Sutton (41) will line up this morning in the Badwater 135, an endurance event through Death Valley in California.
It is Sutton's second year in the event and the race this year will be on the original course.
It was changed last year after access was denied to the national park area of Death Valley but access has been restored and the 217km course is back to its usual route.
The race starts at Badwater, which has the lowest elevation in North America at 85m below sea level.
The race finishes at Whitney Portal, 2530m above sea level.
The course covers three mountain ranges for a total of 4450m of cumulative vertical ascent and 1859m of cumulative descent.
Sutton, a carpenter, has been doing plenty of training, including a 24-hour fundraising run around Andersons Bay Inlet early last month, and he spent a week in Darwin to acclimatise to the expected hot weather.
Sutton said before leaving earlier this month he was focused on the race.
''I'm not going there to make up the numbers. I'd like to better my place and time from last year and push my boundaries further,'' he said.
It is going to be hot. Temperatures have at times reached past 50degC in the race and should be at least well past 40degC when Sutton starts.
He finished 33rd last year of 100 competitors in a time of about 36 hours and wants to be faster again in the 38th running of the race.
Sutton is the only New Zealand competitor.
The 100 competitors, from 24 different countries, start in three different groups.
Sutton is set to go in the second group at 10.30am (NZ time), which is 9.30pm on Tuesday in California.
Sutton has a support team of Rob Cunningham, Bruce Adams and Mark Murdoch.
