The John Cappis 50k Fat Ass
Updated 2019 Course Details:
Expect about 13,000ft of elevation gain, and to go over 4 peaks that are about 13,000ft tall or higher plus one more that is over 12,000ft. The terrain will be a mix of dirt and 4WD jeep roads, single track trail and mostly of off-trail miles. Due to the steepness, the altitude and the rugged footing expect to average less than two miles per hour at best, unless you're one of the best ultrarunners in the world and then maybe you'll average close to two and a half miles per hour. Also the course will not be marked -- you will need to carefully follow the map and written directions to stay on course and (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED) use the GPX file with your GPS watch and or phone app like Gaia GPS, MotionX-GPS, Backcountry Navigator or others(IT'S NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE TO FOLLOW THE ROUTE WITHOUT THE HELP OF ONE OF THESE APPS). More Course Details
Other Details:
5am start at 852 Reese St
We'll provide water and drop bags at two locations, Station 1 (Animas River) mile 10.1 and Station 2 (Cement Creek) mile 17.3
YES, ICE AX IS STILL MANDATORY. A helmet is highly recommended and traction like Microspikes might be a good idea too.
16 hour cutoff at the finish at 9pm -- 11am cutoff at mile 10.1 and 4pm at mile 17.3
Drop Bags must be dropped off by 5am Saturday at the start/finish(852 Reese St)
This being a free, small scale, fat ass style run you will not be pampered like at a normal race, nor will you get much support or free stuff like t-shirts, prizes, or anything at the drop bag stations other than water and drop bags(if you provide them).
At the finish we'll provide brats and veggie brats but we ask that you bring your favorite 6 pack to share and maybe a bag of potato chips or other side dish or something to share with everyone.
Race History:
We directed a race, THE EPIC 50K, here in this area a decade ago with a 50% finisher rate and the winning time was 8 hours and 56 minutes, the winners were two of the best ultrarunners in the country Kyle and Erik Skaggs. The next runner to finish took 12 hours and the first female took 13 hours. This course is based on THE EPIC course which had 14,400ft of elevation gain and was 66% on trails and roads--The John Cappis course is way better(read harder)!
In 2017 we had 12 runners start the race. We had two finishers. Micheal Versteeg in 14hr 47mins and Christof Teuscher in 17hr 52mins. It was a cool and sometimes cloudy/wet day with rain falling occasionally on the course.
In 2018 we had 24 runners start the race. We had five finishers. Christof Teuscher won and set a new course record 14hr 10mins. Ian Macnairn, Micheal Versteeg, Ryan Marble and Anthony Culpepper all also finished. We had 4 other runners make it past the last aid station before the cutoff but due to a lightning storm they all bailed on the route and made their way back to town. The weather had been perfect all day until the storm in the evening though the course was slippery in spots, especially the first two downhills, from rain/snow the day/night before the race.
In both 2018 and 2017 we had some close calls with falling rocks high above tree line on the first climb of the race so for 2019 we're making a change to the route up Kendall Mountain. And due to extreme snowfall this winter/sping we are altering the course significantly eliminating the last two mountains and shortening the route to 35k. See Course Details page.
Expect about 13,000ft of elevation gain, and to go over 4 peaks that are about 13,000ft tall or higher plus one more that is over 12,000ft. The terrain will be a mix of dirt and 4WD jeep roads, single track trail and mostly of off-trail miles. Due to the steepness, the altitude and the rugged footing expect to average less than two miles per hour at best, unless you're one of the best ultrarunners in the world and then maybe you'll average close to two and a half miles per hour. Also the course will not be marked -- you will need to carefully follow the map and written directions to stay on course and (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED) use the GPX file with your GPS watch and or phone app like Gaia GPS, MotionX-GPS, Backcountry Navigator or others(IT'S NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE TO FOLLOW THE ROUTE WITHOUT THE HELP OF ONE OF THESE APPS). More Course Details
Other Details:
5am start at 852 Reese St
We'll provide water and drop bags at two locations, Station 1 (Animas River) mile 10.1 and Station 2 (Cement Creek) mile 17.3
YES, ICE AX IS STILL MANDATORY. A helmet is highly recommended and traction like Microspikes might be a good idea too.
16 hour cutoff at the finish at 9pm -- 11am cutoff at mile 10.1 and 4pm at mile 17.3
Drop Bags must be dropped off by 5am Saturday at the start/finish(852 Reese St)
This being a free, small scale, fat ass style run you will not be pampered like at a normal race, nor will you get much support or free stuff like t-shirts, prizes, or anything at the drop bag stations other than water and drop bags(if you provide them).
