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Every June, ultra-runners from across the globe descend on Olympic Valley, California for one of the most competitive, and oldest, 100-mile trail running races in the world. Starting near the shores of Lake Tahoe, the Western States Trail climbs more than 18,000 feet and descends nearly 23,000 feet before runners finish their journey in Auburn, California, aptly appointed the “Endurance Capital of the World.” With temperatures frequently breaking 100° Fahrenheit, runners face a host of challenges as they traverse the high country of Emigrant Pass and the Granite Chief Wilderness to the foothills of the Sierra Nevada.
Last year, Drew Holmen had a breakout performance at Western States, his first 100-mile race, finishing on the podium in third place. While it was an impressive feat, Holmen says he learned a lot from the performance and plans to return for this year’s race, which will be held on June 25th.
A 2010 graduate of Cook County High School, Drew grew up in the county before attending Carleton College. After receiving his degree in biology, Holmen spent 5 years in San Francisco before landing in Boulder, Colorado, where he currently lives and trains. While he runs professionally for Nike, Holmen also works for a tech company based in San Francisco, where he is Chief of Staff. Balancing a fulltime job and preparing for ultra marathons, Holmen does the bulk of his running, typically 70-80 miles per week, in the mornings before work.
Last year’s race
With over 6,000 qualifying entrants in the lottery and only 385 runners allowed by the US Forest Service, Western States might be harder to get into than it is to run. Holmen was able to bypass the lottery by winning the 2020 Bandera 100k, which is one of six Golden Ticket Races that provide the first and second-place finishers with automatic entry into Western States. While he planned to run in 2020, the race was ultimately canceled because of the pandemic, which gave him more time to prepare for the race in 2021.
Despite his win at Bandera, Holmen came into the race largely unknown. That would soon change.
Starting the race fit and with a strong race plan, Holmen worked his way through the field of world-class ultra-runners to place third with a time of 16:23:09, just 12 minutes behind second-place finisher, Tyler Green. The winner of the race and the world record holder for 50 miles, Jim Walmsley, was an hour ahead. It was Walmsley’s third straight win at Western States, which firmly positions him among legends of the race, including Minnesota’s own Scott Jurek, who won the race a staggering seven years in a row.
On a day that was one of the hottest in race history, Holmen managed the variables of the race well but wasn’t immune from hardship. Recounting the day, he noted: “The first 80 miles of the race went about as well as they could have. There were major ups and downs, including a fairly substantial rolled ankle around mile 15 and a lot of cramping as I climbed out of the canyon to Michigan Bluff at mile 55, but it kind of felt like any other ultra. It wasn’t until I hit a wall at mile 90 that I realized that I had burned too many matches over the last 10-20 miles. Those last 10 miles were like nothing I’ve ever experienced before and truly illuminated why people say that running a race like this is similar to living a life in a day. A beautiful, twisted, life. But, one that is wildly rewarding when looked back on.”
Identifying as a runner
While he ran cross country in high school, Holmen admits that running was never his first love.
“Growing up in Grand Marais, I never quite understood the allure of running. I imagine a large part of that was just how bloody hard it was for me and the fact that I was much more drawn to team sports, but I do sometimes wonder if I missed an opportunity to tap into an unseen talent that was lurking beneath the surface. That said, looking back I really respect the team atmosphere created by Chris Hegg and April Wahlstrom. There is no doubt that the community nature of those teams, paired with long and meandering conversations with Arleigh Jorgenson, created a strong foundation for my healthy and ongoing relationship with sport.”
It wasn’t until moving to San Francisco after graduating from Carleton College that Holmen caught the running bug. This is where he met Paddy O’Leary, an Irish scientist and professional trail runner who introduced him to a community of trail runners who would meet every Saturday morning at the San Francisco Running Company for shared miles on the trails north of the Golden Gate Bridge. It wasn’t long before Holmen was training with them. After building his mileage to 40-50 miles a week, Drew began racing.
He won the U.S. National 50-Mile Trail Championship in June of 2019 in Ithaca, running the rugged trails of upstate New York in 7:33:27, almost 20 minutes ahead of second place. Until then, Drew had run eight trail races ranging from a half marathon to 50 kilometers. In all but one race, he placed 5th or better, winning three.
Preparing for this year’s race
While Holmen acknowledges that the 2021 race left him “tattered,” he’s excited about returning in 2022. To help prepare, in March he ran the mountainous Chuckanut 50K in Bellingham, Washington, where he finished third, covering the 30.1 miles and over 5,000 feet of climbing with an average pace of 6:45 per mile. He followed up with a second-place finish at the Quad Rock 50 Miler outside of Fort Collins with a time of 7:30:00 in early May.
While he won’t outright say it, it’s clear that Holmen has big dreams for this year’s race. He is a tough competitor, and he will give this year’s Western States the very best he has to give.
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