Young Swiss talent Rémi Bonnet does a double after taking Friday’s Vertical Kilometer® and yesterday’s 25K at Montana’s The Rut events with Dolomites winner Megan Kimmel taking the women's victory.

New for 2015 and forming an integral part of the Skyrunner® World Series, the inaugural RUT 25K can be considered a pure skyrunning race. At times, it offers extremely steep and technical terrain that demands and requires 100% respect. It’s not for the feint hearted.

What this race lacks in distance is made up for in technicality and challenge. With 2,286m of vertical gain this 25km course is basically the RUT 50km on steroids as it includes all three major climbs of its bigger brother. The high point comes at Lone Peak (3,403m) and the combination of altitude, technical running and exposure makes this one seriously great race that guarantees a good, hard and painful time!

Like the VK, the 25K event had wave starts to reduce congestion and to promote good safety along the route.

Overnight rain had disappeared by the morning leaving a bright, sunny but very cold morning. The summit of Lone Peak was shrouded in mist and cloud and would remain that way until the bulk of wave 1 runners passed the summit.

Following on from Friday’s VK victory, Switzerland’s Rémi Bonnet ran a clear race from the front and never really looked back. He opened a gap in the early stages and extended it as the race went on. Climbing up to Lone Peak summit he was 4-minutes ahead of Italians Tadei Pivk and Marco De Gasperi who were pursued by American Joseph Gray.

Remi’s victory never looked in doubt, even the very technical challenge of the descent could not dislodge his stranglehold on the race. At the finish he was a clear victor by over 3.5 minutes (02:58:55) from Tadei Pivk and Marco De Gasperi who were separated only by 1 second, 3:02:32 and 3:01:33 respectively.

Joseph Gray finished 4th and looked very disappointed, so disappointed he didn’t collect his finishers medal. Spaniard Pere Rullan and Swiss Martin Anthamatten, recent MatterhornUltraks winner, rounded out the top five.

Lady on fire Megan Kimmel once again pulled off another incredible Skyrunning victory showing that she is ‘the’ lady to beat at the moment. In the early stages of the race she ran with the front group and eventually she pulled away with Laura Orgué, Friday’s VK winner.

On the slopes of Lone Peak, Megan was in the lead and then, at the summit, she made a move - just like her Dolomites SkyRace win - pulling away for an incredible victory over a tired Laura Orguè; 3:35:02 and 3:40:49 respectively. Spain’s Maite Maiora ran a sold race and had the race been 1-mile longer, she may possibly have taken 2nd place, her time of 3:41:06 showing how close it was.

The weather and altitude played a key factor in the 25K and on the line many of the runners expressed how technical the downhill section was. Showing incredible recovery from the VK,  Norway’s Yngvild Kaspersen closed ranks in the later stages of the race and took 4th place ahead of Emelie Forsberg and Stevie Kremer. Emelie intends to run all three Run The Rut races this weekend.

Race results
Men
1. Rémi Bonnet (SUI) Salomon: 2:58:55
2. Tadei Pivk (ITA) Crazy Idea: 3:01:32
3. Marco De Gasperi (ITA)SCOTT Sports: 3:01:33

Women
1. Megan Kimmel (USA) Asics: 3:35:04
2. Laura Orguè (ESP) Salomon:3:40:49
3. Maite Maiora (ESP) La Sportiva: 3:41:06

Skyrunner® SKY Series provisional ranking
Men
1. Tadei Pivk (ITA) Crazy Idea - 278 points
2. Tom Owens (GBR) Salomon – 268 points
3. Manuel Merillas (ESP) Mammut/Compressport – 244 points
4. Ionut Zinca (RUM)Valetudo – 220 points
5. Aritz Egea (ESP) EMF – 204 points

Women
1. Maite Maiora (ESP) La Sportiva – 308 points
2. Elisa Desco (ITA) SCOTT Sports – 278 points
3. Laura Orguè (ESP) Salomon – 276 points
4. Stevie Kremer (USA) Salomon – 254 points
5. Emelie Forsberg (SWE) Salomon – 212 points

Italy’s Tadei Pivk now returns to the top slot of the SKY Series ranking and Spain’s Maite Maiora takes over the lead from Elisa Desco.

Attention now turns to Sunday’s The Rut 50K which will start at 0600 local time to the summit of the ever present Lone Peak.

Race website

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