Diez Vista 50k course

Man. The Diez Vista trail always kicks my ass.

I get used to classifying the north shore as technical, and then I hit those three miles of Diez Vista and I feel like I've never run on a trail before. Granted, running is a generous term for the near-death stumbling I end up doing.

And besides that section, most of the Diez Vista 50k course is very reasonable: quite a few miles of smooth dirt roads, ~13 miles of buffed gravel walking trails and some really fun, slightly-technical single track. I did make one wrong turn, but my mileage and elevation ended up being the same as is officially listed.

On race day I will be marshaling at the junction of the Academy Trail and the Eagle Bluff trail. It's easy, turn left when you go up and turn left when you go down (just think of NASCAR).

Pictures of almost all of the trails the course uses:

Sassamat Lake trail; miles 0-2 and the final mile.

Sassamat Lake, looking toward Sugar Mountain and the Diez Vistas ridge (l).

A rocky section of the Suger Mountain trail toward Diez Vistas; mile 4.

Beginning of the upper Diez Vistas trail; mile 5.

Diez Vistas trail; mile 5.

The down portions are just as steep; mile 5.

Diez Vistas; mile 6.

Diez Vistas; mile 6.

Buntzen Lake trail, pretty much like this on both sides of the lake; miles 7-15.

Academy Trail from Powerhouse Road toward the Eagle Bluff trail; miles 17-18.

Eagle Bluff trail; mile 19

The road from Eagle Bluff trail toward the aid station and turnaround of the out-and-back section; miles 20-25.

South side of Buntzen, miles 12 and 27.

Lower Diez Vista trail back up to the Sugar Mountain trail junction; mile 27.

Down, a little up and then down to Sassamat and the finish; Sugar Mountain trail, mile 28.

Lastly, the classic Diez Vista vista.