His disappearance mobilized at least 100 volunteers from the local running community, in addition to searchers from eight counties, who combed the Ashland watershed for two and a half days. But he also enjoyed the local running community’s respect, not least for setting a Guinness World Record in 2010 by running 102 miles barefoot in 24 hours. “Todd was an adventurous person,” he says.Ī Fred Meyer employee who graduated from Phoenix High School, Ragsdale had a reputation in running circles for such fun-loving antics as crawling over finish lines and wearing costumes, including a Sasquatch, for distance runs. Most people who knew Ragsdale, says Whiteley, assumed he decided to extend his time on the trail. The father of four was reported missing approximately five hours after leaving home. ![]() Wearing a thin jacket and running shorts, Ragsdale was nursing a hamstring injury when he embarked on a “light” run near Lithia Park. “It really was a freak accident that didn’t need to happen,” says Chuck Whiteley, vice president of Southern Oregon Runners, which hosts distance races locally. After the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office announced Ragsdale had died of “undetermined natural causes,” friends and family faced never fully knowing the circumstances of his demise, which defied his physical fitness and familiarity with the terrain. 30, 2016, along the edge of Ashland Creek upstream from the Granite Street reservoir. “It just kind of proves that it can happen to anyone.”Īuthorities uncovered no evidence of foul play nor toxic substances in Ragsdale’s body after he was located Jan. “Todd was an amazing runner,” says Olsen, a Medford resident who has been running for eight years. The 46-year-old Talent resident went missing on a solo traverse of trails in the Ashland watershed. ![]() Participation in SORE’s group runs has swelled, says Olsen, since the January 2016 death of local ultrarunner Todd Ragsdale. Safety in numbers is the school of thought among Southern Oregon Running Enthusiasts, a group that Olsen founded five years ago. Hardly a week has gone by in the past year, says Nate Olsen, that local runners don’t lament the death of one of their own - and vow to prevent a recurrence.
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