June 28-29, 2014
Full Results and Splits
And here is our 2014 Sizzle Reel from our friends at UltraSportsLive.tv
Next year’s race is June 27-28, 2015
MEDIA ALERT
CONTACT: John Trent, media relations, (775) 842-4871, president at wser.org
WESTERN STATES 100, ULTRA-TRAIL WORLD TOUR, TO ADDRESS ‘STATE OF THE SPORT’ AT PRESS CONFERENCE ON JUNE 27
AUBURN, Calif. – Media are invited to attend a joint press conference, “The State of the Sport,” sponsored by the Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run and representatives of the Ultra-Trail World Tour (UTWT) on Friday, June, 27 in Squaw Valley, Calif.
The event will begin at 2:30 p.m. and will be held at the Squaw Valley Conference Center.
Several of the world’s finest ultra runners, along with representatives from the Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run, UTWT, and WS 100 presenting sponsor Montrail will be on hand to discuss this year’s Western States 100-Miler, the UTWT and its impact to date on the sport and upcoming events on the UTWT 2014 schedule. The UTWT is a series of 10 races held across the globe with rankings for runners of all abilities who finish the races. At the culmination of the year, the title of “Ultra-Trail World Tour Champion 2014” will be awarded to the top male and female finishers.
Western States is the only North American stop on the UTWT.
WHAT: Press conference, “State of the Sport,” sponsored by WS 100 and UTWT.
WHERE: Squaw Valley Conference Center, Squaw Valley, Calif.
WHEN: 2:30 p.m., Friday, June 27.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: John Trent, media relations, (775) 842-4871, president at wser.org
WESTERN STATES 100 FEATURES DEEP ELITE FIELD, TRIUMPHANT RETURN FROM ‘AMERICAN FIRE’
AUBURN, Calif. – The 41st running of the world’s oldest and most prestigious 100-mile trail race, the Western States 100-Mile Endurance, promises to be one of the most memorable in the event’s long and venerable history.
More than 360 runners, from throughout the United States as well as 25 countries, will toe the starting line in Squaw Valley, Calif., at 5 a.m. on Saturday, June 28 with a clear goal in mind: the finish line 100 miles distant at Placer High School in Auburn, Calif.
The field includes several of the top names in the sport of ultramarathoning, including last year’s women’s champion, Oregon’s Pam Smith, as well men’s runner-up Rob Krar, 37, of Flagstaff, Ariz. The deep competition at the front will be augmented this year with the presence of several international ultra standouts, competing as part of the Ultra-Trail World Tour (UTWT), a series of the world’s most prestigious ultra runs. The first-year tour has one North American stop: Western States. The group of international stars running at Western States includes such notables as Miguel Heras of Spain, who was second in 2013’s Ultra-Trail du Mont Blanc (UTMB), France’s Thomas Lorblanchet, the 2012 Leadville (Colo.) 100-mile champion, Ryan Sandes of South Africa, Western States’ 2012 runner-up, and 2013 IAU world trail champion Natalie Mauclair of France on the women’s side.
As has been the case for the past several years, the depth of the men’s and women’s fields has been deepened thanks to the race’s ongoing relationship with presenting sponsor Montrail and the Montrail Ultra Cup, a nationwide series of trail ultras which guarantees top finishers a spot at Western States. The Montrail Ultra Cup’s men’s and women’s champions will also be crowned during race weekend.
Race Director Craig Thornley said if the talent at the front is any indication of race success, this year’s edition of Western States has the potential to continue the string of recent memorable runs at Western States, such as the “Unbreakable” duel and course record-breaking performance of Geoff Roes in 2010, Timothy Olson’s course record breaking run of 14:46 in 2012, as well as Olson and Smith’s courageous and scintillatingly fast runs in near-record heat in 2013.
“We have a great group of returning runners, some fresh faces we haven’t seen before and some faces we haven’t seen in a couple of years,” Thornley said. “It should add up to an extremely exciting and competitive race. Western States continues to be the most competitive 100-mile race in the world for both men and women. This year is no exception.”
