Badwater 135: one of the most daunting races on the planet.
Death Valley has officially the hottest recorded temperature ever on earth and this race is held in the hottest month, July. You are in the Death Valley bowl, and the heat just can’t get out of it. When you are standing there, you cannot think straight. By the time you have left Death Valley and arrive in Panamint Valley, you are in hell again. It just seems to never end.
I was down at the Badwater basin start line, 282 feet below sea level, in 110°F / 43ºC, on the 9pm wave along with 32 others. Less than 5 minutes to go. My mouth was desert dry and my heart was beating faster than normal. The training was behind me now as the reality of what lay ahead was about to take over. The USA National Anthem played out and silence took over. I could now hear my heart beating.
“Whatever you do, don’t start thinking about the 135 miles of scorching desert highway ahead of you!” said Race Director Chris Kostman.
5..4..3..2..1 and we were off.
The Lead Up
Scroll back to February 1st 2025, I had thrown my hat into the ring at the end of last year, in the hope that I would again be invited back for my 4th consecutive Badwater 135 race. I had tuned into the Race Field announcements by Adventure Corps LIVE from the Panamint Springs Resort. Chris Kostman puts on a great show and the tension really builds as you nervously wait with fingers crossed…and pray you’ll be called out.
I had given it my all to qualify for BW135 this year. On my 2024 CV, I had run 4 big Ultras;
- The Keys 100
- Badwater 135
- White Horse 100 and was Female Champion
- Winter Downs 100 and was Female Champion
These 4 races added to my Badwater 135 2025 application and I knew that I had done as much as I physically could to make my application as strong as possible for one of the 30 coveted veteran spots for the 2025 Badwater 135 race.
“From the United Kingdom, hoping to become the first British woman to complete Badwater 135 four times in a row, 48 year old Laura Watts, Welcome back to Badwater 135.”
OMG! I will never tire of hearing my name being called out at Badwater 135. It is just an overload of emotions and I am so honoured to be chosen again! I had been selected along with another 6 British runners; David Bone, Ali Young, Allan Anderson, Chris Larmour, Andrew Kelly and veteran Ian Thomas. By sunset we had already set up a WhatsApp group for runners and crew. I knew almost everyone which was lovely (with Spartathlon finishers being the common link for all of us). Matthew and I had made ourselves available to answer any questions for all the UK runners and to offer any advice, which proved helpful to those who asked for it.
Matthew, my husband, has always been my Crew Chief, bringing a wealth of experience, calmness, problem solving and humour to my events. He knows exactly how far to push me now, and between us we have learnt how to integrate this formula into a successful team. For Badwater 135, it’s always a team of 3. This just works for us. Our friend James Ellis, who was part of our successful team in 2024 was quickly recruited back on the team. He was vital to have as our second crew member. James had Badwater experience from last year with us. In 2024 James ran a herculean 70 miles with me in one of the hottest BW135s but it was too much for one crew member, so this year I wanted a second strong runner who was also going to be a great addition to join our 4 x BW135 successful team. I was in absolutely no rush to find this person as I knew it would happen. And later, it did.
In March, I ran the Lea Valley 50k race by Camino Ultra. My friends Daz Strachan and David Bone, are the Race Directors. Before the start, Matthew and I had a nice chat with Daz. Matthew caught up with him again during the race at one of the aid stations. We had met Daz in Greece, at Spartathlon, in 2023 where I shared some fellow competitor miles with him. We assumed Daz would have joined David’s BW 2025 team, but due to family commitments, he was unavailable at the time, so we asked him If he would like to join our team as his personal circumstances had now changed. In less than 24 hours our team was complete and we welcomed Daz to team Laura Watts. It was a great team and we all knew each other.
I had my ‘crew chief extraordinaire; Matthew and with James and Daz onboard, I knew my pacing team was sorted. After I had been invited back to BW, I made sure that every event I did was part of my journey to the start line and it really was an incredible journey;
- 29th March…50K at the Lea Valley 50k in 4h 43m (PB)
- 12th April….South Downs Way 50M in 8h 43m (Course PB)
- 21st April…Boston marathon in 3h 24m (PB) my 199th marathon.
