The 2025 Hardrock 100 kicks off on Friday, July 11, with the 146 lucky runners having 48 hours to complete the loop through Colorado’s San Juan Mountains.
Starting in the tiny village of Silverton, the route alternates direction every year and, this year, is headed counterclockwise toward Lake City, onward to Ouray and Telluride, before returning to Silverton. Along the way, the runners will climb more than 33,000 feet (10,000 meters) at an average elevation of roughly 11,000 feet (3,350 meters) and a high point of 14,058 feet (4,284 meters). The course currently traverses 102.5 miles.
With the possible exception of small sections, the course should be relatively snow-free on race day. An around-average snowpack over the winter and a wet start to the summer should mean plenty of water will be found along the course.
Ludovic Pommeret leading early during the 2024 Hardrock 100 on his way to setting a course record. Photo: iRunFar/Bryon Powell
With Courtney Dauwalter not returning to defend her Hardrock crown, it’s hard not to call the defending women’s UTMB champ Katie Schide the women’s favorite. Following the American who lives in France over the Atlantic Ocean and, perhaps, on the course are Manon Bohard Cailler of France and Katharina Hartmuth of Germany, who both have top finishes at the world’s most competitive big-mountain 100 milers.
In the men’s field, defending champion Ludovic Pommeret is returning a year after setting the men’s overall course record. He may have run his way to a dominating win last year, but he’ll have his hands full this year! He’ll be joined by three Hardrock debutants, all of whom have recent UTMB podium finishes to their credit in the form of Zach Miller, as well as Mathieu Blanchard and Germain Grangier, both of France.
The women’s counterclockwise record was set by Courtney Dauwalter in 2023 with a time of 26:14:12. Dauwalter also holds the overall women’s course record, having run 26:11:49 in the clockwise direction in 2024. François D’Haene holds the men’s counterclockwise record of 21:45:50 run in 2021, while Pommeret ran his way to the overall men’s course record in clocking 21:33:06 last year. With little snow on the course, if weather conditions are favorable during the race, the competition could lead to some very fast times again this year.
Ahead of the race, we’ll publish interviews with some of the race favorites and, of course, we’ll be covering the race live starting at 6 a.m. U.S. MDT on Friday, July 11. Enjoy!
Dusk on the climb up Engineer Pass during the 2023 Hardrock 100. Photo: iRunFar/Bryon Powell
2025 Hardrock 100 Men’s Preview
I was just rereading comments on our 2024 Hardock preview, and people sure did sleep on France’s Ludovic Pommeret. However, with his course record-setting win in 21:33:06, folks won’t make that mistake again! We could spend several paragraphs noting his accomplishments, but, sticking to some recent highlights, Pommeret has been fourth, fifth, and fifth at UTMB in 2021, 2023, and 2024, won TDS in 2022, took sixth at the Western States 100 in 2022, and won Diagonale des Fous in 2021. As of late-June 2025, the 49-year-old Pommeret already run a pair of Softrocks with lots of additional time on the course under his belt. Lest you think that too much, he similarly ran two Softrocks en route to his 2024 victory.
Ludovic Pommeret rolling through Chapman Gulch on his way winning the 2024 Hardrock 100. Photo: iRunFar/Eszter Horanyi
I think everyone is psyched to see Zach Miller run this year’s Hardrock 100 after an ill-timed bout of appendicitis kept him out of last year’s race. After all, he’s had a long and exciting ultrarunning career. Since returning from a prolonged injury in 2022, Miller’s taken fifth and second at the 2022 and 2023 UTMB and sixth at the 2023 Trail World Championships – Long Trail. While he’s not raced much since the start of 2024 — just a seventh at last year’s Transgrancanaria — that shouldn’t worry anyone, as he’s never been one to over race. Trust that he’s putting in plenty of miles up high in Colorado.
