For the previous three years, when the calendar is about to flip to a brand new yr, I’ve shared my predictions for ultrarunning for the yr forward. Trying on the predictions I made for 2023, 2024, and 2025, it’s clear to see that they’ve been a “you win some, you lose some” affair over time. Whereas efficiently predicting no Barkley Marathons finishers and the resurgence of Jim Walmsley in 2025, in addition to the elevated affect of UTMB and Ironman on the game in 2023, I failed in my predictions of the creation of a Cocodona 250 Mile lottery for the 2026 occasion, the expansion of mother and pop occasions, and elite athlete crossover between sports activities.
This yr, I’ve determined to vary issues up a bit, and as a substitute of constructing predictions, I’ve determined to make needs. Very like Aladdin and his three needs from the genie within the lamp, I’m hereby making my needs identified to the extremely gods and hope that all of them come true in 2026.
Jim Walmsley wins a hard-fought 2025 OCC. Picture: UTMB
Hardrock 100 Golden Ticket Collection
I used to be struck final month by the particular consideration choices (previously Dale’s picks) on the Hardrock 100 lottery. This was the second time that the names of those specifically chosen runners have been made public, and like final yr, all six picks went to elite ultrarunners who would possible be in rivalry for the win. The Hardrock web site states, “The intent of those picks is to right perceived omissions within the lottery, resembling a runner that has tried for a few years to enter, who has given distinctive service to the [Hardrock 100], or who the RD [run director] thinks will convey added curiosity to the run.” What this signaled to me is that whereas the Hardrock organizers insist their occasion is a run, not a race, they nonetheless do take note of the sharp finish of the sector and attempt to make it a aggressive occasion.
From left to proper, Katie Schide, Manon Bohard, and Katharina Hartmuth chat earlier than the beginning of the 2025 Hardrock 100. All three have been Dale’s Picks and went on to complete on the rostrum. Picture: iRunFar/Bryon Powell
This obtained me pondering: Why doesn’t Hardrock create its personal golden ticket collection much like that of the Western States 100? In my imaginative and prescient, Hardrock would choose three 100-mile races from the “UltraRunning Journal” Outdated Faculty Extremely Collection that will function their golden ticket races. The lads’s and ladies’s winners of every of these races can be granted computerized entry into Hardrock the next yr, and identical to that, the particular consideration picks may very well be eradicated or chosen extra in alignment with the acknowledged objective. Consider the thrill and drama the chase for golden tickets would create! It’ll be winner-takes-all for a visit to Silverton, Colorado, and the prospect to race an old-school, home-grown collection besides.
The 50-Mile Distance Turns into a Factor Once more
Three many years in the past, the who’s who of path working and ultrarunning within the U.S. gathered at two races yearly: the American River 50 Mile in California in April and the JFK 50 Mile in Maryland in November. Quickly after, the Mountain Masochist 50 Mile in Virginia, created by David Horton, additionally began drawing a few of the best fields within the sport. Check out the outcomes of these races from the Nineties and 2000s, and you will notice a veritable checklist of a few of the high runners on the planet. A couple of decade later, two different 50 milers, the Lake Sonoma 50 Mile and The North Face 50 Mile Championships, each in California, turned the must-race occasions of each runner’s calendar. These have been the glory days of fifty milers.
Hans Troyer successful the 2025 JFK 50 Mile. Picture: Greg Holder/H3 Pictures
Sadly, someday round 10 years in the past, the attract of the 50-mile race started to fade, largely due to Western States 100’s choice to not settle for 50-mile occasions as qualifiers. My second want for 2026 is for the 50 miler to make a comeback. We have now already seen a sign of this with the rebranding of what was once the Lake Sonoma 50 Mile because the Sonoma Fall Basic, and a date change to October. Please, extremely gods, convey the 50 miler again!
The Return of the Weblog
Earlier than the rise of ubiquitous social media, YouTube, and podcasts, we had blogs. Between about 2004 and 2014, blogs have been the place to go for info, humor, and inspiration. You had Scott Dunlap’s A Path Runners Weblog, the true OG of path blogs. There was Craig Thornley’s irreverent Conduct the Juices. Geoff Roes penned the extraordinary weblog Fumbling In the direction of Endurance. Anton Krupicka most likely had the most important following on Using the Wind. And I even had one, AJW’s Weblog.
Ben Dhiman, pictured right here on his method to taking second on the 2025 UTMB, is without doubt one of the present crop of ultrarunners embracing long-form writing on Substack. Picture: iRunFar/Eszter Horanyi
Going again by these blogs at the moment takes me proper again to the early glory days of path working, a interval that impressed a lot of at the moment’s runners to make the bounce to trails, and, in some ways, fueled the game’s ongoing progress. On this context, I’ve seen a curious phenomenon over the previous yr as many path runners and ultrarunners have returned to long-form writing on the Substack platform. It’s not fairly the identical as Blogspot and WordPress again within the day, however nonetheless, it indicators that we could also be seeing the return of the weblog. I certain hope I’m proper!
Bottoms up!
AJW’s Beer of the Week
This week’s Beer of the Week comes from Indignant Chair Brewing in Tampa, Florida. The 3 Little Birds is a scrumptious fruited Berliner Wheat, which is each candy and tart. Brewed in basic weisse-beer type with a beneficiant serving to of fruitiness, 3 Little Birds is actually a cheerful method to ring within the new yr.
Name for Feedback
- What needs do you will have for ultrarunning and path working in 2026?
