Course map, elevation profile & surface
Fly the course
Follow the route over 3D terrain, mile by mile.
Race-day light
For a 10:55 finish (an estimate) · starting 7:00 AM Oct 10. Dark means the sun below civil twilight.
Climbs
6 climbs · 8,625 ft totalbiggest firstElevation gain, measured two ways
| Source | Gain | vs lidar |
|---|---|---|
| Course file (GPX) | 9,901ft | -9% |
| USGS lidar, 1 m | 10,913ft | reference |
They differ because a GPS file picks up noise on every wiggle and often takes its heights from a coarse terrain model, while lidar maps the ground itself to about a metre. We sampled this route every 98 ft against USGS 3DEP and counted each rise of 10 ft or more, on Oct 23, 2026. The planner still uses the course file.
Aid stations as published on the course file
| Aid station | Mile | km |
|---|---|---|
| Start/Finish | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| A Minnow Aid | 4.0 | 6.5 |
| A Rock Creek Aid | 6.8 | 10.9 |
| A Basalt Aid | 13.1 | 21.1 |
| A Water Drop | 21.6 | 34.8 |
| A Chikamin Aid | 26.2 | 42.2 |
| A Mad Meadows Aid | 34.7 | 55.9 |
| A Entiat Aid | 44.3 | 71.3 |
Badge colours match the markers on the map above — always confirm locations and cutoffs with the race organizer.
Race director? Check this course and correct anything that’s off, and it carries a ✓ verified by the race badge everywhere it appears, including the free map embed for your own site. Claim your course.
Ran this course and something’s off — an aid station moved, a reroute, a wrong number? Report it and we’ll chase it down; fixes land for every runner (and count toward the race’s verified badge).
Conditions typical race-day weather for Oct 10 at the start
Typical = the median of 2016–2025 for Oct 10 ±3 days at the start line; a wet day has 1 mm of rain or more. Historical weather from Open-Meteo.
Race almanac 2 years of this race
Past editions
Race-day highs at the start ran from 49° to 49°F, and 2 of 2 race days were wet.
| Year | Start °F | High point °F | Rain | Wind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 Oct 10 | 49°/38° | 32°/19° | 0.19in | 5mph |
| 2025 Oct 11 | 49°/42° | 34°/25° | 0.16in | 10mph |
race-day weather from the Open-Meteo historical archive (ERA5) at the start line and the course high point (7,362 ft).
Reviews what runners who have been there say
No reviews yet — be the first to run it and tell other runners what to expect.
About this course
Mad Meadows 50 — 2026 covers 48.5 mi (78.1 km) with 9,901 ft of elevation gain through Washington, United States. That is about 204 ft per mile of climbing, and 9,931 ft of descent. The course tops out at 7,362 ft and bottoms out at 2,402 ft. The surface is 86% trail, 8% gravel and 7% paved. There are 7 aid stations on course; the longest stretch between aid is 9.6 mi. The profile has 6 sustained climbs; the biggest is the climb from mi 13.1, +3,287 ft over 4.0 mi at 15.6% on average (steepest stretch 26%). Race day is October 10, 2026, starting at 7:00 AM; the sun rises at 7:15 AM and sets at 6:26 PM. Typical race-day weather at the start: a high of 55°F and a low of 40°F, with a 36% chance of a wet day. The interactive map above shows the full route with its elevation profile and aid stations, built from the course's GPS file.
Load the course in the TrailGoat Run Planner for grade-adjusted pacing, climb-by-climb splits, hourly weather and a full hydration & fueling plan — free, no account needed.
Race director? — one line of HTML, always up to date.
Course history
- Jul 27, 2026Added to the catalog
Races like this one close in distance, climbing, terrain, altitude, weather and season
More race courses
- Grand Ridge 50K — 202631.6 mi · Washington, United States
- Plain Endurance Runs 100 Miler — 2026103.1 mi · Washington, United States
- Dark Divide Trail Races 50K — 202632.4 mi · Washington, United States
- Backcountry Rise Half Marathon — 202613.2 mi · Washington, United States
- Dark Divide Trail Races 100 Miler — 202699.5 mi · Washington, United States
- Backcountry Rise 20 Miler — 202620.6 mi · Washington, United States
Not seeing the race you came for? — most are live within a day.