Desert Runner Trail Series Final Standings!

Noah DoughertyCommunity, Race Preview

I mentioned it in our thank you email to the runners who came out to our Mesquite Canyon Trail runs this past weekend but it’s hard to believe we’ve already closed the books on another season of the Desert Runner Trail Series. A lot can happen over the course of the series beginning in October and this series always seems to find a way to bring these changes to the forefront. We had a couple runners finish in first place following their Mesquite effort despite entering the race off of the podium. We had some of our largest races to date in the DRT Series and we’re so grateful to have had you join us …

The Future of Steep Camp & The Silverton 1000

Jamil CouryNews

This story has two parts. A long and a short. I will start with the short as it has important information regarding this year’s Silverton Steep Camp (formerly known as the Silverton 1000 Multi-Day Challenge). Cancellation of 2019 Steep Camp Silverton Due to increasing costs with renting the venue at the Kendall Mountain Recreation Area which is owned by the Town of Silverton we have had to make the tough decision to not hold this event in 2019. We hope to find a way forward to again hold Steep Camp in 2020 but just cannot do so at the current revised rates. As you will read below in the long version, this event is very …

Desert Runner Trail Series Points Standings

Noah DoughertyCommunity, Race Preview

Alright people, it’s time. Mesquite Canyon- the grand daddy of them all- is just over a week away and you’re on the cusp of bringing home some hardware in our Desert Runner Trail Series. Or are you? The DRT Series spans seven races from October through March as it carves its way around the Maricopa County Regional Parks, culminating with the Mesquite Canyon Championship at the White Tank Mountain Regional Park. While the first six races are based on a total of 1000 points, given the toughness of our courses winding up and around the White Tanks, it was determined that the final race would award 1250 points for the winner. Plus, it just makes …

Across the Years – Decades Edition!

Hayley PollackCommunity, News

10 Day race, anyone? What?! Seriously. If there’s one thing you can say about Aravaipa Running – we sure don’t do things half-way. Yes, we are adding a 10-day to Across the Years for the 2019-2020 race but that’s not all. Our brainstorming session got out of hand and instead of relegating ourselves to “only” adding an additional 4 days, we got creative. Here’s what’s going down this December 28 – January 7th Our “typical” 6-day race and all its accompaniments (24-hour, 48-hour, and 72-hour) will be business as usual, taking place December 28 – January 3rd. Award ceremony still occurs January 3rd after the 6-day comes to a close. There are no alternate dates …

Why Black Canyon 100KM?

Hayley PollackCommunity, Race Preview, Race Report

Guest Post by Eric Senseman The Black Canyon 100k takes place on the Black Canyon Trail in Arizona, a north-to-south, point-to-point trail through the foothills of the Bradshaw Mountains. It starts about 75 miles south of Flagstaff and ends just north of Phoenix. Like most any point-to-point trail, the elevation at one end isn’t the same as the elevation at the other end. In the case of the Black Canyon Trail, the north trailhead sits at about 4,200 feet above sea level and the southern terminus rests around 1,900 feet. The 100k itself runs north-to-south, so the course accumulates a net downhill. Flowing downhill through the Black Canyon is the Agua Fria River, a roughly …

The Golden Hour

Noah DoughertyRace Report, Ultra Thoughts, Uncategorized

 “I’m an absolute nervous wreck. But she thinks she’s close to the pavement. She has to make it.” I’m sure this has been written about, potentially on a rotating basis considering the industry growth and amount of 100 mile races sprinkled across North America right now. That’s OK, I think everyone can and should get to experience what my team and I did this past weekend at the Coldwater Rumble 100 mile race. The final hour before the race officially ends, or as we so aptly call it, the Golden hour, is a 60 minute window where we see hours of determination and grit make its final push to the finish line in hopes of …

Meet The 2019 Aravaipa Racing Team!

Hayley PollackCommunity, News

We are so excited to introduce you to the 2019 Aravaipa Racing Team! As with the 2018 season, we will be partnering with rabbit Apparel to outfit our team in style on the trails! In 2018 our racing team set multitudes of course records, swept the podium (Zane Grey 50 mile – women), earned a Golden Ticket, placed top American woman at OCC in the UTMB series (7th), placed top 10 at Western States (8th), earned a current spot on the USA 24 Hour team to represent at the World 24 Hour Championships, represented at the World 100KM championships, and more. We can’t wait to see what our 2019 racing team will accomplish this year! You …

Twinning at Coldwater Rumble

Hayley PollackCommunity, Race Report

Written by Jen Laughlin 2018: We were both racing the 52K at Coldwater Rumble. The 52K consists of two loops: a clockwise 20 mile loop, followed by a counter clockwise 12.5 mile loop. The course is gorgeous, runnable, and very social. It’s the perfect set up for anyone wanting to finish their first 100 miler, first ultramarathon distance, or first trail race. This very course was my first trail race back in 2014, then again the following year when I completed my first 50 miler. It’s such a special and nostalgic race to me that I’ve raced a distance at Coldwater Rumble every year since. This particular year was my third time at the 52K …

Final Insomniac Series Standings 2018

Noah DoughertyCommunity

Final Insomniac Standings Our Insomniac series pass and corresponding series standings concluded at the end of September with the always fun, Javelina Jangover out at the McDowell Mountain Regional Park. 2018 was the first year we offered a standings system for this series and we’re excited to be able to crown some of you speedy runners and reward you for returning for multiple Insomniac races. Also new in 2018, we filled in some of the distance gaps that these races had meaning you no longer have to commit to either a 6 mile trail run or an 18 mile race. And yes, the idea of adding another series pass which would cover all of the …

Aravaipa Trail Talk Is Back!

Jamil CouryAravaipa Trail Talk

After a long hiatus, we are reviving our weekly YouTube show aptly named “Aravaipa Trail Talk”. This show has evolved a couple of times starting out as a chat with Aravaipa founder Jamil Coury and evolving to feature athletes and trail running business owners in the community and recently with our new co-host Jubilee Paige a Q&A show. So where are we headed now? The show will return with weekly episodes ranging from 30 to 60 minutes in length featuring a variety of topics moving forward. Each show will be co-hosted with either Jamil, Jubilee or both of us and sometimes special guests and other staff members. We’d like to use this platform as a …