1998 Western States 100 race report
Posted to the ultra list on July 2, 2010 by Matt Mahoney.

I know it's a bit late, sorry. Western States is a nice race,
but with all the hoops you have to jump through to get in, 
running it once in 1998 was enough. I started the entry process 
3 years earlier and got in under the 2 time loser rule back when 
you could still do that. Even so, had to qualify each year just 
to get in the lottery. I had never run a qualifying 50 mile at 
the time. I used the Leadville 100 as my first 2 qualifiers but 
wasn't picked. In 1997 I planned to qualify at Hardrock with 
Leadville as a backup, but two DNFs left me scrambling for 
another race before the December entry deadline. I qualified 
at the Superior 100 in 30:02, well under the 34 hour cutoff. 
(I would have gotten the sub 30 buckle except for getting lost 
200 yards from the finish). However, the results did not get 
listed in Ultrarunning in time. I had to send a photocopy of 
my buckle with my entry as proof of qualifying. Just in case, 
I also sent my previous Leadville results, which were one week 
before the start of the qualifying period.

1998 was also the first year that they added a service requirement, 
following the lead of Wasatch. Western States required either 8 
hours of trail work or volunteering at an ultra. I sent in a copy 
of the Wickham Park 50 results in Ultrarunning, which showed me 
as race director.

I flew into Denver and drove to Squaw Valley so that I would 
have a shorter drive back to the airport after Hardrock, which 
would be two weeks later. After 3 years to get in, there was no 
way I would not be doing both races. Someone posted on the Ultra 
list that there were hostel beds available at Squaw Valley for 
$15. I had no crew. I figured I could hitch a ride back with 
someone else after the race. I made up only one drop bag: some 
clean clothes and a towel for Auburn so I could take a shower 
after the race.

1998 was a snow year. They added 2 hours to all the cutoff times. 
There was solid snow for the first 20 miles. Temperatures were 
below freezing for the first few miles and warmed to the 80's 
by the end of the snow, which was melting rapidly creating lots 
of mud and slush. At Duncan Canyon (mile 24) I pulled out a 
grocery bag and made up a drop bag to get rid of my winter 
clothing to bring to the finish. We skipped Robinson Flat and 
ran on 8 miles of paved road.

I did not push too hard. I just wanted to finish healthy for 
Hardrock. I had never seen such huge trees before. I was in awe. 
I stopped at a 4 foot wide Ponderosa pine stump to count the rings. 
There were 100.

I did not plan on a pacer but when I got to Foresthill (62 miles) 
around midnight, Dave Littlehales, who I had never met before, 
offered to pace me. We got to the river crossing (by raft) just 
after sunrise. In daylight I got my second wind. At 90 miles he 
said he could not keep up, so I abandoned him somewhere in the 
woods and never saw him again. Cutoffs were looming. I had to 
run uphill, passing many runners who would not finish, to make 
the highway 49 crossing (mile 94) by 4 minutes. Temperatures 
were in the high 90's. I finished second to last in 31:54. They 
only gave buckles for under 30 hours, so I got a finisher's 
plaque instead.

A good race report should mention other runners and not talk 
just about yourself. I did meet Ann Trason at the awards. She 
was first female. I don't remember who was first male.

I got a ride back from another crew. It was 2 hours on the interstate. 
Did I really run that far?

At Squaw Valley, the hostel was closed so I camped a few miles away 
and slept 14 hours. I camped two more nights in Great Basin and Zion 
on the way back to Silverton. This left only 9 days to acclimate for 
Hardrock, which was not enough. I had no crew, pacer, or drop bags. 
I pushed the 48 hour cutoff pace all the way, then got lost on 
Putnam-Pole divide under a full moon at mile 92 and wandered the 
13,000 ft. tundra for 3 hours before the next runner (Fred Vance) 
came along, suffering from pulmonary edema. We tied for the unofficial 
course record for the longest DNF at Hardrock, 51:38. He had to leave 
for Death Valley to run Badwater the next day, which he finished.