Former UTCT winner Courtney Dauwalter proved herself queen of the trail once again this weekend, winning the 2023 Western States 100 and setting a blazing new course record in 15:29:33, a dramatic 77-minute, 46-second improvement on the former record, which stood for 11 years.

Starting from the Palisades Tahoe ski area in Olympic Valley, California, before sunrise, Dauwalter and reigning UTMB champion Katie Schide traded the lead position back and forth through the first third of the competition.

FULL WESTERN STATES 100 RESULTS

In a post-race interview with iRunFar, Dauwalter said the pair enjoyed chatting about food, the new Tour de France show, and other topics while they were in range of each other, but at some point, she was rolled ahead of Schide at an aid station. “I’m like, ‘Katie! Come catch me! Like, we’re going!’” Dauwalter said. “And she just took a beat longer, and then we separated.”

The course, with 5500m  of elevation gain and 6700m of loss, was made more rugged due to intense snowfall and the late 2022 Mosquito Fire, leading to a new, unshaded 25-kilometre patch due to fire damage. However, cool temps — Saturday marked the race’s fourth-coolest day in history — helped Dauwalter open up the gap between herself and Schide.

At 54K, the course record watch began. After a 2018 Western States win, Dauwalter had made an attempt at usurping Ellie Greenwood’s record in 2019, and was on pace to do so, but started experiencing hip pain at 106K and had to drop out by 127K. This time, she rewrote the history books. While 31-year-old Schide finished well behind Dauwalter for second place, in 16:43:45, she also came in under Greenwood’s 2012 record.

By the last 32 kilometres, Dauwalter says she was in the pain cave, and focusing on every step, every single second. She didn’t take the record for granted; she wasn’t even sure of finishing until she saw the track, signalling that the finish was near.

Besides drinking a celebratory beer with her crew, Dauwalter’s extreme recovery plan includes racing the Hardrock 100 on July 14. For her, this weekend was just step one.

Also racing on Saturday was ultrarunner Camille Herron, fresh off winning and setting a new course record at a Texas trail marathon in preparation for her fifth Western States. She had a rough go of it, however, and ultimately made the decision to drop out.

“I fought 12 rounds with the snow, and the snow won,” Herron wrote on Instagram, “I got through the snow better than the past, but I’m battered and bruised (not injured) … Running through snow isn’t my forte and feels like kryptonite to my unique gait. It doesn’t suit my strength as a pure ultrarunner, and that’s okay.”

On the men’s side, Tom Evans finished more than 20 minutes ahead of runner-up Tyler Green in 14:40:22, cranking out one of the race’s top four all-time finishes. It was a big step for the British runner who placed third in 2022.

Western States — which enforces a strict cutoff time of 30 hours — saw some finishers cut it particularly close at the end. Jennifer St. Amand was the last to cross the line, with just 21 seconds to spare. Whew!

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