Congratulations to all of you chosen for the 2018 Hardrock Hundred Endurance Run! This article breaks down the results of today’s lottery for the run’s 2018 edition.
Let’s start with some statistics and background information. This year’s lottery entrants list was up to 2,236 applicants. For perspective, the 2017 lottery had 1,966 entrants, the 2016 lottery 1,549 entrants, and the 2015 lottery 1,367 applicants.
These 2,236 entrants were represented by 12,357 total tickets, which went into today’s lottery buckets. For perspective, last year’s total ticket pool was 8,490 tickets.
Prior to the lottery, the run administration placed all of the lottery applicants into one of three divisions based upon their previous experience (or not) with Hardrock and separate lotteries took place within each of the divisions. The divisions are Veterans, runners who’ve finished Hardrock five or more times; Nevers, who are runners who’ve never finished Hardrock; and Everyone Else (or, more simply, “Else” below), runners who’ve started the event and finished between one and four times.
For the 2018 lottery, there were 43 Veteran applicants who had 422 tickets, 1,975 Never applicants with 11,127 tickets, and 218 Else applicants with 808 tickets. Looking back at last year’s lottery, there were 43 Veteran applicants who had 404 tickets, 1,722 Never applicants with 7,339 tickets, and 201 Else applicants with 747 tickets.
The 2018 event will start 145 runners. Today, the event organization selected 33 Veterans, 45 Nevers, and 67 Elses. Of the 145 entrants chosen, up to five were chosen ahead of time by the race by Run Director Dale Garland, which were announced publicly among the names chosen in the lottery.
In addition to entrants drawn in the lottery, waitlist names were also drawn into three separate division-specific waitlists. For perspective, in 2017, 10 people got off the Veteran waitlist and into the race (which was everyone on the Veteran waitlist),9 people from the Never waitlist, and 6 people from the Else waitlist. For the 2016 edition, the waitlists eventually yielded entrant spots 4 deep in the Veteran division, 4 deep in the Never division, and 7 deep in the Else division. For the 2015 edition, the waitlist went to 9 deep for the Veterans (which included all of the Veterans on the waitlist that year), 9 deep for Never, and 12 deep for Else.
Even though this event is called a run and not a race, the front end continues to grow in competitive nature while still seeming to maintain the cooperative family spirit which Hardrock prides itself upon. Below we document the men and women who were selected in the lottery today who we think will be the main 2018 contenders. We also mention who is on a waitlist and might get in and who is on a waitlist so far down they probably won’t get in.
Let’s start with the men’s competition. Kilian Jornet won last year’s race–with a dislocated shoulder–and he’s elected to use his automatic entry. Mike Foote and Xavier Thévenard are the two runners with certain entry who are more most likely to challenge Kilian, while Pau Capell who sits second on the Never waitlist could spice up the front of the field when he almost certainly gets in.
The 2017 women’s champion, Caroline Chaverot, had the option of automatic entry, but declined to return for 2018. However, Switzerland’s Andrea Huser got in and that means trouble for everyone else in the women’s field. Kaori Niwa of Japan, who finished fourth at UTMB in 2017, is Huser’s strongest challenger. If Nikki Kimball can return to her form of old, she’ll certainly be up front, while perennial podium contender Darla Askew will again be in the mix. Big movement atop of the waitlists could greatly enhance the depth of the women’s fields with 2015 and 2016 champ Anna Frost ninth on the Else waitlist; 2013, 2014, and 2015 champ Darcy Piceu ninth on the Veteran waitlist; Bethany Lewis, who finished third in 2016, eighth on the Else waitlist; and 2017 Western States 100 third place and Hardrock newcomer Sabrina Stanley is now in the race after starting as fifth Never waitlist.
Below is the full list of who was chosen in the lottery, and on the various waitlists.
Let’s get on with the lists of top competitors who are in, who may be, and who is definitely not. You can see the full entrants list here or look back at the lottery play-by-play on the Hardrock 100 Twitter feed.
