Grand Mesa 100

2012

2012-01-03T13:39:00.000-08:00

Whats up for 2012.
The 34 and 50 mile course will remain the same. The 100 mile will see a small change. we will be moving the mesa lakes aid station to an easier place to find. and the mesa lakes section will be a loop again instead of an out and back. the web site will be updated with the changes soon.

Phil

2011-12-31T21:58:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year

Maybe a snowshoe race

Whats out there

2011-10-16T21:21:00.000-07:00

I've been asked about htis photo several times. During the race I got a report about the markers being down between Anderson lake and Carson lake . While adding new markers at two in the morning I ran into a bear he's out there in the dark.

Phil B

slickrock 100

2011-10-10T13:40:00.000-07:00

Well me and Rick went to Moab for the weekend. Rick was to run the 50

and I was to run an aid station at mile 92. Well Rick bailed on the 50 and

Instead worked the aid station with me thanks Rick.

Instead of mile 92 we were mile 50 and 68 or so.

Congratulations to all those who fought through the weather and confusion to finish

Phil B

The wet start

Our humble aid station

We were busy so I only got a few photos

What you support by running the GM100

2011-09-25T17:17:00.000-07:00

These photographs were taken Sept. 19 to 21, 2011 of fifth graders from Pomona Elementary in Montrose as they attended Camp Redcloud near Lake City.For some kids, it was their first experience camping and all of the students learned how teamwork, overcoming obstacles, and an appreiciation of the outdoors will enrich their lives. A portion of your registration fee went to scholarships for kids who needed help paying for this wonderful outdoor experience. Thanks for your support!!

Phil B.

What a month

2011-09-07T14:32:00.000-07:00

Well I'm back. Three days after the race I had my shoulder rebuilt it was more messed up then the MRI showed. I will no longer complain how hard the Kannah creek drop and climb back to the top of the mesa hurts. It's nothing.
Once again we got lucky and had perfect weather again this. On Tuesday after the race it was about 50 degrees on top and pouring rain.
Next years race will be on July 28-29 2012 . Sign up will be on Ultrasignup.

Updates to maps and directions will be on the website next month.

Phil B

2011 Results

2011-07-25T17:18:00.000-07:00

Results for the 2011 Grand Mesa 100.
We had 13 Starters for the 100 and 7 Finishers. For the 50 miler we had 16 Starters and 14 Finisher.
For the 37 We had 17 Starters and all Finished. The times and place are on the website.

Its Over

2011-07-24T21:06:00.000-07:00

We would like to thank all the runners and crew who came out and gave our race try. I will get the results up tomorrow. Now Its time to sit back and relax.

Phil B

Google Map of course

2011-07-18T11:09:00.000-07:00

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=206189885318868487560.0004a85abef08b3230ffc&msa=0&ll=38.997841,-108.091049&spn=0.312979,0.392075

Link to a google map By Dale hawkins.

trail marking

2011-07-15T20:13:00.000-07:00

We will begin trail marking tomorrow. Starting with Kannah creek. If your in town and want tag along drop me an email. signup ends tomorrow at midnight.

Phil B

crag crest

2011-07-13T22:55:00.000-07:00

The FS finished clearing the lower loop today. The updated course directions are on the web site, and the maps page has the course broken down into each section in the order you will run them. depending on the distance you are running.

Phil

Camp grounds

2011-07-10T17:36:00.000-07:00

There are 3 forest service campgrounds within a mile of the start. they are
Cobbett lake, Island Lake, and Little Bear. Island lake has 4wheeler access
so it can be a little noise.

Phil B

Pacers

2011-07-10T11:20:00.000-07:00

There are a few people looking for pacers if you want to pace . leave a comment or email me and I will pass along your Info.

Trail update

2011-07-10T11:18:00.000-07:00

The FS trail crew is kicking ass. They have about a 1/2 to 3/4 mile off this left to clear.

When they are done it looks like this.

Other useful information . there have been fresh bear tracks on every trail I checked last week, even along the top of crag crest. Be alert at dawn and dusk.

I recommend having dry shoes in your drop bags at flowing park for 50 and 100 milers
37 milers your just going to go back thru the water right away. All the reservoirs between the
lodge and flowing park are full and running over the spillways so the creek crossing are about knee deep.
Phil B

2011-07-05T19:59:00.000-07:00

Talked with the FS service about the downed trees and they are going to try and clear the trail before race day. If they can not get it cleared we will be using the road.

