The trail through Granite Chief Wilderness that we use on race day stretches for 6.5 miles. The western portion of the trail was rehabilitated several years ago when it was accepted into the wilderness. The eastern portion was developed long before modern trail building standards were set, and is being re-routed to improve user safety, avoid environmentally sensitive areas, improve sustainability, and provide commanding views.
We have actively been working on this project for the last two summers (only 10-12 weeks are snow free each year). Work has been performed by USFS employees, a 20-person California Conservation Corp trail crew, and our volunteers. The work has been funded by the Great American Outdoor Act ($1.2M), designed to cover most of the project. Although $0.5M in funding remains, and the USFS was poised to complete contracts to engage a trail crew for this summer, the funding for the project has now been frozen by DOGE and inaccessible, and we cannot hire a trail crew for 2025.
The USFS and our volunteers still plan to work on the project this summer, and we hope to complete enough of the re-routed trail that we can use about 2 miles of the new trail for our event in 2026, which will get us up and out of the bogs. But to get there we need your help. To date our four scheduled trail work weekends are only about half full, so come join us on the weekends of July 26th/27th, August 16th/17th, September 6th/7th, and/or September 20th/21st.
Olympic Valley, CA – March 12, 2025 – This June, trail running enthusiasts will experience an unprecedented 10-day adventure in the stunning Palisades Tahoe as three iconic events—Broken Arrow Skyrace presented by Salomon, TrailCon presented by On, and the legendary Western States Endurance Run presented by HOKA—join forces to create an immersive and inspiring celebration of the sport.
Kicking off June 19-22, the Broken Arrow Skyracepresented by Salomon, will challenge runners with a three-day, nine-distance event, where elite and recreational athletes alike will experience the thrill of “where the mountains meet the sky.”
Following this, the inaugural TrailCon presented by On (June 24-25) will bring together thought leaders, industry brands, and passionate runners for two days of engaging discussions, networking, and community building. The event features keynote speakers, interactive breakout sessions, a Vendor Village with 60+ innovative brands, and the debut of the TrailCon Hall of Fame Awards—all designed to inspire and elevate the trail running community.
The excitement culminates June 28-29 with the world-renowned Western States® 100-Mile Endurance Run presented by HOKA, the planet’s oldest and most prestigious 100-mile trail race. A true test of endurance, Western States has captivated runners and fans since 1974, solidifying its place as the pinnacle of ultra-distance racing.
This historic collaboration underscores a shared vision to strengthen and unify the trail running community, transforming Olympic Valley into the ultimate global destination for trail running every June.
“Western States is honored to partner with TrailCon in creating a 10-day experience filled with running, storytelling, and knowledge-sharing that will inspire and unite our sport like never before,” said Craig Thornley, Western States Race Director. “Most importantly, we believe this collaboration will build an even stronger sense of belonging in the trail running community.”
Topher Gaylord, Western States Board President, echoed this sentiment: “With three independent, community-driven organizations working together, Olympic Valley will become the epicenter of the trail running world. TrailCon’s innovative approach perfectly bridges the excitement between Broken Arrow and Western States, creating an unmatched 10-day experience.”
Brendan Madigan, Founder & Race Director of Broken Arrow Skyrace, added: “Our vision has always been to complement the iconic Western States 100, ensuring that everyone—from runners to families, pacers, and crew—can experience the beauty of Palisades Tahoe. With the addition of TrailCon, there’s no better place to be in late June than North Lake Tahoe.”
With this powerful collaboration, Palisades Tahoe is set to become the Spring Trail Running and Ultra Capital of the World, offering an unforgettable experience for runners, fans, and industry leaders alike.
The eleventh Badwater Cape Fear 50km / 51mi ultramarathon – presented by Mount to Coast and hosted by AdventureCORPS – took place on March 22, 2025 on Bald Head Island and Fort Fisher, North Carolina. A field of 162 runners competed in either the 50km race or the 51-mile race, with 85 completing the 50km and 76 completing the full 51mi race. Full race results are here.
The 2025 race included runners representing Bolivia, Canada, Germany, Philippines, Spain, United States, and United Kingdom, plus 27 American states and territories: Alabama, California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. Ages range from 20 to 80. There were 42 females and 120 males, and 116 Badwater Cape Fear rookies and 46 race veterans. For the full race roster, click here.
With 50km and 51-mile race options and a start line at the foot of the Old Baldy Ligthouse, Badwater® Cape Fear features a twelve-mile warm-up on the car-free, one-lane-wide roads and maritime forest trails of Bald Head Island, followed by either 19 or 38 miles of running on the wild and secluded sandy beach between Cape Fear and Fort Fisher. The beach stretch features spectacular views of the Frying Pan Shoals to the east and the wild and undeveloped Cape Fear River marshlands to the west. Running this remote coast is a dramatic, invigorating, and inspiring manner in which to experience Bald Head Island, Fort Fisher State Recreation, and the Cape Fear region in all its grandeur!
This exquisite natural setting is the perfect antidote to the “real world” and a wonderful counterpart to the desert sands and mountains of Death Valley and Anza-Borrego Desert featured in the two West Coast BADWATER® races.
Charity
The official charity of Badwater Cape Fear is the Bald Head Island Conservancy, a leader in barrier island conservation, preservation and education. Race participants and supporters appreciate that BHIC cares for this race route’s pristine setting and its role as a sea turtle nesting site, and are encouraged to fundraise for BHIC and support its mission.
Since 2014, AdventureCORPS has made or facilitated more than $150,000 in donations to the Bald Head Island Conservancy.
According to Chris Shank, Executive Director of the BHI Conservancy, “Badwater has been a wonderful supporter of the Bald Head Island Conservancy for a decade through generous sponsorships and magnanimous donations from racers. We love working with Chris Kostman and his team each and every year – it is an annual highlight for the Conservancy and for all of Bald Head Island!”
The Presenting Sponsor of Badwater Cape Fear, and all AdventureCORPS-produced 2025 races, is Mount to Coast, the first performance shoe brand to specialize in ultra running and long-distance pursuits. Male and female winners of all four 2025 AdventureCORPS events will be awarded Mount to Coast shoes.
Partners and Volunteers
Local partners are Village of Bald Head Island, Fort Fisher State Recreation Area, Friends of Pleasure Island State Parks, Change the Game Physical Therapy, and Maritime Market.
Volunteer teams based on Bald Head Island, on the beach along the Fort Fisher coast, and at the Fort Fisher State Recreation Area Headquarters work closely with Bald Head Island Public Safety officers and volunteers and North Carolina State Park Rangers to host the event each year. Additionally, physical therapists from Change the Game Physical Therapy in Wilmington were on hand to support the runners at the finish line.
