Known to be the toughest 50K in the USA, this course has a total of 11,400 feet of elevation gain. A series of climbs brings runners breathtaking views at the summit of Snowbird, Baldy and Hidden Peak. Venture through the Snowbird tunnel and kiss the speedgoat at mile 24. Cap off your race with a high five from the race director at the Main Plaza at Snowbird.
Thirty-two and a half miles with about 11,300 feet of climbing, almost all of it above 7,500 feet and topping out around 11,000 feet at Hidden Peak and Baldy. The race's own medical notes say runners may feel nausea and vomiting out there, most often from over-hydration, under-hydration, heat stress and altitude exposure, and ask runners to drink to thirst. Sections run on dirt roads shared with off-road vehicles.
Speedgoat is Karl Meltzer's race, run entirely inside Snowbird ski resort in Little Cottonwood Canyon, and its 50K is widely called the toughest in the country: 32.5 miles and about 11,300 feet of climbing, almost all of it above 7,500 feet, over the summits of Snowbird, Baldy and Hidden Peak. There are three shorter distances off the same start line, a 30K and a 10K on the Friday and The Summit, a straight climb to Hidden Peak, on the Saturday. Everything happens at the resort, so lodging, parking, the expo, the start and the finish are all within a few minutes' walk, and crew and family ride the aerial tram to watch from the top.
Karl Meltzer founded the Speedgoat 50K at Snowbird in 2008 and built it to be hard, and it has run every July since. It joined the UTMB World Series, which brought Running Stones, a place in the road to Chamonix and three more distances alongside the original 50K. The 2026 race was the nineteenth edition, and Meltzer is still the founder listed in the race's own guides.
| Mile | Station | Cutoff | Crew access | Bag | Pacer | Med | To next |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.00 | Plaza Deck - Start | ? | ● | · | ? | ? | 4.30 |
| 4.30 | Water Only 1 | ? | · | · | ? | ? | 5.30 |
| 9.60 | Hidden Peak 1 | 10:10am | ● | · | ? | ● | 5.70 |
| 15.30 | AF Canyon | ? | · | · | ? | ? | 3.30 |
| 18.60 | Water Pipe | ? | · | · | ? | ? | 1.50 |
| 20.10 | Mineral Basin | 1:45pm | · | · | ? | ● | 2.80 |
| 22.90 | Tunnel | 3:20pm | ● | · | ? | ● | 2.70 |
| 25.60 | Hidden Peak 2 | 5:15pm | ● | · | ? | ● | 5.30 |
| 30.90 | Water Only 2 | ? | · | · | ? | ? | 1.60 |
| 32.50 | Plaza Deck - Finish | 7:30pm | ● | · | ? | ● | ? |
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