Camp Ondessonk, in the heart of the Shawnee National Forest, will play host to the Shawnee Hills Trail Races. Runners will get to explore some of the most stunning and extraordinary rock formations and waterfalls that Shawnee National Forest is well known for, vegetation consists largely of oak-hickory, maple-beech, and …
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Camp Ondessonk, in the heart of the Shawnee National Forest, will play host to the Shawnee Hills Trail Races. Runners will get to explore some of the most stunning and extraordinary rock formations and waterfalls that Shawnee National Forest is well known for, vegetation consists largely of oak-hickory, maple-beech, and pine forests. The course will take you deep into the sandstone canyon systems of Southern Illinois’ Shawnee Hills Natural Division while traversing Jackson Hollow and the Bay Creek Reservoir and several waterfalls along the course including Pakentuck Falls (the tallest free-falling waterfall in Illinois), Jackson Falls, Horseshoe Falls, and Cedar Falls along with some inspiring views from Salomon’s Ridge.
The course is a figure eight loop with a combination of 80% single track trail, all dirt with some fire roads. The course is hilly; total climb between 50 feet – 150 feet (2,500 feet – 7,500 feet in 50miles), the terrain is technical with lots of rocks, roots/ruts and creek crossings to keep you present.
Runners will be exposed to heat and humidity along with possible encounter with Snakes, Ground Hornets and Bees that are native to the area.
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Very technical, but also beautiful
Overall Rating: Excellent! Course Difficulty: This race is crazy hard and lands in the hottest most humid time of year. Primarily technical single track with plenty of rocks, creek crossings, … MORE
Overall Rating: Excellent!
Course Difficulty: This race is crazy hard and lands in the hottest most humid time of year. Primarily technical single track with plenty of rocks, creek crossings, and seldom a flat spot.
Course Scenery: It is the best of Southern Illinois. You won’t find better scenery in this part of the world.
Race Production: Perfect!!! Communication and logistics were spot on. Everything was where it should be and at the time it should have been there. Post race was still around when the slow folks arrived, so that another plus. RD was at the finish congratulating finishers. Top notch production from Stephanie Page!
Race Swag: High quality custom medal, a couple of stickers, and nice tech shirt.
My Performance: Recently starting a new career and having a toddler in the house, my training stunk and for the the month before the race was non existent. I set out knowing that anything less than 8 hours would be great, anything less than 9 hours would also be great, and anything less than ten hours would also be great…basically, I was hoping to finish. I walked most of 16 miles, so 8.5 hours wasn’t too bad.
Final notes: This is a hard race. I signed up to support a friend who was doing her first ultra, and we both made it; in ultraworld, that’s a win. I think I said this on the last review of this race as well, but this race is not for the faint of heart, it will make you cry and question why you ever decided to start running. At some point, you will probably sit down and think I just can’t go anymore, but then you’ll find a way, because there is no one coming to get you. If you decide to go for it…just…don’t…quit!
This course rocks...
Correction: This course *has* rocks...everywhere...except where there's a giant mudhole, or a tree across the path, or a creek. Sometimes the rocks are combined with these entities, or neatly arranged … MORE
Correction: This course *has* rocks…everywhere…except where there’s a giant mudhole, or a tree across the path, or a creek. Sometimes the rocks are combined with these entities, or neatly arranged up the side of a super steep hill…yay!
All that being said, I think I’ve discovered why I’m so terrible at trail runs; after stopping every 20-40 strides for a hundred or so intervals, dodging mud, crawling over trees, or picking my way through the landmines (rocks and roots), and still only covering about 11 miles, my legs finally say “screw you buddy, you’ve lost your mind…we’re taking over” and instead of pushing through the wall, I walk for the next 15 or so miles.
At this moment at this race I realized I was going to be close to missing the 9 hour cutoff (I know right, 9 hrs on a 50k…absurd). So what did I do…no, not run, I walked faster…remember, the legs were still in control and they just didn’t trust my judgement anymore.
8 hours and 40 minutes later…I finished, still asking myself what just happened? Here’s the summary:
Overall Rating: No idea how to rate this.
Course Difficulty: Hardest race I have ever done. Saw on a post race email that there was a 26% finish rate -interpretation- 74% of people who signed up either overestimated themselves or underestimated the course…I’m going with the latter.
Course Scenery: As good as it gets for Southern Illinois. You are literally in the middle of waterfalls and geological wonders. Unfortunately, if you take your eyes off of the trail for very long…you die (or hit your toe on a rock and wish you had died).
Race Production: The race started on time, and the aid stations were phenomenal! There was an 8.5 mile span with no aid station, which I think is too long for this course. I stopped and filled a water bottle for another runner out of my hydration pack, and sat on a rock for a five minute rest to recover a little during that segment. The correspondence and overall presentation of the race organization lacked the kindness of the people of southern Illinois; not mean, just blunt and straightforward. I didn’t love that.
Race Swag: This race, because of the difficulty, should give buckles for all distances. The medal is nice, but wow, if you finish this race in a decent time, you’ve done something.
My Performance: I thought about dropping, I was just exhausted, then my buddy Joel (who I met on the course) reminded me it’s just as far to walk to the truck as it is to finish. I’m happy with just completing it before the cutoff.
Final notes: This is not a beginners course, do not underestimate it.