Katie Schide, the American ultrarunner who tore through the Hardrock 100 course in 2025 and posted the fastest women’s time in race history, has pulled out of the 2026 edition. She said a months-long battle with plantar fasciitis and nerve trouble in her foot has made it impossible to start.
Schide announced the news on Instagram on Tuesday, writing that she is “officially off the @hardrock100run start list.” The race, which loops 100 miles through the San Juan Mountains of southwest Colorado, is scheduled for July 10.
Her absence reshapes one of the most anticipated women’s fields the event has ever seen. Schide and Courtney Dauwalter, the three-time Hardrock champion whose course record Schide broke last year, were both on the entry list. Between them, the two have won nearly every major mountain ultra of the past several seasons, and they are widely regarded as two of the best ultrarunners in the world today.
A record-breaking debut, then a long stretch of rehab
In her first appearance at the race in 2025, Schide finished in 25 hours, 50 minutes and 23 seconds. She won by close to three hours and became the first woman to go under 26 hours on the course in either direction, as covered at the time. The route alternates clockwise and counterclockwise each year, and her time stood as the new women’s mark, eclipsing Dauwalter’s 2024 record.
The follow-up has been far less glamorous. Schide, who is based in France, has spent the spring shuttling between medical appointments and modified training. In her post she described the routine as “all the appointments and driving and biking and resting and testing,” and said her goal slowly changed from getting race-fit to simply being able to jog without pain. Foot trouble of this kind is familiar to many distance runners. Marathon Handbook has detailed guides on plantar fasciitis causes and treatment and on how runners manage training around it.
“For a few months, getting healthy enough to be at Hardrock was my only focus,” she wrote. “I was excited to be part of the progression of women’s racing here and to see what was possible with such a strong crew of ladies pushing each other toward something more. I’m sure the women of 2026 will make it happen, but I’ll be frustrated to only be cheering them on from afar.”
She added, with characteristic understatement, that recovery has been “significantly more difficult than training for an ultra.”
The race in front of Dauwalter
With Schide out, Dauwalter becomes the clear favorite for July 10. She has won Hardrock three times and held the women’s course record before Schide eclipsed it last year. Tara Dower, who set the overall supported fastest known time on the Appalachian Trail in 2024, is expected to be among her closest challengers in the women’s field.
Dauwalter responded publicly to Schide’s withdrawal with a short message of support, writing “💚💚💚 next time!” The reaction from other runners on social media was similar, a mix of well wishes and disappointment that a rematch many had been looking forward to will not happen this year. Marathon Handbook had previewed the matchup earlier in the spring, when both names appeared together on the 2026 entry list.
Schide kept the door open for a return. “I’ll be back for a big loop in the San Juans one day,” she wrote, signing off with a note that her spot has already gone to someone on the waitlist. “That’s at least one thing that makes me happy.”
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