Snoqualmie Pass, Washington
We built Tierra Libre Run, an organization that funds race entries, provides mentorship, and creates community for runners of color in trail running. That work taught us something important. Access programs get people to start lines. But almost no one from our communities is on the other side of the equation. Designing the courses, directing the races, running the companies. We started Cielo Running to change that.
Cielo Running takes its name from the Spanish word for “sky.” The name comes from who we are. We are Latino and Latinx-owned, and that is not a footnote. It is central to our identity. Naming this company in our language is one way we stay connected to a piece of our culture that matters deeply to us. Sky running, in the mountains of the Pacific Northwest, with clear and direct communication about who is behind it.
We put on trail races across the Pacific Northwest. Challenging, well-organized, professional events that draw on the inspiration of these places. The mountains, the forests, the light. Every race we build is shaped by the landscape it moves through and the community that shows up to run it.
Our first race is Hyak Passage 25K at Snoqualmie Pass. The course starts with the Snoqualmie Tunnel, climbs to Annette Lake, and returns the same way. In 2025, Tierra Libre Run co-directed it with Rainshadow Running. Cielo Running directs the 2026 event, and we have plans for more races to come.
Cielo Running is a company, not a nonprofit. But the spirit of our work comes from the same place. Access, belonging, and representation are not separate from the business. They are the foundation of it. We believe that who gets to create trail running experiences matters just as much as the experiences themselves.
We are from the Pacific Northwest. We have community here. And we have aspirations to build something that reflects both where we are and where we come from.