Grand Mesa, CO, United States · Saturday, July 25, 2026

Fixed Distance 50K

Grand Mesa 55 km Trail Race

Race completed

55 km Distance

900 m Climbing

4.1 Grit · Challenging

39.1131° N, 108.0128° W © OpenFreeMap © OpenMapTiles Data from OpenStreetMap

What the course asks

Climbing rate 16 m / km Rolling. Moderate undulations. Requires consistent effort across varying grades.

Time limit 11 hours 12:00 min/km average. Generous. Walkable throughout for most of the field. About average for a 50K. Measured against 1034 races of the same distance. Cut-off calculator →

Field size ~44 Small. Long stretches with nobody in sight.

DUV results for the 2026 edition (24h 55km) — 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 31°C

Night low 14°C

Rainfall Mostly dry

Daylight 14 h 26 m of light

Regional 2001-2020 average for July — NASA POWER, grid elevation 2198 m. Not a forecast.

Results history

Year	Race	Finishers	Men's winner	Women's winner
2026	24h 55km	44	Jacob Francis · 0.000	Fiona Edge · 0.000
2025	55km	63	Whit Blair · 04:34:17	Sarah Kushner · 05:37:15
2024	55km	66	Michael Ambrose · 05:21:23	Katherine Robinson · 05:55:46
2023	55km	35	Whit Blair · 05:01:37	Lauren Mitchell · 06:57:43
2022	55km	27	Kevin Hadfield · 06:03:55	Katelyn McDaniel · 06:14:31
2021	55km	49	Ryan Neely · 04:44:17	Amanda Scott · 05:17:08
2019	55km	44	Jonathan Rea · 04:49:36	Mckendree Hickory · 06:09:07
2018	55km	45	Caleb Palmer · 05:21:43	Jacqueline Parsons · 06:46:41
2017	55km	43	James Roche · 05:09:36	Jennifer Russell · 06:41:23
2016	50km	19	Lucas Crespin · 06:12:06	Becky Kirschenmann · 06:28:46

The field shrank 30% between 2025 (63) and 2026 (44). 36% of the 2026 field were women.

DUV results for the 2026 edition (24h 55km) — 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

⛰️ terrain

This is a rolling course. Expect fast, runnable sections where rhythm is key.

By UltraHub Expert

👟 gear

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

By UltraHub Expert

Gear for this race

Chosen for 55 km of trail with 900 m of ascent.

Trail Running Shoes 55 km of trail — cushioning that is still there in the last quarter.
Race Nutrition 55 km of self-supported fuelling between aid stations.
Hydration Vests Flask capacity for 55 km, without the bounce.
GPS Watches Battery life first — a 55 km day outlasts most full-GPS modes.

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

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

Tailwind

Endurance Fuel

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

$25 ★★★★★ 4.8

Salomon

ADV Skin 12

Industry-standard 12L race vest with front flask pockets and minimal bounce.

$180 ★★★★★ 4.8

Garmin

Enduro 3

Ultra-endurance GPS watch with solar charging and 300+ hour battery in GPS mode.

$900 ★★★★★ 4.8

All gear guides →

Overview

The Grand Mesa 55 km Trail Race in Grand Mesa, CO, is a 55 km trail race with 900 meters of elevation gain, making for 16.4 meters of climb per kilometer. This places it in the upper end of difficulty for 50k races.

With a time limit of 11 hours, the cutoff pace is 12 minutes per kilometer, tighter than 42% of 1022 peer 50k races. The field size of 44 finishers in 2026 was larger than 55% of 2664 peer 50k races.

The race takes place in July and has been run 10 times since 2016. The course varies across rocky ridges, single track, grassy meadows, and pine/aspen forests.

Similar races

Other 50K trail ultras, closest in distance first.