- 27th April…London Marathon in 3h 29m. Marathon 200
- 17th May…the Keys 100 ( a 9 hour course PB and 100M PB in 20h 54m)
- Plus 9 other training Marathons, some of which I won.
It was shaping up to be a pretty epic year of running PBs. I wasn’t entirely sure how this was happening but I was loving the journey.
Training
A new and exciting addition to my training was my introduction to some magic berries in early May; CurraNZ. I met the founder of CurraNZ whilst in the heat chamber at Chichester University. They kindly sent me some of their supplements to try out for the Keys 100. I was really impressed with the product claims, especially as a lot of very impressive elite ultra runners were using them. So at the Keys 100, I went on to get myself a 9 hour PB. Not only that, but my recovery was insane. I had no stiffness and was moving freely the very next day. I wasn’t sure just how much of this improvement came from the berries but I was hooked. In the run up to BW135, I religiously took my CurraNZ supplements and tweaked the dosage and was excited to see what I could do with the purple power behind me.
I was back in the Heat Chamber again in June at Chichester University. My “go to” destination for heat acclimation. Andy Briggs and his fellow team of Marcus, Kam and Tom are exceptional. Knowledgeable and passionate about what they do. The heat chamber should be for everyone as the results speak for themselves. The sessions went really well again, and the team kept changing things up altering my speeds and elevation whilst always trying to maintain my optimum core between 38.5ºC and 39ºC. After 9 sessions I was officially ‘Heat Ready’. I had one final long hot training run at the “Summer Samosa Marathon” by the wonderful people at Sikhs in the City. It was a very hot day in London and my plan was simply, a long hot training run. I got that and bagged a 1st female finishers trophy with a 4h 4m time! I wasn’t actually hot throughout, whilst most of the other runners were sizzling on the course in 32ºC. Another great confidence boost. UK training was now over. It was now Tuesday 1st July and time to fly to Las Vegas for some real heat.
We flew out early so we could acclimatise to the time zone and the heat. Badwater 135 starts at night in three different starting waves so I wanted to get onto the west coast time zone ASAP. Two nights in Vegas was enough for us. We enjoyed a great training run at Red Rock Canyon. We were joined by David Bone, showing him the spectacular scenery and we got to test out some of our race equipment especially our crew van! It’s a great place for heat haze running photos with the spectacular backdrops. Of course escaping the commercial madness of Sin City is good too.
Back in Vegas, we picked up a few essential last minute supplies and had a nice dinner at Caesar’s Palace, but the next morning, Thursday, we were both excited to head to Lone Pine and drive the course through Death Valley. I wanted to do a 7 mile training run along the Panamint Valley floor at 2000’ elevation. This is historically the hottest part of the course.
We had been routinely checking race day weather forecasts for the whole course and it looked like temperatures were going to be lower than on previous years, with daytime highs of only 40ºC/ 104ºF at the hottest spots. Previous years I had run this in 53ºC / 127ºF. There were already murmurings from other teams of it being a “cold” Badwater this year. In reality, the hottest place on earth in Mid July is only ever HOT!
Sunday 5th July. All the pre race activities had begun. It was starting to get very real! First up, after a team breakfast at the Alabama Hills Cafe, which is always full of Badwater runners and their crews. I couldn’t believe how many people we knew, and it was lovely catching up with the Badwater family. I felt like a celebrity! Racer Check in was at 1230, and when we arrived there was a big queue round the corner of the Elementary School. Soon we made it to the front of the queue and after having my mandatory gear checked, picked up my Mount to Coast Tote bag full of Badwater swag it was time to meet Chris and have our photos taken, firstly me on my own, then the team.
