2009 Western States Photos

i took more video than anything else but here are my photos from the 2009 western states endurance run.

run the fastest from squaw to auburn and you win this cougar
this is the actual devil's thumb at mile 47 of the western states 100 course
michael wardian and sean meissner check in
me and carmen wasserman running her 1st western states
the trail up devil's thumb
little miss ripped bev abbs (3rd place) popsicle in hand, nuun tat on arm
ajw cools down at devil's thumb
gary robbins cools down at forest hill
eric grossman after crossing the river
carly giving hal a well deserved hug after an amazing performance

1st woman anita ortiz right after finishing
2nd place krissy moehl! awesome run girl!
krissy moehl w/pacer devon crosby-helms & mother peggy - feeling a bit worked
ajw's feet after western states
japan's finest - 2nd place tsuyoshi kaburagi

gary robbins stoked

Gary Robbins's 2009 Western States Video

for the last year montrail canada's gary robbins has been storming the ultrarunning scene. he's a new comer to most, but not me. in my previous life as an adventure racer gary was a canadian staple at any major event. and just like myself, found a true passion and in gary's case a true talent for ultrarunning. he's always the most upbeat and stoked guy on the course, even when suffering like a dawg (as you'll see in the video). here is the video i took of gary on the 2009 western states 100 course. gary went out hard and was in the top 10 the first half of the race and told me the lack of heat training caught up to him. he finished in 23:07:20 for 46th place. congrats on getting that sub-24hr belt buckle gary! he also told me the next day that he plans on coming back next year.

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Anita Ortiz WINS the 2009 Western States 100 Miler

anita ortiz ran a pretty amazing race to win the 2009 western states 100 mile ultramarathon. anita and bev battled early but then she took the lead for good at michigan bluff. she ran squaw valley to auburn, california in 18:24:17, 1st woman, 9th overall. i met anita at the 2008 transrockies, where she was putting on a similar display of female dominance. what makes her win so impressive is that three of the top women in the sport were there to compete, krissy, nikki and bev. what makes this win incredible is that it was her 1st 100 miler! - when you're good, you're good (or great i guess).

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Hal Koerner WINS the 2009 Western States 100 Miler

this. is. simply. amazing.

hal koerner wins his second western states 100 miler in a row! he dominated likely the most competitive field of 100 mile ultrarunners ever assembled. as he said in his pre-race interview he wanted to "go out hard" and "put a gap on" the field. he ran from squaw to auburn, ca in 16:24:55

hal's a buddy of mine and i couldn't be more stoked for him. congrats hal! seriously incredible running. you have inspired me hal.

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Brian Robinson Pre 2009 Western States 100 Interview

"In 2008 Flyin' Brian Robinson set a course record of 55hr 42min. He was the first person to hike the 3 major N-S U.S. trails in a single calendar year: Appalacian, Continental Divide, and Pacific Crest, 7400 miles in 300 days. " that is the description of flyin' brian robinson on the barkley marathon website. i am admitedly infatuated with this seemingly impossible 100 mile race in tennessee, and after hearing how he set a new course record (yes i wish i had video taped that) he was nice enough to give me a quick interview. brian finished in 45th in a time of place in 22:52:47.

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Jasper Halekas Pre 2009 Western States 100 Interview

didn't have the connection to get this up before the race so it's going up now. jasper halekas ended up running an amazingly strong race for 4th place in 16:56:26 at the 2009 Western States 100 Miler.

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