Top 10 trail stories of 2023

The 2023 trail running season will go down in history, with some of the most astounding performances yet, and records broken by runners around the globe. Colorado’s Courtney Dauwaulter became the first runner to win the triple crown of ultras—Western States 100, Hardrock 100 and UTMB (171 km) in one season; FKTs fell and fans around the world tuned in to watch runners complete loops for days, running hundreds of kilometres at Big’s Backyard Ultra World Championships. It’s not easy to choose a top 10, due to the nature of trail running, with races held on a wide array of distances and terrain, but these are our picks for the top 10 trail stories of 2023.

10. 2023 Barkley Marathons sees an incredible three finishes

In March, the notoriously gruelling Barkley Marathons saw three remarkable finishes–the first since John Kelly’s in 2017. France-based Aurélien Sanchez was the first, finishing the race in his debut, with American runner John Kelly scoring his second, much-anticipated finish, and Karel Sabbe, the Belgian dentist, finishing with only seven minutes left on the clock.

9. Mika Thewes smashes course record (by 8 hours) at Bigfoot 200 

Colorado-based Mika Thewes was the first woman at Bigfoot 200 in August, a 207.9-mile trail race (with 13,887.6 metres of elevation gain) that traverses Washington’s Cascade mountain range. Thewes, 32, finished the race in 58 hours, 21 minutes and 12 seconds, breaking the overall course record by more than eight hours and crushing her personal best by 18 hours.

Only a month later, she capped off her season by finishing as first woman (and fourth overall) at The Divide 200 in 58 hours, 51 minutes and 11 seconds.

8. Jack Kuenzle sets ridiculous Mount Denali FKT

In June, ultrarunner and former U.S. Navy SEAL Jack Kuenzle set a new fastest known time (FKT) on Denali, the largest mountain in North America (formerly Mount McKinley). He completed the challenging climb from base camp to the summit and back in an astonishing 10 hours, 14 minutes and 57 seconds, surpassing the previous record, held by Ecuadorian/Swiss climber Karl Egloff, by an hour and a half.

7. Scott Cooper finishes The Divide 200 in under 50 hours

Calgary’s Scott Cooper crossed the finish line of the inaugural The Divide 200 (Western Canada’s first 200-mile race, with more than 12,000 metres of elevation) in a remarkable 49 hours, 47 minutes and 59 seconds. It was Cooper’s first 200-miler, and he managed to hit his goal time despite not sleeping during the race and hallucinating snakes on the trail.

6. Camille Herron obliterates Spartathlon record by more than two hours

American ultrarunning legend Camille Herron demolished yet another record, this time in Greece, at the 40th edition of the iconic Spartathlon event. Herron finished third overall on the 153-mile course, besting the women’s course record (24:48:18, set by Patrycja Bereznowska in 2018) by more than two hours to finish in 22 hours, 35 minutes and 30 seconds.

5. Belgium’s Karel Sabbe demolishes FKT on Pacific Crest Trail

Sabbe may be best known for being among the few to finish the Barkley Marathons, but his substantial FKT (Fastest Known Time) accomplishments are no less remarkable.

In August, the Belgian dentist and ultrarunner added a massive achievement to his already significant list: a new (supported) speed record on the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) of 46 days, 12 hours and 50 minutes. Sabbe beat ultrarunner Timothy Olson’s 2021 record (51d, 16h and 55m) by 5 days and 4 hours.

4. France’s Claire Bannwarth becomes the first woman to win Tahoe 200 overall

A top story about Claire Bannwarth is hard to choose. The French runner had a mind-blowing season, seeming to capture one victory (or near victory) after another with little to no recovery time, packing several years’ worth of races into a matter of weeks.

In July, Bannwarth ran her way into the record books by becoming the first woman to win the Tahoe 200 Mile Endurance Run outright—only one week after securing a fifth-place finish in the women’s category at Hardrock 100.

3. Jim Walmsley gets the win at UTMB

In early September in Chamonix, after years of trying and failing to score that elusive victory, Jim Walmsley (formerly of Flagstaff, Ariz., but more recently a resident of France) finally achieved his dream of being the first runner to cross the finish line at Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB). The three-time Western States winner and course record holder crossed the line in a record-breaking time of 19 hours, 37 minutes and 43 seconds.

2. Harvey Lewis smashes backyard ultra record at Big’s Backyard

Fans around the world watched as American runner Harvey Lewis completed 108 yards at Big’s Backyard Ultra in Bell Buckle, Tenn.—more than 724 kilometres over five days, thanks to an assist from Canada’s Ihor Verys.

Three runners surpassed the previous record of 102 laps (set by Australia’s Phil Gore earlier this year), but the race became a two-man showdown between Lewis and Verys when Poland’s Bartosz Fudali tapped out at the beginning of the 104th yard.

1. Courtney, Courtney, Courtney

It’s impossible to pick one 2023 story about Colorado’s Courtney Dauwaulter. She may well be the GOAT of trail running, and in 2023 Dauwaulter rocked the ultra-trail world when she became the first runner to win the triple crown of ultras—Western States 100, Hardrock 100 and UTMB (171 km) in one season.

Dauwaulter also set new course records at both WSER and Hardrock 100, and finished easily within the top 10 overall runners in both races. Earlier in the year, Dauwalter won Bandera 100K in Texas, and the Transgrancanaira 128K in Spain. Fans can hardly wait to see what barriers she’ll break in 2024.

Check out the top 10 running stories of 2023, here.