Member Spotlight: Ryan Cooper
Can you tell us about yourself? Hometown, where you work, important people in your life, how you spend free time.
I was born and raised in Iowa, corn country. During that time I ran cross-country and track in high school, while also starting to participate in road races (5K and 10K). After a few years of focusing on engineering school, I started running again during my last year at Iowa State University and promptly ran my first Marathon after graduation in “Chem E” (Chemical Engineering). After moving to Boulder many years ago, Lori and I met while attending Grad School for “Chem E” at CU. We were assigned adjacent Labs to teach in, and told our students of epic weekend hikes and runs we did in the mountains together. Not surprising, our students knew we would get married before we did! Together we ran almost 20 road marathons (not holding hands) then we turned to the dark side of trail ultras, which are races longer than a marathon and on dirt which satisfied our desire for mountain adventures and running at the same time. Since then, we have both run over 50 ultras, and I have done more than 20 races longer than 100 miles. To fund these runs I work at Merck as a Technical Product Lead where I lead development teams to commercialize and launch new pharmaceutical products.
How long have you been doing CrossFit?
As smart runners, we incorporated "strength training” early in our ultra careers, but it wasn’t until we moved to the very flat Netherlands in 2017 that we started Crossfit, to keep us running strong without hills. We both saw a huge benefit to our running with the additional of full body functional strength and intensity that Crossfit brings. We moved back to Boulder in summer of 2021, and promptly joined Crossfit Sanitas.
You just completed the Hardrock 100 Mile Endurance Run. Can you tell us about that?
I completed my first Hardrock in 2011, but both Lori and I had paced many miles on the course before. Hardrock is VERY hard to get into, with high qualifying standards requiring completion of select (HARD) 100’s. I qualified in Sep 2021 with completion of Run Rabbit Run 100 in Steamboat and because I had ran in 2011, I had a ~25% chance of getting in. The lottery results had me at 18th on the waitlist in Dec 2021. I NEVER thought I would run but by late June, my name had floated up to 3rd on the waitlist, and we got the call 64 hours before race start. Lori and I dropped EVERYTHING to get me to the race in time. It was hectic.
Hardrock is AMAZING! 100 miles starting in Silverton, CO with a loop in the San Juans, running through Telluride, Ouray and near Lake City. If you haven’t been to that area, you are missing some of the coolest mountains in Colorado. The average altitude of the race is 11,500ft, going over Handies Peak (14er) at 60 miles into the race. There is a 48 hour cutoff, so yes, you can walk this race (someone has). Also, Hardrock still maintains the culture that brought us into ultras, it is not about racing, or making money, it is about the shared experience of running through the mountains. That is why it is called Hardrock Endurance Run!
Because I didn’t expect to get into Hardrock, I had registered and got into High and Lonesome 100, one week after Hardrock. Going into Hardrock, I (stupidly) wanted to run both races. By 50 miles into Hardrock, I decided Hardrock was too hard to do 2x100 miles in 8-9 days (though a friend of ours did 2xHardrock in 4 days!). At 55 miles, prior to ascending Handies Peak, I met Lori at an aid-station medical tent to try and fix my feet. The doctor told me that I had trench foot, and required me to sit for 30 min in front of a heater to dry out my feet. IT WORKED, and Lori and I set out around 3 AM to summit Handies.
Lori ran with me for 35 miles and we had so much fun! It was slow, but that allowed us to enjoy the remoteness and time together! We ran through MILES of beautiful fields of flowers, in some cases waist high! Needless to say, the views are amazing, and the remoteness of the course is one of the best in the world. With 9 miles to go (and a VERY steep pass on both sides), a friend picked me up to take me to the finish. I pushed pretty hard with the goal to finish before sunset. I had a small set-back with a nagging injury resurfacing with 3 miles to go, but thankful that it didn’t happen with 99 miles to go! I was able to manage the pain and finish in 38 hr 46 min.
Can you tell us about your history as a runner and competitor? How did you get started doing these types of races?
With all the marathons in the 5 years when Lori and I met, we were looking for another challenge. We took a trip in 2003 to Peru for the Marathon to Machu Picchu and a 1 week tour of other mountains in that area. Everyone we ran with there were ultramarathon runners and were surprised we hadn’t run one yet.
How does your training change approaching races?
Since having kids, I have adjusted my training significantly. Now, I use races to train, so this year I did 2 50 mile races (May and June), one of which was in the San Juans. I also adjusted my CrossFit sessions starting in April to become more running focus, then took June and July off from CrossFit. In Aug, I restarted at CrossFit Sanitus.
How much does CrossFit help in preparation for these types of grueling events?
I would argue that CrossFit is more grueling than ‘running’ 100 miles in less than 38 hr! What I love about CrossFit is that it hurts and pushes the body to improve. As we all know, we can be sore for days from a workout. During Hardrock, my quads didn’t start really hurting until 97 miles. CrossFit has helped to build my muscles to be resilient to pain and work, as well as build my mind to tolerate pain during work.
We hear you’re married to one of our own, Mrs. Lori Cooper. Any friendly competition going on in the Cooper household?
HAHAHA! We try not to be competitive, but you can imagine there is. Of course, I stopped competing with her in the gym several years ago. In 2017, Lori was doing AMAZINGLY well on the ultra running circuit, so I was worried that she would catch me on the trails as well during my year of injury. Boulder has been good to me and my body, so my running has vastly improved since then.
You all lived abroad for some time, can you tell us about that?
We moved to the Netherlands in 2016 for a 1 year assignment for my job, and stayed for 4.5 years! We really enjoyed living there. We lived near great trails (not as good as Boulder trails), and had awesome access to Europe (we visited 10 countries in our first 3 years). After returning to Boulder, we knew we were home and wouldn’t be leaving Boulder for a very long time!
What are your favorite CrossFit movements? Any you can't stand?
I enjoy most movements, and continue to try and improve my form in all. The ones I don’t like are the ones I can’t do well. As Lori knows, I avoid workouts with these movements. Maybe I should start listening to my ‘Wife Coach’ and start working on my weaknesses, rather than focusing on my strengths.