This year I took a bite into a race that gets a lot of attention in Beaver Falls PA in the states. Wolf Creak racing puts this on and always seems to acquire very high calibre of talent including this year Dan Green, who also won Cocodona 250 miler and 16th at WSER. I was drawn by the scenic trail system here and the rad belt buckle. haha. The bib has a a personalized effect with your name on it with a rabid raccoon and purple back drop so it’s the most flare filled bib I have to date.
I took the March break off with my kiddos and then drove to Pittsburgh; the biggest city near this venue. It’s a beaute, there are tons of great restaurants and sight seeing options too boot. On the drive (a nice side note) in Erie PA there is a park called Presque Isle and it’s absolutely breathtaking. It’s a conservation area and there have been many efforts to preserve the massive bird population as migrant birds will seek this as home throughout the year and it rests on the shores of Lake Erie.
The race is held at Brady Run park. All races follow the same 20 ish k loop. On repeat pending your distance. The main aid station you’ll pass it twice on course, once around 2.5 mi and again on mile 9, with another water station at mile 7. I’d say the biggest advantage of a course like this is you don’t have to carry much fuel, and you can restock at the main aid station every 20 k or if you’d like to they allow a bag drop at the 2.5 mi and 9 mile aid, so really you could run almost weightless for the entire duration and have that support to meet all your nutrition demands. Similar set up to Sulphur actually in Hamilton !
it’s a big race, when I say big race, I mean 400 + in the 100 miler and 100 k alone, let alone all the other distances I’m assuming close to 1000. They have relays out there too, and at night also, so you’re never alone, and wolf creak racing puts on quite a theatre production. One example, there is a gnarly downhill leading into the mid way aid station and they light it up like Christmas so when you see the lights from a k out you get that extra pep to your step knowing where you are on course. They do a fantastic job at marking the course, I think you’d have to have temporary blindness to veer off. The main aid station and mid way are inside a community centre, so if it rains all your gear is covered and protected and not to mention if it’s cold, you get to warm up and rest if need be too!
The 20 k loop has about 550 metres ish of vert, so this course is very challenging, but I actually found many sections aside from the climbs to offer many runnable stretches and really I’ve always said hills render you to a walk sometimes a death march so really it’s a perfect Segway to eat and get fuel down. haha. maybe I’m a minority here in this thinking! You have to cross a creak every loop. This year they gave a back up option for fair weathered runners, but it comes at a cost, maybe another mile added to go around. I found it absolutely refreshing to cool off the feet that work so hard for you and then I just monitored the damp effect and changed socks out every few loops.
The course itself is almost all on single track and there are some double track trails for some of the climbs or cross overs to intersections etc. It’s beautiful, I loved the scenery and views especially on the top of climbs. This race is also held in March so weather is fairly cooler more years than not, but downside it does have higher probability of mud and high rain odds come race day!
I recommend this race I had so much fun here and coming into the main shack every loop they blaze rock metal and other gems to really fire you up and the camaraderie effect here I felt to be off the chart. People cheering and high fiving and really having an epic atmosphere to set you off on a reset vibe to give your all! There aren’t a lot of races at this point in the season so I also feel like you get to begin the stoke for the coming year with a banger and you really do get die hards or passionate veterans like me that just can’t wait to get going and you feel that vibe and it’s pretty amped!
There was a craft beer and local coffee roaster and local cuisine on site as a bonus and I loved how they had you in and out of the corral like a movie star going down the red carpet haha…
To sum this up, Rabid Raccoon was one heck of solid adventure. One of the most cherishable effects of USA races in my opinion is you get to meet people from all across the US let alone Canadians that drive down and I just love the melting pot of varying accents and lifestyles and eclectic personalities you meet at these places.
My fondest memory is tripping down the main aid station hill towards the bottom and a volunteer actually laughed at me very innocently and I laid on the ground laughing in unison. It actually made my race, I laughed on the ride home to Canada. Hospitality was second to none, the aid stations were full on buffets and the volunteers were super eager to get you back out there fed and nourished. The organizers are good souls and care about ambiance and experience even doing check ins with runners as they finished and offering hugs and cheer.
Onto next adventures…Happy trails!
