Katie Schide, 2024 Western States 100 Champion, Interview

Megan Hicks of iRun far I'm with Katie shy it's the day after the 2024 Western States endurance run and you're the Women's Champion congratulations Katie thank you how does that feel it feels really good this has been a long time in the making and I'm really happy it all came together yesterday yeah the western states endurance run has been a dedication for you for now two seasons what's it like to have crossed the Finish achieved I mean far surpassed your performance from last year and I have to say you must have achieved all the goals you wanted yesterday yeah definitely I mean after UTMB 2022 when I received the golden ticket I think it's just been like everything focused on this race and I'm not sure I actually from the start ever thought I could win this race it was always a big challenge to try to take on such a fast and just hot and different kind of race course than in Europe um and I think last year gave me a glimpse of what could be possible um and I was super happy with how everything went last year and then just tried to bring it up a little Notch this year and yeah things don't always come together on the right day um but I'm really happy they did yesterday um now the public gets to be privy or got to be privy to a bit of your training block building up to this we saw your incredible performance at Canyons I would love to know just a few of the details Beyond you know what's out there on like what went into this really spectacular training block um yeah I mean just about everything is is out there um I I did pretty similar buildup from last year a a little bit different like early season race I did Canyons this year which just gave me a chance to get out on the course and build some confidence running on these Trails again kind of get it in my head again before heading to Flagstaff for 2 months um spent a lot of time this spring um at my partner's parents house uh close to nice where I could run on dry dry Trails while we were still getting like 3 m of snow at home um but yeah there's a lot of pieces behind it not just the training but just like the support from from from my family here from my uh my partner shal and his parents and everyone kind of letting me do my thing um and just being there whenever I needed them so yeah of course the training is is a big part of it but I think it's all the support I have around it that really makes the difference I mean I really I think that's what we are seeing in like as TR running continues to professionalize and you're just an absolute demonstration of that that yes there's the training but then there's like the full support system there's what you're doing when you're not training there's the people around you there's the psychology you keep and yeah it just seemed like Bam Bam Bam everything was there for you this training walk yeah I mean it wasn't all easy but I think I had when things got difficult I had the right people and the right tools to problem solve and and make it work um and it's not just the last two months I mean it's like it's like yeah I at this point it's been 2 years for this race in particular and um I yeah one of the bigger things is just that I've been gone from from home for two months each year and um yeah I think having support networks on both continents that like totally understand that um and it's not easy being away from Jama when I'm here for 2 months and we're both training for different races but um just the fact that we never had to like really discuss that it was just understood like we support each other and whatever we want to do and that's what makes us happiest so I'm really looking forward to getting back home I think that's the only thing that would have made yesterday sweeter was if there had been a Gera at the track cheering you in definitely if he had been here I would have put him I would have maybe taken a Pacer so let's talk a little bit about yesterday one of the things that was unique about this race for everybody but you was that it was like a race against human beings like all the way to the Finish Line but for you you were far ahead in the women's race like almost from the get-go and your lead kept extending extending extending you were running with men of course but the women's field was behind you what was it like to run so much of yesterday like with splits with numbers with yourself I guess you've said before you like to train alone so there's that but um yeah the start was really great because I got to share I think until yeah until after Devil's thumb with um Simo gosan um who's French so I was actually speaking in French for the first half of the race which was just kind of fun to like have something else to think about and um yeah we had a really good time and I think we set a good pace for each other uh and yeah at that point in the race I was just focused on like being consistent picking my own pace not pushing where I thought it might do any damage um most trying to play on the safe but efficient side and then when I was learning more about um my gap on The Other Women of course that gives me like a little bit of calmness that there's not someone right on my heels but when you know that the the PE that pack behind you is all racing each other you know the chance of them making up time on you is much greater um yeah so I wasn't super comfortable I was still trying to not kind of just stay in control and like be smart and not lose any time anywhere um but also take the time to not mess up yeah uh just