07/08/2026
In May, we had the incredible fortune of filming our friend and fellow entrepreneur Mandy Mullen as she attempted to run 250 miles across the Arizona desert. She’s been running ultras for a handful of years now, but this was her biggest race yet and she wanted to make a documentary about it.
The Cocodona 250 might just be the gnarliest race ever: 38,000+ feet of elevation gain, 33,000+ feet of elevation loss (gonna feel this in the knees), and six days in which racers can attempt to complete it. It seems good that you’d have six days, but that’s six days of minimal sleep, being on your feet, needing a shower, running through the night, often alone.
Despite our best laid plans, filming this effort was no small feat for our team of four and our two volunteer crew members, Scott and Wes, (who were the real heroes of the whole thing). We slept when Mandy slept, which was infrequent at best. We lived and died by the race tracker: “Guys, she’s only three miles out from the next aid station, we gotta gooooo!” Cut to us scarfing sandwiches down and snagging batteries off chargers not knowing the next time we’d be back at base camp.
Mandy had a torn quad basically the whole time (but didn’t know it until after). We’re not going to tell you anymore, you’ll have to watch the doc.
But watching her limp into aid station after aid station, plop in a chair and have her husband Nick peel off her sweat-stained socks, bathing her blistered-clad feet in ice cold water brought us to tears. Even more so when she hobbled out thirty minutes later.
Watching someone try something they aren’t sure they can do is such a gift, it’s such a tender experience. You’re witnessing vulnerability on display in its rawest, rarest form. To try when you know you’re likely able to do it is one thing. To try when the odds are against you, well, that’s the stuff of legend. miles.Beyond Running Company Mandy Mullen Cocodona 250
