It’s an ask made on the beginning line of many path races: If you happen to see somebody in hassle, cease to assist.
This 12 months, on the rugged backcountry trails of the 2025 Speedgoat 50k, a bunch of racers confirmed that caring for one another got here earlier than race outcomes once they occurred upon one other runner mendacity immobile on the bottom. It’s a nightmare state of affairs nobody needs to come across — on or off a race course — however on this case, everybody concerned rapidly realized that their very own races had been now of secondary significance and serving to the fallen runner was their prime precedence. One of many runners, Majell Backhausen, utilized his wilderness first help coaching to verify for responsiveness and assess the runner’s potential accidents. After a number of lengthy seconds, the injured runner, Scott Klingonsmith, responded by frivolously squeezing Backhausen’s hand. Whereas others ran forward to the subsequent help station to get assist, Backhausen stayed with Klingonsmith, sacrificing any race objectives for the day.
Whereas his evacuation was sluggish, Klingonsmith was ultimately in a position to stroll out, assisted by the race’s medical crew. The tales from that day present hope that when issues get critical, individuals are greater than keen to place their private objectives apart so as to assist others.
Majell Backhausen, a person of the mountains, used his wilderness first help coaching to assist a damage runner, sacrificing his personal race ambitions on the 2025 Speedgoat 50k. Photograph courtesy of Majell Backhausen.
A Fall on the Speedgoat 50k Trails
The Speedgoat 50k takes place in Utah’s Wasatch Mountains in late July. Over two days, the occasion hosts three races that begin and end at Snowbird in Little Cottonwood Canyon, roughly 30 miles from downtown Salt Lake Metropolis. Sunday’s 50k premier occasion, which was began in 2008 by ultrarunning legend Karl Meltzer, is understood for its greater than 11,000 ft of vertical acquire over 31 miles and is marketed because the hardest 50k within the U.S.
About 14 miles into the race, Backhausen was descending from Hidden Peak on a rock-strewn path. “The race was feeling powerful on the primary climb, however that’s Speedgoat, I suppose, and I had discovered some extra rhythm descending a really technical part of the course in its first main downhill,” recollects Backhausen. “Myself and plenty of different runners had been in shut proximity descending this part, and the subsequent second, we simply noticed Scott mendacity on the bottom, immobile.”
Scott Klingonsmith wrapped in an emergency blanket whereas Majell Backhausen (orange shirt) manages the state of affairs. Photograph courtesy of Scott Klingonsmith.
Backhausen mentioned the group stopped to verify on the unconscious runner, and to his reduction, Klingonsmith stirred after a number of moments. “The second massive reduction got here when he slowly pressed pause on his watch,” Backhausen shared. “Like a real racer.”
Each Backhausen and Klingonsmith are aggressive athletes and skilled path runners. Backhausen is an athlete for the Australia/New Zealand The North Face group and has been path working and ultrarunning since 2012. He’s accomplished a number of 100 milers and notable races equivalent to UTMB, the World Mountain and Path Working Championships, Marathon des Sables, and the Skyrunning World Championships. Klingonsmith is 20 years outdated and began working 4 years in the past as a highschool cross-country and observe athlete and had objectives of ending within the prime 10 at Speedgoat. “Earlier than my fall, I used to be doing nicely,” mentioned Klingonsmith. “My fueling plan was going completely, and I used to be in an excellent place as we had been about midway into the race. I used to be excited to see what my physique might rally within the second half of the race.”
The Fall, Rescue, and Priorities
Klingonsmith recollects working downhill quick, attempting to make up floor on the runners forward of him, when he fell: “I used to be in an excellent rhythm till my toe snagged on a rock and I fell laborious on a rocky a part of the path. My knees took 90% of the burden of my fall as I landed on some sharp rocks … I bear in mind falling and shutting my eyes after I got here to a cease. I used to be mendacity down in the course of the path. From that time, I don’t bear in mind a lot besides that I began to realize consciousness when Majell got here down the path and had me squeeze his finger. I bear in mind he stored feeding me the Precision gel I used to be carrying, in addition to a few of my liquid carbs.”
Sadly, the competitors got here to a halt for each athletes, though Backhausen did ultimately go on to complete the race. “Because the seconds ticked by and [Scott’s] motion and consciousness had been sluggish however evident, it occurred to me that any form of racing was nicely and actually completed for the day,” mentioned Backhausen. “I believe it was powerful for us each to simply accept, however in the end, I needed to imagine the phrases I informed Scott, which had been: ‘This can be a blip on the radar of life, man; there will probably be many extra alternatives to race and don’t sweat it. There are larger issues in life.’” For the subsequent 40 minutes, Backhausen stayed with Klingonsmith as he slowly recovered and waited for medical consideration.
Scott Klingonsmith was ultimately in a position to stroll out with help from the race medical crew. Photograph courtesy of Scott Klingonsmith.
In the meantime, a couple of mile and a half down the path on the American Fork Canyon help station, Ryan Cooper, a part of the occasion’s operations group with medical coaching, began organizing a rescue as quickly as he obtained experiences of an injured runner. Cooper shared, “It’s a distant space between Snowbird and Halfway, and takes two to a few hours to get there on a gnarly, boulder-ridden 4×4 street.” He famous, “It’s not an excellent place to get damage.”
As Cooper was making his approach up the path with medical provides, Backhausen and Klingonsmith, wrapped in an emergency blanket and with lacerations on his fingers and legs, had been slowly strolling down. Cooper famous that he confirmed some indicators of shock, however he was coherent and in a position to stroll and speak. The group received Klingonsmith to the help station, the place he rested and hydrated whereas Cooper cleaned and bandaged his cuts. “He mentioned he was in a position to hike out,” mentioned Cooper, and Klingonsmith made it to the medical tent on the end line by the point Backhausen ran the second half of the course and completed the race.
The Selflessness of Path Runners
Because the incident, Klingonsmith has virtually absolutely recovered. “I had a deep puncture wound on my left knee that required stitches, my proper knee was swollen to the scale of a grapefruit, however fortunately had no inner fracture, my finger was damaged, and my fingers had a number of cuts and scrapes,” Klingonsmith shared. Luckily, he didn’t maintain a head damage. “Maybe I had the wind knocked out of me,” he mentioned. He’s now working once more — largely pain-free — and he lately returned to racing by taking third on the 2025 Massive Cottonwood Basic, a neighborhood race.
Backhausen went on to compete on the 2025 TDS in August, a part of the UTMB Mont Blanc pageant.
Majell Backhausen and Scott Klingonsmith reunite within the medical tent on the finish of the 2025 Speedgoat 50k. Photograph courtesy of Scott Klingonsmith.
The 2 runners have stored in contact over social media. “We each received a brand new Instagram follower out of it, so I suppose that’s enormous success on this sport,” mentioned Backhausen with fun. “I’ll be watching his profile for the subsequent race celebration.”
Klingonsmith shared, “I’ve realized so many classes from my expertise at Speedgoat. The primary one being that there are good individuals on the market who’re keen to cease what they’re doing and prioritize somebody in want over themselves. I’ve realized that the path working group has a few of the most selfless individuals I’ve ever met. Each runner who ran down that path as I used to be mendacity down in ache was keen to cease and assist. Coaching months and months for a race solely to throw it out the window to assist a random one who fell, that’s a real act of selflessness and kindness. I skilled an immense quantity of gratitude that day, for everybody who was concerned.”
Name for Feedback
- Have you ever ever encountered an injured runner on the path who wanted assist or been in a state of affairs the place you wanted help on the path?
