Urique Canyon in Chihuahua, Mexico, a jaw-droppingly steep hole in the ground, could be described as either the most stunning or most terrifying place on Earth. It’s also extremely remote – which makes it an ideal hiding place for some of the nation’s most vicious drug lords. Most visitors, understandably, tend to stick to Mexico’s coastal resorts. Not Will Harlan.br br Harlan’s a trail runner drawn to extreme challenges. That’s why, in 2009, he, a 37-year-old husband, father, and magazine editor from Asheville, N.C., traveled 24 hours by plane, train, pickup truck, and his own feet to run in a 50-mile ultra-marathon across Urique’s boulders, ridges, and crevasses. He raced against the Tarahumara,people who have lived in Mexico’s Copper Canyons for generations. It was the late Micah True, whom the Tarahumara had dubbed Caballo Blanco, who paved the way for runners like Harlan to compete against people many believe to be the best natural runners on the planet.br br The first time he raced, Harlan won in epic fashion – overtaking local legend Arnulfo Quimare down the stretch – earning him instant fame and the moniker El Chivo (The Goat) among the locals.br br Now, despite a broken foot, Harlan returns to the Canyons to compete against new challengers like women’s champion Beatriz Mendez, a 25-year-old from Chihuahua City, and 2011 men’s winner Miguel Lara, a 21-year-old Tarahumaran.