After a good run this morning on the Parkway in SLC, I’m sitting at home anxiously waiting the results of the Wasatch Front 100’s lottery to be posted on their web site. I got to thinking about how popular ultras have become even in the four or five years I’ve been running them. Wasatch joined the trend set by Western States to have an open lottery for entries into their race last year. You send in your application the first week in January and the first Saturday in February, they have their drawing.

I think this would be a great way for other, over-popular races to fill their empty slots. About a month ago, entries for the Miwok 100 opened at 9 AM on a Sunday morning. I was on my way home from a race in. Las Vegas so I had Patricia, my wife, go on-line and register me. She started at 9 AM and finally was able to sign into Active.com at about 9:15. She was too late, but put me on the “waiting list”. A week or two later I was notified by the race director that the National Park Service had approved 75 additional entries. She gave me a password that allowed me to sign-in and register. This was not an isolated incident. Carl and Joe had a similar experience with Mannsunutten. Many other races that accept mail-in applications fill within a few days. Hopefully, more of these popular venues will follow Western States, Hardrock and Wasatch and start having a lottery.



And here is the rest of it.