Truckee, CA, United States · Sunday, July 19, 2026

Fixed Distance 50K

Big Chief 50K Trail Run

Race completed

50 km Distance

not publishedn/a Climbing

2.5 est Grit · Entry level

Calculated from 50 km alone — the organiser has not published an elevation profile. Read 2.5 as a floor, not a verdict.

39.3280° N, 120.1833° W © OpenFreeMap © OpenMapTiles Data from OpenStreetMap

What the course asks

Time limit 8 hours 9:36 min/km average. Comfortable. Room to walk the climbs and stop at aid. Climbing is unpublished, so this pace is a ceiling on the effort, not a measure of it. Tighter than 89% of 50K races. Measured against 1034 races of the same distance. Cut-off calculator →

Field size ~97 Mid-sized. Company early, well spread out by halfway.

DUV results for the 2026 edition (50km) — finishers only. Starters are not published, so the field was at least this big and no finish rate can be given.

Typical conditions, July

Daytime high 30°C

Night low 13°C

Rainfall Dry — rain unlikely

Daylight 14 h 36 m of light

Regional 2001-2020 average for July — NASA POWER, grid elevation 1774 m. Not a forecast.

Results history

Year	Race	Finishers	Men's winner	Women's winner
2026	50km	97	Spencer Zeljak · 04:07:06	Briehana Morgan · 05:13:01
2024	50km	81	Marco Capelli · 04:26:35	Alison Watts · 05:05:59
2023	50km	97	David Cahill · 04:37:21	Abigail Swift · 04:44:38
2022	50km	86	Jonah Backstrom · 04:28:02	Samantha Bear · 05:07:33
2021	50km	140	Jake Lawrence · 04:36:15	Alissa St. Laurent · 04:38:10
2019	50km	80	J.J. Santana · 03:46:59	Kristin Bohm · 05:21:07

The field grew 20% between 2024 (81) and 2026 (97). 31% of the 2026 field were women.

DUV results for the 2026 edition (50km) — finishers only. Starters are not published, so the field was at least this big and no finish rate can be given.

The Aid Station

Course-specific beta from the community

👟 gear

With trail terrain, choose a shoe with moderate cushioning for optimal performance.

By UltraHub Expert

Gear for this race

Chosen for 50 km of trail.

Trail Running Shoes 50 km of trail — cushioning that is still there in the last quarter.
Race Nutrition 50 km of self-supported fuelling between aid stations.
Hydration Vests Flask capacity for 50 km, without the bounce.
GPS Watches Battery life first — a 50 km day outlasts most full-GPS modes.

Salomon

Sense Ride 5

RunRepeat found the Salomon Sense Ride 5 to have immaculate lockdown and a smooth and stable ride, making it confident on moderate trails and steep downhills. I…

★★★★★ 4.5

Adidas

Terrex Speed Ultra

RunRepeat found the Adidas Terrex Speed Ultra to have a grippy outsole and great lockdown, while iRunFar noted that the shoe works on a variety of trail conditi…

★★★★★ 4.5

Tailwind

Endurance Fuel

All-in-one calorie and electrolyte drink mix. 200 calories per serving.

$25 ★★★★★ 4.8

Nathan

VaporKrar 12L

12L race vest co-designed with ultra champion Rob Krar, with insulated bladder pocket.

$170 ★★★★★ 4.6

Suunto

Vertical

Titanium GPS watch with solar charging, offline maps, and 140-hour GPS battery.

$630 ★★★★★ 4.5

All gear guides →

Overview

The Big Chief 50K Trail Run, a 50k trail race in Truckee, CA, has been run 6 times since 2019. Its field of 97 finishers is larger than 78% of 50k races.

With an 8-hour time limit for 50 kilometers, this race has a tighter cutoff than 80% of its 1022 peer 50k races. This means runners must maintain a pace faster than 9.6 minutes per kilometer to finish.

The course is a loop on single track and fire road, starting and finishing in the Village at Northstar Resort.

Similar races

Other 50K trail ultras, closest in distance first.