Lottery Musings

Now that that's over with we can get on with planning our race calendars

Okay, now that the dust has settled and the vast majority of us have not had our names pulled, I wanted to discuss the highs and lows of the lottery grind.

For me, the Western States lottery journey has been a real mission. Due to injuries and repair surgeries, I have had to reset my ticket count three times.

This year, I pushed 16 tickets into the pool. If the new rollover rule had been in effect when I started my ticket hunt, I would have had 128 in this year's drawing. I'm not here to complain; I'm just here to say that waiting 8 years to get into a race is a long time, and I still have likely 4 to 6 years to go.

Hardrock is another story altogether. I am well aware that it will take another 8-10 years to get into that run. But it sure did feel good to push four tickets into that lottery this year. And I appreciate that you must only qualify with a hard hundred-mile effort every other year. So, only four hard hundreds to go:)

I guess it is time to figure out what to race this year that is not already sold out;)

Alright, let’s highlight this year's class of runners.

Big Ups to Friend of the pod Deb Hamberlin for getting her name drawn into Western states this year.

If you want to learn more about the Queen of the Grand Canyon, check out Episode #29 of the Pod.

On the Hardrock Front, huge congrats to Sarah Lavender Smith for finally getting her card pulled this year. Check out Episode #26 of the Pod to learn more about her storied history in the sport.

My Dark Horse off the waitlist pick for WSER this year is my man Ricky Wynne, the little Irish leprechaun speed demon that, if he can get off the waitlist, I wager can and will crack the top 10 of the big dance. We will see.

Now, as it has come to pass, the lotteries would not be what they are without some controversy, and as in the case with Andy Pearson and Dom Grossman of the Between Two Pines podcast last year, there seems to be a Big Running conspiracy brewing. This year, one of the Illuminati of Ultrarunning Jam Jam, Jamil Cury, got selected not just into states but also into Hardrock. They say these things come in threes, so we must see how next year falls out. Is there a Big Running conspiracy to try to control the Western States lottery? Only time will tell.

But not if my man Ryan Thrower has anything to say about it based on his moving adaptation from a speech that the legendary ranger Aaragon gave in the Lord of the Rings that Ryan gave on the stage of the lottery before he and Tim Tollefson started to drawing of the 2025 class of weight watchers on the WSER waiting list.

I managed to pull a clip of Ryan doing his thing on stage here.
https://www.youtube.com/clip/UgkxDLSdOQ7B7pjwQzxGuRMC_yBTQnpS-cTh

---

---

What Am I Eating This Month

Okay, this will be a recurring occurrence on the Musings. I love making my own fuel for training and racing, and while I had gotten out of the habit for my racing in 2024, I will bring back the practice in 2025. I am happy to share my favorites with you here.

The Bel-Jam Waffle Smash

I just concocted this the other day for a cold long run here on the trails of Asheville, and this one slaps, as the kids say these days, my friends!

Ingredients:

Whole Foods Bakery Pre-packed Belgem Waffels

Organic Peanut Butter

Organic Jelly

Sea Salt.

Toast the waffles as little bit to firm them up

Spread on the goods one side each

Sprinkle a pinch or two of salt on the PB side

Smash the two sides together.

Place in a ziplock.

Tuck into your vest.

Devour on the trail at the halfway point of your long run.

You can thank me later;)

---

Episodes not to be missed:

Episode #59 with John Kelly: John is by far the fastest cat to grace the pod, and while I could have spent the entire time geeking out about his amazing ultra achievements, we spent about 3 minutes talking about his running.

Instead, John and I unpack the work he did in the aftermath of Hurricane Helen to support his community around Boone, NC, and the most rural parts of Appalachia.

This guy leveraged his audience on social to raise 40 grand and then took all of that money and delivered much-needed generators, heaters, and fuel to very isolated individuals and families that needed it the most.

It took all I had to hold back the tears hearing about some of the people he was able to help with his efforts. In my book, John is not just a legend in ultrarunning but also a legendary human.

Episode #60 with Brandon Thrower - A core WNC trail running community member who RD's some of the best ultra events in the WNC. In this convo, we unpack how Helene has affected his business, Tanawha Adventures, and how he has had to pivot in the wake of the storm to keep things rolling. Brandon also gives some updates on the Hellbender 100, a race that I am very fond of for all the wrong reasons;)

But most importantly, we talk about Old Fort Strong Endurance Fest, the Fundraising event that he developed with the support of Pisgah Productions on the bike side and Camp Grear as the host to raise, as of this publication, almost $1mil to help rebuild the 50 homes destroyed by Hurricane Helene. If you have the means and are looking for a very worthy cause, consider making a donation HERE.

Episode #61 with Ian Morgan: This guy is my new inspiration in life design! Ian went from, in his words, being overworked, overweight, and just plain: "Sick and tired of being sick and tired." to finding running and then the trails and then ultras and, in the process, crafting a life he is proud to live. At the same time, he splits his time between Europe and South America, racing internationally and enjoying every day to the fullest. If you are looking for inspo to take that giant leap and lean into doing something scary but ultimately rewarding, this episode is for you.

Oh yeah, we also geek out about Norda too;)

You can find the Pod on all major players.

Apple

Spotify

---

All right, friends. This is round one of the newsletter. Let me know what you think. The good and the bad: I have thick skin, and I am all about improvement.

Thanks for your continued support.

Bless,

Troy