Race report by Kevin Cassidy

WESTERN STATES 100 MILE TRAIL RACE, CALIFORNIA
Report by Max Bogenhuber
For those not in the know, the Western States 100 is a 100 mile race through the California Sierra mountains, starting at Squaw Valley (near Lake Tahoe) and finishing in Auburn, not all that far from Sacramento. Elevation changes are about 18000 foot of climb and 22000 foot of descent. I have run the event three times and I have been told by someone here that it must be an easy run, because it has more downhill than uphill. That someone shall remain nameless. But I DO hope that he will garner enough courage one day to enter that race, finishing it is a different story.
There is always a tendency to shut up about a race that one did not finish and I really don’t want to write about my experience this year, but rather the valiant effort put in on that scorching June day by Andrew McKenzie-Hicks.
Andrew and I got to California a week before the race. We drove up to the mountains to get a few runs in on the trail before race day. I know most of the trail reasonably well by now, but for Andrew it was all a new experience. I had told him back here that it gets hot up there: On that first training run about halfway along the actual trail it began to sink in just HOW hot ! We used up eight 16 ounce drink bottles in about 12 miles.
I had been pretty crook for some time and because of that had not been able to train like I normally do for this, so I quite honestly did not expect to get to the finish, but! had to go to the US anyway and I had entered (you have to enter by November the year before), so I decided to take it easy and see how far I would get.
There were all sorts of stories going around about cut-off times being extended because of the heavy cover of snow in the early miles. Now this is a bit hard to explain, super hot temperatures and snow on the trail !…you have to bea kidding ! Well, I kid you not, we had about 38 degrees at 6000 feet, the day before the race and yet over the first 30 miles there was snow on the trail on and off. The snow was pretty hard and really did not present a problem for me to run on, but some runners practically crawled over it. Its funny what the fear of the unknown can do to people.
I sort of struggled my way to Forest Hill (about 62 miles), but after taking an hour and fortyf ive minutes for the last two miles before getting there, I realised that it was pretty useless to carry on. So that’s where I quit. It was a good place to stop, because this is where runners pick up their pacers, if they have one. And this is where I’ll pick up Andrew’s story.
Fred, my brother who lives over there, had arranged for a pacer for Andrew. So while I was hanging around Forest Hill this guy came up to me and asked me where Andrew was. We searched the progress boards for his name, but soon became aware that these boards are not updated too often. So we waited around. I was starting to worry about Andrew when he had not arrived within an hour of my arrival there. I knew that he had put his first torch (for night running on the trail) in his Forest Hill drop bag. So I told his pacer that he would have to get there before dark. Well time went by and it got dark and no Andrew. Once the night had settled in and it was pitch dark, the pacer went home thinking that Andrew must have pulled out somewhere. No more than five minutes after he left Andrew turned up looking for his pacer. I did not want Andrew to know that I was out of the race, so I kept away from him and after a while Andrew decided to head out into the night on his own.
Not long after Andrew had left, my sister in law (a pretty good runner herself) turned up with the news that the guy she was supposed to pace had pulled out of the race at an earlier aid station. So I said why don’t you pace Andrew!?

