Badwater 135, the world’s toughest foot race

Badwater 135
The 41st edition of the STYR Labs Badwater 135, known globally as “the world’s toughest foot race”, will take place July 23-25, 2018 in Death Valley, California, USA.
The most challenging part of the race is the heat, as temperatures can reach 130 °F (54 °C).

Up to 100 BadAsses will toe the line and attempt to cover 135 miles (217 km) non-stop, from the bottom of Death Valley to high on Mt. Whitney.
In 2017 75 of the 95 participants were capable of finishing this grueling race within the time limit of 48 hours.

It started with Al Arnold’s original trek from Badwater to Mt. Whitney in 1977. Arnold, an ultrarunning pioneer and human potential guru, competed in a solo effort: it was just him and his support crew against the elements and the clock.
It took four more years until Jay Birmingham also completed the course, in 1981. The official head-to-head race began ten years after Arnold’s pioneer trek, in 1987, and has been held annually since then without serious incident, fatality, or any citations issued by any branch of law enforcement.

It was the British Eleanor Robinson who won the first Badwater Ultramarathon in 1987 in 52:45:00!
The first male finisher in 1987 followed more than 6 hours later with a completion time of 58:57:34.

Death Valley is the largest U.S. National Park outside Alaska with 91% protected wilderness, including low valley floors crusted with barren salt flats, rugged mountains rising as much as 11,000 feet, deep and winding canyons, rolling sand dunes, and spring-fed oases.

It’s a self-sufficient race. Runners must arrange their own crew and vehicle to provides them with all needed support, like water, ice, food, gear, pacing, and medical care.
“Simply put, without the crew, there can be no runner, so I’m thankful to Eric for sticking with me for the whole run. Crew members have to train for the heat, be alert, and take this very, very seriously. It could be a matter of life and death,” says Badwater pioneer Al Arnold.

Overall course records
Pete Kostelnick, 28, USA, 2016: 21:56:32
Alyson Venti (Allen), 34, USA, 2016: 25:53:07

Qualification requirement
At least ONE of these requirements must be met prior to applying:

• You have officially finished the Badwater 135 (the actual race held since 1987; “solo” efforts will not be considered, except those made prior to 1990) AND have completed at least one significant ultra running event (or significant ultra cycling or triathlon event) in the previous 12 months other than the Badwater 135.
• You have officially finished at least THREE running races of at least 100 continuous miles in length, at least one of them in the previous 12 months. Exception: Officially finishing the 81-mile BADWATER SALTON SEA race “counts” as one 100-mile race for this qualifying purpose. (Please see the list of Preferred Qualifying Races below.)
• You have officially finished the Brazil 135+ (either 135 miles in 48 hours or 160 miles in 62.5 hours) AND have completed at least one significant ultra running or other endurance sports event in the previous 12 months.

Registration Badwater 135
The application period for the 2018 race is open January 19 to February 2, 2018 only!

Badwater Ultra Cup
AdventureCORPS is an athlete-run firm that initiated and owns the Badwater Ultra Cup, an annual three-race series of the 51-mile Badwater Cape Fear in March, continued with the 81-mile Badwater Salton Sea in April and concluded with the STYR Labs Badwater 135 in July.
Those runners who complete all three events in the same calendar year are featured on the Badwater.com website and their virtues are extolled throughout the Internet and in BADWATER Magazine.

Resources/further reading
Badwater 135 website
Badwater Ultra Cup organizer and brand owner
Badwater 135 application rules
Badwater 135 race registration
Application form
Race director: Chris Kostman

Heat Training Tips by Marshall Ulrich, 20-time Badwater 135 finisher

The video in this article is embedded with permission of Tom Leigh Knight, who holds all copyrights.