Jenn Shelton (born 1983) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

ultramarathon An ultramarathon, also called ultra distance or ultra running, is any footrace longer than the traditional marathon length of . Various distances are raced competitively, from the shortest common ultramarathon of to over . 50k and 100k are bot ...

er. She has set course records in several of the most demanding American ultramarathons. Shelton attended the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

where she played on the

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...

team. She dropped out to focus on writing poetry, but later enrolled at

Old Dominion University Old Dominion University (Old Dominion or ODU) is a public research university in Norfolk, Virginia. It was established in 1930 as the Norfolk Division of the College of William & Mary and is now one of the largest universities in Virginia w ...

. Shortly after Shelton began running ultramarathons she won several races and soon became one of the top female ultrarunners in the United States. She often runs in lightweight minimalist running shoes. In 2006, she traveled with Scott Jurek,

Christopher McDougall Christopher McDougall (born 1962) is an American author and journalist. He is best known for his 2009 book '' Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen''. He has also written for ''Esquire'', ''Th ...

, and several other ultrarunners as the sole female runner to

Copper Canyon Copper Canyon (Spanish: Barrancas del Cobre) is a group of six distinct canyons in the Sierra Madre Occidental in the southwestern part of the state of Chihuahua in northwestern Mexico that is in size. The canyons were formed by six rivers tha ...

in the remote southwestern part of the

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

of Chihuahua in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

to run with the Tarahumara, for McDougall's book ''

Born to Run ''Born to Run'' is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on August 25, 1975, by Columbia Records. As his effort to break into the mainstream, the album was a commercial success, peaking at number three ...

''. While running through a remote area during the trip she became separated from the group and was found severely dehydrated several hours later by a search crew. She has criticized the book's accounts of the Tarahumara people for "romanticizing" their lifestyle and for not adequately describing their poverty. In May 2007 she gained publicity by being the first woman finisher at the Frederick Marathon, in a women's course record of 2 hours 53 minutes 44 seconds, racing in a bikini rather than conventional running kit. In July 2010 Shelton won the ''

Deseret News The ''Deseret News'' () is the oldest continuously operating publication in the American west. Its multi-platform products feature journalism and commentary across the fields of politics, culture, family life, faith, sports, and entertainment. Th ...

'' Marathon in a time of 2:54:23. She says that she finds marathons more challenging to run than ultramarathons. Shelton has said that she intends to run more marathons and shorter races, citing a desire to run faster races. She is sponsored by

Patagonia Patagonia () refers to a geographical region that encompasses the southern end of South America, governed by Argentina and Chile. The region comprises the southern section of the Andes Mountains with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and gl ...

and competed in the 2012 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, but suffered a hamstring injury and did not finish.http://www.flotrack.org/article/9835-FULL-RESULTS-Houston-2012-USA-Olympic-Marathon-Trials#.U0VbdvldXTo (Retrieved 9 April 2014)

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shelton, Jenn 1983 births Living people American female ultramarathon runners American female marathon runners Sportspeople from Ashland, Oregon Sportspeople from Virginia Beach, Virginia University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni Old Dominion University alumni 21st-century American women