Phil B

Trail conditions: the good ,the bad, and the ugly

2011-07-03T13:09:00.000-07:00

The good most of the course has cleared up nicely.
The bad there will be some snow left on the crag crest loop. but its not to bad early in the morning it is pretty firm and no post holing.
The ugly The lower loop of the crag crest trail is impassable .

Grand Mesa 100 hurdle section

Looking down from the crest at the blow down section

There was a big blow down this winter that wiped out the lower loop of the crag crest trail. We are working on two options for this section of the race. The upper loop is in good condition other than some snow drifts, we cleared all the downed trees on the upper loop yesterday. The first option is there is a road that parallels the lower loop and we are trying to get permission to use the road to complete the loop. the only problem with this is part of the road is on private property . the second option is to do an out and back on the upper loop.
The first option is preferred . I will keep you up to date on this. Everything else is looking good.

Phil B.

100 mile profile 2011

2011-06-28T10:41:00.000-07:00

Course profile for the 100 miler for 2011. the big drop in the middle is rather decpetice the section goin down is not as steep as the profile makes it look it is about 3800' of decent over about 8.5 miles with a couple of little climbs. the climb back up is about 4000' in 5.5 miles. the big differnce over last year is not having to do the 3/4 of mile 1500' clmb at mile 92.

Phil B

Course profile 2011

2011-06-27T14:00:00.000-07:00

Here are the 37 and 50 mile profiles still working on the 100 mile.

37 mile profile

50 mile course

The profiles are a little rough and should just be used as a general guide line. When you jam 50 miles in to

a small space the climbs and drops look steeper than they really are.

Phil B

revised course directions

2011-06-26T09:19:00.000-07:00

The revised course directions and maps are now on the web site. I will try to get new course profiles up tonight.

this is the sign in section 4 for the 100 milers

The trail goes straight but the arrow points to the right, go right

The forest service has put up some new markers

The trail down to Carson lake is a stream right now but will dry out by race day . The trail goes down into the trees in center of photo.

Phil B

Blessed with to much Snow

2011-06-23T18:56:00.000-07:00

Last week at Island Lake

Today at Lands End Road on top of Mesa

With the hot weather the snow has started to melt fast but where still a month behind. So there is going to be two course changes. One effects all distances and the second only effects the 100 milers. The first changes is we are not going to use the Drop off section . This is the section from flowing park back to the granby aid station. Instead you will return the same way you come out to flowing park. The second changes is the Anderson lake to Mesa lake loop. Instead of doing a loop it will be an out and back to Mesa lake. the reason for this section being changes is there is still 3' to 5' of snow in the trees and the section from Mesa lake back to Anderson lake could be a mud bog on race day. the drop of f section has a couple of reason for not being used one is safety the road up to the bottom is almost impassable and if we had to get an injured runner out it would be very difficult, also the trail has several washouts and a lot off trees down.

I will have the course directions on the website updated this weekend.

Phil B

Questions @ Answers

2011-06-11T23:07:00.000-07:00

I have about 1200 reflective markers and I try to place them so you can see a several at one time it just depends on the trail conditions. in some areas their will also be some little signs that have GM 100 on them.

Weather : Any thing is possible on the mesa in July. Last year the weather was clear but about 10 degrees above normal . we had a high of 80 at the star/finish line and a low of 49 . The Low point of the course for the 100 milers hit 99 degrees. Two days after the race while picking up course markers it hit a high of 49 degrees and I sat under a tree for an hour while it dumped 3' of hail. Be prepared.

Most of the course has a southern exposure so if it is sunny you will need more than two water bottles.

100 milers it is recommended that you use a camel back and at least one bottle for the section between Carson lake and Lands End you will be hitting this section during the hottest part of the day. there are a couple of stream crossings to cool of in.

June 6 and still snow

2011-06-06T15:08:00.000-07:00

Island lake

Top of the mesa today there is about 250 to 300 % average snow pack left. But it has finale warmed up and is starting to melt fast. most of the snow is gone below 9000'

County line trail

Course markings for this year are

On the left reflector orange chalk and pink ribbon with black dots

Most of the trail will be mark with the orange chalk intersections will be marked with arrows. there will be some of the ribbon as well. All sections that maybe run after dark will also have the reflectors.

The white spots are the reflectors the the three reflectors are between 50" and 800' away.

I'm using a old Black Diamond head lamp with a 1 watt led.

