Eighth-Annual AJW’s Taproom Year in Ultrarunning Awards: 2018

[Editor’s Note: We couldn’t be prouder of the consistency with which our writers, editors, and reporters deliver. You can mirror their consistency by becoming a monthly supporter of iRunFar during our year-end fund drive.]

For the past seven years (end of 2011, end of 2012, end of 2013, end of 2014, end of 2015, end of 2016 and end of 2017), I have posted some year-end ultrarunning awards. Now, I would like to introduce the eighth-annual AJW’s Taproom Year in Ultrarunning Rankings for 2018.

These are not scientific in any way and the criteria are made up entirely by me. They represent a selection of North American racers competing in events in the U.S. and abroad. My rankings, in no way, represent an exhaustive study nor do they pretend to be fully representative of all that occurred in 2018, so take them or leave them. Here goes!

Female Ultrarunner of the Year

1. Courtney Dauwalter
2. Darcy Piceu
3. Camille Herron
4. Sabrina Stanley

Male Ultrarunner of the Year

1. Jim Walmsley
2. Jeff Browning
3. Rob Krar
4. Dylan Bowman

Female Performance of the Year

1. Camille Herron’s 24-hour world record at Desert Solstice (interview)
2. Courtney Dauwalter’s 279 miles at Big Backyard Ultra
3. Courtney Dauwalter’s win at the Western States 100 (interview)

Male Performance of the Year

1. Jim Walmsley’s course record at the Western States 100 (interview)
2. Jim Walmsley’s course record at the Lake Sonoma 50 Mile (interview)
3. Rob Krar’s win at the Leadville Trail 100 Mile

Female Rookie of the Year

[Author’s Note: For the purposes of my ‘Rookie of the Year’ award, I consider a runner to be a ‘rookie’ if 2018 was their first season racing at a highly competitive level. In most cases, the candidates considered for this award have completed a few races in prior years but 2018 marked the first time they made an impact on the national/international scene beyond a race or two. For me, my ‘rookie’ litmus-test example is Anton Krupicka in 2006 when he came out of nowhere and won the Leadville Trail 100 Mile.]

• Taylor Nowlin

Male Rookie of the Year

• Jackson Brill

Female Surprise of the Year

• Kelly Wolf’s win at the Lavaredo Ultra Trail

Male Surprise of the Year

• Rob Krar’s win at the Leadville Trail 100 Mile

Female FKT of the Year

• Taylor Nowlin’s Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim FKT

Male FKT of the Year

• Pete Kostelnick’s run from Alaska to Florida

Best Trail Running Film of the Year

• The Year The Barkley Won by Jamil Coury

Most Inspirational Person of the Year

• Hillary Allen

Bottoms up!

AJW’s Beer of the Week

This week’s Beer of the Week comes from Reason Beer in Charlottesville, Virginia. Reason’s Pale is a wonderfully crisp, slightly bitter take on the classic American Pale Ale variety. Smooth drinking and sensitively hopped, Reason’s Pale stands out in the crowded APA category.

Call for Comments (from Meghan)

• Who are your choices for ultrarunner of the year, according to AJW’s voting rules of North American runners and their competitions at ‘home’ and abroad? And if you were to vote for global ultrarunners of the year, who would they be?
• How about AJW’s other categories? Who would be your picks?