Ferg Hawke

About

Fergus 'Ferg' Hawke (born November 16, 1957, in New Westminster, British Columbia) is a Canadian ultra-distance runner whose career is one of the sport's great late-bloomer stories. At 30, overweight and warned by his doctor that he was on a path toward heart disease and stroke, he discarded his prescription and took up running in 1989. Two years later he had shed 40 pounds, and within a few more years had migrated from 10Ks to marathons to ultramarathons. By the mid-1990s he was winning marquee events: the Rose City 50-Mile in Portland (1995), the Elk Beaver 50-Mile Canadian Championships on Vancouver Island (1996), and the Eagle Run 100-Mile race at Apex Mountain, British Columbia (1995) — widely recognised as the first official 100-mile ultramarathon ever held in Canada. His international peak arrived in the early 2000s: he finished 8th at the 2002 Marathon des Sables (22:51:03), the second-best North American time in the race's history at that point, then placed 2nd at Badwater in both 2004 (27:30:20, 8 minutes behind Dean Karnazes) and 2005 (26:33:00, 1:57 behind Scott Jurek), with his 2005 time ranking among the all-time best in Badwater history. He also finished 3rd at the 1999 Ultraman World Championships (23:41:16). A baggage handler — or, as he preferred, an 'aerospace worker' — at Vancouver Airport throughout his competitive years, Hawke embodied the belief that a blue-collar life and elite ultra performance are not mutually exclusive.

Notable Wins

• — Eagle Run 100-Mile 1995 (Canada's first official 100-mile race)
• — Rose City 50-Mile 1995
• — Elk Beaver 50-Mile Canadian Championships 1996
• — 2nd Badwater Ultramarathon 2004 (27:30:20)
• — 2nd Badwater Ultramarathon 2005 (26:33:00)
• — 3rd Ultraman World Championships 1999 (23:41:16)
• — 8th Marathon des Sables 2002 (22:51:03)

Race History