The white spots are the reflectors at about 600" to a 1000'

Some race reports from last year

2011-04-11T15:44:00.000-07:00

Dale Hawkins http://www.skepticalrunner.com/search?updated-min=2010-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-07%3A00&updated-max=2011-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=5

Jamil Coury http://desertrnr.blogspot.com/2010/08/moments-i-live-for-grand-mesa-100.html

Over the Fall I was able to borrow a survey grade gps unit and remap some of the course with it and compared the data with previous mapping . The only defences was a slightly smoother profile, the mileage was within a few feet. The short distance comes out at 37.75 miles, the 50 comes out at 54 miles, and the 100 comes out at 100.5 miles. When mapping I tired to take the most direct line. If you take the smoothest line you will add some to the finally total.

Early Signup Ends in 4 Days

2011-04-06T15:09:00.000-07:00

Rough draft of this years Finishers Medal created by a local artest. Milage and finish time will be on the back. Early signup ends April 10th.

SOME MORE PHOTO"S OF THE COURSE

2011-02-27T16:18:00.000-08:00

The canyons below Indian point and the LaSals near Moab

Upper Drop Off Yes the mesa is rocky

Single track

Lower Kannah Creek Trail HEad

Upper Coal Creek Basin

Flowing Park Loop Trail

The wildlife

Upper Kannah Creek

Lower Kannah Creek

Lower Bull and Brown trail

Drop Off trail early spring

Questions about trail marking

2011-02-07T17:48:00.000-08:00

Greetings fellow masochists-

There have been some questions about the trailing marking of the 2010 Grand Mesa 100. Yes, we fully admit that there were some difficulties. Some of the areas were not as clearly marked as they should have been. Some of the marking tape and other markers were removed, either by two-legged or four-legged critters. The race was run under a permit from the Grand Mesa National Forest Office in Grand Junction. You can contact that office for verification or we can supply you with a copy of the first page of the permit.

So, the more important question is "What are we going to do to improve the trail marking for this year?"

1. One of the areas that saw a lot of flagging problems was around Flowing Park. Sections of the race traveled across land leased by area ranchers. These individuals were not notified of the race and so pulled the trail markings. To avoid this problem, the lessees will be notified in advance about the race. This section is also being rerouted to avoid potential difficulties.

2. Race management has been reorganized so that Phil and Rick (co-race directors) can spend their time focusing on trail marking and runner safety rather than dealing with everything.

3. We are beefing up the pre-race meeting to include more maps and more discussion of the course.

4. All aid stations will have maps of the upcoming course section. All aid station personnel will be more familiar with the course following their station. Also, race personnel will be available to direct traffic at confusing intersections (i.e., leaving Flowing Park).

5. We have permission from the Forest Service to use more chalk marking on the ground in addition to flagging and reflective markers.

We learned a lot during our first race. But even our best efforts will not result in a perfectly marked course. For example, when picking up markers after the race, we found reflectors, complete with either elk or cow teeth marks, over 1/2 mile from the course. Rain can obliterated chalk marks. Some people seem to take great pleasure in messing with other people's stuff. We hope you will be understanding of the nature of trail running and join us for the fun and the challenge in July!

Phil and Rick

Aid Station Food

2011-02-07T11:33:00.000-08:00

Working on the food list for the aid stations. What foods are most important for aid stations based on the distance and time they are reached during a race. Please Leave feedback and checkout the Poll

.
Thanks

Phil

Registration for 2011

2011-01-05T13:45:00.000-08:00

Registration is now open at Ultra sign up http://ultrasignup.com/register.aspx?did=11661

Race Date 2011

2010-09-16T17:23:00.000-07:00

Sunrise

What ever one has been waiting for Race date July 23 and 24 2011.
I'm working on updating maps and course profile with a borrowed survey grade gps unit.
Over the next couple of months the maps will be updated. Photos by Marianna Inslee.


Full Moon Over the Mesa

2010-07-26T13:23:00.000-07:00

Ryan Burch Finishing in 23:26

A qoute from Ryan at the finish

" This is way harder than Leadville"

Ryan and his pacer Duncan Callahan

Garry Curry and Paul Tidmore Finishing together in 31:23

Marcus and Bebe at the bottom of the last big climb

Thank You All for comeing

More to come later Phil

Trail Marking

2010-07-12T10:25:00.000-07:00

Race day is coming up fast. We will be starting to mark the trails Friday or saturday. If anybody would like to join us. contact phil at bcgmugs@tds.net

Registration

2010-07-02T12:46:00.000-07:00

We have extended registration for the race . Off to leadville for the marathon.
Have a great weekend.

