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2022 Runner Survey Results

Here are the results of the independent Western States Endurance Run (WSER) Runner Survey from the June 25-26, 2022 race, conducted by ultralive.net.

WSER runner registration takes place in Olympic Valley Friday before race day and 2022 allowed for another year of the ultralive survey team to be in position. Runners are happy to participate while they wait in line for check-in providing us a 95% participation rate of the 383 starters.

Here are the surveys from 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019.

Survey Questions

The runners were asked the following questions. Data was recorded by bib number allowing us to correlate the responses to finish times to make the analysis even more interesting. All data however is compiled and reported anonymously:

  • Number of 100’s completed
  • Number of years running ultras
  • Will they use a crew?
  • Will they use a pacer?
  • Did they attend the Memorial weekend training camp
  • Shoe brand
  • Sock brand
  • Pack type/brand
  • Lighting brand
  • Watch brand
  • Did they pay for coaching services?
  • A few questions about lodging for the race to share with host sites

This year’s race saw 11 women finish in the top 30 runners overall, with the “top 10’s” of both women and men all under 20 hours. Of the 383 starters we saw 305 finishers (79.6%) under 30 hours of which 101 (26.4%) finished under the coveted 24 hour mark for a Silver Buckle.

A total of 290 of the 305 finshers (95.1%) are in the survey.

Note: All graphs show numbers related to runners who participated in the survey and finished the race. DNS and DNF are not included in the final graphs.

Finish Hour

For sub 24 hour finishers completing the survey, 40 out of 93 (55%) finished in the 23rd hour of the race to get a silver buckle. In the last two hours of the race, there were 117 (38%) finishers. The busiest times on the track are typically between 4-5 AM and 9-11 AM on Sunday morning and 2022 proved no different.

The graphs show the distribution of finishers by hour (15 hours to 29 hours), distribution of finishers by completed 100 mile races, and distribution of finishers by year of running ultras. Interestingly, many of the finishers over 24 hours have finished more than ten 100 mile races and have been running ultras over 10 years.

The hot temperatures in this year’s race definitely attributed to the finish rate of 79.6%.

Shoes

Again Hoka was the most popular shoe (42.8%) for all finishers with Altra in second place with 19.7% and Salomon in third (8.3%). The rankings switched for second and third place with the sub-24 hour finishers. We acknowledge some runners did plan to change shoes during the race and may have changed to a different brand so we asked that they provide the brand they planned to start the race wearing.

Socks

Injinji was just barely the favorite over Drymax for the most popular sock choice for finishers. And it was Drymax over Injinji for the sub-24 hour finishers. The “other” category was quite large this year and runners seem to like a large variety of socks.

Paid Coaching Services

31% of the runners use a paid coaching service overall. Sub-24 hour finishers were slightly less likely to use a coach. And as a continuing trend, 48% of the DNF runners used a coaching service.

Memorial Weekend Training Camp

The training camp held on Memorial Weekend is a great weekend to get on the course for those running, supporting or spectating the race. Only a third of the runners in the survey attended the camp. However, attending camp does not seem to decrease the chance of a DNF as 40% of the runners who did not complete the race were at the training camp.

Lighting

Petzl’s remains the favorite light brand for all runners regardless of finish time (sub or over-24 hour) with Black Diamond second again.

Packs

Salomon was the top choice for all runners (sub 24 and overall). For sub 24 finishers, Nathan edged out Ultimate Direction for second place.

Watches

Garmin was the most popular watch overall in the survey. However, for the sub 24 finishers Coros was the most popular watch. Suunto was the third most popular in both categories.

Crew and Pacer

The use of a crew and/or pacer are personal preference during a 100-mile race but may be more popular at WS. The following chart shows the correlation of using a pacer or crew to finish hour. In the overall survey, almost everyone (98%) planned on using a pacer.

