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⏵ Course guide · Oregon ultra

Peterson Ridge Rumble Course Guide

The Peterson Ridge Rumble is a fast, friendly trail ultra just outside Sisters in Central Oregon, run on the smooth Peterson Ridge and Metolius-Windigo trails through high-desert pine forest. It is a long-running spring season-opener with a 40 mile, a Trail Marathon, and a 20 mile, and its whole character is runnable, low-key, and gentle underfoot. I will walk you through the course first, then give you a pacing and fueling plan that fits a runnable course where the real risk is going out too fast. There are free calculators along the way to dial in your own numbers.

⏵ At a glance

Peterson Ridge Rumble quick facts

Date
Held in April (next edition Sunday, April 11, 2027)
Location
Sisters Middle School, Sisters, Central Oregon (Peterson Ridge + Metolius-Windigo trails)
Distances
40 mile · Trail Marathon (26.3 mi) · 20 mile
Elevation gain
40 mi: about 2,700 ft · Marathon: about 1,600 ft · 20 mi: about 1,200 ft
Start
40 mi at 7:00 AM (no early start) · Marathon 8:00 AM · 20 mi 9:00 AM
Cutoff
40 mi: 5:00 PM overall (10 hr), with intermittent cutoffs (Whychus Creek footbridge ~12:45 PM)
Qualifier
No Western States, UTMB, or Hardrock qualifier status listed by the race

These facts come from the official race site and UltraSignup. The Rumble runs in April and the next edition is listed for Sunday, April 11, 2027. Check the current date, cutoffs, and aid stations in the race-day details before you commit. Race logistics change year to year.

The course: where the Rumble is won and lost

The 40 miler starts and finishes at Sisters Middle School and loops out onto the Peterson Ridge and Metolius-Windigo trails, about 40 miles with roughly 2,700 feet of climbing on mostly buttery, runnable single-track and a bit of dirt road. There is no big sustained climb and nothing technical, which is exactly why this race gets won and lost on pacing discipline, not on grit through nasty terrain.

The first half: gentle grades that feel too easy

The opening quarter trends gently uphill and the second quarter trends gently back down, and none of it feels hard early on. That is the trap. The footing is smooth and the grades are mellow, so it is dead easy to run the first 15 to 20 miles a notch or two faster than you should, and you will not feel the bill until much later. Treat the first half like a controlled warm-up that happens to be on race day. If you are clipping along feeling great and chatty, that is the feeling you want, not heavy breathing.

You roll through ponderosa pine and high-desert flats at around 3,200 feet, with the Three Sisters out there on a clear morning. Keep your effort honest, eat early, and let the people who blasted the start come back to you in the back half.

The third quarter: the closest thing to real climbing

The third quarter is where the Rumble actually asks a question. After a gentle start it throws a couple of longer grinds at you, including a sustained pull in the ballpark of 700 feet over several miles, which on this course feels like a mountain because everything around it is so runnable. It is still not steep or technical, but it is the spot where a fast early pace catches up with people. Power-hike the steeper bits if you need to, keep eating, and stay patient.

Near mile 25 the 40 milers cross the Whychus Creek footbridge and split off onto the longer loop, and that footbridge is an intermittent cutoff (roughly 12:45 PM). If you paced the first half sensibly you will be through there with plenty of buffer. If you hammered the easy early miles, this is about where it starts to hurt.

The final quarter: a fast, runnable finish if you saved it

The last quarter tilts gently downhill with some of the best views of the day, and it sets up a genuinely fast finish for anyone who ran the first three quarters with their head. This is a course that rewards a strong close, and a well-paced runner can really roll the last several miles back toward Sisters. But the flip side is real: there is no technical terrain to hide behind, so if your legs are gone from a reckless start, those gentle downhill miles just become a long, demoralizing shuffle to the school.

Practice running on tired legs in your long runs so you can keep turning them over late. On a runnable course like this, the ability to still actually run at mile 35 is what separates a great day from a death march.

Pacing strategy for a fast, runnable 40

With only about 2,700 feet of gain and smooth footing, the Rumble is less about climbing tactics and more about not spending your race in the first half. The single biggest mistake here is starting too fast because the early miles feel free.

Negative-split it, or at least even-split it

This is one of the better ultras to actually run a negative split, because the back half tilts downhill and the terrain stays runnable. Pick an effort you could hold for 40 miles, then run the first half a touch easier than that and let yourself open up late. Use grade-adjusted pace so the gentle early uphill does not trick you into burning matches, and so you know what a smart effort actually looks like on this profile instead of just chasing a flat-ground number.

Build a realistic finish window and work back to the cutoffs

Do not just guess at your Rumble time. Plug the distance and the modest vert into a finish prediction so you get a realistic window, then work backward into the intermittent cutoffs, especially the Whychus Creek footbridge around mile 25 and the 5:00 PM overall. On a runnable course the cutoffs are generous for most people, but knowing your target splits keeps you from either dawdling or panicking. If you are coming off a recent road or trail race, convert that result into an honest Rumble goal instead of pulling a number out of thin air.

