Everything You Need To Know About The 2024 Hardrock 100

Courtney Dauwalter will be looking for a big weekend as she comes in with fresh legs.

Published: Jul 11, 2024 4:52 pm

Jessy Carveth

Jessy Carveth

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The Hardrock 100 is an ultramarathon of 102.5 miles in length, starting and finishing in Silverton, Colorado, with the first edition taking place in 1992.

This year, 146 runners will have 48 hours to complete the challenging loop featuring over 33,000 feet of elevation gain. The direction of the loop changes every year, and this year, runners will complete it in the clockwise direction.

There are some big names headlining the event, and it will certainly be one you won’t want to miss. We’ve got everything you need to know ahead of the 2024 Hardrock 100.

Everything You Need To Know About The 2024 Hardrock 100 1 — Photo Credit: Baptiste Balay

When And How To Watch Western States 100

The race starts bright and early at 6 a.m. on Friday, July 12th, 2024, in Silverton, Colorado, and finishes 48 hours later on Sunday, June 14th, 2024. Starting at over 9,000 feet above sea level, the air will be thin from the start, and the temperatures can reach as low as 20 degrees Fahrenheit so early in the morning.

If you’re keen to follow the athletes, you can catch all the action live on Youtube.

You’ve got a couple options here.

Run Steep Get High will be hosting the first-ever full livestream with commentary on their YouTube. However, due to signal and aerial shot limitations, there may be some dodgy points and periods of time where you won’t see any athletes.

Mountain Outpost will also have a number of cameras set up along different sections of the course so you can catch all the runners along the way. Each camera will have its own live stream on Youtube, so although each camera will be uninterrupted, you’ll have to jump to a bunch of different YouTube links if you’re only following a runner or two.

Hardrock offers GPS live tracking of each athlete to ensure you know where your favorite athletes are at all times. You can also catch live updates on the Hardrock 100 X.

Everything You Need To Know About The 2024 Hardrock 100 2 — Photo Credit: Suunto

What Is The Hardrock 100 Course?

The Hardrock 100 features an intense course that covers some of the world’s most stunning yet challenging terrains.

The course is divided into four segments, connecting the areas of Lake City, Ouray, Telluride, and Silverton. The race both starts and finishes in Silverton, Colorado. Covering 102.5 miles, the course boasts a cumulative vertical ascent of 33,197 feet and an equivalent descent, totaling 66,394 feet of elevation change. The average altitude is around 11,000 feet, with the highest point reaching 14,048 feet.

This event pits runners against the rugged mountains and primarily follows trails. There are 14 aid stations; major ones are in the towns, with smaller ones in between. Participants need to be mostly self-sufficient while traveling between towns.

The altitude range of this race (7,700 to over 14,000 feet) takes runners through various climate zones. At lower elevations, forests of aspen, pine, and spruce are common. Timberline is typically around 11,800 feet, though this can vary. Above timberline, runners encounter alpine tundra and low vegetation mixed with krummholz (stunted spruce, fir, and willow).

During summer, the area can be busy with wildlife. Elk are commonly seen in high meadows, sometimes with their young. Black bears, though rarely seen, inhabit the area, as do mountain lions.

What’s The Weather Going To Be Like?

Cloudy and cool is the name of the game this weekend (with a chance of thunderstorms).

Friday will have a bit more sun than the rest of the weekend, with a high of 77 degrees Fahrenheit and a low of 49 degrees Fahrenheit. Saturday, the conditions will stay about the same with a few more clouds, a high of 76 degrees Fahrenheit, and a low of 50 degrees Fahrenheit. Sunday will be more of the same, and the high will be 75 degrees Fahrenheit.

Everything You Need To Know About The 2024 Hardrock 100 3

Who To Watch?

Courtney Dauwalter

Courtney Dauwalter, one of the most dominant ultra runners of all time, is a two-time Hardrock champion, course record holder, and the reigning champion from 2023. She’ll be coming in this year looking to defend her title, and you know what they say, ‘third time’s the charm.’

“I’m so excited to be here. I’ve heard the wildflowers are out in full force, which you know I love. It’s just cool to be back in Silverton. The mountains here are something else,” she said in an interview with iRunFar.

She continued, “I’m just going to go by effort and be trying to push as hard as I can without going over the edge too early. I do better if I don’t have any attachment to numbers during the race. I’m hoping to get around the loop and get back to that rock swiftly, expediently, in a really great shirt.”

What’s different about this go around is that Dauwalter is coming into Hardrock fresh. Normally, she’s come off a hard effort at the Western States 100, but having not run the Western States this year, she’ll be on fresh legs. Considering she ran a course record at Hardrock 100 following Western States 100, there’s no doubt followers will be looking for a standout performance from Dauwalter.

Dauwalter’s clockwise course record was set in 2022 in a time of 26:44:36.

Other Women To Watch

Katharina Hartmuth
Camille Bruyas
Claire Bannwarth
Tara Dower
Claire Heslop
Yitka Winn

Everything You Need To Know About The 2024 Hardrock 100 4 — Photo Credit: Lucien Chan

François D’Haene

François D’Haene is the favorite among the men. D’Haene is a four-time UTMB Mont Blanc winner and won Hardrock 100 in 2021, setting the counterclockwise and overall record with a time of 21:45:51.

In an interview with iRunFar, D’Haene said, “It’s a super different place from some of the typical 100 milers that we see, like UTMB, Diagonale des Fous, where it’s so much about the culture and maybe a little bit less about the landscape. Here, it’s so much about the landscape, and there’s of course less people, so it’s a bit more comfortable for us as a runner. Nobody chasing you down the streets. But it’s part of the game and I like it, but sometimes it’s time to be on one side and project on another side.”

“I think all the races that I approach, I approach with the same mindset. Of course, during the race, I will try to do my best, but my main motivation is not to beat this guy or that guy or this time. The main important thing is to be able to race as good as I can and try to perform, and then we’ll see. Even more now, since two years where my body has had some difficulties, it’s more and more important to have much effort to be back with pleasure and some good feelings on the mountain,” he continued.