Data Accuracy

383 runners started the 2022 Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run

Ultralive.net team surveyed a majority of those runners through the registration process at Olympic Valley Final survey reflects N = 364 (95.1%) athletes though individual questions may vary if athlete did not answer or know answer. And also note that this analysis was done by amateur statisticians.

Credits

The team would like to thank all of the runners who took time to talk with us and answer these questions. Many thanks to the ultralive.net survey team: Kara Teklinski, Emily Yu and David Canfield.

Any feedback or insights are welcome!

Posted in General Interest, Race News, Surveys | on: January 14th, 2023 by Craig | Comments Off on 2022 Runner Survey Results

2023 Lottery Statistics

Last updated: December 2, 2022 at 9:20 am

The 2023 race lottery will be held on December 3, 2022 in front of a live audience at the Placer High School auditorium in Auburn, CA beginning at 8:00 a.m. PST. We expect to be done by 11:00 a.m. As names are randomly selected, they will be posted at https://lottery.wser.org in real-time. There will also be a live video coverage of the lottery on our Youtube Channel beginning at 7:30 a.m. PST.

Each applicant ran a qualifying race of 100k or longer within the last year to be eligible to enter. Some have done so for many years. Each runner who enters the lottery and fails to gain entry into the Run (and otherwise doesn’t gain an entry via other means such as an aid station, sponsor, or HOKA Golden Ticket spot) will have additional tickets in the hat when entering the lottery the following year, thus improving the probability of being selected. Every lottery applicant will receive 2^(n-1) tickets in the hat where n is the number of years entering the lottery without gaining entry. That is, 1st year applicants = 1 ticket, 2nd year = 2 tickets, 3rd year = 4 tickets, 4th year = 8 tickets, and so on. The maximum number of years for the 2023 lottery is 9 years or 256 tickets.

You can view the final 2023 applicants and their ticket counts.

After the cancellation in 2020 and then starting fewer than our allowed 369 starters in 2021, the US Forest Service is allowing us to start 380 runners in 2023. As we began in 2017, we are using a wait list model instead of overbooking like we had for decades to get the target number of starters which is the number we are legally allowed to run through the Granite Chief Wilderness. 106 of those 380 are automatic entrants resulting in 274 lottery spots. 271 of those will be selected in the lottery proper. The final three entrants to get to 380 will be selected from those in the audience. We will also select an additional 75 names for the ordered wait list. The probabilities of being selected as one of the 274 in the lottery or 75 on the wait list (349) are as follows:

  • 5 runners 256 tickets, each has a 92.4% chance of getting selected
  • 37 runners with 128 tickets, each has a 72.5 %
  • 127 runners with 64 tickets, each has a 47.6 %
  • 232 runners with 32 tickets, each has a 27.6%
  • 374 runners with 16 tickets, each has a 14.9 %
  • 525 runners with 8 tickets, each has a 7.7 %
  • 731 runners with 4 tickets, each has a 3.9 %
  • 1578 runners with 2 tickets, each has a 2.0%
  • 3560 runners with 1 ticket, each has a 1.0 %

So what are the chances of getting into the race if you are selected for the wait list? In 2022 we exhausted a wait list of 75. In 2021 we exhausted the wait list of 50 which was rolled over from 2020. In 2019 the last person to get a spot on the starting line was selected 31st. In 2018 the 36th person on the list got in, in 2017 the 39th person got in. All the historical data from the wait lists can be found here.

Good luck to all.

Posted in Race News | on: December 2nd, 2022 by Craig | Comments Off on 2023 Lottery Statistics

Mosquito Fire Assessment

On September 6, 2022, the Mosquito fire started at Oxbow Dam. The fire quickly spread uphill towards Michigan Bluff and Foresthill. As of today the fire is 95% contained and has burned over 76,000 acres. 78 structures were destroyed, many in the Michigan Bluff area.

Regarding the Western States Trail the easternmost extent affected by the fire is near Swinging Bridge (mile ~46 on the course) and the westernmost extent affected is the Patent Road Fire Break (5.7 miles west of Foresthill, or mile ~68 on course). While this is a total of about 22 miles of trail, the trail through Volcano Canyon and Foresthill was not inside the burn perimeter, and therefore only about 16 miles of the trail were directly impacted by the fire.

