This off-road marathon will be held at Red Lodge Mountain Resort. In its sixth year running, the Nitty Gritty is starting to earn quite the reputation. And that is, one nitty, gritty marathon with LOTS of climbing all on dirt roads and single track trails. With a late August date, …
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This off-road marathon will be held at Red Lodge Mountain Resort. In its sixth year running, the Nitty Gritty is starting to earn quite the reputation. And that is, one nitty, gritty marathon with LOTS of climbing all on dirt roads and single track trails.
With a late August date, your summer of running and racing will be what prepares you for this “battle royal” event. Form a six, three or two runner relay team to tackle the marathon, or if you have the grit, try the solo hot lap, half, or full marathon!
The Nitty Gritty embodies our motto the most out of any race: low key, high elevation. While the terrain is challenging, everything else is lowkey and there is distance for all abilities. Dogs are welcome to run with you on or off leash, the beer and snacks might be the biggest draw….second only to the awesome people! Small but mighty, this race is for those who love trail running and everything that comes with it! Bring your bear spray, camp chair, and good attitude.
So lay the peer pressure on your friends, because its time to get down to The Nitty Gritty!
Course Details
Each lap is about 4.31 miles and features a mix of single track, access road, and bush whacking. You’ll gain approximately 1,150ft per lap. There are no aid stations on the route. You will pass by the start line and can grab snacks/water and use the restroom. If you need water/snacks in between, it is your responsibility to carry it with you.
The course will be marked with pink and green flagging, and signs at junctures. This year’s course is a continuous loop so you do not pass over or repeat any sections of trail.
Bear spray is required for every participant (we have some you can borrow). We recommend all participants carry their phones on the route. Event medics will be onsite at the main base area. There will be no course monitors.
LESS
A disorganized mess
The marathon and many other races were canceled because of bad weather near the end of the races in 2025. A discount for next year was promised but so far … MORE
The marathon and many other races were canceled because of bad weather near the end of the races in 2025. A discount for next year was promised but so far has not been delivered. The course was poorly planned and unnecessarily dangerous. Mountain bikers were traveling on the single track against racers! Portions of the trail were overgrown leading to close calls on the down hill. The hosts even forgot a starting line! After my race was canceled 23 miles in the hosts took away the snacks we had paid for. That was cruel. Do not waste your time with this race because the hosts do not respect your labor and hard earned money. I still got PR in terms of distance and did like the difficulty but the juice was not worth the squeeze because of poor leadership and organization.
Great time great location!
Beautiful location great course would have liked to have seen the race itself a little more organized but all-in-all couldn't have asked for a better day. If you just want … MORE
Beautiful location great course would have liked to have seen the race itself a little more organized but all-in-all couldn’t have asked for a better day. If you just want to run in the mountains with the chance of seeing Wildlife this is the best race you could do.