Kami Semick

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Bend, OR

Bio
Kami excels in both road and trail running and is currently ranked as one of the best ultrarunners in the world at the 100K distance. Kami grew up in the Pacific Northwest and then attended the University of Alabama where her competitive running career began as a member of the cross-country team. After college, she moved to Atlanta and frequently competed in triathlons. It wasn't until moving back to the West that Kami got into running longer distances. First she tried her hand at mountaineering, which led to such feats as Denali, but mountaineering kept her away from her family more than she had liked. Trail running allowed for challenge and adventure while allowing Kami to stay close to home.

Although Kami has been running for nearly twenty years, she is relatively new to long distances. Kami's first 50K trail race was in 2003 and she has been captivated with long distances ever since. Kami has won the female division of the Miwok 100K, the Where's Waldo 100K, the Kettle Moraine 100K (overall winner), and many other 50K and 50-mile races. In 2004, Kami decided to run the Seattle Marathon on a whim and ended up winning her second road race in ten years.

When it comes to training, Kami places great emphasis on cross training. She enjoys mountaineering, mountain biking, road cycling, climbing, skiing, hiking and more. She cross trains two to three days a week while running 40-90 miles a week. Kami doesn't keep a training log and trains more on how she feels. She also includes yoga into her weekly routine. Kami has run many ultras with little recovery time and she counts on rest and cross training for recovery in preparation for her next race. One of Kami's favorite recovery trainings is to run in the deep end of a pool to aid in muscle recovery. Although her diet is mostly vegetarian, she says that protein such as fish and chicken also aids in her recovery.

Kami now lives in Bend, Oregon with her husband and young daughter. Kami continues to train, explore new trails, and hopes to add more 100-milers to her race schedule.

Career Highlights

Miwok 100K � 1st place female division (2005, 2007-2008)

Western States � 4th place female division (2006)

Kettle Moraine 100 � 1st place overall and course record (2005)

Where's Waldo 100K � 1st place female division (2005)

Seattle Marathon � 1st place female division (2004)

Other Ultramarathon Runner Profiles
Karl Meltzer | Scott Jurek | Anton Krupicka | Tim Twietmeyer | Darcy Africa | Nikki Kimball | Kami Semick | Krissy Moehl