Ragnar Relay Wasatch Back Experiences Record Growth

SALT LAKE CITY, UT | May 9, 2007 - In 2004 a running event called the Wasatch Back Relay went largely unnoticed. It involved only 260 participants running non-stop from Logan to Park City, UT. Drivers in towns such as Henefer, Oakley, & Kamas wondered why these crazy people were running on their roads in the middle of the night with little more than a reflective vest and flashlight. Few people even knew about this tiny running event, and even fewer thought it had a future. But that tight-knit group of first-year participants knew that it was only the beginning for the Wasatch Back Relay.

Fast forward to the present; with over 3600 participants already registered the Ragnar Relay Wasatch Back, formerly the Wasatch Back Relay, has outgrown its cult following and has established itself as one of the largest overnight relay races in the nation. Stretching the length of nearly six and a half marathons, the Wasatch Back traverses the backside of Utah’s Wasatch Mountain Range, passing seven pristine lakes and several scenic mountain towns.

Verdon Walker has run in the Wasatch Back with the team “2 Slow 2 Win 2 Dumb 2 Quit” since the race began. “We’ve got runners from all ages and abilities, but this just brings everyone together,” he says. “It doesn’t matter what your abilities are. It’s just a great team-building experience.”

It is the unique format of the Wasatch Back that makes it accessible to runners of almost all skill levels. Teams are made up of 12 members. Each member runs 3 legs and each leg ranges from 3 to 7 miles. Team members alternate legs, meaning that the first runner must run legs 1, 13, and 25; the second runner must run legs 2, 14, and 26; and so on. This unique style of running results in each team member getting a break of 4-6 hours between legs. In addition, no team member runs more than 21 miles or less than12.

“That’s the great thing about it,” says Walker. “You can assign the beginners the easier legs and the advanced runners the harder legs. This means you can have a team of runners with completely different skill levels and everyone can have fun.”

For some, the running takes a back seat to the party in the van. “It makes you feel like a kid again,” says Vicky Anderl, a mid-aged mother of five from Sandy, Utah. She says running with her team—the Patheadaches (pronounced “Pathetics”)—is like reverting back to high school. “It’s really fun getting to know the people you are running with. Even if you don’t know them when you start the race, by the end you feel like best friends,” she says.

And the party isn’t just limited to the van. Along the course there are live bands, vendor booths, and food and drink. Teams decorate their vans, paint their faces, and some even run in costume.

According to Race Director Dan Hill, the beauty, accessibility, and general party atmosphere of the Wasatch Back only partially explains why it has become a staple of the Utah running scene and attracts participants from all over the nation.

“There is something special about a team of 12 people running 177-miles over 24-hours,” says Dan Hill. “Teams have to brave different temperatures, changing weather, and an increasingly smellier van. They have to push each other up punishing hills and down screaming descents. It is a bonding experience that only past participants can understand and it is the reason why they come back year after year. Some think it is the party, some think it is the scenery, but at the heart of the Wasatch Back it is about accomplishing something with your friends that you never could have done on your own.”

The starting gun will fire at Merlin Olsen Park in Logan, Utah, on June 22. More information about the Wasatch Back is available on its website, www.ragnarrelay.com.