The key to breaking a course record for a 250-mile ultramarathon?
Mashed potato, and 19 minutes’ worth of sleep on the ground.
That is what fuelled Rachel Entrekin in her historic run at the Cocodona 250 in Arizona as the American won the overall race – men included – in a record-breaking time of 56 hours, nine minutes and 48 seconds.
“Somewhere around mile 200, I slept for five minutes at an aid station,” said the 34-year-old, speaking to BBC Sport the morning after her success.
“Then around 230 miles, I took two seven-minute naps on the floor. And food, it’s impossible to say how much I ate but as far as real food goes, I had a lot of mashed potatoes.
“Mashed potatoes are the best. You get tired of chewing and you don’t want to expend any extra energy doing that.”
Entrekin also fuelled with lots of energy gels, sweets, rice and broth along the way, and even had the capacity to put in a sprint finish at the end.
The morning after the race, after sleeping from 11pm until 6.30am, was spent refuelling and cheering other runners over the finish line.
She was supported along the course by a six-person team which included her parents, and this was her third consecutive win, having triumphed in the women’s races in 2024 and 2025.
“Men and women obviously have very different skillsets but in an event like this, it comes down to so much more than just fitness,” said Entrekin.
“Your attitude and your ability to combat stress is so important, they are at least as important as how physically fit you are, so I think the field is just so much more levelled at something like this.”