Back to the hotel, the team loaded the crew van with all the coolers, 5 gallon water butt and all our gear then it was back to the Elementary School for the Pre Race Briefing. This year there were two inductees to the Badwater Hall of Fame, Mario Lacerda from Brazil who is the RD of the Brazil 135, and Marshall Ulrich, who has finished BW135 20 times and this year was back on a support crew for Bob Becker who at 80 years young was going to attempt to be the oldest person to finish Badwater 135. After the briefing, all the runners lined up at the front of the sports hall with all our patriotic country flags flying for a photo. This year there were 99 competitors from 24 countries and 25 US states. It was an honour to be here amongst this global field of incredible athletes. After this we drive straight down to Furnace Creek as we didn’t want to have to do the 3 hour drive on race day. For us, this is the best way to do it.
Race Day!
Monday 6th July. Race Day! We tried to have a lie in. We met up with Daz and James by the pool for a relax and a swim before a team lunch and photo by the Furnace Creek Thermometer. It was only 47º / 119ºF! It was hot, very hot, but not that hot. Matthew and I tried to have a sleep before we were meeting at 19:15. We were all loaded up and just needed to get ice. There are only 4 places to get ice. Always fill up to the max on ice and gas. We headed to the start. I didn’t manage to sleep but it was nice to rest although it was hard not to think about the race! I was counting down the hours. I was on the 9pm start wave so as we drove down Badwater road we saw the 8pm wave starting on their epic challenge and we gave them some whooping and beeping out of the window. Once parked at Badwater Basin, 282ft below sea level we had some team photos down at the famous sign I got weighed and for 2025, I had been asked to wear a tracker, along with some others, as a trial, so I elected to have it strapped around my ankle. It never bothered me.
I was race ready. I had privately given myself a realistic time goal of sub 36 hours, and a second optimistic time goal of sub 34 hours. But ultimately, the goal was quite simply to finish and go and collect my buckle. I had a CurraNZ strategy (4 capsules before the race then 2 every 4 hours), a nutrition plan was in place and a spreadsheet to assist with implementation.
8:57pm. We all assembled down at the start line and my friend Joyce Lee sang the National Anthem whilst two runners, who were ex Military, held up the Star Spangled Banner. The start line is a spectacle and impeccable patriotism was respected by all. The car park is full of support crew’s looking down on us, all wearing their Class 3 neon yellow hi viz tops complete with Blinky lights flashing. All the race staff all have Class 3 orange hi viz tops also with Blinky lights flashing. Looking up at them is quite a spectacle too. A few words followed from Chris. My mouth was dry. I didn’t want to nervously start sipping my handheld water bottle yet, that was going to have to last me for the first three miles at my first of very many team stops. Ten second countdown. We were off! 135 miles of scorching desert highway lay ahead of me until the finish line!
BADWATER BASIN to FURNACE CREEK – Mile 0 to Mile 17 – 21:00
With my trusted Nike Alphafly’s between me and the hot tarmac, I was on my way. My Shokz headphones ON. I found a position in the pack and started at a steady pace as last light had now gone. It was very warm but completely manageable at 38ºC / 100ºF. At this early stage you are treated to the most incredible man made light show along the flat and slightly bendy Badwater Road made up of the dozens of parked support cars with their hazard lights flashing and all the crew blinky lights pulsing as they are prepped and waiting expectantly, with their eyes trying to penetrate the darkness, trying to identify their runner. The first stop is always the maddest, and a little extra frantic for the rookies, whilst crews try to establish a routine and runners try to identify their team! Anything additional on the support car really helps and we have a few secret weapons that we deploy making it instantly recognisable. My team rocked from the start. Also added to the mix were the thirty new arrivals in their team vehicles heading to the BW Basin in the opposite direction for their 10pm start. It’s an unforgettable sight.
