2010 Western States 100 Finish Line

June 26, 2010

This race is one of the nation's Grand Slam of Ultramarathons.  It begins at the Squaw Valley Ski Resort before sunrise and ends here at Placer High School in Auburn.  In between are 18,000 feet of ascent, 23,000 feet of descent, snow, river crossings, ungodly air temperatures, and the chance of an encounter with a rattlesnake, mountain lion, or even a bear.

Four miles of the route are inside the Granite Chief Wilderness, which was created in 1984, ten years after the inception of this event.  A special act of Congress suspended the standard wilderness limitation of twelve persons per party, enabling 369 runners to compete in this event only.

It is pretty quiet here at about 6 p.m.

Getting into this event is a complicated affair.  The top-ten finishers qualify automatically for the next year's run.  Others must complete a qualifying race in order to apply for a lottery of nearly 4,000 applicants, then pay $410 if lucky, then perform eight hours of advance service in the form of trail maintenance or assistance at another run.

The major excitement at the moment is a hot dog stand

A man on a public address system keeps us informed of the progress of the nearest runners, and throws in some information about the participants as well.

The current leader is scheduled to appear in about fifteen minutes

By the time he does show up, a couple hundred spectators are gathered around the finish line.

The race is won in 15:07:04, a course record!

Geoff Roes, age 34, is a happy guy

Smile for the camera!

Roes was the 2009 & 2010 "Ultrarunner of the Year".  Among his accomplishments was a huge win in the Wasatch 100, with a record time that still stands nine years later.

Awaiting the next runner

We don't have to wait long, either — less than seven minutes.

Anton Krupicka's time of 15:13:52 would have been a record in any other year

Krupicka was featured in the film, Indulgence: 1000 Miles Under the Colorado Sky, which chronicles his Summer 2007 training leading up to the Leadville Trail 100.  He won it twice.

§: It would be some forty-nine minutes before the third-place finisher appeared — a Spaniard named Kilian Jornet, who would later make himself famous by running the entire 42-mile Mt. Kilimanjaro route in just over seven hours — a mind-boggling accomplishment.  He also has logged the fastest times for round-trips of The Matterhorn, Mont Blanc, Denali, and Everest.

So today's winners bested some elite company.  Well done!  Mr. Jornet would have to wait until next year to win the WST-100, which he did.

Read more about the history of this remarkable event here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_States_Endurance_Run