⏵ Course guide · South Bay / Sierra Azul
The Mt. Umunhum Trail Conquest climbs a published 7,635 feet on its 50K, out and back from Almaden Quicksilver County Park to the summit of Mount Umunhum through the Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve. I will walk you through the climb-heavy course, then give you a pacing and fueling plan built for the 9-hour cutoff, with free calculators along the way.
These facts come from the official TCTRuns race page. Check the current year details, cutoffs, and aid stations before you commit. Race logistics change year to year.
Every distance starts at the Hacienda Entrance of Almaden Quicksilver County Park and runs out-and-back through the Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve, with the longer distances climbing progressively further up the mountain.
The 30K turns around at the top of Bald Mountain, a real climb in its own right at a published 5,072 feet of gain. The Trail Marathon and 50K keep going past that point, continuing up to the actual summit of Mount Umunhum, the old Air Force radar station site, before turning around and retracing the same route back to Almaden Quicksilver.
Aid stations sit at the Woods Parking Lot, the Barlow Water Station, and the Mt. Umunhum Summit itself for the longer distances, giving you predictable checkpoints to plan fueling and pacing around on an otherwise long, exposed out-and-back climb.
The trail itself is mostly fire road and non-technical singletrack, so the real challenge is sustained climbing in potentially warm California conditions with limited shade near the upper ridgeline. Sun protection and a heat plan matter as much as your legs here.
With 7,635 feet of gain and a 9-hour cutoff from an 8:00 AM start, the 50K rewards a steady, sustainable climbing effort over an aggressive early pace.
A grade-adjusted pace target is essential on a course this vert-dense, since a flat per-mile goal will not reflect the reality of climbing more than 7,600 feet over roughly 31 miles. Set an honest, repeatable climbing effort for the steepest sections rather than chasing a number that only works on the flats near the start.
The Half Marathon, 30K, and Trail Marathon/50K cutoffs at noon, 3 PM, and 5 PM respectively mean pace checkpoints exist well before the finish. A vert-aware finish-time projection built off your training helps you see whether you are on track for those checkpoints, not just the final cutoff, while there is still time to adjust.
⏵ Free tools to pace this course
Early fall in the South Bay can still bring highs near 90 degrees on exposed climbs, so fueling and hydration both need to account for sustained effort in real heat.
Aim for 55 to 75 grams of carbohydrate per hour on the 30K and longer distances, higher than you might target on a flatter course of similar length, since the sustained climbing effort burns through glycogen faster than rolling terrain does. Use the Woods, Barlow, and summit aid stations as planned refueling points.
Keep sodium in the 500 to 700 mg per liter range given the potential for warm, exposed conditions on the upper mountain, and do not wait until you feel overheated to start increasing your intake. The climb to the summit offers little shade, so front-load your hydration strategy before you reach the most exposed sections.
⏵ Build your fueling plan
Get a carb, sodium, fluid, and caffeine plan per hour built for your weight, your goal time, and a hot, climb-heavy South Bay day with the free ultra fueling calculator. Browse the rest of the free running tools at the tools hub.
⏵ Train for it with Summit Line
Get a race-day plan built around YOUR fitness and this exact Mount Umunhum climb profile, plus a fueling rehearsal for a hot, sustained climb, so race day is something you execute, not guess at.
The 50K climbs a published 7,635 feet on its way up to the 3,486-foot summit of Mount Umunhum through the Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve, which is a serious vert-per-mile ratio for a course under 32 miles. Even the shorter distances carry real climbing: the Half Marathon gains 3,159 feet and the 30K, which summits neighboring Bald Mountain instead, gains 5,072 feet. This is a South Bay ultra built around sustained, exposed climbing rather than technical singletrack.
Published course ascent figures are 968 feet for the 5K, 1,529 feet for the 7 Mile, 3,159 feet for the Half Marathon, 5,072 feet for the 30K, and 7,635 feet for the 50K, all out-and-back. The Trail Marathon's published figure on the official site matches the 30K's number exactly, which reads as a likely copy error since the Trail Marathon continues past the 30K's Bald Mountain turnaround up to the Mt. Umunhum summit itself, so expect its true climb to land somewhere between the 30K and 50K figures rather than trusting that specific published number.
The 50K and Trail Marathon share a 5:00 PM cutoff from an 8:00 AM start, a 9-hour window for a genuinely steep out-and-back climb. Aim for 55 to 75 grams of carbohydrate per hour on the longer distances, higher than a flatter course of the same length would need given the sustained climbing effort. Aid stations sit at Woods Parking Lot, Barlow, and the Mt. Umunhum Summit itself, so plan your intake around those specific stops rather than assuming even spacing.
From the shared 8:00 AM start, the Half Marathon has a noon cutoff, the 30K has a 3:00 PM cutoff, and both the Trail Marathon and 50K share a 5:00 PM cutoff. That gives the 50K 9 hours to cover roughly 31 miles with 7,635 feet of gain, a demanding but achievable pace budget for a well-prepared climber. Intermediate cutoffs also apply at each aid station along the way; check the official course page for the current-year mile-by-mile schedule.
The course runs through the Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve on a mix of fire road and singletrack, climbing from the Santa Clara Valley floor up into oak woodland and exposed upper ridgeline near the Mt. Umunhum summit. California summer and early fall conditions here can bring highs near 90 degrees with significant sun exposure on the climbs and little shade near the top, so heat management matters as much as the vert.
Mount Umunhum was long closed to the public as a former Air Force radar station before Santa Clara County reopened its summit trails, and the distinctive concrete radar tower still stands at the top as a local landmark visible across much of the South Bay. Reaching it on foot, after climbing more than 7,000 feet round trip on the 50K, is the payoff that gives this race its name.
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<a href="https://runsummitline.com/guides/mt-umunhum-trail-conquest">The Mt. Umunhum Trail Conquest course guide</a><iframe src="https://runsummitline.com/embed/race/mt-umunhum-trail-conquest" style="width:100%;max-width:420px;height:180px;border:0;" loading="lazy" title="Mt. Umunhum Trail Conquest course guide by Summit Line"></iframe>This guide is independent and for planning only. The course details, dates, cutoffs, and aid stations come from public sources and can change year to year, so confirm the current specifics with the official race before you register or run. The fueling and pacing advice is general and not medical advice.
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