100 Mile Run Rabbit Run Race Information,
Updated November 15, 2012
“Every day is a beautiful day” – Elwood P. Dodd
Welcome to Our Little Event:
Well, little bunnies, yup, Harvey decided that for some of you, 50 miles just wasn’t enough. So we’ve added a 100 mile run! We know it’s early, so please check back often, because we do update this a lot. But please check out our Run, Rabbit, Run Runner’s Manual elsewhere on this website for everything you and your friends, family and crew need to know about this year’s race.
Entrants:
We will open for entries January 1, 2013. So if you know anyone with a couple of screws loose that thinks they want to run a 100 miles, that is the time for them to enter, before common sense and reason take hold.
Tortoises and Hares:
We’re offering prize money, for both Tortoises and Hares. We’ve started the Bunny Money Meter at $20,000 and we’re going from there. We’re going to give about 90% of what we can muster up to the Hares, with the rest going to the Tortoises, in the form of age group awards or some other fun things – whatever Harvey can think of. To see how that’s going look at the Prize Money page. But Harvey says you REALLY gotta have a few screws loose to be a Hare. Want to know if you’re a Hare? Click here.
Refunds and Transfers:
We don’t offer refunds or transfers for our 100 miler. But if you withdraw before August 15, 2013 we will credit you $150 to next year’s race. But otherwise, no refunds, and no transfers. Please don’t ask. We are a charity event so consider that your money goes to a good cause.
A Few Words of Thanks…
I know, you’ve heard this before but now you’re going to hear it again. It is impossible to do this without help from sponsors. So listen up, little bunny rabbits, and support (and thank) our sponsors: Montrail, The Steamboat Chamber Resort Association, Honey Stinger, Point6, Jameson Coffee (maker of the great SpeedgoatKarl’s 100 Mile Blend), Succeed, Black Diamond, Ultra Running Magazine, Steamboat Ski and Resort Corporation, Pateros Creek Brewery, Mahogany Grill, and those great folks at the Steamboat Running Series. And of course thank all the volunteers.
Directions to The Bear River; Pre Race Dinner; Briefing and Packet Pick-Up:
The packet pick up will be Thursday, September 12, from 3 to 5 pm, followed by a mandatory pre-race briefing at 5 pm all at The Bear River at the base of the ski basin. We will try not to be too verbose but we will issue you the usual warnings about the weather, checking in and out of the aid stations, following the course markings, and absolutely not littering, and of course, there will be a drawing for some awfully decent gifts. But all bunnies have to be there to hear it in person to win them and get your race packet. Based on popular demand, or lack thereof, there will be no pre-race dinner. There are many restaurants to suit all budgets located within walking distance of The Bear, as well as in downtown Steamboat Springs, a few minutes drive away. And we do have a terrific post-race party.
To get to The Bear, drive up Werner Road to the ski basin, towards Gondola Square. If you’ve parked at the (free) Gondola Square Parking Garage (opposite the Sheraton), follow the signs to Gondola Square. Look for the gondola and then look left. The Bear is right opposite the gondola. If you’re staying at the Torian, well, The Bear is a short walk down the path to the gondola.
Note: YOUR DROP BAGS MUST BE LEFT AT THE TRANSIT CENTER ON THURSDAY, BETWEEN 3 and 7 PM! You can leave bags for your finish, though, on Friday at the start.
Race Start:
The race for Tortoises will start right in front of The Bear at 7 am. If you’re a Hare you start at noon. All Tortoises must check in by 6:30 am. All Hares by 11:30. We will have SpeedgoatKarl’s 100 Mile Brew coffee, as well as water and Succeed, and maybe a bagel, but please fill your water bottles before you get to the start. We can’t carry enough to let everyone fill. There will be bathrooms available.
Early Bird Special Start:
We’re going to let all male runners over 70 and all female runners over 60 get an early start, if they want it. They can start at 6:00 am. If you’re going for the early start, just let us know at the Thursday check-in, and be at the start at 5:30 am.
Parking:
There is very limited free two hour parking right near the start for those with family or friends dropping them off for the race. There is also free all day public parking at the Knoll parking lot maybe ¼ mile away and there is free parking across from the Grand, right near the finish. The Sheraton and the Grand, very close to the start, have all day parking for $10 per day and there should be some free (but not overnight) parking across from the Sheraton as well. Those staying at our sponsor the Torian will have free parking in the Torian garage.
Mileage, Aid Stations, Drop Bags, Pacers and Crew Access:
We will try to get the drop bags returned to The Bear as quickly as we can, but they’ll have to be picked up by Sunday at 10:00 am at the latest. If not, it goes to charity. Or the circular file. Click here for information on pacer access, aid stations, mileage and cutoffs2013-100Mile Aid Stations, Mileage and Cutoffs
Please note: DROP BAGS MUST BE LEFT ON THURSDAY! See the Runner’s Manual for details.