With respect to post-fire restoration we will be working with three land agencies/owners: US Forest Service (USFS) from Swinging Bridge to Bath Rd, a private land owner from Foresthill to just before Cal-1, and Auburn State Recreation Area (ASRA) for the westernmost 3 miles to the Patent Road Fire Break.

Mosquito fire with WS Trail – WSER

Good news:

  • The Last Chance Townsite and aid station location was not burned
  • Pacific Slab Bridge was not affected
  • The Swinging Bridge was unburned
  • The Deadwood Pump is fully operational
  • The El Dorado Creek bridge was unburned
  • Michigan Bluff homes where the aid station is survived

Some parts of the trail where the fire burned hot show much more damage to the vegetation while other parts show much less or little damage. In areas that burned hot, the vegetation holding soil in place was removed and as a result the soil will erode more quickly and undermine the stability root systems for trees causing them to fall.  Areas where the fire did not burn as hot will be less prone to these negative effects, but will still experience significant soil erosion, tree mortality, and hazard trees. Mitigation of hazard trees and soil erosion that will occur when the winter rains start falling are the two big priorities. 

Soil Burn Severity Map – USFS

Damage repair from fire suppression activities has already begun (wide fire breaks are being either fully or if needed in the future partially restored, and water diversion features created). In addition some emergency stabilization activities (e.g., felling of hazard trees) has already begun. Emergency stabilization and long-term recovery and rehabilitation efforts will continue through the winter and spring, and may continue for up to 5 years.  With respect to federal lands a Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) Team has already been assembled, is performing a rapid assessment to determine the scope of the Emergency Stabilization that is required, estimate costs required to perform this work, and apply for BAER Funding. Additional funding for Long-Term  Recovery and Burned Area Rehabilitation (BAR) may be available to assist in long-term recovery efforts. With regard to the State of California the Governors Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) has been engaged, and provides a range of State Recovery Resources. In addition Placer County will help private land owners with removal of debris and hazardous materials, and removal of hazard trees.

This is not the first fire to impact the WS trail. The most recent fires were the Star Fire of 2001 and the American Fire of 2013.

The Western States Trail Foundation, Western States Endurance Run Foundation, and The Canyons Endurance Runs will be working with the agencies and owners to get the trail ready for our events in 2023. Trail work days are still TBD. We will share the info when it is created.

Tahoe National Forest, American River Ranger District lands are closed to the public until December 31, 2022, so there is no recreational trail access. ASRA has closed the fire affected area, from the Patent Road Fire Break east to Foresthill, until further notice.

For more info on the fire see: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8398/

El Dorado Creek Bridge – USFS

Michigan Bluff side of El Dorado Canyon – Carol Hewitt

Top of Cal St – WSER

View of Wortons Market from Cal St – WSER

Hot burn on Cal St

Cal-1 Aid Station – WSER

Dardanelles Fire Break – WSER

Trail near western edge of fire – WSER
Posted in Race News, Trail Preservation | on: October 6th, 2022 by Craig | Comments Off on Mosquito Fire Assessment

2022 Race Recap

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: John Trent, media relations, (775) 842-4871, press@wser.org

PETERMAN, CROFT POST SMASHING WINNING PERFORMANCES AT WSER

Adam Peterman becomes first male runner since 1986 to win Western States in first 100 ever; Ruth Croft runs third-fastest women’s time

Even in its 49th year, the Western States Endurance Run continues to make history, as Adam Peterman became the first men’s race winner since 1986 to win the race during a 100-mile debut, while Ruth Croft won the women’s race with the third-fastest time in race history, notable on a day when temperatures soared into the high 90s.