Notable Men’s 2018 Hardrock 100 Entrants
There is only one way to gain auto entry into Hardrock, and that is by winning the prior year’s race. Kilian Jornet has chosen to use his entry to go for his fifth-straight win.
Below are the notable men who gained entrance via today’s lottery.
- James Bonnett — 18th Hardrock 2017; 3rd Mogollon Monster 100 2016; 9th JFK 50 Mile 2015
- Jeff Browning — 4th Hardrock 2016; 3rd Western States 100 2016; 4th Western States 2017; 1st Bear 100 Mile 2017 [7/9 Update: Jeff has moved from 7th on the Else waitlist into the race.]
- Benjamin Bucklin — 4th Sean O’Brien 50 Mile 2017; 4th Cascade Crest 100 2016; 15th Western States 100 2016
Adam Campbell — 2nd Hardrock 2014; 3rd Hardrock 2015[Withdrew from race, likely between July 6th-9th]- John Fegyveresi — Barkley Marathons finisher
- Mike Foote — 2nd Hardrock 2017; 2nd Hardrock 2015; 3rd UTMB 2012
- Jesse Haynes — 8th Western States 2017; 10th Western States 2014 and 2016; 1st Tahoe Rim 100 2016
- Troy Howard — 2nd Hardrock 2009 and 2013; 5th Hardrock 2015; quietly one of the best Hardrock runners ever
Kilian Jornet (as automatic entrant) — Multi-time Hardrock 100 champ[Withdrew from race June 20]- Mick Jurynec — 1st Bear 100 2015 & 2016; 8th Hardrock 2014
- Jayson Kolb — 1st Eastern States 100 2017; 8th Cayuga Trails 50 Mile 2017; 4th Bull Run Run 50 Mile 2015
- Ted Mahon — 9-time Hardrock finisher including 7th in 2016 and 12th in 2017
- Jason Poole — 8th Hardrock 2013; 9th Hardrock 2012; 4th Cruel Jewel 2016
- Jeff Rome — 8th Hardrock 2017; 15th The Rut 50k 2014
- Xavier Thevenard — 3rd Hardrock 2016; 4th UTMB 2017; 1st UTMB 2013 and 2015
- Brendan Trimboli — 11th Hardrock 2015; 1st Telluride Mountain Run 2016; 2nd San Juan Solstice 2014
- Mike Wardian — 10th Leadville 100 2017; 1st Eastern States 100 2015; 4th San Diego 100 2016; 8th JFK 50 Mile 2017
Notable Women’s 2018 Hardrock 100 Entrants
Here are the women who gained entrance via today’s lottery.
- Darla Askew — 2nd Hardrock 2013; 3rd Hardrock 2015; 4th at 2016 Hardrock; 6th Hardrock 2017; 1st IMTUF 100 Mile 2016
Katie Grossman — 9th Hardrock 2017; 4th Angeles Crest 100 2015; 4th Georgia Death Race 2016[No longer on list as of April 28]Andrea Huser — 2nd UTMB 2016 and 2017; 1st Diagonale des Fous 2016 & 2017; 1st Madeira Island Ultra Trail 2017[No longer on list as of May 9]- Betsy Kalmeyer — 18 Hardrock finishes; many Hardrock wins; 2nd Hardrock 2014
- Nikki Kimball — 3-times 1st Western States 100; 1st 2007 UTMB; 2nd HURT 100 2017; 6th Speedgoat 50k 2016
- Kaori Niwa — 4th UTMB 2017; 8th UTMB 2016; 4th UTMF 2015
- Betsy Nye — 6th Hardrock 2016; 9th Hardrock 2015; 11 times on Hardrock podiu
- Sabrina Stanley — 3rd Western States 100 2017; 4th Leadville 100 2016; 5th Run Rabbit Run 100 Mile 2017 [6/5 Update: Sabrina has moved from 5th on the Never waitlist into the race.]
