“When Alina walked out of my life in 2009, despite me feeling that I found my soulmate, I felt lost, and I didn’t know what to do. I decided on running across a few countries for Alina in order to prove my feelings to myself and to her. But, I didn’t tell anyone, except my grandpa, until after I’d run across my first country.
I had already run across multiple countries when I told her what I was doing. She thought it was crazy and didn’t know how to react as we hadn’t seen each other in four years at that point. But, she was definitely interested. It was unique, and we started a relationship after I came back from running across Cuba. This was an eight-year long journey, and I never expected it to work or to win Alina’s heart. I proposed as soon as I finished the sixth and most recent run across Switzerland. Alina said yes, not because of the running, but because she said I have a big heart.” – HOKA Fan Slava Koza
Slava is wearing the Stinson ATR.
“February 2015 was the last time Jim Walmsley cut his hair after years of keeping it short serving in the Air Force. Jim started growing out the curls around his move back to Arizona, and they have been a staple of his look for those who have only followed him since he started running ultras competitively. He was really proud of them, but a bet was made earlier in the year that if Jim lost a race in 2017, he’d have to cut his hair. So, last night he paid up after dropping out of Western States® 100-Mile Endurance Race on Saturday by having all of the Coconino Cowboys take a cut.”- Photographer and friend of HOKA Athlete Jim Walmsley, Myke Hermsmeyer
“Coming back to Western States with Jim, there were so many parallels to last year’s race: from Jim’s brash pre-race confidence, to James Bonnett urging Jim to relax as he tore ahead of the field early in the race despite the snow and heat, to the crazy crowds and buzz at Foresthill and then the deflation of the radio silence as the clock kept ticking and everyone wondered, where’s Jim? Running we
“I came into the final aid station, and I sat down. My body had lost the ability to move — on the climb up to the aid station, I couldn’t even step up a few inches without full-body cramps. It was a bit of sadness tinged with a lot of comedy, laughing in bemusement as I waited out yet another cramp in the bushes as the race passed me by. So when I sat down, I was not planning on getting back up. F