The fact that Mathieu Blanchard of France has the highest UTMB index in this year’s Hardrock field is a testament to his strength. After DNFing at UTMB last year, Blanchard made the quick turnaround to win Diagonale des Fous. Of course, he previously finished third, second, and fourth at UTMB from 2021 through 2023. Although less applicable to Hardrock than the above races, Blanchard did run 15:37 to take sixth at Western States in 2023, as well. In mid-May, he took second at the Ultra-Trail Snowdonia 100k, and, in late-June, he logged a Softrock with Pommeret.
Mathieu Blanchard high fives the fans as he finishes fourth at UTMB in 2023. Photo: iRunFar/Meghan Hicks
And now we’ve got our third Frenchman and fourth recent UTMB podium finisher in the race in Germain Grangier. You might know him from his third place at UTMB in 2023 and fifth place there in 2021. He also took second at Diagonale des Fous in 2023 after taking fourth in 2022, while he won the Mont-Blanc 90k in 2023. Grangier did hit a rough patch late last year, logging DNFs at both UTMB and Diagonale des Fous. However, he won the Chianti Ultra Trail 73k in March, took fifth at Madeira Island Ultra-Trail in April, and has been training in the San Juan Mountains since early June, so there’s no reason to expect anything but Grangier’s best.
Jeff Rome is keeping alive the tradition of someone ultrarunning fans would have no idea exists, but for Hardrock. After taking seventh at Hardrock in 2017, he made himself known by taking second the following year. Then, as quickly as he appeared, he seemingly disappeared into the Misty Mountains (Hithaeglir to those who speak the Elvish tongue) for an age. Last summer, he reemerged to take fourth at Hardrock, and movement on the waitlist has him back in this year’s race.
Silverton, Colorado’s Jeff Rome, on his way to taking fourth at the 2024 Hardrock 100. Photo: iRunFar/Meghan Hicks
Despite more than a decade of ultrarunning success, local Colorado runner Kyle Curtin largely sat just off the radar until he set the men’s supported fastest known time on the Colorado Trail last year. In addition to lots of strong performances in the San Juan Mountains, some of his highlights include taking 11th at Tor des Géants in 2021 and ninth there in 2023, along with taking ninth at Western States in 2021.
Kyle Curtin running in the San Juan Mountains. Photo: iRunFar/Eszter Horanyi
More Men to Watch
- David Ayala – 1st 2024 IMTUF 100 Mile; 2nd 2023 & 2021 Bighorn 100 Mile
- Brian Culmo – 7th 2023 Hardrock 100; 14th 2025 Gorge Waterfalls 100k; 1st 2023 & 2nd 2022 Hellgate 100k
- Tyler Fannin – 3rd 2024 & 5th 2022 Wasatch Front 100 Mile; 1st 2021 El Vaquero Loco 50k
- Ian Farris – 1st 2024 Scout Mountain 100 Mile; 6th 2025, 5th 2024 & 2022 HURT 100 Mile; 8th 2024 & 5th 2022 Bear 100 Mile
- Hannes Gehring – 1st 2023 Fat Dog 120 Mile; 10th 2023 Kodiak 100 Mile; 7th 2021 Leadville 100 Mile
- Isaiah Hemmen – 8th 2025 HURT 100 Mile; 2nd 2023 Scout Mountain 100 Mile; 4th 2023 Plain 100 Mile
- Brian Hopton-Jones – 12th 2021 Hardrock 100
- Gabe Joyes – 6th 2025 Canyons 100 Mile; 2nd 2024 Quad Rock 50 Mile; 2nd 2023 IMTUF 100 Mile; 2nd 2021 High Lonesome 100 Mile
- Chris Roberts – 4th 2024 Grindstone 100 Mile; 1st 2024 Six Days in the Dome 24 Hour (149 miles)
Notable Withdrawals
- Alexandre Boucheix
- Mike Groenewegen
- Sam Ritchie
The American Basin side of Handies Peak is one of Hardrock’s iconic views. Photo: iRunFar/Bryon Powell
2025 Hardrock 100 Women’s Preview
It should surprise no one that our women’s preview starts with Katie Schide, as she’s been absolutely dominant at long ultras the past few years. Indeed, her only loss above 60k in the past four years was placing second to Hardrock women’s course record holder Courtney Dauwalter at the 2023 Western States 100, a run which was still good enough for the second fastest time in Western States race history at that point. What happened next is Schide returned to Western States and won last year, becoming the second ever woman to run faster than 16 hours. Since taking eighth at UTMB in 2021, she’s also won the 2022 UTMB, 2023 Diagonale des Fous, 2024 Canyons 100k, 2024 UTMB, where she set a course record, and 2025 Madeira Island Ultra-Trail. She’s clearly taking Hardrock seriously, as she’s been in the San Juan Mountains since early June. The only small hitch is that while out here, she did suffer a fall that required a bunch of stitches and a short hiatus from running. Still, she’s the clear favorite on the women’s side.
