Course map, elevation profile & surface
Fly the course
Follow the route over 3D terrain, mile by mile.
Race-day light
For a 5:00 finish (an estimate) · starting 7:00 AM Aug 8. Dark means the sun below civil twilight.
Climbs
4 climbs · 4,449 ft totalbiggest firstAid stations as published on the course file
| Aid station | Mile | km |
|---|---|---|
| A AID STATIO | 2.8 | 4.5 |
Badge colours match the markers on the map above — always confirm locations and cutoffs with the race organizer.
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Conditions typical race-day weather for Aug 8 at the start
Typical = the median of 2016–2025 for Aug 8 ±3 days at the start line; a wet day has 1 mm of rain or more. Historical weather from Open-Meteo.
Race almanac 1 year of this race
Past editions
On race day it reached 84°F at the start, with a low of 63°.
| Year | Start °F | High point °F | Rain | Wind | Heat index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 Aug 8 | 84°/63° | 78°/58° | 0.06in | 10mph | 81° |
race-day weather from the Open-Meteo historical archive (ERA5) at the start line and the course high point (9,304 ft).
Reviews what runners who have been there say
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About this course
Thunder Mountain Trail Challenge 21 Miler — 2026 covers 20.8 mi (33.5 km) with 5,072 ft of elevation gain. That is about 244 ft per mile of climbing, and 5,075 ft of descent. The course tops out at 9,304 ft and bottoms out at 7,126 ft. There is 1 aid station on course; the longest stretch between aid is 18.0 mi. The profile has 4 sustained climbs; the biggest is the climb from mi 10.9, +2,175 ft over 4.3 mi at 9.6% on average (steepest stretch 21%). Race day is August 8, 2026, starting at 7:00 AM; the sun rises at 6:09 AM and sets at 8:05 PM. Typical race-day weather at the start: a high of 74°F and a low of 50°F, with a 10% 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.
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Course history
- Oct 29, 2026Added to the catalog
Races like this one close in distance, climbing, terrain, altitude, weather and season
- Continental Divide Trail Run 16 Miler — 2026Aug · 16 mi · 231 ft/mi · COHigh altitude · Similar climbing · Same month
- Thunder Mountain Trail Challenge 50K — 2026Aug · 31 mi · 248 ft/miSimilar climbing · Similar weather · High altitude
- Bachelor Ascent 28K — 2026Sep · 18 mi · 237 ft/miSimilar climbing · High altitude
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