The Mt. Madonna Challenge began in 1975 by a hodge podge group of runners led by a gentleman with a passion for running, Bill Flodberg. It was one of the original trail races that began the evolution of trail running. In his 75 years, Bill wore many hats, and he wore them with equal passion. Bill was an avid runner; during college, he ran for UC Berkeley; later, he ran and trained on the roads and trails in San Martin and Gilroy, and he raced competitively well into his 70s. In addition to his personal running accomplishments, Bill encouraged runners and running as a Cross Country Coach at Gavilan College, as one of the founders of the Gavilan Joggers and Striders Running Club, through his “Running Man” running column, and as an organizer and director of several local races, including the Mt. Madonna Challenge. Thanks to Bill, thousands of people were enriched by his efforts to encourage music and the arts. And thanks to Bill, thousands of people in the running community have benefited from his example, encouragement, and advice.
Non-profit/Your Race Fees at Work!
In 2007, the South Valley Running Club took over ownership and management of the Mt. Madonna Challenge as Bill could no longer manage putting on the race. The running club took over the race with the intent of all proceeds being donated in the form of scholarships for college to local high school running athletes. Over the 13 years, the running club put on the Mt. Madonna Challenge, one to five scholarships were given out each year to local high school seniors.
As with many organizations over time, the running club saw a decline in club support and participation with putting on the Mt. Madonna Challenge and decided that it was time to transfer the race to someone that could bring renewed energy and passion to the race. Beginning with the 2020 race, Jose Cruz took over ownership and management of the race. A local amazing running athlete, Jose has big plans for the race and promises to put on a fantastic race for those coming to run it. All proceeds will go towards the Mt. Madonna Scholarship, which will sponsor local high school runners to take part in the Max King Trail Running Camp in June. A week packed with adventure, camaraderie, running tips, exploration, and stewardship! Our goal is to have 8 – 10 kids from various local schools eventually attend this running camp.
Cupless Race/Hydrapak
There will be no disposable cups at this race as it produced much unnecessary waste! But not to worry!, Hadrapak stepped in to support us! The SpeedCup’s flexible design allows you to crush the cup and stuff it anywhere, from your running vest to your camp kit. The integrated finger loop provides support when drinking or pouring, free standing when empty and full. Made of ultra-durable, abrasion resistant TPU & RF welded seams for superior durability and elasticity. Perfect for race day!
Cut-Off Time (Half Marathon)
As much as we’d love to see you cross the finish line, we will be implementing a cut-off time for the Half Marathon. We know that the climb up Sprig Lake Trail is not easy but if you have not reached the first aid station for the second time (the first aid station is at mile 2.6, also serves as the second aid station at mile 5) by 9:45am, which is a 21:00 minute per mile pace, we will ask you to take Blackhawk Trail all the way down to the finish. Please respect our aid station volunteers as they ask you to make your way down to the finish. This is primarily for your safety, but our permits and timing partners have time limits and we want to respect that. We will have course sweepers removing course markers shortly after the cut-off time. Please respect them as they are volunteers. Please be sure to let the race director and timers know that you did not make the cut off or that you dropped from the race.
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Fun 30k Race - Great Views
Friends co-directed this race, so I will do my best to give an unbiased report. I signed up for this race to support a good cause (youth) and friends that … MORE
Friends co-directed this race, so I will do my best to give an unbiased report.
I signed up for this race to support a good cause (youth) and friends that were organizing this event, and to get in a long training run.
I didn’t have any issues finding the race start even though it is in a remote area. The parking was easy and bib pickup was too. They had colored bibs for the different distances, and the t-shirt is pretty cool too. There were 2 portable potties and someone had placed some antibacterial wipes out for our use which I thought was nice 🙂
The race has several distances, I signed up for the 30k. We did one small loop, and 2 large loops for the 30k.
Pros – The course was very well marked with flags and signs. There is one section that had a lollipop and there was no problem figuring it out the first time (we saw the lollipop 3 times for the 30k). Aid stations were really top notch. I’m a big fan of watermelon and ice cold water at aid stations. Although I didn’t need water, I carried enough of my own, they had delicious watermelon at every aid station. They had lots of other food items, more than enough and more options than a lot of races for sure. The volunteers were incredible. They were very friendly and accommodating. At the end of the race they offered pizza and they had ice cold cola. I don’t usually drink coca-cola, but it tastes so good during and after a race.
The course was really nice! I had never run those particular trails, or not that I remember. The redwoods were beautiful and the views when you get to top of the climbs were lovely, photos were definitely taken during this race. Another really nice thing about this race is that when you are in an exposed area of the trail/course, you always know you have some shade coming up. I never felt overheated. There was little to no traffic on the trails and although there were technical parts of the trail, there were also sections that were soft and very easy to run on. There is some serious climbing though, so be prepared for that.
Cons – We found out when we got to the start that elevation that was on the website was off, so my taper run was a bit more than I had expected. The distance was longer too, I figured it out after we got done with the 1 & 2nd loops. No biggie for me, and I think they have corrected this on the website. I just think it is important to have the correct information so people that might not be trained for more elevation are prepared.
I ran this with my daughter-in-law, we both had a lot of fun. We are both looking forward to this race next year!