Katie Schide leading the 2024 UTMB, on her way to setting a new course record. Photo courtesy of UTMB.
France’s Manon Bohard Cailler has the talent and experience to run a fast Hardrock. Last year, she won the mountainous Diagonale des Fous after taking third at the 2023 Trail World Championships – Long Trail. She also won the Madeira Island Ultra-Trail in 2023 and TDS in 2021. However, it is worth noting that Bohard Callier also has some big misses at important long trail ultras, having DNFed UTMB in both 2022 and 2023 before taking 20th last year. So far this year, she’s won a pair of what were likely tune-up ultras.
Katharina Hartmuth of Germany ran to a third place at last year’s Hardrock, but undoubtedly has room for improvement based on her second place at UTMB in 2023. Before that, she was second at the 2023 Trail World Championships – Long Trail and third at TDS in 2023. For part of this spring, an injury kept Hartmuth cycling rather than running. However, she’s also been in the San Juans since early June and has recently returned to the trails.
Katharina Hartmuth runs into the town of Ouray on her way to taking third at the 2024 Hardrock 100. Photo: iRunFar/Eszter Horanyi
A Canadian living in France, Stephanie Case took second at the 2022 Hardrock 100 before taking a hiatus from ultras during which time she had her first child. In May, she returned to the trails to win the Ultra-Trail Snowdonia 100k. Given her break from racing, we’ll look a bit further back to when she was third at the 2021 Val d’Aran 100 Mile and fourth at both the 2017 and 2018 Tor des Géants.
Stephanie Case trying to enjoy a slice of pizza in Telluride during the 2022 Hardrock 100. Photo: iRunFar/Bryon Powell
Unless you’re following 200 milers, you might not have seen much of Aliza Lapierre’s name in a bit. This former Western States podium finisher was second at the Cocodona 250 Mile in 2023 and seventh in 2024. A bit further back, she won the 2022 Vermont 100 Mile and was seventh at the Leadville 100 Mile in 2021.
More Women to Watch
- Becky Bates (Canada) – 7th 2024 & 2023 Hardrock 100; 7th 2024 IMTUF 100 Mile
- Uxue Fraile (Spain) – 12th 2021 & 2nd 2018 UTMB
- Shelby Johnson – 2nd 2023 Grindstone 100 Mile; 9th 2022 Leadville 100 Mile
- Whitney Mickelsen – 6th 2023 Hardrock 100; 8th 2021 Wasatch 100 Mile; 4th 2020 IMTUF 100 Mile
- Maria Semerjian (France) – 3rd 2024 Ehunmilak 100 Mile; 6th 2021 Endurance Trail des Templiers; 6th 2019 Diagonale des Fous
- Amber Weibel – 9th 2024 Hardrock 100; 3rd 2023 Swiss Alps 100 Mile; 15th 2022 Western States 100
Notable Withdrawals
A runner in the high country during the first afternoon of Hardrock 2023. Photo: iRunFar/Bryon Powell
Call for Comments
- Who do you think will be the first woman and first man to finish?
- Who do you think will surprise everyone at this year’s Hardrock?
