At 6:48:52 AM on September 28, the inaugural UTG Badain Jaran Desert Ultra officially commenced at Ayuwang Temple in Guazhou, Gansu. As night still lingered, dozens of elite domestic and international runners shouldered their packs and set foot on the “800-li Hero’s Route.” Over the next seven days, they will traverse a 400-kilometer gravel track, enduring sandstorms, scorching sun, and extreme temperature swings of up to 40 degrees. They will cross diverse terrains including yardangs, river valleys, hills, small deserts, glacial snow mountains, as well as vast uninhabited desert areas. Navigating, carrying their own gear, and self-resupplying, they must run non-stop for 150 hours before finally reaching the Champion’s Bridge at Zhangzhi Park in Guazhou.
Runners who camped in the Gobi the previous night got up early, packed their gear, collected their locators in an orderly manner, and queued up for registration. The athletes looked spirited and in high spirits, all brimming with excitement and anticipation for the Badain Jaran challenge. Continuing the cultural essence advocated by the event, the opening ceremony of the Badain Jaran Ultra was also uniquely themed. The organizing committee adopted the ancient Chinese military send-off ceremony as the race’s opening ritual. Qiu Lei, the executive director of the Badain Jaran Ultra, personally beat the drum to boost the morale of the 800 brave warriors. Then, ancient Chinese cavalry clad in armor reported to the race director, Mr. Garland, that they were ready. Subsequently, Garland, holding the Badain Jaran flag, personally gave the starting command to commence the race. The 800 warriors then set off into the pre-dawn darkness, greeting the sunrise with their run. The armored cavalry followed behind the team, escorting them deep into the boundless Gobi, awaiting their triumphant return.
Previously, the organizing committee meticulously designed a finisher’s medal inspired by the Yangling Tiger Tally from the Qin Shi Huang era, which can be split into two halves. One half was awarded to the participants before departure, with the other to be claimed only upon finishing the race. Full of fighting spirit, the athletes confidently stated before departure that they would definitely finish the race in order to claim the other half of the tiger tally.
This edition of the event features 23 checkpoints and 10 rest stations. Participants clock in at each station to record their time, and the race command center displays real-time rankings via technical systems. On the first day of the race, the terrain was relatively flat, with an average altitude of 1,300 meters. At the start, Italian runner Massimo maintained the lead with the fastest pace of 6 minutes and 8 seconds per kilometer until around 1:00 PM that afternoon, at CP4 (the 4th checkpoint), where he was overtaken by Chinese runner Bai Bin by a margin of 1 minute and 15 seconds. The two remained neck-and-neck throughout, and even at CP7, they were still only 1.31 kilometers apart.
As the race progressed, the athletes gradually pulled apart due to differences in speed and endurance, forming several groups. By 23:00, the runners had been running continuously for 16 hours, with Massimo still in the lead. The second and third places were held by Chinese runners Zhao Ziyu and Bai Bin, respectively. From the starting point to the position of the leading athlete, the cumulative distance reached 115 kilometers. In the women’s division, American runner Betsy led the way. Despite a minor scrape on her leg from Gobi camel thorns, she pressed on, maintaining a pace comparable to the top-tier male runners. As a three-time record-breaker for the women’s category in the Hardrock 100-mile ultra-trail in the United States, she certainly lived up to her reputation—even though she is now 54 years old. Hong Kong 100 founder Sally Wu and Singaporean runner Cai Jingjing followed closely behind.
Su Ziling, who played the role of General Piqihedajiangjun in the 2014 reconnaissance race, returned this year along with many of his fellow reconnaissance team members. During the run, he sent back a voice message saying: “Advancing toward the setting sun in the evening, the Gobi sunset is absolutely stunning. I think one of the great charms of the Badain Jaran Ultra is that it allows us to witness the most pristine side of nature—it’s truly rare. When night fell, several of us decided to continue together. We turned on our headlamps, put on down jackets, and used three GPS devices to calibrate our positions to navigate through the dark. Our plan is to reach Rest Stop R3 by 2 AM to take a break.”
According to the weather forecast, temperatures in Guazhou County will continue to drop over the next two days, reaching zero degrees on the 30th. By then, most participants will have arrived at Rest Stop R6, which sits at an altitude of 3,625 meters. The estimated minimum temperature at R6 could drop below minus 10 degrees, presenting a significant challenge for all runners. The UTG command center has instructed checkpoint staff to remind participants to prepare for the cold.
So far, the participants are in stable condition, all progressing at their expected paces. Overall, there have been no anomalies in the first day’s race conditions. However, the distances between runners are gradually widening, stretching the field, with the gap between the front and rear of the pack exceeding 39 kilometers. Shifts in the overall standings could happen at any moment.
It is understood that the inauguralBadain Jaran Desert Ultra is China’s first ultra-long-distance trail race, spanning a total of 400 kilometers and crossing the world’s only national-level extremely arid desert ecological reserve, with 80% of the course located in uninhabited desert areas.The route encompasses a variety of complex terrains including Gobi, yardangs, hills, saline-alkali land, sandy areas, canyons, glaciers, rivers, and alpine meadows.Participants must navigate, carry all their gear, self-resupply, and run non-stop for 150 hours throughout the entire course.Additionally, the course passes through 60 ancient cities and beacon towers, 2 UNESCO World Heritage Sites (Suoyang City and Xuanquan Posthouse), and 4 national-level cultural heritage protection units (Yulin Grottoes, Damuzi-Muzi Que, Kunlun Barrier, and Dong Qianfo Cave).It is truly a rare dual-world-heritage, professional-grade extreme trail race, both domestically and internationally.