‘AJW’s thoughts on the qualification policy for the High Lonesome 100 Mile’

Really good take by AJW for iRunFar on the High Lonesome “stand against UTMB”:

Whether intended or not, High Lonesome’s policy has the effect of dividing the running community into “UTMB runners” and “non-UTMB runners.” By forcing athletes into making this black and white choice, High Lonesome is perpetuating the divisiveness we see in so much of society today. 

And his second point is even better:

How do I know that the values of UTMB and Ironman do not “reflect the values of the sport?”

There have been lot of assumption tossed around since the beginning of the UTMB/Ironman partnership. There’s talk of slippery slope, and the usual online fear mongering. Does UTMB, as the leader in the sport need to do better when it comes to diversity and inclusion, yes. And we need to hold them accountable. But so far, not a lot, or any of the things the doom sayers have been predicting have come to pass.

But clearly, it would do UTMB a ton of good if they wouldn’t just drip out faceless press releases week after week announcing their endless expansion, but instead put some faces to their ever-growing organization and make their moves a bit more transparent, and… well, friendly and personal to us as runners.