Bunnies, don’t get wildly exuberant or depressed when you get into an aid station by the miles we will list; they are only approximations, done to make ourselves feel there’s a level of precision when we really know there isn’t. Heck, the course is probably a bit longer than 100 miles!
All aid stations will be stocked with at least Succeed and water, Honey Stinger waffles and chews, a cola and a non-cola beverage, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, turkey and cheese wraps or sandwiches, potato chips, cookies, some fruit and carrots. We will try to have something hot for the night, like soup, chili, beans and maybe rice. If there are other items runners really want, let us know and if there’s enough demand, we’ll put it there. We won’t put anything there though that might cause a litter problem – like Gu packets. Aid stations will be manned by friendly, smiling volunteers, who will grin and hopefully do whatever they can to help you finish, but beware – those grins may be those that people reserve when they think they are dealing with the seriously deranged. Smile back, say thank you and be kind. They are volunteers.
You all probably know this, but we’ll say it again: Our insurance makes us promise that before we can shut down an aid station, every single last bunny rabbit be accounted for. Please, please, please check in at every aid station, and in the very unlikely event you can’t finish and are forced to quit, make absolutely sure someone at an aid station knows about it.
The Course:
We will try to have all runners issued Colorado rescue hiking permits. We promise that the course will be well marked with nice colored ribbons so no one should get lost. If you fall and hurt yourself please stay where you are and don’t try to short cut your way back. We will have sweeps to make sure that all runners are accounted for. WARNING: The course is not closed so others may be using it, such as hikers and mountain bikers. Please be courteous. It is also hunting season in Colorado so while we welcome and encourage (really encourage) bright colors and clever costumes, dressing as an elk may not be the brightest of ideas. Walking or hiking poles are okay, but only for Tortoises. And we’re okay with earphones if you really insist, but please remove them on when you’re in town, and please remove them when you approach an Aid Station. Our course maps are Here. Our elevation chart is here: 100 Mile Course Profile.
Cut Off Times:
The time limit for Tortoises is 36 hours (which is 7 pm), unless you’re 60 or over (female) or 70 over (male) and take the Early Bird start, in which case it’s 37 hours (still 7 pm). For Hares the time limit is 30 hours (6 pm). We will also have absolute cutoffs at several of the aid stations, as listed here:2013-100Mile Aid Stations, Mileage and Cutoffs Those who’ve run our race before know that we’ve done all we can to allow runners to finish, but making our volunteers stay out too late and miss the post-race fun and festivities is unfair to them and we ask that you consider that. So please don’t argue if we tell you your race is over. Come back next year and show us how wrong we were.
Finish:
The finish is at The Bear River, right where you started, with none of you hopefully worse for the wear. As we’ve done the in the past, we’ll have a DH (Designated Hugger) at the finish to give you a hug and point you on your way to the party. We will have a little party at The Bear, with plenty of free beer and pizza for all runners and volunteers. Family and friends and your personal mental health professionals should also certainly come to watch you finish and to join in the post-race festivities, but since this is a charity event (see below), they should bring money. You can get tickets Thursday or Friday at the briefing for this, or buy them at the race. There will be a nominal fee for the pizza and beer for them which for pizza and terrific Pateros Creek and Mahogany Grill beer is a darn good deal. We’ll have our awards ceremony there too, probably around 8 o’clock pm.
Awards:
Besides the finishers’ buckle all finishers will receive a beautiful technical shirt and a nice mug. Over all women and men Tortoise winners will also receive a nice award, and the first three female and male Tortoises to cross the finish line will also receive a nice award too, as will the first female and male master Tortoises. We’ll think of something for the Hares. A few others, whose race performance for one reason or another we deem worthy of an award, might also get whatever nice award we come up with. You all know that sometimes it’s better to be a Tortoise than a Hare. Only one award per runner, though.
Charitable Contributions:
Little bunnies, we don’t make any money for ourselves on this race; we’re all just volunteers and every penny in excess of expenses goes to charity, so think about that before you complain about something. Last year our targeted charities were the Jenna Gruben-Morrill Foundation, Partners of Routt Country, the Steve Maloney Memorial Fund, and The Teaching Tree. We will announce our charities for this year after the race.
Miscellaneous:
If you ran our race before you know the weather may be unpredictable, with rain or snow not out of the question: please plan ahead. Please be nice to all the volunteers, and if you see Harvey out there, please say hi and give him a big hug: it’s lonely being a pooka. Please be nice to the environment. Please be nice to each other. And please have fun.