A lone runner continues her race down Rice Ridge Road with a view of Seeley Lake to her right.
Racers in the 50K, 25K and 10K start from Seeley Creek Trailhead Saturday morning, June 20.
50K leader Tyler Courville turns a corner of the winding Rice Ridge Road and begins the final descent towards the finish of the 50K.
SEELEY LAKE - Runners stretched, filled up their water bottles, and did practice laps to prepare for three different length versions of the Bad Bob race, put on by the Mountain Trail Series June 20. The 10, 25, and 50K launched from the Seeley Creek trailhead and sent trail runners from Morrell Creek over the top of Rice Ridge.
"Today has gone by and everything seems smoother than normal," said race organizer Chris Stout. "The route is a little different but to be honest the race is pretty much the same it was the last five years."
Out of the 120 runners Stout said originally registered, roughly 70 people hit the trails in Seeley, 30 in each the 50K and 25K, as well as 10 in the 10K.
Usually, the race is held with the Bob Marshall Music Festival, which was canceled due to the coronavirus. Because the event was outside, and people were able to somewhat socially distance, Stout said the Missoula City-County Health Department gave the race the okay to continue.
The race organizers set up social distancing cones at the registration tent, and also had hand sanitizer for the racers, who mostly kept to their own cars. Racers came from all across Montana, as well as several states around the West, though it was unclear if they all ended up making the trip to Seeley.
Runners all started from the parking lot of Seeley Creek and followed the Cottonwood Lakes Road for less than a mile. After crossing Morrell Creek, the different races then took separate paths onto forest service roads and trails.
Despite the maze of races, Stout said nobody got lost, though a few people might have gotten confused on what turn to make.
"On the ski trails the running is really great but there are a lot of intersections. Somebody might see somebody in front of them and then run with them even if they are in different races," Stout said.
The 50K runners took a long stretch up Rice Ridge, through the charred and green burn zone, and back to the Auggie-Morrell cutoff road. Tyler Courville of St. Ignatius, Mont. led through the final stretch down the ridge and took the best time on the course, finishing in roughly four and a half hours.
Courville ran cross country in high school. While he didn't run in college, he was always looking for races that were challenging and fun. He enjoys long races because walking is acceptable.
Courville said the Bad Bob's trails made the race especially tough because all of the inclines were subtle, but went on for long distances before there was a break in the uphill. The course's website listed the total ascent as 5,000 feet, and no trail had a higher incline than 18%.
"My friends and I call it an honest grade," Courville said. "It shows how tough you are I guess, and I think it was just a hard course to maintain a high level of effort."
The Mountain Trail Series has two more races planned in Montana this summer. There is a 50K only on July 11 in Butte, and a race from Deer Lodge to Philipsburg Aug. 1. There are also races scheduled in Idaho and Wyoming.
No official results were posted on the race's website as of June 21. Results will be posted at https://runsignup.com/Race/Results/68176#resultSetId-160625;perpage:100.
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