Choosing an Ultramarathon: The Difference Between Roads and Trails

The vast majority of ultras are run on trails of some sort. Some are run on roads. Distance races tend to be more trail-oriented, while timed races tend to be more road-oriented (which may include things like running tracks or concrete sidewalks through parks).

Is one better than the other?

Not necessarily, though there are significant differences. Road running requires a lot of repetitive motions. Your running gait remains more or less the same for the duration of the event. Furthermore, road races tend to be rather flat. This puts stress on specific sets of muscles, tendons, ligaments, and bones. People that train primarily on trails usually have difficulty running on roads (like me).

Most trail runs require the runner to avoid obstacles such as roots, rocks, logs (both wooden and the kind left by animals... or lazy humans), and water or mud. Trail races tend to have more elevation change, so you spend more time traversing hills. This requires much more dynamic movement, which distributes the workload to different muscles, tendons, ligaments, and bones. People that train primarily on roads usually have difficulty running on trails.

My suggestion: Like I discussed in a previous section, it's best to choose a race with similar terrain and elevation as your training routes. If you live in a city surrounded by flat farmland, a mountain trail race would be a bad idea. It's the same deal if you like to train on trails with lots of elevation change. A road race will be more difficult than a trail race.

It is possible to take a “jack of all trades” approach and train on both roads and trails, which gives you MUCH more versatility. This would be the ideal situation if you have enough time to train before your first ultra.

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Choosing an Ultramarathon: How Much Do Ultramarathons Cost?

The price of ultras can range from free (the previously-mentioned fatass races) to staggeringly expensive. Badwater, a race run through Death Valley in California, can easily cost around $10,000 for the race entry fee, hotels, gear, and rental vehicles. So what is a more realistic price?

Most races range in price from a low of about $30 to a high of about $200. generally speaking, the longer the race, the more expensive the entry fees. Other variables make a difference, like the level of support offered, need for permits to use the land, and the swag (goodies like t-shirts and finisher awards).

Aside from the entry fee, other costs need to be considered, including:

• Transportation: If the race is within driving distance, you need to consider the price of gas and parking. If the race requires flying, consider airport parking, the cost of the flight, rental car, and rental car gas.
• Lodging: Hotels may be needed for the night before and after the race. Hint- always get a room on the first floor. After the race, it will likely be difficult to climb stairs. Some races will offer on-site camping, which can save money. If you camp in a tent, bring plenty of warm blankets. It's not uncommon to feel colder than normal after a race.
• Food: You will need food before and after the race, and potentially food during the race. Some races offer pre- and post-race meals. One of the best parts of ultrarunning- we tend to burn a lot of calories, which means one thing: guilt-free fast food! I recommend Taco Bell. Lay off the spicy sauces, though... otherwise you'll regret it the next day. Trust me on this one.
• Gear: I usually prefer to bring as little gear as possible, but it still adds up to a fair amount of crap. I usually bring several clothing options, at least two pair of shoes, sometimes socks (I hate socks), bandana, flashlights and headlamps, lube (prevent chafing), handheld water bottles, and a small foot care kit (I'll discuss that one later). For very long races, I'll also add some more crap to my stockpile. To save money, you can often use non-running specific 'homemade” gear. In my first ultra, I used little travel bottles designed for shampoo ($1 each) instead of gel flasks designed for runners ($12 each). Different sections of this book will help you determine what you need to buy.

There may be other expenses that arise based on individual experiences. For the most part, ultras are pretty cheap compared to other hobbies. The closer you stay to home, the more money you'll likely save on transportation and lodging.

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Choosing Your First Ultramarathon: What About Fatass Races?

Is this a race for people with giant butts? Not quite. A fatass race is essentially an organized “unofficial” race set up by one or a few dedicated ultrarunners. There's usually no perks (shorts, medals, etc.), course marshals (people that keep you on the course), aid stations or other forms of support, or even a timing mechanism. It's usually more like a training run than a race.

So why would you want to run a fatass?

THEY'RE FREE!

And they tend to be super cool. The people that show up for fatass races are running for the pure love of running and the camaraderie of their fellow runners. I would highly encourage any new ultrarunner to hang out at fatass races.

However, I would not recommend a fatass as a first race. The lack of support usually requires runners to carry all their food and water, which adds a fairly difficult obstacle to an already difficult undertaking. Also, the lack of course markings may make the actual course navigation difficult. Again, it's another variable that a brand new ultrarunner shouldn't have to worry about.

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Choosing Your First Ultramarathon: Elevation Profiles

In the last section I mentioned elevation. Most race directors publish what is known as an elevation profile. It's essentially a graph representing how many hills the course has. The “spikier” the graph, the more hills. Also, the steeper the graph, the steeper the hill.

Here's an elevation chart of the Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run:

The Y axis represents altitude starting at sea level. The X axis represents distance. You can count the number of hills or “climbs” by the number of peaks. In the case of Western States, there are nine significant climbs.

Elevation charts can be a little deceptive based on appearance alone. Here's an elevation profile for the Leadville Silver Rush 50 miler. Note the X axis starts at 9,800 feet and you climb to about 12,100 feet. It's a pretty rugged race.

Let's take the exact same profile, but change the numbers a bit. Notice the elevation at the left. Instead of a high-altitude mountain ultra up and down mountains, the course is now near sea level with a few 55 foot gentle hills.

The scale matters, even if the graphic looks intimidating. Many recommend a flat course for beginners. Again, I'd recommend picking a course with similar climbs and altitude than your training trails. People that train in the rough stuff usually have some difficulty going to the flat stuff.

If you train at high altitude, you can run a race at lower altitude without problems. Going from low-altitude training to a high altitude (> 8,000 feet) race can be problematic, though. The lower concentration of oxygen can cause altitude sickness. Unless that's your thing. Sure it can be life-threatening, but some people may be into nosebleeds, hangover symptoms, and cerebral edema. To each their own... I guess.

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