My initial only focus was getting to Furnace Creek at 17.4 miles. The first crew stop came quick at 3 miles. A speedy spray down and water bottle change and I was gone. We decided the crew would leapfrog me every 2 miles to start with. Two miles went in less than 20 mins as I had a good pace going. The crew got into their rhythm. From the start, they were slick. I was happy, running well and feeling good. After some miles, I ran past a couple of iconic runners from the 8pm wave. Bob Becker (80 years young), Frank McKinney (7 X Finisher) and Danny Westergaard (18 X Finisher), all legends of the race. I had a brief chat with all and some words of encouragement were both given and received. After 7 crew stops, the team said they were going ahead to Furnace Creek where they were going to pick up some more ice and gas. This first supply stop does need some military precision as runners are close by and are probably at their fastest pace. Matthew dropped Daz on the road outside the Oasis Ranch with a walkie talkie so he was on look out to make sure I didn’t go past. (Losing your runner at Badwater is a crime!) Matthew has crewing down to a fine art and made this stop for them as smooth as possible. They had already got the ice and the lolly! As I ran in I was issued with a Strawberry Ice lolly by the team. Heaven. Daz was collected and the same technique was used at the gas station located 0.2 miles further up the road.
Some of the staff from the Ranch at Death Valley, had made me a big banner saying “Run Laura Run” with a #4 and a picture of a winged running shoe covered in a Union Jack with red white and blue coming out of it. It was so impressive and I was so touched! There was also a quick hello to Randy Stephenson at the check point. He is a long serving member of the race staff. Sadly there was no time to stop and chat, so after a high five I was gone and I had work to do as I headed off into the black dark desert night to Stovepipe Wells. I arrived into FC at 2330.
FURNACE CREEK to STOVEPIPE WELLS – Mile 17 to mile 42 – 23:30
I was feeling great and I was very focused. I was keeping an eye on my heart rate and it was steady at 130-140 so all was good. The two mile crew stops were working well and I wasn’t getting too hot. The temperatures were in the high 30ºCs / 95-100ºF. I was also eating; Gu Liquid Energy, ginger cake, watermelon being my go to. In the dry desert air my lips were so dry, so at every crew stop, I had to reapply lip balm, this was kept on ice for me.
For this section of the race, I break it down into sections as recommended by Dave Krupski in Zwittys really useful guide. I was still running at sea level and the early miles were quite flat. It was good to get the marathon mark ticked off, which I went through in 4 hours 10 minutes. The full moon wasn’t quite yet up. Being out in the dark desert after last light and before moonrise is an epiphany. It’s a combination of sensory deprivation and awe whilst the billions of stars and the Milky Way above entertain your eyes. Even the orbiting satellites seem closer. This alone is extraterrestrial! A few more miles passed until the big hill at Mile 30. I had been doing lots of hill training this year including running on my Peloton Tread with 10kg weighted vest for an hour at a time at 5% gradient with fan heaters blowing hot air at me! Also some savage HIIT and hill classes on the Tread, so I put my head down cranked up some AC/DC on the Shokz and comfortably ran the whole way up the hill without stopping. Here I started being overtaken by some of the front runners from Wave 3.
The next section was the big left turn at Mile 34.5. The team were doing an amazing job looking after me and I noticed that as soon as they had “serviced” me they were telling me to ‘Go Go Go’ and ‘no extra chatting!’ Soon I was on the 10k descent into “the pipe” aka Stovepipe Wells. The temperatures here were comfortably lower than last years at 30ºC dropping to 27ºC as I got closer to ‘The Pipe’. I leap frogged a few more runners and shared a couple of miles with different people but I was mostly running on my own, just listening to my music and in my own world. Previously when I have been at this point in the race, the sun has already started to rise but it was still the middle of the night and pitch black. This was a significant improvement on my previous 3 BWs, and I was feeling strong. I arrived at SPW at 0400.
STOVEPIPE WELLS to TOWNE PASS SUMMIT – Mile 42 to mile 59 – 04:00
The Townes Pass Climb. This unpleasantly long 17 mile climb was waiting for me and I tried to run as much of the first half of this as I could. Looking forward, it didn’t seem like much of a gradient but looking over my shoulder it revealed the climb and when my legs felt resistance from the hill, my pace slowed. My crew gave me a rocket ice lolly as I left Stovepipe Wells but it was a bit toxic so I ditched it. It was dark for the first few miles, then dawn came and I knew the temperature would soon start to shoot up. I could have had a pacer from Mile 42 but decided to try and get as close to Mile 50 as I could without one whilst I was still feeling good.
