Western States 100 Finish Shows Difference From Most Running

I'm sure that by now everyone has heard at least once that the 2016 Western States first place finisher was a bit of a surprise!

While I feel for getting sidetracked on a course and losing time - I do like to see that it still impacts races like these (hopefully the lost time wasn't due to people pulling down course markings, etc) as it throws a bit more randomness into the mix and shows that trail races still involve more than just "if you run the fastest you win" that most people not familiar with running as a sport seem to think is the basic idea behind every single race!

Jim Walmsley was in the lead with 32 kilometres to go and on pace to destroy the course record at the Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run on Saturday in California. The 26-year-old, however, took a wrong turn, which cost him more than an hour. That left the door open to 20-year-old Andrew Miller to become the youngest winner ever at the world’s oldest 100-mile trail race. Read more at Costly mistake opens door for youngest ever winner at Western States 100

Regardless of time to finish it's an amazing accomplishment, especially given the temperatures that many face during this race. That alone can cause many to DNF and is something that people train for on it's own.

We'd like to check out the course sometime, if not to run it, then to hike or check out the race sometime. Have you run WS100 or part of the course? What's your favorite section?

The post Western States 100 Finish Shows Difference From Most Running appeared first on Bearded Goat Trail Running.