Leg 4 - Killer Bees - 6.5km - 238m Total Elevation Climbing - 2 Claw Rating

Mountain Goats will enjoy the infamous Killer Bee and Back Door climbs.. After gaining the highest point on our Grizzly Ultra course at 1582m above sea level, Nector Noodle descends steeply before joining the Albertan. Swamp leads to a short sprint on Meadowview double track. Watch for a hard right connector turn leading into EKG East. Enjoy Mad Handler and Hey McLeod before taking Centennial into the stadium. Don't be fooled by the 2 claw rating, Killer Bee packs a sting with 87% technical single track. Watch for roots, rocks and fun drops. Killer Bees is sweet as honey !

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Our Grizzly Ultra Marathon & Relay is comprised of 5 individual legs which all start and finish in the main stadium area at the Canmore Nordic Centre. The total distance is 50km with a total elevation gain of 1595 meters.

Each leg has been graded for difficulty by adding the elevation gain to the distance to arrive at a Grizzly Claw Rating. The most difficult Leg 3 is rated at 5 Claws while the easiest Leg 5 is rated at 1 Claw. With individual legs rated for all abilities our Ultra Marathon makes for the perfect team event. The former Olympic stadium hub serves as a sweet base camp from which to cheer on your team-mates.

The following table ranks each Grizzly Ultra Leg from hardest to easiest. Email tony@grizzlyevents.ca to request GPX files for each leg or

click below for individual leg details. GPX files can also be downloaded from the Trail Forks website or mobile application by clicking links below.

Leg 5 - Coyote - 6.6km - 228m Total Elevation Climbing - 1 Claw Rating

Solo participants will need to save some leg strength for Coyote while sprinters can bring their teams home with good speed on this final leg. Leg 5 is all non-technical double track. Olympic and Coyote trails connect with a fast descent on Silver Tip before joining the Banff Loop. A left turn on Banff Loop leads runners to the Chandra Crawford hut in the Meadow. After refuelling out our Hammer Nutrition aid station runners will join Banff Ave to begin the final home stretch.It's about 3.5 km from this point to the Grizzly Ultra stadium finish. A brutal but short climb on Meadowview then a right turn and more steep climbing on Wolverine will demand every last ounce of endurance from our soloists. Be warned ! Wolverine has teeth and will take a nasty bite out of tired legs. Wolverine delivers runners to a left turn on Rundle at the highest point of Leg 5 at 1553m above sea level. Rundle leads to Meadowview in preparation for the elevation dump on King Of Sweden. Lots of fast downhill and spectacular views from here to our finish line. Coyote is the "easiest" of all 5 legs with a 1 claw rating.

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Leg 1 - Grey Wolf - 12km - 247m Climbing - 3 Claw Rating

The Grizzly Ultra Marathon begins with non-technical wide double track to allow for lots of room for passing in the early running. Runners will follow Banff Trail out through the Meadow with the opportunity to make a stop at our Hammer Nutrition Aid Station then make a right turn onto Grey Wolf. Runners will then snake their way on Bow Trail to the far Western end of the Nordic Centre trail system to connect back onto Banff Trail. Runners will retrace steps on Banff Trail back to the Meadow and another chance to re-fuel at our Hammer Nutrition Station at the Chandra Crawford hut. Banff Trail will bring runners back to our main stadium hub. Grey Wolf has a moderately hard, 3 claw difficulty rating.

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Leg 2 - Cougar - 12.3km - 387m Climbing - 4 Claw Rating

Cougar is rated as the second most difficult leg with 4 claws. At 12.3km in distance with 387m elevation gain combine to make Cougar a tough challenge. Coyote will guide runners to incredible Bow Valley views from Meadow View before a left turn onto Rundle for a rollercoaster of breathtaking climbs and steep descents. Rundle will connect back to Meadow View and onto Banff Ave. After re-joining Meadowview it's a left turn onto King Of Sweden to Olympic and back to the Grizzly Stadium. Cougar will demand both strength and endurance but is relatively non-technical wide double track.

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Leg 3 - Odyssey - 12.9km - 495m Total Elevation Climbing - 5 Claw Rating

Odyssey earns a super hard 5 claw rating as the toughest of all 5 Grizzly Ultra legs. Runners will leave our stadium hub by climbing the non-technical Olympic and Coyote double tracks. At the summit of Coyote racers connect to Meadowview and enjoy spectacular Bow Valley views. Making a left turn onto Odyssey - single track fun begins. The Odyssey switch backs will gain significant elevation gain to one of the highest points on the Grizzly Ultra course at 1556 m above sea level. Your sweat and tears will be rewarded with an epic 212m drop in elevation over the next 2km by way of the Odyssey descent. After a brief reprieve on relatively flat double track it's time to climb again. Long Road To Ruin switchbacks up to Salt Lake. Salt Lake will lead runners to the Matching Jerseys climb and onto Banff Loop double track. Tired runners will be relieved to arrive at our Hammer Nutrition aid / water station located at the Chandra Crawford Hut. After refuelling at the hut, it's time to challenge more climbing on the Banff Ave loop before rejoining Meadowview. It's all downhill on King Of Sweden connecting to Olympic and a spectacular finish at Grizzly Basecamp.

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