I have been involved in running for a long time now. I have run all sorts of races. 5k- 100 miles. Road to trails. Solo and relay. Flat and fast pavement to up and down ski slopes. Even on snow shoes. And I also run with my dog.

I have also been involved as a volunteer. I am in my second stint on the board of directors of our local all volunteer non profit running club, the southern Tier Running Club. In my past volunteer work on the board my involvement in helping to put on races was more on task oriented side of things. As in the Race Director would let me know what needed to be done and I would do that thing. Especially when it came to course set up and break down during an event. And I also photographed events.

For this event I was the Race Director. That meant I was in charge of the development of the race and planning all the logistics and behind the scenes work that made sure the event happened successfully. Thankfully I have learned a lot from being around and involved in races for a long time.

In 2025 we put on this event in a very no frills bare bones fashion as a test run to see how it would go. And everything turned out pretty well. Most. Of the participants had a good time even though they may have spent .33 miles of every lap cursing me. But many of those same participants came back for the 2026 edition.

For this years event we added a fresh new logo that I worked with a local designer to develop. And then we took that logo design and used it as inspiration for our finisher medals and our hats that participants received.

One of the reason I have fallen in love with loop course events and wanted to take on that style of event as the race format for my events is that it is really easy to see how everyone is a winner. There is no cut off. No predetermined distance you have to go. No amount of time you have to run. You complete one lap and you are a finisher and you get a metal.

And every person can customize how they participate in the event in their own way. Striving for a personal best in time on feet, go for it. Goal of running X amount of loops, go for it. Have a distance. You would like to achieve, it is there for you. Need to get a long run in then you can do that and get a fully stocked aid station as well. Want to go for a fun and challenging hike with friends and family then we are here for it. Think you have what it takes to win the event then let it rip.

This years event had a few more participant than in 2025, so we are trending in the right direction. I am excited to continue to put on this event and see it grow for years to come. I am so thankful for every single person who joined us at Newtown Battlefield State Park for our event. I am glad you put your faith in us to provide you with a fun and challenging time out on the trails and I hope we did not disappoint. I look foreword to seeing everyone again in 2027 and hopefully some more new faces as we continue to grow.

And of course I could not have don’t the hard work to put on this event without the support of our board at the Southern Tier Running Club and all the hard work from the fine folks that work at Newtown Battlefield State Park. As well as the organizations we worked with to provide timing, event logos, awards, and swag items.

I really hope everyone joyed the aid station and the post race food. Much of which was homemade. If there is something you particularly like please tell me about it or if there is something you may want to see in the future please let me know so we can consider providing it in the future.

If you are interested in our events but missed out on this one, please check out our next race on the calendar STRC Trailfest at Sugar Hill.

If you enjoyed this article you can click the link below to support the work I do here or subscribe to my email so you don’t miss out in anything I share.