Arizona Trail Races

Most Arizona trail races on this calendar run on desert singletrack inside county and state parks. From October to April the Desert Runner Trail Series visits a Maricopa County regional park about once a month, from Cave Creek and McDowell Mountain to the Dam Good Run, which crosses Waddell Dam at Lake Pleasant. Expect rocky, exposed trail lined with saguaro and cholla. Point-to-point options include the Crown King Scramble, which climbs 6,828 feet from Lake Pleasant to the Crown King Saloon, and Copper Corridor on the Arizona Trail near Superior. Near Tucson, the Arizona Trail Race covers about 8 miles at Colossal Cave Mountain Park. In summer, trail racing moves to night starts in the valley or up to the ponderosa pines of Fort Tuthill in Flagstaff.