What Happened at the Moab 240¶
On Saturday night, October 10, 2026, Cottonwood Creek rose to unsafe levels a few miles past the Bridger Jack aid station, about 96 miles into the Moab 240. About 70 runners and volunteers spent the night at Bridger Jack. On Sunday the San Juan County Sheriff's Office and the organizers, Destination Trail, evacuated everyone stranded there by early afternoon. Then the rest of the race was cancelled.
I was one of the people at Bridger Jack that night, pacing. My account is further down, after the facts.
The short version¶
| Race | Moab 240, run by Destination Trail |
| Started | Friday, October 9, 2026 |
| Time limit | 113 hours, to finish Tuesday at 11 p.m. |
| Where it stopped | Cottonwood Creek, a few miles past Bridger Jack (about mile 96) |
| Sheltering at Bridger Jack | About 70 runners, plus volunteers |
| Rescue | San Juan County Sheriff's Office, with the organizers |
| Everyone out | 12:45 p.m. Sunday (SLTrib, Moab Times); "by 1:00 p.m." (Fox13) |
| Race status | Cancelled Sunday. Nobody had finished |
Aaron Kubala was leading with roughly 35 miles to go when the race was called, and Ashley Paulson was leading the women's race. Both were going for the Triple Crown of 200s: Tahoe, Bigfoot and Moab.
The timeline¶
Friday, October 9. The race starts in Moab.
Saturday, October 10. For most of the day the weather held. A pacer told KSL it was "beautiful for hours and hours and hours" with a little sprinkling, and that heavy rain hit near Bridger Jack for about 20 minutes around midday. Further up the course, near Shay Mountain, runners hit freezing rain, lightning and slick mud. By Saturday night Cottonwood Creek, a few miles past Bridger Jack, was unsafe to cross, and runners who reached it were turned back to the aid station.
Saturday night. About 70 runners and volunteers sheltered at Bridger Jack. Destination Trail had sent extra shelters, heaters, propane and food out before the evacuation, and said: "All runners and volunteers have access to heated tents, hot food, and plenty of drinking water."
Sunday morning. The organizers said road conditions had made access to the aid station unreliable. A helicopter flew over to look for a safe way out. The sheriff's office worked with the organizers on the evacuation. Around 10 a.m. Destination Trail announced buses, and crews and family were told to wait at the Aarchway Inn in Moab. Around 11 a.m. the first bus reached Bridger Jack.
Sunday, 12:45 p.m. The sheriff's office posted that everyone stranded had been evacuated safely.
Sunday afternoon. Destination Trail called the race: "The weather has become too dangerous to continue safely." Runners still on course were told to stop at their next aid station and wait for their crew or a race shuttle. From the organizers' Sunday statement: "Sometimes the weather has other plans, and when it does, everyone's safety has to come first."
What I saw from Bridger Jack¶
I recorded a video once I was down. This is what I said in it, in order.
We made it to Bridger Jack at about 7 p.m. on Saturday. We left the aid station for Shay at about 8:30. We made it about two miles out before we got turned around by everyone coming back up from the river. They said it was impassable, and that we had been told to return.
Then we were at Bridger Jack for something like 14 hours. It was very cold. There were heaters, and people stacked up on the cots in the tents trying to stay warm. Destination Trail did the best job they could to keep us safe and warm, and the volunteers up there worked their butts off to keep us fed with the little they had on the mountain.
There was some Wi-Fi up there, so some of us were talking to people outside and hearing different, conflicting stories. In the end, us and a few of the people who had stayed up all night decided to head down the mountain to 211. About halfway down we met the sheriff, who loaded us into the back of trucks and got us down to 211. That was where they were starting to put together the search and rescue for everyone still in that area and still up at Bridger Jack.
There were helicopters and buses to get everybody out, and family coming in to take care of us.
I was pacing, so I was mostly focused on getting my runners and the crew off the mountain safely. That is why there is not much footage.
The gist is we're safe.
What is known, and what is not yet¶
Known, from several outlets: where the course was cut, roughly how many people sheltered, that the sheriff's office ran the evacuation with the organizers, that everyone stranded was out by early Sunday afternoon, and that the race was cancelled.
Not answered yet:
- The field. How many runners were on course when it stopped.
- Money. Refunds or deferrals.
- Triple Crown. What a cancelled Moab means for the runners going for all three.
That night, conflicting stories were coming in over the Wi-Fi. The organizers and the sheriff's office are the source for any of these.
Thank you¶
To the Bridger Jack volunteers, who kept people fed through the night. To Destination Trail, the San Juan County Sheriff's Office, and everyone who worked the evacuation. The night was still the night. Everyone at Bridger Jack came down.
If you are crewing or pacing a long race this season, the crew and pacer guide is the next read.
Sources: The Salt Lake Tribune · Moab Times-Independent · KSL · Fox13 · Canadian Running