AJW’s Remaining Ideas on the 2026 Western States 100 – iRunFar

One other Western States 100 has come and gone, and the 2026 version was a doozy! The third-coolest temperatures in race historical past, mixed with no snow within the excessive nation, yielded course information for each the lads and the ladies. As well as, the 87% finisher fee was the very best in race historical past, and the 136 sub-24-hour finishers have been second solely to the 148 silver buckles awarded within the 2012 occasion.

I walked away from the 2026 occasion with three observations.

Jennifer Lichter crossing the American River on her approach to successful the 2026 Western States 100. Picture: iRunFar/Eszter Horanyi

Pre-Race Predictions Versus Actuality

My pre-race predictions turned out to be fairly flawed. Within the males’s race, from my high six runners, just one made it into the highest six, and two others made the highest 10. Three of my picks didn’t end.

1. Jim Walmsley – DNF
2. Jeff Mogavero – seventh
3. Zach Miller – fifth
4. Hayden Hawks – DNF
5. Hans Troyer – DNF
6. Will Murray – ninth

Zach Miller runs to fifth place on the 2026 Western States 100. Picture: iRunFar/Eszter Horanyi

I solely fared barely higher on the ladies’s aspect of the ledger, with two of my picks making the highest six, and two others making the highest 10. One among my picks didn’t begin attributable to harm, and one other didn’t end.

1. Abby Corridor – DNF
2. Jenn Lichter – 1st
3. Tara Dower – sixth
4. Anne Flower – DNS
5. Fu-Zhao Xiang – seventh
6. Hannah Allgood -Tenth

Tara Dower on her approach to sixth through the 2026 Western States 100. Picture: iRunFar/Eszter Horanyi

Evolving Aggressive Density within the Males’s and Girls’s Races

One approach to measure the aggressive density of Western States is to have a look at the unfold in instances between the first- and Tenth-place finishers. Utilizing this metric, the smaller the unfold, the extra aggressive the race for the highest 10.

For Western States between 2022 and 2026, the spreads ranged from 1:05 to 2:42, with the smallest being the 2024 males’s race. The biggest time distinction was through the 2023 ladies’s race when Courtney Dauwalter set a brand new course file in 15:29:33. That yr, the unfold between Katie Schide in second place, who additionally went underneath the earlier course file, and Tenth place was 1:28, which might have positioned it as probably the most aggressive ladies’s subject till this yr.

Courtney Dauwalter setting a then course file on the 2023 Western States 100. Picture: iRunFar/Meghan Hicks

Trying on the time variations over time, it might seem that whereas the lads’s race has turn into much less aggressive since 2022, the depth of the ladies’s subject is rising. Of explicit observe, utilizing this statistic as a measure of competitiveness signifies that in each 2025 and 2026, the ladies’s race was extra aggressive than the lads’s.

Right here is the info from the outcomes listed on the Western States web site:

Sponsors and Coaches of the Prime 10 Runners

With the game’s rising professionalization, the vary of company sponsorships obtainable to elite athletes has grown exponentially in recent times. Within the 2026 Western States, there have been 13 completely different corporations represented among the many males’s and girls’s top-10 finishers. Hoka led the best way with 4 top-10 finishes, and Nike ACG and adidas every had three. Salomon, Brooks, Altra, Arc’terex, On, Kailas Fuga, Janji, Kiprun, The North Face, and Mount to Coast every had one.

Hannah Allgood working for adidas on her approach to ending Tenth on the 2026 Western States 100. Picture: iRunFar/Eszter Horanyi

Alternatively, one endurance teaching firm clearly dominated the elite subject at Western States: Colorado-based CTS Endurance Teaching. This yr, 5 of the top-10 males and 4 of the top-10 ladies have been coached by 4 completely different CTS coaches. John Fitzgerald coaches lights, Adam PetermanMogavero, and Murray. Jason Koop coaches Montgomery, Canyon Woodwardand Xiang. Cliff Pittman coaches Allgood, and Adam Ferdinandson coaches Riley Brady.

Ryan Montgomery, who’s coached by CTS, climbs to 3rd through the 2026 Western States 100. Picture: iRunFar/Eszter Horanyi

And with that, a historic yr at Western States involves an finish. I, for one, am already counting the times till subsequent yr when extra magic will certainly be made.

Bottoms up!

AJW’s Beer of the Week

This week’s Beer of the Week comes from Tree Home Brewing Firm in Charlton, Massachusetts. Second of Readability Milk Stout is an American milk stout brewed with espresso, chocolate, and maple syrup. Easy and hearty, Second of Readability is a scrumptious milk stout good for a cold summer time night in Northern New England.

Name for Feedback

• How did your Western States 100 predictions pan out?
• What are your ideas on the competitiveness of the fields over the previous few years?

*AJW is an unbiased contractor coach who works for CTS, primarily teaching mid- to back-of-the-pack athletes.