Rachel Entrekin crossed the finish line at the Cocodona 250 in just under 100 hours after wearing the Sunchaser start to finish through Arizona’s brutal 250-mile ultramarathon. She had spent more than a year training in the same top, then relied on the Essent shorts and a 1L soft flask setup through a race that can swing from 90 degrees in the desert to below freezing on the final climb.
The Cocodona 250 is a point-to-point race that runs 250 miles through Black Canyon City, Prescott, Sedona and Flagstaff, cutting across desert, mountain and forest terrain. The final push rises to Mt Elden at 9,300 feet, where cold can hit after days of heat and fatigue, and that mix is what makes the event one of the hardest tests in trail running.
Entrekin said the Sunchaser’s UPF 50+ protection and lightweight, cool-to-the-touch material made it a piece she could keep on for the whole effort. She also pointed to the Essent shorts, saying their durable stretch, storage and freedom of movement mattered over long hours on foot. The wide waistband doubles as a functional storage belt for small essentials like gels or ice, while the side pockets can hold a phone, fuel or other small items.
The hydration setup mattered too. Entrekin said carrying 1L of fluid in a soft flask with the hose routed up front made drinking easier during Cocodona, where getting enough water and fuel can be as important as pace. In a race that asks runners to move through day and night, across changing elevations and weather, gear that stays comfortable and accessible can shape whether the distance feels merely punishing or nearly impossible.
Her finish came after a run that underscored the reality of modern ultrarunning: the challenge is not just covering distance, but surviving the environment around it. Cocodona’s route forces athletes to manage heat, cold, terrain and time in one continuous effort, and Entrekin’s result showed how much that depends on preparation, equipment and the ability to keep moving when conditions turn.
For Entrekin, the answer to what happened was simple. After more than a year of training in the same gear, she wore it through the full race and finished in just under 100 hours, a result that matched the scale of a course built to break people down.