Peterman, 26, of Missoula, Montana, won the men’s race in 15 hours and 13 minutes. Peterman and Hayden Hawks, 31, of Cedar City, Utah, who finished second in 15:47, waged a pitched battle during the California Street section of the course at around miles 74-76 with Peterman taking a 2-minute lead at the Rucky Chucky river crossing at mile 78.

“It got pretty intense along the river,” Peterman said. “Both of us were hammering.”

Peterman became the first male runner to win Western States in his 100-mile debut since 27-year-old Chuck Jones won the 1986 edition of the race in 16:37.

“It’s hard to believe,’ Peterman said. “I thought I had a chance, but you never know what’s going happen over 100 miles. So I just tried to run my own race the whole time. I hoped that would make the podium. … It was really hard. (Winning in his debut) was hard to believe, really.”

Arlen Glick of Massillon, Ohio, finished third in 15:56.

Croft, 33, from Greymouth, New Zealand, had finished second to Beth Pascall in 2021. Croft used that experience in posting the third-fastest women’s time in race history, finishing in 17:21. Although Croft now owns two of the six fastest times in race history (her 2021 time of 17:33 is the sixth-fastest race history) Croft noted at the finish that her entire day on Saturday was “magical.”

“It was pretty special today,” she said. “I had an awesome crew out there and my parents came from New Zealand, and my aunt. It was pretty magical.”

She said that running with a good friend, Zimbabwe’s Emily Hawgood, who eventually would finish in fifth in 18:16, helped.

“I caught up with Emily coming up to Robinson Flat (at mile 30),” she said, “and we kind of teamed up ran a lot together.”

The two would run together for the next 20-plus miles before Croft took command of the race at Michigan Bluff at mile 55.7. She built a four-minute lead over Hawgood that she would never relinquish.

Alisa Macdonald, 41, of Cochrane, Alberta, Canada, finished second in 17:46, while Marianne Hogan, 32, of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, was third in 18:05.

Conditions saw temperatures reach into the high 90s throughout Saturday. Even with the high temperatures, the race saw 305 finishers out of 383 starters. There were 101 runners who finished the race in under 24 hours. In a testament to how well runners throughout the field were able to manage a challenging, hot day, the race’s “Golden Hour” – the time between 29 and the race cutoff at 30 hours – saw a phenomenal 79 runners celebrate a hard-earned finish on the track at Placer High School in Auburn, California.

The oldest runners to finish this year were 61-year-old Meghan Canfield of Corvallis, Oregon, who ran 24:38, and 63-year-old Simon Bennett of Ackworth, Great Britain, who finished in 29:32.

June 25-26, 2022 Full Race Results

Posted in Race News | on: June 28th, 2022 by JohnT | Comments Off on 2022 Race Recap

2022 WS 100 Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: John Trent, media relations, (775) 842-4871, press@wser.org

WESTERN STATES ENDURANCE RUN READIES FOR 2022 RACE: ‘CHANGING OF THE GUARD’

Women’s contenders poised to make history again while men’s field looks to crown first champion in post-Jim Walmsley era

The 2021 edition of the Western States Endurance Run featured one of the most competitive and historic women’s races ever held, while Jim Walmsley cemented his Western States men’s competition legend with a third commanding win. The 2022 edition of Western States, which will be held on June 25-26, promises to be just as notable. Deep women’s and men’s elite fields are vying to earn the top crowns at the 49th annual event. Presenting sponsor HOKA will again play an important role in this year’s event, including its support of Western States’ second annual Live Broadcast, which will begin just before the Saturday, June 25 start at 5 a.m. and will continue until race weekend activities conclude around noon on Sunday, June 26. The Live Broadcast can be accessed via Western States’ YouTube channel, with veteran elite runners Dylan Bowman and Corrine Malcolm providing commentary.

“We have incredible depth in both the men’s and women’s fields this year,” Race Director Craig Thornley said. “In 2021, on a brutally hot day, our women’s race made history with the high percentage of female finishers who finished in our top 30 – 15 of them were women, which speaks to what a pitched and exciting competition we had last year.

