Zane Musgrave put on a record-setting performance to win the 4th annual Devils Racetrack Backyard Ultra at Wade Mountain Nature Preserve.
Musgrave, 23, of Rapid City, S.D., finished 25 yards totaling 104.166 miles early Sunday morning to claim the title and record. The 4.167-mile yard, or loop, is certified on the trail or road, depending on the event’s setup. For Devils Racetrack, organizers must do both. Runners transitioned from preserve trails to roads during overnight yards for safety.
Backyard ultra runners must complete a yard within an hour before starting the next one. Finish before the starting bell rings and you get a break to rest, eat, fix blisters, change panties or whatever. Runners must cross the line and then be in the established starting corral when the bell rings to begin the next loop.
It’s not a marathon or sprint. It’s not a trail run. Backyard ultras are endurance events requiring planning, training and strategy. Perhaps, for example, you see a competitor flagging a bit or slowing down. Maybe you surge ahead and are relaxing in your comfy camp spot when he or she comes in. Or you see someone else pushing hard, so you lay back, reduce your pace a bit and let them think you’re having issues. But, of course, you’re just playing possum for a later surge. A lot of watching, studying and cat-and-mouse strategizing can go on.
Later in the game, though, runners know who’s doing what and at what pace. They settle into the battle, talk, maybe swap stories or ideas. They may, ultimately, let another runner or two know they’re bowing out after this lap. Or they put on a happy face, relatively speaking after 70 or 80 miles. Often, thought, it’s just one foot in front of the other, quietly, getting the job done at a specific pace.
Record Battle
Tim Briggs of Warm Springs, Ga., battled Musgrave for a day. After 24 yards and 100 miles, Briggs waved the flag. He and Musgrave already had shattered the record for yards held by Michael Wall and Kyle Wagner.
Briggs and Musgrave were the final two from the field of 45 that included runners from nine states. Devils Racetrack has more than doubled in size from 17 runners in 2022, won by Hayden Maples with 10 yards on a terribly hot day.
This year’s event began Saturday morning at 7 a.m. After Briggs dropped early Sunday morning, Musgrave had to finish one more yard by himself to claim the win. Backyard ultra rules require the final runner to get one more within the established hour. It’s not like he was able to just piddle paddle along. Musgrave had to start in the corral and finish within the hour to be the winner.
This year’s Devils Racetrack event was a Bronze Coin backyard ultra, which gives the winner entry into a Silver Coin backyard ultra. And that event is a qualifier to the Big’s Backyard Ultra held in autumn.
About Wade Mountain
Trails at the Land Trust of North Alabama property are runnable and rugged, a perfect mix for the backyard trail fest put on by Fringe Events.
Devils Racetrack runners start in the Spragins Trailhead parking lot, take a short road toodle to separate the pack and then hit the trails. They’re mostly single-track, with a mix of rocks, roots, a few slick areas after rain and mostly runnable paths. Devils Racetrack tops out on the mountain with a nice loop, offering views south toward Huntsville along with the occasional rattlesnake in summer.
Devils Racetrack got its name from stories passed down that Native Americans raced their ponies around the top of the mountain. True? No one knows.
Musgrave comes from an athletic family and is no stranger to doing tough things. He played linebacker at Chadron State College in Nebraska after a stellar high school career in 6-man football, wrestling and track-field. His mother has completed marathons in all 50 states.
This year’s Devils Racetrack field included prior champs Wall and Wagner, along with Meredith Parks of Madison. She was one of three women in the inaugural 2022 field and completed four yards during that heatfest.
