Sierra Azul 3 Peaks Challenge
Do you love trails, long seemingly never ending climbs and helping animals? We thought so! That’s why this is the ideal race for you! The Sierra Azul 3 Peaks Challenge will take you on a journey through the beautiful wild nature of Sierra Azul, reaching the summits of three local mountains - Mt El Sombroso, Bald Mountain and Mt Umunhum.
This is an actual race where you get to challenge your fellow competitors, the route is a fixed course that is available on Strava for you to follow and you can pick a date to run your race anytime from September 22nd 2021 to January 14th 2022 (you can try more than once and have your best result count!).
The best thing about this race? You will be helping animal rescue organizations that we deeply value and want to support in these hard times. $20 from each entry fee goes to the rescue organizations once our race is over.
You can pick from 2 challenging distances - a 26k (16 miles) with about 5000 ft of vertical gain or a 52k ultramarathon (32 miles) with 7500 ft of vert!
We chose to support these rescue organizations as they represent what we believe in and they take great care of their animals.
(Most animal shelters are always looking for volunteers, dog walkers, foster families etc. in case you want to help in other ways too!)
iPittyTheBull Foundation:
“iPittytheBull is an organization that is dedicated to providing education about responsible pet ownership, the benefits of spay and neuter and improving communication between dog and human. Founded in 2014, the inspiration behind “IPittytheBull” was inspired by a “pit bull” named, Penny Lane, as an effort to reverse negative stereotypes on this “breed” of dog. Just as we believe that a human is a human first before their race; we also believe that a dog is a dog first before their breed. Our mission to “educate, advocate and never discriminate” goes beyond dogs which is why you will not only find us working with rescues and animal shelters but in schools, helping the homeless and other people in need. We believe that helping people is helping dogs.”
http://www.ipittythebull.com/
Josh and his critters - www.joshandhiscritters.org
Josh and his critters is an all breed non profit rescue organization founded by Tina Marie Lythgoe. They are a sanctuary for many abandoned, injured or sick animals. Tina personally cares for many different kinds of animals (especially special needs animals and those from high-kill shelters) and appreciates all the help she can get.
26k/52k
26k route: https://www.strava.com/routes/2737807243151141676
Please be advised, that the 26k route is NOT an out and back. You will start at the Lexington reservoir at the Limekiln trail entrance and finish at the summit of Mt Umunhum. We suggest you have a friend or family member pick you up on the summit of Mt Umunhum (there is a large parking area) if you don’t want to run all the way back to your car. If you are planning on having a crew help you during your race, the ideal place for them to park is the Bald Mountain parking lot or the Mt Umunhum summit parking lot. Your crew can also hike to the top of one of the climbs and wait for you there. It is recommended you carry plenty of water and calories and are aware of your surroundings. This is a beautiful park with plenty of wildlife - mountain lions may be present at all hours of the day (but generally most active during dusk and dawn), we recommend you know what to do in the event of mountain lion encounter.
52k route: https://www.strava.com/routes/2736713300087183604
This is an out and back. You will start and finish at the Lexington reservoir at the Limekiln trail entrance. It is strongly recommended you have a crew helping you during your race or contact RD Sylvie who will provide aid at your halfway point on Mt Umunhum - We plan to have multiple days of aid station at the summit - dates TBD, but they will most likely all be Saturdays. This is an ultramarathon distance with lots of climbing, you will require plenty of water and calories. If you are planning on having a crew help you during your race, the ideal place for them to park is the Bald Mountain parking lot or the Mt Umunhum summit parking lot. Your crew can also hike to the top of one of the climbs and wait for you there. It is recommended you carry plenty of water and calories and are aware of your surroundings. This is a beautiful park with plenty of wildlife - mountain lions may be present at all hours of the day (but generally most active during dusk and dawn), we recommend you know what to do in the event of mountain lion encounter.
Submitting your race results
We kindly ask you send your race result to sylvie.kpck@gmail.com so that we can manually upload them into ultrasignup. Your race results must be in form of completed Strava activity or other gps file where we can clearly see the time from start to finish and that you completed the race route). You do not have to complete the official Strava segment for your race result to be taken into account - we understand you may need to stray away from the trail (perhaps to use the restroom in the woods away from trail or walk around Mt Umunhum and take pictures - your results will be valid as long as you complete the given race course and send the results to the email address mentioned above. Please make sure you stop your watch right when you finish your run. The “Elapsed time” on Strava will be your official finishing time.
We are hoping to have small prizes for the male and female winners of both distances, but what better prize than running free in beautiful nature while helping animals!
Donations
This is a non profit event. $20 of each race entry will be donated to our rescue organizations, rest will go towards prizes for the winners, aid station supplies, gas etc. Proof of the donations will be available here on this site after the race is over (race ends 24th December 2020).
Turn by turn directions
Here are turn by turn directions should you need them or prefer not to use the Strava route. Please contact me at sylvie.kpck@gmail.com for any questions you might have:) The 26k covers all 3 peaks and ends at the top of Mt Umunhum. The 52k covers all the 3 peaks on the way UP, you do not need to revisit the peaks on the way down, you simply go back and take the Limekiln trail all the way down as described below.
26k:
START at the Limekiln trailhead (you can park on the road right by the trail if you come early enough:)
-> Limekiln trail
-> At the intersection go left UP the Priestrock trail aka Dogmeat
-> Right to Kennedy trail (aka the rollers)
-> Left on the Woods road trail
-> When you get to the intersection you are almost to the top of Mt El Sombroso - go left to the summit. You have reached the summit when the trail ends and you see a pretty view (You see Mt Umunhum and other peaks)
-> go back to the nearest intersection and make a left downhill on Woods road
-> Right on Barlow Rd
-> Left on the Mt Umunhum trail that will lead you to the Bald Mountain parking lot
-> continue through the parking lot on the Bald Mountain trail until you reach the Bald Mountain lookout. Complete the loop around Bald mountain and head back through the parking lot
-> Stay on the Mt Umunhum trail until you reached the Summit of Mt Umunhum (pretty views, right??)?
52k
Same until you reach the top of Mt Umunhum
-> head back down Mt Umuhum trail
-> left down Barlow Rd
-> left on Woods rd
-> left on Limekiln at the upper intersection (you are going down, NOT back on the Kennedy rollers and Dogmeat), continue on Limekiln all the way down to the reservoir
You did it!!!
Additional info, added 10/18
Dear runners,
It has come to my attention that there was a slight hick-up with the Strava route and the course is actually about 30 miles long/almost 7000ft. of vert - instead of 32 miles listed. The route is still valid! Only the mileage might be slightly off. I hope this doesn’t create a problem for you, you can always run around Lexington after you’re done with your 50k haha! Sending this message so that nobody is alarmed their watch only says 30 miles upon finishing. Please note that your “Elapsed time” on Strava is your finishing race time and please do not pause your watch while racing on course - even time at an aid station or taking a break is included in your overall result just like it would at a normal race. You are all amazing and I am so excited to see you take on the course!
Medals
We have medals for the finishers! If you would like to claim your medal, please send an email to sylvie.kpck@gmail.com or Sylvie Abel on facebook.
Event's current local time: 7:35 PM PT
