On Halloween weekend, about 700 domestic and international runners will gather in Fountain Hills to run between 62 and 100 miles through the Sonoran Desert.

Known for its eccentric party-like fashion and prominent Western States Endurance Run (WSER) qualifier status, there are only a few spots left for both distances before the “Javelina Jundred” is completely sold out.

Subsequently, a waitlist will be maintained.

As the desert race is one of 63 2015 WSER qualifying races worldwide, the 100-miler has drawn more entrants than ever.

“This is the first year since I’ve been organizing (2008) that it has filled like this,” says race director Jamil Coury of Aravaipa Running.

The race began with 180 entrants when long-distance runner Geri Kilgraff founded Javelina Jundred 11 years ago.

Recently, the WSER board of trustees limited its number of qualifying races, eliminating all 50-milers. As a result, 100-mile and 100k race directors have seen a spike in registrants and long waitlists. There are several qualifiers left within the qualifying period, ending Nov. 9. They are all sold out, with a couple maintaining waitlists.

A race for all

No prerequisite is required to register for Javelina Jundred for either distance. Therefore, the event attracts runners of all paces.

This year, the elite field includes Tuscon’s own Catlow Shipek, the current points leader for the U.S. Skyrunner Ultra Series. Other male elites include Duncan Callahan, Timmy Parr, Oswaldo Lopez, Valmir Nunez, Miguel Lara and Amulfo Quimare.

Among the female elites this year are Kaci Lickteig, Margaret Nelson and Abi Moore. It will be interesting to see if any of them beat the men’s 100-mile course record set by Hal Keorner (13:47:43), or the women’s set by Elizabeth Howard (15:46:59).

Then there’s Georganna Quarles, 60, who is looking to satisfy nothing more than her love for desert running. She will be traveling from the Florida Keys to run Javelina for a third time.

“I’m going back —probably not a good idea to run another 100-miler so soon, but it’s so much fun I can’t resist,” she says.

Quarles is fresh off the North Face Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) race held in late August. Javelina Jundred also is a UTMB qualifier.

Javelina style

Over the years, the race has gained popularity for its rather festive and unconventional flair. Held on what race organizers have named “Jalloween Weekend,” many runners will toe the line at 6 and 7 a.m. Saturday morning seemingly dressed for trick-or-treating.

Coury says, “a couple dozen runners usually dress up and run the whole race in costume.”

In 2011, Quarles donned her zombie fairy costume for most of the race until a heavy rain forced her to change clothes after the 100K mark.

However, rain or shine, two runners take home original Javelina Jundred Best Male or Best Female Costume awards.

Coury points out that “Day of the Dead” awards “are handmade in Mexico with some categories like ‘First Virgin’ for the fastest, first-time Javelina Jundred finisher, and even a ‘Best Ass’ award for the best ‘full moon’ under the full moon” (race organizers and volunteers encourage runners to “moon” the timing tent as they run by).

He adds that with Javelina Jundred’s “kind of a crazy history, [the event] has evolved into a large trail running festival party.”

Also, a pre-race celebration will be held Friday at “Halloween in the Hills,” hosted by the Town of Fountain Hills on the Avenue of the Fountains. There will be trick-or-tricking, costume contests, games, rides and food for all ages.

The course

The 100-miler is comprised of six-and-a-half loops of rolling single track trail through the most popular section of McDowell Mountain Regional Park.

Runners will climb a total of 6000 total feet. The 100K-ers will run four loops and ascend a total of 3,600 feet.

Skeletons and carved pumpkin faces await all runners along the course as they pass by giant saguaro cacti, granite boulders and through dry washes.

The race will begin in a clockwise direction and alternate direction with with each loop. Coury notes that running the race “washing-machine style” allows participants to see the entire field of runners head-on several times during the race, joking that one can keep an eye on the competition, or run into friends and meet fellow runners all day and night.

Two to six miles is the longest distance between the only four aid stations on the course with names like Coyote Camp, Jackass Junction and Rattlesnake Ranch.

Aside from the usual “ultra” fare, the Javelina Jeadquarters aid station will provide sub sandwiches, pizza and burgers to runners and crew for purchase.

Other news

Aravaipa Running will provide live webcast coverage throughout the race with instant race result updates at http://www.aravaiparunning.com/ultracast/.

The forecast for race weekend is sunny skies with highs in the 80s and lows in the 60s. Also, volunteers are still needed, and are encouraged to fill out the volunteer signup sheet located on the Javelina Jundred website.

The 2014 Javelina Jundred 100 & 100k (http://aravaiparunning.com/network/javelinajundred/) will be held Nov. 1-2.

Registration is open with a waitlist on standby. There is a 30-hour cutoff for the 100-miler, and 29 hours for the 100k. Special belt buckles are awarded to sub-24-hour and sub-30-hour finishers. All sub-29-hour finishers completing at least four laps in the 100-mile (there is a dropdown option) and 100k races earn a 100k buckle.