The Elephant Mountain Trail Runs were born out of the unique nature of the Spur Cross Ranch Conservation Area, one of eleven Maricopa County Regional Parks. Spur Cross Ranch is one of the newest Maricopa County Regional Parks and features almost 11.5 miles of trails including the steep and rugged Elephant Mountain Trail, connections with the Maricopa Trail and the Cave Creek trail system within the Tonto National Forest. Spur Cross is a perfect place for an afternoon hike and picnic along the Cave Creek, or a jumping off point for an all day rugged trail run in the Tonto National Forest. The original concept for the race had the start/finish at Spur Cross and a multiple loop course featuring multiple trips over the gnarly Elephant Mountain Trail, the highlight of the park. Further discussions with the park supervisor and the more sensitive nature of Spur Cross Ranch’s “conservation area” status led us to our current course with a start and finish within Cave Creek Regional Park and an out and back along the Maricopa Trail. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to include the Elephant Mountain Trail within the race, but it is highly recommended to check out on your own. On race week, Arizona was hit with a very rare snow storm that brought accumulated snow to the streets of Scottsdale and Phoenix, while dusting the mountains and peaks surrounding Spur Cross Ranch. On course marking day, there was even snow alongside the trails within Spur Cross and Cave Creek Regional Park! Race day turned out to be absolutely beautiful with clear skies, a cold start and comfortable daytime temperatures. At the top of the first climb over the Go John Trail a pack of 8-9 runners led the 50K and began their journey across the Maricopa Trail between the two parks. The sun was just hitting Elephant Mountain in the distance, providing a stunning view of the races’ namesake feature. The 50K runners return through the start/finish line after mile 24 before a final 7 mile loop all within Cave Creek Regional Park. Two Colorado runners, Jerry Armstrong and Ryan Lassen were in 1st and 2nd, with 1 minute of each other while Marie Repac of Scottsdale who was leading the women’s race had a comfortable lead over Deva Lingemann of Cave Creek. Jerry and Marie both held on to their leads, finishing first in 4:37:36 and 5:16:12 respectively. Ryan Lassen was just 23 seconds back of Jerry at the finish! The 35K was a hotly contested race between previous DRT trail series race winners Joshua Trevino, Jules Miller and Brian “Supertramp” Folts. All three were close together at the Spur Cross turnaround, but Josh turned on the heat in the second half and ran away with the win in a speedy 2:26:55. Miller was second in 2:35:27 and Folts who took a spill out on the course rounded out third in 2:38:01. Gudrid Espensheid of Big Piney, Wyoming took first place for the women in 3:09:53, Kelly Patterson of Flagstaff was second in 3:20:06 and Ariane Buser of Sausilito, California rounded out third in 3:22:20. The Elephant Mountain Trail runs will return next year on February 22 with the addition of a 22K!