At the finish we'll provide brats and veggie brats but we ask that you bring your favorite 6 pack to share and maybe a bag of potato chips or other side dish or something to share with everyone.
Race History:
We directed a race, THE EPIC 50K, here in this area a decade ago with a 50% finisher rate and the winning time was 8 hours and 56 minutes, the winners were two of the best ultrarunners in the country Kyle and Erik Skaggs. The next runner to finish took 12 hours and the first female took 13 hours. This course is based on THE EPIC course which had 14,400ft of elevation gain and was 66% on trails and roads--The John Cappis course is way better(read harder)!
In 2017 we had 12 runners start the race. We had two finishers. Micheal Versteeg in 14hr 47mins and Christof Teuscher in 17hr 52mins. It was a cool and sometimes cloudy/wet day with rain falling occasionally on the course.
In 2018 we had 24 runners start the race. We had five finishers. Christof Teuscher won and set a new course record 14hr 10mins. Ian Macnairn, Micheal Versteeg, Ryan Marble and Anthony Culpepper all also finished. We had 4 other runners make it past the last aid station before the cutoff but due to a lightning storm they all bailed on the route and made their way back to town. The weather had been perfect all day until the storm in the evening though the course was slippery in spots, especially the first two downhills, from rain/snow the day/night before the race.
In both 2018 and 2017 we had some close calls with falling rocks high above tree line on the first climb of the race so for 2019 we're making a change to the route up Kendall Mountain. And due to extreme snowfall this winter/sping we are altering the course significantly eliminating the last two mountains and shortening the route to 35k. See Course Details page.
Runner Qualifications:
All runners for this fat ass run must be experienced ultrarunners with ample experience running/surviving in the mountains. Ideally you have run tough mountain 100 milers like Hardrock, Barkley, Plain, Wasatch, The Bear, Bighorn, IMTUF, etc. and have experience running at high altitude(over 8000ft) and have plenty of experience running/hiking on very rugged terrain, such as scree slopes, boulder fields, river crossings, exposed ridges, avalanche chutes, etc. A large portion of this course is not on trails or is on trails that are not normal so you should be used to traveling in the mountains on your own under difficult conditions, if you're not used to doing that kind of thing then this is not the run for you, sorry. You will need to sell us on your abilities, otherwise your application will be rejected after it's been reviewed.
All runners for this fat ass run must be experienced ultrarunners with ample experience running/surviving in the mountains. Ideally you have run tough mountain 100 milers like Hardrock, Barkley, Plain, Wasatch, The Bear, Bighorn, IMTUF, etc. and have experience running at high altitude(over 8000ft) and have plenty of experience running/hiking on very rugged terrain, such as scree slopes, boulder fields, river crossings, exposed ridges, avalanche chutes, etc. A large portion of this course is not on trails or is on trails that are not normal so you should be used to traveling in the mountains on your own under difficult conditions, if you're not used to doing that kind of thing then this is not the run for you, sorry. You will need to sell us on your abilities, otherwise your application will be rejected after it's been reviewed.
Who is John Cappis?:
For those of you who don't know John Cappis, he's one of the founders of Hardrock and a pioneer of the sport having finished 3rd at Western States back in in 1978 in under 20 hours. When I first met him back in 2004 he was in his 60s and was on the tail end of his running days but he could still get up and down the San Juan Mountains like a mountain goat and he was organizing a bunch of difficult mountain fun runs in cool places all over the south west United States. John and Charlie Thorn were the masterminds behind the current Hardrock course and spending days with them out on the trails was always fun, educational and inspiring. John's not running the trails anymore these days but a run like this is the kind of thing he'd do all the time and if he could be the first to sign up I'm sure. Thanks John for all that you've given to us!
For those of you who don't know John Cappis, he's one of the founders of Hardrock and a pioneer of the sport having finished 3rd at Western States back in in 1978 in under 20 hours. When I first met him back in 2004 he was in his 60s and was on the tail end of his running days but he could still get up and down the San Juan Mountains like a mountain goat and he was organizing a bunch of difficult mountain fun runs in cool places all over the south west United States. John and Charlie Thorn were the masterminds behind the current Hardrock course and spending days with them out on the trails was always fun, educational and inspiring. John's not running the trails anymore these days but a run like this is the kind of thing he'd do all the time and if he could be the first to sign up I'm sure. Thanks John for all that you've given to us!
If you're interested in volunteering please email James
