The Canyons Endurance Runs™ by UTMB®
The Canyons Endurance Runs™ by UTMB® – 25K
Downtown Auburn
Race guide
Updated 19 July 2026
The Canyons Endurance Runs by UTMB 25K is the shortest option on the Canyons weekend program, a 25 km loop that starts and finishes in Downtown Auburn, California and drops straight into the American River canyon on the same historic single-track that the longer distances use. On paper it is modest, with 656 m of climbing and a high point of only 495 m, but the profile is deceptive: nearly all of that vertical is packed into two sharp descents to the river and the two grinding climbs back out. This is a short race that rewards runners who can descend hard on technical trail and still have the legs to power-hike a climb late. If you are using it as a first taste of the Canyons terrain or as a fast, punchy day out, treat it with more respect than the distance suggests.
The course and terrain
The loop leaves Downtown Auburn at 386 m and immediately gives back everything, dropping to No Hands (No Hands - 1) at 5.6 km and just 177 m. That is a loss of more than 200 m in the opening kilometres, straight down toward the American River. From the low point the trail climbs to Cool at 10.4 km (465 m), rolls through the Cool aid stations with the second Cool checkpoint at 13.8 km (464 m), then plunges a second time back down to No Hands (No Hands - 2) at 19.3 km and 189 m. The whole course sits between roughly 177 m and 495 m, so altitude is never a factor here. What defines the day instead is the canyon shape: two long descents on the classic Western States-style single-track and two climbs back up to the rim. The finish at 25 km returns you to Downtown Auburn at 386 m, meaning the last stretch is uphill rather than a downhill sprint.
Where the race is won and lost
For a course this short, the two climbs out of the canyon are decisive. The first comes after the opening descent: from No Hands at 177 m up to Cool at 465 m, close to 290 m of gain over about five kilometres. Runners who blow their legs bombing the first descent pay for it immediately on this climb. The second and more telling climb is the finish itself. From the second No Hands crossing at 189 m (19.3 km), the trail claws back roughly 200 m over the final 5.7 km to the Auburn finish at 386 m. This is where the race sorts itself out, because it arrives on tired quads after two hard descents. Hold something in reserve for it rather than emptying the tank on the downhills, and you will pass people all the way to the line.
How to pace and fuel it
The 25K is lightly gated: the only enforced intermediate cut-off is at Cool - 2 (13.8 km) at Fri 18:45, with the finish cut-off at Fri 21:00. For most runners those limits are comfortable, so the pacing job is about managing effort, not chasing the clock. Go out controlled on the first descent to protect your quads, then settle into a steady power-hike on the climb to Cool. Aid is available at the No Hands and Cool checkpoints, so you are never far from support on a loop this size. Even so, carry enough water to cover each climb out of the canyon, where the effort is highest and the exposure greatest. Keep taking on calories early; because the race is short, it is tempting to under-fuel, but the two climbs still demand energy and the final ascent punishes anyone running on empty.
Conditions to expect
Because the entire route lies below 500 m and bottoms out in the American River canyon at under 190 m, the defining condition is heat rather than altitude. Canyon floors trap warm air, and the two climbs back to the rim are the most exposed parts of the course. With the cut-offs falling on a Friday evening, expect to be climbing out of the canyon during the warmer part of the day, so plan your hydration and pacing around that. The trails are the well-established single-track of the Auburn and Cool network, technical enough on the descents to demand attention but runnable throughout. Good downhill footing and confidence on rocky, rooty terrain will serve you far better here than raw flat speed.
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Checkpoints & cut-offs
✓ Course data verified against the official source (2026-07-17) · official source
0 km · 386 m · —
5.6 km · 177 m · —
10.4 km · 465 m · —
13.8 km · 464 m · Fri 18:45
19.3 km · 189 m · —
25 km · 386 m · Fri 21:00
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