Some of the United States’ most iconic trail races — including the Javelina 100 Mile, Badwater 135 Mile, Moab 240 Mile, Western States 100, and Hardrock 100 — take place on federally managed public lands. However, emergent changes to how these public lands are administered may threaten the future of trail running and racing, making advocacy and volunteer efforts increasingly critical to maintaining access for the global trail running community.
A recent bipartisan survey of voters across eight U.S. Western states found that 76% of respondents — regardless of political affiliation — believe protecting air, water, wildlife habitats, and recreation should take priority over drilling and mining. The same poll showed that trust in federal lands management agencies is strong. The U.S. Forest Service and National Park Service, two public lands agencies, received approval ratings above 80%, while the Bureau of Land Management agency came in over 60%. These numbers make it clear: Caring for public lands and the agencies that manage them matter to the majority of Americans in the Western U.S.
iRunFar’s Meghan Hicks in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado, near where the Hardrock 100, Ouray 100 Mile, and numerous other trail races take place each year. In the U.S., trail running and racing is largely dependent on access and permits to use federal public lands. Photo: iRunFar/Eszter Horanyi
Despite the majority of Western U.S. constituents’ opinions, however, in February 2025, the Trump administration, through its Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), carried out sweeping layoffs across numerous federal agencies, resulting in the dismissal of thousands of employees from these key public lands agencies. Approximately 3,400 U.S. Forest Service (USFS), 1,000 National Park Service (NPS), and 800 Bureau of Land Management (BLM) employees were terminated, representing some 10% of the USFS, 5% of the NPS, and 8% of the BLM workforce.
On March 13, a federal judge ruled that these three public lands agencies and others must rehire those wrongfully terminated employees. At the time of this article’s publication, however, no rehires had been made yet.
All of this has collectively sparked concerns over essential land management functions such as wildfire mitigation, trail maintenance, facility upkeep, and permitting.
At the same time as these layoffs, the administration has been fast-tracking oil and gas leases and ramping up timber harvesting on public lands — offering millions of acres for development at bargain prices. President Trump declared a “national energy emergency” to expedite fossil fuel infrastructure development on his first day in office. This declaration aimed to revive fossil fuel production, fill strategic reserves, and boost American energy exports, effectively prioritizing energy extraction over environmental considerations.
Doug Burgum, recently appointed by Trump as the head of the Department of the Interior, the government unit that encompasses most public lands agencies, urged energy executives to increase drilling and mining on U.S. public lands, aligning with the administration’s agenda to boost fossil fuel production by reducing regulations and expediting permits. This shift makes it pretty clear where the priorities lie: Energy extraction is taking precedence over conservation and outdoor recreation.
While the full impact of these two shifts is still unfolding, as is how court cases against them will proceed, trail runners and race directors are sounding the alarm about how the changes could create immediate and long-term challenges for public lands maintenance, preservation, and access; negatively impact the outdoor recreation economy; and reduce our ability to run and race on public lands.
Michael McKnight, 2019 Moab 240 Mile champion, on the course. The route travels through some of Moab’s spectacular public lands. Photo: Moab 240 Mile
Trail Running and Federal Lands Agencies
In the U.S., most of our trails and trail races occur on public lands managed by federal, state, or local agencies. At the federal level, the USFS, NPS, and BLM host most of our sport’s races and the trails on which we run. Together, these three agencies manage some 522 million acres — over 21% of the U.S.’s land area — a massive management task.
To host an event on these lands, race directors must obtain a special use permit, which grants temporary access while ensuring the event complies with environmental regulations and public lands policies. Permits for trail races are typically secured months to years in advance. Before approving, agencies evaluate applications based on environmental impact, safety considerations, and land-use policies. These permits often come with strict requirements, such as participant limits, aid station regulations, and mandatory on-site medical support.
Due to its extensive trail systems, the USFS hosts the majority of trail races. However, the USFS has been the most heavily impacted by layoffs thus far, with deep cuts to seasonal trail crews, administrative staff responsible for permitting, and wildfire mitigation teams. BLM lands, especially in the U.S. Mountain West and Southwest, are also critical to trail races. However, these areas now face staffing shortages that could delay permit approvals and create uncertainty for desert races. With fewer personnel to review applications, race directors may experience prolonged delays, creating significant obstacles for event planning and execution.