Racer Check-In: Keith Weitz, Julie Lee, Robert Lee, Bryan Lee, Thomas & Anne Marie Brock, Bob Becker, Jay Birmingham, Erika Small, Sandy Kades, Stephen & Shannon Mick, Victoria Negri, Chris Shank, Chris Kostman, and others
Trail Marking: Bob Becker and Jay Birmingham
Start Line: Keith Weitz, Julie Lee, Stephen Mick (sang the National Anthem!), Shannon Mick, and Chris Kostman
Broom Wagon (first 10.5 miles): Shannon Mick
Trail Sweep: Jay Birmingham and Donna Melton
Morning Directions: Chris Shank, Julie Lee, and many Bald Head Island Public Safety volunteers and other Bald Head Island residents
UTV Pilot: Emma Phillips
AS1 at Bald Head Island Conservancy: Anne-Marie Brock, Thomas Brock, Rita Castro, Margaret Pisacano, Ray Sanchez, and many others
AS2 at Mid-Beach: Marcia Bosch and her team from Friends of Pleasure Island State Parks, with assistance from Fort Fisher State Recreation Area rangers!
AS3 at Fort Fisher: Keith Weitz and Denise Fox.
Timing: Julie Lee
Finish Line: Chris Kostman, Stephen Mick, Sandy Mick, Sandy Kades, Jay Birmingham, Rita Clark, Bryan Lee, Chris Shank, and others
Finish Line Physical Therapy by Change The Game PT of Wilmington, NC: Dr. Ryan Godfrey, Dr. Ethan Meng, and AmberLynn Pappas
Mount to Coast Named Presenting Sponsor of the BADWATER® 135 Ultramarathon
Mount to Coast will also sponsor AdventureCORPS’ Badwater Salton Sea, Badwater Cape Fear and the Cape Fear Marathon & Half
Oak Park, Calif. (Feb. 4, 2025) – Mount to Coast, the first performance shoe brand to specialize in ultra running and long-distance pursuits, has been named presenting sponsor of the 38th annual Badwater 135 Ultramarathon, AdventureCORPS President Chris Kostman announced Saturday.
“No running race on the planet tests both shoes and runners more than the Badwater 135,” said Kostman. “With our event in its 38th year, finally there are shoes not only worthy of the world’s toughest foot race, but they are truly game-changers, providing both comfort and performance in levels previously unknown. Badwater runners, our staff, and I have not only found Mount to Coast shoes to be astonishingly comfortable and light-weight, but they actually help us run to our true potential.”
“It’s an absolute honor to be the presenting sponsor of arguably the most iconic endurance running event in the world,” said Mount to Coast U.S. Country Manager Doug Rosenberg. “The challenge of Badwater 135 – asking athletes to transcend physical, mental and spiritual boundaries – captures the very essence of Mount to Coast’s mission. We’re incredibly excited to support runners’ endurance journeys as a partner with AdventureCORPS in this celebrated event and three other Badwater branded races throughout the year.”
Badwater 135, considered “the world’s toughest foot race,” will be held July 7-9. The 135-mile course begins at Badwater Basin in Death Valley National Park, which marks the lowest elevation in North America at 280 feet below sea level and concludes atthe trailhead to the Mt. Whitney summit, the highest point in the contiguous United States. The race route covers three mountain ranges for a total of 14,600 feet (4450m) of cumulative vertical ascent and 6,100 feet (1859m) of cumulative descent. There is a forty-eight-hour time limit for the event. Winners will be crowned as the world’s 135-mile champions.
Saturday morning, February 1, the pool of 100 athletes selected to compete in the event was announced via an AdventureCORPS Facebook livestream event. The full roster of selected participants – which includes two-thirds rookies and one-third Badwater 135 veterans – will be finalized byFebruary 17 and published on AdventureCORPS website. In this year’s race, 23 nations and 25 American states will be represented.
In addition to Badwater 135, Mount to Coast will also be the presenting sponsor of three other AdventureCORPS races in 2025: Badwater Salton Sea, Badwater Cape Fear, and the Cape Fear Marathon & Half. Runners may register for those events now at RunSignUp.
To learn more about Badwater 135 and AdventureCORPS races, please visit theBadwater website.
Please direct Mount to Coast media inquiries to New Local PR Founder and Account Director Anna Avery at anna@newlocalpr.com.
About AdventureCORPS
AdventureCORPS® has made its name producing the world’s toughest endurance races and events in dramatic, remote locations that few people would ever visit, let alone run across. Held under the Badwater® banner, these events have allowed adventurous runners to explore Death Valley, Cape Fear, Salton Sea, Anza-Borrego, and the Mojave Desert in the USA, as well as the Mustang region of Nepal, the Yunnan Province of China, and the Republic of Artsakh. Over the decades, Badwater races have become a way of life.
About BADWATER® 135 Ultramarathon
Globally recognized as the world’s toughest foot race, the Badwater 135 Ultramarathon – hosted by AdventureCORPS – is a pure athletic challenge of athlete, shoes, and support crew versus a brutal 135-mile / 217km stretch of highway and a forty-eight hour time limit. Spanning from Death Valley to Mt. Whitney, CA, 100 selected athletes will traverse from the lowest elevation in North America to the trailhead of the Mt. Whitney summit, the highest point in the contiguous United States.
About Mount to Coast
Mount to Coast is a technical footwear brand specializing in long-distance running and biomechanics research to challenge the limits of ultrarunning. Founded for athletes who transcend distance, Mount to Coast integrates innovative materials inspired by various industries to engineer footwear offering exceptional comfort, support, energy return and durability. Its first two models – the R1 and S1 – crafted with insights from Mount to Coast’s Run Research Lab, are award winning, record-breaking shoes, vigorously tested in highly challenging races and evaluated by elite athletes.
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It’s like applying to college all over again. Whether you skip your long run to anxiously watch the results roll in, or you leave your phone at home and take out your jitters on the trails, the same fate awaits nearly us all. That dreaded email:
Thank you for your interest. We’re sorry to inform you
It’s trail and ultrarunning race lottery season. Some of the big hitters, like Western States and Hardrock, drew the names of the precious few lucky enough to get into the 2025 race last weekend. Others, such as High Lonesome, Zegama, and Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc, are right around the corner. And then there are the ultra-exclusive Barkley Marathons of the world which even require you to write an admissions letter.
And like elite college admissions, your chances of getting in grow slimmer with each passing year. Sure, there are some races that come and go in popularity. (Do you remember Way Too Cool, Lake Sonoma, or Miwok? Nah, me neither.) But the staples remain as popular as ever. Well, actually, more popular. Race caps remain the same and entry numbers continue to climb as more runners turn to the trails.
Western States, for example, saw 9,993 applicants apply for a total of 260 lottery slots this year. Thanks to the weighted lottery system, first-year applicants had a whopping 0.4 percent chance of getting in. This ranks somewhere between getting stung to death by bees (0.0016 percent chance) and getting into Harvard (3 percent chance). Just a decade ago the total number of applicants was 2,704. Doing some back-of-the-napkin math, that means your chances of getting in now are roughly less than a third of what they were in 2014, never mind when Western States initiated a lottery in 2000 and just 583 weirdos bit.
