"Perhaps the genius of ultrarunning is its supreme lack of utility. It makes no sense in a world of space ships and supercomputers to run vast distances on foot. There is no money in it and no fame, frequently not even the approval of peers. But as poets, apostles and philosophers have insisted from the dawn of time, there is more to life than logic and common sense."
- David Blaikie

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

100 M Difficulty Ratings

This is pretty cool... Gary Wang's difficulty ranking of 100 milers using Western States as a benchmark:

Hardrock---------------...1.55 (registered 2009)
HURT-------------------...1.31
Wasatch Front----------...1.17 (paced 2008)
Bear-------------------...1.13
Bighorn----------------...1.12 (completed 2008)
Massanutten------------...1.11 (paced 2008, waitlist 2009)
Angeles Crest----------...1.08
Superior Sawtooth------...1.06
Cascade Crest Classic--...1.05 (registered 2009)
Leadville Trail--------...1.03
Western States---------...1.00 (paced 1999, completed in 2000)
San Diego--------------...0.99
Rio Del Lago-----------...0.93
Haliburton Forest------...0.91
Mohican Trail----------...0.90
Javelina Jundred-------...0.89
Old Dominion-----------...0.88
Arkansas Traveller-----...0.88
Kettle Moraine---------...0.88
Heartland--------------...0.84
Vermont----------------...0.84
Umstead----------------...0.81 (paced 2000)
Rocky Raccoon----------...0.81

4 comments:

Chris said...

Congratulations on getting in. See you in Silverton. You certainly don't appear to need any advice, but the best I can give (unsolicited) is to get there as early as possible to learn the trails and acclimate to the altitude. The former is probably more important than the latter at HR100.

Joseph Lea said...

Thanks Chris! Looks like you're in good position on the waitlist and this will be #5, correct? Smooth sailing through the lottery from here on out...

I'm planning on coming out for the San Juan Solstice 50M 6/20 and knocking around for the 3 weeks leading up to Hardrock. Hope to see you out there!

Chris said...

Funny thing about the lottery. It can be a moving target. Up until this year, the rule was anyone with 3 finishes within 5 years was automatic. I had 3 for 3, so I was automatic last year. Then they changed the rules so that only the previous year's winner and anyone with 5 lifetime finishes could be automatic. I was left out in the cold despite being 4 for 4. I'm very lucky to be so high on the wait list. There are other 4 timers who are plain SOL. I understand the board's reasoning, and I like all those guys very much, but it still hurts to be told 4 for 4 is less worthy than someone who finished 5 times ever but hasn't had a finish in the last 5 years. Enough complaining - I look forward to chasing you through the San Juans. I'm not fast, but I aim to be consistent.

Joseph Lea said...

Chris, you've got a great streak going. It does seem like there should be special consideration for that. Hopefully you won't have the rug pulled out from under you again!