We decided to go down to the next major aid station to meet him there. This station is down by the American River and you can’t drive down. So she ran the three miles from the road down to the aid station, in the dark, to wait there for him. She waited there for six hours. No Andrew. At this stage she was sure that he must have pulled out of the race somewhere between Forest Hill and the River Crossing, ran back up to the road and got a lift back to the finish at Auburn.
Meanwhile, my brother had finished the race in 11th place, we had been to the motel for a shower and a sleep and returned to the finish area (these are long races). When we got back there, we checked the progress board and found that Andrew had crossed the river and was on his way to the finish. But we had no idea how long he would be, so we went for something to eat downtown.
When we got back, there was Andrew, looking a bit worse for wear but in good spirits. For me, this was a very emotional moment, because I had given up on him and was feeling sorry for him because I knew how much he trained for this.
When he told us his side of the story I realised just how tough it must have
been for him. He had passed out coming out of one of the canyons where the day time temperature had reached 48 degrees. After regaining his senses he made it to the next aid station only to be held there, by a race doctor, for some time. And from then onwards he would get held at several aid stations because he had lost too much weight. When it dark on him out on the trail and he had no light because his torch was at Forest Hill, he stayed close to a runner who had a torch. Having done the race, I can assure you that’s a tough way of doing it. To Andrew’s credit he perservered and finished in just under twentyeight and a half hours. That performance shows a lot of guts and a big heart, there are not too many runners that would have carried on after what he had gone through.
This year only 56 runners, out of 387 starters, made it in under 24 hours. That’s the lowest percentage ever by a long way. And only 209 runners made it to the finish inside the cut-off time of 30 hours. Would that guy that said that this must be an easy run please stand up, repeat what he said, then send off his entry for next year’s race. I’ve got a spare one !
As in all previous years, the winners, male and female, again came from the local area re-enforcing my believe that one has to live and train on that trail
to ever perform well in that race. But it would be good to see some of our top ultra runners make the journey to trail runnings altar and give the Americans a run for their money.
Note: Forest Hill to River Crossing = 16 miles,
River Crossing to finch    = 22 miles.
First male – Tom Johnson in 17:08
First female – Ann Trason in 19:05 (third outright)
387 starters, 59 females (15% of starters)
Males had a 41% finishing rate
females had a 71% finishing rate (who called them the the weaker sex ?)

This is far from complete, but will be adding races as I go.

Glasshouse – 1990

Glasshouse – 1991

Glasshouse – 1992

Glasshouse – 1993

June 27,1993    Race Director – Ian Javes
The Ultra Division of the Queensland Marathon and Road Runners Club conducted trail runs over distances of 55,35 and 10 kms in the state forests of the Glasshouse Mountains area on Sunday,June 27.The two shorter events were open to walkers as well as runners.A planned 80km event was cancelled due to lack of entrants.
Don Wallace won the 55km event from Asim Mesalic and Brian Evans in 4Lr 10mi.n 36sec.Don was using the run as training for the World 100km Championship and led comfortably from the start.Carol Street was the first female in 6hr 56min 44sec from Phillipa Bolt.Dave Holleran was the only runner to go off course in this event.
Runners in the 35km had some trouble as course markings had been partially interferred with and thus four failed to complete the full course Twenty-four competitors successfully completed the course and there were two withdrawals. Rein Evenhuis was first to complete the course closely followed by the first lady,Lyn Gordon.Rex Gumbrell and Peter McKenzie were second and third. males and Sandra Cox started early to successfully complete the course and- then assist husband Arthur to organize a barbeque. Heather Mills walked this event.
There were no dramas in the 10km event with all thirty-four entrants successfully negotiating the Goat Track and forest trails.Murray Stratford led the men home in 49min 5sec from Japanese visitor Aragami Kosuke and Caboolture teenager David Dellow.Ann Palmer was the first female in lhr 8min 4sec from Judy Buchan and Sharon Parsons tied with her daughter Kylie Nicolosi for third. Kerni Hall was the first walker in lhr 19mi.n 41sec.
Next year it is intended to offer events over 80,55,35,20 and lCkms.
The two longer events will only proceed however if there are at least ten
entrants 10 days prior to the event..It is intended to obtain a volunteer to act as course director in future events.The function of this person will be to patrol the course to check on course markings.Keep June 18,1994 free for this event.Runners are advised to carry water bottles in the longer events as distances between some checkpoints are fairly long and there is always going to be the possibility of missing course marking.
Finally it could appear that most entrants enjoyed the challenge of rugged terrain and the scenery of the Glasshouse Mountains area.

Not sure about the year. Probably 1992 or 1993

Tim Sloan wins in record time.