While you fight back tears—your dream race, your top bucket list goal, your life’s mission, eluded once again—acquaintances humble-brag about their lottery luck on Strava and Instagram:
“It’s been my dream for five years to run the Hardrock 100, and this year I will be running it just three weeks after Western States and six weeks before UTMB!”
Five years? You think. Try five decades. (Never mind Hardrock was established in 1992, what does it matter when you’ll never get in anyway?) You unfollow that acquaintance. Or worse, you leave a passive aggressive comment, “Congratulations! You are so brave!”
Maybe your schadenfreude is punishing you. Before you punish yourself even further, overdo it on craft stouts, or do something drastic like sign up for a Hyrox race (just to get into something), we’ve rounded up a few last-ditch methods of salvation.
Do you know what’s more epic than Hardrock? Running the length of the Appalachian Trail faster than anyone has done before. This is an extreme example, obviously, but the point remains: there are plenty of options for self-punishment. (Photo: Courtesy Tara Dower)
1. Quit running
Let’s face it, ultrarunning is a waste of time at best, a mortal hazard at worst. It’s expensive: so many lightly-used, $250 shoes creating a fire-hazard in your doorway because they rub your Achilles but you can’t bear to part with the sunk cost; yucky energy gels you dutifully deep-throat on your long runs to “practice fueling;” and chiropractor appointments that you pay for out of pocket because the U.S. healthcare system unduly fails to recognize the importance of preventative medicine and self-care.
Ultrarunning is also needlessly extreme. You do not need to run 100 miles to be “healthy,” to feel a “runner’s high,” or to “make friends.” In fact, as physical therapist and 1993 marathon world champion Mark Plaatjes laughed in my face as I lay on the treatment table recently, you don’t need to burn your disposable income on treatments for that calf strain when you just run “for fun.” “You feel great when you run less!”
And ultrarunning is not fun. How many times have you puked your guts out, hobbled into the finish on a sore foot, or fallen asleep on the trail? That’s what I thought. Butmaybe that’s precisely what makes it fun. Type II, maybe Type III, fun is all you know. Where some see the 120-degree heat of the Western States canyons as a wish to end up in the hospital, you see an opportunity to prove you are a badass. Whereas others view Hardrock as an old man’s club, you see it as a chance to finally be in the inner circle that’s eluded you since middle school. Where the self-assured think of UTMB as the overly crowded Disneyland of trail running, you see the Instagrammable European vacation of a lifetime.
And who are you without the purpose of a big, hairy, scary goal on the calendar? What will you do if you can’t justify skipping a few stressful hours at family holiday time to get a few peaceful hours to yourself on the trails? How will you manage if your Instagram bio doesn’t say “ultrarunner?” How will you distract yourself at work without the virtual fireworks from your coworkers on Slack after you walk it into the finish of your next race?
If the answer to all of those questions is, I will not survive, then keep reading.
2. Find a backup (or several)
Look, I get it, you only care about getting into Hardrock. Or Western States. Or whatever, they are all miserable in their own ways. But per point number one, you cannot live without a race on the calendar. And you didn’t get into Hardrock/Western States/whatever so, it’s time to find a backup. Plus you need to renew your Hardrock qualifier anyway, remember?
After you spend a run or two going through denial, anger, and grief, it’s time to graduate to acceptance and throw down that credit card number for some more lotteries and race entries. It’s not too late to put your name in the lottery of a few “safeties,” or if you have the means, sign up for a race in another country that doesn’t have as stringent of field caps and hence might be slightly easier to get into.
A good place to start, as you’ve probably realized if you are reading this (but just in case), is with the Western States and Hardrock qualifiers. Many, if not most of these races will sell out—perhaps within hours of race registration opening. But for many it’s not too late. I just did a quick, random perusal of the list, and of all the ones I looked at, Bighorn, Hellbender, Cruel Jewel, and Swiss Alps, they all have spots left. Just register now, reconsider your life choices later. Because let’s face it: If you don’t register while you have the chance, you’ll inevitably regret it once it’s sold out. There’s even a psych term for this—the desire of the unattainable.
If you’re hell-bent on not learning your lesson, or if you just secretly get a kick out of rejection, it’s not too late to enter some more race lotteries. The UTMB lottery, for those with enough “stones,” will be open from December 19 to January 9. (If you’re wondering what a “stone” is, the UTMB qualification process is so convoluted we wrote an entirely separate guide for it.) The Cascade Crest 100 lottery is open from December 9 to January 5. The Vermont 100 lottery is January 1-10. Or ditch the 100-mile bandwagon and enter the Zegama lottery, open January 13-24. (This list is nowhere near exhaustive!)
Didn’t get into Hardrock again? Go watch the Hardrockers puke their guts out all day just to wallow in your self-pity a little more, and then race the underground mile the next morning. It might be your only chance in life to beat Courtney Dauwalter. (Photo: Peter Maksimow )
3. Go local
Ultra-trail running is in this curious era of conglomeration and consolidation. Call it the Industrial Revolution of the sport. While independent races used to hold prestige in their own right (Miwok, Leadville, Way Too Cool), we’re seeing more races swept into race series such as UTMB and Golden Trail and into qualifiers for Western States and Hardrock. This pseudo-monopolization has benefits, such as stiffer competition at the pointy end of the field. It also has a downside. Namely, the death of the local race. Well, my forlorn friends, it’s time to make local, independent, and one-of-a-kind cool again.
I’m going to make a serious prediction, buried here half way down this silly article, that like the rise of couture, indie running brands local racing is going to make a comeback. The proletarian revolution against the bourgeoisie is coming. Be a changemaker and lead the charge!
Where I live in Colorado, Gnar Runners puts on a whole series of races of all types of distances that are exceptionally well-run and have that backyard, community vibe where everyone laughs about their tribulations on the trail over a beer and a hot dog at the finish line. New Hampshire’s 603 Endurance is similar. Let’s make the post-race BBQ cool again.
4. Get creative
Here’s the problem with racing: To get the most out of yourself, you have to truly want to be there. If no other races light that fire, then maybe it’s time to look elsewhere. Go after that fastest known time you’ve been afraid of for years, or make up a project of your own. Sign up for a “backyard ultra” or a “fat-ass” event, like this hellishly epic-looking 100-mile non-race through the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Or, dare I say it, commit this year to training for a road marathon.
That’s what I decided to do recently, Father Time scared me into realizing that my years to run to my potential on the roads are dwindling. After too much time of slogging it out on the trails, I think it’s going to take me about a year to rekindle a semblance of speed. So I ran my first road half marathon ever, got back on the track for the first time in eight years, and reconnected with old college teammates and new friends for workouts and long runs. Like Lucy falling through the wardrobe into Narnia, I’ve discovered another world right in front of my face. New faces yelling “good job!” on the track, new running routes, and so much more time to do other things since 20 miles on the roads takes about half the time as on the trails. (I haven’t read this many books in years.) It’s reinvigorated my running in a way I didn’t even realize I needed, and it’s reconnected me to my absolutely least favorite term, my “why.” (Ugh.)
