There's a reason this race near Bellingham is called the Endurance Challenge

From the description, it sounds like a great place for an extended backpacking adventure.

The route, according to the official literature, includes "insane views of Mount Baker and the North Cascades to the east. The views of the San Juan Islands to the west, Canadian [mountains] to the north, plus the vast Skagit Valley to the south are not half bad, either. Elevations bounce between 200 and 2,500 feet, but do not include any huge, sustained climbs. Traverses of broken ridgeline require nimble feet while highly technical sections demand mountain goat skills."Unfortunately for folks who like to plod slowly along on a backpacking adventure, the literature in this case isn't a hikers' guidebook, but rather the Endurance Challenge race pamphlet, and the description is that of the Bellingham-area race course.

What kind of people would run — and not just for fun, but to compete for the fastest time — along such a precarious backcountry trail? And up to a foot-numbing 50 miles?

"I saw an ad on the back of Runners World magazine, and thought it looked like a great new challenge," said Craig Jacobsen of Seattle. "I've done a few regular half-marathons in the past, but nothing like this, so I thought I'd try it."

On Saturday, the Endurance Challenge, sponsored by The North Face, descends on Bellingham's Camp Lutherwood. Nestled on the east side of Chuckanut Mountain, Camp Lutherwood serves as the start/finish of a series of races through the rugged terrain on Chuckanut.

The North Face Endurance Challenge Series includes events in New York state; Washington, D.C.; Wisconsin; and a series championship event near San Francisco. Prizes for the contest include $1,000 for the winner of each of the four regional 50-mile races and a $10,000 prize for the series championship in December.

Drawn by the challenge

Jacobsen, 27, has run trails before, but only on recreational outings of four or five miles at a time, so he knows the Endurance race will be a true challenge. "I went to school in Bellingham. I know how steep those trails are."

The course maps and route profiles show a roller-coaster course with one massive climb right in the middle, shooting from a few hundred feet above sea level to nearly 2,000 feet, in just a mile of trail.

"I expect this to be a lot harder than anything I've done before," said Jacobsen. That is exactly what draws a growing number of racers and recreational trail runners to these events. This growing category of backcountry recreation draws thousands to trails and even trackless terrain each year, and the Pacific Northwest is fast becoming a favorite destination for race organizers and enthusiasts.

The Endurance Challenge offers four different races during the day, starting with a "simple" 10-kilometer course (a mere 6.2 miles). There is also a half marathon (13 miles) and a 50-kilometer (31 miles) course. For those who really want to experience the ultimate running adventure, the crown-jewel of the race day is the 50-mile course.

Up and away

The profile of the 50-miler looks like a seismograph gone wild. Four times, the course veers upward, peaking well above the 2,000-foot range, before dropping back into the hundreds. Between those soaring climbs are several more modest ascents, topping 1,500 feet repeatedly. This muscle-burning, ultramarathon course swarms over the length of Chuckanut Mountain, crossing east to west and north to south.

Race organizers have secured permission to use portions of private roads to close gaps in the trail networks, creating loops in order to prevent runners from having to backtrack on the course. In fact, this is the first time this specific route has ever been fully opened to public use, and is only accessible during the race, because of those private property issues.

Though Jacobsen has some experience as a recreational trail hiker, he's not a dedicated wilderness fanatic, so the 13 miles of forest trails he covers will be something new for him. "I'm nervous but excited. I'm looking forward to the challenge. After it's done, I'll know if I want to do more trail running, but for now, I'm just looking forward to doing this one."

For more information about the Endurance Challenge, see www.thenorthface.com/endurancechallenge.

Dan A. Nelson, a Puyallup-based freelancer, is the gear reviewer for NWWeekend and an author of outdoors guides for The Mountaineers Books.