Chihuahua Mexico by UTMB® 2026

There are places on Earth where running isn’t a sport. It’s a tradition 🌞.

Chihuahua by UTMB® is clearly in that second category—the kind of event that makes you want to ditch your office chair, buy a pair of running shoes, and book a one-way ticket to Mexico in October ✈️. But before you charge headfirst into the canyons 🏜️, let us explain why this place isn’t just a Western movie set—it’s literally the cradle of running 🌎. Before GPS watches, before carbon shoes, before 16-week training plans, people were already running here 📍. Welcome to the Sierra Tarahumara, in the state of Chihuahua (yes, like the little dog—but don’t worry, the connection ends there 😂). There, in the maze of canyons slicing through the mountains, lives the Rarámuri people, a name that translates as "those with light feet" 🪽. No false modesty with these folks ☝️. Pushed into the Barranca del Cobre region as the Spanish advanced, they turned these harsh canyons into their playground—and, incidentally, the most mythical place in the world of trail running 😍.

The Rarámuri developed a tradition of long-distance running to ensure communication and transport between their villages, able to cover up to 320 km over several days through steep canyons ⛰️. To give you an idea: it’s like running from Toulon to Lyon, in the mountains, without GPS, and probably without aid stations 😅. All of that at over 2,000 m altitude, if you please 😎. And the icing on the cake? The Rarámuri don’t train. Ever. Their lifestyle makes them athletes from the youngest age 💪. It was journalist Christopher McDougall who put this people in the spotlight in 2009 with his bestseller Born to Run, a book that sparked a revolution in the trail world and made minimalist shoes explode in popularity 🤓. A year after their first international appearance, a Rarámuri runner named Juan Herrera won the legendary Leadville 100 in 17h30, smashing the course record by 25 minutes 🤯. And as if that wasn’t enough to humble the rest of the trail planet, a Rarámuri woman won a 63 km ultra in sandals and traditional clothing 🩴. While some people compare the drop of their carbon plates from their couch 🤪.

Chihuahua by UTMB® isn’t a race that shows up on conquered ground. It’s an invitation. As their slogan says so well: "Some places are not reached by chance. Some territoires are only crossed when the door is open." The Copper Canyons welcome the world, but on their terms, with respect for their culture 🤗. Even the race names remind you of it every time you register: the "Rarámuri 100M" (135 km, 6,700 mD+ ⛰️), the "Weriga 100K" (94 km, 4,600 mD+), the "Akáa 59K", the "Komakali 38K", the "Napurega 20K", and the "Norawa 8.5K" for those who want to discover the sport before committing to something unreasonable 😬. This new edition of the event’s grand lady, the "Rarámuri 100M", takes runners even deeper into the canyons, crossing the communities of Urique, Churo and Guitayvo, the historic villages of the Rarámuri. The next day, the "Weriga 100K" takes over: a passage at the Cerro del Gallego Viewpoint, the highest viewpoint in Mexico. Nothing less! 🤩 For those who want to test themselves without ending up sore, the "Akáa 59K" offers a wild wilderness: start from Parque Barrancas in Divisadero, passing through the villages of Areponapuchi, San Alonso and San Rafael, with 2,400 m of positive elevation gain combining runnable sections and technical trails with spectacular views 😍.

Small cultural bonus: you’ll run alongside the Rarámuri, and you can greet them with a "kuira bá", the traditional phrase meaning "we are all one"! 😇