I wanted to run as much of the first 8 miles of this climb as I could. It is runnable but with a mixture of running and power hiking I made the 2000’ sign (50 miles) at around 0630, three and a half hours ahead of the mandatory 10am cut off.
The sun was just starting to rise, the colours of Death Valley were spectacular, it was desolate and barren, hues of red and brown changing with the rising sun and I knew that the fan oven was about to be switched on to high! At the Wildrose car park, 51.2 miles in, I changed into my long sleeved white light Patagonia SPF50 top and applied the first of many layers of high factor sunscreen. I had been using Ice Bandanas from the start. Packed with ice and then put on ice, then cooled further with cold water before being served by my ice butlers at the next stop, what an invention. Adding this to the incredible Hozelock icy spray water atomiser. Not forgetting bra Ice! Ice in a ziplock bag in my sports Bra. Tried and tested at the Keys 100. Top tip from Pamela Chapman Markle. Luxury.
James now joined me for the first of his pacing shifts. I was grateful for the company after a night of just myself and my music. This section was quite steep. A 3000’ climb over 8 miles so we mainly power hiked with bursts of running on the flatter sections. Here we spent a couple of miles with our friend David Bone and his pacer Stephen, from the 10pm start. We leapfrogged with their support crew vehicle and ours. The temperature was rising and so was the heat.
My nutrition and hydration had so far gone to plan. James was doing a brilliant job of keeping us both cool with the bait sprayer (a mini version of its big daddy ice water sprayer AKA the Hozelock ). Matthew and Daz were stopping every 1.5 miles keeping the supplies and replenishment at full throttle. I had made it. I reached the summit of Townes Pass, mile 59 in 11 and a half hours and was looking forward to a nice long runnable descent into the Panamint Valley, although I knew the Furnace was waiting for me down there and would probably be turned up fully and cook all who dared to cross the unforgiving valley floor.
TOWNES PASS to PANAMINT SPRINGS RESORT – Mile 59 to mile 73 – 08:30
At the top of Townes Pass, I noticed my hands and fingers had started to swell up and so James recommended S-Caps. Lack of Potassium was the culprit. The team dissolved them into small amounts of my drinks and miraculously the swelling swiftly went down. Magic! The next 8 miles were downhill. Losing the hard fought 3000’ of elevation that I had just stomped up! James jumped back into the crew van and I began running strongly. All these miles were sub 10 minutes. I was averaging 9min 20sec / mile and I was feeling great! I really felt I was coping well with the heat, due to my heat training and the constant cooling from my team, although temperatures were definitely not as hot as the previous 3 years. The max temperature we had had recorded so far was 38ºC/ 100ºF.
As I reached the Valley floor and what was normally the hottest part of the course, it was time for Daz to join me. So we went into battle mode crossing the Valley of Death. As we started running we saw two USAF F15 fighter jets high in the sky doing their thing. We were hoping that they might come back like last year and low level buzz us as we crossed the long straight 5 mile road across the valley floor but sadly we didn’t get that and they headed back to base somewhere. So far I’d been feeling ok with my food intake having a mixture of fresh watermelon, pineapple, Jamaica ginger cake, mandarin orange and mango segments in juice, a couple of Gu Liquid Energy gels interspersed with water, PH1500 electrolytes, ginger ale and sprite and I was taking 2 X CurraNZ every 4 hours to try and prevent the sickness that have previously blighted other hot races.