Ask yourself: What am I truly seeking by devoting all of my free time (and then some) to this sport? Where can I find it outside of that one race that really doesn’t want to let me in? For many of us, including me, part of that answer at least lies in pushing ourselves in new ways, beyond our own perceived limits. Good news: You can do that with anything from the mile on the track to 200 miles on the trails. Whatever you choose, it will inevitably help you hone a skillset, be it speedwork or problem-solving, that’s beneficial when you enter that lottery again next year. Mixing up the stimulus, I’ve found, releases a whole new level of endorphins and let’s face it that’s one hell of a drug. Maybe by taking on a new challenge, you’ll evolve and that lottery won’t seem quite as important anyway.
Or just sign up for that Hyrox race, and you’ll have an excuse to throw heavy objects multiple times a week.
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It was 5:30 A.M., pitch dark, 15 degrees Fahrenheit, and day three of the Snowman Race. We were camped in a village in the Lunana Valley in northern Bhutan, just a stone’s throw below the Tibetan border in the heart of the Eastern Himalayas.
“How’re we feeling?” I asked fellow runners in the dining tent over a breakfast of fried rice, eggs, pancakes, and sausage.
“Haha ha haaa!” roared Pascal Egli, an acclaimed Swiss mountain runner and glaciologist with tired bags under his mahogany eyes.
Privately, Pascal was worried about his injury-riddled knees. He wasn’t sure he could finish the five-day race, and he was anxious about putting any staff in jeopardy. This wasn’t just another trail race where you could drop out at the next aid station. The nearest road was a five-day walk away. The only escape option: a helicopter rescue about 6 miles into the day’s 23-mile stage with 6,500 feet of climbing. He was considering it.
Buddhist monks chanting and praying for the land and safe passage of the runners at the start of the Snowman Race in Laya, Bhutan. (Photo: Meghan Hicks/Snowman Race)
“I think it will be very tough,” said Leki, a Bhutanese runner and forager from Laya, the village where the race started. We were all nervous about Gophu La Pass, which topped out at 17,896 feet. “The trail will be rocky and with ice. I think today will be the most challenging,” he nodded.
Bucking the trend, I was feeling optimistic about the day. The forecast was sunny and I believed—OK, I hoped—that today’s stage wouldn’t wreck me as badly as the first two, which I’d finished much slower than anyone anticipated. I thought maybe I was finally adjusting to the altitude and might be able to run today.
On the start line, the 16 of us racers laughed like giddy kids about to go to recess. “Also don’t die!” Luke Nelson, a runner and physician’s assistant from Pocatello, Idaho, yelled.
Little did I know I wouldn’t smile like that for a long time.
At His Majesty’s Invitation
The Snowman Race is a 110-mile, five-day stage race that follows a historic trekking route through the Bhutanese Himalayas. It’s a vision of His Majesty, the ever-popular, 44-year-old king of Bhutan, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, who believes trail runners are the ideal witnesses to share the impacts of our warming planet—specifically Bhutan’s melting glaciers—with the wider world.
I honestly didn’t believe Luke when he told me His Majesty came up with this idea: a mountainous stage race doubling as a climate change publicity stunt. I mean, let’s be real, trail running is a niche sport, at best. Why us? Wouldn’t it be easier to ask an NBA player to tweet something about melting glaciers?
“No. His Majesty specifically said trail runners are best suited to see the impacts,” Luke said, adding something about how I’d be a moron to miss out on this invitation. Known for prioritizing “gross national happiness” over gross domestic product, Bhutan opened its borders to visitors in 1974. The country limits tourists in an effort to preserve a landscape that remains so untouched, you can only see the glaciers by trekking for days on foot. In addition to the seven Bhutanese runners, the government would sponsor the nine foreigners invited to the race this year, waving the $150 per day tourist visas. We’d just pay for our flights and voluntary carbon offsets.
“Trail running is a niche sport, at best. Why us? Wouldn’t it be easier to ask an NBA player to tweet something about melting glaciers?”
I received the invitation in August, and the race was slated for October. I chewed it over for a few days. I despise being cold. I’d never done a stage race before. I feared my year-long back injury flaring up. I’d need my advisor’s permission to miss a month of school.
But, this was a climate change race! Since winning the Leadville 100 in 2016 and helping to start the trail running chapter of Protect Our Winters shortly after, I’ve spent my running career combining racing with environmental advocacy. Could a race halfway around the world actually serve as environmental advocacy?
Curious, honored, supported by my advisor, and just scared enough, I said yes.
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Editor’s Note: In anticipation of Riley Brady toeing the line as a top contender at the 2025 Western States 100 on June 28, we’re looking back on their meteoric rise.
Theoretically, Riley Brady didn’t need to kick into the finish line at the 2024 Javelina Jundred on October 26. The non-binary runner from Boulder, Colorado, had forged nearly a 20-minute gap over second-place woman Hannah Allgood during the last 99 and a half miles.
But they needed to kick it in nonetheless.
“I never feel like I have the win in the bag,” Brady said. “A race is not over ‘til it’s over. When people show up at a finish line and stop and walk across the line, I’m like, ‘You don’t know who’s back there! You don’t know who’s gonna sprint pass you!’ You have to Zack-Miller-finish this race. You should be sprinting as fast as you can across that line, and then you can collapse, or walk, or do whatever you want.”
And that’s exactly what Brady did. The glow of their headlamp bobbed through the darkness, rounded the turn into the iridescent tent city that makes up the Javelina headquarters, and zoomed down the seemingly never-ending straight away. Brady zipped across the finish line and in one fluid motion doubled over, hands precariously holding the upper half of their body up on their knees.
They stopped the clock in 14:19:01—the second fastest time ever in the women’s race on a historically hot day that saw the thermometer creep up to 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
It’s their third consecutive Javelina Jundred podium, second golden ticket into Western States, and first win at the Burning-Man-meets-Halloween-meets-ultrarunning rave in Fountain Hills, Arizona. But simply examining those three data points from the end of October in 2022, 2023, and now 2024 leaves out much of the story—including why you may not even know who this very legitimate contender at the 2025 Western States 100 even is.
Here’s how the 29-year-old bike mechanic torched the Javelina Jundred this fall.
1. A Liquid Diet
Heading into Javelina in October, there was no question to those that know them that Brady was fit. Scary fit. (This author understood this deeply first hand, having had the privilege of getting dropped by Brady many times on long runs and workouts over the past year.) The big question was: could their stomach hold it together enough to let their fitness shine?
