Badger Mountain Challenge is the premier ultramarathon race in Eastern Washington. Held in March of every year, the event is highlighted by its 100 mile and 50 mile ultras.
I first got introduced to this event few years ago as this ultra was one of the few races in Washington state that offered 6 UTMB points for UTMB's old point system. I ran my first Badger Mountain in 2019, but missed 2020 due to Covid, before returning in 2021 and 2022, making 2023 my 4th Badger ultra.
On the surface, Badger 100M doesn't seem too demanding: elevation gains of 16,000 feet through well-maintained single tracks, dirt roads, pavements and jeep trails all near surrounding cities. However, looks can be deceiving! The race is very challenging with several short but intense climbs and lack of native trees and large vegetations fully expose runners to unpredictable weather and harsh elements of Eastern Washing. This year, the runners had to endure through bitter cold that saw temperature dropping below freezing overnight and raging winds of over 30 mph, reminding runners, just in case some forgot, that there's no such thing as easy 100!
The race starts from the Badger Mountain trailhead, and after a quick brief from the Race Director, about 300 100 and 50 mile runners were off running. The first climb was a quick 2 mile climb up Badger Mountain (about 800 ft) before coming down through gentle switchbacks leading to Candy Mountain, which is slightly shorter (about 700 ft) than Badger Mountain. At the peaks of these mountains, you are reminded of unique landscape of the area, which is very flat with very few trees so you can see out for miles and miles in all direction.
Decent down the Candy Mountain is bit more technical than Badger with steeper slope that's covered with sharp rocks. But, with fresh set of legs, it wasn't too demanding. The trail eventually leads to a dark culvert that runs across under Interstate-82.
After the culvert, there's a section called "Endless Vineyard", which is filled with rows and rows of vineyards. This is a flat, runnable section that lasts for about 5 miles with Jacobs Aid Station in the middle. Runners need to be careful with this section because temptation to run fast is too great after completing Badger and Candy Mountain and you start running on a flat pavement after only 8 miles into the race. In hindsight, I probably ran little too fast here, which I paid the price later in the race.
The "Endless Vineyard" ends with the infamous "Demoralizing Hill", which is a very short, but very sharp and intense down and up on a jeep trail. Starting here, the course changes from flat pavement along vineyards to rugged hills with rocks and sands that slowed my advance. About 2 miles after the "Demoralizing Hill", there's Orchard Aid Station to provide some relief.
Short time after leaving Orchard Aid Station, I could see a panoramic view of the infamous McBee ridge off in the distance. I've climbed that ridge 5 times already from previously races and remembered that climb being comically hilarious and ridiculous at the same time. For some reason though, I thought this time would be easier to climb over 1,000 ft of gain in less than a mile...
Arriving at McBee, I could look up and see the line of people who were already climbing the ridge. From my previous experience, I knew the best way to climb McBee was to just keep my head down and move forward, stopping along the way to catch my breath if needed. A great thing about ultra is that there's no such thing as style points, meaning that unless you are an elite runner aiming for a podium spot, just do whatever you have to do to climb that hill! And it doesn't have to look pretty!
So, after about 30 mins of climb battling cold and harsh wind gusts of over 30 mph, I finally arrived at the top of the ridge and was rewarded with a spectacular view of surrounding area. To the east, panoramic view of the Tri-Cities and Columbia River. To the west, miles and miles of farmland and off in the distance Mt Adams and Mount Rainier. To the South, Badger Mountain and Candy Mountain off in the distance past the "Endless Vineyard". To the north, McBee ridge leading to the Chandler Butte Aid Station, our the next stop.
From the top of McBee climb, it's about 6 miles out and back to Chandler. This section is very unassuming and easy to underestimate on a map since it looks like a nice flat section. But, gushing wind and cold temperature added with rocky terrain made for a very demanding and time-consuming section. It was very difficult to run some portions of out-and-back due to sharp rocks on the ground and cold wind blowing on my face was so bad at times that it even made my breathing difficult at times.
Eventually, I made my way back from out-and-back to Chandler Aid Station and made my way back down to McBee Aid Station. leaving McBee, I felt pretty good. The race was still early and I was staying hydrated and eating well.
The next 20 miles back to Badger Mountain Trailhead, to the start/finish, was rather uneventful: a quick down and up on "Demoralizing Hill", long and winding "Endless Vineyard" and quick up and down Candy Mountain and then Badger Mountain.
I completed the first 50 miles in 11 hours and 30 min, which was 30 mins ahead of my target! Overall, I was rather pleased with my performance and felt good both mentally and physically, though my feet felt tight and sore. On the positive side, I had only one small blister, which I count as a big win!
At the aid station, I quickly ate 2 large Korean ramen bowls, which gave me needed (about 800) calories. But, more importantly, drinking that hot, spicy and savory ramen broth in a cold afternoon definitely lifted my spirits and got me ready to get back out there for the second 50 miler. Sometimes during these races, you find salvation in small things and use them to carry you through little bit longer...
Other than eating and relaxing, I cleaned my feet with baby-wipes and changed my Injinji socks after looking after my blister. I also changed my shoes from Altra Boa to Altra Mont Blanc, which was half-size larger than my Altra Boa so I was hopping that Mont Blanc would provide more room for my feet as miles pile up. Altra shoes have treated me well in last couple years after I made a switch from Brooks, with the former having a wider toe box to compensate for feet swelling during later stages of ultras. I feel like having a wider toe box allows me to wear shoes that are closer to my true size rather than having to go up in size to allow for more room, thus helping to prevent blisters from my shoes moving around too much. This strategy definitely paid off on this race as I only had one small (mentioned) blister the whole race!
I left the aid station just as sun was setting, watching slowly fading sunlight shinning at me in twilight hour as I climbed the Badger Mountain for the third time today. By the time I got to the top of the mountain and started my decent, the sun has completely set all around me, but off in the distance towards McBee Ridge there was still a trace of sunlight.
Many ultrarunners could relate to the feeling that I had at this moment, when after running 12 hours I realized that I still had 50 miles, which took me 18 more hours to complete with most of those hours being done at night.
Why? Why do we do this to ourselves?
Unfortunately, I don't have the right answer for you as each runner must find his own "Why" do that he can persevere through physical and emotional pain that are waiting for him deep in the night.
For me, this is the life I have chosen. And being able to choose to run is a blessing that I may not deserve but have received nonetheless. So, into the falling night sky I ran, knowing that nothing but darkness, cold, hunger and loneliness were waiting for me.
Why? Because I chose to...And you can too!
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