Copper Corridor 50K - February 22, 2025

Emaad and I at the start.

Distances

"The distance is what the race director says it is," is a slogan I often state when it comes to ultra races.  The reasons are simple: laying out a course on trails means it can only be where the trails are, and unlike road races where it is relatively simple to add or subtract mileage, it is usually difficult to do that when trails are involved.  In addition, measuring distances on trails can be difficult due to changes in elevation, switchbacks, tree cover and the like. No one is taking a measuring wheel on a trail.

And so, the Copper Corridor 50K is reported to be about 30.1 miles, rather than the 31.1 miles that would be the equivalent of 50K. But no one is going to call it a 48K race either, although that would be a more accurate (48.4 kilometers would be even more accurate, but let's not get obsessive).

Anyway, I've run 50Ks that have ranged from 29 miles to 33 or 34 miles.  It is was the race director says it it is.

And that will make a difference at the end.

Overview

Early on; Picketpost Mountain looms ahead.

The race mostly circles Picketpost Mountain, a singular mountain rising to about 4375 feet, or about 2000 feet above the surrounding area. It starts on Main Street in Superior, AZ, then runs roughly seven miles on the north side of Picketpost Mountain to the Arizona Trail (AZT), where it turns north for almost 2 miles, then south on the AZT for nine miles, almost entirely uphill on the west of the mountain.  By then most of the 3000 feet of climbing is over, with maybe only another 200-300 feet remaining. There, well south of Picketpost Mountain, the course turns north on the east side of the mountain on rough, unpaved and rocky North Telegraph Canyon Road, a stretch favored by ATV and other off-road vehicles. Five miles north on the road takes us to Arnett Canyon Trail, a smooth, flat, mostly shaded single track along Arnett Creek.  The remaining six miles is mostly on unpaved and paved roads, along with smooth trails on the outskirts of Superior and back to the Main Street start/finish.

In the morning.

Vignettes

Rather than the usual step-by-step report, here are some snapshots from the trail.

Don't Let the Cows Out

A fair amount of the early going involves running through grazing land.  There are numerous fences and gates with signs about closing the gates.  But most runners seem to be leaving the gates open, on the idea that the next runner is not far behind. From running Finger Lakes 50s, I, on the other hand, am obsessed with closing the gates.  There, runners are instructed to close the gates unless the following runner is within an arm's length of the gate. So that's what I do.  There are no cows in sight, and Emaad accuses me of being OCD, a label I accept.

Cactus Encounter

Running along I reach out to the left for some reason.  It isn't a good move, for without looking I grasp at a small saguaro cactus.  As soon as I contact the spines my hand recoils but it is a bit late, as I have managed to prick two fingers with three of the sharp needles.  Two barely break the skin, but the third is deeper and a trickle of blood results.  At least it wasn't a cholla cactus, I think to myself.

Long-horn cattle.

Javelina Hunter

Headed south on the AZT portion of the course, we approach a man in camouflage, carrying a long gun across his waist.  We stop to chat with him and he tells us that he is out to hunt javelinas, the  pig-like peccaries common in central Arizona.  He says he usually shoots from 300-400 yards, but with runners on the trail, he won't take any chances and isn't hunting.  This is the second time he has come across a race when he has gone out to hunt, but seems to be taking it with equanimity.

Cattle

Just before leaving the AZT to get on N. Telegraph Canyon Road, I spot something standing on the trail ahead.  It is large, reddish brown and has a massive pair of horns. Looking right, there are several more cattle slightly up a slope looking at us.  The one on the path ambles away toward the herd and we quickly go by.  A little while later we spot another one lying down in a dry wash. 

Orange Off-road Vehicle

On the AZT.

We hear it before we see it.  Coming up from behind us is a large, orange off-road vehicle, with a couple sitting side-by-side on-board, wearing helmets with microphones. We move to one side, they pass slowly on the other side, and everyone exchanges waves.  Once past us, they take off, leaving us to consider whether we chose the right mode of travel.  

Cramps

Someplace around mile 20 or 21 my right thigh starts to develop cramps. I recall - with regret - that I had been meaning to take salt tablets. I've been drinking exclusively liquids with electrolytes, but it is not enough.

