100 Miles in a Day: The Western States in Photos

A few minutes after 4 a.m., I began power hiking up the Palisades Tahoe ski resort, following a glittering snake of headlamps in front of me. We were all heading to the same spot, the Escarpment, which sits on the top of the ridge and overlooks Olympic Valley. The climb to get there is stout: three miles and 2,500 vertical feet, but it would put me in the perfect position for sunrise photos as runners passed by.

I’d been hired by The North Face to follow the 51st edition of the Western States Endurance Run, a 100-mile race widely known as the Super Bowl of ultra running. It’s the oldest and most prestigious race of its length in the world, not to mention incredibly hard to get into. Thanks to Forest Service permits, there are spots for just 375 runners, despite more than 10,000 applying through a lottery every year.

My assignment was to capture images of the top TNF athletes, Katie Schide, Rod Farvard and Jiasheng Shen, as they retraced the footsteps of gold miners from Palisades to Auburn, California. The winners typically take less than 15 hours, a remarkably fast time considering the course also has 18,000 feet of elevation and often sees temps in the 100s in the hottest part, the canyons. 

This year, still dark and with temps floating around freezing, the gun goes off and runners begin the climb to the Escarpment. The top runners reach us as the sun climbs above the horizon, creating a magical energy as they start their journey across the Sierra. After leaders fly by, we jog back down, drink another coffee and begin the process of leapfrogging down the course to catch them as many times as possible.

Spectators reach the Escarpment a few minutes before racers arrive. Hundreds of people make this early morning hike, just to cheer runners as they start the race.

Rod Farvard leads the race near the top of the climb while looking calm and collected. He’s an underdog to most but is confident and ready for a breakout race.

Katie Schide is the first woman to the Escarpment, wearing a smile, already minutes ahead of the competition. After placing second at States last year, she knows the course well.

The next 26 miles of singletrack are inaccessible for spectators, so we drive around and catch Jiasheng Shen as he reaches Robinson Flat aid station. After a low snow year, the high country was faster than normal, with a dozen runners under course record time.

After swapping her vest and checking in with her support crew, Katie Schide flies through Robinson Flat aid station. She’s now more than a dozen minutes ahead of second place. The next section, the canyons, is a notoriously hot part of the course.

Jiasheng Shen arrives at Michigan Bluff aid station, mile 55, in good spirits. After miles of hot and exposed dirt roads and singletrack, he is eager to see his crew and cool off.

Rod Farvard picks up his first pacer, Tim Tollefson, at Forest Hill aid station, mile 62. Tim will pace Rod for 16 miles but is not permitted to carry his gear or give him food or water. Tim, who has raced States multiple times, helps Rod focus on the basics, despite being just second behind the leader.

At Forest Hill, Jiasheng Shen stops at his crew tent to drink water, eat and get ice. Most of the racers use ice bandanas, arm sleeves and ice in their hats to keep their core temperature cool.

Katie Schide, swarmed by onlookers, runs through Forest Hill in first place, more than a half hour ahead of second. Katie is a few minutes ahead of the course record, which was set just last year.

At Rocky Chucky aid station, runners must cross the American River, following a rope and supported by volunteers. This year Rod Farvard crossed in first place, just ahead of his competition. The last 20 miles are mostly runnable, if you have the legs left.

At the river at mile 78, Katie Schide had opened up her lead even further. Still, she stops only to splash water on herself before continuing to the final section of the course.

After crossing the finish line in second place and the third fastest time in course history, Rod Farvard collapses to the ground. After a few minutes, he rallies and realizes what he has accomplished.

Jiasheng Shen finishes eighth overall, walking across the line with his son. Despite running faster than the previous year, he finished four places lower. The competition at Western States seems to intensify every year, with a deeper field and new strategies to push the sport forward.

Fans roar as Katie Schide approaches the finish in first place, completing the journey from Tahoe to Auburn in less than 16 hours, just the second woman to ever do so.