Summary
This race is 205 miles 23,500 ft of elevation gain around the best parts of San Diego. The point of this run is to 1) honor an Indigenous perspective of running and Kumeyaay land and 2) to provide an affordable and equitable alternative to the current standard for these longer races. The race relies heavily on you supporting yourself and navigating the course via a provided GPX file. No aid stations like typical races however there is a mobile aid station that will meet you at crucial checkpoints. We are not looking to become a big production and are simply trying to bring ultrarunning back to its roots as just a handful of people that want to get together to run a long distance.
America's Finest 200 Miler
Experienced and serious inquires only. This is a hybrid trail and road race that requires you to be able to run for long distances. The cutoffs are hard to make. You need to be able to average a 24:00 pace, including sleep, for 3.5 days in order finish this race. This will be a test of your long distance running ability over various terrain and surfaces. 60% trail and 40% road for a 200 miler means you will have 80 miles of roads. This race is for the ultrarunner who can run on road as well as trail. It will be your responsibility to provide your own aid and support via your own crew. It will be your responsibility to know the cutoffs you will be required to meet. This is a "Fatass Plus" run. No marking. No support. No whining. The only reason for a charge is to get you to take this seriously and give this challenge the respect it deserves.
America's Finest 200 Miler
This is guaranteed to be the most scenic and beautiful 200 miler that runs you from the coast to the desert and through the mountains of Kumeyaay territory also known as San Diego. The traditional Native American runners of this area would historically run these kinds of long distance missions to deliver messages. This run will be done to honor this legacy and to honor the land that we are all privileged to have access to today.
The run starts off in Escondido, runs 30 miles of the Coast to Crest trail down to Torrey Pines. From Torrey Pines you run 25 miles of absolutely beautiful coast line to Downtown San Diego and on towards Chula Vista. Once you hit Chula Vista you head east on L street towards Mother Miguel Mtn and climb over to Jamul and El Cajon. From here you run alongside a road paralleling Kumeyaay Highway to Viejas Indian Reservation. Once through Viejas at mile 113 you start the real mountain trails of San Diego, up and over Viejas Grade Rd to Descanso and start climbing trails up towards Cuyamaca Peak to see San Diego from the 2nd highest spot you can see the city. Take a breath, take in the view. You will climb down Conejos towards Lake Cuyamaca with 135 miles on your legs. From Lake Cuyamaca you will run trails to get you to the town of Julian by going on the PCT towards the Anza Borrego desert. Once in Banning you will go up some old historic and potentially haunted gold mining trails to Whispering Pines as you head towards Julian High School. From there you run through the old mining town of Julian where you can pick up some delicious apple pie for you and your crew. If this were a regular 200 miler at this point you could even play tourist and go sight seeing for 8 hours with your crew, and stay at the Old Julian Hotel. But this is not a 200 miler where you can take those kinds of breaks. You will keep running, through Santa Ysabel Preserve and see beautiful San Diego countryside. You will then run my old school bus route to the Old Mesa Grande Store at which point you will head towards Mesa Grande Indian Reservation, in Black Canyon. Be mindful of cars driving down this narrow dirt road with cliffs. Stay on your right side of the road and do not be a jerk about taking up the road. Once past the reservation you will head towards Pamo Valley and up a final hill called Big Black Mtn where you will end back at the Pamo Valley Orosco Ridge trailhead.
Course Map: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/31225263
Race Start: 5:00am Friday, November 11, 2022
Finish: 5:00pm Monday, November 14, 2022
Race Cutoff:
Men under 50: 72 hours (21 min pace)
Everyone else: 84 hours (24 min pace)
There will only be 25 people allowed to run this event. Part of the reason for that is for ease of logistics and the other part of that is to keep it intimate, and not profit driven.
Cutoffs
The cutoffs are available on the website. It is your responsibility to read them and make sure you are in and OUT of the aid station are by the posted cutoff time. If you do not make cutoff, you will no longer be officially part of the race. Please do not argue with the cutoffs. If you think they are unfair please decide that before signing up and don't sign up. Do not wait until you fail to make a cutoff to start expressing your disagreements with them. There are soft cutoffs and hard cutoffs. Hard cutoffs are straightforward: they mean that you are cutoff and no longer part of the race. Soft cutoffs mean that the race staff will no longer be at the advertised check-in point but you will be allowed to continue on to try and meet the hard cutoff of the next checkpoint. If there are questions or concerns, please ask.
Earn your entry
I'm not looking to cheapen the experience by bringing the cost down, I am looking to set up more meaningful way of deciding who earns the privilege of doing a race like this than by simply seeing who has the biggest bank account. Consequently, I will be making you earn entrance in other ways. Instead of sending me $1,500 you will send me a 1,500 word written essay explaining your "How". Everyone these days is concerned about your "Why". If you ask enough runners our "Why"s start to all sound the same and we all know on some deep level Why we are out there with each other so it makes no sense to ask why. I would like to know your "How". How do you keep strong when you feel most weak? How do you do these seemingly impossible feats? How do you do what you do? Who helps you? I would also like to know your story and why you think you would contribute to the integrity of this race.
Note that with only 25 runners allowed, not getting picked does not necessarily mean your story isn't cool enough to me. It would simply mean that 25 other runners were right for this year. I'm looking to get to know the runners who are running my race. I'm looking to make this race really meaningful for everyone involved. With my self imposed limit of 25 runners this means some awesome people with awesome stories will have to wait for next year. Thank you for understanding.
In order to do this race you must have completed at least one 100 miler before and preferably a 200 miler previously. At least have years of ultrarunning experience under your belt. This won't be easy. You will have to put in serious training.
If chosen, you will be sent an invitation and asked to confirm. There will be a waitlist. Please visit the race website for the email that you will be sending your essay to. If English is not your first language please feel free to write your essay in your Native language, I will do my best to translate using Google translate. There will be no discrimination on grammar or spelling so do not worry. I just want to learn about your story.
Crew/Pacers
IMPORTANT: CREWS ARE MANDATORY FOR THIS RACE. READ THAT AGAIN. CREWS ARE MANDATORY FOR THIS RACE. If you do not have a crew by race day you will not be able to start this race. This race will be extremely limited in support, which means you should be prepared to run it with your own crew. If you cannot get access to at least 1 crew person, preferably 2 or more, then I would say you cannot do this race. Read that again. There are many spots in the more urban areas of San Diego that would allow you to be able to do the first 100 miles without a crew but the 2nd half you should definitely have a crew. That being said, I will provide aid stations at key points during the race, but it might be 20-25 miles or so between points. Come prepared. I'm being repetitive about this for a reason. I want to make sure that you understand you cannot *expect* the race staff to be your personal crew.
Impetus
On November 20, 2020 I became the first person in modern history to do a 200 mile loop around San Diego. I had been planning it for a couple of years and spent a year trying to create a route that would showcase all the beautiful parts of San Diego from our beautiful coastline to the mountain tops of Cuyamaca. San Diego is my hometown and I was raised on Mesa Grande Indian Reservation so I have a very intimate knowledge and special connection to this land. I created this route and did it entirely from memory with no watch/GPS assistance, which is a challenge unto itself. This is not just a money making or publicity stunt, this is my special and intimate creation. This event is to showcase what special beauty we have here and to provide a life changing experience for the select few who are brave enough to accept the challenge. I wanted to create a high challenge, low cost event to allow for a financially equitable alternative style of 200 mile races than what currently exists as the standard. If there's a will there's a way and I want to be the change I wish to see in the ultra world.
Event's current local time: 12:35 AM PT