Violent nausea and vomiting that reduced Brady to the fetal position on the side of the trail had been their downfall in longer races ever since earning a golden ticket with a second-place finish at Javelina in 2022, including at Western States itself in 2023, Black Canyon 100K and Javelina in 2023, and the Black Canyon, Canyons 100K (where they were also sick with a virus), and CCC 100K earlier this year.
“I’ve always thrown up in races, and it’s been an easy puke and rally,” Brady said. “But this vomiting was so violent I couldn’t hold my body up. It’s very different when it’s like you just take a gel and it doesn’t sit right so you just kind of throw up. You’re not collapsed on the ground.”
Enough was enough.
Brady enlisted the expertise of Vic Johnson, a registered dietitian who specializes in working with mountain athletes. Sweat testing revealed that Brady’s sweat and salt rates were both on the low end, and yet they had not been hydrating sufficiently during races. Johnson set Brady a minimum of drinking 500mL an hour.
“That’s one bottle an hour, which is quite low,” Brady said. “There have been times when I’ve definitely been drinking less than that, so he was like, ‘Once you start losing two to three percent of your body weight, that’s when we start to see those kinds of stomach issues come into play.”
Under Johnson’s guidance, Brady also started experimenting with more liquid calories and fewer gels, the texture of which immediately sent Brady’s gag reflexes on high alert. As the forecast called for temperatures reaching dangerously close to triple digits, that strategy proved especially prescient.
Brady amused themself by listening and singing along to an eclectic playlist that included a lot of country (Sturgill Simpson, Dolly Parton, Alan Jackson, etc.), some pop (Chappell Roan, Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, etc.), and musical theater (Phantom of the Opera, Footloose). (Photo: Howie Stern)
Brady did their best to drink 500 mL per hour on lap one of the five-lap course. The sun had yet to shine its wrath on the desert, and they probably fell a little short. But they were running well inside of themselves, just ahead of the lead women’s pack, and diligently downed a bottle of Skratch and Gatorade from aid stations on course, as well as a gel. (Aid stations also supplied Gu Roctane, but they didn’t have the Tea flavor and that’s the only flavor Brady doesn’t find repulsive.)
“The Gatorade tasted a little bit like a cleaning chemical, but it was good enough that I could get it down,” Brady said. “So I was like, ‘All right, I’m getting some calories, some salt from this.’”
Starting the third lap, Brady attempted to down a Precision Nutrition caffeine gel, which they had mixed into water in their soft flask just as they had done in training “because the texture is disgusting.” Their tried-and-true plan failed.
“I immediately threw up,” Brady said. “And I was like, ‘OK, I’m just going to cut this out.’”
Feeling like they could use some more calories on lap four, Brady tried taking one more gel, an SIS Beta Fuel—another tried-and-true staple. But the body rejected that, too.
“I cut those out, too,” Brady said. “I was like, ‘The liquid calories are working. I’m not going to mess with that.”
Brady estimates they took in 45 grams of carbs, or just under 200 calories, an hour for the duration of the race. While that’s more carbs than they’ve stomached in recent longer ultras, it’s about half as much as many high-carb proponents recommend. The bonk started catching up with them by lap five. But moving forward with some energy was better than curled up on the side of the trail with no energy at all.
2. Brady Math
A crown jewel of the Aravaipa Running race portfolio, the Javelina Jundred takes runners around the same 20-mile loop through the sandy washes of the desert five times. Each loop features a slight uphill over the first half to the highpoint near the foothills of the McDowell Mountains northeast of Phoenix before looping back down to the start for a total of about 1,580 feet of climbing and descent on each lap.
Five 20-mile loops may sound daunting. Not to Brady.
“I don’t think about the miles,” Brady said. “I’m like, ‘We’re running five laps.’ You just say ‘a lap,’ and it doesn’t sound that bad, you know?”
Compartmentalizing the 100-mile course into something as benign as a lap let Brady forget about the miles. In fact, they didn’t look at their watch once all day.
“I put the mileage out of my mind,” Brady said. “It’s really just one hard lap. The first one doesn’t count because it’s the first one. Second one, you’re probably still feeling pretty good, so it’s whatever. Third one is kind of hard, because it’s the heat of the day and it’s the third one. But then fourth one you get to pick up a pacer, so then you have a buddy. And fifth one, it’s the last lap, so you just gotta get one lap done.”
In fact, they just had to make it through half of one lap:
“It helps that it’s slightly uphill on the way out and then slightly downhill all the way back. So I just didn’t count the downhill. That’s easy running. So I just have to make it through half a lap.”
Sounds like Brady math, a mindset quite similar to that of another Brady legend.
“It’s not really how it plays out in reality,” Brady admitted. “But that’s how I like to think about it going into it.”
3. Ice, Ice Baby
Brady, who “hates” the cold, is a natural in scorching temperatures. But they didn’t take that aptitude for granted, making the extra effort to spend time in the sauna and hot tub at the rec center a couple of times a week, as well as running in the heat of the day on weekends during an usually hot fall in Boulder. They also applied a full heat protocol during the race, using pacer Leah Yingling’s special bandanas Lululemon made for the Further Project and dumping ice water on their head and down their shirt. It helped that Javelina supplied ice at every aid station.
It all paid off.
“To be honest, it felt hot but not crazy,” Brady said. “The only time I really felt like, ‘OK, I’m getting pretty warm here,’ was on the third lap during the heat of the day coming into Jackass.”
There, Brady took a few extra seconds to make sure their bottles were refilled, as well as to fully submerge in a kitty pool filled with ice water.
4. Road Running Super Shoes (Seriously)
Two weeks before the race, Brady had not as much as even ever tried on road super shoes. (They had worn trail super shoes, such as they are, to varying degrees of success.) That’s when they got their hands on a pair of Nike Vaporflys—a carbon-plated road running super shoe with next-to-no traction.
Brady took them out for a test drive on the Dirty Biz, a 15-mile, mostly buffed out trail and double-track loop just south of Boulder that Brady characterizes as more technical than the Javelina course. It was love at first run.
“I was like, ‘Wow. This fits my foot so perfectly. This feels so comfortable,” Brady said. “I felt super nimble.I just wasn’t thinking about my feet at all.”
For someone with a neuroma who’s relatively picky when it comes to shoes, this was a ringing endorsement.
“I didn’t feel like they were tippy,” Brady said. “I didn’t feel like I was going to roll an ankle.”
They admit the tread could be better, but that wasn’t going to make or break their shoe choice on a course as untechnical as Javelina. They had no regrets.
“I couldn’t have been more thrilled with them,” Brady said. “I got a few rocks in my shoes. The upper is pretty porous. But I don’t have any blisters. I didn’t think about my feet once throughout the day.”
Make no mistake, Brady says: this is not an advertisement for Nike. But they’ve never loved a shoe more.