Later in the day. Long sleeve shirt off.

And then I start to feel woozy and tired.  I sit down while I take a salt tablet and eat a gel, sipping my electrolyte liquid.  Slowly I feel better, but the key now is to slow down time.  I decide that I need to sit for five minutes.  Emaad hangs with me, but we are closing in on the cut-off for the Telegraph Hill aid station at mile 21.8 and I tell him to go ahead so that he can make it.

After three minutes I'm feeling close to normal, but I'm determined to take the entire five minutes, even if it might cost me the cut-off.

At five minutes I feel OK, get up and head out.  I've caught up with Mike. We head to the aid station and don't care about the cutoff.

Southbound on the AZT.

Aid Stations and Cutoffs

The aid station should be just ahead, at mile 21.8.  It's less than a mile.

But it is not. Mile 21.8 comes and goes. So does mile 22. Finally we come to it at mile 22.6, well past where the course directions indicated it would be. And we are there at 6:35 into the race, five minutes past the cutoff.

But we are not cut-off. Emaad had gotten there in time and asked the aid station volunteers about the cut-off and they knew nothing about it.  After calling race headquarters they are told not to worry about it.  So we are free to go on.  As to dropping out there, they helpfully suggest that it would be better to go another five miles to the next aid station.

We wave Emaad onward to assure that he can make the final 9 hour finishing cut-off.  Mike and I take our time, eating, refilling our hydration packs and deciding that we will stick together and not worry about the final cutoff.

Final Cutoff

Mike and I set off walking. No pressure, no hurry.

We turn onto the Arnett Canyon Trail along Arnett Creek.  A couple of Arizona Rangers are there asking if we have seen a 32K runner who is missing.  Unlikely that we would have seen him, as where we came from was not on that course, but there is no accounting for getting lost.

The trail is shaded, smooth, and flat and I ask Mile if you wants to run.  He replies in the affirmative and we set out mixing running with walking.

We are making good time and I start to do arithmetic of the pace we need to finish in time.  It's doable and the running is easy.

The course is well marked and we partly retrace about two miles of the beginning of the outbound course.  Then we turn off onto the wide, but unpaved Apache Tear Road.  It is gentle downhill and I'm a bit ahead of Mike.

I spot Kate ahead. She injured her ankle a couple of weeks ago but is still out here, mostly walking. I catch up and walk with her.  I look back and can't see Mike.  Kate is grateful for the company but as we turn onto a trail around mile 27.3 I tell her I'm going on and take off.

The trail leads to Arnett Drive where a pair of sheriff deputies stand by their car.  I tell them that there are two runners not far behind me as I turn left to pass the Superior Public School complex.  I'm momentarily confused looking for the aid station, but it is across the street by a skate park pavilion.

Picketpost Mtn. from the southeast.

I only take time to get some liquid and cookies to eat on my way, as there are only two miles to the finish . I have about 38 minutes to go two miles. Nineteen minutes a mile on pavement and smooth, mostly level trail is walkable. I run some but mostly walk. Once I turn onto W. Main Street with less than a mile to go, I know I can walk it in, so I walk.  Only when I'm within 20 yards of the finish do I run, and I finish in 8:53:41.

The Distance is What the Race Director Says it is

Had the Copper Corridor 50K been 31.1 miles it is unlikely that I could have done the additional mile and finished under nine hours. I had 6:19 to spare, plus whatever additional time I could have picked up from the Telegraph Hill AS over the last 8.5 miles.  And it might not have been much, as I averaged 15-17 minute miles over the last four miles. Could I have shaved a minute or two off those miles, spent a few fewer minutes at the Telegraph Hill AS and started to run sooner after leaving there? Perhaps, but it would have been a near thing.

But the distance is what the race director says it is, and on this day, that worked in my favor.

Finals

Mike finishes in 8:56:25. He is the last official finisher, as Kate finishes but over the 9 hour cutoff. Emaad was there at the finish, waiting for me, crossing the line in 8:39:37.

In the six years of the race's existence, I am only the second runner 70+ or older to finish it and I tie for oldest at 74.

Swag: Shirt, glass, sticker, bib.