I'm completely perplexed by the fact that Utah and Colorado runners have managed to keep this race a secret from the rest of the running world! At the final aid station a couple of friendly volunteers asked me what other races I'd done in Utah. When I said it was my first, they asked which I'd done in Colorado. I told them I'd never done a Colorado race and they gave me a confused look and asked "Well then where are you from ?!?!". It's a hidden gem, and I can't recommend it highly enough.

Somehow I managed to find mention of it several months ago and signed up for two reasons - it fell on one of my only free weekends this summer, and it takes place in one of my favorite states.

The more I investigated the course the more mysterious it seemed. The only other 100k I've run is Bandera, which I've always considered really darn tough (and still do!). But the finish times of the two races aren't even comparable. In the 7 previous years of Katcina Mosa the women's winning time is generally in the 16-17 hour range and the men's winning time is in the 13-14 hour range. The course records were 14:51 for the women, and slightly under 12 for the men. I saw that the altitude was reasonably high, but it didn't seem like the difference could account for such a dramatic difference in finish times.

But now it all makes sense.

The RD is John Bozung, a very warm and welcoming man. He is also the RD for the Squaw Peak 50 miler (considered one of the hardest 50 milers in the country) - which fills it's 250-ish spots within the very first day of registration. Squaw Peak covers many of the same trails as Katcina Mosa, but for some reason Katcina Mosa only has 40-50 entrants per year. The Utah runners I met who regularly run both said that the extra 12 miles and extra 5000 feet of climbing are enough to scare most people away.

The course turned out to be BY FAR the toughest course I've ever run a race on (granted I haven't run all that many different courses). While the terrain and footing was often killer and the altitude ranges between 5500 and 10,000 feet, what really makes it tough is the climbing.

In 62 mile you experience 34,808 feet of elevation change - that's 17+ climbing and 17+ decending. But wait, it gets better - over 13k feet of climbing occurs in the first 29 miles of the race, with a meager 4k left to climb in the last 33 miles. This fact did a number on my hydration levels. I set out on one particular 6 mile leg carying 42 ounces of water and thinking "this MUST be enough, how long can 6 miles really take?". It took me 3 hours, and that was pushing as hard as I could with no rests. Non-stop climbing, exposed to the blazing hot sun.

The course is approximately 50% ATV trail, 40% single track, and 10% paved road. The paved section is the last 6 miles of the race, right into the finish. The best decision I made all day was to have a pair of road shoes waiting for me at the last aid station before hitting the pavement. Trudging along at a 9:30 pace for those last 6 miles I kept thinking about how much harding it would be to be dragging my Montrails.

The singletrack is unmaintained by the state and BADLY overgrown (which I kinda liked). The dirt is covered in loose rocks and twisted tree roots, most of which is hidden by the underbrush which reaches over from both sides and meets in the middle. Luckily, unlike Hill Country State Park, the plants are soft and gentle on your legs - you just have to be very careful to not trip over what lies beneath.

The views from the mountains (southeast of Salt Lake City, just south of the Wasatch 100 course) were absolutely breathtaking, the course markings were exceptionally clear, and the aid stations were upbeat and well stocked.

Even though my legs are trashed, I'm still enjoying a state of euphoria knowing that I was able to finish something that I found so challenging. I overcame potential disasters (the race starts at 3 in the morning, and within the first 60 seconds of the starting gun the batteries in my light died, I swapped out with the spares I was carrying, but they were from the same batch and lasted only 60 seconds as well. I ran for almost 3 hours with no light, trying to inconspicuously stay between lighted runners and picking my knees up as high as I could to keep from tripping), and proved that it IS possible to do 99% of your training in the gym for a mountain race (I've been on strike from running outside for the past two months and will continue my strike until the weather gods decide to work with me and end this ridiculous 100 degree business).

If you like tough trails, silly-long uphills, beautiful surroundings, and a great feeling of accomplishment, then again - I can't recommend Katcina Mosa highly enough.