Bridger Ridge Run

The Ed Anacker Bridger Ridge Run is a remote and aesthetic ~20 mile foot-race along the crest of the Bridger Mountains, near Bozeman in Southwest Montana.  It is a not-for-profit event enabled by about as many volunteers as participants. 

The Bridger Ridge Run is put on & sponsored by the Big Sky Wind Drinkers, which is a premier running club for runners of all ages and abilities.  Some videos, photos, and history of this event can be found on this Big Sky Wind Drinkers webpage.

Remote and Technical!

Essentially the entire route involves unstable footing, challenging ascents, brutal descents, and unpredictable weather along an exposed ridge.  Experience with mountain running is important.  

No part of the route can be accessed by a road.  All supplies, including water, are hauled to Aid Stations through human volunteering.  Aid Stations will carefully track each participant's progress, and will have limited medical teams, supplies, and snacks.  Except for water, we expect each participant to carry what they think they'll need.

• Note: the race is "cupless" (ie, Aid Stations will not have cups). We expect each participant to carry a water vessel, which can be filled at each Aid Station. 

Volunteering 

This entire event is enabled through volunteer effort.  We offer a diversity of volunteering opportunities -- some well in advance of the event, and some during the event.  Check out our Volunteer page for specific opportunities. 

Our registration process is designed to reward and incentivize volunteering for this event.  Volunteering within a given season is a promising way to all-but-ensure entry into the following season's event.

Registration Process 

(See the Registration Process page for more details.)

The number of participants is limited to 250, as per the permit we receive from the US Forest Service.  So we developed an application process intended to offer broad participation in this special event while also rewarding volunteering, local non-profit organizations, and general commitment to our community.  We intend for this process to be fair and supportive of the spirit of the Bridger Ridge Run.

Anybody seeking to register for this event must submit an application to our lottery.  This amounts to answering a series of prompts and entering a valid credit card.  If an applicant is not selected through the lottery process, their card will not be charged.  All applicants will be notified of their status before the close of May, shortly after the registration window closes.

• Note: we do not use a "Wait List".  

We will send periodic emails to registered participants with detailed instructions, information, and policies about the event.  We expect registered participants to receive and read such emails.

Cancellation Policies

If, for any reason, a registered participant cancels their participation in the race after they sign up, they will not be granted a refund.

This event is committed to complying with governmental guidelines.  For instance, we may impose strict rules of participation, or cancel the event altogether, due to a forest fire or due to CDC guidelines. If, for some reason, we cancel the race, registered participants will have these options:

1. “Roll-over” their registration to the following year.
2. Donate their registration fee (and still get swag).
   • Note: as a non-profit event, all unused proceeds are donated to Big Sky Wind Drinkers and to the Gallatin Valley Land Trust, both of which are non-profit organizations that enable trail use and stewardship in the area, as well as other regional non-profit organizations.  

Pre-Race Meeting

Participants, especially first-timers, are strongly advised to attend the pre-race meeting which will take place at 5:30pm the Friday before the Start at the Fish Hatchery (ie, Finish Line, near the Drinking Horse Trailhead).  This meeting will cover all sorts of specific information, including the following:

• Up-to-date conditions and weather prediction.  Discussion of lightning hazard, and how to mitigate it.
• Description of the route, and answers to questions or concerns thereabout.
• Race rules, including disqualification policies.  
• Description of Aid Stations, including the medical support and snacks and water present at each.
• Discussion of race-day logistics, including how to arrive at the Start Line.  
• Much more ... this meeting is an opportunity to ask questions, and connect with other participants -- it is informative and energizing!

Start Line Logistics

The race starts at 6:30am at the Fairy Lake Trailhead, which is a 45-minute drive from the Finish, the final 25 minutes of which is along a dirt road requiring a high-clearance vehicle. 

Each participant must arrange their own transport to the Start Line.  There is no shuttle to Start Line, nor is there a shuttle from the Start Line to the Finish Line.  We provide a drop-bag service from the Start Line to the Finish Line.  All participants are encouraged to park their vehicles at the Fairgrounds, and self-organize carpooling to the Start Line from there.  The pre-race meeting can serve as a good place to arrange such logistics with other participants.  

Start Waves! 

• Given the nature of the trail, registered participants will be grouped into Start Waves, each spaced 5 minutes apart.  Come mid-July, registered participants will be assigned a wave number.  Such wave assignments will be announced to registered participants by email, and will be posted here:
  • Wave Assignments
• Registered participants are assigned to a wave based on information they provide through their registration process: the wave they request, the finish time they estimate, and whether or not this is their first time participating in the event.  We do our best to meet wave requests, subject to balancing wave sizes. Except for special circumstances, we do not accommodate requests to change wave assignments.
• Each participant's finishing time will be recorded according to when their assigned wave starts.
  • Note: overall winning awards are determined according to the first three men, first three women, and first three non-binary finishers to cross the finish line.

Route Description

Here is a link to a downloadable GPS file of the route, including aid stations and other information.

