Vapor Trail 125 2026

Vapor Trail 125 starts and finishes in Salida, Colorado, and sends mountain bikers into a 125-mile backcountry race that often runs through the night. Much of the riding is technical singletrack, with long stretches handled by bike light rather than daylight. The race asks for real self-sufficiency: riders need to manage their own gear, food, and decisions, and anyone who quits has to work out their own way back to Salida. Weather can make the day feel like two different seasons, with temperatures ranging from below freezing to around 80°F. The route uses two historic rail grades and links them with hard Colorado singletrack on sections tied to the Colorado Trail, Monarch Crest, and Starvation Creek. The terrain reaches high mountain country, and the related bikepacking loop climbs more than 13,000 feet with a high point above 12,500 feet. Veteran racers treat Vapor Trail 125 as a serious step up from smoother 100-mile mountain bike races; one rough comparison from the race itself is to take a Leadville 100 finish time and double it. The mood is still part party, part sufferfest, summed up by Alex Howes as “like a rave but for adult bike riders,” and Kait Boyle called it some of the most fun she had ever had racing a bike.