For ultra-distance runners, the Western States 100 is a proving ground. The 100-mile race from Squaw Valley to Auburn is a brutal trek through Northern California's canyons and back country that can break a competitor's spirit and test the limits of endurance.

This year's race took on more importance for 60-year-old Los Altos resident Roger Dellor, who was determined to break his age-group record to honor his friend and coach, Ron Kovacs, who has been battling cancer since 1996.

Kovacs couldn't attend the race, but he received updates throughout the night from Dellor's racing crew. Dellor came through with the race of his life, besting the record for men ages 60-69 by about five minutes with a time of 20 hours, 28 minutes, five seconds.

``I run every race through Roger,'' said Kovacs, a 64-year-old Mountain View resident. ``I was on his shoulder through the entire Western States race. I was elated and ecstatic when I heard his time. I have had a lot of downers health-wise recently and Roger has given me something to keep my mind off that. . . . I take as much pride in all he has accomplished as he does, maybe even more.''

Already a marathoner, Dellor decided to test himself on the 100-mile course in the mid-1990s, and that's when he met Kovacs, a Western States veteran who was preparing for his last appearance in the grueling competition.

Kovacs was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 1996. He trained with Dellor for the race that year, but dropped out after the 30-mile mark.

Dellor completed his first Western States, but failed to earn the coveted silver belt buckle awarded to runners who finish the course in less than 24 hours.

By 2001, Dellor had earned the silver buckle and established himself among the ultra-marathon elite in his age group. Still ill, Kovacs was unable to run and yearning for a way to satisfy his fixation with the sport.

He found that by coaching Dellor, and the results have been dramatic.

``Ron was an excellent runner himself, not so much because of an innate ability but because he was always very scientific in his approach,'' Dellor said. ``He reads a lot and knows what makes sense and why. If he wants me to train for a 10K run, he'll have me right on track for that.''

One day Kovacs told Dellor he wanted him to run a 5:50 mile on a Los Gatos track, a time Dellor didn't think he was capable of posting. But Kovacs told him to run a fast half-mile as a warm-up and to give it his best shot. To Dellor's surprise, he ran the time.

``Ron was right on. He knew I could do it, even though I didn't know,'' Dellor said.

Kovacs uses a Web page, where Dellor logs his training runs, to weigh in with advice on techniques. Kovacs, who says he got hooked on running after reading just about ``every damn running book out there,'' incorporates modern methods such as tracking heart rate, and focusing on nutrition and pacing to prepare for the ultra-distance experience.

In preparation for this year's race, which was run on June 28-29, Dellor averaged about 75 miles a week the eight weeks before the event, including one week where he put in over 100 miles.

But all those miles can't prepare a runner for the Western States. When the race started in Squaw Valley at 5 a.m. the temperature was 40 degrees; by midday, the mercury rose past 100 as the course took dramatic changes in elevation.

Dellor battled the elements and a bout with diarrhea along the way, but came to the finish line at 1:30 a.m. as the race announcer singled him out for setting his age group record -- the most significant achievement at the event -- and finishing 25th overall.

Breaking his own record by more than one hour, 25 minutes was a huge accomplishment for Dellor, but it was more significant for him because of what it meant to Kovacs.

``He has been running vicariously through me,'' Dellor said. ``I value his input and friendship and I know he is hanging in there to see me run successfully. It was important to put in a good race this year, not just because I wanted to but because Ron wanted me to.''