⏵ Free tools to pace this course

Fueling strategy for a runnable spring 40

Most runners are out on the 40 miler for somewhere around 6 to 10 hours, and because it is so runnable you tend to actually run a lot of it, which keeps the calorie demand high. Aid is frequent, but the fueling still has to be steady and rehearsed.

Carbs: steady, trained, and you keep moving

Aim for around 60 to 90 grams of carbohydrate per hour, leaning to the higher end if your gut is trained for it. On a course this runnable you are working aerobically for most of the day rather than grinding slow climbs, so your stomach can usually handle a solid intake if you have practiced it. The mistake is coasting on the easy early miles and forgetting to eat, then trying to claw the deficit back late. Start fueling in the first hour and keep it rolling on a schedule, not by feel.

Fluid and sodium: dial it for the cool, dry air

April in Central Oregon is usually cool, often in the 30s to 50s Fahrenheit, so you will not be sweating like a summer desert race, but the high-desert air is dry and you can still lose more than you think. Drink to thirst and keep sodium coming (a moderate range, more if you are a salty or heavy sweater), and do not skip electrolytes just because it is chilly. Aid is roughly every 3 to 7 miles, so carry enough to cover that longest gap of about 7 miles plus a couple of your own gels in case a station is picked over.

⏵ Build your fueling plan

Get a carb, sodium, fluid, and caffeine plan per hour built for your weight, your goal time, and the cool Central Oregon spring 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, this exact Peterson Ridge Rumble course profile, and your projected splits. Summit Line reads your real training, builds a plan for a fast runnable 40, and rehearses your fueling so race day is something you execute, not guess at.

Start free →Explore the demo

Peterson Ridge Rumble FAQ

How hard is the Peterson Ridge Rumble?

The Rumble is on the friendlier end for a trail ultra, which is a big part of why people love it. The 40 miler has only about 2,700 feet of climbing spread over the whole day on mostly buttery, runnable single-track and dirt road, with no monster sustained climb and nothing technical. That said, 40 miles is still 40 miles, and a course this runnable can lure you into starting way too fast. The challenge here is honest pacing and not over-cooking the gentle early grades, not surviving brutal terrain.

How much climbing is in the Peterson Ridge Rumble 40 miler?

The 40 miler has roughly 2,700 feet of total elevation gain over 40 miles, which is gentle for an ultra of that length. The biggest sustained pull is a couple of longer grinds in the third quarter (think a climb in the ballpark of 700 feet over several miles), but most of the day is rolling, gradual up and gradual down on the Peterson Ridge and Metolius-Windigo trails. The Trail Marathon has about 1,600 feet and the 20 miler about 1,200 feet, both of them similarly mellow.

What are the cutoff times for the Peterson Ridge Rumble?

The 40 miler has an overall finish cutoff of 5:00 PM, which is a 10-hour limit off the 7:00 AM start, plus intermittent cutoffs along the way. The key early one is the Whychus Creek footbridge near mile 25, where 40 milers need to arrive by about 12:45 PM before they split off onto the longer loop, with later checkpoints around 2:15 PM and 3:45 PM. The Trail Marathon and 20 mile both have a 4:00 PM finish cutoff. Confirm the exact intermediate cutoffs in the current race-day details before you start, since they can shift year to year.

What is the terrain and weather like at the Peterson Ridge Rumble?

The course runs on the Peterson Ridge and Metolius-Windigo multi-use trails just outside Sisters, and it is known for smooth, fast, non-technical footing with some dirt road mixed in. You are running through high-desert ponderosa pine forest at around 3,200 feet, so it is runnable from start to finish with no scrambling. Early to mid April in Central Oregon is cool, often somewhere in the 30s to 50s Fahrenheit, and it can swing from sun to wind to a little snow or rain, so dress for a chilly mountain-town spring morning.

How many aid stations are on the Peterson Ridge Rumble 40 miler?

The 40 mile course has about 5 full aid stations plus a couple of limited ones, spaced roughly every 3 to 7 miles, with the longest gap around 7 miles. Stations typically have water, sports drink, soda, gels, fruit, candy, and chips, the usual low-key trail spread. Because the gaps are short and the course is runnable, you can get away carrying less than you would at a big mountain 100, but still carry enough fluid and a few of your own gels to cover that longest stretch.

Is the Peterson Ridge Rumble a good first 40 miler or first ultra?

It is one of the better places in the Northwest to run your first long ultra. The forgiving terrain, the modest 2,700 feet of climbing, the short aid gaps, and a generous 10-hour cutoff give a prepared first-timer real room to finish. If you are newer, the 20 mile or the Trail Marathon make a great stepping-stone in the same low-key, friendly event. Train your long runs, rehearse your fueling, and practice holding back early, and the Rumble rewards you.

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.