As we crossed the Valley in the morning, the temperature did start to increase and gradually climbed up to 38ºC / 100ºF at 11am and mile 70 it peaked at 40ºC / 104ºF at Panamint Springs Resort, Timing Check Point 4. It was during this section that my friend and Team GB athlete, Ali Young caught us up. It was lovely to share some miles with her and see her crew in action. I got to Panamint at 11:37am, just before her. I couldn’t believe it was still morning and I had made it this far this early. Ali went on to finish 3rd female, 13th overall in just under 29 hours. As planned, Matthew and James left Daz and I with just a couple of miles to go to get to Panamint Springs Resort, to buy gas, ice and order real food. My original plan had been not stop here but as a team, we decided on a 15 minute recharge break for me before the Father Crowley climb. They had a Chicken Caesar wrap each, real food, and I had some iced water. We caught up with RD Chris Kostman there and asked how his girlfriend Erika was doing. She was running too, and we were delighted to hear that she was doing really well on her inaugural BW135.
PANAMINT SPRINGS RESORT to FATHER CROWLEY CLIMB – mile 72 to mile 85 – 11:45
The 15 minutes recharge break passed very quickly, and I was keen to get started on the formidable Father Crowley Climb. 13 miles long, and for me, one of the hardest and hottest parts of the course! I was now feeling nauseous and about a mile after James and I started stomping up the tarmac, I was sick. It did coincide with the hottest part of the day and I immediately felt better. As we climbed, the temperature dropped and even though it was hot, it really wasn’t the extreme heat of previous encounters of the ascent back to 5000’. The PSR temperatures of 40ºC / 104ºF soon became 36ºC/97ºF which was a lot more manageable. I was still trying to get the fluids in and fortunately wasn’t sick again until much later in the race. I have the CurraNZ to thank for that!
Around mile 78 I was starting to feel mega tired. I’d been going for 17 hours straight with quite a pace in the fan oven and only sat down once. I requested to sit down in the chair and close my eyes. I had a 15 minute reset and ate some apple segments. Then James and I were off again. James is a brilliant stomper and we were moving well. There are only 8 spots where the crew can officially stop on the Father Crowley climb which is strictly enforced. Violators face at least a 15 minute penalty to be served in Lone Pine or worse still, straight disqualification for greater offences, curb crawling being one. The Race is very dependant on following race rules which is closely monitored by Race officials, National Park Officials and Rangers. The longest unsupported section being 2.6 miles. Matthew and Daz were using the walkie talkies where they could to radio James. These walkie chats were useful in preparing any ‘special requests’ or dealing with absolutely anything that needed attention. Effective communication is vital. At the Keys100, I enjoyed having a fizzy, sugary drink poured into a plastic glass of ice, and here I started asking for the same. I pre ordered it on the Walkie Talkie and it was ready on arrival. I don’t know why the drinks tasted better that way but they did.
The Father Crowley Climb seems to go on and on, and as we climbed higher, we were treated to the incredible views behind and below us. That long straight 5 mile section of road on the Panamint Valley floor, seemed so far away now and I knew that there were runners still down there crossing that savage valley floor with this climb still ahead of them. I was so glad I wasn’t still down there looking up here! The Father Crowley Car Park which overlooks Star Wars Canyon is at 80.7 miles and is at 4000’ but it’s not the top of the climb, there’s still just over 4 miles to the 5000’ summit left! Once we reached the summit, I was so happy to have two of the three climbs behind me. James had put in a great shift and now it was now Daz’s turn to come back onto the baking hot Highway 190. Between Matthew, James and Daz, no-one had had any sleep yet. They had all tried, and failed, even with an eye mask and a pillow and the reclined front passenger seat. There was just too much noise with the car hazard lights going on and off, the car doors opening and closing, the ice boxes opening and closing and the ice moving around. They decided until they were absolutely exhausted and completely sleep deprived, they would not even attempt to try and sleep again.
