Canyons 50k Race Report
The Canyons Endurance Runs by UTMB immediately intrigued me because it’s run on the same (or similar) trails to Western States. Being far from ready to attempt to qualify for (or run) Western States, I thought Canyons was a great way to experience the history of the region with a little less pain and suffering. UTMB has a reputation (both good and bad, if you’re into the trail community chatter), but they absolutely know how to put on a well-organized race. Everything from the pre-race communications to the packet pickup, course markings, and overall communication was top-notch.
The course: The course itself reverses each year and starts in downtown Auburn. The 50k had 3 major climbs at miles 5, 23 and 27, with the first climb being close to 1,000 ft on road and the next two about 600 ft each on trail. I found the second climb to be the most unforgiving, with steep, calf-blasting grades throughout. The total gain for the course is 5,000ft, which is pretty average for a 50k, but the length of the climbs for somebody like me coming from Ohio “short and punchy” hills presented a fun challenge. Now, if we talk about up, we also have to talk about down! A true test to the quads was the decent to Mammoth Bar, which was a steep, lengthy, exposed decent (I had a good fall on my way down!). The course was mostly single or double track and non-technical, about 70% shaded. If you’re a good climber, this could be a very fast course. Of course the scenery was beautiful, with breathtaking views of the American River, lots of shady spots through forest, and cool meadows. Even though there were multiple races criss-crossing the same trails, I had no problem navigating and found the course marking just perfect.
Aid Stations: Aid stations were well-stocked with all the typical goodies, including Naak for liquid calories, which I liked quite a lot. The other bonus: porta-potties! Every aid station had plenty of facilities, so there was no waiting in line if you had an urgent need. :)
Downtown Auburn: If you venture into old town you’ll find plenty of cute pizza places and restaurants, but few hotels. I suggest booking accommodations in advance and making dinner reservations so you don’t miss out. I was also able to find street parking very close to the start line, even though they had shuttles to parking lots available. If you get to the race early enough, you should be able to grab a spot.
My training and performance: The biggest focus of my training was hiking skills and leg strength so the downhills wouldn’t destroy my quads and my calves wouldn’t cramp on the steep inclines. I would spend 30-40 minutes on the treadmill at 15-20% incline once/week to prepare for the climbs, and spent extra time on leg day for my quads and claves. This paid off: I didn’t have any issues with cramping on the course, and was the usual “I just ran a 50k” sore the next day, but overall felt my training prepared me for the long climbs and decents. I managed to set a 50k PR on this course with a time of 6:03 (good for me!). My original goal was anything sub-7, so I was very pleased with this result and felt strong all the way through, holding my pace. For nutrition, I packed waffles, gels, and snacked a bit at aid stations. I also carried LMNT in my water bottles and used the Naak available at aid stations for liquid calories.
Overall impressions: I loved this race, the beautiful scenery, the organization, the cute town, and the fun challenge with the climbs. I’d highly recommend this for somebody looking for a non-technical 50k with some historic value and challening climbs!