Black Canyon Runners,
Due to heavy rains forecast this weekend, we’ve made the tough decision to alter the race course for the 2017 Black Canyon Ultras. We’ve always known this could be a possibility with this event as the Agua Fria River cuts through the course several times in the latter half.
With above average rainfall already this winter, the rivers have been flowing more and higher than normal. There was a flood event on January 21 after the area received about 1.5 inches of rain over the course of a day. The river rose 10 feet above current levels and was flowing dangerously fast.
With some weather models predicting over an inch of rain and the river still above those pre-storm levels in January we’ve made the decision to implement an out and back course for both the 100K and 60K courses that avoids the Agua Fria River crossings. We made this decision after consulting with much of our staff, our long time amateur radio team (Maricopa Emergency Communication Group), volunteer aid captains and others involved in the management of the event.
For full details on the changes, please review this page for updates and frequently asked questions: 2017 Alternate Course.
Runners will still get the chance to finish their 100K or 60K races and use the 100K as a Western States 100 qualifier for 2018 as long as they finish in under 17 hours.
We want to thank you all in advance for understanding this tough but necessary change in the 2017 event and hope you all have a successful race.
We welcome feedback and are on hand these next few days to answer any additional questions you have that were either not answered or are unclear from our website. Runners will be receiving a runner email today as well with further details.
Sincerely,
Jamil Coury
& the Aravaipa Running Team
jamil@aravaiparunning.com
(602) 361-7440