• Note: distances generally run short in this GPS file, due to its sampling method.

The route embarks from Fairy Lake parking area (elevation 7,600'), which is forested.  From there it follows a clearly defined trail that steeply climbs well above tree line into a granite basin to gain a pass, then to Sacagawea peak (elevation 9,650') at which there is a minimal Aid Station with water only.  The route continues along a vague trail to Naya Nuki peak, then down a steep loose shoot to gain the Foothills Trail.  The route then follows the Foothills trail South-bound to Ross Pass (elevation 7,650') where there is an Aid Station and medical team.  The route then follows a vague trail that steeply ascends along the Bridger ridge.  The route continues to be rocky, sometimes braided difficult to follow precisely, and sometimes exposed, to the top of Bridger ski lift (elevation 8,500') where there is an Aid Station and a medical team.  This nature of the route continues along the ridge up Saddle peak (elevation 9,150').  After Saddle peak, the route becomes less technical as it rolls along the ridge to Baldy Mountain (elevation 8,900') where some limestone blocks require a bit of scrambling.  Then the route becomes smooth to Baldy peak (elevation 8,680'), where there is an Aid Station and medical team.  The route then follows a clearly defined trail that steeply descends to a brief respite of descent (elevation 7,100') where there is a minimal Aid Station.  The route continues steeply descending to the M parking area. From the M parking area, participants are directed through the Drinking Horse tunnel, to the Finish Line at the Fish Hatchery (elevation 4,900').  

We impose the following cut-off times.  Any participant who arrives at one of these spots after its accompanying cut-off time is automatically disqualified, and can join the volunteers' transit back to the Finish Area.  

• Sacagawea -- 8:05am
• Ross Pass -- 9:40am
• Bridger -- 11:05am
• Finish -- 2:30pm.

If a participant drops out of the race, it is imperative that they do so at an Aid Station and that they clearly notify the Aid Station Lead.  (If a participant is unaccounted for, we assume the worst and we commence an open search for them across the Bridger mountain range.)

Finish Area

The Finish Line is at the Fish Hatchery, by the Drinking Horse Trailhead, which is across the highway from the M Trailhead.

Participants will be clearly directed from the M Trailhead through the Drinking Horse tunnel to the Fish Hatchery.

The Finish Area will have a medical team, snacks, and aid for participants.  All drop-bags from the Start Line will be laid out at the Finish Area.

Awards will be given to top three overall finishers in each gender category, as well as in each 10-year age division.  These awards will be announced and given as each award category is filled -- so the "award ceremony" will be rolling through the Finish Area Party.

Everybody is invited to hang around the Finish Area, where shade, BBQ, beverages, and good spirits can be found.  The Finish Area will have very limited parking.  A shuttle bus will be operating roughly 9am-4:30pm to take anybody (participants, friends/family/supporters) between the Finish Area and the Fairgrounds Park & Ride Lot just off of East Oak Street.  (Note: there will be a port-a-potty at the Fairgrounds parking.)  Here's a link to a map:

• Map: Fairgrounds Park & Ride to Finish Area

Results

Muddy Dog Sports does the timing for the race.

Results can be found on My Race Results.

2025 Photos by Kurt Wehde.

2024 Photos can be purchased through Cooper's webpage.

A selection of Photos from 2023 and previous years can be found through the Big Sky Wind Drinkers webpage.

AFTER reading all of this information, you can register here:

• Registration / Lottery Application

Lottery Application process

Many more people would like to participate in this event than we can responsibly support (eg, our Forrest Service permit allows 250).  Meanwhile, the event is viable only through volunteer effort and a vibrant regional community.  So we implement the following registration process which blends random selection and priority selection, with the intention of equitably rewarding and incentivizing volunteer work and service to our regional community while giving anybody a healthy chance of participating in this unique event.

Applications to the lottery are only accepted in May, through the first two weekends:

• May 1, 2025 at 12:01am through May 18, 2025 at 11:59pm. 
  • • Late applications will not be accepted.  

Anybody hoping to participate in the event must submit a lottery application through the above link within the above time period.  This includes Previous Overall Winners, 10+ Time Finishers, Raffle Winners, etc.  

• All participants must be at least 18 years old by the event day.

The lottery application asks a series of prompts, including credit card information.

• standard basic personal and emergency contact information,
• estimated finish time (used for wave assignments),
• an opportunity to provide a short response to a simple prompt (see below for more context),
• an opportunity to donate,
• credit card information,
• a question about Teams (see below),
• a carefully reading and agreeing to a waiver.

(It is important these responses are correct -- an application will be discarded if it contains incorrect information.)

Registration.  After submitting a lottery application, if a participant's application is selected, no further action is necessary to register -- they are automatically registered.  Everybody who submits a lottery application will be notified of their registration status by the close of May.  

• Lottery applicants who are not selected will be emailed a link to volunteer, which can fulfill much of the spirit of the event while increasing priority in the following year's application process.
  • Note: if you submitted an application yet did not receive an email by the close of May, check your Junk Mail.  Contact us if that does not turn anything up.

