Canyonlands Ultra
Moab, UT
- 100 Miler, 50 Miler, 50K, Marathon, Half Marathon, 15K
- Trail (Unpaved)
- Official race website
Join for the ultimate trail running experience at the Canyonlands Ultra, part of Mad Moose Events’ popular Run Moab Series! With events ranging from 15k to 100K, this weekend is the best way to immerse yourself in the trail running community and explore the breathtaking scenery of Moab. The … MORE
Local Historical Weather (Oct 24):
| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | |
| H (°F) | 62 | 70 | 72 | 48 | 68 |
| L (°F) | 46 | 40 | 40 | 31 | 38 |
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Fraud, Scandal, Lies, Perpetuated by MME
Tried to resolve this directly with Denise/Justin Ricks but they refused, so here we go.. Quitters Never Win, Liars Never Prosper.. Except at Mad Moose Events.. Signed up for this … MORE
Tried to resolve this directly with Denise/Justin Ricks but they refused, so here we go..
Quitters Never Win, Liars Never Prosper.. Except at Mad Moose Events..
Signed up for this race(Marathon), paid my money, with the expectation that I would have a fair chance to compete, earn my rightful place, which I did..
The onsite results showed clearly that Pete S was 1st, I was 2nd.. Great! Several hours later, I saw that MME changed the results to show that a professional, sponsored runner was now 1st, Andrew W 2nd, kicking me, Pete to 3rd, 4th!.. They never were in our race.. They were signed up for the 50k.. Obviously emailed Ricks to complain that this was unfair and to correct the results.. They gave the incredulous responses of, ‘They were drop downs’, ‘It’s in our rules..You agreed to it!’ Well, it was NOT in their rules.. Ricks straight LIED.. It says nothing about allowing runners to QUIT in the middle/after a race, AND THEN be awarded a Win/2nd place in a shorter race.. Ricks retorts to that were, ‘It’s our race, we can do WHATEVER we want!’, ‘If you don’t like it, you don’t have to do our races!’, ‘Race Director decisions are final!’ They further insinuated that since Pete got his entry by volunteering, they were justified in screwing him over!.. Next, MME made Social Media posts boasting that this Pro had won the race, making no mention of this ‘dropdown’.. I brought this one up, MME LIED once again claiming ‘we don’t post on Social Media.’ Confronted with the undeniable evidence, they lied AGAIN, and blamed.. a volunteer.. Then, the third story was they only ‘shared the post’.. Lies, lies, lies.. The post was clearly from MME’s account.. They lie just to ‘save face’..It is fully evident here that they allowed this Pro to quit the 50k in order to give her the marathon win, so they could post and brag that pro’s are coming, winning their races, at the expense of volunteers, and paid participants.. There is further indication that this Pro & Andrew W were communicating during the 50k and may have colluded to do this, since they knew they weren’t going to win the 50k.. They also knew they were ahead of the marathoners.. Instead of honorably 1. finishing their 50k, 2. DNFing, or 3. requesting removal, they both took the easy way out, in order to get a higher result.. Very interesting.. Would you teach your children to do this? That’s what Ricks just taught theirs..
Next, a few days later MME blocked me from their races on UltraSignup! Laughed so hard, as I certainly would never pay them to defraud me and others ever again..
Pete, myself, and others were victimized, and defrauded by MME’s fraudulent, unethical actions at this race..
Apparently, Ricks can’t smell their own s**t.. They have disrespected their volunteers (who support their business) by blaming them for social media posts, and treating them like 2nd class citizens during their races, stealing away Pete’s rightfully earned victory..
If you are a competitive amateur, or volunteer, hoping to participate in a reputable, fair race, with rules posted upfront, then Mad Moose Events may be a problem.. If you call them out on it, they will block you.. Don’t you dare complain, or else you go to the Gulag.. No other reputable race org acts so unprofessionally.. Ricks have embarrassed themselves, their family, their organization, and have tarnished the reputation of greater Moab as a trail running destination..
Call/email MME today ([email protected]) and tell them your opinion on their dishonorable behaviour, lies, narcissism, and demand that they correct the results, to give Pete his rightful win..
Anyone who wants to see the email chain to corroborate my remarks, send me your email..
Very fun course
The course follows roads/jeep trails through BLM land. Much of the course is runnable with short sections of rock that is a bit challenging that add to fun of the … MORE
The course follows roads/jeep trails through BLM land. Much of the course is runnable with short sections of rock that is a bit challenging that add to fun of the course. The course was well marked. The area is open to jeep and trucks that drive up and down these rocky areas. I didn’t see any on the course, but others did. Also some sandy areas, but none were too long. A little long between a couple of the aid stations (~8 miles) so you need to plan for that. I finished before it rained too much, but people finishing later said the course became difficult to run with the water/mud. The 100-milers had a long, cold & muddy night. I found the aid stations to be adequately stocked, mainly pre-packaged options and no hot food except for the aid station at start/finish when you are heading out for your second lap, but several other runners complained.
Overall, a very fun race & course.
Scenic but challenging course
When you hear that a course is on jeep roads, you probably think it will be an easy course. This one was far from easy though. After about 1/2 mile … MORE
When you hear that a course is on jeep roads, you probably think it will be an easy course. This one was far from easy though. After about 1/2 mile of downhill from the start of the 7.1 mile loop, we started about a 2 mile steady climb to the edge of the Behind the Rocks Wilderness area. This is where it started to get really scenic, but the trail became more technical with slick rock and rock shelves. After dropping down a steep draw, we then went back up a long hill that seemed to get steeper the further we went. After we got to the top, it started heading downhill until we got to the intermediate aid station, which was generously supplied with all kinds of drink, snack food, and PB sandwiches. The sand and rock road then continued downhill until we got to the road where we drove in and the rest of the course was relatively flat until we got back to the finish. Altogether, there was about 774 feet of elevation gain per 7.1 mile loop. After finishing up my 5th loop in the dark and having a difficult time seeing the course markers, I decided to call it a day and stop early. Both the main aid station at the start/finish and the intermediate one on the course were stocked like I was used to in the pre-covid days with real food as well as a wide range of snacks and energy gels. I still felt safe though, as the volunteers all wore masks and gloves. Bling included a shirt, a custom Boco trucker’s hat, and a small belt buckle on a ribbon. It was really well organized, and I can see myself going back again some day.