trying to like maintain that Gap because yeah the the primary goal at that point was to win and I didn't there was no other like I didn't need to prove any specific time goal to myself um when I started doing all the math I could see that I could probably go under 16 hours so then that became a new goal towards the end which gave me just like a little bit extra motivation in those final like 30k where it's super hard between Green Gate and Cory Road you said that you were just you know trying to stay calm but like maybe you were having an inner dialogue of like don't mess up stay calm don't mess up stay calm but you gave off this Vibe like continuously yesterday of like being in control being calm like whatever emotions were going on inside of you you weren't wearing them on your face just share a little bit about like yeah what what how did you pass the time in your mind I have no idea I mean I I always TR like I would say the vast majority of my training is alone and without headphones so that's what I do every day so just doing my normal thing um yeah I was just kind of telling myself like just just as usual like just do what do what you nor normally do like no stress there's no need to change anything so yeah I think that that was also part of my decision to not take a Pacer was just to be able to fully be in my own head and not like be thinking about anything else and I I think that lets me save a bit of energy personally I I'm someone who yeah I'm like in everyday life I'm an introvert so it it just lets me not feel like I'm losing energy to anyone else what were the hardest Parts yesterday was there a singular moment that you'll remember that you just you know really had to apply a little bit more grit than usual or was there a period of time that you would like to like leave behind in this experience that last 30k from Green Gate the whole thing to Cory road is just so hard it all looks the same it's really not that interesting it's pretty flat you have to run uh it's when everything is starting to hurt um I had a a lot of trouble there last year and so this year was I was really thinking about that section the whole time like I want to get through that without losing a ton of time like last year um and that was actually the only section where I was really looking at my splits and that was great because I could see that I was a lot faster than last year um and that was just reassuring like hey I'm doing better than last year things are going to be okay now for those of us following your race we were looking you know split split to split section by section your progress this year compared to last year and this year compared your run this year compared to the course record were you doing the same thing or were you running and you said a little bit by splits at the end but how aware were you of the numbers on the ultimate clock well the first thing is that I I missed the first seven minutes on my watch so you didn't actually know the time so all of my math in my head I was trying to like add the seven minutes um I didn't really know I mean I kind of knew the first splits until Robinson cuz it's more or less like 1 hour um but I didn't know them at all I was asking people in Michigan Bluff like what where I was compared to last year cuz I just didn't know um and that I think going into this race because everyone played up last year as being you know slow at the start with the snow and then not super hot so maybe faster after I wasn't trying to get too caught up in times um and it's only my second time doing the Race so I don't have like you know like Jim like a whole Encyclopedia of my times here like Scott or an TR someone like that so yeah I was just focused on just doing what I felt good with and um when I started getting my splits compared to last year I was like oh okay but I did know that I I think I did the first part 20 or to Robinson 20 minutes faster so I don't know it was just going by feel mostly yeah you are now and have been the champion of some big 100 MERS you have been champion of diagonal defu UTMB now Western States like what could possibly be next oh Hard Rock okay Hard Rock just putting that out there I mean no really like is there is there a a sense of like satisfaction and accomplishment like right now being like I've been working towards this western state school now for a couple of years and now I get to have this on my CV yeah this one I I mean my journey with UTMB was quite long but I think this one was a bit more um I don't know the right word maybe like intense more Focus committed yeah more committed that's a good word yeah so this felt really good yeah just the commitment to come to the you know to leave home come here twice um and kind of change up what I would normally do in my running um UTMB fit more my normal lifestyle so yeah it feels really good and really yeah I'm I'm really happy with this one it's really offensive to ask a person the day after they run 100 miles if they would like to come back and run it again however this is a one of those unique races that if when you finish in the top 10 you get an automatic return Vib if you'd like it have you started thinking about 2025 in this year um this year track um I I'm not sure I would say I think I would like to do a little bit more skiing next year okay a little bit less winter running a little more snow play yes okay yes congratulations to you on your win of the 2024 Western States endurance run for running the second fastest time ever and for accomplishing a very committed goal thank you