A Metro Detroit woman shattered the world record in her very first attempt at completing an ultramarathon.
Des Linden said she knew early on in the 50 kilometer race that she was making great time.
“I was very aware of the pace I was running and putting in the bank,” Linden said. “I knew I was ahead of schedule.”
When she crossed the finish line Tuesday in Oregon at 2 hours, 59 minutes and 54 seconds, she had beaten the former female record holder — Great Britain’s Ally Dixon — by more than seven minutes.
Linden averaged a mile roughly every five minutes and 47 seconds for more than 31 miles.
It’s been a wild year for the Rochester Hills native. Without any major marathons on the schedule due to COVID, Linden got creative. She created Des-tober in the fall and ran the miles of the date — one mile on Oct. 1, two miles on Oct. 2 and ultimately ran 496 miles in a month, with almost half being in the last week.
