The 100K covers the 50K's ground and then keeps going, out along the Kokopelli Trail's 4WD road to the Western Rim and back. The first seventeen miles take in Rustler's Loop, Pizza Overlook and the rim above the Colorado River. Past Rabbit Valley the course turns into desert backcountry, rocky and sandy in places, with a Western Rim loop out to an unstaffed water drop at mile 44.7. Crew can reach two places on the course: Rustler's, at miles 6.2 and 9.8, and Rabbit Valley, at miles 32.5 and 51.2.
The course mixes gently rolling dirt road, gravel, the Kokopelli Trail 4WD road, singletrack, and rocky and sandy stretches, on the trails above the Colorado River. The race describes the ground as high desert with red slickrock cliff buttes. Runners share dirt roads with OHV, UTV and 4x4 traffic in places. Trekking poles are allowed for every distance, and have to be carried from the start rather than picked up later.
Desert RATS runs on the Kokopelli trails above the Colorado River outside Fruita, in the high desert of western Colorado. Four distances start and finish at the Hawkeye Trailhead across three days in April, with a 100K and a 50K on the Saturday and a 21K and a 10K either side of them. The 100K goes out to the Western Rim and back, on 4WD road, singletrack and rocky, sandy ground. It is a UTMB World Series event, so finishing the 100K, 50K or 21K earns Running Stones for the UTMB World Series Finals lottery, and a qualifying finish in the 100K counts for the Western States lottery.
The first Desert RATS Trail Running Festival ran in April 2004, as a 50 mile race with 36 finishers. A 50K joined it in 2014 and the 50 mile was last run in 2016. The 2020 edition was cancelled. The 100K was first run in 2024. The field has grown steadily: the 50K had 175 finishers in 2019 and 422 in 2026. The 2026 running was the 23rd.
| Mile | Station | Cutoff | Crew access | Bag | Pacer | Med | To next |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.00 |
Hawkeye TH - Start
4,690 ft
|
? | ? | ? | ? | ? | 6.20 |
| 6.20 |
Rustler's 1
4,544 ft
|
? | ● | · | · | ● | 3.60 |
| 9.80 |
Rustler's 2
4,544 ft
|
? | ● | · | · | ● | 3.90 |
| 13.70 |
Pizza Overlook
4,778 ft
|
? | · | · | · | ● | 3.90 |
| 17.60 |
Crossroads
4,722 ft
|
? | · | · | · | ● | 7.30 |
| 24.90 |
Salt Creek 1
4,922 ft
|
? | · | · | · | ● | 7.60 |
| 32.50 |
Rabbit Valley 1
4,647 ft
|
3:00pm | ● | ● | · | ● | 4.90 |
| 37.40 |
Western Rim 1
4,877 ft
|
4:30pm | · | · | · | ● | 7.30 |
| 44.70 |
Water Drop
4,630 ft
|
? | · | · | · | · | 1.70 |
| 46.40 |
Western Rim 2
4,877 ft
|
8:00pm | · | · | · | ● | 4.80 |
| 51.20 |
Rabbit Valley 2
4,647 ft
|
9:15pm | ● | ● | · | ● | 7.60 |
| 58.80 |
Salt Creek 2
4,922 ft
|
12:00am | · | · | · | ● | 4.70 |
| 63.50 |
Hawkeye TH
4,690 ft
|
1:00am | ? | ? | ? | ● | ? |
Parking. There is no event parking at this aid station. Crew reach it on the shuttle from the start and finish line, then walk in from the shuttle drop-off.
Parking. There is no event parking at this aid station. Crew reach it on the shuttle from the start and finish line, then walk in from the shuttle drop-off.
Rabbit Valley parking is located off I-70 at Exit 2. After exiting, head south to access the parking area.
Parking. Crew park at Rabbit Valley and walk a quarter of a mile in to the aid station. There are no shuttles to Rabbit Valley.
res.cloudinary.comRabbit Valley parking is located off I-70 at Exit 2. After exiting, head south to access the parking area.
Parking. Crew park at Rabbit Valley and walk a quarter of a mile in to the aid station. There are no shuttles to Rabbit Valley.
res.cloudinary.com11 people have been out there with a camera or a microphone.
+ 3 more.
These are other people's work and we link straight to them. Watching costs nothing and needs no account. More of them: every race we hold, on film.
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