Badwater #14: an improbable top 10 finish for vegan Harvey

Harvey Lewis has completed the Badwater Ultramarathon for an incredible 14th consecutive time.

The Cincinnati schoolteacher took seventh place, finishing the 135 mile ‘World’s Toughest Footrace’ in 26:17.  The race crosses Death Valley, the hottest place in the world and includes 4450 metres of height gain.

The race came just after the Dead Cow Gully where Harvey ran 93 laps, completing 384 miles in just under four days with virtually no sleep or rest.

“The crazy thing was running 384 miles at Dead Cow Gully 2 weeks before Badwater” an exhausted Harvey said afterwards. “To be honest I really didn’t know if it was possible to have a top 10 finish.”

Harvey now has ten top 10 finishes including two wins and eight top four placings.

Vegan power

Harvey is now in his 40s and has been vegetarian since teenage years and vegan since 2016. Harvey found some noticeable positives as a vegan runner.

“Race fuel doesn’t make me sick. I eat something big and don’t get sick. Other people are eating meat and dairy and it just doesn’t process. You can process more calories at a quicker pace with plants and that translates to more energy over time.”