FATHER CROWLY SUMMIT to DARWIN – mile 84.9 to mile 90.7 – 15:50
This next section was a 50k stretch on what seemed like a never ending long straight road, (it was) and with a net downhill, all the way to Lone Pine. Next Check Point was Darwin at Mile 90.7 which I reached at 17:52. Darwin is a cool timing station run by a Canadian with a surf board and calf stretching board!! Daz was helping me achieve 12 minute miles. The temperature was now down at 32ºC / 90ºF. and the terrain was changing, we started to see Joshua trees, first a few sparse ones, then more and more. The crew were still stopping every 1.5 miles and I enjoyed some salted Ruffle potato chips which seemed to be going down well. A few miles down the road, Matthew radioed Daz on the walkies saying there was a swarm of bees. They were all over the car, the crew, and other runners which made crewing very challenging as the moment the boot was opened, the bees flew in, and all our supplies were in the boot. The bees liked that. Matthew asked if we could make it a bit further down the road to get away from the bees which we, of course, agreed to.
DARWIN to KEELER – mile 90.7 to mile 108.1 – 17:52
Daz had done a 10 mile shift with me and at Mile 95. I decided to take the Nike Alpha Fly’s off and put my comfy slippers on, my Hoka Bondis. The Alpha Fly’s had done an incredible job. As it was now 7pm, I put my night gear on as per the Badwater rules (night is 7pm to 7am) although it wasn’t actually going to get dark until gone 8pm. The routine was very similar each stop, a small amount of Coca Cola, s-cap, fresh water or PH1500 electrolyte but not a lot of food going in. This is where my pace really slowed to 15 minute miles. My power walking was becoming faster than my running. James did another 3 mile section, then it was over to Daz again to run with me. Once it got dark, the sleep monsters came out to play on the second night of running. I remember asking to have a few 5 minute sit downs in the chair and closed my eyes but asked for no longer than 5 minutes. The temperature was now down in the mid 20ºC’s / around 77ºF. This really was a gift!! In previous years, it had never dropped below 40ºC/ 104ºF. Bonkers!! It was actually cool!
The Keeler Timing Station was at Mile 108.4 and I got there at 22:46. It was now fully dark, no moonlight yet, and had been for a couple of hours. For the hours since I summited Father Crowley I had barely seen any runners or support crews. The occasional car passing in either direction. Now as my pace slowed, and I spent longer stopping, I was getting overtaken and seeing more runners and crews. My incredible friend Kaylee Frederick, (BW’s youngest ever finisher at 18) passed me at some point during this section, looking strong and running well. She gave me a hug which was really appreciated and much needed and powered on into the night. Daz and I kept sight of her green light ahead of us but I couldn’t keep up, she was too strong. Daz did another 13 mile shift with me and had to endure another episode of me throwing up! However this was a huge improvement on 2024 when I was sick about 30 times! This was only the second time!!
KEELER to LONE PINE – mile 108.1 to mile 122.8 – 22:46
This section really was never ending, we could see the lights of Lone Pine in the distance and even further away the lights of runners and pacers climbing the Mount Whitney switchbacks. It looked incredible. So near but so far. Behind us there were now quite a few support cars with their hazards flashing, blinky lights and head torches coming for me down the highway. With every step I took, I was getting closer to that right turn into Lone Pine but it was slow progress! I was still ahead of the previous three years that I had run this amazing race but all the talk of sub 30 hours and sub 32 hours had now slipped away. My crew had been doing the maths constantly throughout the race, and at this point they said that I could still get a sub 34 hours even if I was running 18 minute miles.
It was time for a last crew swap and James took on the mantle for the last few miles into Lone Pine. Daz had been amazing and I’d really enjoyed his company. James and I gritted our teeth and tried to do bursts of running, using competitors ahead of us as markers to aim for and overtake.
LONE PINE to WHITNEY PORTAL CLIMB TO FINISH LINE – 0300
Finally we reached the right hand turn into Lone Pine, Highway 395, and as I passed the Quality Inn, our home from home, my friend Pamela who was on the nightshift came running out and ran with me for a short section across the front lawns of the Quality Inn which was lovely! It was 02:30. Another huge first, being at this point of the race in the middle of the night. I put my head down and shuffled along the next two miles to the Dow Villa Motel, Timing Check point 7. I arrived there just before 03:00 having been going almost 30 hours now. A quick thank you to the lovely race staff on the night shift, and it was only 0.1 miles further to the left turn, at the only traffic lights in town. Then it was time for “the world’s toughest half marathon” at the end of “The Worlds Toughest Footrace”. 13 miles to go. I was looking up at the 4750’ to climb but couldn’t see much scenery. It looked beautiful seeing the other runners on the switchbacks but daunting at the same time. Time to dig really deep and put all that hill training that I did, especially with that 10kg weight jacket on, to the ultimate and final test. The temperature now was just a cool 16ºC/ 61ºF.
