2021 TRADITIONAL IN-PERSON EVENT CANCELED, offering virtual option but you must run the actual course.
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THE ESCARPMENT TRAIL RUN IS FOR MOUNTAIN GOATS ONLY!!! The Escarpment Trail is a very remote, rugged hiking trail in the Northern Catskill Mountains in New York State. This single track trail crosses no roads, has total elevation changes of nearly 10,000 feet, and requires all aid to be backpacked in by volunteers. This is not for your average runner but for the runner who trains 12 months a year, and has spent years building a base and gaining long distance experience. Therefore, qualifying standards are required to insure that all participants have experience with endurance events and have a reasonable chance of completing the course within 6 hours.
THE TRAIL… is viewed by many as an exaggeration of the term. It is extremely rocky and a runner must expect to navigate over boulders, downed trees, gullies and hidden roots the entire distance. Contestants must be prepared to deal with any of the forest’s natural barriers, such as bees, slippery rocks, porcupines, black bears (not probable, but possible) and anything else that can be found in the forests of the Catskills. There are numerous places where runners must climb hand over fist to scale a rise, conversely, extremely steep downhill sections add not only challenge to the course, but also a high degree of unwelcome danger. There are sections of the course that travel along cliffs. If you’re not careful, you could fall to your death. Very few runners go the distance without taking at least one painful spill. Most runners take many. Believe me, you’re going to take a flop or two, or more. Bees!!! In 1987, we ran into lots of them. If you are allergic to bee stings, you MUST run with your own medication.
THIS IS NOT A CARRIAGE TRAIL… it is a treacherous hiking trail. There won’t be a vehicle to fetch you if you if you should decide to quit and it is your responsibility to get to the finish line. This is not a Run-For-All and we are not trying to hype it or make it something it is not. There won’t be people telling you where the trail goes, doctors to wipe your blisters, or a bus to give you a ride to the finish if you decide you can’t continue. This is a wonderful run across wonderful country, a run in which we will share the experience and the friendship with those qualified runners who choose to participate. No awards, no age group categories. Just runners, mountains, and some refreshments at the finish line.
QUALIFYING STANDARDS… The following standards have been set up for accepting entries. We CANNOT accept your entry if you don’t meet these standards. We reserve the right to accept or reject any entry. Due to trail limitations, entries will close at 200 runners or on July 24th, whichever comes first. These qualifying standards are put in place to insure that runners are in condition to safely complete the event in 6 hours. Please don’t ask us to accept any qualifier under a road marathon or 30k trail run.
At least one of these standards must have been met after August 1 of last year.
Anyone who completed the previous year’s Escarpment Trail Run in 6 hours or less.
Anyone who completed a half-iron man triathlon competition in 6 hours or less.
Anyone who completed a full iron man triathlon in 13 hours or less.
Anyone who completed a 50 miler in under 10 hours, a 50K under 5 hours, or a marathon under 4:15. Add 1 1/2 hrs. for a trail race.
NO ONE UNDER 18 YEARS OF AGE.
If you do not meet any of the qualifying standards above but have run a trail race of 20 miles or longer (i.e. a distance not specified above) within double the time of that race’s winner, you are eligible to submit an application. Acceptance is pending our review.
Entries will be mailed out the last week of May to all those who ran last year and for those who have sent in a SASE.
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