Flowing Park Loop for the 50 and 100 milers

2010-06-25T10:51:00.000-07:00

Flowing Park

about 6 miles of trail is new and a little faint in spots

Trail goes a long the edge

Looking down towards Cedaredge

Looking back to Crag Crest

Looking towards Lands End

Dominguez Canyon

Chambers lake

some photos from the top and the north side of the mesa

2010-06-20T19:23:00.000-07:00

This should be dry by race day

Trail down to Mesa Lake

Looking north towards bookcliffs

Mesa lake

the CO RD Named this Kill Phil Hill

Anderson lake

Reber Cow Camp

Across the top of the mesa

Big loop sunday

2010-06-08T16:33:00.000-07:00

Some more photos of the course between mile 80 to 95

Top of The Drop Off

This a lot steeper than it looks

Easy running

This area is Elk country

And Bears

Bull and Brown Trail

And Lonely Cowboys.

This why this a rea is called Flowing Park.

It should dry out by race day

Drop off trail section

2010-05-31T11:58:00.000-07:00

Drop off trail comes down thru the upper left clearing

Porter lake at the botom of drop off trail

Bottom of Drop off Trail

Point Camp Trail

Looking East from Point Camp Trail

2010-05-24T11:43:00.001-07:00

If your interested in a shorter run here is a cool 10 k http://www.thigunawat.com/

2010-05-23T19:33:00.000-07:00

Trail head at 6200'

Photos for today are from coal creek basin. did not make it all the way to the top because of the 50 mph winds.

Trail near the bottomTop of mesa 10,160'Looking south

Coal Creek

Burn area at 8500'

2010-05-08T22:11:00.000-07:00

Still a lot of snow up high. Went up kannah creek from 6000' to about 9000' before I hit a lot of snow.

Kannah creek trail head

Coal creek basin trail goes up to the top by the notch

2010-04-18T23:25:00.000-07:00

I updated the entered runners on the web site as of April 18. I have had some question about the course the main one is , do the photos represent the course. Yes for the most part but there are some short parts that are very rough .For all distances the section between Flowing park and Granby lake aid station has a very steep decent and can be muddy this section gets very little use. For the 100 milers the Kannh creek section is also very rocky. Overall the course is very runnable. The way the snow melt is going right now I should be able to get some more photos of the course by mid May.

2010-04-03T21:01:00.000-07:00

Early registration ends April 10 . We are finalizing the race itinerary this week and will post it here and on the web site.
List of runners as April 3

Ryan Burch Gunnison CO 100 mile
Dale Perry Loveland CO 100 mile
Benjamin Clark Minot ND 100 mile
Caroline Soong Boulder CO 100 mile
Dwight Schuh Nampa ID 100 mile
Robert Murphy La Vista NE 100 mile
Rex Vicek Waipahu HI 100 mile
Judy Carluccio Issaquah WA 100 mile
Garry Curry Boulder CO 100 mile

Charles Corfield Boulder CO 50 mile
Eric Pinger Grand Junction CO 50 mile
Matt Olding Moab UT 50 mile

Its still snowing Another 2 feet over the weekend.

2010-03-22T12:55:00.000-07:00

I don't have a lot of photos of the course. lost my camera last fall while mapping the course but here are some that I have. A little more information about the course, most of the course is runnable there are a few sections that are very rough , other than the Kannah creek section they are short. Most of the course is over 9500' elevation.

lower loop craig crest trail

upper loop craig crest trail

craig crest trail

road between aid station 1 and 2

coal creek basin trail

coal creek basin

flowing park

between aid station 2 and 3

Deep creek trail across top of mesa

Deep creek trail

Between aid station 2 and 3

between aid station 2 and 3

lands end road

If your up for a race that will test you and has great views this race is it.

2010-03-21T13:05:00.000-07:00

Well its still winter on the Mesa.

But the canyons are warming up.

The 50 and 100 milers will be running on the top edge along the flowing park trail from right to left.

2010-03-06T15:44:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the Grand Mesa 100 blog. I've been asked why I wanted to put on this race. I've been doing ultras for six years and have had such a great time and met such cool people that I decided to put on a race. I'm lucky enough to live in such a terrific area for trail running. I enjoy running on the Grand Mesa and I want to share this spectacular location with others who will appreciate it. My goal is to create a race that runners would want to run again and again. I also hope to make a little money to help local community groups.