U.S. Forest Service (USFS) workers. The USFS plays a vital role in the organization of trail races in the U.S. Photo: Angeles National Forest, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Permitting Delays Impact Event Organizations and Local Economies
Many race directors, particularly those with events on USFS land, operate under multi-year permits, and might not experience acute impacts immediately. However, some race directors are already feeling the pinch from earlier hiring freezes that have left USFS offices understaffed.
“Forecasting, budgeting, and planning an event experience is all dependent on a permit,” said Tim Tollefson, race director of the Mammoth Trailfest, which takes place in the mountain town of Mammoth, California, and which includes a forthcoming new 208-mile event, The Mammoth. “We are concerned about the renewal of our Trailfest permits and have had delays in a permit for our new event.”
Permitting delays and uncertainty are making event planning increasingly challenging — not just for race directors and participants but also for the communities that rely on these events. Shorter permitting timelines give race directors less time to organize and execute their events, while runners may face shorter registration windows due to delayed approvals.
Additionally, there are safety concerns, as a reduction in support services like search and rescue could result in longer response times for emergencies and injuries.
The start of the 2022 Mammoth Trailfest 26k, one of the events already feeling the impact of the cuts. Photo courtesy of Mammoth Trailfest/Tim Tollefson.
While these disruptions are inconvenient for race organizers and athletes, the economic consequences can be even more severe for towns and rural areas adjacent to public lands that depend on trail races, particularly in shoulder seasons or the off-season when tourism revenue is critical. Outdoor recreation on public lands is big business, including trail running. For example, outdoor recreation on USFS lands contributes more than $13 billion annually to the national economy and supports over 205,000 jobs, while recreation on BLM-managed lands contributed $11.1 billion to the economy and supported 73,000 jobs in 2022.
For some trail running-specific context, the Hardrock 100 has been held in the village of Silverton, Colorado, every July since the 1990s. According to run director Dale Garland, who uses a post-event survey to understand its annual economic impact, the event estimated it injected some $919,000 into the economies of the surrounding villages of Silverton, Telluride, Ouray, and Lake City in 2024. Also, in 2024, the Mammoth Trailfest generated some $2.3 million for the local economy. These numbers are replicated a couple thousand times annually, with all the trail running events in the U.S. We should make no mistake: Trail running and racing makes meaningful economic impacts in areas that often need it most.
Silverton, Colorado, one of the small towns that benefits economically from hosting the Hardrock 100 each year. Photo: iRunFar/Sarah Brady
Tollefson elaborated on Mammoth Trailfest’s impact on its surrounding region, “The economic impact on the town, county, and region all lay in the balance of receiving a permit, and the further down the road issuing is kicked, the more difficult it is to secure funding, support, and volunteerism to provide the best experience our runners deserve. I worry these recent cuts are a ‘two steps back’ moment for recreation.”
Trail Building, Access, and Maintenance Concerns
Even if race permits remain intact, the overall quality of public lands may decline without adequate staffing. One of the most pressing concerns is the impact on trail access, maintenance, and construction.
Many regions are already facing drastic reductions in trail crews, the teams responsible for maintaining existing trails and developing new ones. As a result, washed-out trails may go unrepaired, downed trees could block routes indefinitely, and long-planned trail projects may never come to fruition. Without sufficient staffing, the accessibility, safety, and sustainability of these trails are at serious risk.
The recent USFS layoffs hit probationary employees the hardest, including those responsible for trail maintenance, forest restoration, and wildfire prevention. With fewer staff on the ground, essential tasks like trail clearing, repairs, and general upkeep will likely face delays or be postponed altogether, impacting the quality and safety of recreational experiences. The loss of federal workers may force greater reliance on state park services and volunteer organizations to fill the gap. However, these groups often lack the resources to fully compensate for the shortfall, raising concerns about growing maintenance backlogs across public lands.
