Running : Competitors Have Ups and Downs in This Race : Grueling Western States Run Climbs 17,000 Feet, Drops 22,000 in 100 Miles

“The runner may be subject to extreme temperatures of heat and cold, hypothermia, dehydration, hypoglycemia, disorientation and total mental and physical exhaustion . . . . If you have not been able to prepare adequately, do not run!”

--Risk information for the 1988 Western States Endurance Run.

It was one minute after midnight last Sunday when Fred Shufflebarger, passing the 86-mile mark of the Western States 100-mile run, realized he had just turned 40.

“There wasn’t much of a celebration,” Shufflebarger, a Laguna Beach resident, said. “But who’d be out there in the pitch dark waiting to sing me ‘Happy Birthday’ anyway?”

Bears, perhaps. Or rattlesnakes. Two of the many dangers Western States participants are warned about.

The Western States Endurance Run, also known as the Western States 100-miler, is a grueling run over mountainous terrain. The race begins at Squaw Valley, Calif., about 10 miles northwest of Lake Tahoe, and ends at Auburn, Calif., a suburb of Sacramento.

There are seemingly unending challenges: snow, ice, intense heat, and of course, high altitudes. The average trail height is 7,000 feet.

From start to finish, the Western States climbs a total of 17,000 vertical feet and descends 22,000.

Last Saturday at 5 a.m., 341 endurance runners started the event; 250 (73%) finished.

Orange County finishers included:

Barry Hawley, 46, of San Clemente.

Hawley, race director for September’s San Juan Trail 50-miler, ran his first Western States in 1979, “just to pace someone for the last 36 miles,” he said. He earned a silver belt buckle in 1984 (for completing the event in less than 24 hours), but had to drop out in 1985 because of dehydration and in 1986 because of an Achilles’ tendon injury.

Hawley finished in 28 hours 4 minutes.

John Loeschhorn, 43, of Irvine.

Loeschhorn, who placed fifth in the 1986 event in 18:40, had to drop out last year with leg cramps at 60 miles. Because he had been bothered by a groin injury since last August, he hoped only to finish this year.

He finished in 22:16 and was the first Orange County finisher.

Judie Milkie, 38, of Anaheim.

Milkie, the first women’s finisher in 1986 and runner-up in 1985, was the first Orange County woman to finish, in 28:11.

Mike Monahan, 42, of Laguna Beach. This was the first Western States for Monahan. He finished in 26:02. “The hardest part was staying awake that long,” he said. “But I never had thoughts of quitting.”

Margaret Neville, 43, of Capistrano Beach.

A native of Essex, England, Neville has run a marathon in 3:15, and she also has run 50-milers. This was her first 100-miler. Neville finished in 28:52.

Shufflebarger, winner of the Mammoth Mule Run 50K (31 miles) last August, finished in 23:23. “It was a far cry from what I had hoped for, but at least I got my belt buckle,” he said.

Brian Purcell, 32, of Santa Rosa, Calif., won the event in 16:24. Purcell’s time bettered the course record of 16:37, set two years ago by Chuck Jones.

Kathy D’Onofrio, 23, of Menlo Park, Calif., won the women’s division (and placed 12th overall) in 18:52.

This week’s schedule:

Saturday: Ruly Adauto Memorial 8K. At El Dorado Park, Long Beach, 7:30 a.m. For information, call (213) 749-1020.

Nineteenth Morro Bay to Cayucos 6-Mile Run. Start at Morro Rock, Morro Bay. Call (805) 772-1214.

Monday: Palisades-Will Rogers 5 & 10K. Will Rogers State Park, Pacific Palisades. For information, call (213) 394-9611.

Fourth Annual Parade 8K. Huntington Beach City Hall, Huntington Beach. 8 a.m. For information, call 631-8700.

Fountain Valley Firecracker 5 & 10K. Mile Square Park, Fountain Valley. 7 a.m. For information, call 963-9940.

La Palma ADP 5 & 10K Run/Walk Celebration. Central Park, La Palma. 8 a.m. For information, call 522-6740.

Tenth Monarch Banks 5 & 10K Run in the Parks. Crown Valley Community Park, Laguna Niguel. 7 a.m. For information, call 495-4022.

Southern California Assn. TAC 5K District Championship. Newhall Park, Newhall. 9 a.m. For information, call (818) 957-2807.

Thursday: Paramount Ranch Cross-Country Two- and Three-Mile Series. Paramount Ranch, Agoura. 6:30 p.m. For information, call (818) 992-6219.

El Toro Three-Mile Cross-Country Series. Sycamore Park, El Toro. 6:30 p.m. For information, call 770-0444.