“We are expecting our women’s elite field, which features several notable international standouts as well as some of the most well-known figures in American trail running, to be highly competitive again this year.

“Our men’s race should be fascinating as well, as we look to crown a new race champion following a succession of memorable runs by three-time champion Jim Walmsley. The storyline for our men’s race will be ‘a changing of the guard.’ It is anybody’s guess who among a field of proven veterans and exciting newcomers will be our 2022 men’s champion.”

Seven of the top 10 women’s finishers are back for this year’s race, including second-place finisher Ruth Croft of New Zealand. Croft’s time of 17:33 was just behind 2021 women’s champion Beth Pascall of England, whose time of 17:10 run on a day where temperatures reached 101 degrees was the second-fastest in race history. Pascall is not running this year due to a long road back from injury during the winter and early spring. She will be at the Laverado Ultra Trail by UTMB the same weekend as Western States.

Top American entrants include Brittany Peterson of Pocatello, Idaho, who finished fourth in 2021 and was second in 2019, Katie Asmuth, of Mammoth Lakes, California, 2021’s fifth-place finisher, Keely Henninger, of Portland, Oregon, ninth in 2021, Kaci Lickteig of Omaha, Nebraska, 10th in 2021 and the 2016 Western States women’s champion, as well as Zimbabwe’s Emily Hawgood, who finished seventh last year.

Perhaps the most intriguing women’s entrant is Camille Herron. The 40-year-old from Warr Acres, Oklahoma, is the 100-mile world record holder, having broken her own record in February 2022 with a 12:41 run at the Jackpot 100-Miler in Las Vegas, Nevada. Herron, who also set the 100-mile American track record with her 13:21 at December’s Desert Solstice timed track event, fought through an off day and finished Western States in 2021 in 27:28.

Walmsley, as Thornley indicated, has cast a significant competitive shadow over the men’s race over the past five years. He set the Western States course record in winning the 2019 race in 14:09, and all three of his victories (2018, 2019 and 2021) represent three of the four fastest races ever run at Western States. Walmsley is living and training in France this summer as he prepares for August’s UTMB Mont-Blanc event.

Last year’s top men’s finishers will be well represented in 2022, with second-place Tyler Green of Portland, Oregon, third-place Drew Holmen, of Boulder, Colorado, fourth-place Cody Lind of Challis, Idaho, and fifth-place Tim Tollefson, of Mammoth Lakes, California, all returning. Jared Hazen, who ran the second-fastest time (14:26) in Western States history in finishing second to Walmsley in 2019, is also in this year’s field.

An added wrinkle to this year’s event will be Western States’ inclusion in the UTMB World Series. The UTMB World Series is considered the world’s ultimate trail running circuit that unites the sport’s biggest stars and runners of all abilities across 25 events held worldwide in 2022.

All runners who successfully complete Western States will be awarded four “Running Stones,” which can be used as entries into the lottery for the iconic UTMB Mont-Blanc and the UTMB World Series Finals in 2023. The top three finishers at Western States gain entry into UTMB in either 2022 or 2023. The top two finishers at UTMB Chamonix in August earn “Golden Tickets,” or automatic entry, for the 2023 Western States.

“The UTMB World Series has already proven to be a groundbreaking and important step forward for our sport,” Thornley said. “Western States has always made a concerted effort to make our sport more inclusive, internationalized and united. Our race is very proud to be part of the UTMB World Series, which at its core is an effort to give more runners more opportunities to compete at many of the most challenging and iconic events in the world.”

Now in its 49th year, the Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run has a 385-runner field from throughout the United States and more than 30 countries. Runners start at 5 a.m. on Saturday, June 25, 2022 in Olympic Valley, Calif., and travel 100.2 miles, through the Sierra high country and the canyons of the American River on the ancestral lands of the Washoe and Nisenan tribes, before finishing at Placer High School in Auburn, Calif.

Posted in General Interest, Race News | on: June 17th, 2022 by JohnT | Comments Off on 2022 WS 100 Press Release