In the Woods 30A 50K
I’m pleased to announce that registration for the 2024 In the Woods 30A 50K is NOW OPEN! We're proud to be the ONLY ultramarathon on 30A. If you're from outside of the local area and/or have never heard of 30A, "30A" is both a road AND an "area," if you will. We're often regarded as having "the world's most beautiful beaches." Well, needless to say, we have some pretty amazing forest as well!
The In the Woods 30A 50K will be taking place on Saturday, Jan 26th, starting and finishing at the Point Washington State Forest Eastern Lake Trailhead. The race starts at 6:30a and the finish line closes promptly at 3p - both start and finish will be at the Point Washington State Forest Eastern Lake trailhead. Runners have THREE race options to choose from: the 50K Solo, the 2-person relay, and the 3-person relay. The relay teams can be all gals, all guys, or a mix of both.
Course
From the Point Washington State Forest Eastern Lake Trailhead, runners immediately head into the woods where they'll run on some of the prettiest trails that the state park has to offer. After crossing 395S for the first time, runners will be treated to the endless pine forests of Pt Washington State Forest and then Grayton Beach State Park, eventually coming up on a cool little stretch of trail that runs along the banks of Western Lake. After a second crossing of 395S, runners will make their way back to ultimately make their way back to Point Washington State Forest. If tackling the In the Woods solo, runners will complete an identical second lap. If participating as a 2-person relay, the changeover point is at the trailhead. Runner #2 will complete an identical lap as completed by runner #1. For the 3-person relay, split up the course as your team sees fit. Seriously! In fact, the members of your team are even free to run multiple times, if that’s how you wish to do it. The ONLY rules: your team must run and complete the official 50K route as established (duh), and do it utilizing the (maximum of) 3 runners that you registered. That’s it. A "team car" is absolutely permitted, and there will be multiple locations along the route that could be used as "changeover points."
As mentioned at the outset, we will be utilizing a staggered start. And also as previously mentioned, the race will be starting at the trailhead parking lot. The trail literally starts at the parking lot and the parking lot itself is small. Therefore, to ensure an orderly and safe start to the race + to eliminate congestion on the trails, we’ve decided to utilize a staggered start. The Elite SOLO runners…those anticipating a finish time in under 5 hours, are encouraged to start in the first wave of runners at 6:30a. After the Elite SOLO runner start, we’ll be starting the elite runners from the 2 and 3-person relay teams at 6:35a. Once they're off and running, beginning at 6:40a, ALL REMAINING RUNNERS are free to start.
One last note: if you plan on maximizing your enjoyment of the course and anticipate taking more than 8 hours, please feel free to start your race BEFORE 6:30a: reason being, as mentioned previously, we lose our Sheriff's Deputy support at 3p, so we need everyone to the finish line by then. Obviously you won't be eligible for age-group awards if you start early, but it's all good. If you do plan on starting early, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE check in with a race official before you take off. Race officials will be at the trailhead early, so you can notify them that you're leaving. This is very important for accountability/safety purposes.
Click the following link to view the raw course + download the TCX/GPX data
Terrain
I should take this opportunity real quick to discuss the terrain, just so there are no surprises. From the outset of the race you can expect tree roots, rocks, sand, and maybe even some fallen over trees. You can also expect a few sections of standing water and mud. In other words, pure awesomeness!!! Again, I just wanted to discuss the terrain so no one shows up on race day expecting a groomed running path with no trip hazards and with aspirations of going home with clean shoes. Simply put, not gonna happen!
Awards
The 1st thru 3rd finishers from the men’s and women’s solo races, and the 1st - 3rd finishers from the 2 and 3-person relays will receive awards. Furthermore, the top 3 solo finishers from each age group will also receive awards. All race finishers will receive a nifty finisher’s award. And VERY SPECIAL to the In the Woods 30A 50K: all solo runners who finish the 50K in UNDER 5 HOURS will receive the (soon-to-be) coveted In the Woods 30A 50K "U5 Club" Stein.
Post-Race Social
There will be a post-race social in conjunction with the awards ceremony at the finish line. In the event of inclement weather there will most definitely be a plan B!
Packet Pick-up
Early packet pick-up will be on Friday, January 26th from 3-6p at Fleet Feet Inlet Beach. If you can't make it on Friday, no worries, there will also be packet pick-up on race morning at the start line from 5:30a-6:15a (...but have some mercy on us and PLEASE try to make it on Friday :)).
Awesome race swag as always! This year all registered runners will receive the official In the Woods 30A 50K race shirt.
Additional Details
Promo Codes: ACTIVE DUTY military, police, sheriff's deputies, fire, and paramedics, please use the HERO1 promo code to receive 25% off your registration. RETIRED military, police, sheriff's deputies, fire, and paramedics, please use the HERO promo code to receive 15% off your registration. All of the local-area middle school + high track and cross-country team runners can get 10% off by using the SCHOOL promo code. Area running clubs should have their own code (provided to them by us) for 10% off. If you've forgotten what it is, please hit us up. If you want to run, but the registration fee will truly set you back due to current financial hardship, please give us a holler at RunRotorhead30a@gmail.com. We set three registrations aside each race for folks in such a predicament.
A portion of the proceeds from registration for the In the Woods 30A 50K will always go to the Point Washington Medical Clinic. They provide primary medical care to our community and charge NO FEES for the service. They "charge" donations only. Needless to say I’m pumped that we can support them. Check them out at: https://thepwmc.org
Lastly, as stated in the waiver, there are no refunds or transfers/deferrals of registration(s), regardless of circumstances. The lone exception on the "no transfer" policy is if you agree to volunteer at a race. Obviously said volunteer duty must be complete prior to utilizing your transfer. Thanks for your understanding!
Event's current local time: 8:55 PM CT
