Stuffed Turkey Endurance Races
Granger, IA
- 100 Miler, 50 Miler, 50K, 10 Miler
- Trail (Unpaved)
- Official race website
Join this November at Jester Park in Granger, Iowa, for an epic ultra trail experience. Choose from 10-Mile, 50K, 50-Mile, or 100-Mile races on a 99% trail course with rolling hills and flat stretches. With 455 feet of elevation gain per loop, this course is as scenic as it is … MORE
Local Historical Weather (Nov 21):
| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | |
| H (°F) | 42 | 41 | 45 | 45 | 51 |
| L (°F) | 31 | 30 | 31 | 26 | 25 |
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Filled with all the fixings
From what I hear, few people will tackle vacation, a full marathon, 5 half marathons, a handful of other races AND a 50k in the span of 9 weeks. These … MORE
From what I hear, few people will tackle vacation, a full marathon, 5 half marathons, a handful of other races AND a 50k in the span of 9 weeks. These people are clearly not friends with jkelling, mastermind of miles and challenges. Yet, the overload of miles, travel and racing was a fitting lead-in to the Stuffed Turkey Endurance races, because they packed in ALL the goodies for an incredibly fun, supportive and scenic race. There was no better way to “end” the race season….unless of course you count the post 7-hour drive and half marathon the next day.
Jkelling and I decided on a cold, winter, snow-covered running day in January that a yearly 50k would be an appropriate goal. (Please note: 50k, not 50 miles!) As back of the packers, a lengthy time limit was crucial. Having experienced less than scenic views on our respective 50k the first time a round, we were intrigued by the multiple 10-mile loops and varying terrians. Stuffed Turkey delivered on all fronts, and more.
The starting line is centered at the Jester Park equasterian center, which allowed for indoors restrooms, warming station post-race and quick break stops between laps, if needed. The 50k is part of a bigger races with 100 milers starting at 6am and the 10-miler, 50k and 50-miler starting at 11am. The kind and responsive race director allowed us to start at 6am, since we had another race the next day (yes, madness!). The course itself is a mix of trail, heavy gravel, a small section of road and dirt path in the woods. If you start at 6am, be prepared to bring a light. We used our phones for the first few miles. After that, get ready for one of the most peaceful and gorgeous sunrises in the Midwest. Seeing the sun kiss the still waters as it peeked through the woods could be described as God says, “Yes, you can do this.” The big rocks on the gravel section and slippery hills could also be God saying, “I didn’t say it was going to be easy.”
Since the course was a 10-mile lap, there are always runners on the course. Whether they started at 11am or the 100-milers passing you by, the support and encouragement was impeccable. Hats off to the 100-miler who saw me detour toward the bench and yell “No! The course is on the right. One foot in front of the other” and grab my hand to keep going and not rest. I am sure he knew once I sat down, it would be a picnic stop – without the goodies.
The 10-mile loop turnaround is roughly at the 6-mile mark, which I personally really enjoyed. I like reaching the turnaround and knowing the return is a shorter distance. Once I crossed the finish line, the first loop, I realized how lucky we were to get such a primo parking spot. It made for the perfect pit stop. I am still learning how to properly “pit stop” for an ultra, so it was still a little longer than needed, probably.
I have completed more trail runs this year than before and have learned that medals are not always top priority. I happy to see that Stuffed Turkey DOES make it a priority. The golden medal with black turkey details was worthy of the race. The generic ribbon can be forgiven since the 100-milers got an awesome buckle. I appreciate the detail and distinction. They earned the belt buckle.
Now, I will discount the swag a bit. The registration gave an option for women sizes, and the long-sleeved shirt was unisex. I should probably just learn to pick a unisex size, but if the women option is available, I want it. Needless to say, the shirt is a bigger size than I hoped for, but it is nice and the course route on the back is a great feature.
The finish line food was a great assortment of chips, cookies, pizza, broth and other yummies. I even heard of an Oreo, Dorito burrito made of pizza, rather than a flour tortilla. Or it could have just been a madman’s invention. The food truck had some simple, but satisfying hot dogs, hamburgers and fries for sell. Either way, Stuffed Turkey gives no judgment, only support and encouragement. As I struggled through my 50k, the fast and determined 100-milers cheered me on like I was going win.
I don’t know when I will be back to Stuffed Turkey Endurance, but I will. The quick 3-hr drive makes it a doable weekend race and the neighboring Des Moines is a mere 20 minute with a variety of hotel (Qube was amazing!) and food options. Ultras and trails are a new challenge for me, so the support is important. Stuffed Turkey showed me that a 50k can be engaging, challenging and fun.
Great Race, Beautiful Course, Well Run
First time 50K and drove 200 miles to attend. Very scenic course along river, through prairie and among the trees. Well organized and supported. It is in a public park, … MORE
First time 50K and drove 200 miles to attend. Very scenic course along river, through prairie and among the trees. Well organized and supported. It is in a public park, so lots of bathrooms along the way. There is a large indoor horse pavilion as the base after each 10 mile loop. It was great place for crew or friends to stay warm and out of elements. (Though we had wonderful weather.) Course has a few small hills, but nothing terrible. Trail was in good shape. You do run along the park gravel roads in a few places. The gravel was a bit loose, not yet packed down.
Good group of runners. Lots of people on the course as the 100 mile, 50K and 50 Mile were all going on at the same time after a staggered start. So not crowded, but always someone nearby. Great volunteers and good selection of food. Medal and shirt were nice, but do this race for the course and great group of people. I hope to return. Really a fun race and good challenge for my first 50K.
Multiple PRs and great views.
So, I managed to PR 50k, full marathon, 30k PRs on this surprisingly fun course. Thanks to ccruiz03 for all those extra training miles! Out and back, this course is … MORE
So, I managed to PR 50k, full marathon, 30k PRs on this surprisingly fun course. Thanks to ccruiz03 for all those extra training miles!
Out and back, this course is 10 miles per “lap” There are three sections that diverge, so it’s more like a stacked lollipop than a true out and back, but you’ll see a lot of people passing back and forth with 4 different races going on. As is the case with so many trail races, the other participants are super friendly and super supportive. As is par for my course, I was out there wearing 34lbs of body armor, and there was plenty of encouragement whether I looked strong or about to pass out. This course is asymmetrical, with the turn around being about mile 6, which helps with “getting it done” when you’re feeling tired.
The view is great, running in tall prairie, by a river (and a nice bridge in the distance), as well as up and through some woods and a brief period along a gravel road. With three iterations for the 50k, you won’t get bored of the scenery. The only real part that sucked for me was the gravel, which had a little more slippage than I’d like, and a little harder on the boots, but fortunately some dirt/mud was coming short after that had enough vegetation laid down to give traction. Technically there is one stream crossing but the little staircase of sorts was enough to keep dry.
The tshirt is a long sleeve mid weight with the map on the back of the shirt, which I always greatly like. The medal was a high gloss yellow and black with a very nice design. I do dislike that the ribbon is just a solid yellow with no print, because I really like when ribbons are brought in as part of the design, but that’s not a killer flaw here. Unlike some trail races, I want to say that I’ve seen different medals designs online, so they may very well change every year, too.
There was an extraordinary selection of food, quantity and quality, both at the “home base” and at the remote aid station. The pizza at the end really hit, and the food truck, while not free, was also worth a stop. I look forward to seeing what other races they do.
This race is a bit of a drive, so I can’t say it will be every year, but I am considering it for my 50-miler attempt in the not-too-distant future. Hope to see you there.