In 2003, defending champion Pam Reed, Dean Karnazes and 71 other runners took the ultimate challenge of running 135 miles in California from Badwater to the portals of Mount Whitney. Their journey would take them through Death Valley and subject them to temperatures ranking among the highest ever recorded on earth. Twenty-five runners tell of their adventures in arguably the absolute toughest of 'the toughest footrace on the planet' - the good, the bad and yes, the ugly - in this incredible and fascinating compilation. The runners - who experienced heat exhaustion, dehydration, nausea, blisters, hallucinations, and fatigue during the race - competed in temperatures literally 'a few degrees from hell.'

Scott Ludwig is an ultramarathon runner and journalist from Peachtree City, Georgia. He currently has the 35th longest streak in the United States. He has run 200 marathons, over 800 races and accumulated over 130,000 miles in his lifetime. He began running ultramarathons early in his running career, he would run ultras ranging from 31 miles to 135 miles (the Badwater Ultramarathon in 2003, in which he would finish in 6th place). In 1992 he ran 280 miles in six days, from the west side to the east side of the state of Georgia, to raise money for charity.