In addition to Krar, who finished in second in 15:22 in chasing Olson (15:17) to the line in 2013, top contenders include: Ian Sharman, 33, of Walnut Creek, Calif., fourth in 2013; Dylan Bowman, 28, of Emerald Hills, Calif., fifth last year; Nick Clark, 40, of Fort Collins, Colo., sixth last year and gunning for Mike Morton’s master’s record of 15:45; Jez Bragg, 33, of Blandford, Forum, Great Britain, and a past top-five performer at Western States; and Max King, 34, of Bend, Ore., one of the most talented and versatile ultra runners in the world who will be making his 100-mile debut at Western States.
On the women’s side, Smith’s run of 18:37 in last year’s oppressive conditions where temperatures topped out well above 100 degrees, remains one of the most impressive efforts in recent memory. The 39-year-old pathologist from Salem, Ore., will be pressed by three-time Western States champion Nikki Kimball, who finished second in 2013; the ageless Meghan Arbogast, 53, of Cool, Calif., fourth last year and generally considered the finest over-50 runner in the world; Emily Harrison, 27, of Flagstaff, Ariz., seventh last year, as well as two young, talented ultra runners who will be marking their Western States debuts: Stephanie Howe, 30, of Bend, Ore., and runner-up to Harrison at the highly competitive Lake Sonoma 50-miler in April; and Kaci Lickteig, 27, of Omaha, Neb., who has third at Lake Sonoma and second at the Rocky Raccoon 100-miler in Texas earlier this year.
An added wrinkle to this year’s race narrative is the course itself. An iconic and historic section of the trail from Last Chance to near Devil’s Thumb was hit hard by last August’s American Fire. The fire, which raged from Aug. 10-29, consumed more than 27,000 acres, involved more than 1,900 firefighters and had a footprint of nearly 30 square miles. Western States, working in collaboration with the Western States Trail Foundation/Tevis Cup horse ride, mobilized a motivated group of volunteers who throughout the winter and fall accumulated more than 6,000 hours to bring the burned areas of the trail back.
The effort included installation of a new bridge where the Pacific Slab Mine Bridge once stood heading into the Deadwood Canyon section of the course (pieces of the new bridge were hauled nearly one mile into the deep, steep canyon, carried on the backs of a group of 50 volunteers), as well as mitigation efforts on burned areas such as the Pucker Point loop near the historic site of Last Chance.
Thornley said he was pleased to report that the approximate 10-mile stretch of the trail that was affected by the fire will be open, with no re-routing of the runners other than a river crossing by safety cable at the bottom of Deadwood Canyon at the North Fork of the Middle Fork of the American River.
“What our volunteers and the joint trail team between Western States, the Tevis Cup and our partners from the Forest Service have accomplished over the past few months has been really remarkable,” Thornley said. “The community of ultra runners and trail team workers has really come together to accomplish something very special. The Western States Trail is back and open for use. We couldn’t be prouder of what our people have done to help make this happen. A big ‘thank you’ to all of our volunteers.”
This year’s Western States will feature several special events leading up to the race start on the morning of June 28. Here is a brief recap of the week’s schedule:
Tuesday, June 24 and Wednesday, June 25:
8 a.m.-5 p.m., First Annual Medicine in Ultra-Endurance Sports Conference in Squaw Valley, led by Western States Medical Research Director, Dr. Marty Hoffman;
Thursday, June 26:
10 a.m., Trek to Emigrant Pass for annual flag raising at Watson Monument. Program begins at noon;
6:30 p.m., Veteran’s Panel hosted by Andy Jones-Wilkins, Squaw Valley Conference Center.
Friday, June 27:
9 a.m.-1 p.m., runner check-in and drop bag drop-off, Start Line Arch at Olympic Plaza in Squaw Valley;
10 a.m., Montrail 6K Uphill Challenge to High Camp;
1:30 p.m., pre-race meeting and briefing, Squaw Valley Conference Center;
2:30 p.m., Ultra-Trail World Tour Press Conference featuring several of the sport’s stars, Squaw Valley Conference Center.
Saturday, June 28:
5 a.m., race start from Start Line Arch, Squaw Valley;
Saturday evening: Men’s winner expected to arrive at Placer High School track, 7:45-8:15 p.m.; women’s winner expected to arrive at Placer High School track, 10-11 p.m.
Sunday, June 29:
5 a.m., last sub-24-hour silver belt buckle finisher has finished;
11 a.m., last official finisher has finished;
12:30 p.m., awards ceremony at Placer High School track.
