Wasatch Front 100 Mile Endurance Run
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Held annually on the first Saturday after Labor Day, the Wasatch Front 100 Mile Endurance Run ("Wasatch") is one of the four original 100-mile ultramarathons of the modern era: Western States Endurance Run, Wasatch, Vermont and Leadville. The four races, if completed by one runner in one year, are known as the "Grand Slam" of ultrarunning. Wasatch's slogan is "One Hundred Miles of Heaven and Hell".
Wasatch began in its early years as a challenge for some local runners who were inspired by Western States, the first of modern-day western 100s. One year, no one even finished! Now 26 years old, the race has matured into a smooth-running event attracting runners from across the world, but still retaining a certain understatement reflective of Utah culture in general. Many regard this humble reserve as the race's most attractive attribute.
Wasatch gains 26,000 cumulative feet in elevation as it traverses the Wasatch Front, commanding vistas of basin and range country, the Great Salt Lake, steep canyons, broad plateaus, and craggy peaks. Altitude ranges from 4700 to 10,460 feet, and temperatures range from 80s in the shade during the day to 30s on the high ridges at night. The fastest runners finish the race in 20 hours or so, while the field is given 36 hours to finish the race. Karl Meltzer holds the course record of 19:44, set in 2005.
For many years Wasatch was regarded as the toughest 100-miler, but with the advent of the Hardrock 100 in Colorado, this has been thrown into some dispute. Apologists for Wasatch note that Hardrock has a 48-hour cutoff, and therefore is in a different category of event (a quasi multi-day). Both races are undeniably very difficult and pose their own challenges.
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