5. Attitude of Gratitude
Brady’s shoe choice was a reflection of the freedom they’ve afforded themselves with a clear-headed attitude. Over the past several years, they’ve turned down modest sponsorship offers from shoe companies whose shoes were not the perfect fit.
“There have been some shoes that I just don’t see working for me in trail hundred milers. And that’s what I want to be running,” Brady said. “And so if the shoe is gonna irritate my foot, all the money in the world wouldn’t be worth it to me to have a shoe that doesn’t work.”
Running sponsorless has come with a price—Brady works as a bike mechanic, putting in three long, hard days a week on their feet and lugging heavy e-bikes and mountain bikes onto and off of bike stands. (They love that work so much, though, that they continued working overtime hours during the pandemic despite making less than they would have on unemployment.) And they don’t have any sponsor support to travel to races (although they have supportive parents, who attend all of Brady’s big races and pay for the rental house). While not having a sponsor might knock the confidence of some runners at Brady’s level, it doesn’t seem to phase them.
“I’m not somebody who feels like they need a sponsorship to feel secure in my sense of self,” Brady said. “I know that’s some people’s goal, but that’s not my goal at all. For a sponsorship to be worth it to me, it needs to support my ability to run.”
If Brady were to sign a sponsorship contract—and they are in talks with some companies—the deal would have to be big enough so they could quit their job as a bike mechanic. They don’t need time to train more: Brady puts in about 90 miles a week, going up to 100 on key weeks, with a few bike rides, strength training, heat protocol, and physical therapy slotted in there as well. But it’s a militant schedule that leaves little time for cooking, spending time with their two roommates and two cats, and no time for Brady pursuing their biggest hobby outside of running: welding. And that’s a passion they hope to turn into a career.
Brady carried this maturity to the race itself. After running alone off the front of the women’s race on lap one, Brady was caught by Allgood on the long climb out of headquarters on lap two. They just kept doing their own thing, and sure enough their agility on the 10-mile downhill back to the start line reestablished that gap. They didn’t see another competitor in the woman’s race for the rest of the day—minus everyone they lapped.
Brady received a finish-line hug from race director Jubilee Paige after running the second-fastest women’s time ever on a historically hot day. (Photo: Howie Stern)
6. An A Team
Speaking of getting lapped, that’s the curse of doing well at this race. The faster you run, the more people you lap, and the more people you have to warn to get out of the way—as politely as you can, of course.
That’s where the power of the pacer came into play. Brady’s friend Chelsea Burns pulled them through lap four, and Yingling ran them home on lap five.
“It was really helpful to have Chelsea and Leah because they could tell people to move,” Brady said. “You’re passing so many people at that point, because the 100K is out on course, and then you’re catching all of the other people in the 100 miler because everybody’s just doing these same loops, and it gets really difficult when you’re tired to keep saying, ‘On your left! Excuse me! Coming through!’ And still sound kind about it. I definitely don’t want to be pissing people off out there, but also, I’m racing.”
Burns and Yingling also played the pivotal role of serving as Brady’s representative at aid stations, which while exceptionally well staffed were as chaotic as you would expect with hundreds of runners passing through every hour. (They were so chaotic, in fact, that at one point Brady and Burns got separated and Burns ran up the trail, thinking Brad had already left. They doubled back and found Brady just emerging from the aid station less than a handful of minutes later.) Brady’s pacers saved precious seconds by helping to acquire ice and fill bottles. Yingling, ever the consummate professional, provided just the stroke to the ego Brady needed on lap five to get them to the finish line and secure a golden ticket.
Secure a golden ticket they did. After failing to earn their way back into States last year, it’s a huge relief, Brady says. But you’ll see them on the golden ticket circuit again quite soon. They have some unfinished business at Black Canyons to attend to. And you’ll probably see them back at Javelina next year, too. But not with a bib pinned to their shirt.
“I really want to be top 10 at Western States,” Brady said. “I don’t want to have to go back [to Javelina]. I’ve done this race the last three years in a row. I want to get to experience some of the fun party aspects of Javelina. I have other friends who I think want to race it. I just really want to be on the crew and volunteer side of things. Aravaipa has been so great in terms of helping me get to this race, so I want to try and give back to Aravaipa in a small way.”
Because more than sponsorships or golden tickets, community is what attracted Brady to this sport as an undergraduate student at the University of Vermont, it’s largely what brought them out to Boulder (along with quality running and access to trans healthcare), and it’s what keeps them in the sport.
“This is probably gonna sound very cliché, and I really hate clichés, but I do feel so lucky to just have the best community around me,” Brady said. “Going into this race, I was reflecting and just felt so well supported. I’m very appreciative of David [Roche] for being a good coach, I have this great PT, and then just the best friends in Boulder.”
Roche, of course, won the men’s race.
Brady’s friend Rosie writes them a card before every race, and Javelina was no exception. And upon returning to Boulder after the race, Brady was greeted to a congratulatory sign on their bedroom door: “I’m fast as f***, boi!” And their two roommates took them out to a celebratory dinner.
“One of the reasons to do this sport is the community,” Brady said. “I’m just really, really grateful and feeling really well loved right now.”
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Topher Gaylord, a longtime member of the Western States Endurance Run Board of Directors and a leading voice in the sport of ultrarunning, has been elected President of the WSER Board of Directors.
Gaylord succeeds Diana Fitzpatrick, whose term as President ended at the end of September following five years.
“As the first 100-mile trail race in the world, Western States Endurance Run strives to be a leader in the sport, honoring our traditions and evolving proactively with the sport. We are an organization fueled by the community for the community with tremendous people who make the run special for every participant who has the opportunity to run Western States. It is a privilege to serve in this leadership role for our organization,” said Gaylord.
Gaylord, whose experience as a competitor, organizer and thought leader in the sport dates back more than 25 years, has been a member of the WSER Board since 2016. During that time, Gaylord has served as a vice president for WSER and played instrumental roles in a number of WSER’s most notable successes. This has included WSER’s ongoing presenting sponsorship agreement with HOKA and historic growth overall in terms of partnership agreements, the production of a first-ever and continuing Live Broadcast of the event, and trail stewardship initiatives that have worked to open more of the Western States Trail to the public.
“I am extremely excited for the start of a new era for our race with Topher as our President,” said Fitzpatrick, who remains on the WSER Board as Vice President. “I don’t know if there is a more respected person in our sport than Topher. His keen perspective, which now dates back an entire generation of ultrarunners, his ability of bringing groups together for the common good, and his strategic sense of where the sport is headed next is what we need right now.”
Added Race Director Craig Thornley, now entering his 13th year as race director: “It’s been a distinct pleasure, both professionally and personally, to work with Diana over the past five years in furthering our Run’s mission. I cannot thank her enough for her dedication to all things Western States. I’ve known and worked with Topher for a very long time. He’s an incredibly gifted person in how he mixes his experiences as a leader in the outdoor space and in particular in ultrarunning, with an uncanny ability to always find the best in people and in organizations. He has big shoes to fill. I have every confidence he will.”