The crew put the heating on in the car. I wasn’t cold, I was determined. And I had work to do.
Weirdly being in the dark, I couldn’t see the huge elevation that was looming although by the resistance I was feeling with each step and from the light from our head torches, I knew that the elevation was significant. James and I started stomping, heads down, teeth gritted. I had a call from a friend back home and Matthew got my Mum and Dad on the phone briefly which was lovely. I was on a mission to get this done and sub 34 hours was in my sights and a 3 hour course PB. Climbing up Mount Whitney in the daytime is a spectacle, alpine scenes, beautiful trees, snow capped mountains but I couldn’t see any of this at this point. After 2 hours 39 minutes of climbing I hit the last timing check point at mile 131. Four savage miles to go. Come on. I was digging deep. The sun was starting to come up and a new day was dawning. We powered on up, about to take on the formidable and famous switch backs, the steepest part of the course. I was so close. Once we had only a mile to go, James jumped into the crew vehicle with Matthew and Daz, and I did the last mile alone. Taking time to reflect on the epic journey I had been on and I even took the time to thank my legs, feet, body and mind for what they had helped me achieve.
It took me 3:51:45 to complete those last 13 miles of the Badwater 135 course. My fastest ascent of this savage half marathon.
Matthew and team parked near the finish line and came down the course a few hundred feet to meet me armed with the Union Jack. We ran the last bit together as a team in formation. James and Daz held up the Union Jack and we received a rapturous welcome from Chris and his team at Whitney Portal. It was emotional stuff. I was ecstatic to cross the finish line just before 07:00. This was a dream. My official finishing time was 33:49:45 and I had made it under 34 hours.
We had an emotional group hug then it was time to receive the coveted BW135 buckle and finishers T-Shirt from RD Chris and have some photos, both individually and as a team. I was so happy. My crew were incredible, my best yet. And Matthew was a formidable crew chief. Always there for me.
It is a humongous mental, physical & emotional test.
It exposes your soul, your character and your humanity.
It is a spiritual journey of enlightenment.
Completing this race is a gigantic positive life-altering and self affirming experience.
The good, bad and the ugly. There are bucketfuls of each.
Miles of misery, suffering and pain awaits you. No one escapes but it passes.
Nirvana waits for you at mile 135.
Mission accomplished.
There are so many things I love about Badwater 135.
The kudos of even being invited to this prestigious race by RD Chris Kostman live on air on FB as the Ultra running world looks on is special.
The dedication I put in to preparing for the race. 100% always.
The heat training phase.
Planning the whole adventure across an ocean and a continent.
And the excitement I get of going back to Lone Pine and Death Valley and reuniting with the inspirational Badwater Family.
Matthew and I have made so many wonderful friends along the way over the last incredible 4 successful return journeys.
Thank you Matthew, James and Daz. You were all quite simply… the best.
I cannot thank the Race staff, Volunteers, DV National Park Service and United States Forest Service enough who all make this incredible race possible each year. Thank you all.
And finally, my greatest thanks go to the Race Director of this incredible race, Chris Kostman, whose own dedication and vision have meant that, 25 years later, the Badwater 135 UltraMarathon has allowed us all to be part of something far bigger than just our dream race, as we are all now members of the incredible Badwater family. Thank you Chris.
Thank you all that were part of my journey to be the only British woman to have done this immense challenge 4 consecutive times.
Laura Watts
4 x Badwater 135 Finisher
2025
2024
2023
2022
