Overview
The Leadville Trail 100 MTB is one of those races where the specifics become lore. The silver belt buckle for sub-nine hours. The gold buckle for sub-nine. The fact that it starts at 10,152 feet above sea level, higher than most races finish. The Columbine Mine climb at mile 50, where riders push bikes up 30% grades at 12,400 feet trying to maintain any forward progress at all. The race has been running since 1994 and has produced the kind of stories — Lance Armstrong, Rebecca Rusch, Dave Wiens — that attach themselves to a place permanently. You don't do Leadville. You go to Leadville.
The 2026 edition runs an altered course. The Willow Fire burned more than 7,000 acres near Leadville in late June, and race organizers, working with local authorities, redirected the route away from Hagerman Pass Road, Sugarloaf Mountain, and the iconic Powerline climb and descent. The 2026 course routes east around Turquoise Lake instead of west toward Sugarloaf, rejoining the original course at the base of where Powerline would have been. This means the 2026 race loses the Powerline climb — the gut-punch final technical ascent that historically cost riders their buckle in the last twenty miles — but retains St. Kevin's, Columbine, and the full character of the out-and-back. The revised course covers 100.9 miles with 10,817 feet of gain, roughly 2,000 feet less than traditional editions, with more road mileage in the early sections. The altitude doesn't care about any of this.
Whether this course is meaningfully easier than traditional Leadville is beside the point if you're attempting it for the first time. You start at 10,152 feet. You climb to 12,500 feet. You do 100 miles in a place where sea-level fitness is discounted 15–20%. The buckle cutoff is nine hours. For most mortals, this course will be the hardest day on a bike they've ever had, fire reroute or not.
The Route
The race is a point-to-point out-and-back departing west on Harrison Avenue in Leadville, looping around Turquoise Lake, climbing to the Columbine Mine turnaround at 12,500 feet, and returning along the same general course.
Miles 0–9: Harrison Avenue to St. Kevin's The mass start on Harrison Avenue in downtown Leadville is organized chaos — 2,000 riders at 6:30am in the dark at 10,000 feet, headlights and cowbells. The first miles are fast and contested, which is exactly the wrong call at this altitude. St. Kevin's arrives early: a gravel climb that tests legs before they've had any chance to warm up. The road is rough in sections, the gradient honest, and the altitude immediately apparent to anyone who flew in from below 5,000 feet. Ride within yourself here. Everyone who ignores this advice pays for it at Columbine.
Miles 9–22: Turquoise Lake East Loop (2026 Alteration) In previous editions, the course went west toward Hagerman Pass and Sugarloaf before descending to meet Pipeline. The 2026 route instead loops east around Turquoise Lake, following smoother road around the reservoir before rejoining the original course at the bottom of where Powerline would have been. The east lake road is a scenic detour past glassy water at alpine elevation — one of the more pleasant stretches of the course. It trades Powerline's brutal gravel for road miles, which some riders will love and others will resent.
Miles 22–40: Pipeline and the Push to Twin Lakes Riders pass through the Pipeline aid station and continue south toward Twin Lakes, the race's primary crew access point and the last place you'll see familiar faces before Columbine. The Trail section here features packed dirt and minor technical terrain. Twin Lakes sits at around 9,200 feet in a mountain valley with a full crowd — hundreds of spectators, crew, and costumed supporters creating a chaotic tunnel of noise. Come through Twin Lakes at mile 40 knowing exactly what you're about to do. The climb starts immediately on the other side.
Miles 40–50: The Columbine Mine Climb Forty miles in, starting from Twin Lakes at 9,200 feet, the Columbine climb gains 3,100 feet over roughly ten miles to reach 12,424 feet at the mine turnaround. The first eight miles follow a steady forest access road at manageable grades — rideable at a disciplined pace, but altitude is already pulling your FTP down. The final two miles above 12,000 feet are where Columbine earns its reputation. Grades hit 15–30% on loose, eroded singletrack; most riders walk sections. The air is thin enough that even breathing is conscious effort. At the summit the terrain is open, windy, and spectacular in the way that high-elevation places are when you're suffering. The turnaround is marked. Take the moment.
Miles 50–78: Return Through Twin Lakes and Pipeline The descent from Columbine is faster than the climb but requires care on the same loose sections. Twin Lakes comes back at mile 60, which is where races are won and buckles are lost — the back half of Leadville is an honest assessment of how well you paced the first half. The 2026 course's absence of Powerline means riders don't face that grinding technical re-climb in the final miles; whether that helps or simply moves the suffering earlier is a matter of perspective.
Miles 78–100.9: The Return to Leadville The return routing around Turquoise Lake east and back over St. Kevin's — this time the paved side of the climb — brings riders back toward Leadville on miles that feel longer than they are. At this point in the race the altitude is a fixed tax on every pedal stroke. The final miles back on Harrison Avenue are flat and fast, which is the cruelest gift: fresh legs could cover this ground quickly, and you no longer have those. The finish line and belt buckle ceremony are worth every inch of what came before.
What to Bring
- Altitude-specific nutrition plan — Appetite suppression is real above 10,000 feet; liquid calories and gels do more work than solid food; eat aggressively before you stop being able to
- Cold weather gear in your drop bags — Columbine summit can see temperatures in the 30s and 40s with wind, even in August; a thin insulating layer and gloves weigh nothing; hypothermia on a descent at 12,000 feet is not theoretical
- Crew or drop bag strategy — Twin Lakes (outbound mile 40, inbound mile 60) is the most important single crew point; Pipeline (mile 25 outbound) is the second; plan your calorie and hydration refuels around these
- Pre-race altitude acclimatization — Arrive at Leadville at least 2–3 days early if you're coming from sea level; consider spending a night at lower elevation the night before
- Tubeless tires with extra sealant — The course has enough rock and gravel debris that a flat at mile 45 on the descent from Columbine is a buckle-ending event; two CO2 cartridges minimum
- Light for the final miles — Slower riders will be finishing after dark; a handlebar light is not optional
Local Tips
- Best window: Race week is the third Saturday of August; the course can be ridden independently in summer but requires permits for some sections and conditions change fast
- Acclimatize or suffer: Leadville at 10,000 feet will reduce your sea-level FTP by 15–20% and suppress your ability to feel it happening — this is the race's trap
- Twin Lakes cutoff: The outbound cutoff at Twin Lakes Dam is 10:15am; if you're close to this, your day becomes a survival operation, not a race
- 2026 note: Course changes mean the Powerline climb and descent, traditionally the race's final defining test, are absent; winners' times may not be comparable to historical editions
- Post-race: Leadville has one gear: survival mode. Tennessee Pass Cookhouse is worth a dinner reservation if you can move your legs; the post-race finish area energy on Harrison Avenue is worth staying for even if you're cooked