One of the most iconic local athletic competitions is back with some of the world’s best ultra runners ready for the start. The 2025 Hardrock 100 begins on Friday in Silverton.
“The things that we can manage and control, I feel really good about,” Hardrock 100 Race Director Dale Garland said. “The things I can't control, I feel good about, like the weather and that kind of thing. The weather's supposed to be pretty good. So I'm looking forward to a really good weekend.”
Garland feels really good about the operating systems, like the communications system, the satellite tracking system and aid station delivery systems. Everything is flowing very smoothly to ensure a safe event.
Runners will compete on the 102.5-mile loop with a total elevation change of 66,394 feet at an average elevation of 11,000 feet.
The race will start on Friday at 6 a.m. in Silverton. Garland expects the leaders to finish the race around 3 a.m. or 4 a.m. on Saturday.
Every year, the racecourse changes direction. This year, the course will go counterclockwise from Silverton and east through Cunningham Gulch and Maggie Gulch before heading north to Sherman. Runners will then head northwest to Ouray before heading southwest to Telluride, south to KT, before heading east to Silverton for the finish.
The temperature in Silverton is expected to be in the mid-60s with a low chance of rain and lightning.
Each year, Garland and the Hardrock 100 staff select only 146 runners to compete in the Hardrock 100. This year, the Hardrock 100 had a record 3,022 applications from 75 countries and 50 states.
“Hardrock is something that now people know about and people want to be challenged by it,” Garland said. “So, because of our reputation for putting on a good event in a beautiful place brings people out.”
Garland said the selection process comes from the lottery that is held on the first Saturday of December. Runners have to do one of the Hardrock’s 30 qualifying races around the world to apply for the lottery.
Then the lottery is broken down into four different lotteries. It’s broken down into male and female lotteries and then is broken down even more into men who have run the Hardrock before and men who haven’t. It’s the same breakdown for women.
The gender selection process is then based on the male-to-female ratio of applicants. Garland said this year, 79% of the applicants were male and 21% were female. Therefore, roughly 79% of the 146 runners are male and 21% are female.
Three-time defending women’s champion Courtney Dauwalter is not returning after setting a women’s course record of 26 hours, 11 minutes and 49 seconds last year. American Katie Schide is a favorite as the No. 1-ranked Ultra runner in 2024. She beat Dauwalter’s record time at UTMB (Ultra Trail du Mont-Blanc).
Two other challengers will be Manon Bohard from France and Katharina Hartmuth from Switzerland, who finished third in the women’s race last year with a time of 30:29:12.
On the men’s side, defending champion Ludovic Pommeret returns after setting a course record of 21:33:06 last year. Mathieu Blanchard from France, Kyle Curtain from Durango and Zach Miller from Pennsylvania are three other runners to watch.
Runners must complete the race in 48 hours.
The entire course is open to the fans if anyone wants to hike and watch the runners in the San Juan Mountains. Garland asks that spectators respect other user groups and their right to recreate in their own way. At home, fans can follow the action on the livestream on the Hardrock website, https://hardrock100.com/, or follow the satellite tracking on the website.
bkelly@durangoherald.com
