Canyons 50K race review: hills and gratitude for days

By Henry Howard

While I prefer trail running over paved surfaces, I had set a goal for a six-hour race on a flat, paved 2-mile loop course on April 26. I had trained specifically for that race including two long runs, leading up to the race, on a flat, 2-mile loop near my house.

Then I got an opportunity that I could not pass up.

A few weeks ago, I was invited to the Canyons-UTMB ultra weekend series, and jumped into the 50K, also held on April 26. I had a blast at the festivities throughout the four days I was there, including trying out the new Hoka Mafate Xs, which I reviewed here; attending several panel sessions, including this one featuring pro trail runners Rod Farvard and Lotti Brinks, hosted by Corrine Malcolm; and — of course — racing the 50K.

New shoes, new course

Thanks to Hoka, I was able to get my hands on a pair of the soon-to-be-released Hoka Mafate X and went for a trail run two days before the race. I had brought a pair of Speedgoats to the race but it did not take me long to feel comfortable in the Mafates.

It was an easy call to wear them on race day. And I am glad that I did.

The Mafate X features a higher bed of soft cushion, designed to provide a forgiving impact and ride. That’s exactly what I needed for the Canyons 50K. The course has roughly 5,000 feet of elevation gain on a mix of smooth California dreamin’ single track, along with some rocky sections and several miles on roads between the start-finish area and the trails.

My day started out with a typical pre-race breakfast, getting myself and my gear ready and then a warm-up in the hotel room. Since the hotel was just a half-mile from the start line, I did a warm-up jog over to the start line where I found the place to stash my drop bag easily.

The race start was well organized, started on time and provided just the energy boost I needed. I was especially grateful that several new friends I had made in the past few days as part of the Hoka Mafate X unveiling were there to greet me and cheer me on at the start before they departed for the airport.

The Canyons is a beautiful course, very well marked and a good challenge, especially for someone who didn’t train for a race with such significant gain. A particular draw for me was being able to run on parts of the Western States course. That is still my primary goal as a runner and this experience only amplified my stoke for that quest.

A little help from my friends

No Canyons 50K race review would be complete without raving about the volunteers from packet pickup to those at the start-finish line to the wonderful collection of humans at the aid stations.

Each time I stopped at an aid station, I was greeted with, “What do you need?” “How can I help?” and other welcome questions. The aid stations were not only stocked with amazing humans, but as someone with Celiac Disease, I was grateful for the gluten-free peanut butter and jelly squares. (In hindsight, I may have chowed down on a couple of those too early.)

Other than that, my nutrition was locked in really well. I believe I had about 620 carbs throughout the day, which kept me consistently fueled and energetic (for the most part) throughout the race.

Final thoughts on Canyons 50K

On race day, a gentle rain greeted the runners for about the first four hours of the race, then following a pause, a steady rain kicked in, making my final trail section somewhat of a sloppy mess. During the few times I went through a creek crossing, the shoes dried quickly.

The Mafate X shoes gripped the variety of surfaces really well, provided excellent response and the cushioning kept my injury-prone ankle in check. That was especially important during the times on the rockier sections when I stepped awkwardly on jagged rocks.

I finished around my goal time, crossing the finish line in 6:16:25, good enough for fifth out of 32 in my age group.

Would I do this race again? Since Canyons offers 100-mile, 100K and 25K distance, I would probably choose a different option – and ideally commit more specific training to it.