Few names carry as much weight in trail running as Krissy Moehl. Over more than two decades at the sport’s highest level, she has crafted a legacy that stretches well beyond ultra finish lines and podiums.
With 65 wins in women’s races and a few more outright victories across some of the world’s most grueling courses, she has proven herself on the global stage. In addition to three top-five finishes at the Western States 100, she’s posted two victories at the Ultra-Trail du Mont Blanc (UTMB) in Chamonix, France, H.U.R.T. 100, Wasatch 100, and Ultra-Trail Mt. Fuji in Japan. In 2005 at age 27, she became the youngest woman to complete the Grand Slam of Ultrarunning—earning a gold medal at the Vermont 100 Mile Endurance Run along the way—and in 2007 she broke the women’s course record at the legendary Hardrock Hundred. She has also etched her name into the record books with Fastest Known Times on iconic routes, including the Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim, the Zion Traverse, the Tahoe Rim Trail, and the Wonderland Trail.
Yet Moehl’s deepest impact may lie off the racecourse. For 22 years she has served as race director of the Chuckanut 50K in Bellingham, Washington—a role she considers her proudest accomplishment. As a coach, author, and mentor, she has shaped the next generation of trail runners through both example and guidance. Now 48, she’s still at it, directing the latest edition of Chuckanut on March 21, preparing for a few races of her own, joining Keen as a brand ambassador, and planning to pace longtime friend Jeff Browning at the Cocodona 250 in early May.
The late 1990s and early 2000s were a different time in trail and ultrarunning. Do you miss that?
“I’m really thankful I came up in the sport when I did. It’s always been about that connection to a sense of adventure, learning about the outdoors, exploring my body through exploring terrain. And it’s that connection between those two that led me to the way I’ve chosen to live my life. It’s what I go back to when life feels complicated. I want to believe that’s why people are still coming to the sport. And I hope that’s not changing with the growth and changes the sport is experiencing. I want to believe people are still coming to this sport because there’s this thing they don’t know if they can do and they’re curious to learn and there’s a growing curiosity for what that sense of adventure can feel like.”
Amid all of the change, what do you think is the essence of trail running now?
“There are so many things changing from media coverage to race directors and how races are organized now. There are race directors making a full-time living at it, and there are large organizations now that weren’t there back then. But those things are possible because of the building blocks that have been present for a long time. And so how do we make sure those roots are solidified and strong so that these new branches don’t take off in a direction that doesn’t come back to that? What, as ultrarunners, unites us as a group? I don’t think getting a belt buckle unites us as a group or getting a medal or a T-shirt or saying, ‘I finished a 50 K’ unites us as a group. It’s more about the sense of adventure, the training to get there, people coming together and community. So yeah, I’m thankful I grew up in the sport when I did because there weren’t a lot of these other branches to try and figure out. We just had the core elements, so hopefully we can reinstate the core so that all of the branches stay strong.”
You’ve been a big advocate of driving attention to women runners, but it took a long time, didn’t it?
“I remember doing the Tahoe Rim Trail in 2015 and setting the FKT and realizing that there were just not enough voices around what women were doing in this sport. There has been more media and content since 2015, but back then I reached to iRunFar and Trail Runner magazine, and I got poo-pooed because there was a belief that I was bragging about it. And I was like, ‘women need to have support and coverage about what they’re doing.’ Oh my gosh, I’m a woman doing these things, and I want to hear about women’s stories. We have had to reach out and create that space. Now I don’t know that that would be as poo-pooed now because we’re able to celebrate it more, but I guess that’s an example of a building block in the sport that felt really uncomfortable in the moment, but I feel is important for full representation of the sport.”
You’ve owned and directed the Chuckanut 50K since 2003. How has that event evolved?
“Well, notably, it’s been half my life as of this year. I took it over when I was 24, and I just turned 48. One of the big differences is that runners have choices now. Twenty years ago, there were fewer races so the demand was higher. We’ve tried to grow it responsibly. Last year we had 750 registered on race day, but then we had horrible weather on race day and we only had 671 start. Because of the weather, we had a lot of people running through the muck and mud. So we did some trail work after the event, and as part of our registration we have a mandatory requirement to do trail work or make a donation. After last year, our team met and we decided to reduce the field this year. I am confident we can handle 600 runners no matter the weather. We can take care of all the people, the system, the trails, and manage everything well.”
What’s on your trail running calendar for this year?
“Well, Jenny (Jurek), Kathleen (Egan), and I are still trying to tick off fastpacking the entire Arizona Trail. We’ve got 180 miles to go on that one, but the North Rim of the Grand Canyon burned last fall, so our annual spring trip has been paused this year. I’m really bummed about it because it’s become part of how the year feels for me, and I’m having a hard time letting that go for this year. But I’m signed up for Crazy Mountain 100 this summer, and before that I’ll be down at Cocodona pacing Bronco Billy (aka Jeff Browning). I’m calling that my bootcamp to get ready for Crazy Mountain. And I’m also signed up for the local Orcas Island 50K, and I’ll probably try and find a 50-miler somewhere that I can run.”
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