This email was sent to all entrants on June 10. If you are an entrant and did not receive this, please check your spam folder.
Presented by
Dear Runner,
As you may have seen on our Facebook page or in our Twitter feed, the Western States Trail is now completely open with the exception of the Swinging Bridge just below Devil’s Thumb. What that means for you is you get to ford the North Fork of the Middle Fork of the American River with the aid of a cable at about mile 46 as runners did on Memorial Day weekend. It is currently above shorts level, but it may drop by race day. It will feel very good on race day.
Research
We can still use some help to assure our research will be successful this year. Here’s what you can do:
1. If you have not already done so, please take a moment to go the link http://goo.gl/KXEH4X to complete a short survey related to the psychology study.
2. Please consider participating in the study on gastrointestinal (GI) distress by contacting Taylor Valentino (taylorvalentino@gmail.com) or Dr. Kristin Stuempfle (kstuempf@gettysburg.edu).
3. Please consider participating in the study on cardiac function by contacting Dr. David Oxborough atd.l.oxborough@ljmu.ac.uk.
4. Please plan to get a blood draw after finishing the race. You will get an email within a few hours providing your results.
5. Please find us in the finish line medical tent if you have had vision issues during the race.
6. Please complete our post-race questionnaire on GI distress and hydration that you will receive by email after the race.
Details of each study are available at http://www.wser.org/2014/05/21/2014-research-activities/
Course Preview
This year there will be live video feed from many cameras on the course. In addition to the live feed, here is the course preview created by our friends at UltrasportsLive.TV
Montrail Ultra Cup
Western States is the final event of the 2014 Montrail Ultra Cup. 21 runners have gained entry into this year’s race by finishing top three (or four) at one of the five qualifying races. If you finished at least one of these races and have not signed up, you still have time.
http://blog.montrail.com/2014/06/2014-montrail-ultra-cup-standings/
General Information Form
If you haven’t filled out the general information form, please take a moment and do so right now. It feels good to hear Tropical John Medinger thank your crew and pacers and say whatever you want when you run those final 250 meters around the track at Placer High School.
http://www.wser.org/runner-information-form/
Race Program
Here is a link to the 2014 WS Race Program. A printed copy will be available for you at Squaw Valley when you arrive.
Enjoy the countdown to the race. I won’t tell you how many days until Dr Lind fires the shotgun because you probably already know.
I will send you one final email the week of the race.
Craig Thornley
Race Director
Steve Marchi, a longtime river crossing cable captain at Rucky Chucky, passed away over the weekend.
Steve receives his Friend of the Trail Award in 2009
Steve, who was one of the prime contributors to ensuring the safe passage of all runners via a safety cable held by a line of volunteers across the American River just below a series of treacherous Class 4-6 rapids, was 59 years old.
Marchi’s wife, Jodi, informed race director Craig Thornley of Steve’s passing.
Steve had a long and notable career at Lawrence Livermore Laboratory, where he worked from 1977 until his retirement in 2013. He was an active volunteer, giving his time not only at Western States, but also at local food banks.
“Steve set a wonderful example of how important all volunteers are to the success of our race,” said John Trent, president of the Western States Board of Trustees. “He not only braved frigid water through the day and into the early morning hours of the next day on race day for more than a decade, making sure that runners from all over the world could safely cross the Rucky Chucky river crossing, from what I understand he also actively recruited all his friends and neighbors to join him at the river crossing to do the same.
“Steve passed the spirit of our race onto many, many others, and for this our entire race owes a debt of gratitude to him. On behalf of the entire Western States board and our nearly 2,000 volunteers, I wish to express our sincere condolences to Steve’s wife, Jodi, and his sons, John, and Alex, for their loss.”
Friends and family are invited to a visitation on Thursday, June 12 from 6 to 10 p.m. and a funeral service at 10 a.m. on Friday, June 13 at Graham-Hitch Mortuary in Pleasanton. In lieu of flowers, Steve’s family wishes that donations may be made to the Alameda County Food Bank or Open Heart Kitchen.
To read more about Steve’s life, go to: Obituary from Contra Costa Times
Western States is a registered trademark of the Western States Endurance Run Foundation copyright © 2014 Western States Endurance Run Foundation.
