Our local area is a great place for running with wonderful water views, a nice mix of urban and country running and even some trails to get your shoes dirty.
But sometimes you have to go outside of your local comfort zone to see what you are capable of on truly technical and isolated trails, which several hearty local runners did on April 20 at the Hyner Trail Challenge 50K and 25K.
Held in north central Pennsylvania and organized by race director Craig Fleming and the PA Trail Dogs, the Hyner Challenge is a graduate-level trail run with the 50K (31 miles) requiring previous trail experience to enter as road races are not qualifiers.
Fleming describes the race correctly when he writes that the course is “not designed so that everyone can easily finish. Our course was designed to challenge people both mentally and physically. Remember, a challenge requires special effort and dedication.”
This course definitely provides multiple challenges. Starting in the small town of Hyner, where the Hyner Bridge crosses over the west branch of the Susquehanna River, the course proceeds on Humble Hill straight up Hyner Mountain to the magnificent Hyner Overlook, where hang gliders launch to land 2,100 feet below.
From this height, the runners ring a bell to announce their conquering Humble Hill as they look over their shoulders to see their cars as tiny little dots on the perilous single track trail.
After a quick pass past the Fire Wardens Monument, runners head into the remote sections of the course, going over several surrounding mountains as well as a section called the “V” due to its precarious up and down into a local hollow to a creek.
After climbing over the steep elevation of the notorious SOB hill, the runners proceed back to Hyner utilizing the ever rocky Huff Run, on which the chances of injury loom large with shifting rocks that seem to want to dump you into the creek below and tricky downhill terrain.
No matter how much you may train on local roads and trails, nothing prepares you for the remote trails of north central Pennsylvania, one of which is named the Donut Hole due to the nature of being in a “hole” where cell service and roads are limited. It is truly just you and nature.
Overall, the runners navigate about 8,000 to 10,000 feet of elevation gain, thousands of rocks and many stream crossings, which often seek to only pull the runners downstream with a surprisingly strong current. The finish times reflect the difficulty of the course, with many runners adding an hour or two to their normal 50K finish times and several hours to their normal road racing time.
This year’s event was a great day for many of our local runners to take on Hyner. The weather cooperated with cool temperatures and no rain. The only thing the runner had to worry about was their body and mind saying “stop,” which can be as formidable a foe as any weather condition.
Jicheng Liu of Ellicott City was the first local finisher in the 50K (22nd overall) with a time of 5 hours, 24 minutes and eight seconds (10:36/mile). Baltimore runners Aaron Ellison and Mac McComas came across the line in 47th (5:43) and 62nd (5:52), respectively.
Other local finishers were Rachel Slusher of Joppa (127th overall in 6:22), Erin Altemos of Baltimore (171, 6:51), Casey Rayburg of Annapolis (203, 7:05) and Devon Rose of Easton (223, 7:12). Your faithful columnist, a West River resident, finished 314th in 8:08.
In the 25K division, Robert Bartholomew of Aberdeen was the top local runner — finishing 30th overall in 2:58:21 (11:09/mile). Joann Alimurong of Pasadena (810, 7:30:57) and Marivic Bacwaden of Severn (811, 7:31.57) also completed the 25K.
Congratulations to our local runners for taking on the Hyner Trail Challenge and going outside their comfort zone to truly test their capabilities on a fun day. The race is strongly geared to Pennsylvania runners who know these trails, so special kudos to our relative “flatlanders.”
If you are seeking out a similar challenge, but don’t want to take on 31 miles on the remote and technical trails of Hyner, you can check out other races put on by the PA Trail Dogs. More information can be found at patraildogs.com
Calendar
May 4: Frederick Running Festival, Frederick, Information: corrigansports.com/event/frederick-running-festival/
May 18: St. Michael’s Running Festival, St. Michaels, Information: charmcityrun.com/event/st-michaels-running-festival-presented-by-brooks/
June 1: Baltimore 10-Miler, Baltimore, Information: corrigansports.com/event/baltimore-10-miler/
June 1: Maryland Half Marathon and 5K to support UMMS Greenbaum Cancer Center, Columbia,