Leadville: Official Numbers

I finally got around to looking at the official results for the Leadville 100. Here's how it breaks down:

Official Starters: 890
Finishers < 9hrs: 114 (12.8%)
Finishers 9 to 12 hrs: 538 (60.4%)
Unofficial Finishers 12 to 13 hrs: 60 (6.7%)
Did Not Finish: 178 (20.0%)

By all accounts from those who would know, this year's race had the best conditions and was one of the fastest ever. It also had a much higher finishing percentage than normal. I believe the 2007 race had a finishing percentage of only 65%, much lower than this year's 80% (including those of us in the 12 to 13 hour bracket).

And I could be wrong, but I believe far fewer than 100 racers finished in under 9 hours last year.

I was the fifth person to come across the line after the 12-hour gunshot blast.

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In other news, there was a lot of speculation about whether or not Lance would come back and race Leadville next year. That question was likely laid to rest today when he followed in the long line of athletes who come out of retirement shortly after realizing they have nothing else to do. That's right, Lance says he's entering the 2009 Tour de France. So, in all likelihood, Lance will not be racing Leadville. But if he does (highly unlikely), he's going to be more than fit enough to win after getting back into TDF shape.

No word on what team he's going to race with (my guess is Columbia or a Euro team... or Rock) but I'll still be pulling for Garmin Chipotle. After all, they're the tastiest! And speaking of Garmin Chipotle, I really hope they don't sign Lance. Let those boys who did the team so proud this year have their shot next year.