Gaylord’s career in global athletic and sports leadership includes executive-level positions with companies such as VF Corporation in North America, Europe, and Asia, Columbia Sportswear, Mountain Hardwear, Under Armour and The North Face. He ran his first Western States in 1998 and is a seven-time finisher of the Run. In 2003, he was the first American male finisher at the first-ever Ultra-Trail Du Mont-Blanc.
The organization’s officers for the upcoming 2025 race cycle include Gaylord as President, Fitzpatrick as Vice President, Lamont King as Treasurer and Kara Teklinski as Secretary.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Lone Pine, CA: On July 22-24, 2024, AdventureCORPS – now in our 40th year producing world-class events – will present its legendary BADWATER® 135 Ultramarathon, the 135-Mile World Championship. Now in its 47th year, this world-renowned event pits up to 100 of the world’s toughest athletes against one another and the elements in a crucible like no other. From below sea level in scorching temperatures to altitudes as high as 8,360 feet (2548m), 100 endurance athletes representing 21 nations plus 26 American states will face off in a grueling 135-mile non-stop running race from Death Valley to Mt. Whitney, CA. Widely recognized as “the world’s toughest foot race,” the invitational Badwater 135 is the most demanding and extreme running race on the planet.
The start line is at Badwater Basin in Death Valley National Park, which marks the lowest elevation in North America at 280’ (85m) below sea level. The race finishes at Whitney Portal at 8,300’ (2530m). The course covers three mountain ranges for a total of 14,600’ (4450m) of cumulative vertical ascent and 6,100’ (1859m) of cumulative descent. Whitney Portal is the trailhead to the Mt. Whitney summit, the highest point in the contiguous United States. Competitors travel through places with names like Mushroom Rock, Furnace Creek, Salt Creek, Devil’s Cornfield, Devil’s Golf Course, Stovepipe Wells, Panamint Springs, Darwin, Keeler, Alabama Hills, and Lone Pine.
The Badwater 135 Ultramarathon is held under permits from – and in close collaboration with – Death Valley National Park, California Department of Transportation, U.S. Forest Service, and the County of Inyo.
Above: Death Valley National Park Superintendent Mike Reynolds welcomes the 2022 Badwater 135 runners, crew, and staff.
AdventureCORPS – on behalf of all competitors and support crews – also gratefully acknowledges that these lands have been lived upon for at least 1000 years by native peoples, including the Timbisha Shoshone and the Lone Pine Paiute-Shoshone tribes who live on the race course today. We honor and share their deep reverence for these lands.
While runners began running the course in the 1970s, the race itself has been part of the fabric of life in Inyo County since 1987. A recent study indicated an annual economic impact of 1.2 million dollars, half of it spent in Death Valley National Park and surrounding gateway communities such as Lone Pine, CA. The race is supported by the Inyo County Board of Supervisors, the Lone Pine Chamber of Commerce, and a wide panorama of businesses and charities which are positively impacted.
THE 2024 RACE FIELD
The ultimate “challenge of the champions,” the 2024 Badwater 135 features 38 Badwater veterans and 62 rookies: die hard “ultra-runners” who have the necessary running credentials to not only apply for, but be selected, to compete in the race.
As always, the race will boast a very international field.
The 100 athletes (33 women and 67 men) in the 2024 Badwater 135 represent twenty-one nations: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Cayman Islands, Colombia, Czech Republic, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and United States of America. See the full roster here.
Twenty-six different American states are represented: Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin.
There are 33 women and 67 men. The youngest runner is Kaylee Frederick, 19, of Johnstown, PA, and the oldest is Keith Straw of Malvern, PA (representing the United Kingdom); both are Badwater 135 veterans. The overall average age is 48.
Of special note, this year Amy Costa and Keith Straw are going for their tenth finishes, Joshua Holmes is going for his tenth consecutive finish, Karla Kent is going for her twelfth consecutive finish, Harvey Lewis is going for his thirteenth consecutive finish, Ray Sanchez is going for his 16th consecutive finish, and Danny Westergaard is going for his 17th consecutive finish.
Every year is a new year at the Badwater 135, with both veterans and rookie athletes impressing everyone with incredible, gutsy performances. With every single runner hungry to go home with the coveted Badwater 135 Official Finisher Belt Buckle – and give their absolute best performance – both known and new stars will shine as the race unfolds.
It is expected that the winners of the 2024 Badwater 135 will finish in near record time for both men’s and women’s divisions. The average finishing time is approximately 40 hours, while the overall time limit is 48 hours. For those who finish in less than forty-eight hours, their reward is the coveted Badwater 135 belt buckle, referred to as “the Holy Grail of Ultra Running.” There is no prize money.
The 2024 edition of the Holy Grail of Ultra Running. On the obverse is engraved DETUR DIGNIORI = “Let it Be Given to those Most Worthy“ in Latin.
WAVE STARTS
As detailed on the race roster, the race will begin in three waves on Monday evening, July 22. They are assigned according to their predicted finishing time, with the Fast Runners going first, Faster Runners going second, and – at least on paper – the Fastest Runners going third.
• Wave 1 (800pm): 23 men and 11 women; 24 rookies and 10 veterans = 34 runners
• Wave 2 (900pm): 23 men and 10 women; 24 rookies and 9 veterans = 33 runners
• Wave 3 (1000pm): 21 men and 12 women; 14 rookies and 19 veterans = 33 runners
A LEGENDARY HISTORY
This year’s race celebrates the 47th anniversary of Al Arnold’s original trek from Badwater Basin to Mt. Whitney in 1977. Arnold, an ultrarunning pioneer, human potential guru, and health club manager, competed in a solo effort: it was just Arnold and his support crew against the elements and the clock. It took him three efforts before he was successful, having first attempted the route in 1974 and then 1975.
Four years later, Jay Birmingham also completed the course, in 1981. The official head-to-head race began ten years after Arnold’s pioneer trek, in 1987, and has been held annually since then without serious incident, fatality, or any citations issued by any branch of law enforcement. (The race was sadly canceled due to COVID-19 in 2020.)
AdventureCORPS brought Al to the race in 2002 and inducted him into the Badwater Hall of Fame. This was the 25thanniversary of his run, and he was treated like a rock star by everyone in attendance. Sadly, we lost our incredible friend Al Arnold when he passed away on September 6, 2017 at the age of 89. He is sorely missed, but his spirit lives on with each year’s edition of the world’s toughest foot race.
Jay Birmingham, who turns 79 in July, remains very active with the world of Badwater, not only by serving on the Badwater 135 Application Review Committee for more than 15 years, but also as an athlete. He has competed in all of the Badwater races over the past twenty years.
