Jupiter Ridge Sand Spur Ultra

The Jupiter Ridge Sand Spur 50K and half marathon will be using the most excellent “2020” Sand Spur loop which includes every permissible trail in Jupiter Ridge! You’ll get 93% sugar sand, while the other 7% we’ll just call “other” (boardwalk, sidewalks, hard packed rooty flatwoods trail, gravel road, etc) This is THE most scenic loop we can muster! You’ll have stunning views of the Intracoastal Waterway on your run, go through tunnels of sand pines, traverse up and down some of Palm Beach County’s tallest sand dunes with multiple summits of the highest natural point in all of Palm Beach County at an eye-watering 49 feet above sea level!

This loop is right at 4.54 miles long with 2 aid stations: one at the start/finish, and one at the halfway point in the loop. There will be tons of aid and you’ll never go more than 2.25 miles without being able to get hydration/nutrition, and you’ll have drop bag access during every loop!

7 Trials runners will start on Friday night at 7 p.m. and will run four Sand Spur loops for a total of 18.16 miles and around 1,200 feet of elevation gain/loss with a 5 hour cutoff. 50K and half marathon runners will start on Saturday. 50K runners will complete 7 loops (31.78 miles) with approximately 2,000 feet of elevation gain/loss. 9 hour cutoff.

Half Marathon runners will complete 3 loops (13.62 miles) with approximately 800 feet of elevation gain/loss. 5 hour cutoff for this one! The race starts at 9:00 a.m.

The story of the Jupiter Ridge Sand Spur Ultra began during the last ice ages. On the Florida peninsula, sandy hilltop island and coastal dune ridges were the only lands peeking above sea level over 2 million years ago. Then the seas fell, leaving the flat, broad finger of land we now know as Florida. These ancient sand dunes are known as one of the rarest living communities: Florida Scrub.

Jupiter Ridge Natural Area is one of the last stands of Florida Scrub habitat in Palm Beach County. Only 2% of original Scrub in the county and less than one-third of the original Scrub in the state remain today. A gently rolling landscape of prickly, dense thickets spotted with bare patches of sparkling white sand, these 271 acres are protected by Palm Beach County as part of a countywide system of natural areas. Over 200 species of plants and animals call this home.

Lightheartedly called “the Death Valley of Palm Beach County”, in fact, this natural area is full of life with an amazing variety of plant and animal species – some found to exist nowhere else in the state. The Scrub habitat of Jupiter Ridge Natural Area is among the harshest environments, and the slowest to regenerate if damaged. It’s also some of the oldest living stands of Florida landscape; you’ll be running on ancient sand dunes millions of years old.

It’s for this reason we have a runner cap of 40 runners this year. We are continually working with Palm Beach County Environmental Resources Management to bring this race to fruition while preserving the integrity, and protection, of the natural area. Jupiter Ridge Sand Spur was the first and only outside entity to be permitted a running event in a Palm Beach County natural area with our 2017 inaugural race. We are tremendously proud of that, and will continue to work closely with them to ensure responsible execution and growth of this race.

These natural areas are managed by the Palm Beach County Environmental Resources Management team, and we are tremendously fortunate to be working with them to make this race a reality.