Chrissy Ferguson - 2001
USATF Masters 100K Champion
November 2001
 Seeing the photo of the
1992 USATF 100K Team that competed at the IAU World Cup 100K in Palamos,
Spain, sparked Chrissy Ferguson’s desire to run her first 100K
national championship race to get on to the team. But, when the 1993
100K national championship in New York’s Central Park started in
February 1993, Chrissy was at her home in California recovering from an
injury. So, she decided to travel to the World Championship 100K race in
Torhout, Belgium with the team as an alternate. When the 1994 USATF 100K
Jed Smith national championship race started in Sacramento in February
of 1994, Chrissy was ready to run for a top three finish to assure
herself a place on the 100K team. And that’s exactly what she did—placed
third.
"I
liked running against the known women in the sport—putting faces with
the names of the runners who I read about." Chrissy did not stop
running with the team after the Lake Saroma World 100K Championships in
Japan where she ran an impressive 7:56:57 to place in the medals (7th)
in the overall race. Since then, she has been on six USATF 100K teams
earning herself a berth on the 2001 team by again placing in the top
three and simultaneously winning the USATF masters 100K title at the
2001 GNC ultra championship race. This was the first championship race
that she participated in as a masters and she was thrilled to be in a
new competitive category. "You may not be able to win overall when
you are a masters runner but you could win the masters category. I
couldn’t wait to become a masters." The prize money and the
special USATF patch awarded to masters medallists are appealing to
Chrissy in addition to the opportunity to watch the performances of
runners who are attracted to the competition of ultra championships and
to meet them.
Chrissy, a firefighter in Arkansas, is the Race
Director for the Arkansas Traveller 100.
She runs with her husband, ultrarunner Stan Ferguson
MUT Home
Last updated: 09/14/05
Web Author: Lorraine Gersitz
|
Mountain/Ultra/Trail Running Council