Questions, answered from the source
One question at a time, answered from primary sources and dated so you can see how fresh it is. If a source changes, the answer changes. Anything we do not have standing to answer, we point you at people who do.
Is Powerline on the 2026 Leadville Trail 100 course?
No. Powerline is not on either 2026 course. Hagerman Pass Road, Sugarloaf Mountain and Powerline all sit inside the Willow Fire burn area and the Forest Service closure, and the Leadville Race Series removed all three from both the MTB and the Run.
The replacement is the same in shape on both courses: riders and runners still head west from Harrison Avenue, then turn and come back east around Turquoise Lake instead of climbing over Sugarloaf, and rejoin the traditional route lower down. The MTB rejoins at the bottom of the Powerline descent heading into Outward Bound. The Run rejoins heading into Outward Bound as well.
What the reroute does to the numbers
| 2026 course | Distance | Gain |
|---|---|---|
| Leadville Trail 100 MTB, Aug 15 | 101.3 mi | 9,897 ft |
| Leadville Trail 100 Run, Aug 22 | 100 mi | 13,552 ft |
Figures published by the race on its official event pages. The MTB has long been described at roughly 12,000 ft of gain, so this year's route is meaningfully less climbing. The Run's number stays close to a normal year because Hope Pass, which supplies most of it, is untouched.
The aid stations moved too
On the Run, May Queen and Half Pipe are not aid stations in 2026. Carter Summit (mile 10) and Turquoise Lake Dam (mile 20.5) are, and Pipeline covers both the outbound and inbound legs. On the MTB, the outbound order is Carter Summit 10.6, Outward Bound 22.3, Twin Lakes Dam 38.2, then the Columbine Mine turnaround at 50. If you built a plan off last year's splits, rebuild it.
Where this comes from
The closure is USFS order 02-12-01-26-33, signed Aug 10 2026, in effect from July 30 through Sep 30 unless rescinded. The course changes are the race organization's own, announced in the July 31 letter from the race director and detailed on the event pages. We transcribe those pages; we do not host their maps or GPX files.
- USFS: Reduced Willow Fire Area Closure, the order and the described area
- Leadville Race Series: letter from the race director, July 31 2026, where the three closed sections are named
- Official LT100 MTB page and official LT100 Run page, course maps, aid stations, cutoffs and crew access
Answer written 2026-08-14. Courses can change again; the official pages govern, and this site is independent of Life Time and the Leadville Race Series. For the hour-by-hour forecast along the revised corridors, see the course weather matrix.