Payment will automatically follow one of three scenarios, using the credit card entered through the application process:

1. If your lottery application IS selected and you are NOT in a special fee category (eg, Previous Winner, 10+ Timer, Raffle Winner), then your credit card WILL be charged the $100.00 registration fee plus a RunSignUp fee of about $7.00 and you will be registered for this year's event -- no further action is needed.
2. If your lottery application IS selected AND in a special fee category (eg, Previous Winner, 10+ Timer, Raffle Winner), then you will NOT be charged, and you WILL be registered for this year's event.
3. If your lottery application is NOT selected, you will NOT be charged, you will NOT be registered for the event, and will be offered an opportunity to volunteer (which will increase your chances in the lottery process next year). 

Selection priorities

Automatic entry is granted to members of the following groups:

• Previous overall (female & male & non-binary) winners of the Bridger Ridge Run.
• People who have finished the Bridger Ridge Run at least 10 times.
• Various raffle winners of non-profit organization such as Reach, Eagle Mount, HAVEN, Cancer Support Community, the Museum of the Rockies, Gallatin Valley Land Trust, and HER.

Priority entry is given to the members of the following groups:

• Volunteers.  This event is made possible through volunteering.  Aid Station workers, Sweepers, Medics, and the Race Director are all volunteers.  Water and supplies at Aid Stations are hauled by volunteers. To greatly increase your chances of being selected in our lottery process, come out and volunteer, work an aid station, help us haul water, or sweep. Volunteers ALWAYS have highest priority because we support those that give their time to help us put on this community event.
• Not-Selected Applicants from the Previous Year. If you applied for entry the previous year and were not selected, you will have HIGH priority of being selected the following year.  All not-selected lottery applicants from last year are verified by the selection committee. If you indicate that you are a previous not-selected applicant and the selection committee finds that you are not, your application will be withdrawn from the lottery.
• Health care workers, teachers, and members of the military.

All other participants will be selected through a blind randomization process.

• We ensure that the ratio selected in a given gender category matches the ratio of those who applied in that gender category.

Short response

A prompt in the registration application asks for your 250 word response, if any, to the question "Why do you want to participate in the Bridger Ridge Run this year?". This prompt is accompanied by some guidance and suggestions.  Importantly, an applicant's response to this prompt will never hurt their chances of being selected to participate in the event, even if no response is provided at all (ie, it's left blank).  The function of this prompt is to lift applicants who have compelling/extraordinary circumstances, or who have substantively contributed to the event or community in the recent past, or who applied the previous year but were not selected.

Gender categories

A prompt in the registration process asks for an applicant to identify their gender category as Women, Men, Non-Binary, or Prefer Not To Say.  The Run Sign Up database will record finishing times by the gender category selected here.  Responses to this prompt will not decrease likelihood of being selected in the lottery process.  

Awards will be given to top finishers in each award category: overall awards in the Women, Men, Non-Binary gender categories, and awards for top finishers in each 10-year age division for each of those gender categories.  These awards will be announced, and given, at the Finish Area as soon as each category is filled.  If, for any reason, a participant does not want to be eligible for an award, or does not want to be recognized in the Award Ceremony, notify us by July 31.  

Team Lottery entry

If you intend to participate in this event only if certain of your friends/family also do, this option might be for you.  Here’s how it works.

1. Identify a Team name, and identify your team-mates.  
   Be sure there’s agreement among your team about who, exactly, your team-mates consist of.
2. Each team-mate enters the lottery independently.  In doing so, each team-mate selects the “Team” button that is plainly presented through lottery application process, followed by naming their Team’s name and entering the complete list of the full names of their other team-mates.  

Important notes: 

• If there are inconsistencies in the names your Team lists as team-mates, then every member of the Team will automatically be considered in the standard (ie, not “Team”) lottery pool.
• Entering the lottery as a Team will NOT effect your chances of being selected to participate in the event (with the exception of the following point).
• Entering the lottery as a Team will forfeit your automatic entry or priority entry (see above for what these mean) and your application will be considered in the Team lottery pool.

Food Tickets

Abundant, though limited, food will be available at the Finish Area for participants and their friends & family.  For our planning, each registrant is asked how many "Food Tickets" they want for themselves and their friends & family, for a maximum of 5.  Food tickets will be given to each participant as they check in at the finish line.  Guests at the Finish Area will not be allowed to enjoy this food without a Food Ticket.  

Reach Raffle entry

From April 1 -- June 5 you can purchase Reach raffle tickets for $10 each.  The winning ticket will be pulled on Friday, June 5th at 5pm!
See Reach’s website for full information, including how to purchase tickets.

2025 Results

2024 Results

2023 Results

2022 Results

2021 Results

(2020 No Results: event was cancelled)

2019 Results

2018 Results

2017 Results

2016 Results

2015 Results

2014 Results

2013 Results

2012 Results

1985--2011 Results

Proceeds for this event go to Scholarships to regional youth, the Gallatin Valley Land Trust, and Reach.