The first women to complete the course were Jeannie Ennis (USA) and Eleanor Adams (United Kingdom), both of whom competed in the inaugural race in 1987. Ennis was brought to the race as a special guest in 2005 and inducted into the Badwater Hall of Fame.
Al Arnold at the start line of the 2002 Badwater Ultramarathon.
For more info about Al Arnold and the original race click these links:
The Badwater 135 is the final event in the Badwater® Ultra Cup, a three-race series which began with the 51-mile Badwater® Cape Fear in March, continued with the 81-mile Badwater® Salton Sea in late April, and now concludes with the Badwater 135 in July. Those runners who complete all three events in the same calendar year are featured on the Badwater.com website and their virtues are extolled throughout the Internet and in future editions of BADWATER Magazine. In 2014, seven athletes completed the entire Badwater Ultra Cup, nine completed it in 2015, sixteen in 2016, fifteen in 2017, eight in 2018, eleven in 2019, six in 2021, seven in 2022, and 12 in 2023. In 2024, eight Badwater 135 runners have already completed both Badwater Cape Fear and Badwater Salton Sea, and will now attempt the final – and most difficult – leg of this epic, three-event series.
OFFICIAL SPONSORS AND CHARITIES
Now in its twenty-fifth year producing this race, AdventureCORPS is pleased to recognize Joe Nimble Shoes as the Official Shoe of Badwater and RoadID and Fenixlight as Official Sponsors. We also thank the Oasis at Death Valley, Stovepipe Wells Resort, Panamint Springs Resort, and Dow Villa of Lone Pine, the community of Lone Pine, CA, the County of Inyo, the Lone Pine Chamber of Commerce, De Soto Sport, and other generous companies and individuals who support Badwater 135 each year. More info about our sponsors.
Official Charities of Badwater include the Challenged Athletes Foundation. As one of the very few charities that provides grants directly to athletes with a physical disability, the Challenged Athletes Foundation has raised over 159 million dollars and directly assisted more than 44,000 challenged athletes in all 50 states and 70 countries world-wide. Since 2002, together with our athletes, we have raised over $900,000 for Challenged Athletes Foundation.
For media wishing to attending the event in person, please contact us directly for the Media Kit and Credentials Application.
ABOUT ADVENTURECORPS, INC.:
Founded in 1984 by Chris Kostman, Oak Park, California-based AdventureCORPS® has made its name producing the world’s toughest endurance races in dramatic, remote locations that few people would ever visit, let alone run or bike across. Held under the Badwater® banner, AdventureCORPS events have allowed runners and bicyclists to explore the Death Valley, Salton Sea, Cape Fear, Mojave Desert, and Nevada outback regions in the USA, as well as the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, Mustang region of Nepal, Yunnan Province of China, and the Republic of Artsakh. AdventureCORPS has now produced more than 170 endurance sports events, and this is our 25th Badwater 135. For our 40-year history, click here.
AdventureCORPS®, Inc. owns and represents BADWATER®, “The World’s Toughest Brand, Gear, and Races.” As a brand, BADWATER represents digging deep and going farther; it is the lifestyle brand for all who push their limits while exploring the outer and inner universes.
• Short Video of the Badwater Cape Fear goodie bag
• Live Video from the 2024 Start Line at the foot of the Old Baldy Lighthouse
• Live Video as the 2024 Badwater Cape Fear gets under way on Bald Head Island
• Part 1 Live Video / Part 2 Live Video from Cape Fear itself on Mile 13.1 as the Badwater racers round the Cape and head up the beach to Fort Fisher
The tenth Badwater Cape Fear 50km / 51mi ultramarathon took place on March 23, 2024 on Bald Head Island and Fort Fisher, North Carolina. A field of 176 runners competed in either the 50km race or the 51-mile race, with 77 completing the 50km race officially and 90 completing the 51.4-mile race officially. Click here for full race results.
The 2024 race included runners representing Canada, Philippines, United States, and United Kingdom, plus 31 American states and territories: Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and Washington. Ages ranged from 19 to 78. There were 46 females and 130 males, and 112 Badwater Cape Fear rookies and 64 race veterans. For the full race roster, click here.
With 50km and 51-mile race options and a start line at the foot of the Old Baldy Ligthouse, Badwater® Cape Fear features a twelve-mile warm-up on the car-free, one-lane-wide roads and maritime forest trails of Bald Head Island, followed by either 19 or 38 miles of running on the wild and secluded sandy beach between Cape Fear and Fort Fisher. The beach stretch features spectacular views of the Frying Pan Shoals to the east and the wild and undeveloped Cape Fear River marshlands to the west. Running this remote coast is a dramatic, invigorating, and inspiring manner in which to experience Bald Head Island, Fort Fisher State Recreation, and the Cape Fear region in all its grandeur!
This exquisite natural setting is the perfect antidote to the “real world” and a wonderful counterpart to the desert sands and mountains of Death Valley and Anza-Borrego Desert featured in the two West Coast BADWATER® races.
Special thanks, Volunteers! YOU make it happen!
Racer Check-In: Stacey Shand, Keith Weitz, Scott Kollins, Julie Lee, Robert Lee, Chris Shank, Thomas & Anne Marie Brock, Bob Becker, Jay Birmingham, Erika Small, Sandy Kades, Brian Million, Alix Shutello, and others
Trail Marking: Bob Becker and Jay Birmingham
Start Line: Keith Weitz, Scott Kollins, Erika Small, Julie Lee, Stacey Shand, and Chris Kostman
Broom Wagon (first 10.5 miles): Brian Million
Trail Sweep: Jay Birmingham and Brian Million
Morning Directions: Chris Shank, Julie Lee, and many Bald Head Island Public Safety volunteers and other Bald Head Island residents
UTV Pilot: Karlee Szympruch
AS1 at Bald Head Island Conservancy: Emily Ryan, Anne-Marie Brock, Thomas Brock, Margaret Pisacano, Susan Parker, Sandy Kades, and many others
AS2 at Mid-Beach: Bonny Mcclain, Marcia Bosch, Jeff Winchester, Erika Small, and Josie, Kathy, Mell, and Peter from Friends of Pleasure Island State Parks, with assistance from Fort Fisher State Recreation Area rangers!
AS3 at Fort Fisher: Eleanor Erickson, Keith Weitz, Scott Kollins, and Denise Fox.
Timing: Julie Lee
Finish Line: Chris Kostman, Stacey Shand, Brian Million, Jay Birmingham, Chris Shank, and others
We have actively been working on this project for the last two summers (only 10-12 weeks are snow free each year). Work has been performed by USFS employees, a 20-person California Conservation Corp trail crew, and our volunteers. The work has been funded by the Great American Outdoor Act ($1.2M), designed to cover most of the project. Although $0.5M in funding remains, and the USFS was poised to complete contracts to engage a trail crew for this summer, the funding for the project has now been frozen by DOGE and inaccessible, and we cannot hire a trail crew for 2025.
Named Presenting Sponsor of the 