Notable Waitlisted Men with at Least a Remote Chance of Getting In
Here are the front-end men’s contenders who were chosen in the top-10 slots of the Veteran waitlist, the top-15 slots of the Never waitlist, or the top-20 slots of the Everyone Else waitlist. These men have some shot of getting off their respective waitlists and into the run.
Pau Capell — 2nd on Never waitlist — 6th UTMB 2017; 1st Transgrancanaria 2017; 2nd Madeira Island Ultra Trail 2017[No longer on list as of May 9]- Jamil Coury — Having started out 28th on Else waitlist, we moved Jamil up here on July 9th when, after the service form deadline passed, he jumped to 5th and, then, 4th on the Else waitlist
Benjamin Lewis — 14th on Else waitlist — 7th Hardrock 2016; 1st Scout Mountain Ultra Trail 2015; 3rd Wasatch 100 Mile 2012[No longer on list as of April 28]- Luke Nelson —
11th4th on Never waitlist — 2nd Bear 100 Mile 2014; 4th San Juan Solstice 50 Mile 2013 Nick Pedatella — 12th 5th on Else waitlist — 2-time Nolan’s 14 finisher; 20th Hardrock 2017; 4th Hardrock 2012[No longer on list as of July 9, after the service form deadline.]- Sam Ritchie —
10th3rd on Never waitlist — 2nd IMTUF 100 Mile 2016; 8th Vermont 100 2015 Adam Schwartz-Lowe — 9th 3rd on Never waitlist — 3rd Superior Sawtooth 100 Mile 2017; 4th Superior 100 2016; 2nd Ozark Trail 100 2015[No longer on list as of July 9, after the service form deadline.]
Notable Waitlisted Women with at Least a Remote Chance of Getting In
Here are the female contenders who were chosen in either the top-10 slots of the Veteran waitlist, the top-15 slots of the Never waitlist, or the top-20 slots of the Everyone Else waitlist. These women have some shot of running.
Anna Frost — 9th 3rd on Else waitlist — 1st Hardrock 2015 and 2016; 4th Hardrock 2017; 1st Bear 100 Mile 2014[No longer on list as of July 6]Bethany Lewis — 8th on Else waitlist — 3rd Hardrock 2016; 1st Fat Dog 120 2015[No longer on list as of April 28]Darcy Piceu — 9th on Veteran waitlist — 1st Hardrock 2012, 2013, 2014; 2nd Hardrock 2015 and 2017; JMT women’s FKT 2017; 1st Wasatch 100 2016[No longer on list as of April 28]
Notable Waitlisted Men with Pretty Much No Chance of Getting In
Here are some fast men who are so far down their respective waitlist that there is almost no chance of them getting in. (Waitlist placements will not be updated unless entry becomes a real possibility.)
- Grant Guise — 58th on Else waitlist
- Adam Hewey — 39th on Else waitlist
- John Kelly — 21st on Never waitlist
- John Knotts — 38th on Else waitlist
- Steven Moore — 49th on Else waitlist
- Matt Van Horn — 30th on Else waitlist
Notable Waitlisted Women with Pretty Much No Chance of Getting In
Here are some fast women who are so far down their respective waitlist that there is almost no chance of them getting in. (Waitlist placements will not be updated unless entry becomes a real possibility.)
- Becky Bates — 41st on Else waitlist
- Kerrie Bruxvoort — 44th on Never waitlist
- Joanna Ford — 22nd on Never waitlist
- Hannah Green — 50th on Else waitlist
- Meghan Hicks — 45th on Else waitlist
- Jennifer Hughes — 34th on Never waitlist
- Amy Sproston — 59th on Never waitlist
[Updated July 9, 2018]
Call for Comments
- Who are you most excited about running the 2018 Hardrock 100?
- Who are your picks as favorites? Did we miss anyone who should be on these lists?
- If you’re in, how excited are you to be racing Hardrock next year?
