More Than Miles: Grand Mesa Ultramarathon Series Connects Community

It’s a brisk July morning at the Mesa Top Trailhead and dawn is just getting ready to break. High above the Grand Valley, on a dirt road at the top of the Grand Mesa, more than 200 runners are stretching out and warming up. They’re getting ready to run anywhere from 30 kilometers to 100 miles. An ultramarathon is defined by distance — anything greater than the 26.2 miles in a marathon — but the event about to take place is measured in more than just its mileage.

Photos Courtesy of Kristie Siman, Grand Mesa Ultras

ON YOUR MARKS ...

In 2014, after moving back to his hometown of Grand Junction, Scott Vig ran his first-ever 100-mile race. It was one of three races in the Grand Mesa Ultramarathon Series (GMU Series), and his only thought upon finishing was how the race had “annihilated” him. Vig’s partner, Kristi Siman, attempted the series’ 60k the following year, but had to drop out due to gut issues. Exhaustion and stomach troubles aside, Siman says, “We fell in love with the Mesa and the course.”

Siman and Vig heard that the director of the series was nearing the end of his time as a race director and they began to dream of directing it themselves. Directing races was not a new endeavor for the duo. Before moving back to Grand Junction, they had established a Thanksgiving 5k (“turkey trot”) in Chicago. The race benefits hospice and is a memorial to Siman’s grandmother.

For the next few years, each time after the stunning Mesa race, Siman and Vig considered approaching the director and offering to take it on, but could never find the right words to say so.

Then, in June of 2016, the news broke: The Grand Mesa Ultramarathon Series was cancelled.

Although saddened, Siman says, “We were dying at the possibility of what this might lead to.”

Vig connected with the former director, and the series was handed over to the duo. In a six-week flurry of activity, Siman and Vig lowered prices, moved the start line to offer access to campgrounds, added a shorter distance option and promised an afterparty to remember. They were tasked with convincing runners to re-sign up and had a goal of 30 participants. More than 70 showed up to race. “We were like, ‘okay, this is awesome’,” recalls Siman.

RUGGED ROUTES

One aspect that sets the GMU Series apart from other ultramarathons is the course itself. An intersection of beauty and pain, the views are as breathtaking as the altitude, and refreshing mountain breezes can quickly turn to summer monsoons.

This was one of the features that kept luring Vig back after his first excruciating 100 miler. “I loved how rugged and remote these trails are compared to other races,” he says.

For Jen Stagner, who has run countless ultramarathons, including the series’ 55K twice, this strange combination tempts her, as well. “You have to take what the mountains give you,” she says, “It reinforces that sense of mental fortitude. ‘Am I going to be tough or am I going to cry about it?’ You have to just keep moving. Like life, sometimes, you just have to get through it.”

Of the course, Stagner adds, “It’s beautiful and deceptively challenging. People look at it and think ‘eh, it’s not that hard,’ and then they get out there and suffer. That’s appealing, in a weird, ultrarunner way.”

James Roche, who has run the series’ 55k once and its 50-mile race twice, concedes that, “Although the course is flat, it has gnarly terrain.” However, this is easily forgiven. “The Grand Mesa is one of the more unique areas in Colorado, even in the country,” says Roche. “You start early enough to see the sunrise on Crag Crest. It’s truly incredible.”

RUN FOR ALL

The “low-key” atmosphere that Vig experienced during his 100-mile race is an aspect he and Siman are committed to keeping. Awards are handmade by Vig himself, and the afterparty thrown by Vig and Siman is always a big hit. The camaraderie at the end of the races is something Siman holds dear. “In this day, where there’s so much negativity and everything is fast-paced, it’s nice to provide an environment where people can do the things they love with people they love,” she says.

Roche agrees. “You feel like you’re in [the race] with everyone else that’s out there. There aren’t many people, so you get a lot of time to yourself. When you do run into someone, you get that ‘lost in the woods’ sense of camaraderie.”

Stagner, who runs the Crag Crest portion of the trail each year as a celebration of her kids returning to school, shares a similar sentiment. “I personally feel like it’s my backyard. I have that connection — those are my trails,” she explains.

The quality time and togetherness these races cultivate are important to both the participants and the directors. When he isn’t running, Roche is a father, a professor at Colorado Mesa University and online at Eastern Illinois University and a registered dietitian who works at three hospitals in the Grand Valley. Stagner is a mom of three and a seasonal wilderness ranger with the Forest Service. Even Siman has a full-time job in audit and risk for a credit card company.

This balance of work, life and family is welcomed wholeheartedly at the GMU Series. “We see families that make T-shirts for their runners, some volunteer at the aid station.

They’re so invested in following their runners. We try really hard to be open to that — as long as it’s safe — to let people get out there and be with the people that make them happiest,” says Siman.

IN IT FOR THE LONG RUN

In the wake of COVID-19 and the cancellation of races worldwide, Siman remains optimistic. “We’re hopeful,” she says, “I’m grateful that it isn’t scheduled until the end of July. We have our fingers crossed.” Siman also hopes that this will have a lasting effect on trail running and possibly add new members to its welcoming community. “I can’t believe how many people I see out and about right now. I pull up to trailheads and they’re way more crowded. Maybe this will have some sort of lasting effect in that way,” she muses.

As the race heads into its fifth year under the direction of Siman and Vig, more big dreams sit on the horizon. Siman hints, “We’re always scheming.” Plans include a possible one-mile fun run for kids and prospective new race routes. However, Siman and Vig never want to compromise the close-knit atmosphere. “Everyone always asks us if we want to grow it crazy big like other races,” Siman shares, “but we quite like the personal touches that the smaller race affords.”

Although planning and directing races as a party of two is difficult, “Nothing to me is negative,” says Siman, “it makes it all worth it knowing you are facilitating something that people are working so hard for. You wouldn’t think you’d be that invested, but watching someone cross the finish line, you realize how much effort that takes. We get so much joy out of it.”

Originally published in the Summer 2020 issue of SPOKE+BLOSSOM