Hash House Hundred 100k Fat Ass

There's no question the COVID-19 pandemic has had a huge impact on the ultrarunning world. I'll acknowledge that, when looking at the big picture, race cancellations, physical distancing guidelines, and wearing a face covering while running are all minor inconveniences. There's no need to say any more about the pandemic here, except that hardly anyone was surprised on July 19 when the Twisted Branch 100k race director announced his race would be cancelled this year. And to be sure, he made the right call. The race would lose its luster and all the things that make it special if forced to adhere to precautionary measures required by state and local governments. The competitive and social aspects of Twisted Branch would be largely absent if a limited field size, wave starts, and elimination of pre- and post-race festivities were required to hold the race. 

I spent most of the summer running reduced mileage and struggling to find the time and energy to get out the door at all. I had no doubt about completing Twisted Branch within the 20-hour time limit, but the run would have been a struggle. When Pete Dady, a fellow Finger Lakes Runners Club trail race RD, invited me via Strava comment to his 100k fat ass run, I was naturally drawn in. The run was the weekend following the cancelled Twisted date. My wife was agreeable to letting me run it while she took care of the babies since she'd previously agreed to watch them while I ran Twisted.

The fat ass run, which Pete D tentatively titled the Hash House Hundred, is a single 100-ish kilometer loop through several state forests and many tracts of privately owned land, comprising a total of only three trails—the main Finger Lakes Trail, the Finger Lakes Trail Onondaga Branch, and the Link Trail. According to Pete, an Upstate New York trail map connoisseur an expert on all things FLT, this is the only area within the Finger Lakes Trail system where such a large trail loop exists. The terrain varies in

Palmers Pond FatAss 50k

As part of my buildup toward the Massanutten 100, I signed up for the Palmers Pond FatAss 50k out in Almond, New York. Colin Bailey and Michael Valone decided to resurrect this gem, continuing with the no-fee, no-frills, no whining mentality of a true fatass trail run. (Just google "fat ass" if you don't know the term.) In fact, 2019 was only the second year of the event, following the inaugural 2016 run and a two-year hiatus. Registration was free on UltraSignup, but due to permitting, there were a limited number of spots and it "sold out" quickly back in January. The only fee of any sort was to bring something to share at the course's sole aid station.

The course comprises two different loops that are each run three times. The West Loop measured about 5.1 miles on my watch and was somewhat more forgiving terrain, while the East Loop measured 5.4 miles and had more mud, more hills, and a half-mile bushwhack section. The race HQ slash aid station sat roadside in the middle of the forest, where we'd pass through following each loop and have access to our gear in our cars, if needed.

The DEC trails around Palmer's Pond State Forest are all ATV- and snowmobile- friendly—in other words, wide, smooth, and not all that steep. This is a stark contrast to all the singletrack DEC trails I'm used to running around the Ithaca area.

The real challenge here was the mud. The trails would make for some fast 50k times when dry, but early April's heavy rains turned the race into a 32-mile mud run. What I thought was a likely PR was instead one of the toughest and slowest 50k races

A Weekend on The Ridge

The Springlerack Fat Ass is basically a long, off-road group run through the Mohonk Preserve and Minnewaska State Park on the Shawangunk Ridge. It's a chance to see some pretty cool scenery while completing a challenging route. On a clear day atop the 2,200-foot ridge, one can see the vast expanse of Hudson Valley to the east and the Catskill High Peaks to the west. Runner's can start at whatever time they want, with the goal of everyone finishing around 4 p.m. This was Mike Siudy's fifth year organizing the run.

The trails were closed in the western potion of Minnewaska thanks to a forest fire last summer. That meant this year's Springletrack was a modified, shorter course. We were to run from Spring Farm in the Mohonk Preserve down to the Jenny Lane parking lot on Route 44/55—a distance of about 20 miles. The traditional Springletrack course is about 25 miles, traversing over High Point, through Witch's Hole State Forest, and finishing further east at Berme Road Park in Ellenville.

I ran the fat ass with my friend Adam two years ago, and we ran together again this year. The weather was unbelievably nice in 2015, with some great views from atop the Shawangunk Ridge and trails that were mostly dry. We weren't so fortunate this time around. Temperatures were in the low-to-mid 30s and most of the singletrack was covered in mud or

Fall Recap: A Wedding, a Fat-Ass, and a Six Second PR

So 2014 has come to a close, and with it, the sudden realization that I haven't posted anything on this blog for nearly three months. While in the past few months I haven't been keeping up the mileage quite so much since Green Lakes, that isn't to say I haven't been keeping busy. The highlight of the fall is not running related, but it wouldn't be right not to mention that Hayley and I got married in early September. Wedding preparations, followed by a honeymoon, caused me to take a running break for a few weeks, and subsequently a blogging break ensued. (Bonus link: Strava GPS data for my flight from Philadelphia to the Dominican Republic.)

The first running-related highlight of the fall season was volunteering at the Virgil Crest Ultras. The day before the 50M and 100M trail races, my friend Rusty and I had the pleasure of checking the already-placed course markings on VCU's south half, AKA the alpine section. This entailed running/hiking up and down the ski slopes of Greek Peak in three different places, then running along the singletrack and dirt roads to The Rock Pile - an aid station at the 25 mile mark of the VCU that marks the turn-around point for the out and back. (50 milers run the out-and-back once, 100 milers