Lottery

I’ve run 100 miles four times in the last 12 months. The primary reason that number is four and not three is that none of the first three races were Western States qualifiers (despite the fact that Mogollon 100 is a qualifier for the much more difficult Hardrock 100). That’s mostly why I ran Javelina Jundred a few weeks ago. I finished, got my Western States qualifier, and entered the lottery.

Last Saturday was lottery day for both Western States and Hardrock. While out for a run with Will (who is training for Across the Years again), I got a message:

Then another:

Then some more:

I strongly suspected something to do with a race lottery, given these messages where all coming from my running friends. It wasn’t until the 5th message that someone actually mentioned Western States.

And that’s how I found out. I had about a 3% chance of getting picked in the lottery, so this did come as a surprise (a welcome one). Unsurprisingly, I didn’t get into Hardrock (where I had less than 1% chance).

On top of that, this week I finally feel like I’m recovered from Javelina, and I’m ready to start getting back into shape. June is a long time from now. Between now and then: lots of training (and a little racing).