Build your Western States 100 plan
The instant browser builder stops at the marathon, so this one comes from the coach itself. Tell it your race date, your weekly mileage, and the terrain you can get to, and it writes the whole build and keeps adapting it as you log the training. Free account, no card. You are about 35 weeks out.
- Distances
- 100 miles
- Terrain
- Hilly
- Taper starts
- June 9, 2027
Course
The Western States 100 course
The oldest 100-mile trail race in the world, run point to point from Olympic Valley to the track in Auburn along the Western States Trail. It climbs roughly 18,000 feet and descends about 23,000, which is the number that actually decides the day.
Read the full course notes
Entry is by lottery or qualifying performance, and the canyons in the middle third are where the race is traditionally lost.
- Terrain
- Hilly
- Distances
- 100 miles
- Weather on race day
- Late June in the Sierra foothills means snow at altitude in the first miles and canyon temperatures that routinely pass 100 degrees by afternoon. Managing that swing, and the river crossing at Rucky Chucky, is a core part of the event.
What to train for
Descending and heat, in that order.
The quad damage from 23,000 feet of descent is the most common reason people miss the 30-hour cutoff, so long downhill volume matters more than climbing volume.
Add deliberate heat acclimation in the final three weeks, and rehearse night running and crew handoffs before race week.
Sample week
A sample Western States 100 training week
A week from the middle of the build, about six weeks out. Your plan sets the real distances and paces from your own fitness and adjusts them every week as you train.
- Monday
- Rest, or 20 minutes of mobility
- Tuesday Key session
- Hill repeats: 10 × 2 min up a steady grade, jog back down
- Wednesday
- Easy run, 6 mi
- Thursday Key session
- Goal-pace run, 8 mi with 4 mi at race pace
- Friday
- Recovery run, 4 mi, or cross-train
- Saturday Key session
- Long run, 18–20 mi on trail, with as much climbing as you can find
- Sunday Key session
- Second long day, 10–12 mi easy on tired legs
Your build to race day
Taper
Tapering for the Western States 100
Start the taper two to three weeks before race day. Cut your weekly volume by about a third, then by half in race week, and keep a few short efforts at race pace so your legs stay sharp. The course is hilly, so keep one short hill session in the first taper week to keep the climbs familiar. With the race on June 27, 2027, your taper starts around June 9, 2027.
Western States 100 training questions
How long should I train for the Western States 100?
Most runners give a 100-mile race twenty to twenty-four weeks of focused training on top of a season of consistent aerobic mileage. The coach counts back from your actual race date, so if you have less time than that it builds the best plan the remaining weeks allow rather than pretending you have longer.
Is the Western States 100 course hilly?
Hilly. The oldest 100-mile trail race in the world, run point to point from Olympic Valley to the track in Auburn along the Western States Trail.
What is the weather usually like at the Western States 100?
Late June in the Sierra foothills means snow at altitude in the first miles and canyon temperatures that routinely pass 100 degrees by afternoon. Managing that swing, and the river crossing at Rucky Chucky, is a core part of the event.
When should I start tapering for the Western States 100?
Start the taper two to three weeks before race day. Cut your weekly volume by about a third, then by half in race week, and keep a few short efforts at race pace so your legs stay sharp. The course is hilly, so keep one short hill session in the first taper week to keep the climbs familiar. With the race on June 27, 2027, your taper starts around June 9, 2027.
Do I need an account to get a Western States 100 training plan?
For this one, yes. The instant browser builder stops at the marathon, so an ultra plan comes from the coach itself, which needs a free account. Still no card, and the plan adapts as you log the training.