With fewer staff available for maintenance, races are becoming increasingly challenging to organize safely as course conditions deteriorate due to lack of upkeep. The burden of maintaining trails is now shifting to local organizations and volunteers, many of whom also lack the resources and capacity to fully compensate for federal cutbacks.
Volunteers working on the restoration of the Western States Trail. Photo: John Catts
In addition to routine maintenance challenges, new trail development projects are being delayed or entirely abandoned. Tollefson highlights the long-term consequences of these setbacks in Mammoth: “A local group has been working toward the development of miles of new trail — a decade-long request from residents and part of our county master plan. Now we’ve been told they can’t process new projects. This will set us back years.”
These cutbacks not only threaten the accessibility and safety of existing trails but also jeopardize future outdoor recreation opportunities, forcing communities to rely on grassroots efforts to sustain the trails they depend on.
The layoffs of federal workers responsible for facility upkeep have also raised concerns about the deterioration of essential infrastructure on public lands. Issues such as overflowing bathrooms, locked access gates, and unmaintained fire roads are becoming increasingly common, impacting runner experience and safety. Runners might see access restricted or cut off if agencies can’t maintain roads, gates, or other vital infrastructure.
“I think it’s going to be pretty in your face pretty fast,” said Kat Baker, Executive Director of Runners For Public Lands (RPL) and race director of the Mount Laguna Trail Marathon in Southern California. “You’ll see overflowing garbage cans, unserviced bathrooms, and trails in disrepair.”
What Trail Runners Can Do
The stakes are high for runners and all outdoor recreators, but there are ways the community can take action. Volunteerism and advocacy will be essential strategies in maintaining the trails and events the trail running community depends on, and have anecdotally proven to offer meaningful input on local trail systems.
Runners can all do their part by first minimizing their impact by practicing Leave No Trace Principles, and proactively volunteering to fill gaps left by the layoffs.
iRunFar’s Alli Miles enjoying the trail on public lands in Southern California. Photo: iRunFar/Eszter Horanyi
“Trail runners and the outdoor community need to step up in a few key ways — reducing our own impact and actively participating in stewardship,” said Kelsey Brasseur, a trail runner and development director of Roaring Fork Outdoor Volunteers, a trail stewardship and conservation nonprofit in Colorado’s Roaring Fork Valley, near the White River National Forest. “We can all do simple things every time we’re out — pack out trash, respect trail corridors by not cutting switchbacks, and obey seasonal closures. Collectively, it will make a big difference.”
We want to be clear that this volunteerism is not a permanent solution and real needs exist to fully fund the federal agencies charged with protecting and managing our public lands. Runners can also support advocacy efforts, like signing RPL’s sign-on letter to the U.S. Congress in an effort to keep outdoor recreation on policymakers’ radars, and sign up for the outdoor nonprofit The Outdoor Alliance’s action alert, which has already received 150,000-plus sign-ons. Donations to public lands stewardship groups, like RPL, will also be more critical than ever to cover the financial gap left in the wake of the current administration’s shifting priorities.
Race directors, runners, and public lands advocates alike have been raising the alarm about the recent changes to how public lands are managed. They hope this will be a rallying cry for trail lovers to take action.
“It is not just our businesses, communities, or local economies at stake, it is the health and wellness of anyone who enjoys time outdoors,” said Tollefson.
Mammoth Trailfest race director Tim Tollefson runs a section of the trail overlooking one of Mammoth, California’s pristine, alpine lakes. Photo courtesy of Mammoth Trailfest/Tim Tollefson.
Call for Comments
We welcome dialogue in the comments section in line with iRunFar’s comment policy, which exists to help facilitate challenging conversations constructively. Comments not adhering to this policy are subject to redaction or removal. Thank you!
- What’s happening with the federal agencies managing public lands around you?
- Are you a federal employee who has lost your job in these terminations?
- What is your local community doing to address your region’s needs?
Katie Schide on her way to winning the 2024 Western States 100, , a race among thousands which depends on public lands access and permits to take place. Photo: iRunFar/Eszter Horanyi
