becoming the first men’s runner to win the pro race three consecutive times.
“This one has always been a dream because of that finish (in Folsom Field),” said Aubrey Frenthaway, who will make her Bolder Boulder debut as part of the women’s USA Red team. “I’m just really excited about it and see all the newness that comes with a new race.”
